Well... I for one Welcome our New Dark Overlords!

February 19, 2010 7:21 AM

Star Wars Urban Photography Click "Work" then "The Dark Lens (Star Wars)" (It's a flash gallery, non-flash view of artist's photos) via)
posted by zarq (63 comments total)

Dubai is one crazy place. Actually, I think the pics would have been more interesting without the Star Wars stuff.

Also, the one with the AT-AT is definitely the wrong scale, and he keeps mixing battle droids with Storm Troopers. I mean, come on.
posted by dellsolace at 7:32 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

THIS IS NOT CANON!
posted by kaseijin at 7:35 AM on February 19, 2010 [6 favorites]

Hey artists, I like looking at your pictures, but do you really think my browser needs to be 1920 pixels wide when your pictures are not even 1000 pixels wide? Your art looks better when my browser window does not dwarf it. If my browser needs to be larger I will expand it myself, really, I promise.
posted by idiopath at 7:35 AM on February 19, 2010 [2 favorites]

(in all seriousness, however, I found the photos enjoyable and fun.)
posted by kaseijin at 7:36 AM on February 19, 2010

Boy, just when you think you've seen the most irritating photographer's Flash website ever, along comes another one to demonstrate that you have underestimated the ingenuity of designers. I presume Flash 11 will come with the ability to reach out of the screen and slap me each time I click on a new picture.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 7:37 AM on February 19, 2010 [12 favorites]

Hey browser-resizing website, what're you trying to push on us?

This R2 unit has a bad motivator!
posted by Vectorcon Systems at 7:40 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Star Wars, 'Art' *and* bad Flash. This'll be a bloodbath!

OK, pitchforks and flaming torches make a line on the right, comfy sofas & popcorn on the left. Strictly cash only & please help us by having the correct change. No refunds.
posted by i_cola at 7:42 AM on February 19, 2010 [2 favorites]

A bit hit and miss in my opinion. I do like the one with the X-wing fighter flying past an office building with Darth Vader behind the window.
A bit silly he spells it Vador though.
posted by charles kaapjes at 7:46 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Hey artists, I like looking at your pictures, but do you really think my browser needs to be 1920 pixels wide when your pictures are not even 1000 pixels wide?

Yeah, the browser hijack is why I included the "Via" even though it only has 8 of his images.

After posting, I went hunting for a site where more of his images might be available without flash. Found them here at Whiteboard. They posted ~20 images from the set. Still not everything, but much more browser friendly!
posted by zarq at 7:48 AM on February 19, 2010

I presume Flash 11 will come with the ability to reach out of the screen and slap me each time I click on a new picture.

It would be worth it just to see pb hook it up to the "Create A Post" page here:

"Is this your website/product/company? Y/N"

"Y" *click*

SLAP!

For optimum results, it would have to also remotely activate the poster's webcam, take a snapshot and post it automatically on a Metafilter Wall of Shame.

Now I know which pony I want for Hanukkah.
posted by zarq at 7:56 AM on February 19, 2010

Resized my browser window. Unacceptable.

[force choke]
posted by fuq at 7:58 AM on February 19, 2010

this is pretty terrible.
posted by empath at 8:07 AM on February 19, 2010

You know, you can tell FireFox not to let java resize or move windows… NoScript -> click to activate gallery object worked for me.

The scale on some of these is super wacky, and it really seems like most of them would be cooler photos without the StarWars stuff (often poorly) 'shoped in.
posted by paisley henosis at 8:11 AM on February 19, 2010

I'm not exactly sure what I wanted this to be, but this wasn't it. It seems like very-well-done fansite comping. Why is Yoda hanging out on the side of a building? Because I had the photo and I wanted to put a Star Wars character in it. Why is Darth Vader in an old abandoned warehouse? Because I had the photo and I wanted to put a Star Wars character in it.
posted by shakespeherian at 8:11 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Actually, I think the pics would have been more interesting without the Star Wars stuff.

