In the eye of the beholder
Irony never gets old.
Located in Dedham, Mass., the community-based Museum of Bad Art ? “dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition, and celebration of bad art in all its forms and in all its glory” ? was founded in fall 1993 and put up its first show the following March.
About 25 pieces are usually on display at any given time outside the men’s restroom in the basement of the Dedham Community Theater, an old movie house from the 1920s. They also run an online gallery and publish an e-mail newsletter, The MOBA News, the leading source in the “field of bad art.”
The museum even features 40 pieces from their permanent collection for the book Museum of Bad Art: Art Too Bad To Be Ignored, perfect for any tragically hip coffee table.
Pictured here is an acrylic titled “Mama and Babe” (1995) by Sarah Irani. Check out that daughter’s blue lips. Beautiful.
Don’t stop the beat
Ah, the mix tape (er, mp3).
Here’s a site worth checking out: The folks at The Players Association, a site run by DJs for DJs, stream amateur mixes for free. Those of us who couldn’t spin a kickin mix to save their life benefit from having instant access to music from around the world.
You can also search within mixes for specific artists, titles and genres, making it that much easier to search through hours of this stuff. Sure, it might not beat going to an actual record store or holding a physical mix tape, but just think of the range of music sites like these can provide.
Try Thundertone’s “The Music You Forgot” and Nick Recordkicks‘ “Groove Kicks #15.” And check out The Players Association’s MySpace here.
(via Urban Junkies London)
More from the catwalk
Get excited, kids, we’re in the middle of London Fashion Weekend. The designers have presented their fall collections (Kudos to Marc by Marc Jacobs, Nicole Farhi and Allegra Hicks for the designer’s funky use of patterns) and now it’s time to get them at discounted prices on the lawns of London’s Natural History Museum (if you are lucky enough to actually be there).
Milan Fashion Week is also wrapping up. Check out Bottega Veneta, Fendi and Roberto Cavalli. Cavalli is always fun.
Make new friends, but …
Today, the neverending media quest to promote all things vintage continues with The Times’ Critical Shopper piece on vintage stores, like the LES’ Frock, which sells not-so-cheap, but oh-so-hot, handpicked pieces. (Thanks to Reader Kristin for the link!)
For you Ithaca readers who can’t make it to Manhattan, Petrune on Cayuga Street has a great selection of dresses, scarves, hats, riding boots and classy old luggage. Check out an Ithacan story we did last year on the store here.
And who doesn’t like a little bit of Internet shopping? This morning, Reader Erin pointed me toward Etsy, a site that buys and sells handmade items, the highlight being the vintage accessories collection. Pictured here is a goldtone pin from Austria.
Vintage never goes out of style, even when the trends for spring/fall are pointing toward the future. Which reminds me: Did you guys check out the Azzedine Ala?a coat worn by Carine Roitfeld, editor of French Vogue, at NY Fashion Week? Not gonna lie, it kind of reminded me of Dot Matrix from Spaceballs.
Fill ‘er up
Founded in 2003, BioFuel Oasis in ? where else ? Berkeley, Calif., offers a place to load your car up on biodiesel fuel. Owned and run by women, the co-op “values sustainability, local production and community.” Just to clarify: You don’t need to convert your engine to use the stuff, just upkeep the filter. The co-op even teaches classes on how to change your filter and opening your own biofuel station. (via Daily Candy)
Get your build on
P.S.1 and the Museum of Modern Art just named the five finalists for the eighth annual Young Architects Program, a competition that invites emerging designers to submit designs for P.S.1’s summer courtyard pavilion in Queens.
The finalists include Benjamin Ball and Gaston Nogues of Ball-Nogues in Los Angeles; Mark Foster Gage of Gage/Clemenceau Architects in New York; Michael Meredith and Hilary Sample of MOS in New York; Lisa Iwamoto and Craig Scott of IwamotoScott in San Francisco; and David Ruy and Karel Klein of Ruy Klein in New York.
Thirty five designers and architects were recommended by folks in the design world, and curators from the museums selected the final five. The winner, to be announced March 23, will design the pavilion with a budget of about $70,000. The space is used for the museum’s Warm Up series, which has been featuring DJs every Saturday from July through September since 1997.
Pictured above is Gage/Clemenceau Architect’s competition design for the Tsunami Memorial in Khao Lak-Lamru, Thailand ? just to give you a sense of the kinds of work these guys do. Check out the finalists’ sites ? they make some pretty cool stuff.
Yet another reason to look forward to summer.
(via The Architect’s Newspaper)
Keeping time
When I was in fourth grade, I was really into digital watches. I finally got one of those calculator watches through a school magazine drive ? that and a neon green stuffed hippo I still have today. I thought I was the coolest kid at school. After looking at Watchismo’s photo collection of vintage children’s watches, I now realize my calculator watch was nothing compared to the G.I. Joe watch. Nothing. Maybe this post will inspire a return to wearing silly kid time gear. (via Boing Boing)
Spinners, anyone?
Interested in speed, stability, and a more efficient way of traveling and exercising, Curtis DeForest Jr. developed the HyperBike, a new take on the bicycle ? OK, a totally different take.
Inspired by competition wheelchairs, which have a low center of gravity, the avid cyclist of more than 30 years wanted to build a really fast, stable bike that would work the entire body ? and not just hurt your ass.
The bright yellow contraption weighs about 200 pounds and has three wheels: two are 8 feet high and angled in, and the third sits in the front to keep the instrument stable. Riders use their entire body ? legs, arms, weight ? for propulsion.
Even NASA’s Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program has taken notice and will help DeForest get to the next phase of his design: making it commercially available.
Watch an interview with DeForest here.
Gooooal!
Now I know where to live should Wayne Rooney and I ever decide to marry: Barier, designed by Japanese-based G-Wood, is a 32-sided soccer ball?shaped (OK, OK, football- shaped) structure that can be as big as 540 square feet. You can even put several units together ? one to act as a bedroom, a bathroom, a dining room, a Wii room (you get the idea). (via Treehugger)
Sacr? blanche
Parisian boutique Colette turns 10 this year, and to celebrate, it’s teaming up with fellow hot French brand, Lacoste, to release a limited-edition clothing line of polo shirts and high-top sneakers. The pieces ? hitting shelves March 1 ? are totally white, except for a logo chase scene between Lacoste’s alligator and Colette’s dog.
Colette, which first opened its doors in March 1997, really steps up the shopping experience. It’s housed in a three-floor, 7,500-square foot space. Visitors can check out DVDs and music ? hand-picked by the staff ? on the ground floor; men’s and women’s clothing on the first floor; and video installations and graffiti art on the gallery floor. The store even invites designers and artists to design window displays, which alternate weekly. (via Nylon Guys)
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