Our Webchair travels this month are rich in content and visual pleasure. Settle back and enjoy as we surf the web for some of its treasures.

Jennifer Steinkamp is presenting "Daisy Bell and Left Clavicle", acknowledging the intervention of the human hand in the natural world. The title is based on an experiment at Bell Labs in 1962 when the song "Daisy" was synthesized, as well as the diminution of the supercomputer Daisy in the movie 2001:A Space Odyssey. Steinkamp uses toxic vegetation appearing to tumble down the gallery walls. Be sure to view the exhibition video from their links at left as well.

Have you ever thought of using crystals to make furniture? Tokujin Yoshioka has done just that. In this article you will get a fascinating description of his process, which incorporates "beauty born of coincidence", his phrase for chance discovery. Be sure to click on the multimedia photographs link also.

A site called "Web Urbanist" is showing the work of seven high-speed photographers, some of them quite amazing. While you are there, check out their link list on the right, especially "Creative Urban Furniture Designs", reminding me once again of the unlimited inventive capacity of the human mind.

For a few moments of exquisite calm in a frenetic world, watch and listen as Xavier de Maistre plays his rendition of Smetana's The Moldau on the harp. Now on contract to Sony's BMG Masterworks, de Maistre's most recent album features the music of Claude Debussy. You can also hear him play work by Manuel de Falla with quiet elegance.

Although this is a commercial site sponsored by Novedge, those of you who are curious about how three-dimensional modeling takes place might enjoy watching this demonstration, which they call "Importing Mesh Geometry as Cloud Data in ParaCloud". Don't let the title inhibit you: it's actually fun to see the form unfold.

I have spoken before about the superb talks offered at the TED site. Here is one you won't want to miss. Conductor Benjamin Zander gives a heart-warming and sometimes hilarious account of the current state of classical music. Stay tuned to the end, since he connects his thoughts to qualities of leadership. Zander began composing when he was nine, taking lessons from Benjamin Britten. You can read his biography here.

Mary Jackson lives in Charleston, South Carolina. She is a master craftsman of the sweetgrass baskets that originally came to these shores from West Africa. Watch the video as she explains the source of her materials and their use in basketry. Jackson is a recent recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Award, which praised her "intricately coiled vessels".

Rhizome at the New Museum has commissioned works from nine emerging artists. If nothing else, read the abstracts of their proposals (lest you doubt that the world is changing before our eyes and ears.) Among the more intriguing: "Versionhood", in which artist Kristin Lucas proposed to change her name to Kristin Lucas; and Evan Roth's stainless steel responses to the friendly folks at Homeland Security.

Kendell Geers has for years concentrated on the impact of violence on human lives and on his country of South Africa. One of his projects begins "Imagine you wake up one morning and your country has disappeared". You can see more of his work at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. While you are at their site, you can click on Past, Present, or Future links to other interesting projects at the Centre.

The Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the Metropolitan together have produced an exhibit called "Rhythms of Modern Life, British Prints 1914 - 1939". Some stunning examples are shown online with brief comments on each artist.

Finally, because a chuckle a day keeps the grumps at bay, here's an image sent to me by a friend that I want to share with you.

c.Corinne Whitaker 2008