2015.07.20 13:00 - Heat, colour, smell and Leonardo

The Guardian for this meeting was Aphrodite Macbain. The comments are by Aphrodite Macbain.

Aphrodite Macbain: Hiya Bruce
Bruce Mowbray: Hiya, Aph.
Aphrodite Macbain: Great to see you. How did last Monday's session go? Thanks for being here!
Bruce Mowbray: Hmmm. Trying to remember.
Aphrodite Macbain: smiles
Bruce Mowbray: Heya, Qt.
Aphrodite Macbain: Hi Qt
Bruce Mowbray: Honestly, I'd have to go to the wiki and look up last Monday's session....
Bruce Mowbray: Just a sec.
Bruce Mowbray: Heya, Qty.
Qt Core: Hi Aph, Bruce
Aphrodite Macbain: How do I claim the session?
Aphrodite Macbain: I click on the flames and nothing happens
Qt Core: click on the container
Aphrodite Macbain: ah! Thanks :-)

Heat

Aphrodite Macbain: Is it hot in Milano today Qt?
Qt Core: i've seem my car thermometer saying 38...
Zon Kwan: heya

Aphrodite Macbain: Hiya Zon
Bruce Mowbray: Heay, Zon.
Aphrodite Macbain: I wish this were a fountain today; it's a little hot to sit next to a cauldron of flames!
Bruce Mowbray: Ouch!
Qt Core: as in 38C =100.4F
Aphrodite Macbain: Yikes
Aphrodite Macbain: I hope you have air conditioning
Qt Core: yes, but you know i end only using the dehumidifier of my home AC
Aphrodite Macbain: you can get used to the heat but not the humidity?
Qt Core: i don't like the jump from a 27C home/office and a 35C outdoor
Aphrodite Macbain: no - it's hard on the system
Qt Core: and then you get used to 24C air conditioned and start complaining at 28 outdoor, it is summer, after all
Aphrodite Macbain: nods
Aphrodite Macbain: We have a serious water alert here.
Bruce Mowbray: West Coast is in extreme drought.
Aphrodite Macbain: Zon - are you hot where you are?
Qt Core: it happened to me last Friday got out of my house at 28, almost liked it, entered a bar for breakfast, ohh nice AC, went out... what a terrible weather
Zon Kwan: 20 C
Aphrodite Macbain: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: perfect Zon! Lucky you

Aphrodite Macbain: I have found that if I just sit still and think of other things, I can handle the heat.
Qt Core: yes, worse than heat is people complaining about it and stopping you from ignoring it
Aphrodite Macbain: on Saturday I was in a room with about 15 people listening to a piano recital. It was hot. But I found if I concentrated on the music, the heat didnt bother me
Qt Core: speaking of first world problem... for next week i have to drive a stick shift car... that should be banned by the Geneva convention, it is horrible, i had almost forgot how to do that
Aphrodite Macbain: laughs
Aphrodite Macbain: I love a stick shift.

Bruce Mowbray: Heya, Xir.
Xirana Oximoxi: hello everyone! :)
Qt Core: Hi Zir
Aphrodite Macbain: hello Xiri- we're talking about the weather ...mainly

Xirana Oximoxi: thanks Aph ...

Qt Core: Xir
Zon Kwan: hi Zir
Zon Kwan: Xir
Xirana Oximoxi: Xirana :-) I wonder if my name is very difficult for English speakers :-)
Aphrodite Macbain: Xiri- I mentally pronounce your name Ziri pronouncing an "x" is like saying ks
Aphrodite Macbain: do you?
Xirana Oximoxi: I don't know exactly Aph..I need to hear the sound :)
Qt Core: formally Italian alphabet does not even has the X letter ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain:
Xirana Oximoxi: I think I pronounce it 'shirana'...like 'sh'
Xirana Oximoxi: in Catalan it is like when you say 'xocolat'
Aphrodite Macbain: I have a challenge with Italian: cc, ch, cch,
Aphrodite Macbain: ah OK. I will think it differently from now on Shiri :-)
Qt Core: and don't forget sc ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: right!
Xirana Oximoxi: no worries Aph :-)
Aphrodite Macbain: My brain has been on hold the past little while though I have been enjoying reading about Joseph Banks explorations of Tahiti in the 18th century.

