[SIC] 314: Pere Booboo

Vol. 7, Number 4. Compiled from anniversary vacation while my wife was sleeping. [SIC] Talks corollaries, the original 5 Questions For and a loooot of wisdom from the crowds.

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I’m on vacation this week, sort of - so forgive the late send and the generally slapdash feeling of this digest. It was our 20th wedding anniversary yesterday, and Marcella and I took advantage of the generosity of some friends - namely [SIC] Talks alums Ben Pruess and Charla Caponi to - to take an impromptu trip. So this edition is a little different. No new talks or questions; I revisited some favorites. There’s a LOT of great references from contributors this week, so I moved “Wisdom of the Crowd” up to the top. And thought to point you to two things: 1) yesterday’s [SIC] Day post for paid subs which I wrote (mostly) about photobooks and I figured I’d unlock it….

And (going live more or less now), Casey Lewis’s first ever After School event, which like my talk with Austin Tedesco last week, is a first-of-it’s kind. Per Casey:

 “To those who aren’t in New York, we’ll be livestreaming this event! We’re using the Substack app’s brand-new live feature. This, I believe, will be the first time Substack has live-streamed a live event on their app.”

Beyond that, one more thought: Traveling this week made Blackbird Spyplane’s “Dos & Donts of a Mach 3+ Lifestyle” really resonate. It’s “How to move through this nutty, nasty world with your dignity intact,” and other than TOTALLY disagreeing on ‘public’ music on the subway, I’m with this. Especially the moving to the right on escalators part.

Ok - now the links. Back to normal next week. Be well, meantime.

Ben

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[SIC] 314: Pere Booboo

Five Questions For Cynthia Talmadge [re-published from [SIC] 175: Artisanal Computing]

Installation view of “Franklin Fifth Helena” @ 56Henry Gallery

5 Questions For: Cynthia Talmadge

I discovered Cynthia’s work through the frequently-cited Halsey McKay Gallery; I love it for its unusual medium (painting and sand!) and attention-to-fine-detail (a quality I don’t really possess).  The explanation/writeup of her most recent show “Franklin Fifth Helena,” which is on view at 56Henry Gallery (through 1/30), as seen in the image above, is really worth the read. Here’s what I asked her via email, and how she responded:

[SIC] Weekly: What are your favorite sources of daily information? Do they overlap with sources of inspiration for your work? 

Cynthia Talmadge: "Because I’m in studio mostly I listen to news and audiobooks a lot. BBC World Service is updated frequently and tends to have more international stories which I appreciate. I like nonfiction, I’ve enjoyed everything by John Krakauer. Free Love Utopia to the Well-Set Table: Oneida by Ellen Wayland-Smith was about the history of a wedding registry favorite and ubiquitous piece of American domesticity which turns out was started by a group of radical New Englanders who chose polyamory over Puritanism in the 1800’s!  Wild. I also liked The Buried by Peter Hessler which toggles back and forth between ancient Egyptian archaeology and the Arab Spring. A Libertarian Walks into a Bear by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetlingwas a really funny and illuminating book about a small libertarian town in New Hampshire with an out of control bear problem that gave me a whole new understanding of the state and maybe even our country? I also have a huge collection of audiobooks on North Korea."

Judging by your IG stories, you do a fair amount of traveling. What’s one place that you’ve been recently that’s worth mentioning? 

"Uzbekistan! It’s got it all. Central Asia is somewhere I’d really like to visit more."

It’s an average Thursday afternoon. Where do we find you, and what’s keeping you busy? 

"Hopefully in studio. I’m working on some sculpture projects right now so I might be on zoom with my 3D modeler trying to figure stuff out or maybe painting."

Who do you admire? And what for? 

"I admire filmmakers like Todd Haynes who have to have a broad range of knowledge to create a huge spectacle which is a movie. I also love Rodrigo Koxa, a big wave surfer, who had a terrible surfing accident and had to deal with PTSD and basically reached what seems like some kind of state of spiritual enlightenment and went on to break the record for surfing the biggest wave at Nazarè.  I admire anyone doing their best, trying to be excellent with some amount of sincerity. I love people who try really hard, even too hard, which has become criminally uncool lately but I think Tracy Flick is going to be back in fashion in a big way soon."

What can [SIC] readers help you with?

