Tag Archives: storymaking

Riff: Find a medium to fit your story

Tell your stories in the way that feels comfortable, like your favorite pair of shoes.

all the mediums are yours, just bring your unique story to make

Document in the way it feels natural to you. Doesn’t have to be a blog, can be a notebook with colored pencils, or buy yourself a fountain pen, or an audio recorder.

Indeed, whatever medium/form”add context and interestingness to tell a story,

Fck stats make art.

PS Vincent van Gogh was a heck of a letter writer, Henry David Thoreau was a solid botanist, Bob Dylan is a great painter, Joni Mitchell even more so, Nick Cave is an exceptional organizer… shall I go on? No no, you go on. (And let me know what you make)

Kerou-whacked / On The Road exhibit in Kobe, cancelled (not shocking)

Like everything, not shockingly, the Jack Kerouac “on the road” sc/roll exhibition in Kobe (what would’ve been the sc/roll’s first time in Asia), and my related storymaking workshop “We are the stories we create“ are cancelled.

Good news is: I have a handy inky “cancelled” stamp to make the poster an accurate souvenir.

Best regards to Professor Matt Theado and his colleagues at the University and museum for all the work that went into this project and also hat tip to the keeper of the artifact, the wonderfully named, Mr. Jim Canary, who would’ve been subject to a two week quarantine amongst other challenges of going forward with this event.

Not a lot of fun but we could’ve delivered him rice balls a few times a day and left them at the door :).

Hopefully, there will be an availability in the future for Mr. Canary and the scroll to make the trip. I had big ideas for my workshop, but not really things that are shareable by video as meant to be hands-on.

The time will come, the time will come.

Patience and time are our allies. I’ll keep sharing the goods from Jack Kerouac and contemporaries in the meanwhile.

Hit the road with Kerouac – from New York to Kobe (or something like that)

Hit the road with Kerouac from New York to Kobe (or something like that)

The legendary sc/roll of “On the Road“ which sparked so many people hitchhiking, train hopping, disappearing on ships — opening their mind, exploring new cultures and traditions and sparking so much counter-culture… from beats, pranksters, hippies, punks, to diy independent everything and freethinking anyone, yes that one / ‘Tis lionized in many songs, remixes, movies, chapbooks, fanzines – the thumbprints are everywhere.

And now you can add to the legend by showing up as this (valuable in every sense) artifact is coming to Asia for the first time ever. Specifically, Kobe Japan from April 25 – May 31 at BB Plaza Museum of Art.

Plus, your old pal (me!) is helping kick things off with a special hands-on, hand-made, do-it-ourselves, story-making workshop on April 29. All ages welcome, just bring a curious mind and be ready to use some scissors and glue and instant camera and typewriters and have some laughs and learning. Continue reading Hit the road with Kerouac – from New York to Kobe (or something like that)

Kerouac Comes to Japan / overview of storymaking workshop

Kerouac “On the Road” storymaking workshop

Workshop: “We Are the Stories We Create”
April 29 (Wed.) 14:00 to 16:00 
Venue: BB Plaza Museum of Art, Kobe, Japan
Capacity: 20 people / Free participation (* Exhibition ticket required) / Advance reservation system / First come first served /
Presented in English and Japanese

Blurb:
Handmade workshop! Participants create their stories using typewriters, paper, scissors and glue, and explore various ways to share them. Create one booklet together. We work with original materials such as mimeographs and hand-made books shown by instructor Dave.

4月29日(水) 14:00-16:00 会場:BBプラザ美術館
定員:20名 / 参加無料(*展覧会観覧券の提示要)/ 事前予約制 / 先着順 / 日英対応
講師:デイブ・オルソン(デザイナー)
手作りワークショップ!参加者はタイプライターと紙、ハサミやのりを使ってそれぞれ物語を作り、それをシェアする様々な方法を探ります。一緒に1つの冊子を作成します。講師デイブがお見せするガリ版刷り、手綴り本などの実物を参考に工作します。

