a visual collective outlet of inspiration
buñuel and malle meet, smile, and discuss just who is truly more surrealistic in their celluloid pursuits? maybe they just talked about how much they love this song and how it should’ve been their nonexistent sitcom’s intro music. by sv
tomorrow started
peter sellers: our kind of playboy
the incomparable mr. sellers mocking as he does all too well. by sv
coffee shop surprise!
perhaps next time you’ll think twice about being such a pain in the ass about that triple mocha soy latte? by hk
a liberal decalogue
bertrand russell, a paragon of many genres, discusses his ideas on the vindications of education, the undenying value of uncertainty, the quintessence of critical thinking and intelligent criticism. these are, if nothing else, words to live by for any pseudo-quasi-hip-atheist-agnostic-self-but-not-really-loathing human being:
“perhaps the essence of the liberal outlook could be summed up in a new decalogue, not intended to replace the old one but only to supplement it. the ten commandments that, as a teacher, i should wish to promulgate, might be set forth as follows:
1. do not feel absolutely certain of anything.
2. do not think it worth while to proceed by concealing evidence, for the evidence is sure to come to light.
3. never try to discourage thinking for you are sure to succeed.
4.when you meet with opposition, even if it should be from your husband or your children, endeavor to overcome it by argument and not by authority, for a victory dependent upon authority is unreal and illusory.
5. have no respect for the authority of others, for there are always contrary authorities to be found.
6. do not use power to suppress opinions you think pernicious, for if you do the opinions will suppress you.
7. do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.
8. find more pleasure in intelligent dissent than in passive agreement, for, if you value intelligence as you should, the former implies a deeper agreement than the latter.
9. be scrupulously truthful, even if the truth is inconvenient, for it is more inconvenient when you try to conceal it.
10. do not feel envious of the happiness of those who live in a fool’s paradise, for only a fool will think that it is happiness.” by sv
the fast lane on the road to nowhere
bobby & rayette; jack & karen. the pieces aren’t always so easy. by sv
the age of the understatement
two of the most talented young rockers…. naturally english…..saw this video 3 years ago and to this date i love it…. by ars
even mj loved sir ian
jichael mackson, huge jd fan. i don’t know how dd will feel about this, but perhaps it will alter his current outlook. by sv
a moment of tranquility
view from my terrace in sweden right now. soaking in some peace and quiet before returning to the nyc hustle in three days. by hk
Chinese lights over Florence
nothing interesting about the food here (although we are in italy). despite that, i love the lettering of these chinese ideograms in contrast with the old walls of florence. direct from via dei servi, vicino al duomo. by nk
SILK PAVILION – by mediated matter group
silk pavilion explores the relationship between digital and biological fabrication on product and architectural scales.
the primary structure was created of 26 polygonal panels made of silk threads laid down by a CNC (computer-numerically controlled) machine. inspired by the silkworm’s ability to generate a 3D cocoon out of a single multi-property silk thread (1km in length), the overall geometry of the pavilion was created using an algorithm that assigns a single continuous thread across patches providing various degrees of density.
overall density variation was informed by the silkworm itself deployed as a biological “printer” in the creation of a secondary structure. a swarm of 6,500 silkworms was positioned at the bottom rim of the scaffold spinning flat non-woven silk patches as they locally reinforced the gaps across CNC-deposited silk fibers. following their pupation stage the silkworms were removed. resulting moths can produce 1.5 million eggs with the potential of constructing up to 250 additional pavilions.
affected by spatial and environmental conditions including geometrical density as well as variation in natural light and heat, the silkworms were found to migrate to darker and denser areas. desired light effects informed variations in material organization across the surface area of the structure. a season-specific sun path diagram mapping solar trajectories in space dictated the location, size and density of apertures within the structure in order to lock-in rays of natural light entering the pavilion from south and east elevations. the central oculus is located against the east elevation and may be used as a sun-clock.
parallel basic research explored the use of silkworms as entities that can “compute” material organization based on external performance criteria. specifically, we explored the formation of non-woven fiber structures generated by the silkworms as a computational schema for determining shape and material optimization of fiber-based surface structures.
research and design by the mediated matter research group at the MIT media lab in collaboration with prof. fiorenzo omenetto (TUFTS university) and dr. james weaver (WYSS institute, harvard university). mediated matter researchers include markus kayser, jared laucks, carlos david Gonzalez uribe, jorge duro-royo and neri oxman (director). by bw
rise and shine!
breakfast with bogart and betty. delicious indeed. by sv
ask: jehad nga – photojournalist
my favorite _____ is:
-villain: the editor
-hero/superhero: rodney mullen
-book: into the great wide open
-smell: santal 33
-fetish: al jazeera
-film: withnail and i
-band/musician/composer: the grateful dead
-artist: mariah robertson, chiara de rege, alex graham, jawal nga
–city: bamako, mali
-restaurant/ bar: a yemani fish place in djibouti
-drink/ cocktail: ginger ale
-decade: 90’s
-sport: skateboarding
-advice: “find what you love and let it kill you”
-nightmare: i’m marooned on an island with tracey emin
-shop: tokyo hands
-position: CEO
-vice: hacking
-woman (of all time): mom
-man (of all time): brother
-hobby: collecting civil war era tin type photos
-prized possession: my niece
way to go (die): while ingesting a twombly painting
