February 13, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Stolen Jars: Driving

We haven’t posted music in ages, but Daniela’s friend Cody Fitzgerald let us know that his band Stolen Jars just came out with a video and, well, we really like the song. It has that clappy/percussion thing that I, for one, am always a fan of. Stolen Jars has a bit of a Postal Service-like history (who, by the way have a new single out after a long hiatus.) Cody Fitzgerald started the project in 2009, originally a guitar-based solo project out of his home, but later asked his friend Magdalena Bermudez to sing with him and write the lyrics. Magdalena lived in Massachusetts so most of the recording was done separately and sent via Dropbox. The group has since grown to include John-Elio Reitman, Jonah Fried, Sam Skinner, Molly Grund, and Elena Juliano. If you like what you hear, check out more of Stolen Jars’ music on their site, or follow their blog here, or on facebook.

February 13, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Refraction: Acrylicize

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London-based Acrylicize is a boutique creative agency that combines art and design to create engaging interior experiences from one-off installations to entire interior graphics and large scale architectural features. Last spring Acrylicize (originally their work was exclusively made with acrylic) was approached by PokerStars (the world’s largest poker site) to create a custom installation for the reception area of one of their London offices. Acrylicize came up with the idea of using materials from the poker world and ultimately decided to use playing cards. Cutting and assembling a large quantity of cards around acrylic cubes, the team placed the cubes into a spiraling sphere resulting in Refraction: a refined piece of abstract art, as well as a nod to the world of Poker playing.

Check out more of Acrylicize’s fun work on their site, from a map sculpture made with Monopoly houses to type installations and much more.

via instant joy

February 12, 2013 by collabcubed - 1 Comment

Buchstaben Museum: Museum of Letters

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Well this is something I’ll definitely check out when I make it over to Berlin. Buchstaben Museum (Museum of Letters) is devoted to preserving and documenting letterforms. It is nestled away in the back of a mall and houses a beautiful collection of found type, which the owners have rescued from around the world. The sizes of type vary, and the conditions of each piece too. All the letterforms are piled up over several rooms, some rooms are color coordinated. Neon letters that are still in working order are presented in all their glory. Sounds like a graphic designer’s dream museum!

Photos: Buchstaben Museum; frankrolf’s flickr; and olex.

via berlin design guide

February 12, 2013 by collabcubed - 1 Comment

Fred Cray: Articulate

Brooklyn-based artist/photographer Fred Cray (previously here) completed his latest set of zany self-portraits last Fall. These, he says, are loosely based on the notion of Mr. Potato Head. Some of the self-portraits from this series are currently being exhibited as part of Articulate, an eclectic new show that, in addition to Cray’s, includes work by Tina Barney, Alfred Leslie, Robert Cumming, Donald Sultan and more.

Articulate is on view through March 30th at Janet Borden, Inc, NYC.

Photos courtesy of Fred Cray

February 11, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Les Ballets de Faile: NYC Ballet Art Series

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Looks like the ballet has developed an edge. For the inauguration of their NYCB Art Series, the New York City Ballet has commissioned the Brooklyn-based street artist duo Faile to create an installation for the special Art Series performances on February 1st and May 29th where each seat was/is available for $29 and each audience member takes home a limited edition work (seemingly in the form of a cube) made specifically for the event by the artists. Inspired by the old posters, playbills, and other past company-related ephemera that fits so well with their collage style work, Faile created a tower in the ballet’s main hall titled Les Ballets de Faile. Patrick McNeil and Patrick Miller who make up the artistic collaboration see their participation as bringing together the “glamour and grime” of NYC under one roof.

There is limited availability left for the May 29th performance, but the installation is open to the public this week (2/10 to 2/17) for free. You can see the schedule here.

