Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Nissyoku Lamp


Great lamp designed Igendesign, we’re suckers for futuristic designs!

Via Fubiz

Maison Martin Margiela Limited Edition Michael Stipe Minicassette





This is an amazing collaboration between Maison Martin Margiela and Michael Stipe - the Limited Edition Minicassette. “Produced in exclusive collaboration between Michael Stipe and Maison Martin Margiela, this is a sterling silver microcassette charm (measures approx 1.25” x 1.75”) on a skinny black ribbon – to be tied up and worn in whatever way you imagine. Limited to 199 pieces, each piece is numbered and signed by Stipe. We are the only non MMM store to stock this – an instant collectible.” – Oki-Ni.

Lydia Fong (Barry McGee) & HuskMitNavn | “The Last Night”











Check out pics from the Lydia Fong (Barry McGee) and Danish artist HuskMitNavn exhibit entitled “The Last Night” at Alice Gallery in Brussels. The two artists styles work well when seen together and consisted of paintings, drawings, photographers, and of course patterns. The exhibit just ended.

Source: Gllltn

The Cieling by Cy Twombly at Musée du Louvre



American-born, Italian-based artist Cy Twombly has earned the honor of being only the third contemporary artist to ever have a permanent piece showcased at the Parisian Musée du Louvre. The painted ceiling will be showcased in the Salle des Bronzes, covering over 350 square meters. A full recap of his history and vision can be seen in the press release below.

Selected by a committee of international experts, Cy Twombly is the third contemporary artist invited to install a permanent work at the Louvre: a painted ceiling for the Salle des Bronzes.

The permanent installation of 21st century works at the Louvre, the introduction of new elements in the décor and architecture of the palace, is the cornerstone of the museum’s policy relating to contemporary art. This type of ambitious endeavor is in keeping with the history of the palace, which has served since its creation as an ideal architectural canvas for commissions of painted and sculpted decoration projects. Prior to Cy Twombly, the Louvre’s commitment to living artists has resulted in invitations extended to Anselm Kiefer in 2007 and to François Morellet for an installation unveiled earlier in 2010, but these three artists also follow in the footsteps of a long line of predecessors including Le Brun, Delacroix, Ingres and, in the twentieth century, Georges Braque.

Twombly’s painting will be showcased on the ceiling of one of the Louvre’s largest galleries, in one of the oldest sections of the museum. It is a work of monumental proportions, covering more than 350 square meters, its colossal size ably served by the painter’s breathtaking and unprecedented vision.

Twombly’s two best-known trademarks are perhaps the incorporation of passionately scrawled words into his paintings and the energetic use of splashes or drips of vivid colors. In this work, Twombly leaves behind such romantic expressiveness. Here instead, the visitor discovers an immense blue sky, enlivened by the movements of spheres and punctuated by white insets inscribed with the names of the leading Greek sculptors active in the 4th century: Cephisodotus, Lysippus, Myron, Phidias, Polyclitus, Praxiteles and Scopas.

Twombly’s aim was to create a work perfectly in harmony with the architecture and purpose of the space, this huge rectangular gallery housing the Louvre’s collection of Classical bronzes. Thus the round shapes can be interpreted as shields, planets, or coins, while the blue background evokes either the sky or the sea.

Although certainly an American artist—Twombly was born in Lexington, Virginia in 1928—he is thoroughly Mediterranean in spirit and has lived in Italy since 1959, making frequent trips to Greece over the years. All of Twombly’s work finds inspiration in mythology, in the poetry and heroic figures of Antiquity. The Ceiling is the artist’s second commission in France, following the curtain conceived for the Paris National Opera’s new flagship theater at the Bastille in 1989. In 2001, Twombly received the prestigious “Golden Lion” award at the Venice Biennale. Commemorating the artist’s 80th birthday in 2008, the Tate Modern presented a major retrospective of his work, an exhibition that would travel to the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea in Rome later that same year and in 2009.

via: SLAMXHYPE

Showtel





For the past eight years ArtSite Projects curator Kara Walker-Tome has been transforming a section of West Palm Beach, FL's Hotel Biba into an annual art event. Aptly named, Showtel turns hotel rooms into conceptual installations by challenging artists fill the spaces with everything from sculpture and performance art, without using the use of nails or adhesives.

via: coolhunting.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Mark Nagata’s Vinyl Factory Visit



During Mark Nagata’s stay in Japan for the Kaiju Comrades 2 show, he took it upon himself to visit the factory that produces his toys. We are glad he brought along his camera to get footage of how it’s done. We are even more amazed that Shimizu-san works in such a tiny area. Check out Mark’s wrap up HERE for more behind the scenes.

via: vinylpulse.

