beautiful - rebecca oshea
This is by student designer Rebecca O’Shea (who also happens to be a very talented illustrator)… from www.newzealanddesignblog.co.nz.
August 2011
38 posts
hot hot air
Inspired by the 1973 French film, La Bonne Année, this custom balloon skirt was designed by Janine Trott paired with a Givenchy top for Vogue UK.
From www.honestlywtf.com
in the navy
From The Standard Edition; Initially intended to reinforce cigarette packaging during the late 1800′s, cigarette cards gained quick popularity and were soon collected and traded. The Virginia based tobacco manufacturer, Allen & Ginter are credited with being the first to incorporate cards, not long after, several companies in the UK quickly followed suit. Some of the first cards featured baseball players, Indian chiefs and boxers, with later cards, especially during wartime, featuring servicemen. To no surprise, I’m really into cards from WWII, especially those featuring all things Navy.
mcsweeneys 38
This from itsnicethat on the wonderful McSweeney’s recent 38th print edition; Well, I remember when it was McSweeney’s 13. Now I feel old (or just six and a quarter years older). The inimitable literary anthology returns with written contributions from Ariel Dorfman, Roddy Doyle and the man himself, Dave Eggers. Also, and quite lovely it is, is a comic insert (but you can’t take it out) by Brit comic ace, Jack Teagle. Excellent cover (Jessica “Drop Cap” Hische!) and all-round design as always.
take picture dont steal
Take Picture Don’t Steal is a public art project started by a guy named Matt. He started leaving disposable cameras around Toronto, Canada with a simple sign saying: Take a picture, don’t steal. Now he’s looking to conquer the world. So far along with Toronto they’ve made it to NYC, Madrid, London, Manchester, Barcelona. www.takepicturedontsteal.com
From www.myloveforyou.typepad.com
Otto Neurath at Slang from chaos
From www.slangfromchaos.wordpress.com
A couple of years ago I got a book on early 20th century information designer Otto Neurath and often have it sitting by my computer. Infographics have become ridiculously popular of late, but during the 1920s Neurath championed the idea of using pictures to represent complicated statistics and information — not just because they look cool, but as a genuine force of social good: reasoning that the easier these complex ideas are to understand, the easier it is for people to make informed political and social decisions. And let’s just all agree, they look cool too.
stamp fransisco
Salon.com have run a gorgeous piece on the magic of rubber stamps and a San Fransisco couple who are keeping the art alive;
In 1974, while working at a garment company in San Francisco, a native New Yorker named William “Picasso” Gaglione walked up to Darlene Domel, a Chicagoan working at the same company, and said, “Close your eyes and put out your hand.” With her eyes closed and her heart in her throat, Darlene offered him her open palm. She then felt a tiny weight in the center of it. He pressed her fingers around that little lump, and she then felt the brush of a kiss over her fisted hand. When next she opened her eyes, he turned and walked away. Upon opening her fingers, she saw a small packet in the palm of her hand. In it, she found a tiny little rubber stamp of a star.
The rest is here; http://www.salon.com/life/feature/2011/08/14/stamp_lovers_imprint
keep it simple - el grio
From www.brownpaperbag.com; I grew up drawing everyday objects around my house, so I have a certain affinity towards paintings that depict just that. El Grio has painted a variety of ubiquitous subjects, some more dangerous than others.
I enjoy the simplicity of El Grio’s paintings, and personally love shapes of bottles, vases, and other things that he has chosen to make obtuse. Seeing these paintings make me wish that life was a little more simplified like them.
plans change
A great read at The New York Times;
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/14/fashion/maybe-its-time-for-plan-c.html?_r=1&ref=style
Plan B, it turns out, is a lot harder than it seems. But that hasn’t stopped cubicle captives from fantasizing. In recent years, a wave of white-collar professionals has seized on a moribund job market, a swelling enthusiasm for all things artisanal and the growing sense that work should have meaning to cut ties with the corporate grind and chase second careers as chocolatiers, bed-and-breakfast proprietors and organic farmers.
