Thursday, May 21, 2009
FreeDarko does Adidas
FreeDarko offers postmodern analysis of the NBA, it's culture, it's industry. They have brilliant illustrations by Bethlehem Shoals, a.k.a. Jacob Weinstein.
Boxing Cats, 1894
The Edison company produced stuff like this when they were, uh, inventing the medium of film. Just for point of reference, this film of boxing cats was made 111 years before YouTube was invented.
The Library of Congress has a vintage film archive on YouTube. They also have a vintage photo archive on Flickr.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Pupusa del Coyote, by Irvin Morazan
From Bartered States: Contemporary Art from El Salvador at the Bronx River Art Center.
Images lifted from Tattfoo.
The end of the world
Clive Thomson writes for Wired sometimes, and his blog Collision Detection deals with science and culture, with an emphasis on technology. Here is his review of the end of the world (sort of).
He drops a couple of $5 words:
He drops a couple of $5 words:
eschatology: a branch of theology concerned with the final events in the history of the world or of humankind
ludology: the study of games and other forms of play. More specifically today, the study of video games, in an academic or critical light.
Friday, May 15, 2009
David Gentleman
Illustrator/designer David Gentleman, from the New Penguin Shakespeare series in the 70s.
Some close ups (from Tolstoy2007's archive of paperbook covers):
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Electrostatic interface
3D interface based on electrostatic fields, developed by students at Northeastern University in Boston.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Shuttle Launch
The launch of the shuttle Atlantis, in Cape Canaveral, FL.
...from the New York Times.
Photo by Matt Stroshane/Getty Images.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
ZUI @ sofake
Jordan Stone did the music for Mark Essen's Flywrench.
His web design firm sofake has a zooming user interface (ZUI). It takes a second to get accustomed, but it's worth poking around. At the bottom level (zoomed in all the way) you can load different apps, and then zoom into them to use them.
His web design firm sofake has a zooming user interface (ZUI). It takes a second to get accustomed, but it's worth poking around. At the bottom level (zoomed in all the way) you can load different apps, and then zoom into them to use them.
Amy Bennett
Amy Bennett paints from small scale models of imagined towns. In her own words (highlighting is mine):
"For my previous project I constructed a fictional model neighborhood. I considered who lived in each home, their family dramas, and the way their private lives might spill into view of their neighbors. The model became a stage on which to develop the psychological implications of belonging to a particular family, with all of its dramas, struggles and familiar routines. I thought: this tree will be taken down after an old man crashes into it; a father will transform this lawn into an ice skating rink; this house will be abandoned after its residents are scandalized on the evening news. As I transitioned my model into winter, snowbanks of increasing depth seemed to fortify a sense of isolation and quietness. The paintings portray both the magical and suffocating potential of snow, wonder at its stark beauty and hopelessness that spring might never come."
Monday, May 4, 2009
Windosill
This is Patrick Smith.
He just released Windosill, which is like Myst done by Salvador Dali. Simply weird, yet weirdly simple.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Messhof
Independent game creator Mark Essen (AKA Messhof).
His game Flywrench is on at the New Museum right now, as part of "The Generational: Younger Than Jesus."
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Intent
I'm trying to decipher the place of Art and Design in a post-art, post-design world. I am chronicling my thought process and my explorations here.
The Artist's purpose is to expand her boundaries and struggle against her limits. These are the limits of ability and perception, of communication and understanding. By expanding her own boundaries, she often redefines the boundaries of her society. The Artist is a weaver, creating the raw material of culture.
The Designer takes the culture around him and makes it accessible and usable to society. His (unreachable) goal is to perfect the world around him. The Designer is a taylor, smoothing out the wrinkles, and bringing in the waist, so culture is snug and smart.
