RGB BERLIN

Color code your surroundings according to your mood, RGB, a shop in Berlin is taking the idea to the next level. The shop opened by Lina Muller and Anne Meister last May, changes it's colour every month and everything offered on the premise is done according to this color. Dressed in Yellow in May, it has since been wearing Red in June, still in Blue for July but soon going Turquoise for August, Pink in September, Orange in October, Green in November and White in December. Alongside the designers clothes there's also art openings, music events and a gastronomic business.









Fotos von Katja Oortman



Foto von Katja Oortman


via Yatzer, RGB

THE ACHILLES PROJECT

A store/bar/restaurant/art gallery, or more simply, a project, and more specifically, the Achilles Project is changing the way we’ve thought about retail. The all- in- one has opened in Boston on Summer Street and reflects the ever- changing young shopping demographic who needs more than a rack of clothes and a few dressing rooms for the full shopping experience; Achilles stimulates customers through all senses. Keeping with the Greek namesake, the project contains a restaurant named Persephone that features award-winning chef Michael Leviton as well as a great bar. Not only can you get a great meal, but you can also get your game on; the Project contains Xbox 360 and Wii for all of your kick back needs as well as a full DJ booth and an open WiFi network. You can use the right side of your brain a little more by browsing the selection of local artists’ work displayed throughout the space.

The boutique not only features exclusive and limited-run clothing and accessories for men and women from buyer, Shaka Ramsey, but also carries unreleased collections from designers and artists. The majority of Achilles’ denim products are eco-friendly in keeping with the green movement and their hand tags are created locally. They even have a program where the youngest of creatives, kids, can create their own limited edition labels to support Artists for Humanities. The store also has plans to release an in-house collection debuting Fall ’08.

via WE ARE THE MARKET

Bercario Primetime (Primetime child learning center)

"This project is the first Brazilian nursery developed from a program specially directed for children aged from zero to 3 years, based on an exclusive educational concept.” Says Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27) on Bercario Primetime (Primetime child learning center).

By: Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk 27)

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Project Details

• Project Name: Bercario Primetime (Primetime child learning center)
• Location of Site: Sao Paulo, Brazil
• Principal Designer/s: Marcio Kogan
• Design Team: Diana Radomysler, Oswaldo Pessano, Renata Furlanetto, Samanta Cafardo, Suzana Glogowski, Lair Reis, Carolina Castroviejo, Eduardo Glycerio, Maria Cristina Motta, Gabriel Kogan, Mariana Simas
• Project Type: Educational/Nursery
• Contractor/s: Fakiani Contrucoes (General Contractor)
• Site Area: 900 sq. mt.
• Built-up Area: 870.75 sq. mt.
• Date of commencement: January, 2005
• Date of completion: August, 2007

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Words from the architect

"I am 18 months old. Today, for the first time, I went to my nursery school; and it is there that I will spend the better part of my day, while mommy and daddy are working. I found the place a little strange. I heard my daddy commenting that the building was of modern architecture. I do not know what modern is. In fact, I do not know what architecture is.

I did not like the roof, because it is very high, but I did like that it has little round holes, like cheese. I also liked the ramp that I can crawl on and that everything there is very colorful: there is a wooden fence at the entrance, and the outside part of the building is grey (like the city is grey). Above the entrance there is a hanging yellow box and I just don't know how it doesn't fall! Yellow is my favorite color.

I have a lot of fun with the windows that are really big and everything there has a lot of light. Some of the window-frames are made of alveolar poly-carbonate. Today I learned what an alveolar poly-carbonate window-frame is.

But the spot that I liked best is an old wooden house in the backyard. There I can play a lot, everything is my height and nothing can hurt me! I thought that this was very cool."

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

This project is the first Brazilian nursery developed from a program specially directed for children aged from zero to 3 years, based on an exclusive educational concept.

The focus of the project was to incorporate the specificities of this program, seeking adequate creative solutions.

The priority was to conceive of an abstract non-stereotypical space with a lucid character that would meet the functional demands of the numerous procedures involved.

Circulation is achieved through ramps and the use of friendly materials such as, the soft floor and operational ergonometry, were fundamental for a safe and comfortable environment where the children could readily develop their activities.

The technical team involved adhered to this same orientation, offering ideal solutions for the best air and water quality, floor heating and balanced lighting.

The landscaping was equally conceived to guarantee the safe interaction among the children.

In addition to using natural materials, the colors yellow, orange and red were selected to create a stimulating atmosphere.

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Photograph by Nelson Kon, courtesy of Marcio Kogan Arquiteto (mk27).

