Friday, August 31, 2018

Guy makes lures from plastic straws

Guy makes impressive shrimp lures out of plastic drinking straws and catches cuttlefish. Hey, it's better than tossing that plastic in the trash.

A brief history of politicians who tried to dance

Some are much worse than others (I'm looking at you Theresa May) but they all did the best they could.

Pablo Picasso Marking Art, Set to the Song, "Pablo Picasso," by Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers




I read about him when I was 18. I moved to New York and was intimidated by these girls who (I) thought were attractive. I was afraid to approach them. I didn't have too high a self-image. I was self-conscious and I thought “Well, Pablo Picasso, he's only 5 foot 3 but he didn't let things like that bother him.” So I made up this song right after I saw those girls. You can picture it; I had this sad little look on my face and I was thinking 'Why am I so scared to approach these girls?' That was a song of courage for me.
More about the band and the song at Open Culture

Eminem Drops A Surprise Album

Eminem unveiled a surprise album, Kamikaze, at midnight on Thursday. A surprise release is a first for Eminem but the Kamikaze cover pays homage to a hip-hop classic, the Beastie Boys’ Licensed to Ill album. 



More: Rolling Stone

Mr.Otter's Practice Travels


Beijing-based artist Simon Lee's illustrations of a traveling otter are done in the style of old Ukiyo-e woodblock prints. I love this little guy.



Thursday, August 30, 2018

The Human Food Processor

Colin Furze built an insane belt that rapidly spins knives around his waist. It looks like an accident waiting to happen.



Via

How New Orleans Flooded During Hurricane Katrina


Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans on August 29, 2005. I'm mindful of the anniversary each year because our beautiful old dog, Lizzie, was rescued after the hurricane and lived in a kill shelter for almost 2 years before being brought to Canada to be rehomed as part of the largest animal rescue operation in history.
This Interactive Timeline by Dan Swenson is based on a number of post-hurricane reports and eye witness accounts and shows how the storm became so deadly.

Via


The Doors (not the band)

Every single shot of a door opening and/or closing in Robert Bresson’s L’Argent (1983) in sequential order.


THE DOORS from Eric Marsh on Vimeo.

Via

A Hieroglyphic Journal of a Voyage to the Caribbean


The Traveller’s Guide to Madeira and the West Indies is an unusual book that uses  hieroglyphics plates to tell the story  of an 1814 trade voyage. Plate 4 ( below), displays the dates March 28th to April 15th in a calendar-like grid, for each day either a dot, to connote nothing of importance happened, or a little illustration summing up that day’s events



Housed at: Internet Archive | From: the British Library

More: The Public Domain Review

Hope and Healing After Escaping a Cult

Briell Decker miraculously managed to break free from her marriage to a convicted sexual abuser who is currently serving life plus 20. She has returned to the house where she was held and is determined to help other ex-FLDS members embrace freedom.


In Utah, Hope and Healing After Escaping a Cult from Great Big Story on Vimeo.

Carving Cthulhu

Watch this timelapse tutorial of Italian sculptor Valeriano Fatica carving the monstrous entity from a juicy piece of fruit.



Via Boing Boing

A Byzantine Passion

French illustrator Antoine Helbert's passion for the Byzantine Empire began when he received a book about it when he was just 7 years old. His fascination and imagination led him to create detailed recreations of the buildings and monuments of Byzantium in its heyday.





More: Open Culture

Via PfRC

Rusty Pocket Watch Of Titanic Victim Sold At Auction



Sinai Kantor was a Jewish Russian immigrant who booked passage to New York on the Titanic with his wife, Miriam. The two planned to study dentistry and medicine in the US.  When the ship collided with an iceberg and sank Miriam made it on to one of the lifeboats but Sinai perished.


Kantor's rusted-out Swiss made, open-face, silver-plated brass pocket watch recently sold at auction for $57,500.

More here

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

DIY Mini Guitars

This video by Cath of The Square to Spare shows how to craft detailed itty bitty Stratocaster guitars from Popsicle sticks, coffee stirrers, toothpicks, wire, a zip-tie, and thread.



