Pranav Mistry: The thrilling potential of SixthSense technology | Video on TED.com

A Sixth Sense? Check out the latest innovation for your everyday devices..
Pranav Mistry: The thrilling potential of SixthSense technology Video on TED.com

AEROS

Check out Ross Lovegrove's fixture for Louis Poulsen here.

PINUP ARTISTS

SIMPLE MATERIALS create textured visuals. Eric Daigh uses duct tape, push pins, and other pedestrian materials for his compositions.

This group took 80+ hours to install a rigorous message here. [If you’re curious, the ‘rigor’ installation in our office took two people about 30 minutes]

3D Video Projections

The holidays are just around the corner and here's a cool alternative to those strings of Christmas lights (no need to detangle those chords).

NuFormer Digital Media is a multimedia firm from the Netherlands. Their work is simply mind blowing!

http://www.nuformer.nl/en/

USC Architecture jumping on the dancing bandwagon?

Modern interpretive dance is now a prerequisite course.

Note to Gensler: think hard before hiring any graduates from USC (and test them on the spelling of Philip Johnson).

Frank Gehry & Damien Hirst does Lady GaGa at the MOCA

Last Saturday, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles celebrated its 30th anniversary with a huge gala, featuring Lady GaGa's world debut of her song, 'Speechless'.
Lady GaGa, who is known for her outrageous looks, wore a hat designed by Frank Gehry (possibly an old architectural model) and a dress designed by artist Damien Hirst (no dead animals were harmed) which were auctioned off for charity later in the night. The Hirst-designed piano which Gaga played on was also auctioned off.Fortunately Uncle Frank didn't perform his version of Poker Face.

Here's the GehristGaGala:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_4ouW2Rt_E&feature=player_embedded

Empowering Architecture online

Architizer: Empowering Architecture, a Facebook-like architecture website, was officially launched last Monday night at the Stortfront for Art and Architecture in NYC.
Architizer features people, projects and firms in the architecture world, and a whole host of resources and information.

Check it out: http://www.architizer.com/en_us/

Modern Coffin

Just in time for Halloween:

Project: Mark the last veil

Designer: Roos Kuipers

Description: At a funeral, the closing of the coffin is often a grim moment. A hard, abrupt action that is inappropriate for the sensitive and emotional grieving and mourning process. Roos Kuipers designed an open coffin made of traditional elm, with round, soft forms that softens this moment. Six transparent veils of bamboo, cotton and silk hang from its side. At the moment of leave-taking, the veils are layered over the body one by one, by which the image of the deceased is gradually obscured. By tucking the veils layer by layer into a groove in the wood, the body of the deceased is similarly ‘tucked in’ with loving care and respect.

Photoshop gone wrong

Photoshop is every designer's fix-it-all. I use this tool all the time to make anything look better. But what happens when a simple touchup goes overboard? This Ralph Lauren ad has made this model's waist smaller than her head! Someone give her a cheese burger!

Click here for more Photoshop awesomeness...

IKEA humor

Love them or hate them, IKEA are the purveyors of cheap stylish DIY furniture.
What I do love about IKEA is their marketing. Watch on.

It's Bad but not in a good way...

Just when you think you heard enough news coverage on the whole Michael Jackson circus show, Archinet is sponsoring the "Live Forever: The Michael Jackson Monument Design Competition."

The voting has begun for the finalists (and there are many). Some of the entries had serious design merit, while some were just plain rediculous. Some entries include the "MJ Sperm Bank Memorial" and the "Freedom Tower (9/11 / MJ memorial towers / anti terrorist device)."

Enjoy (and vote for) the freakshow here:

http://www.bustler.net/index.php/michael_jackson_competition/finalists/

the ultimate LEGO house

A real two-storey house made of LEGO is being built in the middle of the Denbies Wine Estate, in Dorking (I am not kidding), U.K.

The house features a staircase and a working full bathroom. More than 3,000,000 LEGO pieces were delivered to the site, which are then used to build full sized bricks, each one consisting of 272 LEGO pieces, and stacked into place over the wood frame structure. Thousands of volunteers participated over the 6 days of constuction.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1203654/Thousands-Top-Gears-James-May-helping-hand-Lego-brick-house.html

Healthcare you don't mind paying for

The Clinic is a rather strange and morbid restaurant and club in Singapore with a hospital theme. Diners are seated in wheelchairs and dining off of stainless steel operating tables (extra cutlery are stored in surgical drawers). The chefs (dressed as surgeons) cook in an open kitchen designed as an operating room. Wine is stored behind a wall of stainless steel morgue drawers. Molecular gastronomy is on the menu while cocktails are served up in IV drips, spray or pill form. This rather kitchy concept was inspired by Damien Hirst's pharmacy series.

While this concept would normally shy away locals (due to Asian superstition and karma), it has been popular with the younger hip generation.

http://www.theclinic.sg/

Belts - The New Textile?

TING London makes these incredible rugs..

maison martin margiela

Watch how wind creates movement on the facade.

For a look at their graphic/ fashion creations, see here.

