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Pixar Art Exhibit at MoMA, with Podcast

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the things-to-listen-to dept.

yodelingjedi writes "Pixar's CG models, paintings, pencil drawings, maquettes, color scripts, and sketches are the subject of the special exhibit Pixar: 20 Years of Animation, now being held at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC until February 6 of '06. A complete Pixar film retrospective is being shown as well. What's especially cool is that MoMA, like some other museums, is providing a Podcast you can load into your mp3 player and listen to as you're standing beside a specific artwork. Be sure to check out MoMA's RSS feed and listen to the Exhibition Guide (entries 670 to 688.) Each mp3 file corresponds to a numbered artwork. A link on the Pixar exhibit page, Listen to the audio program, brings up a Flash presentation with the same audio as the Podcast, but of lower quality. It does have sample images though. Perhaps MoMA should provide an enhanced Podcast? Enjoy!"

57 comments

  1. Provide the iPod by honeypotslash · · Score: 1

    So does the museum provide the iPod to you when you enter? So you can actually listen to the podcasts without having to bring an iPod of your own.

    1. Re:Provide the iPod by honeypotslash · · Score: 0

      It would probably be more convient if they provided a button by the paintings you could press and listen to the information.
      --
      Get a free Playstation 3 here!

    2. Re:Provide the iPod by LocoMan · · Score: 1

      When I was visiting in Spain what they did in museums instead was to give you some things that looked like those old brick cell phones, and each painting or interest point had a sign with a 3 digits number that you could push into it and then listen to the information. It's more convenient than a button to listen since you start and stop listening when you want, so it's no problem if you walk in in the middle of the speech and have to wait until it's over so you can push it again, and no problem trying to listen to the information of whatever is it you're seeing and trying to ignore the information from the stuff next to you.

    3. Re:Provide the iPod by Harlockjds · · Score: 1

      At the museum MOMA provides audio gizmos (they look like TV remotes) for listening to the exhibit audio. It's included in the admission (thank god because admission is pretty damn high.

      This is just a option for people to preload whatever mp3 play they have and not have to borrow one of the their things.

    4. Re:Provide the iPod by eMartin · · Score: 1

      "thank god because admission is pretty damn high"

      Admission is free on Friday evenings from 4-8.

    5. Re:Provide the iPod by blondieeng · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Oh, how nice. A running commentary of what people can listen to while enjoying the exhibit. I am Deaf. What options do I have to enhance my visit to this exhibit? Will a docent hand me a well-thumbed, stained transcript?
      Just another worthless feature for the masses.

    6. Re:Provide the iPod by jacksonj04 · · Score: 1

      Why don't you enquire at the exhibit, instead of asking on Slashdot?

      Worthless no, feature for the masses yes. But why should the masses not have something just because it is unavailable to a minority who cannot enjoy it? It's like saying nobody can go mountaineering because a few people in wheelchairs find it difficult.

      --
      How many people can read hex if only you and dead people can read hex?
    7. Re:Provide the iPod by Harlockjds · · Score: 1

      4 hours of free doesn't make up for jacked up prices the rest of the week. Esp when most museums have free days (and most NYC museums allow you to pay what you want and only have a recommended price, which is lower than moma's price)

    8. Re:Provide the iPod by eMartin · · Score: 1

      Sure, but I was just trying to save someone here 20 bucks.

    9. Re:Provide the iPod by Harlockjds · · Score: 1

      well you can schedule a sign language interpretation (if you give them a few weeks notice).

    10. Re:Provide the iPod by blondieeng · · Score: 1

      I never said the masses should not have something just because it is unavailable to a minority. What I'd like to see is something equally accessible for people such as myself without having to wait weeks for it, such as an interpreter and then squabble with the museum over who is going to pay for that person's services. Additionally, waiting for weeks means the exhibit is long gone by the time I too can enjoy what hearing people can enjoy on a daily basis at the exhibit. Oh, and not all Deaf people want an interpreter. Many are late deafened and do not know any form of sign language. A flat screen with scrolling text with a CLEAN (i.e. not grimy) interface would do nicely. OT: I got a jury duty summons. Like a good girl I filled out the form and stated I needed accomodations. The prompt reply stated my interpreter would be available two months after the original jury duty date and I could NOT reschedule. Nice.

