Homage to the Creative Spirit: The Paintings of Jenness Cortez by Baylor University art historian Karen Rechnitzer Pope (AMI Publishers) has been named recipient of the 2012 Independent Publishers “Outstanding Book of the Year”gold medal.

Cortez exhibits perennially at DeBruyne Fine Art in Naples’ fabled Third Street South Gallery District. Her current series of paintings is titled Homage to the Creative Spirit. Each is a still life that revolves around an iconic masterpiece that has touched Cortez’s heart and soul. Cortez places the painting in a lush interior and surrounds it with objects that make allegorical and metaphorical reference to the artist, his genre, and period during which he created the work. The result is a mindboggling combination of impeccable workwomanship, art history, and riddles worthy of The Mentalist.

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Cortez is a member of a select group of artists sometimes called photorealists. Only a handful of modern day painters have the eye, technical skill and intestinal fortitude to create photorealistic works of art because each painting takes months to research, weeks to draw, and upwards of two to three years to complete. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that Jenness Cortez’s body of work is as limited in number as it is broad in scope.

According to Independent Publishers’ awards director Jim Barnes, the Cortez book exhibits “the courage and creativity necessary to take chances, break new ground, and bring about change––not only to the world of publishing––but to our society. The masterful realist paintings by Jenness Cortez and insightful commentary by Karen Rechnitzer Pope represent the most heartfelt, unique, outspoken and experimental literary and creative achievement among our 5,023 entries.”

In the book, author Karen Pope surveys and celebrates fifty-four paintings that display the range and variety of Cortez’ achievement. A key to the impact and success of each work of art is the skill with which Cortez achieves meticulous likenesses of everyday objects. This quality of realism, both sensuous and immaculate, offers exceptional visual pleasures.

To create each homage requires a virtuosity reminiscent of DaVinci or Michelangelo. Because she is creating a still life that incorporates a masterwork from the past, Cortez must not only blend portraiture, figurative work, landscape painting and equestrian art into the motif of her still life, she must express a fundamental comprehension of the concerns and goals of the artists who pioneered the classical, impressionist, expressionist and magical realist movements. She does not merely copy Renoir, Holbein, David, Manet, van Gogh, Inness, Wyeth or Rockwell. She pays tribute to the styles of art they created and advanced.

“Sometimes the finished piece appears in the mind full-blown, and at other times it is amorphous––yet with some beguiling character that begs to be developed,” says Cortez of her own creative process. “In either case, between that first inspiration and the finished painting lie hours of research, thousands of choices and, of course, the great joy of painting. The process is organic. Even with a well-conceived composition in place, the painting has a life of its own and the best ones surprise even the artist with twists and turns that outshine the most clever of plans. It’s as if the creative spirit insinuates itself into the work, wanting to serve its own best interest with solutions that far exceed the artist’s original, limited vision.”

Executive Director of the Palos Verdes Art Center Robert Yassin calls Cortez one of the world’s most eloquent and successful visual conversationalists. “All art is a dialogue, a conversation through the medium of the artwork between the artist and the viewer,” Yassin postulates. “It is the level of that dialogue that establishes the intrinsic value of a given work. Among the many characteristics of a real work of art, two are most significant and define both the quality and significance of the dialogue. The first is that what the artist is saying must be meaningful; the second, that it is clearly communicated and understood. In Cortez’ paintings, both criteria are more than fully met. The work talks to us at many levels and creates in us a sense of both understanding and well being. This happens because there is nothing arbitrary in Cortez’ paintings. The choice of the painting reproduced, the elements surrounding it, the space the elements occupy, the lighting, the color, everything is carefully selected and orchestrated following a fully articulated plan determined by the artist . . . The paintings of Jenness Cortez make my heart sing.”

Cortez was last in Naples on January 26th for a reception marking the opening of her 2012 exhibit at DeBruyne Fine Art. Several paintings from Homage to the Creative Spirit may still be viewed and purchased at the Naples gallery along with Homage to the Creative Spirit: The Paintings of Jenness Cortez. The book may also be purchased on the artist’s website.

DeBruyne Fine Art is located at 275 Broad Avenue South in Naples. For more information about Jenness Cortez, her work or Karen Rechnitzer Pope’s award-winning monograph, please visit debruynefineart.com or call 239-262-4551.

