Frustrated and feeling helpless, I made something insanely stupid. And it made me feel better. Not sure how long YouTube will keep this up… (Title credit Jenny Schmid.)
Sarah Palin is a Dick
September 16, 2008 by danibarraCatching up with some posting
April 28, 2008 by danibarraWasting all this time trying to get stuff together for the Aesthetic Apparatus show at First Amendment has really eaten into my quality blogging time. So here’s a mess of stuff to catch up with.
Luba Lukova has published a brand new set of her social justice posters. I think this just got released and I hadn’t heard anything about this except by just stumbling upon it off her altpick site. I got mine in the mail the other day and it’s amazing. I definiteley recommend studying Lukova if you feel like you could use a little humbling smack down from an amazing artist who effortlessly bridges that gap between form and content.
I’ve gushed over James Victore in previous classes but I don’t think I’ve mentioned him all semester, which is a shame. Like Lukova, he’s also got an amazing catalog of “political” posters but unlike Lukova, who takes on serious issues with grace and beauty, Victore’s approaches tend to feel more like a nice, hearty kick in the groin. Jenny’s post about Hillman Curtis’ Paula Scher interview reminded me of the one they did for Victore. “Give me a piece of black paper and a pair of scissors and I’ll kick your ass.” Awesome.
For absolutely no reason at all…
March 31, 2008 by danibarraWatch this short no less than ten times in a row.
Inspirational tool usage.
March 20, 2008 by danibarraI wish I’d thought to show this during class today. Well, there’s a number of things that I wish I’d done in class today (as my four paragraph email to my form making students attests to.) Anyway… check out these beautiful “scrambler paintings” from Rosemarie Fiore. It’s a great example of reinventing a tool.
Big Dog
March 17, 2008 by danibarraI’d seen videos of Boston DynamicsBig Dog previously but this thing is getting more and more amazing. New video posted today. Can anyone say AT-AT?
Dennis Ichiyama
March 4, 2008 by danibarraA little bit of typographic/letterpress inspiration for you all to chew on. Dennis Ichiyama has an amazing ability to deconstruct wood type letterforms beyond the content of the letter and into the abstract. Check out his work.
The Hip Hop Soda shop
February 21, 2008 by danibarraFirst we start with the mexican restaurant, Pink Taco. The heir to the Hard Rock Cafe’s brain child. If the name wasn’t disturbing enough for you, get a load of their “party” website and the 2 minute flash download you have to wait for before you get in there. But then the Hip Hop Soda Shop was brought to my attention. Once again, a horribly constructed concept restaurant that if you do get up the guts to go there to eat you’ll probably end up just spitting the food out all over your friends anyway with the uncontrolled laughter you’ll experience just reading the menu. “Nachos With Attitude – $7.95 – America’s Most Wanted warm corn tortilla chips, smothered in a posse of melted jack and cheddar cheeses, chili, green onions, jalapeños, spicy salsa and sour cream.” But I’ve come to the decision that this is our future. This is what all restaurants will be in 50 years; some stapled together concept that comes with flashy outfits and hooks that most likely is still the most pedestrian food you can find but has to be exorbitantly overpriced to offset the costs of the three-story trampoline and hourly fire-walking show. McDonald’s will seem like a quiet retreat from all these crass establishments and their bells and whistles and crappy nachos. Maybe I’m wrong, I hope I am, but I look at Block E and I see the face of our commercial culinary future.
Some Fluxus inspiration
February 13, 2008 by danibarraI’d never actually experienced it myself so it was exciting for me to find John Cage’s 4′33″ online. Almost as interesting as the piece itself, it seems that the BBC has an automatic emergency broadcast system that turns on if it senses dead air that had to be manually turned off in order to perform the piece.
IT’S REFRESHMENT TIME!!!!!!!
February 11, 2008 by danibarraI’m still torn as to whether I think this is an amazing testament to the power of the 60’s or a sad pop-anthropological example of just how far a brand will go in order to commodify a culture. Or maybe it’s just awesome nuts.
