Seriously, who wouldn't want this?
Oh, wait. It doesn't hover? Man.
7.31.2008
in the belly of a shark
This gives me the cold shivers, but I love the swirling lines. It's a cd/album cover Dan Mumford designed. Via NotCot.
lull
Andrew Bird is a musician I had the serendipity of finding with my sister. We were wandering around a large music festival, eating corn cakes, when we heard unearthly whistling. Mesmerized, we followed it right to the stage where this skinny, sincere guy was playing. We saw him again the next day in an unplugged set, and it was even better - just him and a violin and that whistle. We've been fast Andrew Bird fans since.
I've been waiting for the perfect day to post this gorgeous video of his. It's an excerpt of the film Mermaid, directed and animated by Lisa Barcy. I'd love to see it.
works in progress/zygote
'Works-In-Progress (WIP) is a new program at Zygote Press developed for professional artists in any media to have a platform to present and discuss their work, and to benefit from exchange with other artists and arts professionals in an open and productive forum.
You are invited to join Zygote for a summer soiree to celebrate the start of the new WIP program. Bring a friend! Everyone is welcome!
Works-In-Progress Launch Party
Thursday, July 31, 2008
6:30pm - 8pm at the Morgan Conservatory (1754 E 47th St., Cleveland, 44103)
If you have questions on this event please contact Zygote Press at (216)621-2900 or info@zygotepress.com.'
Should be fun.
animals of the ocean, in particular the giant squid
A book that should be in every home library. You never know when knowledge of the giant squid might come in handy.
In case you are wavering in your resolve to purchase it, here are the author's credentials:
'Dr. Doris Haggis-On-Whey has seventeen degrees from eighteen institutions of higher learning. She is a world-renowed and much-feared expert on just about everything. With her husband Benny, she has traveled the world over, and has learned about all aspects of life, including outer space and food, first-hand. She has written or will soon write over 147 books.'
Hee.
imaginary outfit: shark researcher
As a crusading research/activist for our misunderstood cartilaginous brethren, most of my year would be spent on the seas, with only the trusty crew of my research vessel for company. Bone-chilling dives and long days on deck with a spotting scope slowly yield data, which is pored over and run through complex spreadsheets in the quest for clues to shark behavior. Back on land, after attending marine biology conferences where our meticulous research is discussed and debated and hashing out many proposals by would-be documentarians, I would visit the aquarium, marveling again at the wonders of the finny deep and wishing to be back on my boat.
shark lady
'Not many appreciate the ultimate power and potential usefulness of basic knowledge accumulated by obscure, unseen investigators who, in a lifetime of intensive study, may never see any practical use for their findings but who go on seeking answers to the unknown without thought of financial or practical gain.'
Eugenie Clark (b. 1922), U.S. marine biologist, author. The Lady and the Sharks.
She has been a hero of mine since I was a little girl and discovered this book.
Photo from here. I especially love the picture of her in a natty sun dress working with the lemon sharks.
strange beauties
These photos of underwater sea creatures are mesmerizing ... the strange structures and luminescence are more fantastic than anything I can imagine.
See them at National Geographic. Via NotCot.
diving into the wreck
First having read the book of myths,
and loaded the camera,
and checked the edge of the knife-blade,
I put on
the body-armor of black rubber
the absurd flippers
the grave and awkward mask.
I am having to do this
not like Cousteau with his
assiduous team
aboard the sun-flooded schooner
but here alone.
There is a ladder.
The ladder is always there
hanging innocently
close to the side of the schooner.
We know what it is for,
we who have used it.
Otherwise
it is a piece of maritime floss
some sundry equipment.
I go down.
Rung after rung and still
the oxygen immerses me
the blue light
the clear atoms
of our human air.
I go down.
My flippers cripple me,
I crawl like an insect down the ladder
and there is no one
to tell me when the ocean
will begin.
First the air is blue and then
it is bluer and then green and then
black I am blacking out and yet
my mask is powerful
it pumps my blood with power
the sea is another story
the sea is not a question of power
I have to learn alone
to turn my body without force
in the deep element.
And now: it is easy to forget
what I came for
among so many who have always
lived here
swaying their crenellated fans
between the reefs
and besides
you breathe differently down here.
I came to explore the wreck.
The words are purposes.
The words are maps.
I came to see the damage that was done
and the treasures that prevail.
I stroke the beam of my lamp
slowly along the flank
of something more permanent
than fish or weed
the thing I came for:
the wreck and not the story of the wreck
the thing itself and not the myth
the drowned face always staring
toward the sun
the evidence of damage
worn by salt and away into this threadbare beauty
the ribs of the disaster
curving their assertion
among the tentative haunters.
This is the place.
And I am here, the mermaid whose dark hair
streams black, the merman in his armored body.
We circle silently
about the wreck
we dive into the hold.
I am she: I am he
whose drowned face sleeps with open eyes
whose breasts still bear the stress
whose silver, copper, vermeil cargo lies
obscurely inside barrels
half-wedged and left to rot
we are the half-destroyed instruments
that once held to a course
the water-eaten log
the fouled compass
We are, I am, you are
by cowardice or courage
the one who find our way
back to this scene
carrying a knife, a camera
a book of myths
in which
our names do not appear.