Three years ago we did a quick blog writeup referring to Bandai’s Digital Living Gallery, a digital frame that was designed to look more classy than techy, and support an ecosystem of digital art that would be sold as physical media. You could buy the Renoir or Monet collections, and enjoy art in a new way. We thought it was brilliant in concept, though not perhaps in execution. After all, you can buy just about anything through iTunes, but there’s no clear way to buy digital art. This is obviously possible through apps, but most of all it’s difficult because people don’t dedicate a single HD screen to digital art rather than other forms of media.

A new concept from artist and designer Yugo Nakamura from tha ltd. called FRAMED has finally been released, and they’ve merged both the hardware and the artistic marketplace with an app that allows smooth interactions with a new medium. This week we went to their new showroom in Omotesando to take a look, play with the system, and drool a little bit. It’s also been covered by Honeyee and CBC NET to name a couple of outlets.

It’s hard to say whether the specs of the frame or the contents are more important, but we’d argue that it’s the latter’s marketplace that has the best potential to create a thriving digital art culture. Still, the device itself is beautiful. Developed along with Samsung, the 55 inch vertical LED display contains a PC with Wi-Fi as well as a visually undetectable embedded camera and microphone for additional interaction. The front, back, and edges are clear and straight, and there isn’t a single in/out port to be found. That’s where the content marketplace comes in, all done wirelessly.

FRAMED comes with some preinstalled works, but their goal is to create both a platform and means for inspiring artists to create and sell their digital art. These include works by Yugo Nakamura such as his famous DROPCLOCK. At first the works will be curated by FRAMED, but eventually it will open up more to all artists to participate and sell.

The art is browsed, purchased, and selected for display all through the FRAMED app, which is available for free on iTunes. There is also the possibility to interact with certain works, such as changing colors, manipulating shapes, or anything else envisioned by the creator.

We absolutely love the concept, but it doesn’t come cheap. To get the FRAMED display will cost about 1.2 million yen, which is just over $14k, and the art itself can go for $300 depending on the piece. While the display is pricey, we wouldn’t say that $300 would be too unreasonable for the content, especially if we were able to get a copy of team Lab’s 100 Year Sea.

There are currently no plans to bring FRAMED to international markets, but we would agree that there’s definitely a space for digital art that has no yet been filled, and will require something beyond iPads and standard LED displays to do. Even Apple TV has the potential to sell art, but that’s different from having a display dedicated to it and mounted on the wall with style. In this regard FRAMED is a step in an interesting direction for both art and commerce in the digital world.

Ever dream of living in a show house? This could be your chance. This house at 114 W. Carpenter, just off Ashman Street, was a favorite in last year’s  Zonta Homewalk.

Priced at $129,500, this charming cottage Tudor is an Aladdin “kit” home manufactured in Bay City and built on the Midland lot in 1929. The home has been well maintained and updated with modern conveniences that reflect the period and architecture.

 The first thing you notice from the street is the asymmetrical gable roofline around the original rounded top front door with ornamental hinges and colonial style cylinder lock set.

 Once inside and to the left, a diamond shaped window creates a welcoming nook perfect for a small table and flower arrangement. A coat closet is on the other side of the entrance.

The curved archway entry, all original plaster and stucco, leads into the living room, which measures 11-by-17-feet, and features the original oak hardwood floors that were an upgrade to the original house plan. Kit homes were rarely altered, but this one was specifically ordered to exclude a fireplace, which probably would have been in the living room, and upgraded to include oak floors, double studding on the windows and doors, coal chute and a back kitchen door. A total of $48.40 for all of the upgrades, on top of the original price of $2,236.

The living room faces the front of the home with one window facing the street. An addition to the home, which is currently used as an office, was added at the end of the living room and measures 8-by-10-feet with glass French doors leading into it. This room would also make a great sitting/reading room with its original hardwood floors.

Another curved archway divides the living room and dining room. The dining room measures 11-by-12-feet and features handpainted striped wall treatment and a beautiful crystal chandelier. The dining room leads into the kitchen, which is in the back of the home, and measures 9-by-8-feet with many updates including Owens cabinets with glass faced doors and Corian counters. The kitchen is modern and efficient with its updated appliances, pull-out drawers, refinished oak floors and fresh paint.

