I Know You Are, But What Am I?

Helveticawiches!

2011-03-02T06:28:00.000-08:00

David Schwen serves up lunch graphic design-style.

The "Burgervetica" is available as a T-Shirt at Threadless,
but is currently sold out.

check out more on his site (including links to a
Flickr stream and "Burgervetica" merch) HERE.

Corinne Vionnet Overlaps It Up

2011-02-21T20:25:00.000-08:00

Corinne Vionnet superimposes tourists' snapshots
she finds online of landmarks from around the world
to ghostly, impressionistic effect.

check out more of her work HERE.

Vivian Maier

2011-02-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

Vivian Maier was a street photographer in a day when people
smoked cigarettes and slept in their cars.

But what's more interesting is no one knew this until after
her death in 2009 when buckets of her negatives were
discovered at an estate sale.

A nanny in Chicago during the 40's-60's, Maier will certainly
go down in history as one of the most highly regarded street
photographers of her, or any other, era.

the first showing of her work is currently on view at
the Chicago Cultural Center.

learn and see more HERE.

and HERE.

donate to the soon-to-be-made documentary about
the photographer HERE.

"I Have Come Here To Chew Bubble Gum And Kick Ass...

2011-01-30T07:12:00.000-08:00

...and I'm all out of bubble gum."

more minimal design/cinema-inspired posters!

...this time from G-MAN77's Flickr photo set.

check 'em out HERE.

Gun Crazy

2011-01-28T06:25:00.000-08:00

guns are like snakes, both equally creep me out
and fascinate me.

I've always romanticized guns, mostly for their film noir
associations. I would someday like to actually go to a range
and fire one instead of living vicariously through Annette Bening
in "American Beauty".

but what triggered, as it were, this post was the poster for the new Statham
shoot-'em-up, "The Mechanic". a work of graphic
design I would go as far as calling "fun". yes, they
form the shape of a gun...but after the designer "played"
with them to achieve it. hell, it's just cool.

I want a t-shirt.

(other guns-in-art items below)

ignition print

stefan sagmeister

inger carina

warhol

Pedro Vidotto's Minimalist Movie Posters

2011-01-14T12:39:00.000-08:00

2 things that give me a boner...minimalist design and movies.

clearly, I was pleased as punch to find Vidotto's
clean, clever posters.

hey, Pedro...a few ideas...

Black Swan
Blue Valentine
Enter The Void
Rabbit Hole

check 'em out at Fubiz HERE

Gaspar Noe Punched My Eyeballs

2011-01-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

I've always been a little nervous sitting down for a
Gaspar Noe flick. I just know I'm going to go through
the ringer to some degree.

that being said, I'll be doing just that this weekend
when I see Enter The Void.

thought this post is about the opening credits of the film.
tailored for the drug culture/A.D.D.-set, the eye-reddening
onslaught of an entire font library strobing before a deluge
of After Effect fireworks....ack...just watch it...

Kerouac's Letter To Brando

2011-01-12T07:58:00.000-08:00

this 1957 letter was found in Brando's house and brought
in $33,600 at auction.

Kerouac pitches On The Road to Brando...in addition
to hailing himself as an angel, waxing on French Cinema
and proving himself a good son to his mother.

very cool. read it yourself. (click to enlarge or
read transcript below)

Transcript

Jack Kerouac
1418½ Clouser St
Orlando, Fla

Dear Marlon

I'm praying that you'll buy ON THE ROAD and make a movie of it. Don't worry about the structure, I know to compress and re-arrange the plot a bit to give perfectly acceptable movie-type structure: making it into one all-inclusive trip instead of the several voyages coast-to-coast in the book, one vast round trip from New York to Denver to Frisco to Mexico to New Orleans to New York again. I visualise the beautiful shots could be made with the camera on the front seat of the car showing the road (day and night) unwinding into the windshield, as Sal and Dean yak. I wanted you to play the part because Dean (as you know) is no dopey hotrodder but a real intelligent (in fact Jesuit) Irishman. You play Dean and I'll play Sal (Warner Bros. mentioned I play Sal) and I'll show you how Dean acts in real life, you couldn't possibly imagine it without seeing a good imitation. Fact, we can go visit him in Frisco, or have him come down to L.A. still a real frantic cat but nowadays settled down with his final wife saying the Lord's Prayer with his kiddies at night...as you'll seen when you read the play BEAT GENERATION. All I want out of this is to able to establish myself and my mother a trust fund for life, so I can really go roaming around the world writing about Japan, India, France etc. ...I want to be free to write what comes out of my head & free to feed my buddies when they're hungry & not worry about my mother.