+++
会場:BBプラザ美術館
神戸市灘区岩屋中町4-2-7 BBプラザ2F TEL 078-802-9286
シンポジウム「ジャック・ケルアックの『オン・ザ・ロード』の旅:神戸から世界へ」
5月24 日(日)13:00-17:00 (開場 12:30) 
会 場:シマブンホール(BBプラザ4F)
定 員:200名 聴講無料(*展覧会観覧券の提示要)・事前予約制 ・先着順 ・通訳付 
講演者:
青山南(作家、翻訳家)
柴田元幸(神戸市外国語大学客員教授、東京大学名誉教授、『MONKEY』責任編集者、翻訳家)
ヒラリー・ハラデイ(ビート研究者、前マサチューセッツ大学ローウェル校アメリカン・スタディーズ・ケルアック・センター所長、What’s Your Road, Man?: Critical Essays on Jack Kerouac’s On the Road 編集者)
マシュー・セアドー(神戸市外国語大学教授、著作 Understanding Jack Kerouac, The Beats: A Literary Reference)
司 会:難波江仁美(神戸市外国語大学教授)

More: https://www.facebook.com/Kerouac-Comes-to-Japan-1412997018836396/

Hit the Road for Kerouac / Let’s go! Kobe, April 29, 2020

** Let’s go! Kobe, April 29 **
Kerouac “On the Road” storymaking workshop / in Japanese and English
Workshop: “We Are the Stories We Create”
April 29 (Wed.) 14:00 to 16:00
Venue: BB Plaza Museum of Art, Kobe, Japan
Capacity: 20 people / Free participation (* Exhibition ticket required) / Advance reservation system / First come first served /
Presented in English and Japanese
Blurb:
Handmade workshop! Participants create their stories using typewriters, paper, scissors and glue, and explore various ways to share them. Create one booklet together. We work with original materials such as mimeographs and hand-made books shown by instructor Dave.
4月29日(水) 14:00-16:00 会場:BBプラザ美術館
定員:20名 / 参加無料(*展覧会観覧券の提示要)/ 事前予約制 / 先着順 / 日英対応
講師:デイブ・オルソン(デザイナー)
手作りワークショップ!参加者はタイプライターと紙、ハサミやのりを使ってそれぞれ物語を作り、それをシェアする様々な方法を探ります。一緒に1つの冊子を作成します。講師デイブがお見せするガリ版刷り、手綴り本などの実物を参考に工作します。

“On The Road” to Kobe for Kerouac – scroll exhibit and story workshop

Jack Kerouac Alley, San Francisco, 2018 (come here this guy tell beat stories)

Jack Kerouac is well-noted for typing/writing his epic novels of personal discovery against a backdrop of a rapidly changing America on long sc/rolls of paper – to maintain momentum rather than pausing to change sheets among other reasons.

Jack Kerouac examines roll manuscript Note: Obv not my photo, source unknown

There are around 8 of these sc/rolls in existence and all were sold off by the estate managers (rather than archived in museums/libraries)  the location of most is unknown… however the most *famous* of the rolls “On the Road” sold for some millions and is now coming for exhibition display to Kobe, Japan at BB Plaza Museum

 

Typewriter: Kerouac's Underwood (used for On the Road)
Typewriter: Kerouac’s Underwood – Note: Not my photo, source unknown

Of course, Kerouac is a massive influence on my life of hitchhiking, train/ship riding, poetry writing, and finding beauty in the downtrodden and digging into life with vigour and authenticity. 

Along with the majestic original tome of a genre-defining and culture-changing book comes a series of events curated by Prof Matt Theado and colleagues at Kobe University [see Kerouac Comes to Japan FB to follow along]  including documentary film screening, symposium and more.

Among the line-up is your pal (me) doing a 2 hour hands-on analog workshop about making stories in various formats. I’ll be bringing the old-timey suitcases filled with surprises from the archive and supplies for making new artifacts in real-time. 

Reading Kerouac at the appropriate interaction in San Francisco whilst recording
PfGB / Reading Kerouac at the appropriate interaction in San Francisco whilst recording Kerouac Choruses at Third and Harrison – Postcard #36

If you are in Japan, consider coming along – seriously, we’ll have a good time. Not in Japan? Maybe i’ll capture some goodness for ya but if you can spread the word and/or send some vibes, ’tis well-appreciated. 