 The home’s main floor bath is between the kitchen and the master bedroom and has been charmingly modernized yet designed to keep the original style and vintage character of the original home. The master bedroom measures 10-by-13, and includes a bay window that faces the back of the home and allows  abundance of natural light to flow into the room. The room has hardwood floors and a good sized walk-in closet. Both the bay window and the walk-in closet were added, and not typical to this era, but both great additions.

Upstairs there are two good-sized bedrooms, one measuring 12-by-12-fee, and the other 14-by-14-feet. This floor plan is the Stratford – floor plan No. 1 that has the bathroom on the main floor and two bedrooms on the top floor as opposed to the more popular floor plan No. 2, which had three smaller bedrooms on the top floor with a bathroom.

 Stairs off the kitchen lead you to the back door that leads out to the cozy backyard that measures 55-by-120-feet. The backyard is completely fenced and has been beautifully landscaped with flowers, an herb garden, cherry and apple trees. A brick paver patio makes a nice sitting area to relax and listen to the neighborhood church bells chime. The two-car detached garage was also purchased out of the Aladdin Home Catalog. The style is Hudson, costing $258 when it was originally built.

 The basement stairs conveniently located near the back door off the kitchen lead you to the full bath downstairs – perfect for cleaning up after yard work. The basement, although unfinished, makes a perfect area for relaxing and currently used as an entertainment area and if you look closely you can see the original stamping on the wooden beams for construction.

This is a unique and historical home with all of the work already done, and just waiting for new owners to move in and make more special memories. For more information on this home or to arrange for a private showing, contact Carol Ostergren of Ayre/Rhinehart Realtors at (989) 631-7000.

Kevin says: What a treat to not only go through this house once, but twice – first for the Zonta Homewalk, and now that the house is for sale. It was nice to see the house all decorated for the holidays, and to see it now for everyday living. The house is just charming, and talk about attention to detail – no stone has been left unturned. This house is picture perfect, and truly a showpiece. The homeowners’ good taste and decorating make this house warm and welcoming, and the paint color choices are right on trend.

Lori says: We were smitten with this house when we visited to preview the Zonta Homewalk last year. We’re still in love! This house has so much charm of years gone by and although built in 1929 is move-in ready today. Extra wide steps take you to the arched wooden front door, with original hardware. That look is carried on inside with several archways throughout. The windows have deep ledges, which I particularly like, and the original hardwood floors are dark, in great shape and right in style. The master bedroom has a bay window. I like how the stairs to the upper level aren’t visible at the front door but in a hall area behind the living room wall.

TYPE OF HOUSE:  1 1/2 story

ADDRESS:  114 W. Carpenter

SCHOOLS:  Carpenter, Central, Midland High

ADDITIONAL FEATURES:  central air, main floor master, patio

LISTING AGENT:   Carol Ostergren – Ayre/Rhinehart Realtors

Copyright 2012 Midland Daily News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The advancement of technology has been felt in all areas of our lives, from the way we travel, to entertainment and even our home essentials like the kitchen. The amount of time we spend in our kitchen has also been drastically reduced, thanks to high-tech kitchen appliances preserving our food, cooking it in short amounts of time and making washing a breeze. The typical kitchen of today includes a large refrigerator, a cook top or cooking range with a hood overhead, a counter top or over the range microwave and a dishwasher.

Although the main function of a kitchen is supposed to be cooking or preparing food, the kitchen can be the center of other activities as well, especially within homes, depending on the size, furnishings, and equipment. The Toronto kitchen tends to also be the place where the family eats, provided it is large enough and has a table and chairs. Sometimes, the kitchen is the most comforting room in a house, where family and visitors tend to congregate.

A large modern kitchen is still the psychological hearth of the home. This makes many people choose fancy, expensive kitchen appliances and there are many options to choose from. French door refrigerators are a very luxurious item, with the freezer on the bottom and two fridge doors at the top. The cooking ranges can be replaced by more modern appliances, such as a cook top that is installed in the kitchen counter and a wall oven mounted inside the wall or counters. This can save a lot of space to be used for more counters or a roomier kitchen.