Via 

Zoetrope Shows Metamorphosis of a Butterfly


Dutch artist Veerle Coppoolse reveals the life cycle of a butterfly in a zoetrope handcrafted from finely cut paper.  The grey and white paper animation is a mock-up for a larger model Coppoolse is currently seeking funding for on the Netherlands-based crowdfunding site Voordekunst.

More: Colossal

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Photographer questions sexism in advertising

Visual artist Eli Rezkallah's new collection flips gender roles in vintage ad campaigns.




More here

On This Day in 1963

On August 28, 1963 Martin Luther King delivered his iconic I Have A Dream speech at a civil rights rally in Washington DC.






Clog Rave

“George, you’re not quite right. You’ve got the wrong foot coming forward.”



Link

Via

Faces Of Defiance

Social discontent is strong worldwide. indy100 posted 10 of the most striking images of defiance from the past (and present).

Soldiers on the USS Pueblo were captured by North Korea during the Cold War and forced to participate in videos and photographs that were used as anti-American propaganda. They protested their capture by showing the middle finger in every photo that was taken of them.



This woman lashed out with her handbag to resist the emergence of Neo-Nazism in Sweden in the 1980s.


In the photo below taken by Joe Giddens Saffiyah Khan stars down English Defence League protester Ian Crossland during a demonstration in Birmingham, England, on April 10, 2017.


Monday, August 27, 2018

The Return

When we grow up we discover that the places and objects we knew before are much smaller than in our memory.


Le retour from Natalia Chernysheva on Vimeo.

Via The Chawed Rosin

The original demo of Imagine by John Lennon

A demo version of Imagine, unheard for decades, was recently uncovered in an archive of Lennon audio tapes.



Via 

Watermelon Cthulhu

This is a timelapse video of artist Valeriano Fatica carving Cthulhu out of a watermelon.



Via Geekologie

No-kill mousetrap traps mouse in soda bottle

I have two cats so you'd think mice would be wise enough to steer clear of my kitchen but rodents continue to infiltrate the under-the-sink cupboard. Maybe I need one of these no-kill traps.



Via Boing Boing

Enormous Cumulonimbus Cloud over Tokyo

photo by Masanobu Higashiyama

Last night in Tokyo an enormous cumulonimbus cloud hovered over Tokyo for hours, bringing with it a spectacular light show. One of the most ‘striking’ photographs was by Masanobu Higashiyama, a reporter from the Asahi Newspaper.

More: Spoon & Tamago

Newborn Kittens Photo Shoot Helps Them To Find Homes

Brandy Suppi found a stray tabby near her home in McAlester, Oklahoma. After feeding the cat and gaining its trust she discovered the cat had kittens. Suppi fed, sheltered and got them veterinary care. She couldn't adopt the kittens, as she has four rescue dogs. She tapped her friend Heather Scott of LaMon Photography for a newborn photo shoot.






Anyone interested in adopting one (or more) of the kittens can contact Suppi via Facebook.
More here

Hammock House


House of Hammocks designed by Heribert Wolfmayr and Josef Saller of Heri&Salli provides a spot for people to relax and enjoy the views in Vienna's  Museumsquartier.






Sunday, August 26, 2018

Hunger Stones


Droughts in Central Europe are nothing new and stones have been used for centuries as hydrological landmarks. A recent lengthy drought in Europe has exposed these carved boulders, known as "hunger stones". They are visible in the Elbe River, which flows through the Czech Republic and Germany. One of the stones is inscribed: "Wenn du mich siehst, dann weine": "If you see me, weep."

More: NPR

Porcelain Bugatti

Bugatti has made a luxury car called the L'Or Blanc, or White Gold. Porcelain makes up almost every part of the vehicle, from its fuel cap to the hubcaps.

The history of London, told using paper origami

The construction of the new Crossrail transportation system in London has unearthed scores of artifacts. Inspired by these treasures, this paper animation video takes you on a journey through the city's long history.


Via IanVisits

Sunday Links


The Feather Heist A flute player breaks into a British museum and makes off with a million dollars’ worth of dead birds. A good podcast. Via

Need help coming up with new terms for white nationalism? Boing Boing's  journalistic euphemism generator will lend a hand with that.

