3.01.2005

What's In a Name?

So far, nobody's really asked me where'd I get the name "Ward-O-Matic," but I've had some people say that they were intrigued by it. And that was why I chose it. At first, I thought it was too cheesy, but the more I thought about it, it seemed like the perfect fit as the title to a blog written by an artist named Ward. Plus, I thought that it would catch your eye.

Originally, I used the name "The Ward-O-Matic" as the name of my iTunes ID at work. Since we're all pretty much Mac users at Primal, we all listen to our iTunes on a constant basis. And I love the fact that you can listen to your fellow co-workers' library of mp3's via sharing. I chose the name Ward-O-Matic as it was a bit retro, plus it was similar to the idea of the Automat, a place where they dispensed food mechanically through a series of windows when you put your coin in the appropriate slot. There is a Looney Tune cartoon that uses this for gag purposes. So with The Ward-O-Matic on iTunes, my feelings were that you can listen to a nice, large selection of interesting tunes at your convenience. For free.

And now, with the blog, the name "Ward-O-Matic" just made sense to me. I think of it as a place that dispenses links, interesting artwork, illustrations, commentaries and the usual hot-air rants at your convenience. For free.


Continuing on the Automat vein, Clark Whittington. an accquaintance of Doug Grimmett (co-founder and Creative Director of Primal Screen), started up a pretty interesting venture, called The Art*o*mat. He takes retired cigarette vending machines and converts them to vend art. Huh? Yes, art. For five bucks, you can become a bona fide art collector by purchasing an original cigarette pack-sized work of art from local or not-so local artists. It's a fun concept and very original. If you want to find an Art*o*mat machine in your area, just find one HERE.

10 comments:

  1. Yeah, your blog's name is certainly catchy. I first thought it must be somehow related to crazy because the word "ward" reminds me of an asylum. No offense!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your boss started the Art-o-Mat?!
    I first heard of the Art-o-Mat while I was at SCAD. Cool idea. I haven't checked the site in a while but I know that there was a machine or two in Houston (at least there was... not sure if they are still there anymore). Cool stuff. On a side note, I feel special having been privilaged to know the origins of the "Ward-O-Matic" beforehand. :D

    ReplyDelete
  3. No, no -- Doug didn't start the Art*o*mat, a friend of his from Chapel Hill, NC did. After posting this late last night, I realized that you could read that wrong at a quick glance. Sorry for the confusion!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gotcha. I see it now. Thanks for clearing that up.
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. its cool. a reali cute name. was actually quite attracted to it at first,that was what led me to reading your blog. =D anyways,am awaiting Ava thursday! =)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Do you know which Whole Foods it's at? (yay for prepositions at the end of a sentence!) There's the one on Ponce in Midtown and the other off of La Vista and Briarcliff...

    ReplyDelete
  7. A blog by any other name would smell as sweet? Anyway, Art o mat is a great idea.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Olivia, it is the Whole Foods on Briarcliff.

    And Elisha, no offense taken. I kinda liked that my name had different connotations--back in high school my friend, Lane, and I would have these shirts made that said "Mental" on the back of mine and "Fast" on his. Hardy har. Kinda dorky, but at least we had fun wit it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. It is a pretty cool name. If you are into politics, I have a political blog on here!

    ReplyDelete