{"id":19754,"date":"2026-09-06T00:07:06","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T22:07:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/?p=19754"},"modified":"2026-09-04T11:35:04","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T09:35:04","slug":"the-magic-memories-231","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/the-magic-memories-231\/","title":{"rendered":"The Magic Memories (231)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hello everyone!<\/p>\n

Today’s topics are: Juan Tamariz (1942\u20132026);\u00a0<\/span>Juan Tamariz \u2013 Homage at Magic Festival Madrid 2024; <\/span>AI in Magic; AI and Presentational Problems from the Agendas;\u00a0Al Baker o<\/span>n Creativity – Breaking the Rules; Color Analysis and Image Consulting<\/p>\n

These are\u00a0The Magic Memories 231<\/em>, gone online Sunday, September 6th, 2026, at 0:07h sharp.<\/p>\n

All\u00a0The Magic Memories<\/em> from 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025, including the Magic Advent Calendar<\/em>\u00a0from 2020, can be found\u00a0HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Juan Tamariz (1942\u20132026)<\/span><\/h3>\n

Most of you will have seen my \u201cFarewell to Juan\u201d in The Magic Memories Special<\/i>; for those who missed it, you can read it HERE<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Tamariz and his violin case<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Juan Tamariz \u2013 Homage at Magic Festival Madrid 2024<\/span><\/h3>\n

A few days ago, I received a message from my friend Jorge Blass<\/a>, one of Spain\u2019s leading magic performers, telling me that he had finally edited and uploaded to YouTube a tribute to Juan Tamariz that took place in February 2024 as part of the annual magic festival Jorge organizes at the Circo Price in Madrid.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Yunke, Piedrahita, Tamariz, Bloom, RG, Blass<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The event lasted almost two hours and was conducted by Jorge Blass, with the participation of Gaetan Bloom, Luis Piedrahita, Yunke, myself, and several others. <\/span><\/p>\n

Jorge had invited us expressly to Madrid to pay tribute to Juan. And so we did: each of us interviewed Juan from the perspective of our own particular field\u2014Gaetan as a performer and inventor, I as an author, speaking about Juan\u2019s literary work, the Escuela M\u00e1gica de Madrid, and related matters.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although the event is, of course, in Spanish, those smart enough among you (all of you!) will know how to get subtitles, or even how to have the text translated and synchronized.<\/span><\/p>\n

I urge you to take the time to watch the entire event, as it will reveal many aspects of Juan that you may not be aware of.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

As a matter of fact, Ram\u00f3n Mayrata\u2014a former associate of Juan in his first publishing venture, Editorial Frakson, which later became P\u00e1ginas and is now managed by Laura Avil\u00e9s, as well as a professor of literature and a great connoisseur of the history of magic\u2014said that, to his knowledge, this event was the best presentation of the many facets of Juan\u2019s genius. I cannot but agree.<\/span><\/p>\n

To watch the video CLICK HERE<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

AI in Magic<\/h3>\n

J. R. Russell writes:<\/p>\n

Re The Magic Memories 230<\/em>: Great topics, as usual! I did ask AI for ten ironclad rules, and it gave me a solid list.<\/p>\n

It even went further by suggesting some tailored specifically to me, based on my input and use of AI.<\/p>\n

I would be interested to hear, read, or see more thoughts on AI and its uses in magic today!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

J. R. was referring to my discussion of the following prompt: \u201cI am a professional magician. Give me ten iron rules to follow when choosing and interacting with an assisting spectator.\u201d <\/em>(see\u00a0The Magic Memories 230)<\/a><\/p>\n

Paradoxically\u2014or perhaps not\u2014you can use AI to inquire about AI.<\/p>\n

In response to J. R.\u2019s question, ask AI precisely this:<\/p>\n

\u201cHow can you help me in my hobby or profession as a performing magician?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Obvious, Watson, obvious\u2014wasn’t it?<\/p>\n

