Art in the Lower East Side, the eh, yeh and jeaaaaahhh

Eh.
Sam and I met up with Tran yesterday after dimsum and made it into the New Museum without having to wait on line; thanks to tickets provided by Tran and the nice ladies manning the entrance who allowed us to slide in. That was fortunate because I would have been pretty peeved if I waited on line for the pieces making up the Unmonumental Exhibition. Not only were the pieces unmonumental, they were unrefined, uninspired, and most importantly underwhelming.

Designed by Japanese firm Sanaa, the New Museum offers up a run of the mill interior gallery space highlighted by a slightly unnerving set of stairs in the back, great for days without many people milling about, awful for a crowded opening day. The museum serves its purpose by taking a back seat to the pieces they exhibit, but for the Unmonumental exhibition, I wish the architects had done more to stimulate me when perusing the interior. The perforated aluminum clad exterior is striking, especially when set against a bluebird sky. Wonder when some idiot will try to scale it. I want to toss magnets at it. The rooftop terrace offers great views of lower Manhattan with a limited viewing of the north, befitting of the museum's mantra to focus on the edgy creativity, new ideas, rather than the established scene up north and in SoHo and Chelsea.

Anyway there were a few passable pieces, if you visit, take a look at Urs Fisher's pieces, one which reminded me of Zelda/Link. Another one to watch out for is Marc André Robinson's Myth Monolith, which reminded me of some of Cai Guo-Qiang's pieces except the tigers were swapped with chairs.

Yeh!
Disappointed, I left to pick up a replacement wall control unit for my Minka Aire Artemis while Sam, Tran and some of her friends spent additional time viewing the video installation. When I got back, we went around the block towards Sam's car, on the way, Sam glanced into one of the buildings and pulled us all in. Turned out to be Chelsea-based Lehmann Laupin's satellite gallery. Currently exhibiting? None other than Do Ho Suh (I'm always tempted to call him SoHo Duh). First saw his work back in 2005 (the piece is actually from 2001) when he constructed an entire apartment interior out of nylon and stainless steel tube. Also thought his army men side table was brilliant. Might have to borrow that idea.

Anyway, the piece on display was called Reflection (image to the right is the same piece but in a prior exhibition, different gallery) and it was the first time I ever saw his work up close. It's even more amazing because the execution is flawless. Maybe it was the contrast from the stuff found at the new Museum that added weight to Do Ho Suh's piece. Compared to his apartment piece, it looks like he's tightened up his style, the fabric isn't so droopy anymore. The title Reflection not only describes the piece literally (two arched gates made of nylon and stainless steel tube reflecting each other on a sea of matching fabric), but also conceptually. The gate it is modeled after is the same gate located at his childhood home in South Korea.

While at the gallery, we spoke to fellow viewers and met a person starting up Monster Hoodies. Tran was enamored with the hoodie so I thought I'd give it a shout out. Looks very crafty, even more so than the scroll-bar scarf I'm rocking. Another viewer also showed us a clipping from the NY Times which highlighted a walking tour of a few galleries in the LES. Didn't have the time to really check out the other places, but I better do it soon before the exhibits change.

Amazing. I was born and raised in the area (Broome and Allen) before moving into Brooklyn and then Jersey. Things were different back then. The area looks the same, but beneath the covers everything has changed. Go visit!

Upcoming!
Banksy is coming back to NYC! Actually, he's here now, until the end of the month. Vanina Holasek Gallery in Chelsea.

"Sit on my lap. It's ergonomic."

Stole that line from Core77's Hack2School. I just read some of their posts and it brought back a lot of great memories. Wish it was around when I was starting out in school. I left so many projects undocumented or just didn't know how to document them correctly. You spend a bajillion hours on a project, yet you can't take that one day to correctly set up the shots to record your portfolio pieces. In the back of my mind, I thought every successive project would get better and better so I wouldn't need my current project. I was so wrong, my two most memorable and exciting projects were museums in the second semester of first year and first semester of second year. I was in the zone...

In my second semester in the 'Money' Studio, I was reading an issue of Metropolis that someone left in studio and came across an article on the just released Humanscale Freedom chair. That issue and subsequent issues were also littered with tons of Humanscale, Steelcase (man I love the Think chair), and of course, Herman Miller ads. I ripped out a Humanscale advertisement showing off the side profile of a Freedom chair with the headrest and pinned it to the wall behind my desk. That very day I made a promise to myself that I'd purchase that chair when feasible. At $800 - $1300, it's not a purchase to be taken likely.

