"Fractal Forest"

Each day this week, I am going to try posting a new piece of abstract art that I've created.

I'm starting a new gallery, with hi-res images that I'll continually add to.

Abstract Art

by Paul Micarelli 

 
This is the first image I'm uploading:

"Fractal Forest"

by Paul Micarelli

I'll also make prints & products featuring each design available in my Cafepress store.

The Monkey Buddha Bazaar:

Buy "Fractal Forest"

Forms in Nature

On io9, I saw this visually inspiring video that hints at the geometric patterns that underly our reality.

The study of these mathematical patterns, found in nature and in human creations, is called "Sacred Geometry". It includes properties such as the Golden Ratio, the Fibonacci spiral, and the Flower of Life pattern.

This video, however, subtly centers around the most fundamental of forms- the circle.

Vimeo:

Forms in Nature:

Understanding Our Universe

Gorilla in Space!

Ok, it's not a real gorilla...

Astronaut Scott Kelly decided to have some fun & wore a gorilla suit while chasing fellow astronaut Tim Peake on the International Space Station (ISS).

Gorilla on the ISS

When I first started this blog, I considered calling it "Space Ape" to play on the idea of humans as spacefaring simians.

Neon Baby Paul

Today is my birthday, and I want to simply express my gratitude for being able to experience the miracle of Life.

I no longer take my mortality for granted, & see each moment I have in this world as something to treasure.

Luckily, my parents took pictures as I was growing up, so I have a good number of memories & images from my childhood. I came across this photo of me at a few weeks old:

Most of my photos when I was a baby are pretty cute, but in this one I'm a butt-ugly little thing. Still, I'm glad to have it as a record of my life.

Here's a less troll-like pic of my baby years:

For my own amusement, I converted the colors in the first baby pic to neon.

 

Then, I figured I'd make an animated GIF out of it.
This is a tribute to my very existence.

Dimensional Shadows

I recently had one of my creations posted at the awesome blog about geometry, math, & fractals-Geometric-Aesthetic.tumblr.

It shows the fundamental Euclidean elements as shadows of higher dimensions.

 

“Shadows of Higher Dimensions”

• The 0-dimensional point is a shadow of a line...

• The 1-dimensional line is a shadow of a square...

• The 2-dimensional square is a shadow of a cube...

• The 3-dimensional sides of a cube are the shadow of an (unfolded) hypercube.

It's an image I've posted here before, along with my 3D rendering of Dalí's Crucifixion, and an animation of a 4D hypercube.

The Simpsons Reality Zoom

The Simpsons is one of my all-time favorite shows. I don't really watch TV anymore so I don't see it as much, but it's still a long-running classic.

This is an animated GIF of one of the best show openings- in which the camera continually zooms from The Simpsons couch, to the Earth, to the cosmos, then loops into the atomic realm, into DNA, to the cellular level, then out to Homer's head.

 It is a humorous illustration of the idea of a fractal reality, in which dimensions and universes are nested withing each other.

NYC Toy Fair 2016

Of course, I had to get a pic with this monkey character

wearing my favorite color, from the new game, EQ.

This past Saturday, I pulled myself away from the 2 year anniversary I was celebrating with my girlfriend to go to New York City. It was the weekend for the annual Toy Fair, held at the Javitz Center.

I've been attending for most of my professional career, since the studio I work for has done a lot of work for clients in the toy & game industry. I always enjoy going to see the many fun products on display.

This year, I was looking for companies to produce some game ideas, including a new publisher for the award-winning strategy game I created, "Da Vinci's Challenge". I made enough contacts & opened enough possible doors to feel like it was a worthwhile trip.

Here are the photos I took of the trip:

Picasa Photo Album:

"NYC Toy Fair 2016"

Monkey Mech

On Rude Mechanicals, I saw this funny (but awesome) custom figure of a monkey controlling a robotic mech & had to share it.

I think this can also be a metaphor for humans, as simians that have learned to build & use technology to augment our physical abilities.