Read on for details of my gig and then more about the event in general… Also, spending time with the roll i suspect will feel like see King Tutankhamun’s death mask (Seattle 1978). 

Note: See evidence of presentation style from previous gigs

DaveO Workshop / in Japanese and English(ish)

Workshop: “We Are the Stories We Create”

Dave spiels at Northern Voice conference, 2009 (photo by…?)

Lecturer: Dave Olson (designer)

April 29 (Wed.) 14:00 to 16:00 

Venue: BB Plaza Museum of Art (web | FB)

Capacity: 20 people / Free participation (* Exhibition ticket required) / Advance reservation system / First come first served / Presented in English and Japanese 

Handmade workshop! Participants create their stories using typewriters, paper, scissors and glue, and explore various ways to share them. Create one booklet together.  We work with original materials such as mimeographs and hand-made books shown by instructor Dave. Continue reading “On The Road” to Kobe for Kerouac – scroll exhibit and story workshop

Merchant of ephemera (and painter of bunnies) in Mile-End, Montréal

Meet Billy, mixed media artist, roamer and proprietor of my fave ephemera shop @monastiraki in Montréal where i purchased expired passports, vintage hotel stationary, 4-language election leaflets, handmade chapbooks and myriad other oddities – much is now transformed into new stories {see: “Items: Forgotten“]

[Update: his charming store has moved onto a new phase / hiatus / closed – was a highlight of my time in MTL]

Palau Storyboards – Remixing ancient art style for storytelling

In Palau (an archipelago of islands in Micronesia), the artisans make remarkable relief-carved wooden boards – appropriately called “storyboards”.

paint-static montages-Palau Storyboards – Remixing ancient art style for storytelling
Palau Storyboards – Remixing ancient art style for storytelling

This idea of creating a loose/non-linear narrative to visually accompany an oral story was the spark that ignites did my whole public speaking/story making style.

Modern storyboard about Palau by Dave Olson
Modern storyboard about Palau by Dave Olson

When I wander far, I rarely take a camera beyond a disposable unit but instead, chronicle my journey through assembling ephemeral artifacts which then become scrapbooks and/or storyboards of a kind. In this example from Palau, you’ll see a mix of disposable camera snapshots printed on distressed hemp paper along with various tickets, shells, lighters, maps, newsclippings, stickers, stamps etc. plus… I wrote a brief narrative structure on Japanese rice paper envelopes, and then assembled the whole collection on green hemp canvas attached to a wooden cradle — then added paint, straw, bits of dead coral and so on.

I went there with little knowledge, no plans, and few expectations but managed to hop between islands on various intermittent ferries hauling drums of diesel, small plane, random boats and goodwill of others. Caught in a tent in a rainstorm on Anguar, made a driftwood fire for fish, tromped to the top of bloody nose Ridge on Pelilu, saw tanks resting in the jungle and sealed up a escape tunnels, drinks at Jeff’s pirate cove in Koror… Met a friend and helped deliver mail to a live aboard dive boat then surfed a dangerous coral break, scuba dove solo at blue corner (saw sharks turtles and the very middle of the earth), free dove for a giant clams and cooked the giant clam meat on a little fire on a perfect tiny island.

Saw the Southern Cross, bought a handmade wooden spear gun, plus a hand fishing reel with thick line for trolling off a boat or casting from shore and traded dive masks for kayak rides and packets of zigzags for local herbs (which were exceptional) and used comically large shells as ashtrays. The old folks on the islands spoke Japanese so I was able to hear stories of the occupation, traditions and life during wartime without filter of go-betweens. I imagined the tens of thousands of lives lost in meeting last battles as I rumble down potholed airstrips made pre-World War II while the plane literally drops off the edge of a cliff before catching itself while waves crash below.

This was just before the bridge collapsed between the island with the small airport which connects to the capital “city.” I went deep down their historical rabbit hole and learned of their tussles with foreign fishing fleets, nuclear submarines, handoffs between colonial powers > United Nations > and finally (re)independence, plus their pushback against encroaching tourist hotels and the deep respect for their natural environment. The hundreds of islands look like heads of broccoli and the people have a remarkable combination of a sense of the outside world while maintaining their traditions and culture without giving into the shiny temptations of material trappings. This is all. I planned to return for too many years now and, hesitated to tell anyone about this because I want to vanish here perhaps.