The Largest Vocabulary in Hip Hop using each artist’s first 35,000 lyrics.

A wonderful mosaic project: The Hounds Of Hackney Downs 

Can you believe your eyes? 11 optical illusions that will blow your mind

How to Cipher Like a Soviet Spy

Travel into the heart of a forest fire

The extinct tech you forgot existed: A recent study has revealed which kinds of tech have stood the test of time – in terms of recognition, if not use. Would your children recognise these? (And would you?)

Not Your Grandmother’s Quilt: Cleveland’s African American Quilt and Doll Guild 

Infographic: Why The Media Isn’t The ‘Enemy’ How reporters around the world risk their lives for the truth

Stickeen: The Story of a Dog: An adventure on an Alaskan glacier with a new best friend. Via

Man in hole

Pretty In Pink: French artist Andria Darius Pancrazi takes photographs of pink buildings – a common sight in his home town of Bastia, a city on the island of Corsica.

The Self-Portrait Jorge Luis Borges Drew After Going Blind

Live map of London Underground trains by Matthew Somerville Via

Kaspar the Savoy cat 

Free at last: Animals Crackers change design after pressure from Peta

13 Secrets of Crime Scene Cleaners

The rare 18th century Ice Bell: So what is an Ice Bell and what does it (or doesn’t it) have to do with ice cream?

Real Life Settings of Famous Paintings You Can Actually Visit Today

Last Days Of George Michael 

Music For Sunday Morning

Saturday, August 25, 2018

Iconic Photographers Broke Down Barriers In The Fashion Industry

The Dress-Lamp Tree, England, 2002, Tim Walker, chromogenic print.
Steven and Catherine Fink. © Tim Walker

Icons of Style: A Century of Fashion Photography, 1911-2011
, at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, explores the cultural impact of fashion photography. From the austere practicality of the Great Depression and World War II to the the youth culture explosion of the 1960s and beyond this exhibition shows how fashion photography has left a lasting impression.

Renée, “The New Look of Dior,” Place de la Concorde, Paris, August, 1947,
negative 1947, print 1978; Richard Avedon, gelatin silver print.
The Richard Avedon Foundation, New York. Copyright © The Richard Avedon Foundation
Sveta for Hussein Chalayan, 2000.

Via GOOD

Tiny Tiki Torches For Your Drinks!




Via NOTCOT

Happy National Banana Split Day Everyone!

David Evans Strickler, a 23-year-old apprentice pharmacist at Tassel’s Pharmacy in Latrobe, Pennsylvania created the first banana split in 1904.


The History of the Banana Split | Slice of Life from Carly Marsh on Vimeo.

Via Dr. Caligari's Cabinet

Road Angel

Terry Allen, Road Angel, 2016. Bronze with audio and light. 65 x 181 x 81 1/2 inches.
Collection of The Contemporary Austin. Commission, purchased
with funds provided by the Edward and Betty Marcus Foundation
Road Angel, 2016, is an exhibition by Texas multi-media artist and musician Terry Allen. A bronze cast of a three-wheeled 1953 Chevrolet coupe rests amid the trees far from any road. An ongoing audio archive of recordings by musicians, artists, and writers emanate as if from the car’s radio at random intervals, recounting songs and oral histories lived in the backseat and behind the wheel.
Road Angel is now a permanent resident of the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park at Laguna Gloria.
More here

Thanks Bruce!

Thursday, August 23, 2018

One Day at a Time

A charcoal animated documentary about an ex-homeless man, and the changes he has made as a recovering alcoholic.


One Day at a Time from Rui Ting Ji on Vimeo.

World’s Tiniest Office?


Do you work in a hole-in-the-wall office? I bet it's not as tiny as this one. Brazilian creative agency Agencia Grande created this miniature office in a random hole in the wall in Sao Paulo to celebrate its opening while also making a statement about the unnecessarily large proportions of many commercial offices in Brazil, which can negatively affect the neighborhoods where they’re located.



Read More: Urbanist

Unequal Scenes

South African photographer Johnny Miller set out to observe social and economic differences in his country from above via a drone.
Roads, rivers, buffer zones of empty land and other barriers were put in place for the purpose of  separating people of difference classes during apartheid. It’s been 22 years since the end of apartheid, but some of these barriers still exist.