2009 Bombay Sapphire Designer Glass Competition

London, UK / August 2009 – To celebrate design week in the cocktail capital of the world, Bombay Sapphire gin will be announcing the winner of its global search to find the ultimate martini cocktail glass and it wants you to help decide who is awarded the grand prize!

Thousands of emerging designers from around the world were briefed to create a martini cocktail glass, the most iconic design in the world of drinks. And now the finalists from each country will travel to the London Design Festival in September to compete in the Global Final for their share of the £10,000 prize fund.

The Bombay Sapphire Designer Glass Competition is one of the top competitions in the world for up-and-coming designers and to help select the winner, Bombay Sapphire is asking you to vote for your favourite glass design at: http://www.dezeen.com/designer-glass-competition.html

Top image: Topographie by Jacobo Munoz (Switzerland), Winner of the Bombay Sapphire Designer Glass Competition People’s Prize 2008.

from nasty to hip: the new Motel 6

Motel 6 has been the butt of jokes of lodging, but the cheap no-frills chain of motels is revamping their image of dorm room/roadside love inn cheapness to affordable modern hip crash pad (think Target and IKEA). Before pictured left and after pictured right.
This new image comes from British design firm, Priestman Goode, who also designed the cabins of Virgin Atlantic and cruise ship rooms for Norwegian Cruise Lines.
To date 60% of their chain has been revamped this year.

Bösendorfer grand piano by Audi Design

Audi Design has teamed up with legendary piano maker, Bösendorfer, to produce a concert grand piano interpreted by Audi's modern design philosophy.

The characteristic Bösendorfer sound and acoustics has not been affected with this sleek design.

The Audi Design grand piano will make its world debut on July 16 in Ingolstadt, to celebrate Audi's centenary.

http://www.boesendorfer.com/en/audi.html

The new information age

a fascinating look at the staggering global explosion of information and knowledge:

Taxidermy is Back

http://www.meetsebastian.com/english/

R E PURPOSE an Abandoned Rail

The Park

The Blog

The Architect

Libeskind for the masses?

Libeskind has designed a 5,500-square-foot prefab house, priced from $2.8 to $4.2 million, that can be shipped and assembled anywhere. The two-story villa "resembles a crystal with sharp angles and towering windows bursting from the ground," the Times writes. I wonder if it includes Libeskind's trademark water feature: roof leaks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/12/greathomesanddestinations/12iht-relib.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Furniture you can take with you...

I always like twisted dark humor, so I found this piece of furniture very witty without being too obvious -- afterall you don't want to be labelled a Goth.

Shelves for Life is an ingenious piece of furniture designed by William Warren, a self-proclaimed conceptual designer, lateral thinker, and joker. It's whimsical, functional, and a total conversation piece. And, it's a bookcase that turns into a coffin.

LEGO goes architectural

LEGO has always been every architect's beloved childhood toy, so naturally architect Adam Reed Tucker has collaborated with The LEGO Group and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation to release the Frank Lloyd Wright Collection - part of the LEGO Architecture series.

Click here to see the other landmarks in the LEGO Architecture series: http://www.dezeen.com/2009/05/26/frank-lloyd-wright-collection-by-adamreed-tucker-and-the-lego-group/#more-31214

XL Lamp

Yep- it might be the biggest lamp out there!

http://www.edendesign.be/eden.html

M I L A N Furniture Fair 2009

Check it out!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/inhabitat/sets/72157617181767086/

P A P E R G R A P H I C S

Check out this super papergraphic designer [Yulia Brodskaya] here.

All tied up

Inspired by his mother's knitting hobby, Korean designer Kwangho Lee created beautifully wildly organic light fixtures with tangled or weaved electrical cords. Each lamp is an impromptu process which makes each piece unique, and some lamps uses up to 900 meters of electrical cord.

Lee has also made furniture out of the same electrical cord.
http://www.kwangholee.com/

When I first saw the Peepoo bag I thought it was a joke, but after reading about it I realized it’s quite a novel idea. Basically it’s a plastic bag to go to the bathroom in, which is why I thought it was a joke, but this simple little bag employs some sophisticated sustainable solutions and solves some pretty daunting problems.
In the developing world clean water and sanitation are very scarce. This is due to over population and lack of infrastructure and poses a serious health risk to the affected populations. In these parts of the world not only do they lack the infrastructure to attain clean water, they also lack the infrastructure needed to deal with all their waste, so they end up contaminating the little water they have. Around the world, one child dies every 15 seconds from to contaminated water. For them the saying “Don’t piss where you drink” isn’t a clever metaphor, it’s a real life challenge. For more...click here------ http://greenupgrader.com/category/innovation/

Pantone 17-1044, please!

If only these were pantone swatches, it would be brilliant!

http://www.gnr8.biz/product_info.php?products_id=693

Terrible Chair and Horrendous Fashion

For Video:

http://www.jooyounpaek.com/ssc.html

Woof Woof!

3rd Annual Best in Show charity event benefitting the Downtown Animal Care Foundation - April 24th.

