This week's X-rated edition...

     So... The week that's been... First of all, my jobs here as a projectionist and gallery assistant are going great and I'm learning loads. The gallery assistant job has been particularly interesting this past week as we got to de-install the last exhibition and install a new one called Think Art - Act Science where a group of artists had taken part in residencies in a variety of science labs and collaborated with the labs' personel to create art works on the cutting edge of technology. This was a particularly great experience for me, because unlike the usual shows at the gallery which involve wall hangings or video, this exhibition was much more sculptural and involved a lot of technology. As a result, I got to learn a lot about what it's like to be part of a complex travelling exhibition. The show actually had its own set of engineers who travel with it and help install it, so I got to work alongside them and learned from them.

Kinetic Speaker, Pe Lang

     This piece is part of a sound installation where the artist developed these kinetic speakers at the Swiss Centre for Electronics and Microtechnology. As they rotate, they diffuse the sound in a dynamic way which changes as people move around the room.

Fish Skin, Alexandre Joly

      This artist's work looks at the relationship of sound and images and creates sound installations out of piano wire, piezzos and magnets and nails, which then work as one giant speaker or what could be called sonic frescos.

Quarc (Quantum Art Crystal), Christian Gonzenbach

    This is my favourite piece of the exhibition, because I got to personally work on it. When it first arrived, a bunch of the neon tubes had blown, so I got to work with one of the swiss engineers to replace the broken neons with new ones, which wasn't as easy a task as it seems, cos each neon tube is actually an integral part of the overall structure. The artist for this piece did his residency at CERN in Geneva. The piece works with a mechanical random generator, which causes the neon tubes to switch on and off at random, a simile for the Newtonian motion that creates a quantum-situation and a metaphor for the mysteries scientists encounter in their attempts to understand the universe.

When I Woke Up The Sun Had Moved, Alina Mnatsakanian

     I think this artist had the most interesting residency placement at the Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence where she got to work alongside experts in robotics. The little robots in her installation above are programed to react to a specific soundtrack after which they start dancing following a set sequence involving lights and movement. A tracking software then capture the movement of the robots and projects the results in real time on the wall. creating a sort of evolving layered mural, see below.

Treasure Island public sculpture

     After this busy week, I decided to have some relaxation time at the week-end, so Saturday I went for a wander around Treasure Island's flea market, which was definitely full of interesting treasures, such a shame it'd cost too much to ship them all back home... Treasure Island itself is a very strange place. Like Presidio Park, it's another de-comissioned army base, now turned into a residential area, but it feels a bit like a ghost town. Here are a few pictures of my favourite findings at the flea market:

Scary doll with missing fingers from an old wax museum
(I think they might have been catering to potential Halloween costumers)

Choice of wax heads from same museum ($80 a head)

Anyone in need of good old-fashioned cowboy boots?

That's what you call a bible!

This guy was awesome! Not only was he selling army surplus goods, but he was dressed for the part too!
I didn't manage to get a good photo cos I was a bit scared he'd see me taking it...

DIY superman sign...

These wooden totems were actually carved by the guy who was selling them.
I was in total awe of his woodwork skills!

    And now we come to the X-rated part of my week-end... If you don't like nudity or S&M, read no further... I really hope blogger doesn't force me to censor this!

     So Sunday, I got to visit one of San Francisco's quintessential events of the year: the Folsom Street Fair! An experience I am sure I will never forget! For the uninitiated,the Folsom Street Fair is the largest leather S&M event in the world and the only one I know of that takes place in open air, on the street, with no admission fees! The Folsom Street Fair was originally a mainly gay event, but in more recent years, it has become more inclusive and now has an equal mix of gay/hetero attendance.

      The fair started out with the live show stage where amazing drag queens and alternative artists provided entertainment with music, singing and dance.

Then as you make your way into the fair, you start to encounter some of  the weird and wonderful 

fetish outfits on display...

A mare and her rider...

Then you get your first peek at a little light whipping....

A new twist on the bean bag toss...

More wonderful drag queens...

and guys in leather...

More whipping demonstrations...

I stopped counting the number of George Michael look-alikes and dog tails were very popular too!

This guy was really adept with the cat-o-ninetails!

This was the kink stage where they demonstrated every bondage technique you could
ever dream up and more you could never even possibly imagine!

A little spanking between girlfriends with a very naked spectator... 

(Thank god for the hat, or he might feel cold! and he wasn't the only one... I wonder how many people ended up with sunburns on those places where the sun doesn't usually shine...)

One slave just wasn't enough, this guy needed two!

There was also a charity whipping stall where depending on the amount you donated, you could get whipped, caged or spanked for various lengths of time and with different degrees of vigor! 

What people won't do for charity!

This was my favourite couple of the day, a little black guy spanking that big teddy bear
 in the spanking chair! Priceless!

More hunks in leather!

Bondage demonstration... A new way for partners to tie the knot :-)

Magician's assistant style bondage?

Get your leather shined and your boots licked in one wholesome service!

Anyone want an autograph from a gay porn star?

If your landlord won't let you have a pet in the house, there is an alternative...

Or you could just decide to attend doggy day care yourself!

     All in all, it was a most memorable experience, with only a few low points. You definitely had to keep your hands to yourself if you didn't want them brushing against something unexpected in the crowd! I saw enough old, naked bums and penises for a life time and there were some seriously creepy naked guys standing masturbating on the street corners... I also saw one guy with balls the size of a grapefruit. He was so proud of them, he was shaking them about for everyone to see! That's one memory I really could have done without!