    11. Re:Provide the iPod by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No need to visit Spain to use one of those audio guides. For example I just went to the Seattle Art Museum and they have a similar audio guide device. It was inferior to an audio guide I used in France, however, in that the French museum's audio guide had a little screen so you could see what you were entering, and an easier button layout. The Seattle museum's audio guide was annoying enough that I started referring to it as the "voice mail tour."

    12. Re:Provide the iPod by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Perhaps you should also find someone to help you carry that chip on your shoulder?

      I'm sure the museum would welcome your suggestions as to how to better accomodate people in your situation, if you'd lose the bitter attitude. As one of "the masses", I happen to think what they're doing has plenty of value. I'm sure that they'd be happy to offer you a freshly-printed transcript, but you might want to ask nicely first before deriding them for their insensitivity.

  2. pixar cult by Keyframe2 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    it's like a sociological phenomenon.. pixar is very "in" and "cool".. which is nice, I really like it - refreshment from disney doing old tricks for years now. It's funny to see how pixar is at moma being displayed, while they don't have that much work to display yet. However, their work is groundbraking. In Tokyo there is Ghibli museum of Studio Ghibli, which is animation studio famous for work of Hayao Miyazaki (spirited away etc..).. Hopefully, one day soon, pixar could have such a museum, or more of a display if you will, with permanent hands-on display of how their work is done, and all of their works in one place. On a sidenote, I really like podcasts, they turn me - the lazy bastard - into actually "reading" TFA :)

  3. Red's dream is turning into Red's Nightmare by DoktorFuture · · Score: 2, Informative

    The only things I've seen more of than Pixar's shorts over the years is original Star Trek episodes. If you, like me, are Pixar'ed out, then detox go and watch some awesome more National Film Board of Canada films:

    http://www.nfb.ca/trouverunfilm/?v=h&lg=en

    WAY more material here. (anyone remember the Jumblies stamp movie! oooh that was great!)

    1. Re:Red's dream is turning into Red's Nightmare by tealover · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      You've probably seen Pixar's works because they're...well, good. I could care less about the abundance of shorts via your link. If any of them were deserving of my attention, I would know about it. I wouldn't need the Canadian gov't forcing it in my face.

      --
      -- You see, there would be these conclusions that you could jump to
    2. Re:Red's dream is turning into Red's Nightmare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I just typed in 'railrodder' and bang! the film came up. The silent (but in color) 1965 classic starring Bustor Keton travelling across Canada (5200+ miles) in 27 minutes and 47 seconds on a stolen gas-powered open-cab railway scooter! Weeeeeeee!

  4. not a podcast by That's+Unpossible! · · Score: 4, Informative

    This mis-use of podcast is what causes similarly clueless people to say things like, "Why did they need to create this word, podcast, when all it means is an http link to an mp3 file?"

    A podcast is typically an audio presentation that you can subscribe to receive on a regular basis, simplified with RSS, and tools that sync the audio up to your player du jour. There wasn't a word to describe this succinctly, so "podcast" was born.

    What MoMA has done is provide an audio file you can download on your audio player to explain an exhibit.

    Now pass me a kleenex.

    --
    Ironically, the word ironically is often used incorrectly.
    1. Re:not a podcast by vectorian798 · · Score: 1

      Maddox on Podcasting (scroll down)

    2. Re:not a podcast by tpgp · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This mis-use of podcast is what causes similarly clueless people to say things like, "Why did they need to create this word, podcast, when all it means is an http link to an mp3 file?"

      hahahaha - cute.

      I'm afraid this is going to be like the hacker vs cracker definition battle - and its a battle that you have already lost.

      The American Heritage Dictionary defines the term (their word of the year) as "a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the Internet for downloading to a personal audio player"

      So by this dictionary's definition, the museum is perfectly correct - who do you think the general public is going to follow?

      Oh - and for the record, I find the term "podcast" extremely irritating, whatever the definition. General purpose words should not be tied to a particular product.

      --
      My pics.
    3. Re:not a podcast by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The RSS feed linked to in the original post is the Podcast. It ends in xml. Pixar-specific entries are numbered 670 to 688. Other exhibit entries are there too.

    4. Re:not a podcast by Tyler+Eaves · · Score: 1

      I disagree. One key element of radio broadcasts if that they are timely. Usually live. Often a show is scehedule on a repeated basis. Most podcasts meet at least some of these criteria. A bit of prerecorded verbiage meets NONE of them.

      Or to put it another way, would you consider an audiobook "basically the same" as a radio broadcast? Of course not, and for the same reasons!

