Month: January 2012

The Equus collection by Lladró

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Lately I have been gravitating towards eclectic tabletop collections that verge the unconventional. I seek out unique pieces that make a statement, applying a collectors mindset to the art of the table. While browsing Fivestory, the new luxury concept boutique on the Upper East Side, I discovered Lladro’s Equus collection designed by Bodo Sperlein. Inspired by the beauty and elegance of the physique of horses, the collection repurposes horse heads and legs from old Lladro figurines to accent cups and bowls. By placing the elements in an unconventional context, Sperlein aimed to entice the viewers curiousity while drawing attention to the unmistakable craftsmanship of Lladro porcelain. Shop the collection at Artedona

Golden Spider Silk at the V&A

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One of the most interesting new additions to London’s prestigious Victoria & Albert museum is a exhibition showcasing the world’s largest pieces of cloth made from spider silk. On display is an elaborate embroidered cape and a 4 meter long scarf. The silk used to produce these items came from over one million female golden orb weaver spiders collected from the highlands of Madagascar. Everyday for seven years, 80 people collected wild spiders to produce enough silk to weave these striking pieces.  Not to worry, the spiders are kept safe. They are retained for about 12 hours, just enough time to extract the silk, and then they are returned to their natural environment. The display will run until June 5, 2012. via BBC

Opposites Attract: Cole Haan Soho Launches Mismatched Colorful Wingtip Oxfords

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  This weekend, as I passed the Cole Haan shop in Soho, a table of brightly colored oxfords caught my eye though the window. With color on my radar for spring, I couldn’t help but venture inside. It just so happens that Cole Haan was hosting a preview of their latest collection, a series of vibrant colored oxfords available in several variations for men and women. The style that I found most interesting was a unmatched pair comprised of two shoes with color dispersed in opposite areas of its mate. While I consider myself fairly forward-thinking in terms of fashion, I have never considered wearing two different shoes up until now. The more I think about it, the more it grows on me. It is like a wearable art exhibition. However, if you are not ready to brave the new trend, they have a remarkable assortment of solid colored wingtip oxfords available in rich shades of green, navy, and pink. These special edition styles are now available in limited quantities exclusively at Cole Haan 128 Prince Street, New …

Sticker Shock

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What will you get if you give thousands of stickers to thousands of kids and let them loose in a confined space? You will get the Obliteration Room, an instillation created by Yayoi Kusama at the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art. Kusama transformed a blank gallery into a domestic—style environment, then painted everything entirely white to enable it take shape as a canvas. Over the course of two weeks, the museum distributed colored dot stickers to children visitors encouraging them to take part in the creative transformation of the space. The result was visually extraordinary. Truly unexpected artistic chaos in its finest form. It is amazing what can take shape as a result of collaboration without boundaries. The Obliteration Room is a part of Kusama’s Look Now, See Forever exhibition that runs until March 12.

Patterns from Above

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Lately, I have been finding inspiration from nature and our surroundings. Sometimes it takes abandoning conventional methods of thought and looking at things with an abstract perspective. That is exactly the approach that Brent Yaggi & Sarah Hicks, a couple from Colorado took. Over the past 3 years they have traveled across the country to photograph North America from above. In a Cessna 172  2,000 feet high, they captured the abstract beauty of the landscape below. To see more and to purchase, visit their site: Patterns from Above via Because I am Addicted

Molas: Kuna Textiles of Panama

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I just returned from Costa Rica. As usual, I was on a hunt to satisfy my textile obsession. While the indigenous communities of Costa Rica are not known for textile production, I managed to discover a group that is, just over the border in Panama. The Kuna Indians, a tribal community occupying the San Blas islands off the Eastern coast of Panama are recognized for their colorful geometric cotton panels referred to as Molas. The elaborate, artistic textiles are created utilizing a reverse appliqué technique applied to several layers of different color cloth, through which designs are carved. Molas have become a part of the traditional dress of the Kuna women. They are attached to the front of blouses and skirts as a form of artistic expression and a celebration of the culture.

The Human Kaleidoscope

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Ok Go collaborated with the renowned experimental dance company, Pilobolus for their latest video All is Not Lost. Known for pushing the boundaries in the realm of music videos, Ok Go has taken it step further to produce a piece of work that is more a digital masterpiece than a music video. With a little help from Google Chrome and their master programmers, synchronized dancers take shape as a human kaleidoscope. View the full experience through your Google Chrome browser here www.allisnotlo.st