Adrienne Rich, 'Diving into the Wreck'
Photo from here.
7.30.2008
turn every bus ride into a blow for the environment
I've noticed these Green Patriot posters on the sides of the Cleveland city buses and wondered what they were about and who designed them.
Turns out they were designed by the legendary Michael Beirut.
!!!
This is his statement on the design:
'Americans have a great ability to pull together in times of crisis. Each day brings headlines that make it clear that global warming and dependence on costly and scarce foreign oil will demand the same kind of resilience, self-sacrifice and ingenuity that we’ve exhibited in the past: in short, that special American brand of patriotism. Back in the 30s and 40s, folksinger Woody Guthrie had a slogan on his guitar: “This machine kills fascists.” I was looking for a similar kind of statement to turn every bus ride into a blow for the environment.'
As it turns out, his design is just the first part of an ambitious plan. Inspired by the civic-minded posters of WWII, the Canary Project and its partners are calling on leading designers and firms to create posters designed to mobilize Americans 'to face the ecological crisis posed by global climate change today'.
Utterly brilliant. I would love to see gorgeous posters exhorting people to grow vegetables, turn off the AC, and use CFLs all over the place.
(And I love that Michael Beirut showed some love for the Cleve, his hometown.)
well done
Happy about this.
Nice to know that there are people at the top who realize that the expedient (a.k.a. cravenly opportunistic) solution is not always the best one (I'm looking at you, people who somehow think drilling for oil on the coasts is going to turn back time).
rock it
momma's boy
I have a minor obsession with this song. Stereogum called the melody the 'best Hall & Oates song Hall & Oates never wrote." Ha.
beautiful losers
Beautiful Losers has been at the top of my "please, please, please let it screen in Cleveland, Columbus or Pittsburgh" wishing mantra for a while. It's a documentary about the coalescence of the DIY art scene in the early 1990s, and features the amazing players - Mike Mills, Shepard Fairey, Margaret Kilgallen, Geoff McFetridge, Barry McGee, and Harmony Korine, to name a few.
d. Sharp's post today reminded me to check the screenings again. Worse luck - still no Cleveland date and no date nearby. Still, I'm hoping it finds its way here.
bite marks
Rick Myers' Bite Marks in Paper. From Nieves:
'Bite Marks in Paper presents a series of intimate structures which function somewhere between two and three dimensions. Over the course of twelve months Myers used the action of biting paper to create a series of blind embossed paper documents, suggesting fragments of the everyday, as unique records of the impulses that precipitated them.'
7.29.2008
new dress
Through sheer dumb luck, I managed to snag one of Vain and Vapid's amazing handmade pieces, the Fontaine Dress. I just got an email that it has shipped.
Happy, happy, happy.
the big time
Cleveland finally has a design guide on Design*Sponge, and it's written by none other than Danielle of Room Service!
This is a pretty big deal - Design*Sponge has over 30,000 daily readers, and their content flies around the interweb like lightening. The guide looks extremely comprehensive - it's organized by neighborhood, and lists just about everything of interest in our fair city. Congratulations, Danielle (and thanks for the even*cleveland shout out)!
for distance
Digby & Iona Filigreed Spyglass necklace.
It's a working miniature telescope. I'm charmed.
rise and set
The World Sunlight Map is a 'real-time, computer-generated illustration of the earth's patterns of sunlight and darkness. The clouds are updated every 3 hours with current weather satellite imagery.'
Nifty.
'the simplest example of the truly complex'
' ... a glass is an example, probably the simplest example, of the truly complex ...'
Dr. Peter Harrowell, University of Sydney
An article that made me look at my juice glass with a little bit of awe ...
glare
From Yiorgos Kordakis' Global Summer series. The bleached color makes me think of driftwood and seashells and the glare off water and white sand.
Via Nectar & Light.
7.28.2008
imaginary outfit: author of children's books
One of my favorite daydreams (right up there with cloud photographer) is that I am the author of children's books. I imagine myself in a small house, surrounded by plants jungly-sweet. As you walk around the garden you notice a narrow stone walk leading to a trim garden shed. I've converted it to a writers den, full of books and papers and a good, clean-limbed chair for reading. Every morning, after my cup of tea and slice of toast, I hole myself up there, considering words and imagining worlds, wearing my favorite dotty cardigan and some sensible shoes.
And because this is my imagination, my niece and nephew live very near, and they stop by in the afternoons to pet Nora the dog, hear stories, and eat blueberry muffins with me.
working on: a picture book for my nephew
My sweet little nephew turned three today. Three! I can't believe it.
We generally send book presents, being firm believers in the gospel of the printed word. This time, we got a little ambitious. Since we are going to visit him at the end of the month, we came up with a simple story about a little boy who gets a visit from his uncle and all of the fun things they do together. Since pictures are key to any storybook, I knocked together some collages. Thanks to the magic of Blurb, the finished product will be a real, actual book we can send to him. It's no Eric Carle, but I hope he loves it anyway.
Happy birthday, nephew!
design your dwelling
also olle
Olle chair at IKEA.