Indeed, since the dawn of the Great Recession, more Americans have started businesses (565,000 of them a month in 2010) than at any period in the last decade and a half, according to the Kauffman Foundation, which tracks statistics on entrepreneurship in the United States.
The lures are obvious: freedom, fulfillment. The highs can be high. But career switchers have found that going solo comes with its own pitfalls: a steep learning curve, no security, physical exhaustion and emotional meltdowns. The dream job is a “job” as much as it is a “dream”….
bunnies on film
The British Pathé, one of the world’s oldest media companies and home to one of the largest video archives recently shared some footage from London’s Playboy Club, capturing the bunnies during the 1960′s. A bunny, as described by the commentator, “is an American creation. She’s a cross between a hostess, showgirl and bar maid waitress, well versed in the art charming cash customers in a string of plush international clubs.”
On top of footage of the bunnies on a charity mission, we also catch a glimpse of them in their “native habitat” where we’re afforded quick British commentary and a look at some damn good suiting. A lost tradition, this is just a peek at the sophistication once synonymous with the Playboy Club.
from www.thestandardedition.com
watch it here; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UhvcEJEfU8&feature=player_embedded
watch the throne/ physical space
Watch The Throne, the collaborative album from Jay-Z and Kanye West which is available in physical form from today, is now for sale through a pop-up store on Mulberry Street in New York City’s SoHO neighbourhood.
The store’s façade is covered in the album’s artwork, designed by Riccardo Tisci, and the inside of the space features the modified Maybach 62S they drive around in the video.
grime tattoo doco
In the first installment of Grime’s series we hear from tattoo luminaries, Civ and Chris O’Donnell, as they try to put in perspective how revered and unique Grime’s style is. We meet the other tattooers at Grime’s shop, Skull and Sword, and learn how they too strive to be constantly evolving in their tattooing.(www.fecalface.com)
Watch it here; http://www.vbs.tv/en-gb/watch/tattoo-age—2/tattoo-age-grime-part-1
image @ www.curatedmag.com
family design co
New Zealand Design Blog says; Clever, clear and classy identity expressed over many executions. By Family Design for Family Design.
four beats to the bar and no cheating
David Bailey, the super-cool, super-talented fashion photographer who was the model for the lead role (played by David Hemmings) in Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 classic film Blow-up, is now over 70. He is still active as a photographer, both in the fashion and art worlds. Director Jérôme De Missolz was permitted to film him from pretty close up. We see Bailey in his home, with his wife and children, and in discussions with his friends. We are also witness to the inception of a new photography project on his home turf, the East End of London. Bailey turns out to be an artist with no time for pretentiousness or over-complicated theorizing about his art. “Four beats to the bar and no cheating” is one of his favorite quotations from his hero Count Basie. In his photographs, this approach leads to the transparent style for which he has become famous. If possible, we can even forget we are looking at a photo, let alone a beautiful, exceptionally composed or creatively arranged photo. All we see is the person Bailey has photographed, in all his or her nakedness. Bailey’s admirers also give their views, including his ex-wife Catherine Deneuve. No, he ever learned a word of French throughout their marriage. This is typical of the man: a rough diamond, even in his seventies. From www.16house.blogspot.com
man vs mild
No point sharing the blurb … pics speak for themselves. Isaia F/W 2011 lookbook. Suits and waders. Why not .
C/o www.getkempt.com
building fashion buildings
Competition is a healthy thing. It improves a product and creates innovation. BOFFO, the non-profit organization announced a competition earlier this year, that would pair up fashion designers with architects. The winners were announced last month and the result will be on view starting September 8 with Nicola Formichetti. Five designers will have their own retail space for two weeks each, located in Tribeca. We’re looking forward to what Graham Hudson will create for Patrik Ervell come October 20th. The other designers include Irene Neuwirth, The Lake & Stars, and Ohne Titel. From www.scoutmag.com
porsched and ruled
This beautiful thing is a new Porsche showroom that even a non-driver like me has to admit is pretty impressive. More work from the architects here;
http://petersenarchitekten.de/#/