Incidentally, my next novel is THE SUBTERRANEANS coming out in N.Y. next March and is about a love affair between a white guy and a colored girl and very hep story. Some of the characters in it you know in the village (Stanley Gould etc.) It easily could be turned into a play, easier than ON THE ROAD.

What I wanta do is re-do the theater and the cinema in America, give it a spontaneous dash, remove pre-conceptions of "situation" and let people rave on as they do in real life. That's what the play is: no plot in particular, no "meaning" in particular, just the way people are. Everything I write I do in the spirit where I imagine myself an Angel returned to the earth seeing it with sad eyes as it is. I know you approve of these ideas, & incidentally the new Frank Sinatra show is based on "spontaneous" too, which is the only way to come on anyway, whether in show business or life. The French movies of the 30's are still far superior to ours because the French really let their actors come on and the writers didn't quibble with some preconceived notion of how intelligent the movie audience is, the talked soul from soul and everybody understood at once. I want to make great French Movies in America, finally, when I'm rich...American Theater & Cinema at present is an outmoded Dinosaur that ain't mutated along with the best in American Literature

If you really want to go ahead, make arrangements to see me in New York when you next come, or if you're going to Florida here I am, but what we should do is talk about this because I prophesy that it's going to be the beginning of something real great. I'm bored nowadays and I'm looking around for something to do in the void, anyway—writing novels is getting too easy, same with plays, I wrote the play in 24 hours.

Come on now Marlon, put up your dukes and write!

Sincerely, later,

(Signed, 'Jack Kerouac')

Plaid To Meet You, Merlin Carpenter

2011-01-10T07:41:00.000-08:00

Merlin Carpenter's recent show (closing this Thursday) at Miami's Formalist
Sidewalk Poetry Club consists of poorly knocked-off
Burberry plaids half-assedly draped over canvas frames.

somehow this works for me.

what works for me even more is his ornery slingshot-
back-pocket of past exhibitions...including his fleecing
of the ICA Philadelphia's group show, Make Your Own Life,
for $4000 in cash for his own, personal shopping spree. Zing!

check out his website (with links to his shows) HERE

Liz Artinian Lurks In The Background

2011-01-05T08:47:00.000-08:00

Liz Artinian is a painter. an EXCELLENT painter.
and also happens to do the background artwork for
The Venture Bros. on Adult Swim.

check her site out HERE

James Reynolds' Last Meals

2011-01-04T07:03:00.000-08:00

London artist James Reynolds photographs trays of (mostly)
food taken from actual death row inmates' requests for last meals.

ranging from not surprising to wtf, the photos give an
insight into what may be cooking in one's mind
(or stomach) at death's kitchen door.

more about Reynolds' work HERE

The Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves...

2010-12-30T08:15:00.000-08:00

...for the love of performing, an enormous fan base
and for the long-awaited documentary, Bar d'O.

Craig Abell-Champion, Bobby Sheehan, Chris Jannou
and a slew of talented film folks chronicle
the infamous, glamicious NYC club, Bar d'O, highlighting
performances by Sherry Vine, Joey Arias and
Raven O.

The Facebook page is up. Wig-out HERE.

You Sunk My USB Port!

2010-12-29T07:55:00.000-08:00

the C77UGG stuffs another batch of clever goodies
into our stockings this year.

check it out HERE.

Give To Her Your Metal, Take From Meighan O'Toole Her Lace

2010-01-12T07:33:00.000-08:00

Meighan O'Toole = superCoole

check out the link HERE

Web Services Cover Therapy

2009-12-13T09:25:00.000-08:00

couldn't help but think of Spacesick's "I Can Read Movies" series
when I saw these.

check 'em out full-size HERE.

Quentin Thiaucourt's Scroll Clock

2009-11-30T10:48:00.000-08:00

as the creator himself said, "it's useless and nerdy".

works for me.

check it out HERE

Poetry Animations on YouTube

2009-10-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

part Conan O'Brien, part something even creepier...but addictive.

Poetry Animations HERE
(or some shortcuts to a few below)

POE

UNKNOWN GIRL

GERTRUDE STEIN

Eat Some Paste!

2009-10-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

The official homepage of Doug Allen.

See Steven come to life... and don't miss out on the
brilliant animated feature, "Drinking Cactus",
sure to cure what ales ya!

check it out HERE, dammit!

Craighton Berman's Coil Lamp

2009-10-20T09:58:00.000-07:00

Chicago designer, Berman, kicks out a concept I'm sure
we all wish we'd thought of ourselves.