Nate Lowman at Carlson Gallery London







New York’s Nate Lowman’s latest show ‘Fill You With Holes’ started this week at London’s Carlson Gallery. The collection of new works is signature to Lowman’s style and aesthetic and even includes that iconic bullet hole piece. The show runs through till the 30th April.

Images: Aaron Bondaroff

AERIAL7 Royale Headphones



AERIAL7 drops looks into their premium ‘AList’ Royale Headphones. “Crafted from the finest materials, the Royale features full grain leather ear cushions and headband with premium quality speakers. Engineered by designers to uniquely match top of the line components to create optimum sound that satisfies the most finicky connoisseur.” Now available at a MRSP of $400 USD.

Tech Specs

+ Driver Diameter: 50mm
+ Input Plug Diameter: 3.5mm and 3.5mm iPhone™
+ Sensitivity (S.P.L.): 97±3dB (at 1KHz)
+ Frequency Response: 20~20KHz
+ Impedance: 24Ω
Adapters
+ 1m DJ coiled cable extends easily to 2.5m
+ 1.2m lightweight cable with mic for iPhone™, Blackberry® & Mp3
+ 3.5mm ~ 6.3mm (1/4”)

Works with iPhone™, Skype™ and Blackberry®

CLOT x Converse (PRODUCT) RED Jack Purcell High


Following some previously seen previews, Kevin Poon pulls the covers off CLOT’s latest collaboration with Converse (PRODUCT) RED. Utilizing a less often seen model in the Jack Purcell High, the sneaker’s upper features two-tone leather and nubuck materials.

CLOT for Converse (PRODUCT) RED

For this latest collaboration, CLOT created a high top version of the Jack Purcell shoe. “The Jack Purcell shoe is kind of unassuming, sort of the underdog… I really like the style, and the front of the shoe really captivates me. When I started thinking about a collaboration with Converse this was the shoe that I wanted to work with,” says Kevin Poon, founder of CLOT.

Using rich nubuck leather and premium materials and construction, CLOT’s creation is a very comfortable and elegant version of the Jack Purcell shoe. Kevin also adds that an element of muted red was also added to “embody the CLOT movement, and to subtly reference the mission (RED)”

“The shoe is really inspired by our ”from dusk till dawn collection. We wanted to use a color palette that embodied this emotion – subtle, mostly grey, and all together the colors bring out this high top Jack Purcell’s unique silhouette,” says Poon.

The Launch Party at JUICE HK

To celebrate our first collaboration launching on 1st April, 2010, CLOT and Converse have invited DJ Jules, the renowned England DJ who has deejayed at different occasions including opening act for artists such as Maxwell and Sade and parties for fashion labels such as Versace and business magnate Martha Stewart.

The CLOT for Converse (PRODUCT)RED Jack Purcell shoe is available in a high-top, leather version. The shoe launches globally in April at JUICE in Asia and select retailers globally. Retail for HK$1,199, it will be available in unisex sizes.

Rosson Crow “Bowery Boys” at Deitch Projects










Currently in its last days at Deitch Projects 18 Wooster Street location is an exhibition of new paintings by Rosson Crow exploring the rebellious and lawless side of New York history. Entitled ‘Bowery Boys,’ the super-scale works comment on a long line of underground “bad boys” who have existed in New York City from the 1800s to the present day. Deitch Projects’ reputation for exhibiting and supporting the current generation of rebellious youth from this lineage makes this a fitting location for Crow’s sassy attempt to mimic the spirit of gangs, graffiti, drugs and illicit sex so inherent to the city she has called home for the past six months.

