LOCAL: Miami Green Expo 3/3 – 3/4
March 4th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
So it appears that our town wants to go green after all! For all those lucky guys living the green dream in the West Coast – wait for us! We’re trying to catch up!
To get the news on all the latest products and innovations in sustainable design don’t miss the Mia Green Expo and Conference being held at the Miami Beach Convention Center from 3/3 (yesterday) to 3/4 (today)!
What you can expect:
• Hall with thousands of Green Products & Services
• Featured Opening Sessions
• 50+ US & International Top Speakers on:
- Designing & Building Greener Americas
- How to Be Green and Be Profitable
- Policies, Certifications & Benefits
- It’s All About Energy
- Impacting the Environment
• Special track: Innovative Green Products & Technology
• “Succeeding as a LEED Professional” (8 GBCI & AIA CEU)
• “LEED Green Associate Training & Exam Prep” (8 AIA CEU)
• Special session “Adopt, Adapt or Discard LEED in your
Country: A Latin American & Caribbean Challenge”
• US Dept. of Energy special program
(by invitation/reg via DOE)
• Cocktail Reception
It’s only $30 for a 1 – day pass!
+ $70 for an educational session
+ $40 for the cocktail reception where you get to mingle with like-minded tree-huggers!
For more info click here!
THRIFT STORE FINDS 2
February 23rd, 2011 § Leave a Comment
I’m big on treasure hunts. I’ve been that way since the age of 3 when I first discovered the concept. Two decades later the treasures have changed but the idea remains the same. To me, being the design junkie that I am, the most exhilarating types of finds are cool furniture and accessories at very affordable prices. In this state of mind I recently visited my local thrift store to see what treasures I could dig up.
The following are images of my favorite items from the visit to Out of the Closet on Alton Road:
Coasters with architectural prints of monuments from German town
Small porcelain vessels with metal latch
Classic white porcelain candlesticks
Pair of red modern faux suede chairs
Polished chrome chair: Needs to be re-upholstered but has a great frame!
Bamboo and wicker chair: I would paint this glossy white or black and call it a day!
This could come in handy for Bonnaroo (Nashville is very close to Manchester)!
Hmm I never read Under The Tuscan Sun but just seeing this made me imagine being in Tuscany so it made it on here!
This was a cool little book with nice old school illustrations
VIK MUNIZ & Wasteland
February 6th, 2011 § 5 Comments
Artist Feature, vol. 3
"Marat (Sebastiao)" Vik Muniz, 2008
If you haven’t yet heard, this Brazilian native turned world-renowned visual artist went to one of the largest dumpsters in the world (Jardim Gramacho outside of Rio de Janeiro) to create portraits of the “catadores”. The catadores are the individuals who work at the site separating recyclable materials from general waste. This 2011 Oscar nominated documentary entitled “Wasteland” shows Vik and his colleagues throughout the course of a year getting to know each of these characters and their lives as he develops an “image” for the project.
He decides to depict each of them in a series called “Pictures of Garbage” through iconic images of art history such as Jacques-Louis David’s 1793 “The Death of Marat” for Marat (Sebastiao), Pablo Picasso’s 1904 “Woman Ironing” for “Woman Ironing (Isis)” and Atlas, the Titan who held up the world for “Atlas (Carla0)”. This remaking of iconic images has of course been done before. Vik’s originality here lies, as in most of his work, in his choice of medium and context. He photographs these images then projects them from say 40 feet in the air down to the ground. He and the catadores then arrange hundreds of objects found in the landfill to recreate the image out of pure waste. This final sculptural piece is photographed and becomes the final image.
The work is thought provoking and inspiring as his process changes the way we think art is created and achieved. But truly the most impactful aspect of the documentary is the dignity and relentless spirit of the catadores Vik encounters and how this inspires his work and allows for a victorious finale that brings hope and change to the desolate circumstances of life in Jardim Gramacho and to the dreamers, like me, who dream of a better world.
from "Wasteland", view down onto Irma's portrait 2008
from "Pictures of Garbage" 2008
"Saturn Devouring His Son" 2005
Mona Lisa, Peanut Butter and Jelly
from "The Sugar Children Series", 1996
from "Pictures of Clouds"
from "Pictures of People", 2009
"Marylin" 2008
from "Pictures of Earthwork" 2005
Vik Muniz
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THRIFT STORE FINDS
August 12th, 2010 § 1 Comment
Brass Wall Mounted Candle Holder from India - 99 cents
Besides the stinkiness of it all, your local thrift store provides you with the bare bones of great household goods waiting to be re-found and transformed into design gems. What’s the trick? Recognizing the potential behind the items by learning to look at the core of the items instead of their current finished state.