Yes. The photos are great to start with, and the Start Wars stuff doesn't add enough to overcome the gimmicky aspect of using it. But I guess they're the reason we're looking at it, so gimmickry works if you just want a big audience.
posted by rottytooth at 8:11 AM on February 19, 2010

The aesthetic value of those shots are totally trumped by my Starwars Fanboyism.

So I really like the ones that make logical sense from a Starwars perspective,(vehicles and ships=sweet) but I am strangely uncomfortable with the others. (An Ewok? In the desert?)
posted by Widepath at 8:12 AM on February 19, 2010

[added a non-flash link to guy's photos per OPs request]
posted by jessamyn at 8:13 AM on February 19, 2010

Thank you, Jessamyn. You're the best!
posted by zarq at 8:14 AM on February 19, 2010

What a bunch of haters. I think these are pretty neat.
posted by brain_drain at 8:16 AM on February 19, 2010

A bit silly he spells it Vador though.

Possible explanation: "Like several other characters, Darth Vader's name was changed in the French and Italian versions of the films ("Dart Fener" in Italian[16] and "Dark Vador" in French). More recently, some material in both languages has used the original name; for instance, the Quebec French dubbing of Episode III."
posted by zarq at 8:17 AM on February 19, 2010

A bit silly he spells it Vador though.
The French version of Star Wars calls Darth Vader "Dark Vador" (made-up explanation: in French "Darth Vader" sounds a little like "Darth Toilets").
posted by elgilito at 8:18 AM on February 19, 2010

Is there some particular reason, other than it being "cool," that so many artists use Flash for their websites? Does it go against the Artist's Code to use something as lowly as HTML and JPEG images?

Also, stop resizing my browser window, damnit. I'll do that if I want to.

Pictures are so-so.
posted by menschlich at 8:20 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Corrected non-flash link

I fully expect to see that first one in a Ford commercial some time soon.
posted by DU at 8:22 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

The original photos are pretty compelling, and the Star Wars dreck just gets in the way.
posted by KokuRyu at 8:29 AM on February 19, 2010

Eh. I didn't really like them. Some of them you can tell are obvious copy-paste over another image - which I doubt is what the artist was going for. The rest just seem.. forced and out of place. They're just not very well done.
posted by Malice at 8:30 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Two or three worked but the bulk looked like weaker Photoshop Phriday submissions.
posted by mazola at 8:34 AM on February 19, 2010

Is there some particular reason, other than it being "cool," that so many artists use Flash for their websites?

I always assumed artists like it because it makes it harder to save the images.
posted by Widepath at 8:38 AM on February 19, 2010

you ready for it? here it comes.

I find his use of flash... disturbing.
posted by shmegegge at 8:53 AM on February 19, 2010 [5 favorites]

in French "Darth Vader" sounds a little like "Darth Toilets").

You don't know the power of the Fart Side.
posted by grubi at 8:54 AM on February 19, 2010

You know, you can tell FireFox not to let java resize or move windows… NoScript -> click to activate gallery object worked for me.

Don't know anything about this NoScript, but all I did was go into the advanced Java commands for Firefox and uncheck the box that says "allow scripts to move or resize existing windows"
posted by squeakyfromme at 8:58 AM on February 19, 2010

The ATAT walker coming out of the mist over the highway ramps looked pretty intimidating; I felt a little bit like some hoth-based rebel scum confronting my imminent death. The rest kinda looked like a cheap cut and paste job to me. Maybe I'm just jaded.

Also, the droid army would not drive around in white caddi SUVs; they use pt cruisers because they're retro and modern at the same time (duh).
posted by Think_Long at 9:03 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

You know, you can tell FireFox not to let java resize or move windows… NoScript -> click to activate gallery object worked for me.

Sure, blame the victim....
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 9:05 AM on February 19, 2010

Is there some particular reason, other than it being "cool," that so many artists use Flash for their websites?

Lots of reasons, many having to do with being able to finely tailor the user experience. A lot of artists and designers like to obssess over UI design; Flash gives them the ability to design both the content and the interface.

