run mice run rat run

I think local commercials are hysterical. While living in St. Louis I couldn't not laugh when a "Becky's Carpet and Tile" commercial came on. I mean what's not to love about a women in her 50s with heavy makeup, a pageant crown, and a prom dress flying around the Arch on a magic carpet.

The East Coast certainly does not disappoint. I just saw a great one tonight for a local company called "Run Mice Run Rat Run." The commercial is of a guy in a mouse costume jumping on a bed and then running out of a house. The product is just a spray that keeps rodents out of the house and apparently it's a green product. Even the local guys are cashing in on the green trend.

Having DVR means that I rarely see these local gems, but it's nice to know they are still out there.

zink

I'm a bit of a Polaroid maniac. I have hundreds...Sadly Polaroid announced earlier this year their plans to discontinue making the film at the end of 2009. For the moment I'm stockpiling, but instead of worrying about what's to come with the classic film I thought I would talk about a new product created by Polaroid. ZINK!

Short for "Zero Ink," Zink is thermal printing paper. Now you may be thinking ok sounds great, but what does that mean. The short version is that it is paper embedded with dye crystals of the primary ink colors - Cyan, Yellow, and Magenta. At first glance the paper is colorless and appears to be nothing special, however when you load it into the thermal printer it goes through a developing process that produces professional quality prints.

So what does this mean for the common recreational photographer? Well since Zink requires no ink cartridges printers can be a fraction of the size, not to mention that you'll never again need to worry about running out of ink. There is even talk of incorporating printers into cell phones & digital cameras, so perhaps you'll finally print out all those digital pictures.

Plus the prints are water-resistant, smudge proof and tear proof. Coming in at a cost of 30 cents a print, they are far less expensive then traditional Polaroids to boot. Even more motivation to print out all those great digital images just sitting on your memory cards.

Zink and Zink products enter the market this fall. Visit the official Zink site to learn more: http://www.zink.com/ OR watch the "What is Zink" video below from Zink.com

fredric j. baur

Fredric J. Baur, the designer of the Pringles potato chip packaging system died on May 4th leaving his family with a slightly odd request for burial arrangements. He was so proud of his design for Pringles that he asked to be buried in one of the cans. His family honored his request and a portion of his ashes were buried in the iconic can. This begs the question of what variety of Pringles he opted for or if he went with the original red can.


While this seems a bit unusual one must give credit to those with Mr Baur's burial creativity. Plus he's not the first. My favorite alternative to the ho hum coffin/ urn are the custom made coffins from Ghana. I first came across these brightly colored creations at the American Visionary Arts Museum a few years back. Basically they will make you a coffin in any shape, size or color you desire. Not to mention the craftsmanship is exquisite. Some of the ones I've seen are; a pineapple, a BMW, a shoe, an airplane and a bottle of beer. If you're gonna be buried why not have your coffin be an expression of your passions during life!

To read more about Fredric Baur check out the CNN article: http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/06/02/pringles.burial.ap/index.html

For more on the coffin traditions from Ghana check out the following article from the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/africanlives/ghana/ghana.htm

superheroes - fashion and fantasy

I love fashion and superheroes, so imagine my excitement when I heard the Metropolitan Museum of Art was having a special exhibition called "Superheroes Fashion and Fantasy." Made possible by none other than Giorgio Armani.

The MET's description of the show is as follows:

"The symbolic and metaphorical associations between fashion and the superhero are explored in this compelling exhibition. Featuring movie costumes, avant-garde haute couture, and high-performance sportswear, it reveals how the superhero serves as the ultimate metaphor for fashion and its ability to empower and transform the human body. Objects are organized thematically around particular superheroes, whose movie costumes and superpowers are catalysts for the discussion of key concepts of superheroism and their expression in fashion."

Sounds like a great concept and I've yet to be disappointed by one of the Met's fashion exhibits (Gianni Versace, Channel, Costume Institutes's yearly show, etc...)

The exhibition runs from May 7, 2008 through September 1, 2008 in the Special Exhibition Galleries on the 1st floor of the Met. To read more about the show check out the Met's Website: http://www.metmuseum.org/special/superheroes/index.asp

update re: biggest drawing in the world

I felt it best to add a retraction regarding my largest drawing in the world entry. Apparently it was a fictional project. Would have been nice if they had been upfront about it, but none the less it has, yet to be realized.