Manufactures have also improved a lot on the aesthetics of kitchen appliances, offering many color options. In Toronto the typical appliance will have the standard white color, but stainless steel is becoming the main choice for new modern appliances. Research should be done before buying new appliances, something that will suit your needs and style, and online Toronto websites such as canadianappliance.ca/ are a great start to equip your modern kitchen with the latest appliances.

Earlier this month, the wife of former Vikings tight end Joe Senser was convicted on a pair of felony counts relating to a hit-and-run incident in August 23 that resulted in death.  On Friday, Amy Senser’s lawyer filed a motion for a new trial, according to David Hanners of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

The shotgun-approach request, which outlines a laundry list of mistakes allegedly made by the trial judge, is in most jurisdictions a prerequisite to a formal appeal.

Amy Senser’s attorney raises a broad range of factors and decisions that allegedly deprived Senser of a fair trial.  Like many of these motions do, this one creates the impression that the judge presided over a comedy of errors.

Amy Senser claimed that she thought she hit a construction barricade, like a traffic barrel.  Instead, she struck 38-year-old Anousone Phanthavong, sending him 50 feet through the air and ending his life.

She faces up to four years in prison.

Joe Senser, 55, played only four seasons for the Vikings.  In 1981, he caught 79 passes for 1,004.  After football, he remained in Minnesota and became a restauranteur.  The story initially captured the attention of the media in part because it wasn’t known whether Joe Senser, Amy Senser, or another person had been driving the vehicle owned by the Sensers.

A hearing on the motion will occur within 15 days.

Despite the kitchen-sink approach utilized by attorney Eric Nelson, some lawyers believe the better strategy in situations like this is to identify two or three of the best and strongest arguments, cutting loose weaker points that tend only to dilute the stuff that could get someone’s attention, either at the trial court level or higher up the legal food chain.

Thankfully, those are decisions I haven’t had to make for nearly three years.  Instead, I just have to figure out when to stop writing and when to press the “publish” button.

Sometimes it’s an easy decision.  Sometimes it isn’t.

Sometimes, I just need to quit typing and do it already.

Hanging this Japanese style cartoon art on your wall is a great way to spruce up and improve the look of any room. Here are 8 cool posters for Anime fans. 

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=676216

Vampire Knight began in 2005 in Lala magazine. Vampire Knight is an ongoing series that has been adapted into anime for television. In 2010 DVD’s of Vampire Knight were released in the North American market. Yuki is the main character in the Vampire Knight series and is a protector of the vampire race. Whether you are an anime and manga fan or not, this Vampire Knight Artwork poster would look good hanging in almost any room in your home or apartment.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=676238

For some reason Vampires and the vampire genre has become very popular. Vampire Hunter D follows along with the new-found popularity of this genre. Vampire Hunter D however is not simply following the current trends of anything vampire related because the first Vampire Hunter D novel was released in 1983.  So far 22 novels in this series have been published over the years. This series has a hardcore cult following but recently has became more mainstream as interest in everything vampire related is on the rise.

What better way to see if a girl is “the one” then to invite her over to your house. If she sees this manga poster hanging on your wall and is familiar with the books then she may be a girl you want to keep! The vampire genre is extremely popular with people of all ages so this poster would make an excellent gift for most people, including teen girls.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=676239

This is another manga styled poster from the same series as above. The dark style of this genre is brought out in full-force in this high quality poster. If you get this poster print framed then you will have a cool keep-sake to pass onto your grandchildren that you will have in the future. Out of all the Vampire Hunter D prints this is by far the coolest looking one.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=186977

This anime poster is very cool looking. This is one of these awesome looking posters that immediately grab someone’s attention as they will want to know more about this. Appleseed is science-fiction manga. It is an older series but still has a rabid fan base and a lot of fan fiction is still written about the Appleseed manga series. In 1986 Appleseed won a Seiun Award for best new manga.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=186358

Steamboy is a popular animated film that was first released in Japan during 2004. The movie made its way to the rest of the world.  If you have never watched Japanese films before than Steamboy is a good way to start. The poster here for the film Steamboy is super cool looking and if you want your room to stand out than a Steamboy poster is a great way to go.

