RANDOM AWESOME: Valentine's Day Sucks...

but here are some things that don't...













this awesome new clock I peeped on NOTCOT.org. The face is removable so you can insert your favorite fabric swatch. Since SuckUK is (obviously) based in Britain, they chose a predictable Burberry fabric for the pic. You, however can choose something more in keeping with your decorating scheme. Flamingos perhaps?

Ramblin Worker is an amazing artist who wanted me to be his Flickr friend, I guess because I take close up pictures of cool art. His name is Steve, he doesn't have a bio on his site, but I love everything he makes. Ramblin is showing at MaxFish in May, by the way...

I've been legally allowed to vote for quite some time and I never have. I'm a baaad citizen. So I'm registering in NYC and in keeping with this theme, I love My.BarackObama.com. Now, I'm not saying I'm voting for him but he is a P-I-M-P for cashing in on the MySpace generation. On his campaign website you can create a profile, network with friends, start an Obama-themed blog, check out his Flickr site...does any of this sound familiar?






my new Jockey thermal long undies with a No Panty Line Promise. They are super-soft, thinner than knit stockings and WARM! Go get you some!

and my friends of course, parties and Sparks...they don't suck at all!

DESIGN: Virtual Shoe Museum

designer: Meret Oppenheim

The new website Virtual Shoe Museum features a large glossary of the newest shoe designs categorized by designer, color, focus (ankle, buckle, print, instep, etc.), use, style and materials. Don't expect to find strappy sandals and Manolos here though. These shoes are almost strictly experimental designers you probably haven't heard of. Notably, Vivienne Westwood and Vincent Van Gogh are featured. Irregular Choice is the only designer I found that is actually widely available in stores.

The website was initiated by Liza Snook in 2004. She has searched for designers and photographers to help launch the site and now it boasts some of the most beautiful, precious, strange and impossible shoe designs I have ever seen all in one place.

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designer: Roswitha Van Rijn

DESIGN: Fill in the Cat!

NEL is a collective of designers who collaborate in experimental projects that explore design through materials, techniques and applications. They first showed "Stitch Kit" in Milan, which can be seen on their website.

The project I found the most interesting (probably because I'm a cat person) was "Fill in the Cat", shown in Milan in 2006. The designers carve images of a cat, bird and stack of books from large white blocks. The resultant empty space is then filled with personal belongings, as shown at right.

The use of the objects then changes the space and its meaning generating "a continuously changing story: a cat that reads Italo Calvino, a book filled with coins, a living room where birds come to eat the cake's crumbles… "

PARTIES: Girl Talk at Studio B

Last night Pittsburgh-born act Girl Talk (a.k.a. Gregg) performed his hits at Greenpoint's newest venue Studio B. Girl Talk is super hyped up, and after the show I know why. Studio B was packed to capacity with the 18 and over crowd (making a party 18 and up is a sure way to sell out a venue, especially when none of the bartenders check wristbands). Everyone was excited, drunk, pushing---there was actually no need to dance, just stand still and "everyone can move together", as Gregg often screamed over the crowd.

About 50 people were also on the stage, sweating and stripping down to "I've Got the Power" and Billy Joel's "Rich Girl" played under Lil' Wayne, Jay-Z and LL Cool J hits---all within 2 minutes. Girl Talk is cut-tastic pop, all your favorites chopped and screwed up together making for some awesome party tracks. It's hard to explain how fast each song is mashed together, check out his MySpace for a clue.

Which made it all the worse that I had little to no dance space! As my girl Leah oft remarked last night, Girl Talk would be great at a house party, where the keg and the cheap liquor keep flowing and the crowd is guaranteed to be at least over 20 (not 16 with a fake ID)...All in all, it was worth it just to see the spectacle and the crowd surfing. Oh and the fact that was completely lax security in the backstage area and we hung out there for a couple hours dining on free ham, Brie and those little boxes of SunMaid raisins I haven't seen since I was a kid.