Personally it doesn't bother me, but in some communities (here for instance) it ruffles a lot of feathers. The whole "It's a post about a site built in Flash, so I'll just pop in and make a snark about Flash without saying anything interesting about the actual topic." is getting a bit tired though.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 9:12 AM on February 19, 2010 [2 favorites]

Especially when Flash, rather than JavaScript, gets blamed for resizing a browser.
posted by kaseijin at 9:16 AM on February 19, 2010

Not to mention that most people's gripes regarding Flash — while basically legitimate — are actually less about Flash as a tool/technology, and more about the design.
posted by kaseijin at 9:20 AM on February 19, 2010

I couldn't care less what the technology is.

If you want to take responsibility for designing the interface, then the interface is part of the content of your site, and as much up for discussion as any of the other content.

If you want the attention to be on your content and not your broken interface you have two options:
1) don't try to design your own user interface
2) make a usable interface that doesn't piss me off
posted by idiopath at 9:22 AM on February 19, 2010

I like the one of Vader brooding contemplatively in front of a building project like an evil construction mogul.

"Witness the RETURN ON INVESTMENT of this partially completed CONDO TOWER!"

Sadly, I think the Dubai economy will put paid to his nefarious schemes.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 9:28 AM on February 19, 2010 [6 favorites]

What are the battle droids doing there? They aren't part of StarWars.
posted by sourwookie at 9:29 AM on February 19, 2010

Two or three worked but the bulk looked like weaker Photoshop Phriday submissions.

The best Star Wars/art mashup I've ever seen is the photoshop phriday Star Wars as classic art.

If you need encouragement to click the link it has The Death of Marat crossed with Greedo.
posted by Erberus at 9:34 AM on February 19, 2010

"Witness the RETURN ON INVESTMENT of this partially completed CONDO TOWER!"

"It is too late for me, son. The Emperor will show you the true nature of development fees and the finer points of mortgage consultation. He is your master now."
posted by Think_Long at 9:35 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Star Wars stills from a Tarkovsky remake. Yes, some of them are gimmicky, and some of them, like the C3PO in the fire ruins, are pretty great - haunting and deeply moving in a way that none of the movies were.
posted by Auden at 9:37 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

I like this thread because the people who get cranky about Flash and the people who get cranky about Episodes I-III can bond.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 9:40 AM on February 19, 2010

If you need encouragement to click the link it has The Death of Marat crossed with Greedo.

Corday stabbed first!
posted by Horace Rumpole at 9:51 AM on February 19, 2010 [2 favorites]

After interface frustration with the first link (my browser didn't even get resized; FF+NoScript=win; sucky _Flash+shitty_layout=lose), I followed zarq's link to Whiteboard.

Those pics may be cherry picked, but I liked all of them, and thought they looked pretty good. The Star Wars characters looked very much at home in the gritty Star Wars world that Ralph McQuarrie envisioned for George Lucas.
posted by Xoebe at 9:59 AM on February 19, 2010

80% just look like bad PS jobs. But a few of them are actually quite good.

Specifically the AT-AT walker in the mist.
posted by Lacking Subtlety at 10:10 AM on February 19, 2010

If you need encouragement to click the link it has The Death of Marat crossed with Greedo.

this take on Goya's famous painting I think speaks to many people...
posted by ennui.bz at 10:13 AM on February 19, 2010

Those pics may be cherry picked, but I liked all of them, and thought they looked pretty good.

Frankly, I think they chose the best of the lot. The rest of the set on his site were a lot less appealing to me.
posted by zarq at 10:33 AM on February 19, 2010

These are really cool. Thanks for the post.
posted by MarshallPoe at 10:49 AM on February 19, 2010

I bet there's an artist's statement somewhere in the artist's site that I'm not seeing because I have everything turned off. I'd love to read it (or try to read it if it's in French).

The pictures are cool and I'm glad they were posted.
posted by immlass at 10:54 AM on February 19, 2010

I felt a great disturbance in my browser, as if millions of pixels suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.
posted by kirkaracha at 10:55 AM on February 19, 2010

I liked the one of Vader standing in the half-constructed concrete room. That room's architecture just seemed especially Star Wars appropriate.

