VISUAL ACOUSTICS: JULIUS SHULMAN

I watched this beautiful documentary yesterday about world-renown architectural photographer Julius Shulman. My lecture class on art from Los Angeles since 1940 has frequently discussed the extensive influence Shulman had on modern architecture from the 1950s onwards. Needless to say this insightful and intelligent documentary accurately captures the spirit and thoughtfulness behind every photograph taken by this great artist.

You can now watch the documentary on Instant Netflix and learn more about the film here.

(p.s. I have also wishlisted this gorgeous book on Shulman recently published by Taschen. 415 full color pages and only $19.79!)

GET BACK TO THE GIFT SHOP

Remember when I raved about how much I loved 'Exit Through The Gift Shop' (here)? Well now you can watch a behind-the-scenes interview with the movie's producer (Jamie D'Cruz) and film editor (Chris King) who answer questions about all kinds of topics, but most importantly share anecdotes about the film and how Banksy went about making it.

Very cool.

(Thanks to, not surprisingly, Wooster Collective)

FROM A TO (JAY-)Z, THE HISTORY OF RAP

I think, given my busy schedule, that I will dub this week my 'video bonanza' and post all the fun videos I have been wanting to post. Cool? Cool.

As a big hip hop fan (and Justin fan, swoon), this video of Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake performing their 'history of rap' in 3 minutes is awesome! I am particularly impressed at how much Jimmy Fallon managed to sound like Mike D from the Beastie Boys. It also doesn't hurt that they are backed up by the Roots. Just awesome.

Hope you like it!

TINY FOOTBALL LEAGUE

In the past couple years my boyfriend has turned me into a football fan. And while I know sports are only rarely a subject of discussion on this blog (see here), I absolutely had to show you this new feature being played during every Sunday Night Football game: the Tiny Football League (TFL). Basically a hilarious announcer follows some of the best peewee teams in the country, doing stories on them which mimic the background they do for for the pros in the NFL. It's just silly, serious and adorable enough to make me smile every time.

Check out more TFL episodes here (scroll to the bottom).

(p.s. The trophy in the second video is my favorite. So funny!)

(p.p.s. We are entering a very busy week for me at grad school; I will try to post everyday but forgive me if I skip one or two . . . )

THE WRITING ON THE WATER

Not only is this video stunningly creative and beautifully shot, but it is also informative! Did you guess the final answer? I certainly didn't . . . and I am going to make you watch it to find out what I am talking about!

(created by the French group BDDP & Fils, found via Black*Eiffel)

Have a great weekend!

JR WINS THE TED

Sorry about the lack of posts yesterday . . . I will do double duty today (make sure to check in this afternoon for a second post!).

I first posted about the incredible public artist JR last year. He takes photos of local people in different countries all over the world, blows them up to colossal size, and posts them back in the communities as an ersatz street honorific. His current series is about the strength of women (I topic I believe in!) and the video above is the preview to this new work.

Even better? He just won the 2011 TED Prize and they have a fabulous interview (showing an overview of his work) with the artist here.

(Thanks to swiss-miss for the heads up!)

(GIANT) BALLOON ANIMALS

I love when artists come up with an idea for a piece that instantly makes you smile (and wish you had thought of it). This new project–making super huge balloon animals–completed by the Dutch artist collective 'La Bolleur' did just that. Recently featured on Wooster Collective, these huge beauties will be featured at Dutch Design Week. Their artist statement:

This time we blew it.

This summer the city of Eindhoven asked La Bolleur to make something happen in the city centre. It was a nice opportunity to realize an idea that had been going through our heads for a while already. We upscaled balloon animals to monstrous proportions that were hardly manageable. Making it happen turned out to be as much fun as the end result.

See more of their cool projects at their website here (I particularly love their "About" page here!).

NPR'S THE PICTURE SHOW

Anyone who visited the blog before 4pm yesterday would have seen a post about this amazing photographer, as recently featured on NPR's art blog 'The Picture Show'. Unfortunately, the artist felt I was misusing his images and asked me to take them down immediately. I complied, disappointed. After all, I was (and still am) giving his work high praise. The photos—of the split second when water balloons burst—are both technically masterful and visually stunning. But, being a good blogger, I can't show them to you.

So I am sending you to NPR's blog—which is fabulous itself and will be in my bookmarks bar immediately—to see the photos for yourself. Do yourself a favor and check out some of the blog's other great posts: here, here, and here.

SAVINGS AND LOANS: KATE SPADE AND iPHONE

Have you heard the rumors about Verizon getting the iPhone 4 next year? I have been waiting for the iPhone to go to Verizon forever, and am sort of giddy over the idea that I could finally have a super cool smart phone and good service. Imagine that!

Well, this news has sent me on the hunt again for a cute but practical iPhone case. Not surprisingly, Kate Spade hit it out of the park with this black and white polka dot number (I mean, I do love polka dots). You can pick it up here for $40.

And, while I was there, I hunted around for some other "dotty" accessories and found these two adorable, drool-worthy options. They totally make me want to pack up and go. . . as they say on the website, these two are "spot on"!

top: Gifting Dot Small Henrietta Makeup Case, $60

bottom: Give It A Whirl Large Colin Makeup Case (with interior pouch), $125

PIN IT

I have been coming across a lot of amazing brooches and pins recently. So amazing, in fact, that I am thinking of 'getting pinned' and popping one of these pretty numbers on a blazer or blouse every once in while. Here are two of my current favorites:

Magpie & Rye's 'Wing Pin' ($90)

spoonfullofmint's 'Brooch, Diamond, Gold' (alas, sold!)

