Bayerische uniform on my male figure

I chose a combined version of two Bayerische uniforms. The clothing is from 1862 but the helmet is from 1890. Next step is to animate it.

A bayerische uniform for the standard male?

CHURFÜRSTLICH BAYERISCHE INFANTERIE & CAVALLERIE AO 1803

Brown University Library has a nice browsable collection of uniforms from different eras and locations in the world. Beautiful prints of Preussian, Bavarian and German 19th century costumes. I will use them to apply a custom uniform on my standard male figure. 

Standard male

Working on a standard male figure based on a Muybridge plate. With different clothing and haircolor, he will become a farmer, soldier, priest, innkeeper, hero or the evil regent. The animations are taking so much time so I will have to systemize the process and reuse the figures with small alterations. Maybe I will have to make a less fit and fatter version of him too.

The "Golem" Syndrome

Golem syndrome: “This is a man, who as a child has neither experienced nor been trained in the three ingredients of emotional life: Attention, Love and Affection. The word "Golem" in mediaevil Jewish legend, describes a sort of machine man, a robot. "

The Neurocritic: The "Golem" Syndrome

So, there actually is a specific Golem "Syndrome". The blogger 'The neurocritic' found a couple of odd definitions published in the 70s by the austrian psychiatrist Joshua Bierer and among them was the 'Golem syndrome'. Apparently it's a male thing. 

"Such men go from woman to woman and are often considered to be excellent lovers. These women do not realise that they receive not love but hate, not compassion but revenge, not commitment but a desire to escape, that it is not a mutual emotional experience of beauty but a one-sided desire to hurt, and even to kill."

This reminds me of Simon Baron Cohen, FBA, professor in developmental psychopatology, autism researcher and cousin of actor Sasha Baron Cohen and his empathizing–systemizing theory, where he proposes that autism is an extreme of of the male brain. Sounds controversial of course, but unlike Bierer, Baron Cohen is an acknowledged front figure in the research of Autism. I read his book and I will write a specific post about this in the near future.

These articles made me think of whether my Golemfigure is male, female or something in between. Until now he has certainly been a male figure, since in my narrative of the game, one of the goals is to conquer the princess. He is also created by his maker as a physical 'strong' helper and protector - attributes traditionally associated with the male gender. In my story, he probably can't be female since I'm working with the archetypes of a good fairytale, though he might be asexual to start with, developing a kind of sexuality as the game goes on. This way the player decides with his/her actions whether Golem will become the evil patriachal rapist, pure muscles, 'mjukismacho' (Swedish expression which means Softy-macho) or even a more or less female figure.

Vandana Shiva at the Disowning Life conference, dOCUMENTA(13)

Vandana Shiva, Seed Freedom
"Seeds are life. Owning seeds is ownership of life." 


In Kassel I had the pleasure of seeing the environmental activist, eco feminist and physicist  Vandana Shiva giving her lecture on Seed Freedom. Companies like Monsanto is genetically modifying seeds to to resist chemichals used as pesticides. Then they claim patents on these modified seeds as being intellectual property. With this monopoly they force the farmers in India and other poor countries to buy their seeds for high prices. When the harvest is bad the farmers are left with debts and with no possibility to pay. 75% of the world seeds are in this way owned by the companies.

"Farmers must breed diversity, not uniformity", VS
This is what appeals to me in my work. By genetically modyfying seeds your are practically  streamlining life and reducing it's individuality. All modified seeds are highly unstable and dependant of specific conditions and specific chemichals you have to use in combination with the seeds to make them produce well. "We have seeds that are 1000 years old. That is stability. ", VS

Of course you can look at this from a wider perspective. Same things are happening in most other spheres of life, where economy, consumption, production and uniformity are counteracting decentralisation, small scale production, individuality and diversity. What comes next? Will the Golems of the world be allowed to exist in the future?

I'm also posting a french documentary (dubbed to english) on this subject. Mostly because I haven't had time to see it myself, and having it on my blog makes me know where to find it.

Kader Attia in dOCUMENTA(13)

Details from Kader Attias piece -  The Repair From Occident To Extra-Occidental Cultures, 2012. The images show wooden sculptures of wounded, deformed and 'repaired' soldiers of world war 1. The piece also contained a video, which among other things, showed ceramic pots, broken and 'repaired by sewing pieces together. Interesting features that might be usable in my game.

Sorry about the quality of the images. They are photographed with my iPhone. 

Loveletters at dOCUMENTA(13)

Right now I'm in Kassel during the last week of dOCUMENTA(13). I'm invited to participate in Nature addicts Fund traveling academy. In the first days I've heard speeches spanning from queer bulldogs to microbiological life in the oceans. I have also seen some of the art, but not all, yet. Tomorrow we will be guided in some the works by three of the participating dOCUMENTA artists.

Artist and theorist David Link has made a replica of the hardware of Manchester University Computer, MUC, running a program from 1953,1954 generating mysterious lovletters. Noone seems to know who wrote this program or why.

Darling dear
          My heart hopes for your thirst. My impatient eagerness passionately yearns for your apetite. My desire attracts your sympathetic longing. You are my seductive sympathy. My precious wish.

 Yours Curiously
MUC