Craighton Berman website

Art History via The Brothers Quay

2009-10-20T09:43:00.000-07:00

check it out

Ads for America's Next Top Model

2009-08-16T12:28:00.000-07:00

love these.

check 'em out HERE.

Typewriter Ribbon Tins

2009-08-16T07:08:00.000-07:00

The first issue of Uppercase Magazine features this
flickr photo set of some exceptional ribbon tins from
"back in the day".

check 'em out HERE.

Spacesick's "I Can Read Movies" series

2009-08-11T17:37:00.000-07:00

I can't stop thinking about these.

check out more HERE

you know, for kids...

R.I.P., John Hughes

2009-08-11T17:05:00.000-07:00

a flier I did for "homo night" at The Continental in Chicago
a couple years ago.

thanks for carrying me through those agonizing post-adolescent years
(not to mention, introducing me to The Smiths), Mr. Hughes.

you were a lifesaver in a sea of fuschia and chartreuse angst.

Gladys Knight

2009-06-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

GK and her Pips present the Best Song nominees for
the 1975 Grammys. Gladys actually SINGS them, in turn,
making the original performers appear a tad less talented.

Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavillion

2009-04-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

I've been listening to Animal Collective's latest while
cleaning my just-moved-out-of apartment of four years.
The two experiences compliment one another...both
are echo-ey, cavernous and a little melancholy.

Truly, a great album. And how 'bout that nauseatingly,
trippy album cover?

Gucci's "Flora", dir. Chris Cunningham

2009-04-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

Chris Cunningham directs a spot for Gucci's
new fragrance, Flora. kind of a warmer
counterpart to his "Frozen" video for Madonna.

check it out HERE

Green Porno

2009-04-05T16:07:00.000-07:00

I love Isabella Rossellini.

She's teamed up w/ the Sundance Channel to create...
well, just check them out...

HERE

Where The Wild Things Are trailer

2009-03-27T14:40:00.001-07:00

Finally!

poor Spike has been in production hell.
here is the first, official trailer...
lookin' good, Mr. Jonze.

release date: October '09

watch trailer HERE

Adult Swim DVD Cover Design

2009-03-06T10:44:00.000-08:00

yes, I am a sucker for packaging. especially
DVD packaging. I even considered buying
the reissue of SALO, which I could probably
never stomach to watch again, purely on the
basis of it's design.

so on the advent of the release, on March 24th,
of The Venture Bros. Season 3, I'm showcasing
the consistently rad artwork that Adult Swim
has been implementing for its equally rad
cartoons on DVD.

Brad Pitt on the cover of W

2009-02-07T21:04:00.000-08:00

ok. so I could go on about celebrity, image, mortality and all sorts
of other theoretical hoo-haw...but the meat of this matter
is a kind of humbling honesty and
an alternate take on "naked celebrities". way to go, W...
Chuck Close...and, of course, Brad with his gaping pores
and eye cream-deprived wrinkles.

Pistol Youth - "In My Eyes"

2009-01-22T08:26:00.000-08:00

totally Golden

watch it HERE

Nicholas Di Genova

2009-01-18T16:56:00.000-08:00

his website bio reads, "Nicholas was born in 1981. He lives
and works in Toronto." short and sweet, but what it leaves
out is... 'he's awesome'.

check out his WEBSITE

Mark Ryden at Tomio Koyama (Tokyo)

2009-01-18T16:26:00.000-08:00

the new exhibit, called "The Snow Yak", is winter-themed
and opens February 9th, 2009

more images HERE

MANUFRACTURED

2009-01-17T10:27:00.000-08:00

LINK

The Moaster

2009-01-17T10:04:00.000-08:00

FINALLY!
The Highest Popping Toaster In The World!

La Blogothèque's Take Away Shows

2009-01-13T11:28:00.000-08:00

whether it's Liars and Tapes N' Tapes using the inside walls
of an elevator and a foosball table (respectively) as drums,
or the stripped down, organic a cappella harmonies of
Fleet Foxes and Grizzly Bear, these voyeuristic (and, at times,
down-right claustrophobic) videos ("short films"?) are fer-seriously
worth a fine-tooth combing.

check them all out HERE

The Buddy System's "Return to Horse Mountain"

2009-01-13T11:16:00.000-08:00

watch it HERE

Dick Shawn in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

2009-01-08T12:04:00.000-08:00

I love, love, love, love this movie. Just watched it again yesterday
for the gazillionth time. If you've never seen it, rent it, Netflix queue
it, whatever. just see it.