Questions to recognize the existing pros:
1. Is it an interesting design (the form, proportions, size) ?
2. Is it built in a sturdy way?
3. Is it made out of good material (real wood or metal, authentic paintings, etc.)?
White Melamine Dresser with Brass Detail $59.99
Questions to consider changes that could make the item what you want and need:
1. Could it be more interesting if you painted it a different color?
2.What if you upholster with different fabric?
3. What if you just polished the metal?
4. What if you changed the hardware or other pieces (for example: lamp shade, handles, frame)?
Dining Chair from Set of 6 Chairs + Table $220
Be creative and play with different techniques. Visit your local Home Depot to explore the materials offered that allow for infinite possibilities of changes you can make.
Too much information??? Pick up a design magazine for inspiration and current trends. Try Interior Design Magazine, Elle Decor, or House Beautiful.
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ART AT THE DUMP
July 21st, 2010 § Leave a Comment
RECYCLED ART IN SAN FRANCISCO
Wednesday, July 21 – Saturday, September 25 | Free
For twenty years now San Francisco’s recycling program has hosted an artist in residence program that provides 24-hour access to the Dump to a handful of creative and dedicated individuals that repurpose and transform the raw materials into meaningful visual and formal expressions.
Josh Short, Queen Grill 2010
Recology, Intersection for the Arts, and Hub Bay Area are pleased to present the exhibition, Art at the Dump: Twenty Years of the Artist in Residence Program at Recology at Intersection 5M. This exhibition celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the art and education program at Recology San Francisco, a one-of-a-kind initiative that enables artists to work with materials taken directly from the city of San Francisco’s waste stream, while teaching the public about recycling and resource conservation. Art at the Dump presents a sampling of work made by some of the more than eighty artists who have participated in the program. Work in a variety of mediums-sculpture, photography, painting, drawing, performance, video, textiles, and musical composition-is represented, and often runs counter to traditional notions of what art made from found materials should look like.
Josh Short, Queen Grill 2010
Silence Speaks Volumes, Erik Otto
The Recology Artist in Residence Program was established in 1990 at the same time that curbside recycling was being implemented in San Francisco. Conceived by artist and activist Jo Hanson, it was the most innovative component of an outreach plan developed by the City and Recology San Francisco (then known as Sanitary Fill Company) to educate people about recycling. Now twenty years later, the Artist in Residence Program has grown to include an Environmental Learning Center, an extensive tour program,a three-acre sculpture garden, off-site exhibitions, and has been nationally recognized and awarded as the only program of its kind in the country. Artists are provided with a stipend and a well-equipped studio to make artwork from materials they scavenge from the Public Disposal and Recycling Area (“the dump”). Artists speak to the more than 5,000 students and adults who annually attend the San Francisco garbage and recycling facility tours which focus on the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling.
Suzanne Husky, Rewilding with Intentions
“Throwing things away is an automatic action for many of us and I think art has a remarkable way of showing us the layers of our existence that our repetitive daily lives obscure” says former artist-in-residence David King. Though the artwork is incredibly varied, the connecting thread is that these were all materials that at one time passed through the hands of San Franciscans-things once with meaning or function, determined to no longer be of use. But as the artists demonstrate, much of what we throw away still does have the potential to be used.
The exhibition features the work of over fifty artists including Estelle Akamine, Ellen Babcock, Bill Basquin, Nemo Gould, James Gouldthorpe, David Hevel, Dee Hibbert Jones, Christina Mazza, Sirron Norris, Scott Oliver, Nicole Repack, Isis Rodriguez, James Sansing, Nathaniel Stookey, E. Banker White, and Noah Wilson. Work by artists who have participated in the Student Artist in Residence Program will be presented in the building’s café. A publication documenting the history of the Recology Artist in Residence program will be available for sale.
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