      --
      TODO: Something witty here...
    5. Re:not a podcast by sukotto · · Score: 1

      Now, if only your bluetooth (or whatever) player(phone?) could download and play the appropriate descriptive audio when you approach each part of the installation. On demand, as it were.
      Now *that* would be a cool use of technology. Hey, why download a big file for the whole exhibit when you only need to hear info about the thing you're currently looking at?

      Even better... If you spend a lot of time looking at a particular part of the exhibit then have it give you additional, more detailed, commentary that part. Perhaps comments from the artists that worked on that set of models, character designs discussing the challenges they faced and why they made the choices they did.

      You might argue that this would be a lot of extra work and you'd be right. Just like the extra work that goes into just about everything that Pixar touches. That's part of what makes them so great.

      --
      Come play free flash games on Kongregate!
    6. Re:not a podcast by mmkkbb · · Score: 1

      General purpose words should not be tied to a particular product.

      Podcasts can be listened to on any mp3 player. There are numerous "podcatcher" programs. They aren't and have never been tied exclusively to iPods.

      --
      -mkb
    7. Re:not a podcast by 88NoSoup4U88 · · Score: 1
      General purpose words should not be tied to a particular product.

      I totally agree with you, and after some googling around I found more people with the same opinion.

    8. Re:not a podcast by trooz1 · · Score: 0

      Speaking of particular product, i could use a Kleenex as well!

    9. Re:not a podcast by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      My kingdom for a mod point.

    10. Re:not a podcast by drauh · · Score: 1

      your opinion is just a xerox of the others.

      --
      This is a tautology.
    11. Re:not a podcast by bill_kress · · Score: 1

      Simply because a publication made a mistake, we don't have to simply roll over and take it.

      Doesn't this look like a better definition?

      "Podcasting is a term coined when the use of RSS and other syndication technologies became popular for distributing audio content for mobile devices. Today podcasting is a more generic term that is evolving as people understand what it means."

      Perhaps you are using the wrong reference. Try wikipedia and stop looking at proprietary, slow to evolve treeware.

      Oh, and by the way, I bet placing your quote here was against the law--mine wasn't.

      The war is far from lost.

    12. Re:not a podcast by dangitman · · Score: 1
      Try wikipedia and stop looking at proprietary, slow to evolve treeware.

      Are you at all aware of the irony inherent in this statement, given the topic of this thread?

      --
      ... and then they built the supercollider.
    13. Re:not a podcast by Suhas · · Score: 1

      The American Heritage Dictionary defines the term (their word of the year) as "a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the Internet for downloading to a personal audio player"

      as opposed to a recording which can be downloaded, but not to a portable player? What might that be? Just because whoever wrote that definition for the American Heritage dictionary is clueless does not mean that we have to be too. You, however, are free to refer to them as the final authority on everything.

    14. Re:not a podcast by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      They aren't and have never been tied exclusively to iPods.

      Exactly, it's a general purpose word and is tied to a particular product (the "Pod" in "Podcast" comes from "iPod")

  5. FREE DVDs you say? by k3nsai · · Score: 1

    What? they give away free DVDs? torrents on their websites? "reality check" oh.....podcasts...yeah...great..amazing...uh huh!

    --
    http://www.EarthCountries.com
  6. Walker Art's Art on Call service by dieman · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Far more accessable -- we all have cell phones, but we don't all have ipods.

    http://newmedia.walkerart.org/aoc/index.wac

    A podcast is being setup, but Art On Call was there first.

    --
    -- dieman - Scott Dier
    1. Re:Walker Art's Art on Call service by BushCheney08 · · Score: 1

      ...we don't all have ipods.

      Do you have a portable CD player? You can download the mp3s and burn them as an audio CD.

      --
      Be a real patriot: Question authority. Think for yourself. Formulate your own conclusions.
    2. Re:Walker Art's Art on Call service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      On the contrary, we don't all have cell phones. But I think I'd sooner get a cell phone (and in saying this I shudder) than an ipod.

      I only regularly carry four items: a wallet, a knife, a butane torch, and a pocketwatch, with a few keys, a short pen, and a usb flashrom hooked to the watch chain. I would leave the wallet in my car, since I rarely need it, but I'd rather that certain bits of it were safe with me. Its a nuisance that I'd rather be done with really, and I've never understood our obsession with identity. The other items are indispensable.

