Okay ... this isn't a very good picture of this artwork, but it's the only one I could find online. Presenting Per purificare le parole (To Purify Words) Gilberto Zorio -- 1969.
Zorio believed that the world would be a better place if language could be emptied of all extraneous or corrupt facets. He constructed this device as a tool to achieve that goal. It's essentially just a long hose ... as I recall it's a piece of fire hose, but I could be wrong. It's about as thick as a fire hose and it's probably about 50 feet long. One end is at the height for the speaker, and the other is for the listener. The hose is filled with rubbing alcohol. The speaker talks into the hose, the alcohol then purifies the words so that what the listener hears is free of corruption and lies.
This work was part of a playful art movement in Italy in the 1960s, Arte Povera, who's non-commericial style made it the polar opposite of what Andy Warhol was doing at the exact same time.
I thought about this because it seems like something sort of fun that someone would do as installation art at Burning Man, but also because this particular device could be very useful right now. In particular, I'd like to hear George Bush, Donald Rumsfield, Dick Cheney, and Karl Rove all speak through Zorio's word purifier to have it cleanse all of their lies so we can all hear what they are really saying.
Zorio believed that the world would be a better place if language could be emptied of all extraneous or corrupt facets. He constructed this device as a tool to achieve that goal. It's essentially just a long hose ... as I recall it's a piece of fire hose, but I could be wrong. It's about as thick as a fire hose and it's probably about 50 feet long. One end is at the height for the speaker, and the other is for the listener. The hose is filled with rubbing alcohol. The speaker talks into the hose, the alcohol then purifies the words so that what the listener hears is free of corruption and lies.
This work was part of a playful art movement in Italy in the 1960s, Arte Povera, who's non-commericial style made it the polar opposite of what Andy Warhol was doing at the exact same time.
I thought about this because it seems like something sort of fun that someone would do as installation art at Burning Man, but also because this particular device could be very useful right now. In particular, I'd like to hear George Bush, Donald Rumsfield, Dick Cheney, and Karl Rove all speak through Zorio's word purifier to have it cleanse all of their lies so we can all hear what they are really saying.
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I have heard that the air quality in Los Angeles is poor in light of all of the cars, smokestacks and smog. I have a dust allergy and I wonder whether that would affect me there. People say the same thing about New York City in terms of it being dirty, although I don't know whether that has changed recently.
I would be disappointed if I couldn't listen to NPR news and talk. I listen to Michigan Radio all of the time. Air America started a station in Ann Arbor (1290 AM), but I can't pick it up where I'm living now. If I can generate any decent money, I might just buy a Sirius satellite radio setup.
Yeah. That is why I like Chicago, because of all of the museums, sporting events and culture. I grew up near there and have been there several times. I might end of moving there someday but, then again, the cost of living is high there, too. I wouldn't mind living in Ann Arbor, either. I did live there in an apartment near the mall briefly. Rent and real estate are very expensive there, though, too.