Japanese Fashion

These 'fashion' items were on TV the other day and I have managed to find some pictures of them. They are absolutely ridiculous... but soooo Japanese at the same time! They are created by fashion designer Aya Tsukioka and they are clothes or bags which transform to decieve potential criminals. The vending machine starts off as a skirt which unfolds and transforms you into a vending machine. I can see these being used more for fancy dress than to make criminals oblivious to you! The handbag... well, you can just throw it on the floor and it is disguised as a manhole.. with a handle! Interesting... but a little daft.

CityScape Coat Hanger

For those with money to throw, I have just found the best product to waste your hard earn money with. The Cityscape coat hanger! A set comes with 5 hangers, making you £250 poorer.

They are Laser-cut, then hand finished and varnished. Made from hard wearing multi-laminated Birch ply.

They illustrate the five major fashion and design capitals of the world: London, Milan, New York, Paris, Tokyo.

Source : Sixixis

Courtney James

Courtney is a 23 year old graphic designer / illustrator from Detroit, Michigan. "My true love lies with the creation of graphic art and design" she says. "This media has given me the opportunity to accurately express my own personality and depict the elements that make this world so beautiful."

Courtney's illustrations are typically figurative, incorportating organic forms found throughout nature. She is constantly inspired by everything that surrounds her, and this reflects in her work. I love the organic feel that her works have and the contrast between photography and watercolour, reality and fantasy, hand-crafted and digital.

http://punkychicken.com/07/

Neil Duerden

After finding the works of Alberto Seveso and Caleb (http://calcreative.blogspot.com/) commented that I should check out the works of Neil Duerden... I found some fantastic photo illustrative works which are intricate and organic.

He's a mixed media artist who combines vector artwork with photography. The colours are vibrant but classy and capture the mood of the photograph. I love the way in one of the photo's below, how the flow of the illustrations work with the fabric but also against it creating some contrast. He obviously has a good eye for composition.

Sara Singh

She produces free-flowing watercolour art - it's beautiful how she blends very sharp lines with very undefined watercolors. I also love the way she mixes mainstream fashion into her illustrations and can incorporate photos for adverts into her work. They are pretty to look at but there is also an element of intensity. They are quite simple pieces but the composition and colour makes them stand out.

Yukio Miyamoto

Gradient Mesh master Yukio Miyamoto has been using and abusing Adobe Illustrator since the 80's. Yukio's artwork has appeared in a number of books, from design books to manuals. Yukio has trained thousands of people in all areas of graphics for the Mac and Win.

When I first saw these, I couldn't believe that they were photos... it just goes to show that it's not impossible to create life-like illustrations.

Alberto Seveso

I'm particularly interested in the Illustration / Photo juxtaposition, so I was rather amused when I stumbled across the stylish works of freelance designer Alberto Seveso, Rome, Italy.

It's good to see women being illustrated in a different way to those which we see on club flyers etc. The way in which the illustration isn't confined to the contour of the body, yet you still get the feeling of the figure being 3D and lifelike is interesting to look at.

He told Carpal Tunnel Magazine: 'My passion for graphics was born about fifteen years ago when I had an Amiga 1200 and Delux Paint that I loved so much. But I switched to PC when a friend showed me the potentials of photoshop. I was astonished when I understood the power of that software'.

His site is definately worth checking out and he has some other works which are a little more wacky, and if you like his stuff you can buy prints!

http://www.recycledarea.co.uk/index.php

Olympics Logo

I still can't believe that they haven't changed the logo design for the 2012 olympics. It is pittyful. These are a collection of designs done by others. My favourites are the ones outlined. They are simple and I can't image them looking outdated in 5 years whereas the current one already looks childish and inapropriate. I don't think it gives Britain a good image and it looks like the country isn't taking the olympics seriously. It should look professional and prestigious.

Kartell Furniture

Whilst furnishing my apartment, I came across the Kartell Francois Louis Ghost furniture range. I really like these postmodern furniture designs which are contemporary and classy. The design and materials combine the old and the new and bring a new lease of life to contemporary furniture. The ad is particularly interesting and backs up my previous statement. String instruments are typically associated with tradition. Perhaps it would have been interesting to see electrical string instruments instead.

The World, Dubai

http://www.theworld.ae/

Book Covers

I was reading somebodys GLOG the other day and they wrote a blog about book covers. I made a comment about it.. and since then I have found some interesting book covers by Penguin called 'Great Ideas' designed by David Pearson and Phil Baines and some others. A really nice uncoated stock, lovely rich blues and reds and some cracking debossing. They feel nice in the hand.

So... Whoever you are... I hope that you find this article because it might help with your dissertation!

Eco Petrol Station

In Los Angeles, in the gas guzzling centre of the Universe, BP has enlisted Office dA to embrace the paradoxical task of creating a green petrol station. Taking the existing station on the site, it was 'upcycled' into not a futuristic station but a station for today that is a 'little better' ... a little greener in its design and materials, and in its use of water and energy.

Quite ironic really that a petrol station is trying to be greener. I suppose... every little helps and the design is cutting edge.

Elevator Art

The subject of endless psychology experiments and countless awkward moments. Now, thanks to a collaboration between KONE elevators and Finnish design company Marimekko, you can stare intently at wonderful designs rather than floor or the control panel. Marimekko Corporation is a leading Finnish textile and clothing design company that was established in 1951.

