culturalboundaries

Social Media Is Changing the Way We Decorate

Michele Washington — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:29:21 +0000

Lots of amazing presentations jumping off throughout Social Media Week, however I started my Valentine day off with Digital Voyeurism panel held at the Hearst Magazines Urban Theater. Much like the early onset of food bloggers revolutionized blogging—now design/lifestyle bloggers are making huge strides blogging about what’s chic and using social media— all has changed the way people decorate there spaces. Speaking on the what’s chic Bryan Batt, Jeanine Hays, and Christiane Lemieux, each shared stories of about their blogs, shops and products. Now design bloggers are taking the lead with decorating magazines following suit and featuring eclectic colorful home decor photography from a more humanistic perspective rather then sterile sparse decor of the past.

Bryan Batt

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It’s Time For Good Ole Food Fight!

Michele Washington — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:55:47 +0000

Food Fight: If you’re riled up over food why not join the conversation surrounding food questions of sustainability, obesity, sovereignty, ethics, culture, science, innovation, diversity and the future. Design Indaba is gathering some designers, artists, chefs, thinkers and food experts and posing some provocative questions. You’ve got food in your face! Join the food fight and have your say too. For more information click Design Indaba Food Fight.

Above: Photo featuring Martin Hablesreiter one half of Austrian design duo Honey and Bunny, with Sonja Stummerer. Although they work in architecture, product and exhibition design, their primary focus and interest is in food design. Recently they published the book Food Design XL. Below: Clip from the Food Design film highlighting design themes of Honey and Bunny’s work.

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SPARE BEATS: Happenings Near You

Michele Washington — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:19:18 +0000

Right in step with Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, the Independent Fashion Bloggers Conference takes place in NYC from 08- 12 February at Milk Studio. Want to know what’s next in fast paced landscape of fashion blogging then join IFB, they’ll bring together some of the best and brightest personalities in the fashion industry to discuss the issues, challenges and exciting future of fashion blogging and social media.

GLIDE’12: Consumed is accepting CFP abstract submissions for virtual conference to be held 07 November 2012. Be part of this major partnership with the GLIDE team and Iridescent, the Icograda Journal of Design Research. Audrey Bennett, will serves as guest editor, she’s the founder of GLIDE, and Associate Professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. For more about GLIDE click: http://glide12.org/

In need of some cultural nourishment, then head over to SVA MFA Design Criticism Spring Lecture series, starting next week February 14, the Spring line-up jumps off with an intimate Q&A with The New York Times’ newly appointed architecture critic Michael Kimmelman. For more information on D-Crit’s lecture series click D-Crit.

Design Indaba: 29 FEBRUARY 2012 – 4 MARCH 2012 Interact/Design Indaba 2012. This year’s venue includes the Design Indaba Conference and Simulcast from 29 February to 2 March 2012, and Design Indaba Expo from 2 to 4 March 2012.

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A Glimpse into The African and African Caribbean Design Diaspora Festival

Michele Washington — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:32:52 +0000

This is an excerpt featured on the Studio Museum in Harlem blog, it’s my first in a series of design articles.

London is one of the hottest and most creative cities, bristling with a multicultural community. Yet its Black artists and designers have remained largely untapped. That is until now. Just this past September, London was booming with design festivals showcasing innovative furniture, objects and fabulous fashions. Among them was the latest installment of the African and African Caribbean Design Diaspora Festival, a hotbed of new ideas, inspiration and creativity. This year’s theme, “?Choices!,” attracted some 22,000 visitors (2,000 more than in 2010). The AACDD festival took place from September 9 to 25, coinciding with the London Design Festival and constituted AACDD’s second successful year. It was the latest project launched by the British European Design Group’s (BEDG) three-year initiative, which is playing an increasingly important role in diversifying London’s creative community.

The festival director, Karin Phillips, Design Director Clemens Hackl, and Nigerian-born designer and curator, Emamoke Ukeleghe, orchestrated this production. The artists represented included roughly 100 graphic designers, multimedia artists, illustrators, industrial and product designers, and visual artists of African and African-Caribbean descent working in the U.K., Africa, the Caribbean, Japan and the United States. Hackl explained, “These artists and designers made a huge impact on visitors with their innovative works.” And thanks to funding from the London Arts Council, this year the AACDD Festival reached more people through a well-designed festival guide, website and social media platforms.

