Archive for July, 2011
Herman Miller and Japanese “botanic artist” Makoto Azuma have collaborated on the AstroTurf Chair, a spin on the former’s iconic Aeron chair, which is unique in its standing as one of only a few chairs to be included in the Museum of Modern Art’s Permanent Collection. According to Colossal, in the coming weeks the chair will be displayed at Miller’s recently opened Tokyo store. (Colossal via @JailbreakJason)
Los Angeles-based photographer Lorena Turner is a self-described “social scientist with a camera.” Her series Made in China is an examination of consumerism in the United States. Turner purchases products, dusts them for fingerprints and then photographs the object under a black light to try and tell a story about its creation. Above are a tape measure, two rubik’s cubes and the back of a clock. Here’s why:
It goes without saying that we love this project. I remember visiting our factories in China for the first time and being amazed by the number of people that are responsible for making just one of our products. I realized then that even though I’m in this business of producing, I’d never considered what goes into the creation of the things I buy. It’s an interesting dichotomy, and one that has certainly changed my views on consumerism, commercialism and my own personal desire to own “stuff.” I’ve contemplated adopting a minimalist lifestyle, but for the time being I’ve simply settled on getting rid of something I own everything I buy something new. And that feels good so far. Check out the rest of Made in China here. Spike Jonze directs another installment of The Continuingly Ill Adventures of the Beastie Boys, which find Action Figure versions of Ad-Rock, MCA and Mike D fighting off a gaggle of (probably Eastern European) bad guys, with a little assistance from a Yeti and the singer Santigold. The Inception/Team America-inspired short acts as video support of the Beasties’ song, “Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win” off their excellent album, Hot Sauce Committee Part II. Also awesome is their insistence on calling the plastic Beasties “action figures” and not “toys.” We’ve been known to do that, too. Thanks, Mike Dolan!
We’re digging these toy soldiers NYC-based artist Steve Nishimoto dressed up with skateboards instead of guns. Check out the other two after the break. (Mike Dolan via Jeremy Brautman via Dangerous Minds) Indie darling Sufjan Stevens directed this weird stop-motion video for his song “Get Real, Get Right” from the album The Age of Adz. Original artwork by Royal Robertson. Check it out. (via The World’s Best Ever)
The shopping bag is free, mobile advertising for every company that sells goods that must be transported from one place to another. (Which is still plenty, regardless of the growth of online shopping.) Yet here in the US, I feel like it’s underutilized, existing as just another space where said company can slap their logo without giving much thought as to who’s seeing it and what, if any, impression it’s having on passersby. Enter these walk-stopping European bag advertisements, used by ad-agencies to promote products from companies like Greenpeace, Volkswagen, Red Cross and many others. This is guerrilla marketing at its finest and would do wonders for brands looking to catch peoples’ eyes and start the conversation, on the street and in real time. For once, it might be what’s on the outside that counts. Check out our favorites after the jump, and head over to Bored Panda to see the rest.
Our friend, the multi-talented artist Mike Leavitt, points us toward the interesting work of artist and designer Kyle Bean, who built, among other things, this chicken out of eggshells for his piece titled, “What Came First.” Check out his Bean’s portfolio here. Street artist D*Face used skaters to paint a swimming pool by attaching spray cans to the underside of their boards and then clicking a remote control apparatus as they rode back and forth. (via Laughing Squid)
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