"I love movie and audiobook recommendations! Also travel tips for the country of Georgia if you’ve got them :)” 

Detail from “Franklin Fifth Helena” @ 56Henry Gallery

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Fits and Starts

• Yuval Noah Harari on whether democracy and AI can coexist / Vox

• Google’s AI mushrooms could have “devastating consequences” / 404 Media

• The next generation of news. Shit You Should Care About has popularized a new model of news consumption: Have fun / Embedded

• Taste is Eating Silicon Valley / Working Theory

• Taste is the personalizing of Culture / Product Lost

• Daisy’s “The Taste Economy” / YT

• Why “Buy American” is not such a great idea / Marginal Revolution

• Huge study from The Economist about car bloat in the US. "For every life that the heaviest 1% of SUVs and trucks save, there are more than a dozen lives lost in other vehicles." 'Safety for me, danger for you' is an American motto at this point.

• An ode to the minivan, America's 'perfect vehicle''Minivan sales have been falling steadily since their peak in 2000, when about 1.3 million were sold in the United States. As of last year, that figure is down by about 80%.' / The Atlantic

• 4 in 10 London children stopped driving and started walking to school a year after the city's clean air zone went into effect /Grist.

• Evolving greenwashing to sportwashing. Fossil fuel companies have spent $5.6 billion on sponsorship of global sports / The Carbon Almanac

• Tiny Crocheted Hats for Cats Could Maybe Cure Chronic Pain / Hyperallergic

• Researchers Gave Dogs LSD to Better Understand Its Impact on Autism / Doubleblind

• The Art of Acid. LSD heists, psychedelic cabals, and other countercultural lore with Erik Davis, author of 'Blotter' / Rave New World

• Cory Arcangel thinks Michael Majerus was a Space Invader. A puckish computer artist decodes salvaging the late painter’s last laptop and his long journey from hating its owner into awe / Spike

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Wisdom of the Crowds

From Piers Fawkes

• “Now this is important trend spotting :)” How ‘This Must Be the Place’ Became the Ultimate Restaurant Song / Eater

• “Maybe a chance to rethink the city with algorithmic design without pesky population  getting in the way” [Zaha Hadid Architects creates parametric London for Fortnite game] / Dezeen

• Why Do Nonalcoholic Drinks Cost So Much?answer - we are not drinking enough / Eater Atlanta

• “Maybe a chance to rethink the city with algorithmic design without pesky population  getting in the way” [Zaha Hadid Architects creates parametric London for Fortnite game] / Dezeen

• “I wonder if what motivates these men to church is because the experience biases towards a male hero narrative that is harder to find in a world of shared stories” [With Gen Z, Men Are Now More Religious Than Women / NYT

• “Sydney Airport's Hilarious 'Welcome to Melbourne' Prank Leaves Passengers Wondering –Did I Get Off at the Wrong Stop? fun + advertising + complaints = hype” / View From The Wing

• “Interesting - if the Germans can regulate what is a pilsner, can the Turkish regulate what is a doner kebab?” [Turkey wants to regulate Germany's beloved döner kebab street food] / NPR

From Mike Klein:

• Herman Miller transforms gaming chairs into "art objects" with Faile / Dezeen

From Stella Belt:

Just sending over some recent pieces which we thought you might be into. [ All from Pioneer Works Broadcast ]

1. Narcissister's Infinite Insides: Our Senior Arts Editor David Everitt Howe profiles the inimitable performance artist, Narcissister—famous for birthing eggs on downtown stages, among other talents. The piece delves into her art school roots and explores her work's focus on race, class, and sex.

2. The Elegant Universe: In this excerpt from the 25th anniversary edition of The Elegant Universe, Brian Greene revisits the classic work that introduced legions to modern physics and the quest to ultimate understanding of the cosmos. 

3. Sigrid Nunez is Always Lying: Sigrid Nunez, in conversation with Jordan Kisner, shares her two cents on autofiction, animals, and how to cultivate confidence as a writer.

4. I know you don't typically share fiction, so just for your enjoyment: this new short story from Isle McElroy (published today!) is my personal favorite from the past month. 

From Zach Sokol:

some good reads -- for your roundup consideration!

• How Fred Flintstone Became One of America’s Greatest Cultural Exports

INTERVIEW: EMILY WITT

Raw Milk (the post): What it is, what it does, how to buy, how to start

Laid Off: And Scrambling To Save Her Work

From Iolanda Carvalho:

• First of all, thanks for yet another inclusion of Portuguese stuff in the newsletter, in addition to the book (and I had nothing to do with it this time 😉), the lobster dish is from a popular ceramics company - and author, Bordallo Pinheiro:

• And since you are traveling and probably have less time, sending everything I saw ahahah

• Scroll, swipe, repeat: are inspiration echo-chambers destroying our creativity?

