Cannabis Goldsmith - A Show About Art and Design

I hate social media, and I know you do too. As artists, we are being abused by social media platforms' billionaire, bunker-dwelling owners who shape, control, and monetize our art while giving nothing back. I've had enough of it. In this episode, I describe how I am refusing to use social media as the destination for my art. Instead, people will have to come to my website to see it. I am e...

Canada's greatness lies in its nature. I am making you all honorary Canadians for the day. TRIBE – Custom Made Sterling Silver Trophy Belt Buckles and Jewelry – Product of Canada https://tribe.ca   Send an email to alexd@cannabisgoldsmith.com to get on our mailing list or to order custom Canadian produced precious metal jewelry products from TRIBE. The Cannabis Goldsmith is an Art & Design...

You see it now, don’t you? How AI slop is filling up social media platforms and pushing out authentic or human generated content. How can artists survive and communicate with potential customers when Google won’t tell customers where we are? I’ve thought about this topic for a long time, decades really, and have no guaranteed answers that will work for you. But here is what I am trying to do, my s...

I've been using using synthesizers and audio recorders for the last 7 weeks to create mini audio soundtracks and sound effects for video productions and an upcoming monthly YouTube series on the birth of electronic music in Canada. In this show I talk about using audio design to boost and enhance your own art, whether at a gallery or on a youtube video. Sound design is an art too, and it doesn...

Why artist colonies are important, how they form, why they move and change. I describe the very first artist colony, Helicon. I talk about modern artist colonies like Queen St. West in Toronto the 1980's and South Eastern Ontario in the late 2020's. I'm making small electronic music soundtrack audio pieces for my own YouTube video productions using camera shutter sounds (from a camera...

Making a documentary film is one of the hardest things a human can do, but that won’t stop me! I explain the strategy behind my own film, from the vague original idea to a clear direction. I talk about all the different elements you have to consider when making a documentary, from music to sets, and how you can use free AI tools to create your own documentary film school and learn new techniques....

The American business, tech, and media press are saying that people who work with their hands will be fine in spite of the AI onslaught because AI can't do plumbing or sew quilts. But it's really about discovery and distribution. If Google is not providing search results anymore and is just providing "answers," the answers provided will soon be paid for by the highest bidder. Sma...

 What are studio monitors and why would you need them? How are they different from normal audio speakers? In this episode I talk about how studio monitors are not meant for easy listening, but rather to reveal problems in audio. Ordinary speakers are meant for audio enjoyment in a multitude of settings. Studio monitors are designed for one specific purpose in a single, highly controlled environmen...

I’ve noticed a change in Vox Media podcasts since the beginning of the year. Much of podcasting is built on the closeness of the host-audience relationship, and when you have listened to a show for a while you can tell when something is wrong. But now, they are talking about openly it on their shows. Channels with Peter Kafka: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cond%C3%A9-nast-ceo-roger-lynch-o...

Where can you go to be seen when you're ultra-rich and live in an underground bunker to hide from the nightmare world you've created? The ultra-rich have nowhere to go yet have an insatiable desire to be seen and admired. The Met Gala is the perfect solution for them. I bought a synthesizer, used, for cheap, from a dude in the next hamlet. I'm not a musician and have never used one bef...

After last week’s episode, I bought a groovebox, a music sampler, to start building original sound for my work, including the Preserve the Beat documentary on the birth of electronic music in Canada. I didn’t go for the trendy device, I chose the one that actually fits how I work. Here’s the problem: most people using samplers today are relying on pre-made sample packs pulled from unknown sources....

I am not a musician, but I often wish I had those skills. I want to create small audio elements and even short music tracks to enhance the presentation of my jewelry designs and photography online and in a documentary film. Today, devices called grooveboxes exist that allow non-musicians to create music. Are they up to the task? Am I? Are they easy to learn? Which one should I choose for my projec...

While raking up an enormous amount of sticks in the hard I designed an entire jewelry collection for the Christmas season. It's amazing what you can accomplish by staying away from screens and engaging with nature. Listen to this podcast with Douglas Rushkoff and Brian Eno: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-if-is-the-enemy-of-fascism-w-brian-eno/id1140331811?i=1000761471129 This year...