Steamboy is a steampunk style animated movie that took around 10 years to complete. If you like alternate history story lines then you will love the Steamboy plot. This poster features the main character, 13 year old James Ray Steam. Regardless of whether you normally like Anime films, you will find that you probably really enjoy this film regardless of your age. Steamboy has an amazing plot, excellent voice acting, and some terrific art.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=178529

Samurai X is the name of the film when it was released in English, however the original name for the Samurai X film was called “Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story”. It became popular in the United States when the Cartoon Network began airing it on television. The Samurai X poster is definitely one of the coolest Anime style poster you can find. The Samurai X looks like a “dark” show from the poster; however fans of the show understand how truly deep this series is. Samurai X was the reason many kids did not have their homework done before they went to bed. Samurai X single handedly helped to give Anime an entirely new fan base. People who watched this show began to watch other Anime films and get interested in Anime and Manga art.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=679015

Pokémon is by far the most famous Japanese animation show that has came out of Japan. If you kids are between 8-13 years of ages then they are almost for certain to known all about Pokémon. Pokémon posters make a great gift. Even if you are not a fan of Pokémon they are still a fun poster to hang up simply to see what other people reactions re when they come and visit you.

Credit: animeprints.com/showproduct.aspx?pid=676245

Clannad started off as a comic novel that was designed to be read on a computer. As with all great Japanese animation art Clannad became and anime series in 2007. Clannad is a great poster for kids to hang in their room. Clannad makes a good poster for kids and young teens regardless of their gender.

There are numerous anime posters and artwork for sale on the Internet. AnimePrints sells not only the best looking Anime posters but also a collection of some of the most popular Disney prints. Posters are an easy way to decorate a child’s room. In addition you can get a poster framed and this artwork can hang anywhere and add to the beauty of any décor.

Anime and Manga inspired posters are an inexpensive way to really add some pizzazz to a room. Why buy generic prints from a department store when you can instead get a nice framed anime print?

Your comments about the Posters for Anime Fans are welcomedYou are very welcome to make some comments about the Anime Prints and Posters shown in this article. Which one is your favorite? The honorable Vampire Knight? Or the Vampire Hunter D? Samurai? Or if none of the above  then I would like to know your personal favorite in a comment below.InfoBarrel members can easily make comments. If you aren’t a member yet, then you can sign up for InfoBarrel and make money writing articles online like I do.

Bronze statues are a beautiful ornament to have in any household or garden and their strength and durability means that can resist the elements extremely well. When setting in a mould, bronze will expand and display the extremely fine detail, much better than other rougher materials, such as stone. The ancient Greeks were the first to use bronze to create statues but despite bronze’s strength, may of these have not survived. Ornaments and statues were often melted down to make weapons during periods of war and thus, have not survived. Despite the time between the ancient and modern times, the recipe for bronze hasn’t changed much. It is commonly 90% copper and 10% tin.

When looking for a sculpture for sale, A good sized bronze statue might cost anywhere between 1000 and 3000. This isn’t always a reflection of age. The process of creating these sculptures is extremely time consuming and demands huge amounts of skill. The shape of the sculpture is created using wood or clay and the centre is hollowed out. This is then filled with wax to increase the strength of the mould. After the wax hardens, the cast is then covered in a ceramic solution and then covered in sand. This toughens it further, after which the wax on the inside is melted away. Once this is dry, it is ready for the bronze metal which is poured inside the cast. After this hardens, the cast is shattered and thrown away. Finally, the sculptor must fine tune and additional details on the statue.

Another reason why these statues are so expensive is because of their originality. No one statue is like any other and the uniqueness adds to their value greatly as pieces of art. Size is another factor. The more materials and time needed in the creation process will reflect on the price. It will also depend on where to decide to buy a statue. Going to a skilled artist who will create exactly the statue you want will also add to the cost.

So to ensure that you don’t get ripped off, always look out for a certificate with every statue to verify the work is completely original. Any reputable gallery will have one with each of their works. This is to safeguard to sculptor as well as the buyer and maybe the gallery’s reputation. If you are buying a sculpture for sale from an individual artist or second hand, check the quality of each statue before you purchase. Look out for any cracks or chips that may have formed as this can affect it’s value. Also enquire about any areas of a statue that seem to be missing.