Zon, Eliza, Aph, Xiri, Qt

Leonardo

Aphrodite Macbain: Is there any subject you would like to discuss?
Aphrodite Macbain: Qt- could you tell us about the exhibition you saw yesterday?
Aphrodite Macbain: It sounds amazing
Aphrodite Macbain: What works by Leonardo were on display?
Aphrodite Macbain: Maybe Qt has melted. :)
Qt Core: yes, it was, Leonardo 1452 -1519 was the title (his birth and death years)
Xirana Oximoxi: yes :)
Qt Core: mostly sheets from the Atlantic Codex
Aphrodite Macbain: what works were displayed? Paintings?
Qt Core: but a few paintings too
Aphrodite Macbain: I don't know the Atlantic Codex. What is it?
Qt Core: one of the biggest collection of his works
Aphrodite Macbain: in Milan! I wonder how they all ended up in one place
Zon Kwan: hi Eliza:)
Bruce Mowbray: Heya, Eliza.
Eliza Madrigal: Hi Zon, everyone :)
Aphrodite Macbain: Eliza- great to see you

Eliza Madrigal: thanks, you too
Xirana Oximoxi: hello Eliza :)
Qt Core: Atlantic not as in the sea but as in the atlas sense of the word
Aphrodite Macbain: was it a map then?
Qt Core: such are the dimension of Leonardo's interests show in it
Aphrodite Macbain: pretty wide!
Qt Core: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Atlanticus
Xirana Oximoxi: I saw long ago an exhibit with models of Leonardo's machines ..
Xirana Oximoxi: really amazing
Aphrodite Macbain: reads: "Codex contains subjects from flight to weaponry to musical instruments and from mathematics to botany. This codex was gathered by the sculptor Pompeo Leoni, son of Leone Leoni, in the late 16th century, who dismembered some of Leonardo's notebooks in its formation. It is currently preserved at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan."
Aphrodite Macbain: You are lucky to have such easy access to this material Qt
Xirana Oximoxi: thanks QT and Aph..I did not know about the codex
Qt Core: there are a few new ones in another Leonardo exhibit in Milan, called Leonardo3 (a few dozen meters from the just ended one
Aphrodite Macbain: new exhibits?
Qt Core: new models of Leonardo machines
Aphrodite Macbain: What an inquisitive and creative brain he had!
Eliza Madrigal nods
Aphrodite Macbain: It is hard to find people like that today- artistic, scientific, curious
Aphrodite Macbain: people tend to specialize
Bruce Mowbray: Excuse me, but a visitor has just arrived at the farm . . and I need to play "good" host. Bye for now.
Qt Core: bye Bruce
Aphrodite Macbain bye Bruce
Xirana Oximoxi: yes...he had a complete formation in a lot of fields...now people need to work in teams
Qt Core: one of the best painting was this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_bel...rronni%C3%A8re   in some way a nastier version then Gioconda ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: the "beautiful iron monger!"
Aphrodite Macbain: she looks very intelligent
Qt Core: and yes, the Louvre museum let it being moved to Milan for this exhibit
Aphrodite Macbain: ah - it was borrowed for the exhibit!
Aphrodite Macbain: It's rare to loan such valuable works. The insurance costs must have been huge
Xirana Oximoxi: and what a legend behind! :-) hard revenge :-)
Qt Core: yes, there were many painting from Pinacoteca Ambrosiana (from Milan) Uffizi (Florence) and Louvre (Paris)
Aphrodite Macbain feels very jealous
Qt Core: in front on one of the painting (from around 1450) i had my "usual" wow, this is from half a millennium ago moment... then i got to a couple little horse bronze statue from 2000 years ago...

