Monthly Archive for December, 2007
forbidden fruit in harajuku
A short stroll from Yoyogi Park in Tokyo, where the Harajuku girls gather in their unique sartorial glory and aspiring rockstars brave winter’s stinging bite to sing their hearts out to anyone who will listen, sits the health-inspired juice bar/cafe known as Forbidden Fruit. But unlike many of the unique characters who frequent Tokyo’s infamous Harajuku neighbourhood, this tiny locale prefers to go relatively unnoticed – except to those in the know. Continue reading ‘forbidden fruit in harajuku’
art of consuming culture
In this season of end-of-year sales and buying things you don’t really need, it seems timely that Theme magazine has a profile on the artist Tobias Wong. His provoking and ironic art works, explore the funny nature of consumerism and questions the value of art, design and everyday objects. He is known for using very high-end designer products and has played around with Burberry tartans, Issey Miyake clothes, Philippe Starck furniture, and used the extravagance of real diamonds, cash, crystal, and pearls. In the Christmas of 2002, one of his works even tried to sell original Andy Warhols as holiday gift wrap for up to $25,000. His work both annoys and influences the design world and this has made him one of Forbes Magazine’s Tastemakers of 2007.
2 days in paris
At a time such as Christmas, you may be able to relate to the sense of coming home, visiting family and old friends, and reconciling your old and new lives. These themes are present in Julie Delpy’s quirky new film, ‘2 Days in Paris’, due for release on Boxing Day. Being a Delpy fan, I went along to see an advanced screening and loved the film’s pace, its repartee, and its characters. If you are new to Julie Delpy’s work, this is a perfect showcase of the many strings to her bow; she wrote, directed, scored and acted in ‘2 Days in Paris’, and her whimsical songs are also featured. She also co-wrote the wonderful ‘Before Sunset’ with Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater; and its witty and insightful dialogue continues in ‘2 Days in Paris’. Continue reading ‘2 days in paris’
Campos is considered by some as the best coffee in Sydney, and you can now find it in Brisbane. Their newest roastry and cafe is the lastest addition to the Valley’s hip James St scene. Located on Wandoo St (next door to the James St Markets), the cafe fronts out to a tight laneway, which makes it feel like a wonderful hidden urban discovery. It’s one of those types of places you might accidentally miss from the street, but waiting to be found beyond the dark exterior is some great coffee, good food and a striking but casual setting. Enjoy one of their coffees in the laneway on a padded milk crate or sit inside on the bold green and black booth seats, and you’ll discover why Campos has gained a cult following and even its own Facebook fan group.
There sure is something nice about the cool shade of a tree on a hot summer’s day. A University of Manchester study has even calculated that a mere 10% increase in the amount of green space in a city could reduce urban surface temperatures by as much as 4C. The architects of Ecosistema Urbano Arquitectos, have been exploring similar ideas in their “EcoBoulevard” designs which reduce mircoclimate temperatures by 8-10C. These large intriguing structures combine principles of climate responsive architecture and landscape to create temporary “urban forests”. The structures generate solar power and create unique public spaces for those who live in the area of Vallecas, a suburb of Madrid. These designs recently beat out a highly innovative field for the Architectural Review’s 2007 Award for Emerging Architecture.
xmas or excess?
One of the biggest threats to our planet comes from excessive consumption by the rich few (which includes you and I). This year, I will not join the consumerist excess of the silly season. My gifts to friends and family will be hand-made, they will lighten my environmental impact and support those who really need it. Inspired by the folk at Adbusters who are spriting Buy Nothing Christmas, here are my tips for gifts that avoid wasteful consumption: change to renewable energy, host your own clothes swap, feed a child, help someone help themselves with a microfinance loan, install energy-efficient lightbulbs, help conserve Australia’s diminishing wildlife, buy handmade, restore someone’s sight. If none of that gels, try buying less, making your own and wrapping in re-usable papers and fabrics. Despite the name, Buy Nothing Christmas is not about being a scrooge, it’s about meaningful giving and avoiding yet more ecological damage through excessive consumption.
green light
Via Inhabitat: ‘Tis the season to be jolly, and if you happen to be in New York, green! This year New York’s finest Christmas landmark is going green in the spirit of the Christmas season. For the first time in its history, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, will be getting a new set of energy efficient LED Christmas lights that will be fully powered by solar panels. The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, which attracts over 500,000 visitors during the holiday period, will receive over 30,000 LED lights instead of the standard holiday lights that it normally had. This switch from tungsten Christmas lights to LED Christmas lights will have the result of reducing the energy consumption by almost 60%.
santa’s ghetto
There are plenty of online art gallery concepts vying for attention and dollars in cyberspace but when renegade street artist Banksy puts his pseudonym behind one, it’s worth a closer look. Santa’s Ghetto is Banksy’s annual December project, which aims to provide a physical and virtual space for artists to “hawk their wares amongst the mindless sham and drudgery of the Christmas season”. For the past five Decembers, Bansky has rented a shop in different locations around London to exhibit affordable works for sale by some of the world’s most feared and revered street artists. This year, Santa’s Ghetto continues to brand itself as a ‘low-concept art event’ but has moved beyond the gritty streets of London to temporarily settle amongst the gritty streets of Bethlehem, in a chicken shop on Manger Square. The artists’ intention is to highlight the Palestinian conflict and raise funds to dedicate to local projects for children in need in Bethlehem. So if you’re looking for a limited edition art work, and you’re keen for your Christmas-inspired dollars to go towards a worthy cause, jump into the art show and see the art shop. There’s also a gallery of Banksy’s latest scrawls on the West Bank wall that have landed him in some hot water, which nicely lathers him up ready for more close shaves.
