As we approach the first Tuesday in November, you’re very likely to see more and more red, white and blue bumper stickers, buttons and lawn signs cropping up all over. Graphic designer Michael Bierut explains why so many of these campaign signs look the same, no matter what side ...

The Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has a playful, evasive manner of speech. Some call this spin, others poetry. When musician Phil Kline ran across a collection of Rumsfeld quotes, he was so taken with the rhetoric that he composed music to accompany the text. In his Three ...

Walter Murch is that rare creature — an artist almost universally considered a master in his field. He edits sound and images for movies. His credits include the Godfather, Apocalypse Now, American Graffiti, The English Patient, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Conversation, and Cold Mountain.

At first glance New York artist John Mahoney’s paintings look like traditional Japanese imagery with their chrysanthemum patterns and flocks of cranes. Look a little closer and you find hidden in the art are the distinctive shapes and designs of Makita brand power tools. Produced by Ilya Maritz.

Los-Angeles based Mexican artist Rubin Ortiz-Torres is inspired by gardeners and their equipment. He customized a riding lawn mower to jump, gyrate and dance by remote control. Oritz-Torres commissioned his sister to write music for this ballet. Her revved-up sounds are made by leaf blowers and weed whackers. Produced ...

In the 1940s and '50s, American composer Conlan Nancarrow used an old-fashioned tool to create music no human could have played or heard before. To write his compositions, Nancarrow used mind-bending mathematical formulas to cut extremely complex rolls for the player piano. Produced by Sarah Lilley