An ancient cathedral strongbox with modern padlocks.

My "Bewildered Dawn" color palette takes its inspiration from the rising sun trying to penetrate a veil of early morning fog on a lake.

Sunlight filtered through a stained glass window inspired this color palette on ColourLovers.com. 

Sun-bleached red rocks, weathered wood, and cacti are framed by the desert sky in this photo I took of Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain roller coaster.  It was an immaculately clear day thanks to the Santa Anas!  The photo inspired the Big Thunder Mountain color palette at ColourLovers.com.

Update on my "Spooky Pagoda" color palette:

The artist Reverbe explains how "Spooky Pagoda" inspired the "Spooky Xmas Tree" palette:


Re: the "Spooky Pagoda" palette, moonlight and lanterns illuminate the tiles, woods, and metal work of the oldest structure in Los Angeles—the pagoda at the pool of the Hollywood Hills Hotel below the Yamashiro restaurant. This night shot I took inspired the Spooky Pagoda color palette at ColourLovers.com.

The "Estuary Sunrise" color palette finds its inspiration from the natural beauty of Portmeirion, Wales.

Here's a photo of the amazing view from the opposite direction.  And here's another scenic estuary in Wales.

The inspiration for this "Silvery Forest" color palette is a magical woodland in the Hudson Valley.  The photo, by David Manley, is available in large size on flickr.

In advance of the "Christmas in July" holiday, here's a silvery tree of a different type: the classic Aluminum Christmas Tree.

Moonlight and lanterns illuminate the tiles, woods, and metal work of the oldest structure in Los Angeles: the pagoda at the pool of the Hollywood Hills Hotel below the Yamashiro restaurant.  This night shot I took inspired the Spooky Pagoda color palette at ColourLovers.com.

I've always suspected that archaeologists have yet to discover the full extent of the ancient Egyptian cat goddess (see below).

If you still don't believe in the cat/pyramid connection, see these:

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

Exhibit D

Exhibit E

Exhibit F

Exhibit G

Exhibit H

Exhibit I

The Presence of Absence

Rich Haswell poses an intriguing question:

From Prof. Oddfellow's sketchbook:

This exquisite line from Tim Powers' novel The Anubis Gate inspired my collage.

I've been on this bench, and it's just as unergonomic as it looks.

My four-year-old nephew recently drew a picture of his mother, and I was struck by the similarity to the paleolithic fertility goddess known as the "Venus of Wilendorf" (c. 24,000-22,000 BCE).  My nephew identified the circle above his mother's head as a halo.  Interestingly, his mother isn't obese.  Perhaps he was channeling the generous figure that was idealized by his ancient ancestors.  Or perhaps his mother's art history degree (earned pre-conception) affected his DNA? 

While looking for invisible images, I came across...

A Dali-like painting of an invisible elephant by Nguyen Dinh Dang, and a cat who definitely thinks he's invisible

Beware of the invisible cows of Mauna Kea. Beware of the invisible snowmobiler

One of the most astonishing sensations in the desert is to walk in the middle of nowhere. Hours, with no mark...

Joe Bagley’s photo of two men in lounge chairs and a self-portrait of an invisible photographer taking a tea break

Woody Allen's mockumentary 'Zelig' re-edited to star me, Gert, as the human chameleon. Woody still has a cameo in the movie, by the way

HG Wells Penguin Mug

This invisible globe is a hollow glass sphere with a spinning LED light ring to create different projections. (Other unique globes by the same globe makers)

An invisible lizard

An optical illusion with six invisible triangles. Can you spot them?

Vanishing Point puzzles

Invisible Suits are interactive suits made from special blue screen fabric (material used for work with video blue screen technique). The intended effect is the virtual "disappearance" of the persons wearing the suits: their bodies merge with the visual environment they inhabit. Previously-blogged: Russian professor Oleg Gadomsky patents invisibility cloak

The artist Willem Oorebeek prints black ink on black surfaces, and his invisible "Blackout" images can be seen only from a particular angle

The lost secret of invisibility by artist Howard Kistler

This is a post that I am "co-blogging” with Hanan Levin of Grow-a-Brain. Thank you, Hanan, for the links you suggested!

Walking on air (as opposed to walking on water, walking on thin ice, or walking on sunshine):

This parachuter is taking one giant step, on an invisible current of air.

Here's a snapshot of "Sarah and Debbie standing on glass plates in the Auckland Sky Tower about 700 feet up in the air.  This was just a few moments before lightning struck the tower."  I'd say this counts as "walking on air."

These lone Converse shoes hanging on a power line are walking on air.  These occupied shoes are walking even higher.  And these shoes are higher yet.

One attraction of the Macau Tower is the "skywalk," which can be quite scary in cases of strong winds.

This Pedestrian Crossing sign would fit in perfectly at Britain's glass-floored Spinnaker Tower.

This woman is apparently high on life and is walking on air.

These guys in the treetops may be secured by ropes, but they're certainly walking on air.

Sports figures are often walking on air.

Is this Washington Post photo an optical illusion, a Photoshop job, or genuine walking on air?

Back in 1934, Popular Mechanics featured newfangled boots with built-in rubber bladders, promising the sensation of "walking on air."

Of course, the masters of walking on air are caterpillars.

My family once hosted a foreign exchange student--Fabrice from Corsica--and everywhere we went he asked "Is this typical?"  His recurrent question became especially annoying when we traveled to St. Augustine, Florida.  No, we explained, historic Flagler College is by no means a typical educational institution, as it's a former grand hotel in the style of a Spanish castle!  No, we explained, the students there aren't typical, because they get to study at the beach every day and their dorm rooms are in a former grand hotel in the style of a Spanish castle!  No, we explained, St. Augustine is by no means a typical American city, even if one were to leave Spanish castles out of the equation!  Years have gone by, but I was thinking about Fabrice today, and I decided to honor his memory by searching the Web for "typical" things.  Of course, the Web specializes in the strange and unusual, but after a good bit of digging I was able to uncover some typical things that would have brought Fabrice great comfort.  For example:

A "typical Friday nite."

Typical traffic in Bangkok.  (Actually a rather pretty picture, with lots of glowing primary colors.)

Typical food.  (However, I've never seen anything exactly like it.)

"Just another typical Shanghai party."

A "typical evening in France."

A typical cluttered desk of a sports coach.

A "typical Japanese police station."

"Typical England."  (However, my visits to the U.K. somehow always feature delightful weather!)

"A typical view from the helicopter during a flight over the ice."

A "typical crowd."  (However, they seem to be having way more fun than the people in Shanghai.)

A typical stone fence.

A "typical day" at a typical historical center.

A typical maladjusted teenager.  (Actually a still from Donnie Darko.)

A couple of typical sparrows.

Typical weather.  (Yep, that's weather.)

Unknown Significance

Left to right:
Tantric painting of unknown significance, with unspecified paint on found paper.
Limestone statue of unknown significance, discovered in Yemen.
Part of a painting entitled "Portent of Unknown Significance" by David Madzo.
"A funny little stone figure of unknown significance in the Monte Palace Garden."
A costume of unknown significance (via flickr).