Hope you like them!

WEEKEND UPDATE: LIGHT THE LIGHTS!

I promised I would share some of the photos I took at the Park Avenue Armory Carnival this weekend and these are some of my favorites. I realized, upon entering, that I was probably the only adult (besides the two friends I dragged with me) in attendance without a small child in tow. Nonetheless, the Drill Hall at the Armory looks pretty darn cool with all the rides and lights; it was great place to photograph!

You can check out some more images (by other photographers) here.

SMELL LIKE A MONSTER

Remember when I posted some of Sesame Street's remakes of popular tv shows? Well, this weekend a friend showed me this amazing video: a remake of the hilarious (and, now, viral) Old Spice commercials. Yet again I am impressed with the creativity and humor of Sesame Street writers.

Watch this Sesame Street video (and others) here, watch the Old Spice commercials here.

p.s. I went to the Park Avenue Armory Carnival yesterday and took a bunch of pictures. I will share them tomorrow!

WEEKEND FUN

I am have been eagerly awaiting this weekend so I can attend the Park Avenue Armory's latest amazing event: a carnival! After seeing the Ernesto Neto show in 2009, I have become an avid follower of all the events at the Armory. This indoor carnival—complete with a 50 foot ferris wheel (and other rides), games, and workshops—simply looks too unique and fun to miss. Learn more about it here.

I am also going to try to see some museum exhibitions that have come out recently which I worked on as an intern: here, here, and here. And I wouldn't mind finally getting to see this.

Do you have fun weekend plans? Hope so! It is supposed to be beautiful in New York . . .

DRESS THE PART: EVERYGUYED GOES TO THE MOVIES

I just discovered the super cool blog 'Swiss Legacy' and have been drooling over all of their posts since. Their most recent post pointed me to these awesome redesigned movie posters featured on Everyguyed. Each poster focuses on the key men's style pieces from each cult movie: the yellow and blue top hats of Dumb and Dumber, the '70s mustache of Ron Burgundy, the turned in shoes of Usual Suspects, or the black frame glasses of Superman (well, really, Clark Kent!). The idea is so clever and graphically powerful. Kudos to the design team Moxy Creative!

Check out the Swiss Legacy blog here, the Everyguyed site here and Moxy Creative's portfolio here (under construction).

AT LAST . . .

After college I lived in Boston for a year, working at an art gallery/art education center. I kept up with the arts scene in Boston by following the amazing website 'Big Red and Shiny', which posted all of the city's best exhibitions and events. It was fabulous to have everything listed in one reputable, easily accessible place. Unfortunately, Big Red and Shiny shut its electronic doors in August of this year. Thankfully you can still read through their archives here.

Imagine my excitement when I came across the website 'Creative Everyone' on swissmiss yesterday. As their site describes, "We started Creative Everyone to be a single, go-to guide to all the most interesting creative-oriented events guide curated and edited by interested members from the creative community (our editors)." Right now it is in beta-stage testing and features U.K. cities (Manchester, London, Glasgow) and U.S. cities (Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York). With our help and input perhaps we can encourage them to introduce it to new cities (Boston or Chicago, anyone?)!

It turns out that you can get involved in many ways: post your own creative events, become an editor for your city/interests, add events to your diary, saves searches to be notified about relevant events and follow the events your friends and colleagues are interested in.

The site looks all-around incredible and I will be bookmarking it immediately! Check out the goodness here.

DESKTOP DESIGN: WEST ELM

I realize that I have done a lot of posts about school supplies recently (here and here), but I got an email in my inbox from West Elm this morning that made me drool. I am really impressed with new "accessories" collection, particularly all the fun things they have on offer in the "stationery + office supplies" section. Even the styling is great! I mean, really, how fabulous is that bulletin board shot?! I am wishlisting everything . . .

Check it out here.

I am also impressed and inspired by the West Elm website design in general. The banners for each page—my favorites are shown above—strike a nice balance between photography and graphics, pattern and color. As a result West Elm comes off as a company interested in clean, exciting, modern design. Looking at that "Who We Are" page, I am sure that's what they were going for!

Check out more design (and product!) goodness at their website here.

JUDY KAUFMANN UPDATE

Thanks to greedy girl, I now know about the lovely new prints in Judy Kaufmann's Etsy shop. I have swooned over Kaufmann's illustrations before, and these beauties are definitely living up.

top to bottom:

Trip, $28

Circus, $28

The City Print, $28

The Meeting Print, $28

See all of Judy Kaufmann's lovely prints here.

MOTHER NATURE

So this weekend I came down with a killer cold. Which meant that I have spent the last 48 hours cooped up in my apartment in my pajamas, daydreaming about the wide world outside and trying (unsuccessfully) to concentrate on my homework. So, I thought this would be an appropriate time to share two Flickr images I found recently that have totally giving me the travel bug.

top image by Amy DiLorenzo here, bottom image of Colorado's Four Mile Canyon wildfires here.

RAIN, RAIN GO AWAY

It's raining cats and dogs in the city today. We are projected to get 1-2" of rain!

Anywho, I thought I would share some fun umbrellas to brighten up your day. Hope you like them!

top to bottom, left to right:

Child's Sky Umbrella, MoMA Store, $16

Stripe Umbrella, Kate Spade, $75

Color Spectrum Stick Umbrella, MoMA Store, $40

Color Changing Umbrella, MoMA Store, $40*

Samurai Umbrella, Charles and Marie, $36**

*The paint splatters change color when the umbrella gets wet!

**When folded up, this umbrella resembles a samurai sword!