"Dreams of Dalí" Virtual Reality

I saw this awe-inspiring video on Neatorama. I've been a life-long interest in art, and Dalí is one of my favorite artists. I had the pleasure of seeing an exhibit of his work many years ago at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

This video, "Dreams of Dalí: A Virtual Reality Experience" shows the tremendous potential of virtual reality and digital art to experience new worlds & alternate modes of consciousness. It is a virtual tour 'inside' the Dalí painting "Archeological Reminiscence of Millet’s Angelus".

The fidelity of graphics and the ability to perceive in 3D are allowing for the creation of dreamlike, impossible experiences- perfect for a new way of enjoying the art of Dalí.

Super Bowl Sacred Geometry

 

Although I've always been pretty athletic & love playing sports, I'm not a big fan of watching football, or sports in general. However, this past weekend I went to my brother's house since he was having a Super Bowl 50 party.

I was surprised to see in the halftime show, during Coldplay's performance, the use of The Flower of Life symbol- in their stage design, drum kit, & outfits.

The Flower of Life is a symbol of interlocking circles is the basis for a strategy game, based on the philosophy of sacred geometry, that I designed & have had published: "Da Vinci's Challenge".

The Flower of Life is an ancient symbol that represents unity, vibrational energy, and inter-connectivity. It has been used in art & architecture since the beginning of known history.

Because of the NFL's ridiculous copyright protections, the only decent video I could find of the performance so far is here:

SPIN.com

Here’s Coldplay’s Entire 

Super Bowl Halftime Show

Below, I've posted some screenshots showing the stage with the Flower of Life symbol, and it's use on their bass drum & clothing.

The Flower of Life graphic morphed into a swirling galactic vortex, then a solar burst.

I don't believe there was anything nefarious or Illuminati-related with the use of this symbolism. I actually think the artists recognize the pattern as a symbol of consciousness & cosmic creation.

Future of Food: Cultured Meat

I've started a series exploring the possibilities facing one of the most necessary aspects of our survival as individuals & as a species. How are we going to product nutrition for coming generations?

The Monkey Buddha Archives:

Future of Food

One of the most important developments in food technology is one that I haven't posted about yet, but think about a lot. This is the technique of producing muscle cells & tissue without a living animal, known as cultured or lab-grown meat.

This is an approach that has the potential to solve a number of our current ethical, environmental, and logistical problems with eating the meat from the flesh of a living creature. It could be more efficient, more sanitary, and environmentally-friendly than current methods of raising animals for meat. Of the utmost ethical & spiritual importance is the fact that the process does not inflict suffering on a sentient creature.

"When a man has pity 

on all living creatures, 

only then is he noble" 

- Buddha

Despite my personal recognition of the moral concerns with the consumption of meat, I still love it and don't plan to give it up. I eat fish & chicken regularly, enjoy beef, and even have ground bear meat in my freezer from a hunt my brother-in-law went on, that I'm going to use to make chili. However, if there were were more widespread availability of in vitro meat, I would definitely prefer that option.

Although it is currently prohibitively expensive for large-scale production of lab meat ($18,000 per pound!), this cost will drop sharply as the industry advances & expands.

The last major announcement in this area was the announcement of the first lab-made burger in 2013.

Gizmodo:

The Future Will Be Full of Lab Grown Meat

Here are a couple articles I've seen recently on the topic. They were spurred by the announcement of the first lab-cultured meatball, by startup company Memphis Meats.

Huffington Post:

'World's First' Lab-Grown Meatball 

Looks Pretty Damn Tasty

 

IFLScience.com:

Lab-Grown Meat Will Be On The Market Within Five Years, 

Says Biotech StartUp

I like this quote by one of the founders that expresses the desire for progress that accompanies any invention, especially one with potentially world-changing consequences:

“We plan to do to the meat industry 

what the car did to the horse and buggy.

Cultured meat will completely replace the status quo 

and make raising animals to eat them simply unthinkable.”

-Uma Valeti, CEO of Memphis Meats

Year of the Monkey

I came across this cool limited edition print of smokey monkeys, by artist James Jean.

"Year of the Monkey"

by James Jean

I love the style & mystical feeling of this image.
The print sold out so it's not available to buy, but at least it's viewable online.