Crossposted on newgeography

With Facebook poised to go public, the attention of the tech world, and Wall Street, is firmly focused on Silicon Valley. Without question, the west side of San Francisco Bay is by far the most prodigious creator of hot companies and has the highest proportion of tech jobs of any region in the country — more than four times the national average.

Yet Silicon Valley is far from leading the way in expanding science and technology-related employment in the United States.

To determine which metropolitan areas are adding the most tech-related jobs, my colleague Mark Schill at Praxis Strategy Group developed a ranking system for Forbes that measures employment growth in the sectors most identified with the high-tech economy (including software, data processing and Internet publishing), as well as growth in science, technology, engineering and mathematics-related (STEM) jobs across all sectors. The latter category captures tech employment growth that is increasingly taking place not just in software or electronics firms, but in any industry that needs science and technology workers, from manufacturing to business services to finance. We tallied tech sector and STEM job growth over the past two years and over the past decade for the 51 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the United States. We also factored in the concentration of STEM and tech jobs in those MSAs. (See the end of this piece for a full rundown of our methodology.)

Anyone who has followed tech over the past 30 years or more understands the cyclical nature of this industry — overheated claims of a “tech-driven jobs boom” often are followed by a painful bust. This is particularly true for Silicon Valley. The remarkable confluence of engineering prowess, marketing savvy and, perhaps most critically, access to startup capital may have created the greatest gold rush of our epoch, but the Valley at the end of 2011 employed 170,000 fewer people than in 2000.

Most of the job losses came in manufacturing, and business and financial services, sectors with a significant number of STEM workers. Even though the current boom has sparked an impressive 8% expansion in the number of tech jobs in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metropolitan statistical area over the past two years, and 10% over the past decade, the area still has 12.6% fewer STEM jobs than in 2001. Overall, the recent growth and concentration of tech and STEM jobs remains good enough for the San Jose metro area to take seventh place in our ranking of the Best Cities For Tech Jobs. Next-door neighbor San Francisco, ranked 13th, has enjoyed similar tech and STEM growth over the past two years, but over 2001-2011, its total STEM employment inched up only a modest 0.8%.

The Established Winners

So which areas offer better long-term, broad-based prospects for tech growth? The most consistent performer over the period we assessed is the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash., metro area, which takes first place on our list. Its 12% tech job growth over the past two years and 7.6% STEM growth beat the Valley’s numbers. More important for potential job-seekers, the Puget Sound regions has grown consistently in good times and bad, boasting a remarkable 43% increase in tech employment over the decade and an 18% expansion in STEM jobs. Seattle withstood both recessions of the past decade better than most regions, particularly the Valley. The presence of such solid tech-oriented companies as Microsoft, Amazon and Boeing — and lower housing costs than the Bay Area — may have much to do with this.

Our top five includes two government-dominated regions: the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria MSA places second with 20.6% growth in tech employment since 2001 and 20.8% growth in STEM jobs; and Baltimore-Towson, Md., places fifth with 38.8% growth in tech jobs in the same period and 17.2% growth in STEM. Over the past two years, their tech growth has been a steady, if not spectacular 4%. One key to the stability may be the broadness of the tech economy in the greater D.C. area; as the Valley has become dominated by trends in web fashion, the Washington tech complex boasts substantial employment in such fields as computer systems design, custom programming and private-sector research and development.

Diversity in tech may also explain the success of other tech hotspots around the country. No. 3 San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif., has ridden growth in such fields as biotechnology and other life and physical sciences research. Over the past decade, tech employment has grown by almost 30% and STEM jobs by 13% in this idyllic Southern California region, and over the past two years, by 15.7% and 6.5%, respectively. Like San Diego, No. 11 Boston is also a well-established tech star, enjoying 11.3% tech growth over the last decade and nearly 10% over the past two years, with a diversified portfolio that includes strong concentrations in biotechnology, software publishing and Internet publishing. STEM employment, however, has remained flat over the past 10 years though.

New Tech Hotspots

Which areas are the likely “up and comers” in the next decade? These are generally places that have been building up their tech capacity over the past several decades, and seem to be reaching critical mass. One place following a strong trajectory is Salt Lake City, No. 4 on our list, which has enjoyed a 31% spurt in tech employment over the past 10 years. Some of this can be traced to large-scale expansion in the area by top Silicon Valley companies such as Adobe, Electronic Arts and Twitter.

