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[ta0]

I wasn't sure if I should post this under modding or not-spintop related.  In this 18 minute video Philippe explains his anti-materialistic philosophy of "life art". You need to be pretty fluent in French to be able to follow him (and still . . .). But there are many clips of him turning tops (and a lamp shade) as well as clips from his "history of turning" show, some of his tops and artistic turnings. Something he shows and I had forgotten is how he burns the tip of the tops and then removes the charred wood to leave a stronger wood below (wood heat treatment!).

By the way, when I visited him two years ago I did not see his show: I hadn't realized his talent for acting!

Philippe Dyon, Penseur sur bois:

[jim in paris]

You need to be pretty fluent in French to be able to follow him (and still . . .).

yeah i agree with that ..................

but  it's a great document
and i'm sure Alan ,Eric ,Richie and other seasoned turners will really enjoy
Philippe's manipulation of the gouge

"penseur sur bois" whatever it means, is a pretty strong neologism


jim

[the Earl of Whirl]

penseur sur bois...........thinker of wood!  Very good.  I got the wood part but I had to look up penseur.

[ta0]

I noticed a little change in Philippe. He is now more willing to put his full name and face out there.  He is also willing to show his art pieces (he asked me not to photograph them when I stayed at his place).  Although he still thinks that there is art in what everybody does in daily life, he now says that to be an Artist you need to display your creations to the public.

Hopefully, Chris will be able to meet him, as well as Pulp and Maurizio . . . By the way, there will probably be INEPTT news soon

[jim in paris]

dear Jorge

i got Phil on the phone : i congratulated him for the document , the editing which provides a good balance between his "speech" and other shots from his show about the story of woodturning
you find him good as an actor : on the contrary i criticized him( in a friendly way ) a lot when I saw him 1st time in 2006, since then he has improved a lot , shortening some scenes, over-playing others like the robot part
now he has done this same show for over 130 times, he knows what he is doing : he even (still) tells people why they should not record or take any photo , but in a much less directive way

he now says that to be an Artist you need to display your creations to the public.

you 're really sharp on that point , because i also noticed since last year that's a turn in his vision of art : i 'm sure he feel so much more confident with his beliefs that it gives him the ferment to be all the more open to his fellows

i wish i had time to translate his message into english
if i dare do it ... not before christmas break in ajaccio , starting dec 18th to 30th

cheers!
jim  ( who connected this great character to the world of top spinning)

[the Earl of Whirl]

Jim......you don't have to do all the translation at once.  In fact, it might be too much for me all at once.  Just give me a couple sentences here and there so I can contemplate on his thoughts!

[ta0]

A new professional-made video of Philippe and his life philosophy. The spinning top part starts around 6:00.

[ta0]

I hadn't seen this video from 2016 but it's great:



I'm so glad to have the long ball top made (and invented, I believe) by Philippe.

[Texture]

That was the most mesmerizing top video I've ever seen!  I wish I knew French. The top he put on his finger and flipped over was great! Was he increasing the spin by blowing into it?

[Jeremy McCreary]

Wish I could understand the French in these videos. Fortunately, Didier's tops speak for themselves, and I love what they have to say.

Curious, though, about Didier's philosophy and why there's a professional video about it? Has he become a famous artist?

I ask because no one's making videos about my philosophy, and I'd like to know how to remedy that.

[ta0]

The top he put on his finger and flipped over was great! Was he increasing the spin by blowing into it?

Yes, he was blowing to give it more spin.

Curious, though, about Didier's philosophy and why there's a professional video about it? Has he become a famous artist?

You mixed up the names. Didier Malherbe is the musician who plays music using tops.
This is Philippe Dyon, a spinning top wood turner (former mechanical engineer) who lives in Bourgogne. He tries to live a simple life in tune with nature while making art using wood.

At the beginning of the video he shows a rattleback top and makes up the story that it's attracted by colored objects 

He has many other unusual finger tops, most that he developed himself.

[jim in paris]

hi all
Philippe is a character ! when i found him in 2005, it was a blast !

"why there's a professional video about it? Has he become a famous artist?"
no, not at all , and like you i'm a bit surprised when I watched this high tech vid with drone shots at the start  and this new age ambiance(..)
but the content remains the same since Philippe 's  first book "tous artistes" where he explains the connection between art and artwork ....
we 've had loong talks along the years and although we agree on many points , i 've always blamed him for his lack of political involvement

I'll give him a call soon

jim

[Jeremy McCreary]

You mixed up the names....
He has many other unusual finger tops, most that he developed himself.

Yes, meant Philippe.

That's what I love about Philippe's designs -- many are very much outside-the-box for tops turned from wood. Especially like the ones with loose rings around the stems. Never cease to be amazed at the capacity some tops with freely moving parts have for self-balancing at speed.

[Jeremy McCreary]

"why there's a professional video about it? Has he become a famous artist?"
no, not at all , and like you i'm a bit surprised when I watched this high tech vid with drone shots at the start  and this new age ambiance(..)

A vanity video he paid for himself? Or maybe a marketing video for his next book?

Anyway, now I'm trying to pin down my philosophy for a video of my own. So far, I know it involves burritos and the celebration of complexity -- especially in things (like tops) that seem pretty simple until you start peeling back the layers.