• "The ‘ease’ of accessing inspiration is certainly part of it. A never-ending stream of algorithmically-tailored stuff at your fingertips. Computational intelligence ready to provide large language-modelled answers to literally any question that your heart desires. Sounds like the stuff of inspirational nirvana, surely? Well, no. For reasons which we’ll get to, our brains actually prefer it when they have to work a little at ideas." / Shots

• Roblox moves to create a walled garden as it leans into ad strategy

• "Advertising is key to unlocking profitability for Roblox. But its ad and child safety policies are complicating a fast-growing revenue driver" / The Media Leader

• AI Firm Perplexity Reportedly Plans New Advertising Model  An entire business model to be redefined.../ Pymnts

• Live sport to get the full Netflix storytelling treatment The Netflixfication of live sports 🙂/WARC

• Trend Season!!!! Ipsos Global Trends 10th Anniversary Edition / Ipsos

• New dynamics for co-creation: Youtube launches Discord-like “Communities” / TechCrunch

• Why news is worth protecting and how to save it for our collective futures. “In this issue, you’ll hear from and about organizations that are making journalism work in many ways using a variety of models. Some are more scalable than others, but as David Rubin of The New York Times points out, digital journalism is a relatively new industry. We’re still figuring it out. And the stakes are high" / Ipsos

From Celeste Blewitt:

• How Dominic Dunne Invented the Way We Read About The Rich  / T&C

  Excellent article on wealth, literature and the storytelling of the Dunne family, in particular, Dominic Dunne. I listened to Griffin Dunne on Ruthie's Table pudcast a while ago, such a great listen, so to read a digest of these novels, the family history understanding power and wealth is always intriguing. 

• When Robots Can't Riddle: What Puzzles Reveal About The Depths Of Our Own Minds / BBC

  I'm surrounded by avid puzzlers, crosswords, cryptic crosswords and the like, so to read of the test for LLMs and Chat GPT etc, is always fascinating, I guess it's time to start learning how to do a cryptic crossword!

• Can Levi's Get It's Mojo Back? / FT

  Levi's have a big number to hit, but in a sea of denim these days, can Levi's still be a leader in the denim world? It appears there's such competition, although variou ranges of pricing, it will be interesting to see if the brand can continue and be revived. 

• Why Sally Rooney Is Holding Back On Adapting Her Third Book Into A TV Series / Elle UK

  Cult following, Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar Jones as lead characters, it's surprising to read the Sally Rooney has decided not to accept any option offers for book three. Perhaps it was the Dolly Alderton/ Pandora Sykes High Low era, while culture/ books have moved so swiftly in that time. 

• Major League Baseball Is Going Through An Accessory Crisis' / GQ

  I’m not a sports follower, but the uniforms, trends and styles that go with each sport is what I get drawn to. So to read of the mismatching accessories, rules around team colours and how the uniform must be worn, it's an art to logistically make it work.

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TLDR

• Runway partners with Lionsgate. The loud part of Hollywood hates generative AI and the quiet part is rushing /towards it / Runway ML

• Will the Runway-Lionsgate AI partnership be a blessing or a curse for Hollywood? / The Drum

• James Cameron joining Stability AI isn't the U-turn it's being painted as / Creative Bloq

• The Justice Department sued Visa, alleging the payments company used its debit card monopoly to inflate “the price of nearly everything.” / Marketplace

• Did Art History Predict the Rise of Moo Deng? / Hyperallergic

• The role of Gen Z as employee influencers / McKinsey

• Why eight Tokyo minutes from office to metro is too long / FT

• Where Every Day Is “Bring Your Kid to Work” Day / Reasons to Be Cheerful

• A Story Collection About People Who Just Can’t Hang /The New Yorker

• The Undecided Voters Are Not Who You Think They Are / The Atlantic

• Gatekeeping Information is SO Boomer Coded! / OK Cool

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SIC Talks

• Sell, sell, sell: corporate styling breaks out of the office and into fashion / The Guardian

  Apropos:

• MODEM PANELS E02, Emily Segal in conversation with Mindy Seu and Francesca Gavin / Nemesis

  And apropos of that:

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Other Conversations

• Lance Bangs Talks MJ Lenderman’s Manning Fireworks

• Lionel Barber on his Masayoshi Son bio (and how Masa-San might have lost more most than any person ever / Monocle

• A Minute With Emilie Gossiaux, whose show opens today at Kunsthall Trondheim in Norway / Art Stuff

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Style

• A-Z Brand Analysis: B is for Balenciaga / Nemesis

• insightful podcast interview with Fabien Baron that captures the essence of an era when magazines ruled as the ultimate cultural product / SPD

• How much does a fashion show cost in 2024?As the Spring/Summer 2025 season rolls, crunching the numbers on how much a show costs in Paris and Milan / Vogue Business

• Eyewear’s Disruption by Smart Glasses May Have Already Begun / BoF

• The Users Who Overtook the Machine ssense A relatively brief, entirely incomplete history of online fashion fandom.