I like them because they remind me of Paul McCobb's Planner chairs. I keep holding out, hoping I'll find an original lurking in a flea market somewhere.
let's move in with olle lundberg
These are some pictures of Olle Lundberg's cabin, constructed mainly out of salvaged materials. When he isn't crashing at the cabin, he's here, his equally awesome place in the city.
Inspiration in spades.
Via Apartment Therapy.
i find myself talking to sharks
Probably couldn't love this harder if I tried. It's Swedish, it features a redhead, the paper-cut animation is charming, and oh, yes, the lyrics ...
I find myself talking to sharks
On my way to an island, and still
I adore you.
7.27.2008
easy ways to have a mind-blowing sunday
1. Make a nectarine-cherry-gingersnap tart. Inspired by this, I knocked us up a little treat for breakfast using the gingersnap crust, stone fruit, tart greek yogurt, and honey. It took all of twenty minutes (I skipped the extensive chilling in favor of immediate eating.) Delicious.
2. Read about The Theory of Everything.
3. Listen to Panda Bear.
4. Watch some clouds. I wish there was such a job as professional cloud photographer.
Oh, and this made us laugh.
7.26.2008
drawing with light
7.25.2008
field trip: mayfield road drive-in
A double feature at the drive-in is one of our favorite ways to spend a summer night. We try and get there early to secure a good spot, and then we wait for night to fall.
Always, Sean is in charge of snack procurement. This time, we had cheeseburgers, onion rings and root beer, along with an enormous popcorn. The snack stand funds the whole operation, so we make a point of arriving hungry.
Provisions in hand, we head back to the car to curl up in our sleeping bags and watch the shows.
The night ends with a drive home back through the country dark.
to do, to do
This weekend you can:
- hoot and holler
- revisit Bob's religious years
- eat chocolate croissants at the Fairmount Taylor Merchants Sidewalk Sale, 10am-5pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday @ Fairmount & Taylor in Cleveland Heights
- catch a double feature at the drive-in
- hit a beach party
- visit with Andy
- Incongruity festival
a treat for you ...
don't throw it away
Love, love, love. SHCH Graphics Group has several amazing typographic napkins in their gallery. Via I Love Typography.
I've always been charmed the myth of the great artist paying for their meal with a careless scrawl on a crumpled napkin ... these don't look so careless, though.
in every color
I just discovered Furniturea on Apartment Therapy and while I like the pieces' clean lines and retro quirks, my heart was won by the dazzling array of color options.
look out - sharks!
Alexander Calder Shark Pull Toy.
A taste of more to come. Shark Week used to be something of an annual holiday in my household, occasioning lively discussions of chum and Eugenie Clark. My sister continues to delight in all sharky things and she is constantly challenging me to find them on the vast, wide interweb. I thought I would share some of the highlights with you, my twelve dear readers. So, next week is SHARK WEEK at even*cleveland. Not all the posts will be about chondrichthyes - they will be sprinkled in among the usual ephemera and miscellany - but I'll post one a day ... or maybe two.
Da dum. Da dum.
etch-a-sketch wisdom/please, avoid spiritual desiccation
The work of Sharon Harvey, found through Room Service. Thanks, Danielle!
7.24.2008
god knows (you have to give to get)
Directed by Åsa Arnehed. Animated by Åsa Arnehed, Olle Söderström and Malin Rosenqvist.
44 days
'This is the documentation of the 44 days - during the summer of '08 - Laura and I spent together in New York before I went to Montreal and didn't return.'
Mikhail Wassmer
I wonder if he knew when he was taking these that he wasn't coming back.
Via NotCot.
52 weeks 52 works
'Academy Graphic Communication (AGC) is sending out its official annual call for artists for their "52 Weeks 52 Works" annual calendar. This will be AGC's the 7th printed calendar highlighting the talent of local artists! Any artist living in Northeast Ohio is eligible. You can view the 2008 calendar online and download the submission form here. The deadline for submissions is September 15, 2008.
Any questions on this opportunity should be directed to Candice Champion, Academy Graphic Communication at (216)661-2550 or CandiceChampion@agcinc.org.'
Hmmm.
stitches
Modern Craft just posted about Cayce Zavaglia, who embroiders portraits.
These leave me slackjawed. And I agree that they have something of the spirit of Chuck Close. I would love to see one in person.
need groceries?
Today and today only, Whole Foods Market at 13998 Cedar Rd. in University Heights is donating 5% of all net sales to MOCA.
Now I will feel better about spending outrageous amounts of money there.
light as a feather
Alex Monroe Feather hoop earrings. Beautiful things, aren't they? My birthday IS coming up (well, eventually) ...
Via Oh Joy.
gerald and sara
'Once upon a time there was a prince and a princess: that's exactly how a description of the Murphys should begin. They were both rich; he was handsome; she was beautiful; they had three golden children. They loved each other, they enjoyed their own company, and they had the gift of making life enchantingly pleasurable for those who were fortunate enough to be their friends.'
Donald Ogden Stewart
Image: Gerald and Sara Murphy on La Garoupe beach, Antibes, 1926.