Although AI already provides some satisfactory answers, occasionally even excellent ones, there are still questions of which AI itself is not even aware. I maintain that there is an infinite number of questions to be asked and, naturally, an even greater number of answers to be given.<\/p>\n

And this is precisely the point with AI: You have to ask the proper question\u2014or, as it is now called, formulate the proper \u201cprompt.\u201d<\/p>\n

I know that you know this… but…<\/p>\n

… the real difficulty is: What questions should I ask, and how should I formulate them?<\/p>\n

Below is an idea that most probably none of the current AIs would come up with unaided. (How many specialized AIs will there be five years from now, perhaps even some devoted exclusively to magic?)<\/p>\n

AI and Presentational Problems from the Agendas<\/h3>\n

Allow me to quote myself from Hidden Agenda<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\n

Presentational Problems\u2014A New Category<\/h4>\n

\u201cIn nature nothing is created, nothing is lost, everything changes.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u2014Antoine Lavoisier (1743\u20131794)<\/p>\n

The entries in this book could be classified under the following headings: techniques, subtleties, tricks, presentations, theoretical and conceptual thoughts, strategies and ploys, practical advice, verbal and visual gags, quotations, anecdotes, personal opinions, reviews, and puzzles. To these I have added a new major category that I call \u201cpresentational problems.\u201d Let me explain.<\/p>\n

When we start out in magic, we demonstrate tricks rather than perform magic. That is normal and customary, and nobody needs to be ashamed of it. After a while, we do this skillfully and even make people laugh, but we still have not used the gift of magic, which is to create astonishment. We might have a card selected and shuffled back into the deck, then ask another spectator to name any number, count down to that position, and reveal the previously chosen card.<\/p>\n

A very good trick\u2014but not good enough to make you a magician. Although it has an inherent plot, even when performed in its most rudimentary form, it lacks dramatic construction: a premise, a conflict, and a resolution. Or, as Vernon once put it, \u201cYou have just demonstrated how clever you are, but you haven\u2019t given the trick an emotional appeal. You must give a trick an emotional appeal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staging and presentation do many things for a trick, but whatever else they may accomplish, they will always produce one major benefit: They captivate and stimulate the spectator\u2019s imagination. This is one of the most marvelous things a performer can achieve, for by stimulating the spectator\u2019s imagination, you gain access to his inner world\u2014a world governed by his private memories, his personal history, his intimate beliefs, and his emotions: an immense, unexplored, and inimitable universe. In doing so, you achieve something that defines an artist: You bring the spectator\u2019s world and your own together for the duration of the performance. You have achieved communication, a goal of the highest order.<\/p>\n

In J. N. Hofzinser\u2019s Card Conjuring<\/em>\u2014Kartenk\u00fcnste<\/em> in the original German edition\u2014Ottokar Fischer presents us with the card magic of this Viennese genius. At the end of the book is a most intriguing chapter in which Fischer describes eighteen so-called \u201ctrick problems\u201d; that is, effects for which neither method nor presentation is supplied, and which the reader is expected to solve. What this sparked in the world of magic is another matter. Years later, however, it inspired me to do precisely the opposite: I give you the idea for a presentational plot\u2014sometimes merely a prologue, sometimes more\u2014and you must find a matching effect. It may come from your active or dormant repertoire, from the literature, or you may simply invent one that fits the suggested plot.<\/p>\n

This is a new category I have added to Hidden Agenda<\/em>, and I hope it will meet with your approval. I predict it will\u2014but I have my thumb writer ready.\u2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As a matter of fact, all four Agendas<\/em> contain this category\u2014the fourth being Secret Twitter<\/em><\/a>, not to be neglected as a source of more than four hundred ideas! Curiously, it was only while writing Hidden Agenda<\/em> that I became aware that this was indeed a category in its own right.<\/p>\n