Everyone's invited!

http://www.modlivin.com/events.cfm

The wheels on the bus goes 'round and 'round...

The basic design of the yellow school bus hasn't changed much since the 30s, while cars and trucks has evolved year after year.

12 students of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadina, a leading U.S. school for industrial and transportation design, has modernized the classic yellow bus to be safer, more fuel efficient and fun to ride.

The challenge of this project was to "view the school bus as more than a vehicle to transport students to and from school, but rather as a vehicle that could be incorporated into the community," said instructor Marek Djordjevic, who oversaw the project.

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ci_12158846

Hot Shot Photography Competition

http://www.20x200.com/blog/2009/03/hey-hot-shot-2009-competition-now-open.html

The Bouroullec Brothers Are At It Again!

http://www.bouroullec.com/

Two great tastes that tastes great together

“What if you were given the opportunity to re-imagine the AF1? We invited 18 innovators from across the world to do exactly that. This is Nike 1World.”

Nike 1World is a collection of AF1, created in partnership with global innovators in the fields of sport, music, art & design. Featuring 18 original styles, the Nike 1 World collection will release over the course of eight months and will see the AF1 once again explore new territory.

Nike Design selected Maharam to participate based on its distinct approach to textiles and its prominence in the world of interior and industrial design, in parity with Nike’s longstanding commitment to invention and innovation.

Maharam’s unique interpretation of the AF1 introduces a silhouette constructed of Layers, a textile created by the Maharam Design Studio in collaboration with Dutch industrial designer Hella Jongerius. Layers, produced in single and double layered variations in 100% wool felt, uses sophisticated full-width embroidery equipment played against artisanal hand-cutting to create patterning, resulting in an “industrial craft” hybrid.

This already complex textile was further engineered to meet the specific needs of the AF1. The result represents a multi-disciplinary undertaking, bridging disparate aspects of industrial design including sports technology, textile design and the conceptual avant-garde.

Layers is included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Cooper-Hewitt.

More info on AF1: http://www.nike.com/af1
Available exclusively from Moss starting April 8:
http://www.mossonline.com/product-exec/product_id/45025

16th Street Mall Update

http://www.downtowndenver.com/Economic/16THStreetPlan.htm

Check out BCycle!

http://www.bcycle.com/

They are currently available locally only to Denver City employees. See the kiosks on the west side of the Wellington Webb building.

Ikea - How to flat pack a GM.

Some Assembly Required.
http://www.seebiz.eu/en/macro/srbija/general-motors-and-ikea-to-negotiate-with-serbian-government,27800.html

Architecture 2030 and NAIOP

http://www.architecture2030.org/news/news_030209.html

NYT Article - Fast Company Response

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/danielle-sacks/ad-verse-effect/propaganda-alert-commercial-developers-try-debunk-green-building

Telling stories

Two videos that offer innovative new ways of telling familiar stories.

Great G-Speak here in Denver on Feb. 4th with Patrick Marold.
See Patrick's website at www.patrickmarold.com for more info.

O-14 office building tower designed by Resier+Umemoto. They described: O-14 stands at the heart of business bay. The tower’s concrete shell not only is the structure of the building but also creates a lace-like façade open to light, air, and views. 21 stories of custom-designed office floors are carried without the barriers of conventional columns and walls. At ground level, exclusive shops link this site to Business Bay’s waterfront esplanade combining high-end shopping eminent culture and popular entertainment. Below grade, four levels of parking provide capacity for over 400 cars.The openings on the shell are modulated depending on structural requirements, views, sun exposure, and luminosity. A space nearly one meter deep between the shell and the main enclosure creates a so-called “chimney effect,” a phenomenon whereby hot air has room to rise and effectively cools the surface of the glass windows behind the perforated shell. This passive solar technique essentially contributes to a natural component to the cooling system for O-14, thus reducing energy consumption and costs, just one of many innovative aspects of the building’s design.

http://www.stone-tile.com/ceramic/ascot%20pun/ascot%20pun%20decors.htm

World News front pages

for Front Page news, literally, world wide, click below:

http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/flash/

Design After Dark 2009: Versus.

Design After Dark is an annual party to celebrate the design community. This year's event will follow last year's successful format with 27 teams from various design and artistic backgrounds showing off their creativity.
Great music and visuals, libations, creative food, and a few surprises in the evening, this is one of the most anticipated design events this year and it's all happening at the new RedLine Gallery in Downtown Denver on Friday, January 30th.

This year's theme is Versus (vs.) which will creatively explore contrasts and opposites.

Gensler's entry (pictured above) is based on Light vs. Dark with the iconic Andrews Company Bistro Chair as our inspiration from the Design Council's collection.
Intricate black lace, inspired by the twisted ironwork of the Bistro Chair, creates a mysterious dark veil of a box which contains flickering LED lights which illuminates the contrasting glowing gold interior. A modern elegant interpretation of an oil lantern or votive.

For tickets and information:

http://www.blacktie-colorado.com/ event code: DC/DAM1/09

I can't help it..I still love antlers..no matter how trendy or passe they may be.
http://www.nendo.jp/en/