Designed by Niels Diffrient, the Freedom chair and Steelcase's Leap chair were both introduced at around the same time in an attempt to piggyback and steal some of the Aeron chair's success. Additional information on Niels can be found here and here.

A month back (maybe longer) I finally got my hands on one. Though it wasn't a fully decked out chair with the headrest, I couldn't pass up the deal. Scouring Craigslist I finally snagged an almost new (legs and casters were still wrapped up) Humanscale Freedom chair for $220! Insane deal. I didn't need an office chair since I still had the $50 Staples chair, but really...

We also needed some office chairs at work so after missing out on some Think Chairs on eBay (I was instructed to keep the price as low as possible, but at the same time I didn't want to come back with offerings from Staples or OfficeMax), I went back to Craigslist and came upon a posting by Designer Seating. Went to their Brooklyn warehouse and picked up two Freedom Chairs for $375 each. They were in a little worse shape than my almost new Freedom at home but still a terrific deal at $375. The warehouse was interesting. I saw Aeron pieces stacked to the gills, tons of Leaps, a few Freedoms and hordes of other modern pieces (some real and many others imitations, I'm assuming all the Barcelonas were fakes). There was also one Knoll Life chair, but it had a blue backing, I was told to purchase all black chairs.

Anyway so that's my office chair story. If anyone is looking for an office chair I'm here to help! I didn't exactly get the chair of my dreams but my current situation will do. Next up? Eames Lounge Chair... I just need to find a really beat up one, I intend on replacing the leather anyway.

So I have my chair, need to find a suitable desk, any recommendations? It would be great if I was working in these types of environments, looks like fun huh? While we are on the subject of offices, check out this USB Putt Returner. I wonder if Corwin is going to get it for another SASI Putt Putt Challenge. Sure beats the USB Humping Dog.

Look around you: If God didn't create it, AutoCAD did.

Happy 25th birthday AutoCAD! That quote above belongs to Autodesk's former CEO Carol Bartz, and their anniversary actually occurred on Thursday so I'm a bit tardy with this post. Read more about it at Wired or at AutoDesk. My first experience with AutoCAD? The summer of 1998 when I interned for a small firm in NYC. The most exciting thing I worked on that summer (aside from stairs) were the placement of a few windows to frame views of the Manhattan Bridge. Fun...

At Carnegie Mellon, software wasn't really taught, it was expected that you spent the time to learn on your own. We did have Form-Z taught to us during our first year. Buggiest piece of crap I ever used. It was easier to pick up than 3DSMax or Maya, but I felt as if our entire class and those before and after us were just used to beta test the software. I hear the faculty dumped it and moved onto proper tools like Max. AutoCAD was offered as an elective.

Unlike other majors, rankings for Architecture schools are relatively hard to find. Here's a recent one from Architect Online. Interesting enough this is the first time I've ever visited the site so I wonder if it has a substantial audience. Sounds credible based on the types of people they polled, did not realize half the programs listed actually offer NAAB accredited programs. Virginia Polytechnic? I find it amazing that it beat out Princeton, Yale, UVA and Syracuse in the Graduate programs category.

Additional coverage on Carnegie Mellon's design programs can be found at BusinessWeek. A student / project from CM won a bronze IDEA award. I think architecture school would have been more interesting if we structured our studios around international competitions. I think we were allowed to enter one or two but they all seemed like they were completed outside of studio time. I remember seeing a lot of posters for competitions in Maggie Mo for the CD and ID majors.

John Maeda is wack (when it comes to architecture). In his blog, he defended Gehry! I'm not upset that he is defending Gehry, but he has the gall to compare a painting and a logo to a building. In essence we are supposed to look at a building, where one spends most of our waking hours, the same way we look at a painting or a logo Incredible.

Public Service Announcement (Public Transport Planning): Need to get from point A to B via public transportation? You now have three options. The trusted HopStop, the government's attempt, Trip Planner, and the newbie with a marketing budget (saw a commercial for this during a college game), Public Routes.