And here’s an interview with Faile on the project:

Photos: NYC Ballet; Faile; loftgallery, Kayellepea, and s0le1728 from NYCB’s facebook.

via wooster collective; video via animalny

February 11, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Penique Productions: Color Inflatables

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The Spanish art collective Penique Productions was formed in 2007 with the first inflatable project in the University of Barcelona. The group’s projects consist of color inflatables that fill up spaces erected by others, giving them a new identity. By blanketing the architecture using plastic and blowing fans, the space is simplified emphasizing the shapes and textures, ultimately generating a different atmosphere within the same structure. These installations inhabit the spaces temporarily and so far have occurred throughout Europe as well as in Mexico and Brazil. The group cite Christo as a major inspiration as well as contemporary artists Rachel Whiteread, Kimihiko Okada, Doris Salcedo, Tomas Saraceno and Ernesto Neto among others. And Em will be excited to learn that they worked with Maison Martin Margiela for Paris Fashion Week.

You can see the installation of the blue inflatable at El Claustro in Queretaro, Mexico below:

via iRef

February 8, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

NYC Culture on the Cheap: Weekend 2/8

Click on individual photos for official event page or use the corresponding numbered links below.

This weekend’s picks for Free & Cheap things to do in NYC (2/8 to 2/10) in art, music, theater, film, performance, dance, architecture and general fun.

1. ART: All Weekend & through 2/16 – Pratt Senior design student Stephie Miller (and our good friend!) has her Chelsea debut as part of Sweet N Low along with Hannah Antalek & Kelly McNutt at Studio 7D. Thurs through Sundays; noon to 6pm. FREE
2. TALK/FILM: Fri 2/8 – A Conversation with Jessica Chastain at 3pm Tkts FREE at the box office 1 hour before, first-come first-served basis.
3. FILM: All Weekend – Athena Film Festival: highlights the diversity of women’s leadership in real life and fictional world. FREE to $12 see schedule
4. CONFERENCE: Fri 2/8 and Sat 2/9 – Get Ready for the Marvelous: Black Surrealism in Dakar, Fort-de-France, Havana, Johannesburg, NYC, Paris, Port-au-Prince, 1932-2013 1 to 5:30pm FREE with RSVP
5. ART/ARCHITECTURE/ENGINEERING: All weekend & through 2/11 – Canstruction amazing structures created with cans that are donated to City Harvest. 10am to 6pm. FREE though a donation of a can of food per person is suggested.
6. MUSIC: Fri 2/8 – BadBadNotGood: jazzy electronic trio with hip hop breaks. 8:30pm $12.
7. FOOD: All weekend & through 2/28 – 21st Annual Hot Chocolate Festival
8. MUSIC: Fri 2/8 – Joseph Arthur and Martha Wainwright 6pm doors, 8pm show. $15 to $25
9. DESIGN/FASHION: All weekend & through 4/13 – Shoe Obsession: contemporary footwear designs. FREE
10. CONFERENCE/ARCHITECTURE: Sat 2/9 – Waterproofing New York 9am to 5pm all day confrence
11. ART/FOOD/MUSIC/FUN: Sat 2/9 – Lunar New Year Celebration: food, mahjong and music with Confettisystem & Gather. 3 to 6pm $10
12. FILM: All weekend & through 3/14 – Film series Amos Vogel and his text Film as Subversive Art $10
13. ARCHITECTURE/DESIGN: Sat 2/9 – Modern Architecture & Design Scavenger Hunt 11am to 7pm $30 (Postponed due to storm till 3/9)
14. ART PRESENTATION/RECEPTION: Sat 2/9 & Sun 2/10 – Aliya Bonar: PowerSuit Camp – What would your most courageous self would do, say, and wear? Public Presentation and Reception Sat 6 to 9pm Open house; Discussion Sunday 2 to 5pm. FREE
15. MUSIC: Sat 2/9 – The Rolling Tones deliver a rocking performance of songs from the Rolling Stones. 11pm $10 to $12
16. ART/ARCHITECTURE/TOUR: Sun 2/10 – Art and Architecture of the Subway Tour; 2pm $20
17. THEATER/INTERACTIVE: Sat 2/9 & Sun 2/10 – Trade Practices an interactive live art event drops audiences into a living market in the trade of short serialized performances. 8:30pm $10 to $15.
18. MUSIC: Sun 2/10 – Truth or Truffles Concert. Music by Strauss and Hartmann’s different approaches to the devastation of WWI & WWII. Concert at 2pm, Conductor’s Notes Q&A at 1pm. $25 to $50; half price tkts through 2/9 available here.