The Artist role is often thought to be the sole provenance of the Fine Artist, just as the Designer role is mistakenly assumed as the sole provenance of the Professional Designer. The Fine Artist and Professional Designer identify themselves as Artists or Designers through their profession, the same way a plumber defines himself as a plumber. However, Artist and Designer are simply roles we all can take, in the same way we take the roll of Teacher or Student, Mother or Son. We each fill different roles throughout our days, throughout our lives, even filling multiple roles simultaneously.
Today the number of people self-identifying as Artists and Designers is increasing. The Internet has drastically changed the dynamic of Performer and Audience, Merchant and Customer. More people are taking on the role of Performers and Merchants. This allows them to then perform and sell the fruits of their Art and Design. Thus we see a democratization of Art and Design.
We've been witnessing a decline in the relevance of contemporary fine art and an explosion in the ubiquity of professional design. It would be sensationalist to imply that art is dead, but the point is that the traditional role of Fine Art is being filled in new ways.
I find myself reading a great amount lately, and I want to record my thoughts on these readings. The list will certainly grow, but there are a few things I hope to discuss:
Writings to explore:
Walter Benjamin on "The Work of Art in the the Mechanical Age"
Philip K Dick's "The Man in the High Castle"
The art of Justin Lieberman
Maurice Saatchi "The Death of Advertising"
The Unbundled World
Kevin Kelley on the "World Without Technology"
Marshall McLuhan's "Understanding Media"
Bob Cringely on "Why Apple Will Buy Adobe"
Doris Lessing's "The Making of the Representative for Planet 8"
Stephen Johnson's "Emergence"
Dyson Freeman (in the NYT)
Josh Klein on the intelligence of crows (TED)
Other topics to explore:
Narrative perception vs sensual perception
Fractal view of culture
Memes (cultural genetics)
Family memes vs family lore
The Artist's purpose is to expand her boundaries and struggle against her limits. These are the limits of ability and perception, of communication and understanding. By expanding her own boundaries, she often redefines the boundaries of her society. The Artist is a weaver, creating the raw material of culture.
The Designer takes the culture around him and makes it accessible and usable to society. His (unreachable) goal is to perfect the world around him. The Designer is a taylor, smoothing out the wrinkles, and bringing in the waist, so culture is snug and smart.
The Artist role is often thought to be the sole provenance of the Fine Artist, just as the Designer role is mistakenly assumed as the sole provenance of the Professional Designer. The Fine Artist and Professional Designer identify themselves as Artists or Designers through their profession, the same way a plumber defines himself as a plumber. However, Artist and Designer are simply roles we all can take, in the same way we take the roll of Teacher or Student, Mother or Son. We each fill different roles throughout our days, throughout our lives, even filling multiple roles simultaneously.
Today the number of people self-identifying as Artists and Designers is increasing. The Internet has drastically changed the dynamic of Performer and Audience, Merchant and Customer. More people are taking on the role of Performers and Merchants. This allows them to then perform and sell the fruits of their Art and Design. Thus we see a democratization of Art and Design.
We've been witnessing a decline in the relevance of contemporary fine art and an explosion in the ubiquity of professional design. It would be sensationalist to imply that art is dead, but the point is that the traditional role of Fine Art is being filled in new ways.
I find myself reading a great amount lately, and I want to record my thoughts on these readings. The list will certainly grow, but there are a few things I hope to discuss:
Writings to explore:
Walter Benjamin on "The Work of Art in the the Mechanical Age"
Philip K Dick's "The Man in the High Castle"
The art of Justin Lieberman
Maurice Saatchi "The Death of Advertising"
The Unbundled World
Kevin Kelley on the "World Without Technology"
Marshall McLuhan's "Understanding Media"
Bob Cringely on "Why Apple Will Buy Adobe"
Doris Lessing's "The Making of the Representative for Planet 8"
Stephen Johnson's "Emergence"
Dyson Freeman (in the NYT)
Josh Klein on the intelligence of crows (TED)
Other topics to explore:
Narrative perception vs sensual perception
Fractal view of culture
Memes (cultural genetics)
Family memes vs family lore
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