Here, then, is how you can enlist the help of AI:<\/p>\n

Identify and extract from any of the Agendas<\/em> a few \u201cpresentational problems\u201d that appeal to you. Feed each one to AI with a prompt along these lines:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe following is a presentational problem posed by Roberto Giobbi in his<\/em> Hidden Agenda [insert the title of the appropriate Agenda]. Suggest ten tricks from the classic repertoire of card magic that might answer this problem. Alternatively, devise an original solution of your own.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

That should get the ball rolling. As soon as you receive the answer\u2014which will take mere seconds\u2014you can enter into a dialogue with AI about that specific problem. You can question its proposals, ask for alternatives, impose additional conditions, reject the obvious solutions, and pursue the discussion until you are tired.<\/p>\n

You will tire before AI does.\u2026<\/p>\n

Here are ten of my favorite \u201cpresentational problems\u201d from Unexpected Agenda<\/em> (the fourth and last!) for which I would seek answers:<\/p>\n

\n
    \n
  1. January 2 – The Japanese Gift<\/li>\n
  2. January 6 – Card, Dice and Numbers<\/li>\n
  3. February 14 – One Liner Puzzle<\/li>\n
  4. February 18 – Letter of Complaint<\/li>\n
  5. March 8 – Alexander’s Fan Letter Ploy<\/li>\n
  6. March 27 – Magic Membership<\/li>\n
  7. April 3 – The Magic Contract<\/li>\n
  8. April 8 – Time and Money<\/li>\n
  9. May 14 – Think of a Card!<\/li>\n
  10. May 24 – The Anti-Glove<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    … … … … … … … … … … … … …<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Al Baker on Creativity – Breaking the Rules<\/h3>\n

    I have written and lectured on aspects of creativity in magic, mostly as part of larger explanations, but have never assembled what I came up with in one document or lecture. The subject is so broad that it would result in yet another book…<\/p>\n

    In October I will do a complete 75-minute presentation on the subject at Ondrej P\u0161eni\u010dka’s Butterfly Convention<\/i> in Prague, so started to look into how to present such a complex topic in such a short time. To give an overview seems very hard to do, but above all of little practical use, because even if you know all the theory, you still do not know how to apply such a theory\/technique\/strategy to a specific trick.<\/p>\n

    I will therefore opt for performing and discussing three performance pieces of mine, and then in each case try (!) to explain the “creative process” that led me to that solution.<\/p>\n

    Briefly, one of the many “ways and means” (meaning hard to define techniques and procedures) is “to break the rules”.<\/p>\n

    However, if you are not a genius – and most of us are not, least of all me – you have to know the rules in order to break them.<\/p>\n

    OK, maybe you can break a rule without knowing it, I agree, but for my type of thinking, which is a mix of intellectual and intuitive – the Ying and Yang of creativity – it works better if I define the rules, and then break them.<\/p>\n

    This is just meant as a short introduction to the a short list of “rules” Al Baker formulated years ago and published in his book Mental Magic<\/em> (1949).<\/p>\n

    I leave it you now to read the brief text and then see what you can make out of it, for the PDF CLICK HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Color Analysis and Image Consulting<\/h3>\n

    Recently, I assisted at the entry examination of two candidates at my magic club.<\/p>\n

    This brought back memories of how I started out in magic, of the many things I have done, and of the money I have spent to hone my skills\u2014especially in areas that are not, strictly speaking, magic, but are certainly connected to the effect and impact a performance has on an audience.<\/p>\n

    Thinking about it, I believe I could write a small book on this subject alone….<\/p>\n

    While we wait for the book (!?), here is one thing that watching the candidates brought back to mind.<\/p>\n

    It must have been around 1988\u2014the year I left my lucrative position as a translator with Autodesk, the company behind AutoCAD, to embark upon the adventurous road of the professional magician.<\/p>\n

    At the time, I was on quite friendly terms with Wittus Witt, and we did each other many a good turn. During one of our conversations, he told me that he had undergone Color Analysis and Image Consulting.<\/p>\n

