Monthly Update #14 (February 2024)
Monthly Update #14 (February 2024)
Is inspiration for amateurs? Learn a new card trick called "The Tell-Tale Hearts"!
Greetings, Ruseletter subscribers! Once again, this month’s newsletter has been delayed in reaching your inbox. Oh well, better late than never, as they say.
In this update, you’ll find a list of the regular columns I wrote for the Ruseletter this month (February). I’ve also included a link to the first in a series of blog posts called Daley Dilemma, focusing on one of my favourite plots in all of card magic: Dr. Daley’s Last Trick. I’m hoping that writing these articles will help me improve the content for Developing Daley, a book solely dedicated to this one trick.
Let’s dive in!
New Articles This Month
I managed to write four new regular articles in February for you to enjoy:
Legends of Legerdemain: Count Caligstro — Discover the eventful yet tragic life of the infamous Italian adventurer, occultist, and Freemason and how he left an indelible mark on the world of magic and illusion. This article took a long time to research because of the apocryphal nature of Cagliostro’s life story.
Obscure Origins: Twirl Change — Where did this popular colour change come from?
Deeper Magic: Basic Magical Effects (Part 2) — In this article, we examine S. H. Sharpe’s Simple or Primary Magical Plots in detail. I also uncover a minimalistic set of definitions from one of my favourite conjurers, David Ben.
Packet Trick Paradise: Petit Pinetti — This self-working packet trick is based on the flamboyant 18th-century conjurer Professor Pinetti. I accidentally invented it last year when researching and writing an article on the Roman Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy (see Legends of Legerdemain: Professor Pinetti).
Inspiration Is for Amateurs
While reading a recent newsletter from James Clear, I came across this thought-provoking quote from painter and visual artist Chuck Close on inspiration:
“The advice I like to give young artists, or really anybody who’ll listen to me, is not to wait around for inspiration. Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to do an awful lot of work.
All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. Things occur to you. If you're sitting around trying to dream up a great idea, you can sit there a long time before anything happens. But if you just get to work, something will occur to you and something else will occur to you and something else that you reject will push you in another direction. Inspiration is absolutely unnecessary and somehow deceptive. You feel like you need this great idea before you can get down to work, and I find that's almost never the case.”
You can watch a full interview between Chuck Close and Charlie Rose, the disgraced ex-anchor of CBS This Morning. (Incidentally, Mr. Rose has also interviewed Penn and Teller, Ricky Jay, David Copperfield and David Blaine.)
The interview gives you a fascinating insight into the mind of the artist. There are moments when I thought Chuck could have been describing the work of a magical performer:
“I’m an orchestrator of experiences for the viewer. That’s what I do.”
He also acknowledges the performative elements of painting:
“You know, a painting is really a performing art, in a sense. It’s just that nobody watches us perform. And the painting is the detritus or residue. The evidence that the dance, the ritual dance, took place in the studio.”
In it, Chuck reiterates the “inspiration is for amateurs” mantra, which applies to every artistic discipline (magic and illusion included):
“Everything grows out of work. I'm not sitting around trying to dream up a great art idea. I've always said that inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work. And everything happens in the process of making art. Every subsequent idea, everything you do kicks open a door. And if you just go through that door, you find yourself someplace you hadn’t anticipated.”
Chuck was an incredibly talented artist. In 1988, he was paralysed, but he still managed to find a way to continue painting his trademark gigantic canvases in his distinctive hyperrealistic style.
One of his later self-portraits, shown below, demonstrates his virtuosic technical abilities. As you get closer to the artwork, the photorealistic nature of the portrait seems to break down into a jumble of abstract shapes and brushstrokes. This kind of optical illusion, where the viewer’s perception shifts dramatically depending on their distance from the work, is a conceptual close cousin to the illusions and misdirection employed in magic.
Chuck’s perseverance in the face of his physical limitations, combined with his masterful command of realist painting techniques and optical effects, is a testament to his artistic brilliance. Even as his body became increasingly restricted, he found ways to channel his creativity and push the boundaries of what is possible in the medium of paint on canvas.
I was drawn to this quote by Chuck Close because the Ruseletter is written by an “amateur” primarily for other “amateurs”. This word has two distinct meanings. On the one hand, it can refer to someone who engages in an activity for the love of it rather than as a profession—this is the way I like to use it. In this sense, the Ruseletter is written by and for people who practice magic out of passion, not for financial gain.
However, there is a tension in how he and I use this word. While I agree with the overall sentiment expressed in the quote—that it is the process, the “doing”, that matters most—using the word “amateur” clouds the message. The word, as used by Close in this context, carries a negative connotation that a person who waits for inspiration is unskilled, inexperienced or amateurish. This, of course, isn’t always the case. It would perhaps be clearer to rephrase it as “waiting for inspiration is a fool’s game” or “inspiration is for the idle”, but these alternatives, somehow, aren’t as catchy.