These companies have flocked to Utah for reasons such as lower taxes, a more flexible regulatory environment, a well-educated, multilingual workforce and spectacular nearby natural amenities. Perhaps most critical of all may be housing prices: Three-quarters of Salt Lake area households can afford a median-priced house, compared to 45% in Silicon Valley and about half that in San Francisco.

Several other top players with above average shares of tech jobs are emerging as powerful alternatives to Silicon Valley. Like Salt Lake City, eighth-place Columbus, Ohio, boasts above-average proportions of tech and STEM jobs in the local economy, and benefits from being both affordable and business friendly. The Ohio state capital has enjoyed 31% growth in tech jobs over the past decade and 9.5% in the past two years. Raleigh-Cary, N.C., ranked ninth, is another relatively low-cost, low-hassle winner, expanding its tech employment a remarkable 32.3% in the past decade and STEM jobs 15%.

Possible Upstarts

Several places with historically negligible tech presences have broken into our top 10. One is No. 6 Jacksonville, Fla., which has enjoyed a 72.4% surge in tech employment and 17.4% STEM job growth since 2001, mostly as a result of a boom early in the decade in data centers, computer facilities management, custom programming and systems design. Another surprising hotspot: No. 10 Nashville, Tenn., where growth in data processing and systems design fueled tech industry growth of 43% along with 18.5% STEM employment growth over the past decade.

Who’s Losing Ground

Some mega-regions with established tech centers have been falling behind, notably No. 47 St. Louis, No. 45 Chicago, No. 41 Philadelphia and No. 39 Los Angeles. These areas still boast strong concentrations of STEM-based employment and prominent high-tech companies, but have suffered losses in fields such as aerospace and telecommunications. Remarkably despite the social media boom, the country’s two dominant media centers — L.A. and No. 33 New York — have also performed poorly enough that their STEM and tech concentrations have fallen to roughly the national average.

Valley Uber Alles?

Silicon Valley may be churning out millionaires like burritos at a Mexican restaurant, but looking into the future, one has to wonder if its dominance will diminish. Limited developable land, an extremely difficult planning environment, high income taxes and impossibly stratospheric housing costs may lead more companies and people to relocate elsewhere, particularly if the big paydays needed to make ends meet wind down. Mark Zuckerberg and company can bask in their big IPO this week, but the Valley may soon need to consider what it must do to compete with the many other regions that are inexorably catching up with it.

Best Metropolitan Areas for Technology Jobs Rankings

RegionRankIndex  ScoreSeattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAWashington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVSan Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CASalt Lake City, UTBaltimore-Towson, MDJacksonville, FLSan Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAColumbus, OHRaleigh-Cary, NCNashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TNBoston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NHSan Antonio-New Braunfels, TXSan Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CAHouston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TXCincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-INAustin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TXAtlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GAPortland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WADetroit-Warren-Livonia, MIDallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXDenver-Aurora-Broomfield, COPittsburgh, PABuffalo-Niagara Falls, NYCharlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SCIndianapolis-Carmel, INMinneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIProvidence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MAMiami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FLRichmond, VAPhoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZLouisville/Jefferson County, KY-INNew Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LANew York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PAHartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CTTampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLOklahoma City, OKOrlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FLRiverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CALos Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CALas Vegas-Paradise, NVPhiladelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDSacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville, CACleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OHRochester, NYChicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL-IN-WIMemphis, TN-MS-ARSt. Louis, MO-ILKansas City, MO-KSVirginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NCMilwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WIBirmingham-Hoover, AL

Joel Kotkin is executive editor of NewGeography.com and is a distinguished presidential fellow in urban futures at Chapman University, and contributing editor to the City Journal in New York. He is author of The City: A Global History. His newest book is The Next Hundred Million: America in 2050, released in February, 2010.

Mark Schill is Vice President of Research at Praxis Strategy Group, an economic development and research firm working with communities and states to improve their economies.