    I asked AI to write a short text on the subject, which I will give you below. I think it is good enough to help you decide whether you might want to make use of such a service yourself. All things considered\u2014and taking into account my additional thoughts below\u2014I recommend that you do.<\/p>\n

    \n

    ChatGPT says: <\/span><\/p>\n

    Color Analysis and Image Consulting<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

    Most magicians devote considerable thought to the color of a playing card, but surprisingly little to the colors they wear while displaying it.<\/span><\/p>\n

    A professional color analysis determines which colors harmonize with one\u2019s complexion, hair, and eyes. By placing differently colored fabrics close to the face, the consultant establishes whether warmer or cooler, lighter or darker, muted or more brilliant tones are the most flattering. The result is usually a personal color palette that can be taken along when buying clothes.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Image consulting goes a step further. It considers body shape, proportions, hairstyle, glasses, accessories, and, above all, the impression one wishes to convey. This is particularly relevant to the performing magician, whose appearance should support the character and the material. A close-up performer in an elegant restaurant requires something different from a manipulator on a large stage\u2014or from a lecturer explaining the finer points of the Double Lift at ten o\u2019clock on Sunday morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Naturally, theatrical lighting may alter colors considerably, and what looks excellent at close quarters may disappear against a black curtain. Therefore, tell the consultant exactly where, how, and for whom you perform. If possible, bring photographs or videos of typical performing situations.<\/span><\/p>\n

    A standard personal color analysis generally costs about $150 to $300; in major cities or with highly experienced consultants, it may reach $400 or more. A fuller image consultation, possibly including wardrobe analysis and shopping advice, can cost $300 to $800 and upward.<\/span><\/p>\n

    This is not vanity, but stagecraft: before the magician performs the first action, the audience has already seen\u2014and interpreted\u2014him.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    Now it is me again: In retrospect, and backed by decades of experience, observation, and reflection, I see the subjects of \u201cstyle\u201d and \u201cimage\u201d in a larger context.<\/p>\n

    Today I believe that the kind of success that leads to personal satisfaction comes from within, not from without.<\/p>\n

    Trying to become a little better every day at what we do, truly loving it, and enjoying sharing it with others\u2014for their edification<\/em> first and their enjoyment second\u2014is far more important than creating an artificial image that conveys neither who we are nor what we believe. I therefore harbor certain doubts about \u201cimage\u201d in its marketing sense, and also about designing a “stage persona” by acting a part that is not genuinely ours.<\/p>\n

    Nonetheless, returning to the entrance examination that triggered this train of thought, I could not help noticing the contrast between the two candidates.<\/p>\n

    One was well dressed, and his body language and speech were thoughtful and coherent; the other gave his presentation wearing what looked like the same clothes he might wear while sitting at home.<\/p>\n

    It reminded me that how we appear before an audience deserves thought\u2014even if it should not be our first priority.<\/p>\n

    If this subject interests you, ask AI about \u201cColor Analysis and Image Consulting\u201d (in German, Farb- und Stilberatung<\/i>), and you will very likely find a specialist in your area.<\/p>\n

    I insist: This is not the most important thing\u2014but it is one of the many details that ultimately make up the whole.<\/p>\n

    Very best wishes,<\/p>\n

    Roberto Giobbi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hello everyone! Today’s topics are: Juan Tamariz (1942\u20132026);\u00a0Juan Tamariz \u2013 Homage at Magic Festival Madrid 2024; AI in Magic; AI and Presentational Problems from the Agendas;\u00a0Al Baker on Creativity – Breaking the Rules; Color Analysis and Image Consulting These are\u00a0The Magic Memories 231, gone online Sunday, September 6th, 2026, at 0:07h sharp. All\u00a0The Magic Memories […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2513,"featured_media":19717,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[13,102],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-the-magic-memories"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Memories26.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2513"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19754"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19754\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20693,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19754\/revisions\/20693"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robertogiobbi.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}