“Applying Marimekko designs to elevator cars will turn the ride into an experience that can be continued in other interior designs of the building. The agreement reflects the goal of both parties to make design a part of people’s everyday lives,” says Kirsti Paakkanen, President, Marimekko.

Such a small interior space which are normally rather industrial and boring. They are there functionally, but normally not aesthetically pleasing. These pieces of art, placed within the lifts form a point of conversation and are more visually pleasing than metal or mirrors!

Citylounge

A red carpet has enveloped the surface in and around the financial district of St. Gallen, a north-eastern city of Switzerland. A result of a competition, the 'Stadtlounge' (citylounge) was designed by artist Pipilotti Rist along with the Carlos Martinez architectural firm. The redness meanders through the functional office buildings, creating an inspiring and fun people-friendly space.

The entire ground, including cars and the road, have been covered in red broadloom, as part of a design competition to create a "public living room."

It's interesting how the fabric pours out over the streets and rises in curves to form ultra-chic couches dotted around, and also how objects such as cars are covered in a carpeted material making it part of the lounge. The car isn't functional in it's own right... it's part of a piece of art - there to be used as a piece of furniture.

Street Art

3-D street art has always fascinated me, but I have just come across examples of street art used as ambient media advertising. The first is for T.Com and the second is for Ford.

A am also posting examples of Street Art.







http://www.european-street-painting.com/

Leeds Urban Development

The urban development in Leeds is happening so quickly... as soon as a plan is authorized, another is being proposed. Lumiere is currently under construction on Wellington Street, Leeds which will be the tallest residential building in Europe. The new face of Leeds is commencing. I hope that the contemporary will highlight the historic.

Wellington Place is the most significant urban regeneration project in the region, a 2 acre city centre site that will provide in excess of three million square feet of offices, residential, hotel, retail and leisure uses with the added appeal of galleries and inspiring public spaces. All this plus the extensive frontage to the River Aire.

Reusing Design

Guerilla anti-drug campaign for the Berlin Suchthilfe, the Berlin drug awareness organisation. Translation: Not all drugs are as harmless as music.

Whether or not the Berlin Suchthilfe will be taken to court over using the apple ads or not, it's an interesting way of communicating to it's target audience. It's taking a market which has already been cacooned and targetting them by using visuals similar to those which they relate to, to tell a serious message.

Yuken Teruya

After seeing Peter Callesen's work using paper I found these works by Yuken Tertuya. He creates these sculptures out of fastfood takeaway bags and paper shopping bags. The Okinawa-born, New York-based artist creates treescapes by meticulously cutting intricate shapes from these bags. His work is fuelled by his political commentary on the environment and globalisation, and is informed by his Okinawan heritage.

The Art of Knitting!

I was watching Graham Norton on TV the other week and one of his guests (Alison Murray) was in the process of knitting an entire house and its contents for charity. Everything in the house was made from wool and stuffing.

About 500 women from across the UK, USA, Canada and Spain sent knitted contributions to the house which goes on show on Friday until 20 September. It just shows that people can pull together to create something wonderful.

So, in my inquest to find out more about the process of making a house from wool, I came across a few other people who have been creating similar things.



This house is made by Tasmanian knitters.

This community art project grew out of nursing homes in and around Hobart, Tasmania. Residents of the homes have some terrific skills and memories, and their carers were looking for some useful projects for them to be involved in that would have both physical, mental and social benefits.




"The knitting site" is a device for remembering, say the ladies who made this house in London.

They had met weekly to prepare, and continued on the day of the event, as the house unfolded before the crowd’s eyes. As they said: “Some people think that the act of building should be hidden behind screens, we like building site stuff - nets and ropes and scaffolding. We knit with them. And while some people think knitting is to remain behind walls, we build walls that are knitted. The knitting site is about bringing the backstage to the fore."

Sean Henry

I came across Sean Henry's work purely incidently. At first, from a distance they look like real people but closer up you can see the detailing of the bronze. The sculptures took me by suprise because you usually see bronze, plastic, glass, stone etc sculptures but the fact that these are bronze and Henry has painted over them is really weird. If he is hiding the bronze, it makes me wonder why he could make them out of this material.

The location of these sculptures, for me, is vital. They mean so much more when they are placed. 'Standing Man (italia)' provokes more questions about who he is and what he is doing when he was relocated to Burton Place in London.




Henry revealed that it doesn't enter his head what people might think or take from the sculptures when he is making them. For him, it is all about what it does for him. There is something lifeless about the sculptures because they are slightly larger than the average human being. This makes casting rather more difficult for Henry. From a distance they look the same as a human being but as you get closer, it heightens the sense of reality when you realise how tall they are.



Some of the sculptures, such as 'Catafalque' have been moved around to various locations. The one from London doesn't work for me. It detracts from the meaning of the sculptures. I think that they work best in locations where you might find them, then you can ask why are they there, what are the doing. For this sculpture to be on a platform - it is quite obvious it is just there for show, to to intrigue peoples emotions. When it is in the grass, this is where it comes to life.




I think that it is a shame that this figures face doesn't have more emotion. If I was to change this sculpture, I would have more emphasis on how the eyes would squint in reaction to the brightness of the sun. Currently, this figure looks quite morbid.