Rankings Methodology

Our Best Cities for Technology Jobs ranking is a weighted index measuring growth and concentration of technology-related employment in the nation’s 51 largest metropolitan regions. The 51 regions are scored against each other on a 1-to-100 scale. The index includes both tech industry employment data and occupation-based employment data. Our technology industry component covers 11 six-digit NAICS sectors covering information industries such as software publishing, Internet publishing, data processing, and tech-related business services such as computer systems design, custom programming, engineering services, and research and development. The technology industry data covers 4.5 million jobs nationally. The occupation-based component includes 95 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) occupations as classified by the federal Standard Occupation Classification system. This covers 8 million STEM workers that could be employed in any industry. Employment data in our analysis is courtesy of EMSI, Inc. and is based upon over 90 federal and state data sources.

The index comprises four weighted measures: 50% STEM occupation growth, 25% technology industry growth, 12.5% STEM occupation concentration, and 12.5% technology industry concentration. Growth measures are evenly balanced between the 2001-2011 growth rate and the 2009-2011 growth rate, while the concentration measure are job location quotients from 2011.

Note that there is likely to be some double-counting of STEM workers working in tech industries. The tech industries are also obviously employing others, such as salespeople, managers, janitors, etc.

Though these types of rankings typically include only industry data, we felt the STEM jobs data captured “tech” more cleanly so we weighted it higher. However we felt it still important to include the data covering the industries that most identify with the high-tech economy.  The heavier weight on STEM helps minimize the effect of a double-counted STEM worker in a tech company.

While it’s not technically called a “baseball card” if the person in question doesn’t play baseball, we’ll call it that for the sake of this article since it’s made by Topps and will be included in the 2012 summer series of their baseball trading cards.

Upton, the voluptuous blonde model who shot to superstardom after appearing in a racy Carl’s Jr. ad, is also a big name over at Sports Illustrated, which is what landed her the trading card honor. 19-year old Upton will no doubt have hormonal males everywhere vying for the decks, which could prove to be an interesting marketing move on Topps’ part; sales have waned in recent years due to advances in technology. In short, kids are going digital, and trading cards are a bit antiquated unless you’re a hardcore collector (which breaks my heart, as I loved baseball cards as a kid and had two huge binders full of them).

The new series debuts in July and is modeled after the 1800′s baseball cards, which were produced by Allen and Ginter–a tobacco manufacturer–and placed into cigarette packs. The set is well-known for including non-baseball players on the cards, and this latest venture by Topps will follow in their footsteps, adding familiar sports faces Bobby Knight and Arnold Palmer this year.

And now, for your viewing enjoyment, Kate’s Carl’s Jr. ad. It straddles the line as far as being safe for work, so use discretion. Take that in whatever sense you want.

— CUMBERLAND — The sculptor who created the bronze mule at Canal Place will begin commemorating Baltimore Orioles greats when the first of six bronze sculptures is unveiled today at Camden Yards. In 2000, the mule and boy sculpture that celebrates the C&O Canal was created by Antonio Tobias “Toby” Mendez and unveiled at Canal Place. It continues to be very popular with tourists and residents who are frequently seen posing with the centerpiece. “The mule sculpture has become a real icon at Canal Place,” said Andy Vick, chairman of the Canal Place Preservation and Development Authority. “Visitors of all ages, especially young children, really love to take a picture with, and in some cases on, the mule.” Today, the cover will come off Mendez’s first Orioles sculpture, that of Frank Robinson. Each month this season, a sculpture of another Orioles great will be unveiled: Brooks Robinson, Earl Weaver, Jim Palmer, Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. These players were chosen as they are the modern-era Orioles to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, their uniform numbers having long been retired by the club. Mendez has been working on this particular project for a year, according to a report in The Baltimore Sun. The unveiling will take place just beyond left-center field at about 5:15 p.m. a little after gates open for the game with the Oakland Athletics. The club reports there will be a limited amount of space for fans to view the unveiling. Robinson, who will also throw out the first pitch, has said he will not see the sculpture until it is unveiled. All fans at the game will receive an exact replica of the Robinson sculpture. Photographs of other Mendez sculptures are available on his website (tobymendezstudios.com) and include singer Billie Holiday, Justice Thurgood Marshall, Boston Red Sox great Ted Williams and Miami Dolphin Coach Don Shula.