Qt Core: this other (unfinished) Leonardo painting hit me, from a distance it reminded me a lot about modern paintings: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/F...girolamo_2.jpg
Eliza Madrigal clicks
Aphrodite Macbain: thanks Qt

Wild paintings

Aphrodite Macbain: How is your painting going Xiri?
Xirana Oximoxi: it's going :) I am still concentrated drawing my tales...but time to time I paint a bit wild ..as a kind of therapy
Eliza Madrigal: :))
Eliza Madrigal: paint a bit wild ^^
Aphrodite Macbain: sounds intriguing
Xirana Oximoxi: :-)
Qt Core: brushes, wild colors and rock&roll!
Aphrodite Macbain: does that mean more abstract painting?
Aphrodite Macbain: and less realism?
Xirana Oximoxi: I let the paintings go free ...working on it until I see something I like and it seems expresses my feelings of a moment
Xirana Oximoxi: yes..less realism
Eliza Madrigal: frees you from troubles and preoccupations?
Aphrodite Macbain: You paint beautifully Xiri
Xirana Oximoxi: yes...it helps a lot :)
Eliza Madrigal: yes
Xirana Oximoxi: thank you Aph :)
Eliza Madrigal: :) I took out easel and paints last week and loved the feeling, but the product was awful :))
Eliza Madrigal listens

Xirana Oximoxi: Eliza...you should prepare an exhibit and we will tell you if your paintings are awful..or not :)
Aphrodite Macbain: Keep painting Eliza
Eliza Madrigal: I've only made one thing I'm happy with ever, but the process taps into something deep and enjoyable
Aphrodite Macbain: The process is important
Eliza Madrigal: and that's enough :)
Xirana Oximoxi: yes....keep painting!!
Aphrodite Macbain: yes
Aphrodite Macbain: try to stop judging yourself
Aphrodite Macbain: hard...lol
Aphrodite Macbain: It's a bit like writing..like the more you just write (in old notebooks, never to be re-read) the better your writing skills become

Aphrodite Macbain: it's like playing the scales on a piano.

Colour and smell

Aphrodite Macbain: I have been reading about colour and how it means different things to different cultures
Xirana Oximoxi: ah yes...very interesting
Aphrodite Macbain: and different cultures equate different smells with different colours
Aphrodite Macbain: synesthesia
Aphrodite Macbain: a smell of a grapefruit = the colour yellow
Aphrodite Macbain: the smell of plastic= bright pink
Aphrodite Macbain: for others the colours are different
Aphrodite Macbain:
Xirana Oximoxi: Aph...did you read about it online or in a book?
Aphrodite Macbain: In a newspaper text. Part of my Italian class- reading it in Italian
Eliza Madrigal: oh, nice
Xirana Oximoxi: I agree Aph...it is the same with painting, I do a lot of awful drawings and paintings...and I repaint them.
Xirana Oximoxi: oh! ok..thanks ...I like this topic about colours and cultures :) I will do a search :)
Aphrodite Macbain: Xiri- the article was in Focus- luglio 2014
Aphrodite Macbain: The association between colour and smell varies from one country and another
Xirana Oximoxi: yes...it's interesting
Aphrodite Macbain: so it is culturally determined rather than hardwired
Aphrodite Macbain: soooo - that may mean that when an artist paints a certain colour, the viewer may receive it differently
Qt Core: is really possible that green is something different from grass ?
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
Aphrodite Macbain: green also means "liberty", a profit (vs loss), organic, :-)
Xirana Oximoxi: green is associated to 'hope' here...
Aphrodite Macbain: sort of like liberty- a feeling
Eliza Madrigal nods health
Qt Core: i associate it to mint too, but that could be more cultural than innate
Aphrodite Macbain: But we learn all this from the culture we're in
Aphrodite Macbain: Apparently it's not innate
Eliza Madrigal: Hi Wol :)
Qt Core: Hi Wol
Zon Kwan: hi Wol
Aphrodite Macbain: Hey Wol
Wol Euler: evening all
Xirana Oximoxi: hello Wol! :)
Eliza Madrigal: even light is different from place to place
Aphrodite Macbain: we are talking about colour and its symbolism.
Wol Euler: ah
Xirana Oximoxi: yes...we learn it in our cultures..like the black or white to dress when there is some funeral
Aphrodite Macbain: yes- in Japan white is the colour of mourning- not black
Eliza Madrigal likes red wedding dresses
Xirana Oximoxi: yes
Aphrodite Macbain: lol
Xirana Oximoxi: :))
Aphrodite Macbain: I also wonder about our like or dislike of certain colours and whether it is because of associations we unconsciously make
Aphrodite Macbain: For example I really hate turquoise.
Aphrodite Macbain: No idea why
Eliza Madrigal: hmm
Eliza Madrigal: certain shades of orange = fast food
Zon Kwan: color is vibration and it resonates well with our vibrations or not
Aphrodite Macbain: can u say more Zon? Which vibrations
Zon Kwan: well..isn't it physics?