In this clip, Dick Shawn (who you might remember as the lead in
"Springtime for Hitler" in the original The Producers) is oblivious
to a ringing phone as he acts like a complete maniac with his
facially stoic go-go-ing gal pal.

Robert Longo at Margo Leavin Gallery (LA)

2009-01-08T09:35:00.000-08:00

Sharks are cool.
"Caligula" (above) and "Phantom Vessel" (below)

My Black Dog

2009-01-06T14:00:00.000-08:00

watch HERE

New York I Love You

2008-12-20T21:50:00.000-08:00

I just watched the horrible new Muppet Christmas Special tonight.
Paul Williams just should have done the cameo and
left the music up to LCD Soundsystem.

Google meets LIFE

2008-12-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

okay, so a month later I finally here about this...kinda cool.

BLÜTT at Atomic Sketch Event

2008-12-19T16:38:00.000-08:00

I got a Blütt!

this month's ASE yielded some great work.
the featured artists this month created a triad of awesomeness.
Blütt shared the walls w/ Czr Prz who collaborated w/
a sadly absent BonuS...BonuS, where Art thou?
it was a great crowd. Dominic said he's superpsyched
about January's panel...so be there or be...artless!

My Blütt score (kinda looks like W.S. Burroughs, yes?)...

The Starn Twins at David Weingberg Gallery

2008-12-17T17:48:00.000-08:00

(me being snarky)...I guess when you get older and have kids
you stop cutting up pictures of Jesus then taping them
together again and start taking pictures of snowflakes.

(me being honest) I had a smile on my face the
whole time I was ogling them. we all claim to
have an eye for detail in nature, but this show
sheds a little light on how we tend to be
oblivious of nature in detail.

DAVID WEINBERG GALLERY

BOOBS

2008-12-16T10:54:00.000-08:00

according to the website, the BOOBS design is currently sold out,
but the "Captain Seabeard" design is still available
and ARRRRguably on par w/ BOOBS.

Jeremy Boston Designs

Core77

2008-12-16T10:32:00.000-08:00

I'm clearly feeling a little "gift-minded" this morning. I literally almost got goosebumps when I realized that the throwing stars were magnets...and the pant clips?... they have J. Stander's name written all over them.

more cool stuff at...http://www.core77.com/UltimateGiftGuide/

MUJI

2008-12-16T09:07:00.000-08:00

MUJI is the next big concept design store import to hit NYC (5 locations there and counting) and leave the rest of us in the country buzzing about it (remember IKEA and H&M?). the site is attractive, cryptic and not yet accepting stateside orders (UK catalog HERE)....but the minimal design fetishist in me is keeping its eyes and ears open for a Chicago store...tho I suspect L.A. will get it first.

www.MUJI.com

Bacon of the Month Club

2008-12-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

"it's a bacon, bacon, bacon, bacon, bacon world"
check it out

Cannonball (1976)

2008-12-13T12:08:00.000-08:00

among the car chases and wacky 70's antics of Bartel's
road/race movie is this little oasis of wind-in-hair bliss...

Bob Carradine naps. Belinda Balaski sings along
with the radio while sporting a ragin' pair of shades (Foster Grants?).

Wordle.net

2008-12-13T11:17:00.000-08:00

www.wordle.net

ok, so if you're a graphic designer, you can knock this type of
stuff out in Illustrator...(bully for us!) for everyone else,
it's kind of a nifty application.
I just plopped in the words to William Carlos Williams' "This Is Just To Say".
neat!

Friday the 13th remake

2008-12-13T10:47:00.000-08:00

oh no they dininnn't! yes...they did. I do like how they used the "countdown" as an homage to the original trailer. I'm such a nerd.

Scott Walker: 30 Century Man

2008-12-13T10:16:00.000-08:00

nestled within Pitchfork's Top 50 Albums of 2006
was Walker's "The Drift". I'd never heard of him, but
downloaded it on a whim. I had no idea what I was
listening to, but kept listening. totally looking forward
to this doc.

Two Great Tastes... Pt.2

2008-12-05T10:12:00.000-08:00

MGMT's "The Youth" is probably the most infectious on the album for me. and the video is perfect...but I still couldn't leave it well enough alone by mixin' it up with a possible inspiration for it.

