OBAMAwatercolor

I was happy to come across the new issue of Giant Robot Magazine and to see one of my favorite street artists work on the cover.  If ya’ll don’t know who David Choe is, check his works out for sure!  This cover is one of a kind, and so is this issue.  Check this link to read more on the history behind the cover and on the issue .

Mi Lomo!

I Just recently picked up a Lomography camera, and must say, this is a pretty fun little camera. I snagged a colorsplash, and just developed my first roll of film.  The pictures came out all funky, just as anticipated.  However, I have some more learning to do, and welcome the challenge of experimentation.  The camera itself is kind of bulky, but fits into a coat pocket just dandy.  It is a good conversation piece as well.  Check out the Lomo picture gallery and get a better sense of what this thing is all about.  Well worth the price!!  I will be posting some of my “bests” in upcoming posts.  Stay advised!

ShitBegone…..is going going..gone!

To my dismay, I just found out one of my favorite toilet paper companies, ShitBegone, is selling off assets and inventory, and moving on.  This is one of my more random posts, but nontheless, one worth sharing.  I can’t say I was a loyal customer, but was a customer several years back.  The company was more then just toilet paper with a silly name.  Its part art, part business, part curiosity.  And it played a part by filling a niche market.  Capitalartism!! Or whatever you want to call it!  Get your ShitBegone before it is truly gone…..or just buy the company!

Cool Company, Cool Dude

Some people may, or may not know, who Jeff Staple is.  For those who don’t, he is the owner of Staple Design, The Reed Space, and Honeyee.  From Design, to clothing, to thought leader,  Jeff is seen as innovator and collaborator on many fronts.  I’ve been following Jeff’s Blog for some time now, and he is definately doing some cool stuff.  He needs no introduction from me, but check him out…..

…How Do People Learn?

Funny question, How do you learn? And, what does it mean to learn?  I never gave it much thought, but I concluded that I am constantly learning how to learn.  The defintion of learn is one which will vary I’m sure from person to person.  For me, to learn to is comprehend and apply that knowledge not just once, but several times over a period of time.

Learning takes on my different styles, a multitude in fact!  Learning can be fun.  It can be painful.  It can be unforgiving and invigorating.  Who knows how to make learning fun?  And why does learning come easier for some then others?  Is it hard to unlearn? Unlearn?

The list goes on and on, and I have learned one thing recently at least; If you look around, you will learn.  So keep on looking…….

Sphere of influence

The great thing about Chicago is the level of interactive art on display.  From one end of the city to the other, artists showcase their works for the public free of charge in most cases.  Recently, I noticed a big red ball strategically placed around the city.  Some 250lbs and 15′ tall, you can’t miss it.  After inquiring about this giant tomato-like ball, I actually ended up speaking to the artist himself.  Kurt Perschke is his name, and he is a NYC-based sculptor.  Having chatted with him for several minutes, I picked his brain and he explained his inspiration behind the project.  To sum it up, capturing people’s reactions from different cultures and analyzing the behavior and interactions was the gist of our conversation.  Satisfied with the answer, I pressed on and took a few pictures for good measure.

I was inspired by how something so simple takes on a complicated meaning.  The RedBall has been all over the world since 2001. A pretty cool way to travel the world in my opinion.   You could turn this project into a great guerrilla marketing campaign as well for a few companies in mind! (hence Target, which sponsors RedBall Project)  Nonetheless, its pretty cool and gives you something to talk about if your boring!!

What we can learn from Puff Daddy and his Blogs..

First off, I must say I “plead the 5th” when it comes to Puff Daddy’s music and his blog posts, but I do understand what he is getting at.  Diddy, Puffy, or whatever his name is these days, is a walking brand.  That I am a fan of.  A brand that use to spend millions on lavish videos, street teams, and NY Times ads.  He may not be worth much on paper (umm 50MM!) but his collections of brands are worth over 250MM million easily.

As times change, so do people’s marketing preferences and ways to reach their audience.  Diddy has a Diddy Blog, which seemed to replace his past, more expensive ways of marketing himself and his brands these days.  Now this has been going on for many years among people in this scene, but to see it on a level such as Diddy’s, it makes you think, why not do this?  This dude has more money then most of us, yet he chooses to promote and brand with a 2-4 minute YouTube video.  It is just another way to harness the power of the internet and to penetrate your potential market.  We’ll see how many other big-name celebs follow in pursuit…

It’s been some time…..

Yes, I know…it has been some time since I last posted, literally and figuratively! After taking several months away, I am glad to be back at it. I have a new energy, outlook, and overall feel for what I would like to communicate here on this blog. Were going to get a little more insightful, personal, and creative. To start things off, I am going to be interviewing certain individuals and posting their information on this blog at least twice a week. One thing I realized is as much as I communicate with my friends, there are a lot of things I don’t know, or better yet, would like to know about them. For the next month, enjoy random bits of info surrounding music, art, culture, media, and downright randomness from some people I kick it and communicate with on the daily! Enjoi~

Adi Dassler: ADIDAS Ad

Adidas, originally called “Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik” was founded by Adolf Dassler (Adi in short) at the beginning of the 1920’s with the help of his brother, Rudolf Dassler, who later formed PUMA. The company was renamed Adidas in 1949 after the two brothers split, and comes from the name of its founder, Adi Dassler!

How Aware Are You?

This is a super cool spot put out by WCRS agency out of the UK.  It’s all about how people don’t usually anticipate or notice change in their surroundings. If you bike, you’ll understand, especially in highly dense areas! Well executed and to the point. I like…