Sharing “Oft-Forgotten Vancouver Stories” at Northern Voice 2013

Dave at Northern Voice 2009 by Megan Mallen
Dave at Northern Voice 2009 by Megan Mallen

I’m speaking at noted, long-time personal expression/blogging conference: Northern Voice, this time held at Museum of Vancouver. I’m bringing an old-timey suitcase and possible costume changes.

Details and tickets are at northernvoice.ca but basics are: June 14-15 (my gig is last on Saturday, 15th 3:30-4:30) at Museum of Vancouver (same building as the Planetarium with the crazy metal crab out front).

Blurb: Vancouver, The Untold Stories 

The core of personal expression is in the stories we create. Indeed, we humans are defined by the stories we tell and the people we tell them to. No matter what form your stories take – digital or analog – they come alive when shared with an audience.

By exploring an oft-forgotten and eclectic variety of Vancouver stories, Northern Voice veteran (this is his 10th talk) Dave Olson @uncleweed, will send you on personal quests to discover new heroes, sort out conundrums, and collaborate with other storymakers to and remix artifacts from our local life. Along the way, you’ll explore forms your mixed media stories might take, and ways to share with audiences you’ve yet to meet.

Start your journey by finding inspiration and interestingness in the  history of our own Vancouver, perhaps: forgotten breweries and legendary blues venues, wealthy recluse at the Bayshore, intrepid punk rock photographer, bohemian group of seven painters, storytellers past and future, true heavyweight champ in an unmarked grave, a dead Hollywood star and his grisly autopsy, stoner comedians’ first meeting, Jimi/Janis/Jerry, summer of love shakedown #nofun, Sammy Sr. at the Cave, Jello at the York, everyone at the Buddha,  and a host of our distant forebears and peers.

Your speaker Dave grew up in Guildford > Whalley > Newton and now lives in Lynn Valley and works in Mt. Pleasant – while he’s spent time in 29+ other countries – he takes distinct interest in getting lost in neighbourhoods seeking craft ales, chill gardens and curious tales. You may have caught him sharing at Pecha Kucha, SXSW, TedX or local community clubs.

History:

For the record, my previous talks were:

  1. Blogging your Passion (with Rachel Ashe, Andre Charland and …)
  2. Three Ps of Podcasting (intro’ed by Roland Tanglao)
  3. Crazy Canucks panel (with John and Rebecca Bollwitt, JJ Guerrero, Alanah McGinley)
  4. Fuck Stats, Make Art (dedicated to Derek K Miller)
  5. Story of a Story (Letters from Russia)
  6. Rock n Roll Photo (with Kris Krug and Bev Davies)
  7. Citizen Journalism and Vancouver 2010 Olympics (with Robert Scales, Andy Miah, Kris Krug, Debbie Lander)
  8. Japan photo project (with John Biehler’s photo camp)
  9. Finding your Voice with Storymaking (delivered via video due to hospitalization)
  10. Vancouver: The Untold Stories (with you, i hope)

My blurb follows, perhaps we’ll see ya there? Oh, a load of my pals are spieling too.

 

“Finding your Voice” Storymaking Spiel from Northern Voice 2010

On a field trip to his home studio in Lynn Valley, storymaker Dave Olson discusses his creative process and thoughts about how to spark new ideas and craft interesting artifacts.

After welcoming you like Mr. Rogers, he plays records, pours tea, shows static montages from Palau, and pulls out all sorts of projects from grade school country reports to Cannabis Culture articles. Finally he shows books by heroes who provided solace and wisdom and then sends you back to the bus stop.

Filmed, Directed, Edited etc. by Andrew Lavigne
Music by The Numbskulz and Black Tories

Presented at Northern Voice personal expression conference in Vancouver, Canada, May 9, 2010.

More: Remarks, reviews and artifacts of Storymaking at Northern Voice