right to bike
Traffic in China’s cities is often so thick, and traffic lights rare, that cyclists have difficulty crossing intersections. Typically, a bottleneck of cyclists builds until there is enough of them to stop traffic and move together across the road. Critical Mass, a monthly bike ride held in cities from Barcelona to Brisbane, is named after this phenomenon and is a chance for keen cyclists to celebrate and publicly assert their road rights, en masse. Seeded in San Francisco in 1992 and based on the Chinese phenomenon profiled in Ted White’s documentary, ‘Return of the Scorcher’, the concept quickly spread around the world. Critical Mass rides are local, democratic and somewhat viral: anyone can start or join a ride in their city and they’ve been labelled an organised coincidence. The rides vary by place: in some cities, riders try to obstruct traffic and riots have ensued; in others, participants dress up and hold street parties. According to recent web postings, Bris-vegans interested in joining a Critical Mass bike ride should meet in Queens Gardens (next to the casino) on the last Friday of the month at 5pm.
Saturday night saw a feast of bizarre light critters wreaking havoc among the streets of Paddington. In this latest series of images, I explore the possibilities of painting with light; certainly not a new concept, but one that’s heaps of fun and limited only by the imagination.
we add up
“We Add Up” is a global campaign using sweatshop-free, organic cotton t-shirts that literally “counts you in” in the fight against global warming. Every shirt is printed by hand with a unique number. Your number represents your place in the sequential global count of all the people who are taking steps to help stop climate change. The designs are based on some 20 actions you can take to reduce your carbon footprint.
I’ve seen a lot of shoes lately. Colourful, crazy, cute. Sexy, strange, simple. Irresistible, irresponsible and insidious. But none which were recycled, reused or returned to life, not to mention visually appealing, like those found on Terra Plana, and its family of shoe brands including Worn Again, Vivobarefoot and Dopie. Winners of The Observers Ethical Fashion Product of the Year Award in 2007, Terra Plana bids to develop ‘the best feeling designer shoe brand in the world’. With processes including souring locally available resources such as bicycle tyres, car seat belts and reclaimed jeans, utilizing a unique stitching design which cuts down on the need for solvent glues and aiming to make the shoe as light as possible, Terra Plana’s range of shoes have a blueprint to create a very light footprint indeed.
ffffound.
In two days, my interest in image bookmarking site FFFFound! has been cultivated by a diverse and ever evolving collection of images and designs from around the world. In a number of clicks, a quick, effortless dose of inspiration is delivered by images saved by members and published and rated by viewers. While you can not become a member at present, (I believe the quick popularity of its format has meant restricted membership for now), it appears that content is controlled by members who are invited to blog images. Hence the obvious quality of images and designs. The brand identity of the site, is just the first of many images to like. Enjoy.
Opening for a short time but a good time, Schmik at Brisbane’s new Portside Wharf is a temporary retail concept featuring eight local artists’ works for sale. Driven by jeweller Marisa Molin and photographer Romy Willing, with space generously sponsored by Multiplex, Schmik will officially open at 6pm on Saturday 8 December and invites shoppers and arts lovers to spend their pretty pennies where it counts with free hugs on offer, live music and refreshing refreshments. Artists’ works are handmade and inspired by nature and include jewellery by Marisa Molin and Eliza Tee, photography by Romy Willing, paintings by Simon Degroot, bags/purses by Rebekah Coffey, body products by Annie Burns, and artist books by Hiromi Tango. Schmik isn’t the first time Marisa has driven an arts retail store. She also helped kick-start the Museum of Brisbane workspace in 2003 and this year organised a similar one-day sale of art works in Launceston where she has spent the past three years completing her Masters. She takes time to travel the State in her van, camp in remote locations and bushwalk to be inspired by nature. She’s also just returned from Singapore where her works were included in a Tasmanian Jewellers exhibition, singular and multiple, as part of the Singapore Design Festival. She was selected with four other jewellers to return to Singapore in March and present at Singapore Fashion Week 2008 but, until 31 January, you’re likely to find Marisa and other Schmik artists manning their magic store at the wharf until it vanishes as miraculously as it appeared. Pop in to Schmik on Fridays 1-8pm and Saturdays/Sundays 11am – 4pm until 31 January.
One of my simplest pleasures in life is the observation of light. I love stumbling across something cleverly illuminated that invites me to take a step closer and look. Even more pleasing is when I happen to have my camera handy to explore exposure and composition in relation to that light… delightful!
dreamers of the world unite
What is that fundamental force that informs people’s decisions in life; why one person chooses one path and the other follows another? Like a strong undercurrent pulling a swimmer outside of the flags, and then further out to sea; or the driving force pushing the dreamer to follow that rainbow in search of the elusive pot of gold. For Dan Lethbridge, this pot of gold was a successful music career, and he chose Melbourne as the place to do it.
Dan is a writer, musician and performer who played in a band in Brisbane before moving to Melbourne. His love of music started early thanks to his parents who introduced it to him at a young age, living in country Queensland. He listened to music throughout his childhood and learnt to play the guitar at the ripe old age of ten.
“I have my Dad to thank for that. He took me to a communal garage sale one day and we spotted an old nylon-string acoustic. We bought the guitar and a beginner’s chord book and I went home and started learning Kris Kristofferson songs,” Dan says. Continue reading ‘dreamers of the world unite’