The key message is that inspiration, while sometimes helpful, is not a prerequisite for the serious practitioner, whether professional or passionate hobbyist. And you certainly shouldn’t wait for it to arrive. What matters most is consistent, dedicated practice and performance. This advice is valuable for all artists and magicians, whether full-time performers or dedicated amateurs honing their craft.
Daley Dilemma!
I’ve decided to serialise the content for my book, Developing Daley, on my blog. The first part is available to read:
Daley Dilemma: How Do We Fix the Four Weaknesses of Dr. Daley’s Last Trick
This will help me develop the content before I publish it. You can still access the draft book on Google Sites, and I’ll continue to update it here. However, you can also use this page on my blog to view all articles related to the simple transposition of the red and black Aces.
The next article will examine different ways to frame the effect so that it is perceived differently by your audience, thus overcoming some (or all) of the weaknesses I mentioned in the above article.
Ricky Jay’s Archive of Magical History
I was thrilled to learn that the Lilly Library at Indiana University has obtained Ricky Jay’s impressive collection of magical history. Diligent archivists are painstakingly cataloguing the contents to preserve them for future generations of researchers.
I hope they will digitise the items and make them available online. Meanwhile, the Lilly Library staff has published a short article with photographs of some of the items, which is worth reading if you share my love of magic history.
Learn The Tell-Tale Hearts
I also wrote up an unusual card trick called “The Tell-Tale Hearts” this month. The routine uses what I call the “Clue Cards” plot. Instead of locating the chosen card in the deck, you find three cards that share the same suit and add up to the same value as the selected card.
A similar trick can be performed using two chosen cards. I’ll also be writing about this one soon.
Three Videos Worth Watching
Here are three more videos I discovered this month that I think are worthy of your eyeballs. 👀
Tannen’s Book Club: Drawing Room Deceptions
I really enjoyed watching this recording of Guy Hollingworth in conversation with Mike Caveney, the publisher of his book Drawing Room Deceptions (one of the most cherished tomes on my bookshelf). I was very excited to learn that More Drawing Room Deceptions is in the works. According to Guy, the book is pretty much written. I can’t wait to read it.
Terral Change Tutorial
In the next recommended video, Elliot Terral will teach you a fantastic colour change. It’s a variation of Harry Levine’s Hurrican Change (Trapdoor Magazine, Issue 42) and the Houdini/Erdnase Colour Change (Transformations—Two Hands) from The Expert at the Card Table by S.W. Erdnase. The transformation of one card into another is quite literally smooth as silk.
Elliot mentions in the video that he used to call this the “Katrina Change”, but, on reflection, he decided that this was in poor taste. He then goes on to announce that the new name of the card change is “ACABracadabra”, which is equally inappropriate!
To some, “ACAB” is an expression of rebellion against an authoritarian state. But to others, it’s part of their racist and violent vernacular. This mixed meaning makes the offensive acronym deeply problematic.
ACAB is an old English slur that stands for “All Coppers Are Bastards”. It was originally used by criminals to taunt the police, inciting unrest and, in some cases, even violence. In the 1970s, it was common for prison inmates to have the letters tattooed on their knuckles. During this tumultuous decade, the emerging punk movement also adopted the term as a rallying cry. In the 1980s, it likewise became a popular tag used by graffiti artists. Then, in 2020, in the wake of the horrific murder of George Floyd, this four-letter word took on another use: as a slogan to protest against police brutality and institutional racism.
I’m sure Elliot’s intentions were noble. But it is a shame that such a beautiful change, executed by such a talented magician, should be given such an ugly and hateful name. I wish Elliot had chosen something more neutral that didn’t refer to a term widely considered a symbol of hatred.1 The tutorial is excellent, and I believe the change would be better served by a title that brings people together rather than pushes them apart. For all these reasons, I’ve decided the best thing to do is to call it the Terral Change.
Deep Fake Billy Joel
Shifting gears from the topic of magic, I wanted to mention a non-magic-related piece of content that I found quite captivating: the new song and music video from the legendary Billy Joel.
Even though this isn’t directly related to the world of magic, I felt the video had a certain magical quality to it. The production uses archive footage of Billy Joel throughout his decades-long career, combined with innovative technology from Deep Voodoo—the AI-powered company formed by South Park’s Trey Parker and Matt Stone—to create a seamless visual timeline.
The result is a mesmerising portrait that allows viewers to see the 74-year-old piano man in all his different eras. From his youthful, energetic performances in the 1970s to his more weathered yet still captivating stage presence today. It’s almost as if we’re witnessing Billy Joel himself travel through time right before our eyes!
While not a magic trick per se, the video’s blend of archival material with modern effects has a touch of the uncanny and supernatural. It’s a compelling example of how technology can be used to create an almost magical experience for the viewer. The song is also an absolute belter!
That’s all for this update.
Yours Magically,
Marty
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has labelled ACAB as a hate symbol. See https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/acab.