Qt Core: i have a not- so-slight dislike for blue (deep blue) as a kid i always lost when i played marbles using a blue one ;-)
Eliza Madrigal: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: that makes complete sense to me Qt!
Wol Euler smiles.
Eliza Madrigal: it does... some have aversion to polka dots because of mean teacher, etc
Aphrodite Macbain: mean teacher = polka dots!!??
Eliza Madrigal: that kind of thing
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
Eliza Madrigal: :) I need to excuse myself for wg meeting, hugs and thanks
Eliza Madrigal: fun session
Wol Euler: me too, goodnight all
Zon Kwan: must run too, nite everyone
Qt Core: Bye Eliza, Zon
Aphrodite Macbain: Thanks for coming Eliza, sleep well Wol
Qt Core: bye Wol
Xirana Oximoxi: bye Wol...I must go now too, take care all and see you soon!
Aphrodite Macbain: Bye Xiri
Xirana Oximoxi: bye:)
Aphrodite Macbain: good to see you. Happy painting!

Aphrodite Macbain: I have an aversion to colours I consider unnatural- like fluorescent colours
Qt Core: i love yellows, but when I was a teen my mother bought me a flourescent yellow sweater...
Aphrodite Macbain: The title of the article I'm reading Qt is Le Associazone tra colori variano da un paese all'altro
Aphrodite Macbain: there are many shades of yellow ....
Qt Core: just think about "national colour[s])
Aphrodite Macbain: yes! Green, white and red
Aphrodite Macbain: what do they mean in the Italian flag?
Qt Core: not really, that is our flag, but when thinking about a national color (especially in sport) Italy wears blue, light blue
Aphrodite Macbain: really?
Aphrodite Macbain: It's true.
Qt Core: (to be honest i don't remember and usually find that "hidden" meaning a little rhetoric
Aphrodite Macbain: Canadians wear red and white- also the colour of our flag There was a reason that those colours were chosen - many years ago....
Qt Core: that light blue was the colour of the Savoia, the kings of Italy from 1861 to 1945
Aphrodite Macbain: Aphrodite Macbain: Savoia?
Aphrodite Macbain: Is that a location?
Qt Core: it is... now in southern France, but also the name of the kings family
Aphrodite Macbain: ah Savoie
Aphrodite Macbain: funny that they adopt a French colour....
Qt Core: they came from that area, starting from let say 1200/1400 i think
Aphrodite Macbain: The kings of Italy?
Qt Core: yes
Aphrodite Macbain: there were so many different kings from different parts of Italy, no? Napes was ruled by Spain and the French (Napoleon)
Qt Core: they went south from Savoy to Turin and then expanded
Qt Core: yes, some not even big enough to call themselves kings ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: I must get back to RL. Thanks for telling us about the exhibits. I'm jealous. :-)
Qt Core: ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: bye for now
Qt Core: I'm waiting to get the catalogue
Aphrodite Macbain: you have ordered it?
Qt Core: had it shipped to me as it was to heavy to bring around ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: wow-
Qt Core: bye