PARTIES: DJ Premier at the Rub!

Williamsburg and Bushwick are chock full of crazy warehouse parties and bars and various other places to get drunk, krunk and whatever suits your fancy. Waaay down here in Southern Brooklyn, we have The Rub. This monthly hip-hop/soul/funk part-ay is a mainstay in Southern Brooklyn, headlined by DJs Cosmo Baker, DJ Ayres and DJ Eleven. It's about the only place, besides someone's under-sized apartment, to really get down.

So...then I want to somehow make people understand DJ Premier 's awesomeness and I can't. But Wikipedia always has the answer.

"Christopher E. Martin, better known as DJ Premier is a prominent Hip Hop producer and DJ, and the instrumental half of the duo Gang Starr, together with MC Guru.
Most consider DJ Premier to be one of the greatest producers in the history of hip-hop. Many see him as the single best."

Oh wait, and he's worked with EVERYONE...including Nas, Jay-Z, Biggie Smalls, Common, Mos Def, Fat Joe, Brand Nubian, Big Daddy Kane, Heavy D, Limp Bizkit(?). I said everyone.

And The Rub plus DJ Premier, WTF!?! On February 3rd, at approximately 1AM, DJ Premier took the turntables at Southpaw and made them his bitch. He played everything I wanted to hear, and everything I didn't know I wanted to hear and we all danced and danced and danced. And now we all know that when The Rub says guest DJ, we should all stand up take notice. And if you weren't there, it so sucks to be you right now.

DESIGN: Ron Mueck and the Brooklyn Museum

Australian-born Ron Mueck's self-titled show at the Brooklyn Museum has seemingly been on everyone's mind (and in Time Out NY) for the past few weeks. I had to work through a major hangover to go on Sunday when I found out it was the last day it would be on view, and it was definitely worth it. Very rarely do I see a show I dislike, but I also rarely see a show that inspires me as much. Mueck's sculptures are all either much larger than life, or very small; what they all have in common is their exquisite details. Each statue looks as though it might shift, breathe, pounce at any moment. Every hair, eyelash, even the creases on elbows and knees are amazingly more than life-like; if it was not for their size, anyone would mistake one of Mueck's pieces for a real-life human being. Please note the size of the woman in the chair next to the work featured above, "In Bed". She is dwarfed by the head alone.

The artist honed his skill during his years working in puppetry and special effects in film and television. Generally using fiberglass and silicon, Mueck sculpts each piece alone, only employing assistance in the largest pieces. He always creates the eyes himself, which I find to be touching; each piece seems to gaze almost accusingly at the viewer, as though to wonder why they are being studied in such vulnerable poses. This is Mueck's last show before the collection moves on to Ottawa, Canada, so hopefully whoever wanted to go went already. If you didn't see the show, there is a video which details how the works are made is up on blip.tv. This video was filmed during the artist's residency at the National Gallery in London. While it cannot compare with seeing it live, it is always amazing to see an artist ply their craft.

If you don't have a high-speed internet connection, there is a short excerpt from the video on the Brooklyn Museum's website.

DESIGN: Design Life Triennial 2006 pt. 2

I went to the Triennial on Saturday, and, surprisingly I have very little to say. Except for please go see it---there are no words. Three floors of the Cooper-Hewitt are literally covered in "experimental designs and emerging ideas" from wall to wall. There is something for everyone and it seems that the designers featured are pulling out the stops to bring us the brightest and the best.

The only downside is that you would think that an exhibit about design would attempt to grab the eye and flow a bit better. It can be a little stagnant at times...especially at the Ipod display...but I still think it's worth it.

I wouldn't want to ruin anything but definitely remember to #1: look up, there's awesome things to see on the ceiling, #2: bring some handi-wipes, your fingers will be covered in chalk, #3: no pictures, please! so if you know how to turn the flash off on your camera phone, use that instead when no one is looking.