AACDD’s festival took place in three main locations: BargeHouse in OXO Towers in SouthBack, Hospital Club, and the Re-Loved Lounge at 100% Design. With 1,333 square feet of raw warehouse space, the BargeHouse served as the perfect blank canvas setting for browsing art lovers. It featured four floors of curated work by fine artists, illustrators, graphic designers, fashion designers, multimedia artists, and photographers. On one floor, Below the Surface, a photographic project by young black teenagers from London’s African and African-Caribbean communities, was a whopping success. The teenagers documented the colorful facets of everyday life, and produced an eye grabbing collection shot with disposable cameras given away through AACDD’s tweets and Facebook postings. For more click here>>

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SPARE BEATS: Happenings Near You

Michele Washington — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:22:11 +0000

When it comes to Culinary Salon I simply can’t resist boasting about pop-up diner, TY-LÖR BORING DINNERS!
Ty-Lör Boring, a NYC based chef and Top Chef: Texas cheftestant is joining us at CITY GRIT to present a five course, farm-to-table meal reflecting his classical training in French and Asian cuisine. This style won Ty-Lör great praises at Spasso in Greenwich Village, where he worked as the opening Chef De Cuisine before becoming a hopeful ‘cheftestant’ on “Top Chef: Texas.” Click for more info.

THE FINN JUHL CHAMBER IN THE UN HEADQUARTER: Celebrates 100-year anniversary of Design design icon Finn Juhl starting 27 January rediscovery the UN Headquarters latest renovations. This major efforts is being overseen by Kasper Salto and Thomas Sigsgaard the winners of the Danish Arts Foundation’s competition to provide new furniture for the UN headquarters in New York. The Chamber was originally designed and furnished by the Danish architect Finn Juhl and is currently undergoing renovations which will be completed in 2013.

The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk: The first exhibition devoted to the designs of world-renowned French couturier Jean Paul Gaultier will make its U.S. debut at the Dallas Museum of Art in November 2011. This is an unprecedented look at the designer dubbed fashion’s “enfant terrible” from the time of his first runway shows in the 1970s and who has become one of the most important fashion designers of recent decades. Organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in collaboration with the Maison Jean Paul Gaultier, the exhibition premiered in Montreal on June 15, 2011, and will be on view at the Dallas Museum of Art from November 13, 2011, through February 12, 2012, before traveling to its final stop in the U.S. at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, de Young, in March 2012. The exhibition will be on view at the Fundación Mapfre – Instituto de Cultura in Madrid, Spain, from September 26 through November 18, 2012, and to Kunsthal Rotterdam, the Netherlands, from February 9, 2013 through May 12, 2013, and then travel to Arkitekturmuseet, Stockholm in June 2013.

Check out Jean Paul Gaultier, Fashion’s wild child on CBS Morning News

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2012 Participatory Conference Keynotes Talk About Indigenous Design

Michele Washington — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 21:33:06 +0000

Live stream videos at Ustream

Sadly, I couldn’t fly off to Australia to attend this year’s Participatory Innovation Conference 2012′s (PIN-C2012), but I’ve been following the pre-speakers events online through Ustream. This is a stellar Keynote presentation all about play, indigenous design, and participatory process. And so far I’ve been very pleased with all that I have heard to date. In the video above Professor Sudarshan Khanna, former Principal Designer-Faculty, and Chairman of Education & Research at the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad, India. www.sudarshankhanna.com

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Roger Tucker’s Newest Venture Celebrates Visual Artist

Michele Washington — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 21:45:43 +0000

Roger Tucker, educator and former graphic designer is setting his sights high, he’s on a serious mission to make visual artists work more accessible for everyday living. Recently Roger, launched his consultancy Tucker Contemporary Art specializing in the works by painters, ceramicist, photographers, sculptures and mixed media artist are just some of the artist he currently represents. Listen to art critic Patrick Henry Bass interview with artist Margaret Vendryes as she talk about her latest series of 31 Divas.

Below is cross section of works by other artists previously on display at Tucker’s private salon held last December.