More: The New Yorker, articles circa 1962 and 2007 ; and Tender is the Night, one of the saddest and most beautiful books I have ever read.
new shoes
I just got this pair of Antik Batik oxfords on super sale, and I adore them. They are covered with tarnished gold sequins and look much darker than they appear in the photo.
Every time I wear them, I feel like I should be going to a party at Gerald and Sara Murphy's house.
with needles and thread
Takashi Iwasaki's stunning embroidered artworks have been popping up all over the internet and are featured in the current issue of Selvedge. Embroidery fascinates me, and I love the whimsical combination of bright color and clean graphic shapes in these.
7.23.2008
whoa nelly jelly
Dezeen has posted the Architectural Jelly Design Competition winners. It was organized by Bompas & Parr, masters of the jelly form.
I would like to have an architectural jelly contest at my house. One of my friends once wrote a play where molded Jello salads figured prominently, and it was fun making the ten or so needed as props.
car wrap
Sean and I saw this plastic-wrapped van the other night over on Waterloo. I like the stripes.
gardens in the sky
On the thread of magical, improbable things ...
These are conceptual renderings of vertical farms, originally the brainchild of Dickson Despommier, a professor of public health at Columbia. From last week's NYTimes article:
'Dr. Despommier estimates that it would cost $20 million to $30 million to make a prototype of a vertical farm ...'
Officials in NYC, Seattle and Portland have expressed interest in the concept, but what major city already has acres of undeveloped land downtown? (hint ... I live there).
Any one of the many crumbling parking lots downtown would be ideal. Talk about revolutionizing the city in one stroke - we could radically alter the landscape by providing a source of organically grown food for city residents and simultaneously develop a model of urban agriculture that cities all over the world would be eager to study. If people here are truly serious about revitalizing the city, loft-style condominiums aren't going to cut it. We need to think strategically and think big and grand and glorious. I'm imagining a living tower of green on St. Clair Avenue ...
Full story and pictures at the NYTimes.
all that is needed
This wee place is 64 square feet. It looks like it may have just sprouted in place, and it makes me think of fairy tales and surprising, improbable things. Love it.
Via Materialicious.
for august
pip-squeak chapeau is having a sale and I am in love with these pieces. Perfect for the end of summer.
7.22.2008
working on: enid agnes boynton
Lately, the world at large has been turning my soul a delicate shade of blue. So this afternoon, I decided to do a purely happy thing. I made myself a paper doll. I am quite smitten with her. Her name is Enid Agnes Boynton, and she's a busy lady.
She plays a fierce game of tennis, grass court only:
She sees movie matinees and eats jujubes before she goes hat shopping:
She writes social-activist plays and goes fishing with her dad when she gets stuck on the third act:
And in the evenings, she sits in cafes drinking Campari and arguing politics:
Right now, she is petitioning for shoes, but I think she will have to wait until tomorrow.
crude
Crude Ring by designglut. Their statement:
'Oil is the new luxury. The Crude Jewelry collection is manufactured in monthly batches. Each piece is engraved with the date it was made and the price of a barrel of oil on that day.'
Pretty brilliant.
212 candles
Cleveland, Ohio - so named on July 22, 1796, by surveyors of the Connecticut Land Company in honor of their fearless leader, General Moses Cleaveland.
Happy birthday, city of mine.
Photo: Western Reserve Historical Society, 1929.
burning river
When I was at school in Ireland, I only had one professor who knew anything about Cleveland. Whenever he introduced me, he would say, "This is Stephanie - she's from the city where the river burned."
The fire my professor was thinking of was in 1969, but the river burned many times before that. This is a photo from the worst fire, November 1952.
Photo by James Thomas. November 3, 1952. Via Cleveland Memory.
burning hearts
Another one by My Favorite ... but today I am posting about things that burn, so I thought it fit.
7.21.2008
gingers, represent!
This redhead obsessed photoblogger should meet Sean ... and Brian, Heather, Elizabeth, Amy, Misty and Pete. A disproportionate number of my friends and relations are coppertops.
lovely lilly
Some peeks inside the chocolate shop around the corner, Lilly Handmade Chocolates (a.k.a. the site of Sean's Sunday triumph.) In addition to the treasurebox chocolates, they carry an eclectic assortment of beer. Yum.
the face of victory
Oh, the things you miss not being our constant companions!
On Saturday, we feasted on fat things, namely chili cheese fries and chicken tenders. On Sunday, we repented our profligate ways and wisely determined on a day of atonement - healthful eating and wholesome activity. The day started well, with yogurt and fruit at Lucky's:
Afterwards, we noticed a small crowd near Lilly's, the new chocolate shop down the street. We decided to investigate. Oh, curiosity was our undoing.
We had stumbled upon a chocolate-eating competition short a contestant.
Naturally, Sean felt obligated to step forward. . .
One minute and one quarter pound of chocolate later, he was the winner.
The nice folks at Lilly's graciously awarded him six gourmet chocolates, a frosty bottle of milk and a new t-shirt.
Oh, and the face of victory?
This is it.
ribbons
'My Former Beauty', Amy Pelletier's photographs of found and purchased award ribbons. For sale here.
Via Poppytalk.
winner
Russell Lee's 'Winner at the Delta County Fair' from October 1940.