MGMT's "The Youth"

Sparkle Motion in motion

MGMT - The Youth (Sparkle Motion edit)

Swedish Fish ad

2008-12-03T17:52:00.000-08:00

putting the "mmmm" in mmmew

Fish Out Of Water preview Parts 1&2

2008-12-03T15:24:00.000-08:00

very timely...and co-animated by Kyle Harter, who did the "bear head" drawing in my Atomic Sketch post.

Adidas Adicolor

2008-12-03T13:42:00.000-08:00

Adidas ran this campaign a couple of years ago. directed by Charlie White, "Pink" is still my favorite. the song is "Made" by Greg Weeks. other colors/short films

Adam Wallacavage

2008-12-03T08:23:00.000-08:00

to quote the Gizmodo site, "chandeliers to class up the place"...right on!

check out more HERE

Sleeveface.com

2008-12-02T20:03:00.000-08:00

SLEEVEFACE.COM

kinda self-explanatory...but there's an instructional video

here's my contribution...45's prove more challenging...

Ethan Hutchinson

2008-12-02T12:15:00.000-08:00

artist? madman? or perhaps a little from Side A and a little from Side B? regardless, I have the honor/pleasure of owning a few of Ethan's pieces. he's also a regular at the aforementioned ATOMIC SKETCH and is being showcased for the January AS event.

MGMT

2008-12-02T12:07:00.000-08:00

Happy Belated Thanksgiving from MGMT

Atomic Sketch

2008-12-02T11:08:00.000-08:00

stellar event! Atomic Sketch has been happening (mostly) on the last Thursday of every month at Evil Olive in Wicker Park. a panel of artists sit at a long table sweatshopping artwork for "the wall". some of the work doesn't even make it up on the wall before being snatched up by PBR-swilling patrons. prices range from $5 to $20. for more info, check out the Atomic Sketch Blog

here are a couple of my AS scores...

artist David Johnson

artist Kyle Harter

Someoddpilot

2008-12-02T10:02:00.000-08:00

Chris Eichenseer, mastermind of Someoddpilot in Chicago, just launched their new site. a genuinely prolific gaggle of designers.
SOMEODDPILOT

Renegade Arts and Crafts

2008-12-02T09:52:00.000-08:00

there's always something very "I wish I'd thought of that" at these fairs. crafty folks creating interesting these and thats. go check it out!
the SITE

Craig Abell-Champion

2008-12-02T00:20:00.000-08:00

then there's THIS guy...
http://www.craigachampion.com

The Sweptaways

2008-12-01T23:25:00.000-08:00

American Apparel ad? Feist influence? Pre-Olympic hype? who cares?
I dig it.
THE SWEPTAWAYS

Let The Right One In

2008-12-01T23:10:00.001-08:00

Two Great Tastes... Pt.1

2008-12-01T22:00:00.000-08:00

Cinema Paradiso ending (spoiler alert!) and Love's "Always See Your Face".
(by some cosmic fluke, I realized the song and the clip were the same length,
just had to mix 'em).

Mattress Bunny

2008-12-01T21:14:00.000-08:00

http://mattressbunny.org/

High Society

2008-12-01T15:19:00.000-08:00

Bing holds his liquor. Frank?...not so much. but, man, to they swing, chum. altogether, a pretty cheerful clip, until you think about how every single person in the scene, including the extras, is dead.

Cheeta Fight

2008-11-30T17:39:00.000-08:00

A.P. Munoz. artist. blogger. world traveler. fashion plate. renaissance man...and all-around great guy.
Cheeta Figh t

Douglas Gordon Minisite

2008-11-30T17:13:00.000-08:00

this is from a few years back, but still cool...
check it out here

Orphan Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-30T16:46:00.000-08:00

another Orphan Thanksgiving was a smashing success.

and what a stellar action shot of Marc's macaroni noodle captured betwixt tongs and plate!

Langley School Music Project

2008-11-30T16:17:00.000-08:00

VH-1 ran a show on this??? well, here it is in 3 parts.

Happy Holidays from Carsten Holler

2008-11-30T15:57:00.000-08:00

Bambi, 2006
more carsten holler

BLU

2008-11-30T15:36:00.000-08:00

this artist is insane....

fantoche from blu on Vimeo.

Anita O'Day from Jazz on a Summer's Day

2008-11-30T13:42:00.000-08:00

an amazing movie and an amazing jazz vocalist. at the very last minute Miss O'day decided she needed some flair. she dashed down to a Newport boutique and grabbed the hat, which became iconic...and I don't lie (much).

Nurse the 3rd

2008-11-30T13:28:00.000-08:00

informative. helpful. brilliant.

www.prudentboozers.com

hush

2008-11-30T12:21:00.000-08:00