Fuck Frank Gehry

That's right, fuck Frank Gehry. Latest Gehry building to blow up in his face, MIT's Stata Center. Won't clients ever learn? Problems were prevalent on the Bilbao and Disney projects. I wonder what will turn up with Diller's IAC complex in Chelsea.

More of my Gehry bashing can be found here, here, here, here and... well I didn't really bash him in this post. Fuck Frank Gehry.

Update: Zan sent me this NY Times article covering the lawsuit. I don't know whether or not the authors have a relationship with Gehry or if they are just fans, but the tone seems so defensive compared to the original Boston Globe article.

“These things are complicated,” he said, “and they involved a lot of people, and you never quite know where they went wrong. A building goes together with seven billion pieces of connective tissue. The chances of it getting done ever without something colliding or some misstep are small.”

“I think the issues are fairly minor,” he added. “M.I.T. is after our insurance.”

Hmmm Gehry... if you can't execute, then don't make a half-assed attempt. I can dream up a floating building but if the technology or construction methods aren't proven then I'd design something to work around that. Besides it's not a construction issue, what the articles point out seems like design issues.

Across the board (well not totally), less is more

A piece by Cai Guo-Qiang, my favorite Chinese artist. Read the last paragraph of this entry for additional information.

Back in middle school I relished the rainy days where I sat by the window and devoured a book before night fall. There was comfort in knowing that everyone else was doing something similar, playing console games or just on the computer and that you weren't missing much.

Nowadays I can't sit still for more than five minutes before wondering what others are up to, if there was a new reply in a forum discussion I was engaged in or if there was a new post on one of the many blogs I peruse.

Design Commentary: So with that in mind, I'm glad something like A Brief Message is around. I find that I actually slow down and pay more attention whenever I read this site because I know that it will not only be short, but that the author has taken care in fleshing out the topic so every single one of the 200 words contributes to the topic at hand. A Brief Message, start your day with it. Accompanying sketch included! If you are in the mood for lengthier and sometimes more dense reading, check out Design Observer.

Haiku: Does your ADD / ADHD prevent you from sitting through 200 words? How about 17 syllables then? Most of you know I enjoy haikus, even whipped up three verses for Mike's wedding this past weekend (though I didn't save them). They are simple to create and make you sound like a genius (sometimes). My all time favorites are the first few concocted when I hit a stumbling block making websites cross-browser compatible. Like A Brief Message, the haikus at Haiku for You each come with a visual partner.

Presentations: Think Steve Jobs' presentations are great? There may be better PowerPoint or Keynote presentations out there. Pecha Kucha is the art of delivering your message within the confines of 20 slides at 20 seconds each. First read about it in Wired two issues ago. Looking back at my time at Carnegie Mellon I approached it all wrong when it came time for the final studio. Sure the idea is important, but how you communicate it may matter more. I was so focused on building the perfect model or drafting the perfect drawing but I didn't think about what those pieces were communicating. I'm not saying a PowerPoint presentation would have helped, but it would have me think about the presentation more, rather than it being an after thought.

Illustration: I've always argued that comic strips can sometimes (or a lot of times) take more insight to produce than a detailed painting. In what other media can you communicate so much with so few lines / panels? The drawings in this Jcb music video may seem rudimentary, but it's really produced well and worth a view. Same goes for this Human Flip Book. And since I brought flip books up, reminds me of the Conan String Dance one, since it appears to be down, you can entertain yourself with this other Conan clip (Conan as a comic book vs. Hulk).

This may be the only time where more is more. I had this Roy Doty Holiday piece pinned up on my cubicle wall for a while. Turns out it was his birthday in September, so a happy belated birthday goes out to one of the most patient illustrators out there. I would go insane drawing a crowd.

Another illustrator worth a mention and someone you probably never heard of before, Vania Zouravliov. With pencils like his who needs color? I especially like this Autumn Rot piece. Discovered him via another illustrator Audrey Kawasaki who also produces some amazing work.

Don't remember how I came across Gaping Void. Hugh MacLeod has successfully done what I've been meaning to do (oh you've heard that before haven't you). His claim to fame are the illustrations he whips up on the back of his business cards. I guess I could do that with my old business cards... just cross out the outdated information and slap on my current info. Or I could order a bunch of new business cards but then I'd have to pay for them and I would be killing trees. Reduce, reuse, recycle right? They would have to be personal cards to since I absolute HATE the business card designs of my current employer. Two posts to read up on, How to be Creative, and his personal favorites.