Also:
Sun 2/10: 14th New Year Firecracker Ceremony & Cultural Festival. 11am FREE
Fri 2/8 and all weekend – Blues for Smoke at the Whitney FREE Friday evenings 6 to 9pm. $18 adults all other times
All weekend & through 2/17: Materializing ‘Six Years’: Lucy R. Lippard and the Emergence of Conceptual art. Pay what you wish
All weekend: CoolNY Dance Festival
Sat 2/9: High Line Snow Sculpt Off – Registration 2:30, Judging 4pm. FREE
Sun 2/10: Slow Food NYC – Foodopoly. Author Wenonah Hauter reads & discusses her book. 4 to 6pm. FREE
Sun 2/10: Grammy Awards Screened with full concert sound. Doors 6pm/Show 8pm. FREE

Check our previous Culture on the Cheap posts for ongoing events and check back over the weekend for possible updates. Enjoy!

February 7, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Icehotel: A Warm Story about a Cold Place

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Have you ever wanted to ski in and out of an art exhibit? Well, here’s your big chance. On view now until it begins to melt (approximately mid-April) next to the Icehotel in Sweden is photographer/sculptor Anna Öhlund and lighting designer John Petterson’s light and photography exhibit titled A Warm Story about a Cold Place. Located in its own snow and ice building, the ephemeral exhibition captures the ever-shifting and momentary Arctic light and life of the frozen hotel. The light cycle in the exhibit runs 15 minutes and photographs are positioned within both circular cutouts in the walls and big free-standing ice blocks. Very cool in all meanings of the word.

There is also a companion book of the same name.

Photos: Anna Öhlund

via mocoloco and anna öhlund

February 6, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Adeela Suleman

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Adeela Suleman lives and works in Karachi, Pakistan. Her work reflects the dynamics of social life in contemporary Pakistani culture. Suleman works with found objects such as cooking utensils, drain covers, shower heads, water pipe chains, nails, bolts and more converting these everyday objects into dramatic sculptures and humorous helmets. Her more recent work of wall installations (seen here) mimic more the detailed ornamental designs of silver platters.

Photos courtesy of the artist; universes-in-universe; and aicon gallery.

via scope

February 6, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Alexander Lervik: Lumìere au Chocolat

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Alexander Lervik (previously here) has just come out with a very unique lamp: The Poetry of Light chocolate lamp. Wanting to explore darkness in contrast with light, Lervik set out to play with the idea of melting solid chocolate with a light source to reveal the light. Originally cube-shaped, the designer realized that the way chocolate melts worked better with a pyramid. The lamp begins in complete darkness and as the light source heats the dark chocolate it begins to melt, at first revealing a tiny ray of light and after roughly a 15-minute period the bulb is completely exposed and the melted chocolate ends up in a sectioned tray and can be taken out and consumed like a chocolate bar. Very fun.

February 5, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Lara Favaretto: Car Wash Brushes & More

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I saw Lara Favaretto’s exhibit Just Knocked Out at PS1 last summer and was recently reminded of it while going through a car wash. I enjoyed the whole show of her seemingly fun installations with their underlying theme of decay and obsolescence, but the piece that gave me a little thrill was one made of car wash brushes that alternated between spinning and stopping.

From PS1’s site:
Favaretto represents the eventuality of loss through a recuperative memorialization, often recycling elements from previous installations as new works, reusing discarded industrial materials, and encasing found paintings in loose tapestries of wool yarn.

The reuse of the car wash brushes is evident in all the related sculptures/installations that she has exhibited around the world. Other works that stood out include confetti-blowing fans and 60 compressed air tanks that switched on and off at different moments, blowing out their attached party favors.

You can see more of Lara Favaretto’s work here.

Photos: Matthew Septimus/MoMA PS1; Alan Dimmick; Galeria Franco Noero; and Universes in Universe.

February 4, 2013 by collabcubed - 1 Comment

Ed Young: Irreverent Edginess

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South African conceptual artist Ed Young enjoys challenging the art world and its methodologies working in various mediums ranging from sculpture and painted type murals to videos and more. And his work does not go unnoticed. Last year at the Jo’burg Art Fair, Young created an exact-to-scale silicone replica of his naked self at two-thirds his actual size, titled My Gallerist Made Me Do It, fascinating most of the 8,500 attendees of the fair. His piece titled Arch (short for Archbishop Desmond Tutu) swings from a working chandelier in the conference room of the IDASA headquarters, and apparently brought huge smiles to the Archbishop himself upon setting eyes on it.