As a little girl, I loved going through the competition barns at the county fair and seeing the ribbons won for clear jellies, the tall corn, sweet-faced calves and plate-sized dahlias ...
7.20.2008
pedwo zissou
I heart the art of Pedwo Zissou. This is his self portrait - a happy, hairy face for Sunday morning. Found on Ffffound.
sunday tune #23: stereolab - cybele's reverie
Firmly lodged on my short list of favorite songs ever.
sunday tune #22: stereolab - miss modular
Stereolab is a favorite. So is Jean Seberg. Therefore, this fan vid is awesomeness squared.
The clips are from Godard's 'Breathless'.
7.19.2008
jingle taps
Ann Miller's gold tap shoes.
Just think ... gold shoes for dancing and wearing with smart black dresses. Perfect.
getting ready for work
Tufi Duek
Park Vogel
Shabby Apple
After much experimentation, I have determined that black dresses are ideal work uniforms, being perfect blank slates for creative accessorizing (which I am all about). These three are nearly ideal - interesting but subtle, machine-washable, and not too expensive. The first one even has pockets.
Still, my heart yearns after more impractical choices ... Sigh.
7.18.2008
this saturday
I just got an interesting email from my friends at Brigade. Starting at 6:00 PM Saturday night, an artist names Joseph Charles will be at their Coventry store creating 'one of a kind, organic t-shirts featuring hand-drawn custom art work.'
Intriguing. I think I will have to stop by.
to do, to do
Time to:
- party, Puerto Rican style
- walk to art near the falls
- go to a punk rock barbecue
- crush the weak
- hail the prince of Denmark
- fear the dark night
- meet Albert Ayler
- visit planet b-boy
- see a new show at Zygote, MixedMediaMe (opens tonight, 6-9 PM)
- taste Tremont
fantastic
Have you heard that Wes Anderson is directing a stop-animation version of Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr. Fox? And that Jarvis Cocker is doing the music?
Be still my heart. I haven't been this excited since I heard the rumors of a Dave Eggers and Spike Jonze collaboration on Where the Wild Things Are ...
my audience
I came across these photos a while ago, but I find them oddly riveting. They are from a series called My Audience by Tim Davis. He took photos of the people that turned up for his book signings. Looking at them is a little like public speaking - you can feel the expectation and an almost aggressive neutrality.
From The Year In Pictures via A Cup of Jo.
crowds
The crowd at the show last night reminded me of Ryan McGinley's Irregular Regulars series, photographs taken of the fervent crowds at Morrissey concerts.
Abandon, ecstasy and beauty. It would be a fascinating project, photographing crowds.
last night
Pizza for dinner, and the Hold Steady after. I love a band that knows the importance of drinks in hands and hands in the air. In the glow of the spilled stage light, the sweatslicked, beer glazed crowd came close to beautiful. You could feel the electric charge of willpower in the air - hundreds of people determined on a good time, looking for a little escape. Everyone was singing, or pretending to know the words, and the band played and meant it, and it felt like they loved us.
Great night.
7.17.2008
bring the popcorn
ParkWorks is screening Blades of Glory tonight as part of their Movies on the Mall series - free, free, free! Showtime at 9:15 at Mall B.
Side note: this majorette could be Zooey's fashion inspiration. Just saying.
coterie
Danielle Baty is a Cleveland area artist who makes the most charming pins, pendants and hairpins using tiny images and words from vintage books and dictionaries. I particularly love the pins that are paired with a scrap of ribbon - they make me think of merit badges. I think a collection of them would look lovely grouped on the lapel of a hacking jacket.
You can visit her store and her blog (lovely pictures and fun homey doings around the Cleve) or see some of her pins in person at Stash Style in Chagrin Falls.
sand art
Carnival style fun right from your computer - this is sand by the talented Rafael Rozendaal. Spotted at ugntblod.
a contender
In my ongoing, possibly impossible quest for stylish overalls, a new contender: the overall dress. This one is by current/elliot. I want to live in this photo.
Via Vain and Vapid and Unruly Things.
do you know about this?
Goodreads is a sort of social networking site for book lovers ... from their site:
'Goodreads is a free website for book lovers. Imagine it as a large library that you can wander through and see everyone's bookshelves, their reviews, and their ratings. You can also post your own reviews and catalog what you have read, are currently reading, and plan to read in the future.'
I think this is a stellar concept. I am always looking for new things to read - if you sign up, let me know!
losing the knack
I thought I was going to be at work for two hours tonight and ended up staying eight, so now I am home and wound up as tight as a clock while the rest of the world is sleeping.
It makes me think of Dorothy Parker:
'How do people go to sleep? I'm afraid I've lost the knack. I might try busting myself smartly over the temple with the night-light. I might repeat to myself, slowly and soothingly, a list of quotations beautiful from minds profound; if I can remember any of the damn things.'
(Photo: Ghost Bed by Smacshop.)
reading material
I find the very titles of these Roy McMackin books alluring ... I may have to run a lemonade stand or something to get some extra cash. My bookshelves are hungry.
