Archive for October, 2009
By removing the unnecessary, this New York City map-cut reveals the “paths, nodes, circles, boulevards, parks and streets” of the greatest city in the world. Each of the four 3′ x 4′ paper panels fit together like panes of window. Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx are all represented, but it’s only when they’re combined and placed against a colorful backdrop that the city begins to take shape. Also available is a Paris map-cut, which you can see in detail after the break. While New York was cut on regular paper, the Paris version was created out of an actual map, adding another dimension to this stellar concept. Paris is available here for $250.00 The map-cuts come from Charlotte, NC-based artist Karen O’Leary’s Studio K.
Artist George Hart specializes in the construction of intricate things like these geometrically complex sculptures made out of 72 pencils. Hart intersects four hexagonal tubes that penetrate one another and form a three-dimensional lattice, and then inserts the pencils into place. My lack of mathematical knowledge forbids me from offering further explanation, so head over to his website for more specific information. Each one of these uses a different type of pencil and exists as a one-of-one piece. Really nice and original work! One more on the other side. “Evolution” is a short animated advertisement that was directed by Tronic–a NYC directing, design and animation studio–for French insurance agency, AXA.
So this is what a billion dollars looks like, huh? We’re still on the fence–and awaiting confirmation–as to whether the money used in this project is real. But one can dream so for the time being we’ll assume it is. This project, “One Billion Dollar” was created by Vienna, Austria-based artist and entrepreneur, Mike Marcovici. The money is stacked on 12 standard pallets and includes 10 million $100 bills! Marcovici says, “One Billion Dollar is not so much about what you see, but what you could do or not do with the money. Besides, this is the most expensive piece of art ever made.”
Check out his website for an outstanding portfolio that includes a Rolex Time Sand project and Democratic Chess. Thanks to Mike for pointing me in the direction of his work. What would you do with a billion dollars?
Japan’s Medicom Toy has struck up a collaboration with Disney to release this Tim Burton and Mickey Mouse mash-up based on the former’s main character, Jack Skellington, from his classic film, The Nightmare Before Christmas. Although they’ve announced the toy’s release just in time for Halloween, the Mickey Mouse x Jack Skellington Edition won’t actually arrive in stores until spring 2010. [Fresh Bump via Collect 3D and Freshness Mag]
The November 2009 issue of Vogue Paris includes a spread featuring work from KAWS. The Graffi-Couture editorial is graced by model Raquel Zimmermann, and exists as further proof of how street and popular culture continues to merge. The rest of the spread after the break.
Artists Ben Turnbull’s, “I Don’t Like Mondays” exhibit has just premiered at Eleven Fine Art in London. His work stems from a fascination with the global dominance of American culture, and features these intricate gun carvings in the top of desks. Furthermore, “his works’ unsettling effects result from re-presenting the toys of our innocent youth in symbolic forms that reveal the shocking truths about war, death and guns in the world’s most powerful country.” The exhibit runs through November 7, 2009. For more info click here. Eight more images on the next page [It's Nice That via Paul Smith]
Torino, Italy-based master sculptor, Fabio Viale, uses both white and black marble in his work, which includes a fully-functional motor boat and massive industrial tires. The pieces featured above and below were sculpted out of 100% white marble! At the end of this post there’s five more photos and a video documenting the creation and use of the boat. It’s pretty unreal. For more information on Viale visit his website.
This evening, First Lady Michelle Obama will answer 10 rapid-fire questions on the rapidly floundering Jay Leno Show. It will mark the first time a president’s wife has appeared on Leno. In related news, there’s under a month left until our Michelle Obama Action Figure ships worldwide. For a limited time you’ll receive free shipping if you pre-order all three fashionable variations of the action figure. Simply write “OLYMPIA” during checkout. Head over to Jailbreak Toys for more info. I wonder if they’ll discuss Michelle’s miniature version? Tune in to find out…
One of our favorite childhood books, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-ExupĂ©ry, has been turned into an interactive exhibit that opens today at the Oca Pavilion in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 2009 is, oddly enough, France year in Brazil, and so they’ve been hosting a number of French cultural and artistic events around the country since January. ‘The Little Prince’ exhibit, which runs through December 20, 2009, plays out like chapters in the book–with a plane ticket given to patrons upon entrance and each subsequent stop represented by events and characters the Little Prince encounters on his adventures. “Each floor constitutes a world of its own. At the start, the first exhibition space presents Saint-ExupĂ©ry, his period, his work and the origins of the Little Prince. The visitor then travels onwards through a series of themed worlds–the desert, the stars, the cosmos, etc.” -Let Petit Prince Website. Saint-ExupĂ©ry is somewhat of a legend in Brazil, having traveled there in one of his first flights in the early 1900s. So much of the exhibit is also devoted to the author and his world expeditions. The Oca Pavilion is located at Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo. A bunch more photos from the exhibit after the break. Click here for more info.
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