There is a similar project called "the world is my canvas," which is lead by position artist Stavros. He calls it "the greatest work of art ever" and if nothing else the video on his site is quite entertaining. So check out: http://www.theworldismycanvas.com/ to get your super large work of art fix. In the meantime enjoy his footsteps across Rome below.

bar codes

So as most of my friends know I'm a bit obsessed with collections. More specifically the juxtaposition of like and unlike objects because the very essence of a collection completely eliminates the possibility of individuality. An object on its own does not demand the attention a collection of objects does, unless set upon a pedestal and displayed a single object on its own can go completely without notice.

I've been quietly examining this for the last 5 years with my polaroid project. I've taken hundreds of polaroids each representing something or someone that has made an impression on my life. They each have their own story. I have selected to group them into a giant collage which gives them another level of meaning. They themselves begin to form a composition. Each retains its individual story, yet one must look more carefully to uncover it.

I suppose the question I am trying to answer is what is more important. The individual story or the groups story? OR are they equally important? OR maybe it doesn't matter.

But I digress. I was recently shown the artwork of American artist Scott Blake (thanks MKL). He specializes in portraits, but uses bar codes to create pixelated collages. His subjects include the typical candidates such as Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, and Madonna, but also include Schwarzenegger, Bill Gates, and Ozzy Osbourne.

Now he doesn't just use any old bar code. He collects bar codes that are from materials relating to the celebrity subject. He's even experimenting with interactive pieces such as the Bruce Lee portrait where each bar code plays a scene from one of his movies.

To read more about Scott check out the following article from the Daily Mail UK: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1021947/Pictured-The-amazing-portraits-Elvis-Madonna-entirely-bar-codes.html

Below is Scott's portrait of the Queen of Day time Talk Oprah in bar codes. (at the top are Elvis and Madonna)

flood insurance

Last week NPR's Maryland Morning had a story interviewing Ralph Tyler the Maryland Insurance Commissioner. He was discussing the resent decision by Allstate to no longer offer flood insurance on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

vs

As an advocate of NOT building within the 100 year flood plain to begin I think this is progress. Amazing that the insurance companies may be the ones to put a stop to over building in our coastal regions giving wetlands a chance to re-establish themselves. Who would have thought! I guess in the end it all comes down to money.

Of course the battle isn't over as there is a federal flood insurance program. Leave it to the Feds.

You can listen to the entire interview at the following site, under Wednesday, May 15, 2008. Flood Insurance: Is it Worth Sinking the Money?: http://www.wypr.org/MD_MORNING.html

biggest drawing in the world

Artist Erik Nordenankar has created the Biggest Drawing in the World. The description of the project from his website is as follows:

"With the help of a GPS device and DHL I have drawn a self portrait on our planet. My pen was a briefcase containing the GPS device being sent around the world. The paths the briefcase took around the globe became the strokes of the drawing."

The project began on March 17th 2008 and the briefcase took 55 days to complete its journey. It passed through 6 continents and 62 countries on it's 110,664 km trip following detailed directions.

Simple idea with a big outcome. It also reminds us that there is art happening out there without us even knowing it. Perhaps someone is creating the galaxy's largest drawing and we are merely a brush stroke...Cause it's a big universe!

check out the official website for the project: http://biggestdrawingintheworld.com/

poptart

I'm not someone who watches/ enjoys American Idol, however when I heard that their summer national tour was sponsored by POPTARTS I couldn't resist posting it. Classic.

zippers

While researching CurtainWall Systems made by YKK AP for my current project I accidentally went to their main website and was pleasantly surprised to find that YKK not only makes CurtainWall, but are also the zipper monopoly of the world. I'm sure you've looked down at your coat zipper or the zipper on your jeans and noticed the emblazoned YKK letters.

Wanting to know more I checked out the Wikipedia entry for the YKK Group and this is what I found out:

The initials YKK stands for Yoshida Kōgyō Kabushiki-kaisha (吉田工業株式会社) and the original company was established in 1934.

It's made up of a group of Japanese manufacturing companies. They are best known for zippers (they are the world's largest producers) but they also make fasteners, architectural products, and machinery.

Zippers!