Credits

• Text by Gabriel Kogan
• Photographs by Nelson Kon

via AP Architecture

Home of the Twisted Films of PES

Check out the work of PES

Clothing Retailer Misses Word of Mouth Opportunity

This weekend I took @mariagarcia to Soho to show her one of my favorite shops in the neighborhood. I had discovered it a week ago and wanted to go back with her to capture a few photos I could use in a blog post proclaiming my love for the brand. While we shopped, I snapped a few photos of elements of the in-store experience that stood out to me... until I was interrupted by a store clerk who informed me that "it is against store policy to allow customers to take photos in our store." Although I assured her that I was not some kind of spy sent from a competitor but was a blogger taking photos to show readers (who might not otherwise get to see a store that's only located at the moment in NY, TX and CA and has a rather limited online shopping experience) why I loved it, she told me that I'd need to contact the corporate office and get clearance to do so.

I was really annoyed. By this point, I'd personally spent a considerable amount of money as a customer, had brought my friend along to do the same, and was going to invest time and space on my blog to show readers how much I enjoyed the brand. I imagined that the corporate office was, at the same time, probably meeting to strategize methods of pitching bloggers or getting customers like me to become brand evangelists. They were spending money at a macro level to plan, and yet, at a micro, in-store level, I was literally being prevented from doing the very thing they were most likely working to promote.

The clerk was nice, and really just doing her job to enforce a policy her bosses had given her. And although I respected policy and turned off my camera, it really left me thinking, something's gotta change! We live in a world where companies more than ever hope to see customers share WOM about their brands; at the same time, we as customers have more devices that allow us to instantly do so. Yet, in-store, we're told to turn off our cameras, camera phones, Flip Videos... and to clear our instinct to spread WOM with the corporate office. I met other retailers that day who were happy to have me take photos and speak with them about the brand. You'll be seeing my blog posts about them later this week.

via Adrants
by Amanda Mooney

Defenestration in San Francisco

photo / Shawn McClung

photo / Shawn McClung

photo / Shawn McClung

photo / Shawn McClung

photo / Dawn Endico

photo / Franco Folini

photo / K Hellyer

photo / Princeps autem justus

photo / Octoferret

photo / Octoferret

photo / Elliot Harmon

photo / Tracy Collins

home / Matthew Baker

DEFENESTRATION
1997-present
(Site-specific installation on the corner of 6th and Howard St. in San Francisco)

This multi-disciplinary sculptural mural involves seemingly animated furniture; tables, chairs, lamps, grandfather clocks, a refrigerator, and couches, their bodies bent like centipedes, fastened to the walls and window-sills, their insect-like legs seeming to grasp the surfaces. Against society's expectations, these everyday objects flood out of windows like escapees, out onto available ledges, up and down the walls, onto the fire escapes and off the roof. "Defenestration" was created with the help of over 100 volunteers.
The concept of "Defenestration", a word literally meaning "to throw out of a window," is embodied by the both the site and staging of this installation. Located at the corner of Sixth and Howard Streets in San Francisco in an abandoned four-story tenement building, the site is part of a neighborhood that historically has faced economic challenge and has often endured the stigma of skid row status. Reflecting the harsh experience of many members of the community, the furniture is also of the streets, cast-off and unappreciated. The simple, unpretentious beauty and humanity of these downtrodden objects is reawakened through the action of the piece. The act of "throwing out" becomes an uplifting gesture of release, inviting reflection on the spirit of the people we live with, the objects we encounter, and the places in which we live.

interesting interview with Brian Goggin (the creator) by Rusty Dornin for CNN

SAN FRANCISCO (CNN) -- Look! Up in the sky! It's a table! It's a chair!

It's furniture in positions that shouldn't be possible -- 23 pieces stuck to the side of an abandoned building by an artist who's willing to go out on a ledge.

"I wanted to get art out of the gallery and out of the museum," said, Brian Goggin. "I'm interested in working with absurdity in ways that are compelling and entertaining."

Entertaining, to say the least, for the opening of urban art in what can only be described as the urban circus.

"Kind of Disneyesque or, uh, Dali," said one eyewitness. "It's definitely rocking right here man, with the furniture and everything."

Sitting on a couch that looks as if it's perched on the roof in mid-air, Goggin explains his brainchild.

"Each piece of furniture like the one I'm sitting on has a steel framework that works inside of the piece and is attached to the side of the building with wood and steel separating it," he said. "So if some piece of the building falls in an earthquake, the (art) piece will still stay here."

via Yatzer

Tea, Tennis, Faceless Aliens at Wimbledon

As the 2008 Wimbledon fortnight played itself out, the event offered all of its traditional trappings -- immaculately mown grass, clean yellow tennis balls, breakfasts of strawberries and cream and well-dressed faceless alien androids.

The creepy spectators (above) had already showed up at Harrod's and other spots around London, but their persistent pop-ups at the All-England Tennis Club were by far their most public appearances. A couple of the world's more ingenious media outlets reported that the figures weren't really faceless and had pinholes in their masks for the actors' eyes.

It was a viral marketing stunt -- about the anonymity of humankind in the information age.

Lotus set up this countdown website as part of this manufactured ex-mystery.

Lotus, The Question wants his gimmick back. So does The Blank.

By John Scott Lewinski

via cherry flava, underwire

Image courtesy Splash, BBC News