      Having to carry something else would annoy me. I can keep track of my four things since I've had them (or their previous iterations, only the watch is original) for so long they feel like part of me. Odds are I would lose a cell phone inside of a week, and I don't like devices that are crippled by batteries that I forget to replace or charge anyway. I really hate batteries. If someone made a very small and durable kinetic cellphone that I could clip to my watch chain, that I might consider buying. For now I'll just stick to finding people and talking to them, email, and landlines.

    3. Re:Walker Art's Art on Call service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      An anonymous coward wrote: I only regularly carry four items: a wallet, a knife, a butane torch, and a pocketwatch, with a few keys, a short pen, and a usb flashrom hooked to the watch chain.

      McGyver is an anonymous coward? too?

    4. Re:Walker Art's Art on Call service by sholden · · Score: 1

      No I don't.

    5. Re:Walker Art's Art on Call service by dangitman · · Score: 1
      Far more accessable -- we all have cell phones, but we don't all have ipods.

      Think that through for a little bit. Almost nobody carried headphones with their cellphone. Nobody wants to hold a phone to their ear the whole time. And museums are supposed to be quiet, so speakerphones are out. Using cellphones sounds like a terrible idea, very distracting.

      --
      ... and then they built the supercollider.
  7. Bambi Meets Godzilla Still The Best by gasmonso · · Score: 3, Funny

    Everyone knows that the best animated short ever is Bambi Meets Godzilla. Check it out on wikipedia.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bambi_Meets_Godzilla

    http://religiousfreaks.com/
    1. Re:Bambi Meets Godzilla Still The Best by metlin · · Score: 1

      Well, I couldn't find the original Pixar version of Bambi vs. Godzilla, but I did find something that looked almost the same.

  8. Very Cool Museum by Comatose51 · · Score: 1

    Been there once and was impressed by the exhibit. I remember seeing an Aeron chair, an iPod mini, and a Mac there.

    --
    EvilCON - Made Famous by /.
  9. Sculptures by digitaldc · · Score: 1

    ...the show includes paintings, concept art, sculptures, and an array of digital installations.

    It would be interesting to know if these sculptures were created by hand or by machine or both.

    --
    He who knows best knows how little he knows. - Thomas Jefferson
    1. Re:Sculptures by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There pictures of several sculptures in the Pixar art books. According to the art books most Pixar Scupltures are created by hand, and then cast into a resin/polymer finish. For being such a tech savy company, it seems the still emplore many traditional methods. If you listen to the animator commentary for the incredibles you will findout that several animators will animate scenes traditionaly with pencil and paper and the base the 3d animation off that.

  10. This is an amazing exhibit. by GreenKiwi · · Score: 2, Informative

    I was lucky enought to attend the opening for this exhibit. I was stunned. The drawings and models are amazing. I would highly recomend that everyone make an effort to go an see it.

    kiwi

    (And I don't work for Pixar...)

    1. Re:This is an amazing exhibit. by eMartin · · Score: 1

      I haven't seen this one, but I saw the Pixar exhibit at the Ghibli museum in Tokyo, and I'll second that recommendation. I'll be going to this one too one of these days.

  11. OK I give up, what's the secret trick? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There are still some Linux users reading this blog, right? (I'm using Mozilla with Debian Sarge)

    http://www.moma.org/visit_moma/podcasts/feed.xml

    "This XML file does not appear to have any style information associated with it. The document tree is shown below."

  12. Pablo Pixarro by LightningBolt! · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's nice to see the work of this "Pixar" guy finally getting some widespread recognition. I think the MoMA show is really going to open things up for him.

    --
    Old people fall. Young people spring. Rich people summer and winter.
    1. Re:Pablo Pixarro by dangitman · · Score: 1

      Corporations are legal persons, didn't you know? But how does a corporation cut its ear off?

      --
      ... and then they built the supercollider.
  13. Why the NYC MOMA? by Aqua+OS+X · · Score: 1

    You'd think they'd do it at the SF MOMA since it's only a few miles from the Pixar campus.
    Ohh well.

    --
    "Things are more moderner than before- bigger, and yet smaller- it's computers-- San Dimas High School football RULES!"
  14. Am I the only one... by dimension6 · · Score: 1

    ...to read the subject as "Pixel Art Exhibit at MoMA"?? Now that would be some preemptive retro...

  15. Or burn it to a CD by Jim+in+Buffalo · · Score: 1

    You could burn the podcast to an audio CD and use an inexpensive portable player. That's what we're doing at the art gallery where I work until I convince the curators to let me put up a podcast for our exhibitions.

    --
    This sig, aah-ah, is comin' like a ghost-sig...