Places such as Boston or Peterborough have indeed seen abrupt unwelcomed cultural change, transforming familiar communities.
By transforming familiar, even mundane, modes of abstraction, the artist invites us to re-evaluate the distinction between so-called fine and decorative art.
Besides bringing the forgotten Durant to life, Mr. Madsen transforms familiar brands into real people, providing human faces for the proper nouns that Detroit has hardwired into our brains: Olds, Dodge, Buick, Chevrolet, Chrysler and even, for us old-timers, Nash and Studebaker.
The Beijing, China-based artist is known for contracting and expanding the human form in his works, transforming familiar bodily contours into bulbous orbs and alien vessels.
He's interested in the spirit of expedition, and in its power to transform even familiar materials.
It's the rare director who can transform the familiar into something that feels as if it were being seen for the first time.
It has two stunning performances from the leads and manages to transform a familiar comic set-up into something that feels completely new and exciting.
Moreover, the wheels often necessitate certain structural elements that transform the familiar rectangular case into a series of zippered compartments with lots of nylon netting and snaps.
There's nothing morbid about "Brandenburgs," but to observe these works together is to see how Mr. Taylor is able to transform his familiar movement vocabulary according to music and mood.
While we shouldn't celebrate hubris or financial mismanagement, I'm glad that we live in a universe where people periodically throw tens of millions of dollars at Julie Taymor and ask her to transform a familiar commercial property into something artistically innovative.