Young’s murals are equally provocative in their bold type. Unknowingly, we ourselves came across one of Young’s murals a few years back in Miami…that’s Em in the bottom right photo!

Young doesn’t say a heck of a lot about his work when interviewed as you can see in the video below.

via SMAC

February 4, 2013 by collabcubed - 1 Comment

Luke Jerram: Glass Microbiology Sculptures

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It’s hard to wrap your head around the idea of creating beautiful objects from deadly infectious diseases, but that’s just what UK-based artist Luke Jerram does. His series of Glass Microbiology sculptures are glass-blown renderings of diseases that include HIV, Malaria, and E-Coli, to name only a few. Imagine what a conversation starter one of these would make as a paperweight on your desk, though at $10,000 you might prefer to keep it a little less exposed.

Jerram’s glass pieces have recently been acquired by the Metropolitan Museum for their permanent collection as well as being currently on view at the National Centre for Craft and Design in the U.K. through April 13, 2013.

via co.exist via Elaine

January 30, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Barry Rosenthal: Found in Nature

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Barry Rosenthal is a New York City based photographer. His Found in Nature series is created using plastic objects, garbage, waste and detritus found on beaches polluting our water and land including parking lots. Rosenthal organizes these pieces making for some graphically interesting photos.

via featureshoot

January 30, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

La Chaleur de L’amour & la Beauté des Paroles

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This installation caught my eye. La Chaleur de L’amour & la Beauté des Paroles (The warmth of love & the beauty of words) was created by Jad Melki, assistant professor of journalism and media studies at the American University of Beirut as well as visiting Faculty at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC. Melki’s piece represents presence in absence. Using an exposed mattress and warmly lighting it to make it glow, Melki converted its inner springs into words and sentences extracted from letters written by his mother when she was in Sierra Leon in 1974 to his father at the American Univeristy of Beirut. His father read the letters nightly, finding warmth and comfort in them and, in turn, feeling his wife’s presence in her absence. Nice.

Photos by Micheline Nahra

via anonymousd

January 29, 2013 by collabcubed - 2 Comments

Luzinterruptus: Portable River

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Last September the Spanish art collective Luzinterruptus (previously here and here) was invited to Caracas, Venezuela to participate in their urban arts festival Por en Medio de la Calle (In the Middle of the Street) which celebrates the importance of public space. Luzinterruptus stuck with one of their recurring themes: water. It is common for the streets of Caracas to flood in the rain, so in the hopes of having viewers stop and admire the element, they created a Portable River (Rio Portatil) filling 2000 transparent bags with water and made into ephemeral aquariums with toy fish and plants, highlighted with lights. At the end of the night, visitors could take the illuminated ecosystems home with them.

January 28, 2013 by collabcubed - 0 comments

Styn Flipper: Sam van Doorn

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For his senior project, Dutch designer and typographer Sam van Doorn designed Styn. a deconstructed pinball machine reconstructed as a design tool. The idea behind the installation is that by creating new tools one is able to break free from standards in design. By playing the machine the balls create an unpredictable pattern, and the better the player the better the print. Somehow, the grid used relates to the signs of the alphabet, tying it into typography but, in all honesty, I couldn’t figure out what that means exactly. In any case, the concept is pretty unique and fun.

via etapes

January 28, 2013 by collabcubed - 1 Comment

Aude Moreau: Sugar Carpet

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French-born artist Aude Moreau lives and works in Montreal. Her installation piece titled Sugar Carpet (Tapis de sucre) is made with two tons of refined white sugar spread out evenly across the floor in a carpet-like manner embellished with Persian rug motifs in activated charcoal and food coloring. Moreau plays with the idea of ‘refined’ both in the production of the sugar and its selection process, as well as describing a sophistication that the carpet represents.

The Sugar Carpet is presently on view at the Smack Mellon gallery in Brooklyn through February 24th.