• Eight buildings "unlike anything seen before" from the American School / Dezeen

• MMerch is The Web3 fashion brand combining generative AI, NFTs and on-demand manufacturing / Vogue Business

• ‘Hyper-feminine, hyper-functional’: Inside Cecilie Bahnsen’s new collab with The North Face / Vogue Business

• But the skullet? Maybe not so much FKA twigs’ new hairstyle / Dazed

• Telfar is disrupting its own model and pushing higher-end with an IRL-only leather launch in London / Vogue Business

• “T.F. Company” is a Throwing Fits x C.P. Company / IG

• Drake’s Autumn Lookbook is like the Specials at their 10 year Princeton reunion or something/ Drakes

• AllSaints’ Shoreditch Leather debut fragrance is certainly a blast from the past (specifically, a sweaty dancefloor in 2007) / The Guardian

• Screen Time

• Livestreaming classic cinema. The archivists cataloguing Criterion24/7 / One Thing

• The Winners of the 2024 Creator Labs Photo Fund / Aperture

• Publishers are turning podcasts into video talk shows/ Digiday

• Jeffrey Gibson Records the Land’s Heartbeat in NYC Projections / Hyperallergic

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The Marketplace

• 💵10 Ways To Make Money Consulting / Context Collapse

• Is purpose a dirty word? Brands, companies pivot to ‘impact’/ PR Week

• The Web3 fashion brand combining generative AI, NFTs and on-demand manufacturing / Vogue Business

• How Front Office Sports took a prosumer approach to $10 million in revenue / The Rebooting

• Stagwell urges advertisers to spend on journalism in print campaign for NYT, WSJ & Politico / The Drum

• Fujifilm’s X100V camera went so viral on TikTok in 2022 that the company still can’t keep up with demand / Bloomberg

• Pop champagne? the Prosecco flows …Former Nike employees are ‘elated’ over new CEO Elliott Hill / Digiday

• Jaylen Brown is launching his own footwear company / Complex

• Technology, ‘tweakments’ boom in Asia’s beauty market / Jing Daily

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Sustenance

• Vox is launching a meat news newsletter called ‘processing meat’ / Vox

• Related: Avian Flu is Bad for Cows / Marginal Revolution

• How do Greenland sharks live for 400 years? / NYT

• In contrast: Coca-Cola discontinues "spiced" flavor 6 months after debut / CBS News

• The world's oldest cheese has been discovered in Xinjiang, China. A mix of cow and goat cheese, the sample dates back 3,600 years to the Bronze Age/ /NYT

• Plant-Based Pizza and Branzino: The Mayor’s Usual, at Osteria La Baia /The New Yorker

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Friends Section

• On October 10th, Sukeban will bring Japan's best fighters to London's historic York Hall / IG

• [SIC] Talks alum Recho Omondi had Marc Ecko on the Cutting Room Floor / IG

• While fellow [SIC] Talks alum Ryan McGuinnness has a new collab with Agnes B / Agnes B

• Kon Trubkovich @  Tennis elbow / IG

• Dave Ortiz showing work in NYC / IG

• David Coggin’s “The Outsider” boot with Viberg is v. good / The Contender

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Playlist

• My Funeral Playlist for “The Last Playlist” back in 2021.

• The Playlist in Question / Spotify

• Hollertronix mixtape for Triple 5 Soul that Low Budget kindly reposted / Soundcloud

• New Bon Iver! / Pulling Weeds

• Meantime, this week’s discover weekly was great for the drive from Lech to Milan (and for compiling this edition) / Spotify

• Specifically: “Young Adult Friction” by The Pains of Being Pure At Heart is the kind of song that will catch me every time.

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[SIC] 314: Pere Booboo

Corollary Sources Cited this week: Royal Braun / Future of Transportation / Kottke / Nieman Lab/ Who Do You Know / Marginal Revolution / The Future Party