Went to my old boss' house on a Sunday before my trip down south to borrow his backpack and saw a painting by Fabio Napoleoni sitting on the ground. Loved it, so I went home and found more pieces being sold on eBay by him. I'm glad I didn't jump the gun, though I like his work, I don't think I can leave one of his pieces hanging for long...

T-Shirts: My black adidas hoodie isn't exactly a t-shirt but earlier in the year I was carrying some groceries from the car to the condo. Naturally I tried to do everything in one shot which resulted in me dropping a bottle of liquid bleach. The cap busted but I wasn't paying attention so I just placed it under my armpit. By the time I got upstairs parts of my hoodie turned orange. It looked great and people think it's part of the design. I actually thought about grabbing a brush and applying some more bleach spots to make it more interesting. Leave it to Stencil Revolution to show you how it's really done when it comes to bleach on fabric! Never thought about using a sharpie to color in the black back in!

Tomo hooked me up with the following links to two Transformers t-shirts. Not too fond of Prime, but Soundwave I'm digging (why isn't there an insignia on the sleeve?)! I have too many t-shirts though... must resist!

Architecture: While searching for this Calatrava film in the torrentverse I came across a 23 (or 24) episode series on architecture titled Baukunst. If anyone is interested all the torrents are listed here along with a discussion (registration required). If you don't want to register, here's the first episode torrent off of a public tracker and just for kicks, the 9th episode covering Calatrava. You can find the rest of the episodes by conducting a search or registering at the MVGroup forum.

Periodicals: There are a few magazines produced to match my attention span and interests that I subscribe to. Wired, Fast Company, Business 2.0 and some sports magazines. Terry also got me a subscription to Metropolis which I love, I usually avoid subscribing to design magazines because 1) expensive as hell, 2) I'm tempted to rip them apart to build idea boards. Unfortunately Business 2.0 is being shuttered and though many of the writers are jumping over to Fortune I'm not sure how much content will come through unfiltered by the editors there. Good going Time Inc. RIP. As a consolation they are issuing subscriptions to Money magazine. What?

China: This is a great article on China's Creative Class from an old issue of Fast Company. Though it mentions a sour topic, the environmental disaster that is the Three Gorges Dam, there's plenty to look forward to coming from the Mother Land. Makes me almost want to live there (if my social circle included everyone mentioned in the article). If you made it all the way down here, I know you are tired, but the article is worth a read, file it away to read later if you must! Cai Guo-Qiang is mentioned, didn't know he was on Beijing's Olympic Committee! Some more information on his work and process can be found here.

Ignore this, just claiming this blog under my Technorati profile.

Catching up on some architecture links...

This past birthday Terry got me a subscription to Metropolis Magazine. Excellent choice, but the first issue was akin to a slap in the face. On the cover was Gehry's InterActiveCorp (IAC) Headquarters, a building I passed by frequently on my bike rides up and down the West Side. I observed that building going up and surprisingly, this might be the second Gehry Building I don't hate (aside from Spain's Bilbao). It's more structured than his previous projects, but most of all I'm digging the Studios interior. Think I might apply to IAC just because of the building.

From my count, David Adjaye's house for Lorna Simpson and James Casebere is the third unique Fort Greene housing project I've come across. The first two are mentioned in this previous post. Not much to go by except for these two articles (1, 2). Has a gallery / museum quality to it and I think I'm drawn to it because of the staircase and the rear facade, though I'm sure I would like the front facade if there was a larger photo of it. From the photos it's very sterile not sure how someone keeps their home so clean, I know that place would look filthy in a week if I lived there, have a hard enough time keeping a one floor condo looking clean. Looks sort of out of place in the site photograph, but again that's a rear view... would it be too much if I went there asking to take a look around?

I've always been fond of water towers. In fact, if I ever produce a comic, the hero would make the water towers around the city his / her base of operations. Can you imagine having access to all your gear throughout Manhattan? Bet Batman would be quite jealous. Anyway, a few individuals (1, 2) have taken that idea into reality though they aren't the same type of water towers we see atop buildings in NYC, they still build on the same idea and look mighty cozy.

A bunch of people (most likely architects) respond to Bruce Mau's manifesto. Haven't had a chance to read through all the replies, just sharing in advance.