1% text, 99% drawing
This book, Drawings on Geology (ed. Serge Onnen) is lovely - it's a compendium of 'black and white drawings based on the concept of the Horizon' and includes works by masters old and new. You can print out a copy for free here. I discovered it via Book By Its Cover's great review and photos (it is hands down my favorite site for finding new things to read).
The image above (included in the book) is by Roy McMackin.
7.16.2008
imaginary outfit: ping pong champion
I would be a dark horse in the tournament, a wild card clawing my way up from the bottom of the bracket, frightening my opponents with my laser-like intensity and blinding reflexes. Many would count me out after I suffered a hamstring injury during the last point of the semifinal round tiebreak, but little did they know a minor muscle tear would never stop me in my quest for table tennis glory. Bandaged, battered, but undeterred, I went into the finals, fighting for every point, gritting my teeth through the pain. Inevitably, inexorably, victory was mine.
Once the dazed spectators recovered, many postulated that the key to my success was my sartorial splendor, which dazzled and confused my opponents.
old school
Vintage Table Tennis Set. From the Vintage Sports Shoppe.
Every so often, Sean and I develop minor sporting obsessions. Last summer was bocce. This summer may be the year of table tennis.
when I go pro, I'll need these
Nike TT Star Classic.
(The TT? It stands for table tennis, my friends. I don't know if I'll ever get the mad skills like these guys, though.)
forewarned is forearmed
So, Thursday night is shaping up to be a happening night in the Cleve. Midnight showings of the new Batman, free public movies, and this band ... not to mention Mr. Sweater Vest himself is in town.
Tough choices will have to be made.
my color my idea
So, I have been spending way too much time at Pantone's myColor myIdea site. All kinds of different people upload inspiration images, then write about the color in the image and why they love it. Being a color junkie, I find it absolutely addictive. The above belong to Rebecca Beeson.
(Thanks, Emily!)
d. billy
Photos of D. Billy's work have been appearing all over the web. In his own words:
'Using colorful media such as twisting balloons, party streamers, and artist tape, I have begun to add visual representations of sound effects to public spaces as a sort of dimensional graffiti. After embellishing the found scenes and photographing the results, I leave my additions in place to engage passers-by for as long as the materials hold up. For me, this process encourages a reexamination of surroundings and objects that are usually taken for granted, and injects a hint of the fantastical surreality that I have established in my other work.
Or, at the very least, I hope someone thinks these things are kind of funny.'
I do! I would like to leave balloon messages all over the Cleve.
From And I am Not Lying via NotCot.
eye candy
When I need to get my street art fix, I hop over to Streetsy. Hours of viewing pleasure await. This bird is by Judith Supine.
pandas
I've noticed some pandas on my daily walk around the neighborhood. I am hoping for a full on infestation, like this one.
7.15.2008
get ready
The Hold Steady is playing here in town Thursday night, and Music Saves is grilling out before the show.
Get your tickets now. The Hold Steady rock.
working on: letters
This is a small part of a larger project I am working on that involves lots of letters.
plywood sofa
This plywood sofa from Piet Hein Eek is making me wish for power tools. Spotted at Apartment Therapy.
388 square feet of perfect
I am wishing oh-so-hard that this wee beach house featured at Remodelista was mine. It's perfect in every way. Click for more pictures.
new chairs
Sean and I found a pair of these at a secondhand shop in Lakewood over the weekend. I think they will be quite nice once we clean them up (and much better than the folding chairs we have been using).
erik nitsche
The Mid-Century Modernist has a great post on the graphic design work of Eric Nitsche. I especially like these postcards of his:
See more here.
schwarzwaldleuchten
Photograph by Alexander Binder. Via i heart photograph (one of my favorite sites on the internet).
7.14.2008
it could be a sign
I just got the August Domino and it shows a vintage tool bench re-purposed as a bar.
Strange coincidence, given that I just stumbled across an awesome old tool bench in need of a home.
Hmm ... maybe there is room in my house after all ...
it's here
The new Radiohead video for House of Cards, in all of it's laser-y three-dimensional plotting brilliance.
it's too much for mere mortals
Good grief. This video that my sister (a.k.a. the seeker of all cute animal things) forwarded me nearly killed me with sweetness. You have been warned.
field trip: joughin hardware
'... when one admires instead the lowly
gouge, adze, rasp, hammer--
fire-forged, blunt-syllabled things,
unthought-of until a need exists:
a groove chiseled to a fixed width,
a roof sloped just so.'
Chris Forhan
There is something about a real hardware store, something deeply satisfying about seeing all the tools neatly ranged, knowing each has a specific purpose and task, that their very forms have been determined by utility and collective use. It is a fascinating combination of order and potential.
Places like Home Depot make me sad - everything is jumbled in pell-mell, and the beauty in useful things is lost. I infinitely prefer going somewhere like Joughin Hardware.
Joughin's has been an institution in Painesville, Ohio, since 1877, and you can still see the pully arm outside that was used to unload horse-drawn carts.
I have been going there since the summer of 1997, when I working building theater sets nearby. It is the epitome of a place for every thing, and a thing for every place. The walls are lined with fantastic drawers and cubbies of all shapes and sizes, and there is a rolling ladder for the highest shelves. Pegboards line the walls, and everything is organized by size and type, with a regularity as beautiful as an art installation.
