In the spirit of Kimou’s great post about the May 68 uprising in Paris, this is a comic from 1984 by American artist Seth Tobocman. Its obvious that no matter what the country, language, culture or era there are universal ideas about basic human rights and expression that, if the people are denied these rights long enough, there will be a reaction. No justice? No peace.
Posted on May 14, 2008 at 06:33 AM | Comment (0 comments) | Digg
Robert Rauschenberg, Dies at 82.
Some people just have a way of putting things together and inventing. Robert Rauschenburg’s collage, sculpture, painting and screenprint had an big impact on me growing up. There are the well-known pieces, but also a bunch of random ones: a light-exposed six-foot tall sheet of blueprint paper from 1950. From the New York Times: “No American artist, Jasper Johns once said, invented more than Mr. Rauschenberg.” Big statement (if its true, Juan is a close second), but this is seriously good stuff, man.
Posted on May 13, 2008 at 08:02 PM | Comment (0 comments) | Digg
Just wanted to say thanks (Mom and Dad). No matter what I was up to, you two were always in my corner. Love you!
Posted on May 11, 2008 at 04:39 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Digg
Looks like EA Sports is attempting give soccer some ‘street cred’ with their new game, FIFA Street 3, by letting you “Hit the streets with some of the best Pro Players and experience all the style and attitude of street football.” Allen hit some of us up to customize a soccer ball for a promo to coincide with the launch of the game. I figured this might help them with that ‘street cred’.
Posted on April 22, 2008 at 09:41 PM | Comment (2 comments) | Digg
George Bernard hit me up to collaborate on some new flyers. Needless to say, I was honored to have the chance to work him*.
*Ok, so maybe I didn’t work on these. But George, love the style man. Hit me up if you need anything.
Posted on April 16, 2008 at 11:14 AM | Comment (1 comments) | Digg
Oh man, oh man. Todd James put up this post today. Out of all the craze, this one takes the cake. Is that David St. Hubbins wife?
Posted on April 11, 2008 at 02:46 PM | Comment (2 comments) | Permalink | Digg
David Axelrod was a prolific producer/arranger in the 60’s and 70’s. Any of you breakbeat diggers out there definitely know who he is. And you’ve all heard his trademark heavily mic’ed drums before; he’s been sampled to death. Working for Capitol records with Lou Rawls and Cannonball Adderly, he consistently produced hit after hit for both of them.
Release of An Oath (1968) was Axelrod’s second album with the Electric Prunes (although none of the original members of the Electric Prunes were actually on this record). And its a strange one: a mostly instrumental “spiritual” concept album that is dark, sparse, moody and complex. But man does it fucking rock. Dramatic strings and haunting woodwinds, organs and hard-hitting drums with tripped-out guitar solos. Classical, rock, jazz, soul, R&B all wrapped up in one meticulously arranged group of songs. It defies categorization, and that’s always sign of artistic genius. Holy Are You . . .
Posted on April 11, 2008 at 10:18 AM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
The dude at Police Informer is steadily posting a very well-selected catalog of 90’s skateboarding gems.
Posted on March 31, 2008 at 02:50 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Here is a great example of a beautiful design that didn’t meet, or maybe outright ignored, its real-world objectives. Massimo Vignelli’s New York City Subway map of 1972 is as beautiful and thoughtful as it is ignorant. Central Park as a square? Sure, why not. But hey, when your name is Massimo and you have photos like this floating around, you can do whatever the hell you want.
Posted on March 27, 2008 at 11:08 AM | Comment (0 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Did you know where shapes that make up the international ‘peace’ symbol came from? Me neither. Here is what the BBC says.
Posted on March 21, 2008 at 09:27 AM | Comment (4 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Stevie D. at three legendary Chicago spots. Slashin’ at Seawall with frigid Lake Michigan lurking below, a truck-bending wallride at 1st National Bank downtown and snapping one at the Firehole on the Northside. Yeah!
Posted on March 15, 2008 at 10:56 AM | Comment (3 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Rode out to Queens to Kissena Velodrome on Sunday with Kyle, Mike, Massan, Joe and Shino (a special and very fast guest from Tokyo). To say it was cold out there would be an understatement. So with a firm “Roger That!” from FDNY-Mike, we built a good old picket-line style oil-drum fire to stay warm. Between that and the PBR’s, it was almost enjoyable out there. Ended up in Jamaica and got a chance to ride around and see parts of Queens that I hadn’t before. Saw some unusual architecture, a magical airbrushed dragon and met some new people. Left Manhattan at noon and didn’t get home until midnight. Good Sunday.
Posted on March 10, 2008 at 09:29 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Who knew CW11 had Soul Train re-runs on Saturday nights?
Posted on March 10, 2008 at 08:15 PM | Comment (3 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Especially when they are a Ducati 916, a Desmodesici and Valentino Rossi’s bike. This was model heaven in Tokyo. Ships, cars, motorcycles, airplanes in all shapes and sizes. I remember being little and wanting to get models, but was always bummed when they didn’t look as good as the hi-tech airbrush and marker illustrations on the box.
Posted on March 08, 2008 at 03:56 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Falling in line with my slight obsession of all things 60’s lately, here are two of my favorite title sequences from Saul Bass. The first are the end titles for West Side Story (1961) and the second group is for Alfred Hitchcock’s North By Northwest (1959). Here is a sweet site that has cataloged and written about his motion picture work over the years.
Posted on March 02, 2008 at 05:56 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Don’t need to say much about this one. A 13-year old Stevie, surfin’ the sidewalks in 1975.
Posted on February 27, 2008 at 10:00 PM | Comment (2 comments) | Permalink | Digg
More selected gems from Stevie’s photo archives. A sick wallride, a sweet layback and a live show at CBGB’s with his band UNGH!.
Posted on February 13, 2008 at 11:39 AM | Comment (4 comments) | Permalink | Digg
A couple of pages from The Conformers (1960) by Jack Wohl.
Posted on February 13, 2008 at 11:21 AM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Lately, a lot of things I’ve been looking at, listening to and reading have been from the 60’s. From a PBS documentary, to Mailer, to Jane Jacobs, to Marvin Gaye; one thing always leads to another. Next thing you know, everything ends up relating back to that era in some way. Here is some 60’s Midtown and Times Square-inspired type for a new round of 5boro boards.
Posted on February 12, 2008 at 05:54 PM | Comment (3 comments) | Permalink | Digg
A short lived NYC-inspired company that was run through DLX in the mid-90’s, Metropolitan. Look at the team lineup. Beautiful photography by Ari Marcopoulos that really communicated a specific mood, place and time.
Posted on January 31, 2008 at 10:42 AM | Comment (2 comments) | Permalink | Digg
Pulitzer Prize winning American novelist and all around old-school hard-ass, Norman Mailer is an interesting character. Mailer had an unsuccessful run for New York City Mayor in 1969 (see original campaign poster below), proposing a New York City secession and creating a 51st state. He was also married 6 times and stabbed one of his wives with a penknife at a party. Whatever your opinion is on him, he definitely was not afraid to speak his mind and call it the way he saw it. Rest in peace, Norman.
Posted on January 30, 2008 at 12:22 PM | Comment (1 comments) | Permalink | Digg