In this episode I talk about how Vogue has pivoted from a magazine to an events company and producer of magazine cover images for digital consumption. TRIBE – Custom Made Sterling Silver Trophy Belt Buckles and Jewelry – Product of Canada https://tribe.ca   Send an email to alexd@cannabisgoldsmith.com to get on our mailing list or to order custom Canadianproduced precious metal jewelry products fr...

 In this episode, I take a closer look at the growing overlap between politics, government funding, and the arts, using the Juno Awards as a case study. Sparked by the high-profile appearance of Mark Carney, the conversation explores whether national music awards are still a space for artists, or if they’re increasingly being used as platforms for political messaging. Where’s the line between cult...

I am quintupling down on new designs in the studio and will launch a small line of Canadian inspired small sterling silver jewelry pieces in the fall in time for Christmas. Not going to the high school reunion because it would be more of a dangerous art project than a reunion. Sponsor wanted: We are looking for a sponsor for the show. There’s only a single sponsor per episode, host read, and embed...

Walter Murch’s Book ‘In The Blink Of An Eye – A Perspective on Film Editing’ was the book I needed to read to improve my film editing. It's truly jam packed with tips, tricks, and ways to improve your work. In my case, it helped we deal with huge quantities of B-Roll and allowed me to conceptualize the way my documentary film will come together. The book is like having Murch in your editing ro...

A neighbor texted me yesterday to ask if the gold necklace he saw on marketplace was a good deal or not. It wasn’t. In today’s show I talk about how to sell your gold jewelry for the best price, how gold buyers calculate value in used jewelry, and how to avoid getting ripped off as the gold price skyrockets. TRIBE – Custom Made Sterling Silver Trophy Belt Buckles and Jewelry – Product of Canada ht...

The first casualty in war is the reliability of news and information. But now, the people who started the war control much of the media space and control the very tech companies that distribute the information. What is true? Do you know? I am tripling down on design, art, and learning new art skills to cope with the stench of insanity coming from across the border. TRIBE – Custom Made Sterling Sil...

De Beers is dropping in value and Botswana supplies 70% of their natural diamonds, which now aren’t selling. What should Botswana do? In today’s show I give President Boko unsolicited branding and marketing advice on what to do with De Beers and how to reposition Botswana as the prime recognized source of the finest and rarest large natural diamonds in the world. TRIBE – Custom Made Sterling Silve...

I just realized everything that happens seems to betriggered by a threshold of some kind, that things don’t happen gradually but instead build up and then happen all at once. This seems to apply to everything from politics to culture. I'm crafting a video pitch to a potential client for an important art piece. I outline how I’m doing this, in case it helps your pitches. TRIBE – Custom Made Ste...

I've been a still photographer for over 50 years, shot over a hundred magazine covers, photographed fashion, editorial, beauty, macro and street. But when you move from photography into video, what do you need to know? Is the photography itself different between still photography and video photography? What must I unlearn? How can I make my videos better using the wisdom from a master Director...

Gold prices are downright scary now and silver looks like it has been seized by meme traders like GameStop stock once was. Data suggests that retail jewelry sales globally are down well over 20%. What are jewelers to do? In this episode I give four counterintuitive tips on how to communicate with your clients to close sales in spite of the high precious metals prices. I talk about non-precious met...

I accidentally discovered an incredible BBC documentary series from 1997 by Stewart Brand on the relationship between humans and buildings called How Buildings Learn. It is a six part series that Stewart has put on youtube and it is truly worth watching. I learned so much about architecture, building design, and the relationship between artists and their spaces. There is a new rabbit in the woodsh...

In this show, I describe how the De Beers sight and sightholder system works. It’s an old process (dating back to the 1930s) where a hand-picked buyer is put in a room with hand-picked, uncut stones and intense sales pressure is applied. That system worked well for decades, but its future is now in doubt, as factory-made diamonds are dramatically compressing natural diamond prices. I also talk abo...