In addition to carrying 70,000+ items, they also have on occasion beautiful, restored antique tool benches, like this one:
I noticed it when Mr. Joughin (a truly nice man) was showing me around the last time I visited. He said he and his partner restore them, and people often get them to put in their kitchens. I am still racking my brains trying to think of a place I could put it in my wee house - it's fantastic.
So much goodness in simple things. Well worth your visit.
overalls
George Hoyningen Huene, 'Lee Miller Wearing Yraide Sailcloth Overalls' - 1930. Via Royal Deluxe.
Mociun cropped overall at Beklina.
I am dreaming of a pair to wear everyday. That Lee Miller photo is my inspiration. I may have to make my own, though the Mociun ones look awfully nice ...
tools
Five Feet of Colorful Tools, 1962.
Drywall Hammer. 1973. From the Untitled Tools series.
Five Paintbrushes (second state), 1973
All Jim Dine.
lost found art
I discovered Lost Found Art through d. sharp's journal. They create sculptural installations and assemblages using familiar objects like sand shovels, calipers and kitchen cutters.
I'm partial to the ones that use things you might find at a hardware store.
7.13.2008
speaking as a former drama kid ...
...this article in the NYTimes warmed the cockles of my heart. I actually went to the International Thespian Festival - it's where I saw my first Tom Stoppard play. The talent blows your mind and breaks your heart.
Those were the days.
sunday tune #21: nico muhly - it goes without saying
Video by Una Lorenzen.
The New Yorker has an excellent piece on Nico Muhly here. It's a good Sunday read.
7.12.2008
western spaghetti
The work of the amazing PES (otherwise known as Adam Pesapane). Spotted at the ever-awesome shape + color.
7.11.2008
field trip: winds of change
When I get jonesing to go shopping - not walk around the mall and eat pretzel samples shopping, but really, truly spending an afternoon looking for treasures shopping - there is only one place to go: Chagrin Falls. Chagrin Falls is crammed lengthwise and crosswise with great, interesting little stores. There are many I adore and could mention (like, oh, say Juicy Lucy, Stash Style, Three Home, and Nola True) but today, I am going to highlight just one: Winds of Change.
I always feel happier the second I see it, and walking in is even better:
Dresses, dresses everywhere. Much of what they carry is unique to the store, which makes shopping there special, and you can also find a good selection of pieces by the likes of Cop Copine and Free People (like this adorable sleep set). I have a soft spot in my heart for their shoes. My favorite boots in the world were found here, and on my most recent visit, I learned that they actually design their own shoe line, which sells out lightening quick. They had one pair left to show me - glossy kicks that reminded me of my beloved Chie Mihara:
As seductive and shiny as they were, I ended up coming home with these (and a pair of dangly, delicately blue earrings that have all the colors of a butterfly's wing, nicely wrapped up in a box decked with rhinestones and a wee picture of Marilyn Monroe):
It was a good trip, and the lovely people that work there are always much fun to visit with. If you haven't been, the annual Chagrin Falls Art Walk is coming up - a perfect excuse to visit. I know Winds of Change is expecting a new shipment of custom shoes ... oh, temptation...
See you there!
polka dots + union jacks + paul smith = stuff i want
Dotty in the very best way. I'm a sucker for the Union Jack.
Paul Smith U.K.-Japan Commemorative products, seen at Spoon & Tomago.
need chairs?
Room Service is running a furniture sale - 20% off furniture in stock, and 10% off custom furniture.
(And if you happen to live far, far away from the Cleve, they now have things to buy online.)
make time for play
These wildly colorful lettering sketchbook pages by Linzie Hunter make me feel joyful, exuberant and playful, like I need to get new red shoes and go down a slide. Her portfolio is a treat.
See more at Flickr. Found on Ffffound.
when perfect is not the goal
I love, love, love this. Pamela Bell, a partner at Kate Spade (sigh*), had her kid's classmates decorate her white John Derian sofa.
If only we could all be so brave ... (And check out that homemade chandelier. Wick-ed.)
Photos here. Article here. Spotted at Apartment Therapy.
Photo: Phil Mansfield for the NYTimes.
*Have you ever checked out Behind the Curtain on the Kate Spade site? So many good things ...
7.10.2008
folkloric
I like this because it is the color of pools, and because when I was a little girl, my mother went to Mexico and brought me back a dress like this. I remember wearing it and feeling glamorous and Kahlo-esque, even though I was only seven.
From Aida Coranado, who has many things I covet, including this. I found her through Ez.
the master of pool
'Water in swimming pools changes its look more than in any other form... its colour can be man-made and its dancing rhythms reflect not only the sky but, because of its transparency, the depth of the water as well. If the water surface is almost still and there is a strong sun, then dancing lines with the colours of the spectrum appear everywhere.'
David Hockney
in case you would like to go for a swim
City of Cleveland Public Pools.
Outdoor pools are open this year from June 14 to August 10.
full
Oobject has a list of really cool pools. I'm surprised this one isn't on the list, though.
Via Apartment Therapy.
empty (absence of water)
Polar Inertia has a spellbinding slideshow of abandoned swimming pools. From BLDG via NotCot.
