Squircles

May 25, 2010 11:24 AM

Mag3737 (Tom Magliery) is a prolific flickr user with over 19,444 items uploaded. He categorized his photographs into sets (right now there are about 350 of them), and into larger collections. See for example, the Squircles (squared circle), the Monochromatic squircles, the Backsides and underthings page, numbers, letters, colors, many more. Since he once heard that there were 37 holes in the mouthpiece of the old-fashion telephone, he used to collect fascinating factoids about the number 37. Numerous other detours inside, Flower genitelia, Paul Bunyan's balls, etc. His old-fashioned website is here.
posted by growabrain (21 comments total)

Wow, he really gets his money worth! Looking at the Squircles I notice that the first 15 sets or so each have 504 photos - is that significant?
posted by jontyjago at 11:29 AM on May 25, 2010

As someone with a Pro account, I applaud his work and using the site to the max.
posted by jscott at 11:36 AM on May 25, 2010

I admit to being a 37 junkie too. I also like 337 for no particularly explicable reason.
posted by oonh at 11:37 AM on May 25, 2010

37 * 3 = 111 is why I like 37.
posted by kmz at 11:42 AM on May 25, 2010 [1 favorite]

In a row?
posted by grubi at 11:50 AM on May 25, 2010 [4 favorites]

Try not to add more pictures to your flickr set on the way through the parking lot!
posted by longtime_lurker at 11:54 AM on May 25, 2010 [10 favorites]

That's nice. The trouble is that, to really appreciate his work, one has to be as obsessive as he is. I'm sure he could do some fantastic work with the marbles guy. They could help each other to carry their obsession a step further.
posted by nicolin at 12:02 PM on May 25, 2010

I've gotten so used to "Backsides and underthings" that I was actually surprise that he resisted. Clever set name.

In a way, it is utterly uninspired work. That way is taken individually, of course. As sets, though, it really something else altogether. I'm not sure it is the sheer variety of something like monochromatic squircles, or just the number of things with 37, but the obsession definitely shines through and gives it a very interesting flavour.
posted by Bovine Love at 12:06 PM on May 25, 2010 [1 favorite]

I already loved (in a web-love way) this guy for his 37 site. (How did that number NOT end up on Lost?) He accomplishes what I wish I had online. (and proves that I've been wasting my time on trying to do nice web design) But, incredibly, I can't find any reference to Bob Barker's "we can't restart the Range Game for 37 hours". Whaaaaaa?
posted by oneswellfoop at 12:07 PM on May 25, 2010

Hold on. You have to slow down. You're losing it! You have to take a breath. Listen to yourself. You're connecting one of two odd numbers mentioned in a forgotten comedy skit with holes in telephone mouthpieces and religious hogwash. You want to find the number 37 in the world, you will be able to find it everywhere. 37% as the lowest score you ever got on any test. 37 genes in the mitochondrial genome. When your mind becomes obsessed with anything, you will filter everything else out and find that thing everywhere.

But your pictures are pretty keen.
posted by filthy light thief at 12:18 PM on May 25, 2010 [1 favorite]

37 comments in the thread below this on the front page. Just sayin'.
posted by jontyjago at 12:20 PM on May 25, 2010

I organize my photos similarly. They are organized into:

Things that resemble trees
Very large men
Can be used as a weapon
Not edible
I don't know what this is
Cowboys and/or Aquaman
My penis
Will not roll
Can be worn like a hat
Not a photograph at all, now that I look closer
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:25 PM on May 25, 2010 [3 favorites]

AZ: What, no category for those that belong to the Emperor?
posted by nicepersonality at 12:37 PM on May 25, 2010 [1 favorite]

I've got 100,000 images, where's my FPP?
posted by fixedgear at 12:39 PM on May 25, 2010

Leo Reynolds on Flickr - with 68,000 items uploaded - also, has I think even more Squircles than this guy.
posted by vacapinta at 12:50 PM on May 25, 2010

AZ: What, no category for those that belong to the Emperor?

I love that structure of classification.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:55 PM on May 25, 2010

It's encouraging to know that by your own classifications we can be assured that your penis cannot be worn as a hat nor used as a weapon.
posted by Babblesort at 1:24 PM on May 25, 2010

I've got 100,000 images, where's my FPP?

We're working backwards. Douglas Kerr in New York (259,941) is up next week.
posted by kurumi at 1:24 PM on May 25, 2010 [1 favorite]

i started the squared circle group back in 2004, which started the madness. there's an ancient flickr blog post about that.

the group inspired a lot of novel activity on flickr, particularly surrounding the flickr API. for example, it prompted Jim Bumgardner to create flickr's first group pool cleaning robot, hipbot. he also created some collaborative art posters based on the group pool collection.

here are a few videos that have been made with photos from the group.

remix to Philip Glass' Music in Similar motion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=IE&hl=en-GB&v=aMelYhFtNCI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=IE&hl=en-GB&v=FSCNA-cyPBo

another video:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/2400803218/ [a bit faster - http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/3178488020/]

of course, one of the best ways to view the pool is in high resolution slideshow format:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/circle/pool/show/
posted by striatic at 2:41 PM on May 25, 2010 [2 favorites]

Since he once heard that there were 37 holes in the mouthpiece of the old-fashion telephone

Before I thought to follow the link I had to know if this was true, fortunately, I have an old rotary within arms reach, and sure enough; outside ring has 18, second ring has 12, third has 6 and one in the center.

So yeah, I can provide, I don't know, non-photographic verification that the mouthpiece of a phone does in fact have 37 holes.

Now I just need to explain to my coworkers why I was so carefully counting them...
posted by quin at 3:32 PM on May 25, 2010

A treasure trove of visuals. Thanks growabrain.
posted by nickyskye at 4:40 PM on May 25, 2010