Learning
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Book Notes: Out of this Furnace
Originally published in 1941, Thomas Bell’s historic fiction novel detailed the life of three generations of Slovak immigrants who settled in the steel town of Braddock, Pennsylvania. Braddock is about 10 miles up the Monongahela River from Pittsburgh. Many know it as the home of Senator John Fetterman who started his political career as the… Continue reading
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Book Notes: Lesser Magic
I don’t believe I’ve spent as much time reading 68 pages as I have with John Wilson’s Lesser Magic. I have read and reread it several times since acquiring it a few months ago. “Reading a second time leading to a different shift than the first, the coordinates having shifted, the perspective experiencing them having… Continue reading
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Al Leech on EDC
How many times have you been to a party and had someone thrust a deck of cards upon you with the breathless request to “do a trick”? Not very often, probably. But when it happens, the shock is likely to drive from your mind all your painfully accumulated knowledge of pasteboard skullduggery. Al Leech, Cardmanship,… Continue reading
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Mixing It Up
Reflecting recently on the magic books I return to often, I realized that they tend to be ones that have a mix of effects and essays by the artist. The essays can be philosophical, advice, or an interview by the artist. Here are a few examples (in alphabetical by artist): The Magic of Michael Ammar… Continue reading
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Details
The small details in magic make a huge difference to the experience we are providing our audience. I like to say, when talking about magic, that it is an art form that relies on carefully controlled, yet broken, communication. It must be carefully broken so that the audience receives the correctly constructed message for the… Continue reading
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Convention Reflection
The annual 2024 IBM convention was held recently within commuting distance and I took the opportunity to attend. I hadn’t been to an IBM convention since the early 80’s when it was in Pittsburgh. I hadn’t attended any conventions since the 2020 SAM convention in Las Vegas right before the world shut down. One of… Continue reading
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Yoga of Conjuring – XIV
Samadhi The eighth and final limb is Samadhi. Samadhi has been described as bliss, nirvana, self-realization or union with Spirit or Source. It is the expanse of meditation. Magicians can think of it as the point where all of our work bears fruit in a performance that has the magic that we are looking to co-create… Continue reading