The Unequal Scenes project has branched out to other cities, including USA, Mumbai, Tanzania, Mexico City and Nairobi.

Read more: PLAIN Magazine

The Medical Illustrations of Dr. Frank Netter

Dr. Frank Netter was a surgeon who was also a talented artist. He sold his artwork to his professors to help pay his way through medical school. When he started his medical practice during the Great Depression Netter realized that many of his patients could not afford to pay for his services. Netter continued to sell his illustrations and discovered that painting could be more lucrative than medicine.  Netter quit the medical game in 1934 and became a full-time artist specializing in medical illustrations at the age of 28. Netter’s best clients were pharmaceutical companies which used his work during the 1930s.



His Atlas of Human Anatomy and other atlases became a staple of medical education.

Read more: Dangerous Minds

Does The Dog Die?


DoesTheDogDie.com is a trigger tracker that allows you to browse films, books and video games for potentially upsetting scenarios. The site tracks a wide variety of triggers such as "Does a person fart or spit?", "Is there finger/toe mutilation?", "Does a dragon die" and more...

Via

The alphabet found in Britain's hedgerows

Rachel Young selected images from a Google map of aerial photographs to create this truly British alphabet.



More here

Via

Wednesday, August 22, 2018

Eerie Photos from the Height of the Atomic Age

Bikini Atoll, July 1946

The whole country was lighted by a searing light with the intensity many times that of the midday sun. It was golden, purple, violent, gray, and blue. It lighted every peak, crevasse, and ridge of the nearby mountain range with a clarity and beauty that cannot be described but must be seen to be imagined. It was that beauty the great poets dream about but describe most poorly and inadequately. - 
General Thomas Farrell, deputy commander of the Manhattan Project
In August of 1945, less than a month before the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a secret detonation took place near Los Alamos in a valley called the Jornada del Muerto (“Journey of the Dead Man”). Hundreds of test explosions in the Southwestern U.S. deserts and Pacific Islands followed in the ensuing decades.

Jornada del Muerto

Nye County, Nevada, April 1955


More: Flashbak

The Runway Stops Here


Grow Heathrow was established eight years ago adjacent to Heathrow Airport as a protest against its expansion. Since then it has evolved into an eco project, housing around 25 residents whose homes are cobbled together using low-impact methods.

Since 2011 photographer Jonathan Goldberg has been taking photos of this community of people that have chosen a sustainable way of life based on shared values, away from conventional infrastructures. The threat of eviction has always loomed over them and now there is a renewed prospect of a third runway.




More: Creative Boom

Standing Mouse Lamp



This lamp by designer and artist Marcantonio Raimondi Malerba lets a handsome house mouse illuminate the darkest corners of your home.

Link

Via

Tuesday, August 21, 2018

Ancient Scotland

This film by Edinburgh based freelance filmmaker John Duncan is stunningly beautiful.


Ancient Scotland from John Duncan on Vimeo.

1,200 Japanese workers convert above-ground train to subway line in just a few hours

When the Shibuya Station Toyoko Line above-ground train shut down for good it was replaced with a new section of subway track connecting Shibuya Station and the nearby Daikanyama Station. The conversion of the line from above-ground to underground required 1,200 engineers and countless man-hours.

But this mammoth construction was virtually unnoticeable, because it all occurred during the train line’s off-hours… over the course of one single night.



More here

Fabricated

Fabricated is a stop-motion film that was ten years in the making. Everything you see in this story about an imaginary future was designed and built by Brett Foxwell, an engineer, designer, builder and animator based in the Bay Area.


Fabricated from bfophoto on Vimeo.

More here 

Dogs herding Sheep



Via swissmiss

Perk Up Your Bedroom Decor


Via

Monday, August 20, 2018

Beautiful Buttercream Succulents

Southern California-based cake artist and self-described flour child, Leslie Vigil, has merged her love of succulents and baking by decorating cakes with buttercream aloe, cacti, and echeveria. She found that traditional tools and piping nozzles were geared towards petals and other flower-based designs rather than succulents and had to modify her materials with pliers.






More:  Colossal