Topically, The Dakis Joannou Collection at the New Museum depicts a superimposition of the stained glass windows of the Bowery Mission onto the interior of its odd Bowery neighbor, the New Museum where a portion of one of the world’s most expensive collection currently resides. A second painting pairs a vintage New York City sex club, Plato’s Retreat, with the new nightclub that sits on top of the Standard Hotel, the Boom Boom Room, and a Bruce Nauman neon.

Other paintings draw on the styles and motifs of the “bad boy” painters she tries to invoke: Barber Shop adorns an 1800s barber shop with 80s Allen Ruppersburg texts from the MoMA in bold Brillo Box (and Deitch) colors. Some canvasses straightforwardly conjure the artist’s imagining of “bad boy” dens or lairs without the historical hybridization: Kenny Scharff’s black light disco Cosmic Cavern, Dash Snow and Dan Colen’s NEST exhibition at Deitch Projects, or Keith Haring’s more child-friendly Pop Shop.

Rosson Crow was born in Dallas, Texas in 1982, and lives and works in Los Angeles. She received her BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York in 2004 and her MFA from Yale in 2006. Crow completed a residency at Cite Internationale des Arts in Paris in 2006 and has had solo exhibitions at Honor Fraser, Los Angeles; CANADA, New York, and Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris.

via: artobserved.

Monday, March 29, 2010

Jules de Balincourt ‘Premonitions’ at Deitch Projects


French born Jules de Balincourt, is one of the world’s most accomplished contemporary artists. Bases in New York, the artist will show a new selection of works entitled ‘Premonitions’ at Deitch Projects from April 1st. Another sign of how much we’ll miss Deitch once it closes its doors in a few months. Stay tuned for coverage from the event, and make sure you make it to Wooster Street.

Deitch Projects
18 Wooster Street
April 1 – April 24, 2010

Confucius say,

"If you are in a book store and cannot find the book for which you search, you are obviously in the......



Coarse Toys Jaws Loser Edition






Coarse Toys is at it again and will soon release their new Jaws Loser Edition. The edition consists of two colorways of the toy – white and pink. The figures are 13″ tall and as usual beautifully crafted and packaged. Look out for a release on March 26th.

Coarse Toys Jaws Loser Keychains


The keychains come in two versions, each 2.4″ tall with movable shark visor. The blush edition comes limited to 100 pieces and the white edition comes limited to 500 pieces.

Nike Pepper Low Black/White


With the Spring season upon us, Nike begins to reveal more of its lifestyle program, including this Pepper Low. The kicks feature a full-leather black upper with white highlights and white outsoles. Simple and clean, they are now available through finer Nike retail accounts, including The Darkside Initiative in San Francisco.

The Darkside Initiative
1827 Powell Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
415.837.1909

via: hypebeast.

Franz Ackermann “Wait” at White Cube, Mason’s Yard





Currently on view at White Cube Gallery, 25-26 Mason’s Yard, is the exhibition of new works by a renowned German artist Franz Ackermann, titled Wait. It is Ackermann’s third exhibition at the White Cube, this time including not only his signature large-format canvasses on display on the lower level, but also an newer installation occupying the ground floor of the gallery.

The installation, which consists of artwork produced in the variety of media, centers around the painting titled ‘Citizen,” depicting a disproportional goggled face of a military pilot. Among other components of the installation is a spinning wall-mounted painting, with seven deadly sins written on its frame, a video and chunks of raw wood randomly placed on the floor of the gallery.

Works by Franz Ackermann have been included in group exhibitions in Europe and the United States since 1997, including Time Out, Kunsthalle Nürnberg, Nuremberg, and Heaven, P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center, Long Island City, New York (1997); Atlas Mapping, Kunsthaus Bregenz (1998); and Frieze, Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Massachusetts, Dream City, Kunstverein München, Munich, and go away: artists and travel, Royal College of Art, London (1999). Since his first solo show in 1989, Ackermann’s work has been presented in exhibitions at Neugerriemschneider, Berlin (1994, 1996, 1998), Gavin Brownn’s enterprise, New York (1995, 1997), and at major venues in Germany, including Portikus Frankfurt am Main and Städtische Galerie Nordhorn (1997), Neuer Aachener Kunstverein, Aachen (1998), and Kasseler Kunstverein, Kassel (1999). The artist works and lives in Berlin, Germany.