Lots of reasons, many having to do with being able to finely tailor the user experience. A lot of artists and designers like to obssess over UI design

And they produce ridiculously bad UIs, which is why we complain. I guess it's a result of the notion you sometimes encounter that "designer" is a meaningful description — that is, that one kind of "design" is equivalent to another. "Hey, I do graphic design, so that's the same as interaction design, right?" Sigh.


Also: I have altered your browser window. Pray I do not alter it any further.
posted by hattifattener at 11:45 AM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Loved the pix, especially the TIE fighter crashed into the tower block.

The comments here? Mehtafilter at its best.
posted by i_cola at 12:35 PM on February 19, 2010

I enjoyed it for the most part. At its strongest, the images from Star Wars are cleverly integrated into the existing photographs. I really liked the AT-AT in the fog, for example. However, those which seemed to take characters like Vader or Yoda and simply dropped them into a scene where there wasn't a lot of context other than, "Hey, it's X standing or sitting here!"

What I would love to see, as urban exploration often involves the crumbling of infrastructure would be photos that took this idea to the Star Wars universe, such as Corsuscant as a crumbling ruin of towering canyons. Rebel bases overgrown and abandoned and skeletal remains of star destroyers either laying crashed on the surfaces of planets or floating derelicts in space.
posted by Atreides at 1:03 PM on February 19, 2010

these are not the pictures you are looking for.

/sorry - inspired by shmegge upthread
posted by marienbad at 1:29 PM on February 19, 2010

However, those which seemed to take characters like Vader or Yoda and simply dropped them into a scene where there wasn't a lot of context other than, "Hey, it's X standing or sitting here!"

To be fair, this is also how the Star Wars prequels were made.
posted by brain_drain at 1:42 PM on February 19, 2010 [2 favorites]

Am I the only one who saw the first picture with a row of robots in front of a row of cars and said, "Huh? That's not Star Wars."
posted by straight at 1:58 PM on February 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

droids in an alley
posted by garlic at 8:55 PM on February 19, 2010

I'm leaning heavily towards the "oh, cool" factor as I've just bought on of these. My nerd-ness runneth over... and over, it seems. Someone get a bucket!
posted by Zack_Replica at 11:10 PM on February 19, 2010

I think a lot of it is quite clever, in drawing parallels between inner city structures and the Star Wars universe. It's making some interesting comparisons between the fantasy of Dubai and the fantasy of Star Wars, where many elements of Star Wars either blend into the urban landscape or are swamped by our monumental architecture.

I think quite possibly the most effective piece in the collection is the one with Han Solo in carbonite just stuck against a wall the same as many other art works are placed randomly in corporate or public structures. I've seen any number of bronze sculptures that made me wonder "are we sure that some psycho sculptor didn't just cover his victims in bronze?", so Han Solo is just an extension of that idea.
posted by happyroach at 12:25 AM on February 20, 2010

As a former Star Wars fan, I think these pictures are great. I love the whole idea of screwing with aesthetics. Some of them really do invoke dark bleak mood I wish the prequels should've exuded.

I really don't understand the complaining about it being flash, but whatever. It's cool nonetheless.
posted by LilSoulBrother85 at 3:31 PM on February 20, 2010

"If you want to take responsibility for designing the interface, then the interface is part of the content of your site, and as much up for discussion as any of the other content."

Since artists want to consider their ham-handed and inept attempts at UI part of the framing for their art it's open to criticism as much as the stuff inside the framing is. I'd comment about the frame of a painting if it were framed with moldy cheese or screaming poltergeists, too, since obviously those things were chosen to be a part of the work.

"Check out my house, isn't it awesome in here? Sorry it's on fire. Let me show you around anyway, you'll love the way I misapply Photoshop level effects upstairs!"
posted by majick at 8:46 AM on February 21, 2010 [1 favorite]

Those robots looks cool. They'd be awesome in some sort of prequel movie, were one ever to be made.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 1:02 AM on February 22, 2010

In Firefox:

Tools - Options - Content - Enable Javascript (Advanced...) - Uncheck [Move or Resize Existing Windows] - Ok

That should never have been enabled by default.
posted by blue_beetle at 2:52 PM on February 23, 2010 [1 favorite]