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SPARE BEATS: Happenings Near You

Michele Washington — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 20:02:09 +0000

My several pairs of Havaianas, from my travels to Brazil are like gold. And much like everyone else walking around in colorful Havaianas flip flops, I love mine to death. This year’s opening at Art Basel Miami 01 December, will be jamming with artistically styled Brazilian flip-flops brand recently commissioned street artist Finok to create some eye popping murals. Check out some funky graffiti art from the streets in Sao Paulo to Collins Avenue in South Beach at the swanky Shelbourne Hotel. And while your perusing buy a pair limited edition graffiti collection designed by the Brazilian artist Finok, Chivitz and Minhau for $28.00, it’s probably one of the few affordable art pieces at Art Basel.

New African Fashion Book talk @ NYPL: On Wednesday 30 November, Helen Jennings hosts a talk at the New York Public Library as part of its Design & Style book series. She’ll be joined by designers Mataano and Mimi Plange, model campaigner Bethann Hardison and Enyinne Owunwanne of Heritage1960, who will MC the round table discussion. It’s a public event, first come, first served.

The following evening the real fun begins for those lucky souls who snagged a spot at the invite-only NYC launch party for New African Fashion at private members club Parlour. There will be a guest performance by Philly artist Zakee and sounds courtesy of DJ mOma and DJake. Enyinne will preview some of the designers and market finds shortly to be for sale on her beautifully curated site Heritage1960. And there will, of course, be free booze. It promises to be quite a shindig.
Occupy WallStreet Group: Arts and Culture segment of the OCW group looking to open art studio space, until such time they find permanent space chekout OCW’s art installation on Printer Matters Window.

SUPERSCRIPT’s SECOND ART AND ARCHITECTURE BOOK READING: On December 7, join Superscript and MoMA’s senior curator of architecture and design Paola Antonelli as we delve into the world of Philip K. Dick’s classic text, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Most famously the basis for the 1982 film Blade Runner (and the vast majority of science fiction imagery from the last thirty years), this 1968 novel popularized the idea of the cyborg and has had a lasting effect on dreams and fears concerning technology in the public sphere. Guest: Paola Antonelli; Text: Philip K Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Venue: 15 Union Square West; Date: Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Time: 7pm Introduction; 7:15-8:15pm Discussion, Q&A

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Why Justo Botanica Is Good for the Soul

Michele Washington — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 02:21:22 +0000

Knowing my affinity for spiritual iconography a few weeks ago longtime design buddy, Gail Anderson introduced me to Jorge Vargas, owner of the popular Justo Botancia a longtime fixture in East Harlem neighborhood. For over a year Gail has researched, interviewed and documented owner Vargas’ on the symbolic meaning of the package designs he’s created over the years for numerous religious Santeria products such as candles, oils, scents, and more sold in his shop.

A short excerpt from Justo Botánica Is Good for the Soul by Gail Anderson

The only connection most people have to Santería is Ricky Ricardo pounding on the conga drum in old I Love Lucy reruns. “Babalú, Babalú Ayé,” chants Cuban icon Desi Arnaz, bow tie loosened. Four decades after my first Lucy episode, I have learned that Babalu Aye is the name of the West African orisha, or intermediary between God and man, that translates to “Father, lord of the earth.” Ayé is renowned for the control he exercises over disease and healing, and he is among the most powerful deities in the African and Caribbean spiritual traditions. Babalú is not just a nostalgic TVLand reference. He is an essential figure in Santería. Read more: Justo Botánica Is Good for the Soul — Imprint-The Online Community for Graphic Designers,

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Romare Bearden Stamps

Michele Washington — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 01:44:39 +0000

This is a significant moment in time for the United States Postal Commission to select the works of Romare Bearden, one of the 20^th century’s most distinguished American Artist. Not many visual artist works are selected for stamps, this auspice moment is unique being it is not just one stamp, but four paintings of Bearden’s work reproduced on stamps. The works selected are Prevalence of Ritual: Conjur Woman, (1964), Conjunction (1971), Odysseus: Poseidon, The Sea Gold—Enemy of Odysseus (1977), Falling Star (1979). This series portrays Bearden’s affinity for capturing the lifestyle of black Americans or syncopated beats of jazz musicians and literature, infused with mixed media collages.

The United States Postal Service issued the stamps on September 28, 20011, which coincide with the 100^th anniversary of Bearden’s birth September 2, 1911. For more information about Romare Bearden Foundation and the centennial events: http://www.beardenfoundation.org

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