One of the many good things available through Counter Objects, this screen printed tote bag by Anthony Burrill is a good way to stop using plastic bags without using your tote bag as a way of making a statement about the fact you're not using a plastic bag. It's a tenner, but it's limited edition which makes it a steal. Doesn't it?
Even if you don't think so, you really should stop using plastic bags. It's horrifically bad for the environment and I'm getting really tired of having to scowl at you in the supermarket.
A Beautiful Machine is a two-week event curated by McFaul Studio and howies and is running from the 26th March to 9th April. A combination of art, talk and ride based above the howies store in Bristol.
With over 50 artists from around the globe, 15 incredible speakers, a bicycle treasure hunt and a special bicycle auction it's going to be a whole lot of fun.
Great news about Min-Kyu Choi, winner of the Brit Insurance Design of the Year 2010, and his folding plug. Another example of an idea you look at and kick yourself you didn't think of it, which just goes to show we're all guilty of not spending enough time thinking about the world around us and how we can improve things. I can't believe we've been using the clunky big plug design, apparently the biggest household plug in the world, since it's conception in 1946.
I do hope Min-Kyu makes the money on this before a big corp finds a way round his patent... All of the entries are on show at the Design Museum, London.
Christoph Niemann is well worth a mention, his work has a nice sense of wit. He's got a new book out which is "A playful homage to New York" and shows aspects of New York depicted through the medium of photographed Lego bricks. The above image is taken from a n Abstract City series which are well worth a look.
I'm too busy laughing right now, but I'm going to have to watch The Spy Who Loved Me again now, just to find out where the big fish featured in the story. And what's that? Lovers Fishie Club? I'm very confused now. At least Gary Wilmot, err, sorry, Roger Moore, is ready for settling down with his Lotus Esprit estate. See the original American version of the poster and more movie posters from Ghana over at Empire.
Totally bonkers. This is an example of a flyer printed with photosensitive inks which uses an embedded microchip to control the ink and actually animate the flyer. This is something I want to see in the flesh...
Wonderful stuff by Bulgarian artist, Stefan Kanchev. Sadly no longer with us, but love his work which won him deserved recognition throughout his life and posthumously. I'm going to spend some serious time meandering through the amazing body of work on his site.
Great work from The Little Friends of Printmaking. A couple with a massive commitment to creating excellent, intricate prints. Buy some at their shop...
All along the sides of the streets around the Louvre, there are little green boxes which are occasionally opened up by people selling second hand books. There are some real gems in there.
Found this in a drawer the other day, it was given to me by one of the Toasters collective back in something like 2000 (or 2001 maybe?) when we helped out on a graphic design student thingemy up north. Was tough to have a conversation with at points, as was generally looking for places to stick these. Walking through the streets you'd just hear the occasional twang of a bestickered hand slapping a lamp post.
I was lucky enough to be at a wedding at the weekend, where the reception was at the AA in Hooke Park, Dorset - a 330 acre wood where they have a groundbreaking school who make some amazing experimental buildings and structures. This one, which acted as a dancefloor for the evening, is made of plywood. So I loved it instantly.
The Crown Inn, Roecliffe is a very nice, posh country pub in the middle of nowhere in Yorkshire, the loos are adorned with old pages from old school Playboy magazines. Tastefully done, with Honda logos and the like covering anything which may cause offense, there have been a few attempts to expose the ladies, alas to no avail. In the words of Jake Blues, "This is glue. Strong stuff."
One of the rare works of mine which incorporated usual child-friendly methods of drawing, namely a crayon, although the original outline was care of a Pentel N50 Bullet Point fat black marker.
Almost a hundred artists from around the globe have submitted artwork for inclusion in Sarah Magazine. It's on sale for 15 Euros and all proceeds go towards paying for a cochlear implant for Sarah, a 23 year old girl from Antwerp.
Her myspace site says:
"Sarah was born almost deaf and recently got a cochlear implant in her right ear, which helps her hear sounds she never realized existed. The second implant in her left ear has been scheduled for 2009, but since medical insurance will only cover one operation, she'll have to pay the full 25,000 Euro bill all by herself... To help her out, 100 artists join forces to realize a publication and donate the full proceeds to her operation."
One of the many good things available through Counter Objects, this screen printed tote bag by Anthony Burrill is a good way to stop using plastic bags without using your tote bag as a way of making a statement about the fact you're not using a plastic bag. It's a tenner, but it's limited edition which makes it a steal. Doesn't it?
