Magic
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Carney on Learning
John Carney is a true master. I return often to his books for help and inspiration. I recently found this passage on learning in his Book of Secrets. I know it rings true for me so it may for you too. Most magicians give up too quickly when they meet a challenge in technique. If… Continue reading
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Nealist Questions to Wonder About
When I see performances of magic, my questions to the magicians are two: Who are you?What do you care about? Sometimes I am asking because I have received no clues other than that they watch Jeff McBride and read magic catalogs or magazines. And sometimes they find the questions difficult to answer. I do not… Continue reading
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Art and Magic
The discussion – some may say argument – of whether magic is art is evergreen. It pops up in the online forums as regular as dandelions in the spring. I don’t believe it will ever be settled to the satisfaction of either side of the fence. If you can find it, magician and filmmaker, R.… Continue reading
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Practice and Performance
Think of the time spent practicing sleight of hand and the improvements that can be achieved, well this applies to performance in exactly the same way… it’s a skill. When performing you are integrating many challenging and complex elements. You are also making discoveries about yourself, them and magic itself—the key is to do lots… Continue reading
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What is Magic?
THREE Eugene was much wiser. From my point of view, this entire enterprise of setting forth acceptable (or even correct) definitions for words is fairly successful with labels such as “cat,” “sky,” and “tree.” One merely has to point. When it comes to heavily-loaded concept words, however, such as “love,” “justice,” “energy,” or “magic,” things… Continue reading
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Impermanence
In the essay, The Architect, found in Volume One of the Books of Wonder, Tommy Wonder states: …magic is not a material thing, it can only exist in performance. Magic exists only in relationship between self and other – even if that other is oneself. It exists only in the space that is co-created between… Continue reading
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Book Notes: Reality Is Magic
Anson Chen’s Reality Is Magic is one of the year’s end releases from the UK-based publisher, Ultra Neat Ltd. Ultra Neat appeared on the magic scene in the spring of 2019 with the publication of The Neat Review: London. It was followed up with New York City in the summer of 2019 and Tokyo in… Continue reading