7.09.2008
working on: poolside coverup
I saw this rickrack be-decked coverup at Toast and was smitten. I do have a penchant for zigzaggy things. Sadly, due to the terrible exchange rate (GBP to USD) I knew it could never be. Then, one lucky Tuesday, I found a terrycloth pullover at the ol' J. Crew for $19.95 ... a few $2.00 packs of rickrack later and voila!
My own rick-racky creation (which goes smashingly with my suit and sandals). I had a major assist from my mother the brilliant seamstress, who did the stitching.
Now, I am ready for any and all pool parties the summer might bring.
anne
"In imagination she sailed over storied seas that wash the distant shining shores of 'faery lands forlorn …' And she was richer in those dreams than in realities; for things seen pass away, but the things that are unseen are eternal."
L.M. Montgomery, Anne of the Island
This is a terrific piece by Meaghan O'Rourke on Anne's 100th birthday, which falls this summer.
I have been re-reading all of my Anne of Green Gables books the past few weeks - they were key texts in my childhood, and I still feel such a bond of kinship to them. I started reading them when I was nine, after I convinced my mother to buy it at the Scholastic Book Fair. As a lonely little kid, Anne seemed so real and familiar to me - a girl who loved words and wrote, who imagined palaces out of sheds and saw trees as friends, with aspirations of greatness but an appreciation of place and home-things and love and the simple pleasures of a pretty dress. She was always negotiating a balance between the ideal and the real, something I struggled with, too. I read all eight books in the series to pieces, until they became as real to me as the velveteen rabbit. I can't imagine growing up without her.
alice
Once you get past the crummy opening credits, this version of Alice in Wonderland, directed by Cecil Hepworth in 1903, is delightfully surreal. I've developed a bit of a thing for silent movies lately.
jonesing for a dollhouse
Bunker Hill dollhouse by Daniel Franzen.
A-Frame House designed by Christopher Robin Nordstrom.
I would put either one in my living room, as art you can play with. But oh, that first one ...
'we put them there, and we allow it'
An interview with John Lennon from 1969.
Directed by Josh Raskin. Drawing by James Braithwaite. Digital illustration by Alex Kurina.
From livegrids.net via NotCot.
become part of the poetry producing masses
'Let’s say you’re the average person who gets up in the morning, reads some poetry with your Honey Nut Cheerios, hops on a jammed subway car with your poetry newspaper folded vertically in half, works from 9 to 5 with only a few poetry breaks in between, and then after a long day comes home to read some inspirational sonnets in the warm glow of your inglenook. You’re tired of being part of the poetry-consuming masses and want to become part of the poetry-producing masses.'
from Poetry by the Numbers: Eight shortcuts to writing timeless odes and getting $$$ for it by Gary Rudoren.
word clouds
I offer you Wordle - a toy for creating word clouds. This is one I created using the lyrics to Stephanie Says.
Just in case you need to spend a little more time on the internet today. Via the ever-awesome Design for Mankind.
7.08.2008
i need polka dots, stat
This necklace. I need it. And this one too. And definitely this one.
Paraphernalia is my new favorite thing.
have you seen this?
This guy dances all around the world. There's a nice article in today's NYTimes.
4 million views and counting. Wow.
wall flock
Trove wallpaper seen at the always charming A Merry Mishap.
I can almost hear the wings beating.
satomi jin
This little bird is my new favorite thing. It hangs in a small corner of my hall, moving with the slightest gust of air. When the light is on, fantastic quivery scrawly bird shadows appear. It is the work of Satomi Jin, who I discovered at Room Service's Made in the 216 event.
Her portfolio is worth a look - this is particularly awesome.
7.07.2008
i heart andy partridge
I have been wanting this song for ages but was trying to avoid buying this Carmen Sandiego soundtrack (no Rockapella, boo!). I just found it on Fuzzy Warbles, Vol. 7. Yay!
Currently listening on repeat: Cherry, cherry in your tree ... jump down on the ground and make a pie with me ...
working on: cherry containment strategies
After washing, de-stemming and pitting all those cherries, strategies for their utilization were devised.
First prong of attack: Operation Immediate Gratification (a.k.a. pie).
I can report that this was a success. However, it only handled a small portion of the cherry population. I had to resort to advanced maneuvers.
Second prong of attack: Operation Enduring Sweetness (a.k.a. preserves and jelly).
This operation was just concluded this afternoon. I'm crossing my fingers, like poor Meg, that my jelly will jell. If not, we'll have cherry cordial for cocktails!
teeny tiny trailer of awesomeness
DWR partnered with Airstream to create a limited edition Bambi trailer - it's only 16'7" long and kitted out with designy goodies, like a Nelson clock. Sean and I saw one on the highway once and nearly went into the median - they are wee tiny, but wicked cool.
This one might be easier to aspire to (it probably won't set you back $49k, like the other one).
imaginary outfit: roadtripping
If I had some sort of shiny silver trailer, I would be on the road, expensive gas or no, and this would be my traveling ensemble. Comfy moccasins to slip on and off, glam shades, tiffin boxes with tuna salad sandwiches, and my iPod full of playlists.
I think I'd head for the mountains.
