MORE PIX . . . from the opening of ‘untitled type 5’ – curated by RICHARD MEHL
‘sNice, West Village, NYC
the show opened Dec 1, 2012 and ran thru Dec 30, 2012
KATE CERIGO, ‘STRAYED STAYED’.
close-up, KATE CERIGO, ‘STRAYED, STAYED’ . . .
guess sometimes the biggest questions . . . need the softest .. touch.
DARREN WILL and KRISTEN ABATE join KATE CERIGO at the opening of ‘untitled type 5’. NYC, DEC 2012.
KRISTEN ABATE is an aspiring actress.
DARREN WILL plays bass for the Brooklyn band . . . LUKE RATHBORNE.
their next gig is at SHEA STADIUM in BROOKLYN this upcoming . . SAT JAN 12th.
as in . . . Live@Shea Stadium BK, 20 Meadow St. in . . Bushwick !!
go BROOKLYN !!
DANIELLE LEE – ‘LEGS ARE SEXY’ – seems to feel the same way . . .
that’s what’s so cool about graphics – they speak for themselves !!
DANIELLE LEE.
friends of DANIELLE LEE, and current students in the undergrad program at SVA, from left: BRANDON ELIVAN JOHNSON and ALEX CRUZ.
Brandon is in the Fine Arts studio program at SVA, while Alex is in the Graphic Design program.
TRISH RAE WONG – ‘AMPERSAND’. . . bridging minimalist to exotic, bringing the personal .. to the generic, flat-out font/symbol . . .
check out: TRISHA RAE WONG
we’re going to give the last word to PABLO DELKAN, and his chalk artwork/poster/design: ‘It’s Grisly End’ . . .
detail, PABLO DELKAN, ‘It’s Grisly End’ . . .
somehow, though grisly it may be, whatever … whoever, the graphics say: but, maybe not too . . . tragic.
detail, PABLO DELKAN.
when you can break it down . . . to a dance .. on paper.
check out: PABLO DELKAN
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~MINIMALIST . . . to GRISLY !! ‘sNice !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 7th, 2013, 5:21pm
MORE PIX . . . from the opening of ‘untitled type 5’ – curated by RICHARD MEHL
at ‘sNice, a vegetarian cafe in the West Village, NYC.
the show opened Dec 11, 2012 and ran thru Dec 30, 2012.
‘B’ is for … be here, now !!
this exuberant and, well – ‘kingly’ !! … ‘B’ is by … KENTON POWELL.
KENTON POWELL.
Don’t you .. ‘j’ me !!
a most wonderful, painterly . . . ‘J’ by – HAENARA IM.
HAENARA IM – with her ‘J’ . . . .
AERIAL CHEN, her contribution was more of a . . . conceptual/design/3D project.
AERIAL CHEN, at left, with her project .. of many books, which were arrayed along the middle bookshelf, and which were deeply cut into, so that the covers, now read as … numerals.
the piece is titled, ‘Pure Love Triangle’, 2012.
Found books, textured paper and foam board.
detail, AERIAL CHEN .. ‘Pure Love Triangle’.
“. . . while a love triangle is typically a socially unfavorable form of relationship, it is not the case here. ‘Pure Love Triangle’ explores the connections between the uprising of Vegetarianism, Veganism, along with ‘sNice, and expressing it through the combination of typography, form, and the environment.” ~ project statement, Aerial Chen.
detail, AERIAL CHEN, ‘Pure Love Triangle.’
detail, AERIAL CHEN, ‘Pure Love Triangle.’
close-up detail, AERIAL CHEN, ‘Pure Love Triangle’.
Designer/artists: RICHARD MEHL, the show’s curator, with AERIAL CHEN . . . at the opening of ‘untitled type 5’, ‘sNice, NYC, Dec 11, 2012.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
note: more pix from the opening to follow . . .
~B, J … and, V is for VEGAN. ‘sNice !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 4th, 2013, 10:07am
GOING INTO THE NEW YEAR, 2013 – GRAPHICS SEEM TO BE . . . THE NAME of the GAME.
Graphics. graphic images, whether abstract or representational, purely font or image-based … in ads or art, used as informational tools; random or patterned; popping up in the big universal questions, and in smaller screen state-of-the-art digital code-programs, not to forget, website design per se . . . and, even as . . . compressed expressionistic flourishes in big paintings on old-fashioned canvas, seem to be – the really – big deal right now.
it’s no wonder the cutting edge graphic design artists in this city are simply referring to themselves as … designers !!
and that includes the latest crop of (way happening) fashion, as in clothing … designers, too.
you could slowly see it creeping in over the past year, in the new crop of abstract artists, the new wave of photographic site-specific artists, and even in that big Brooklyn-dominated Zine show, ‘Diamond Leaves’ … in China. even the recent CARROLl DUNHAM show – really popped forward – in this way.
same with the iconic Americana images of TAYLOR McKIMENS, for that matter. Comic art, also big – and only getting bigger, of course has always had very strong graphic design elements, both in the panel compositions and, font use.
and, street art ? ditto. big time !!
so it was fitting that the end of last year featured 2 design shows, both full of fresh talent and ideas, both in off-the-mainstream venues, or: plain straight … outta-the-white-box !!
there was ‘untitled type 5’ at a sweet and cozy vegetarian West Village cafe .. by the name of .. ‘sNice (!!) – curated by RICHARD MEHL, graphic designer and instructor at SVA, which presented a casual and diverse show of works by SVA students and alumni, and then opening just a week or so later, at the Ace Hotel – a more structured group show, ‘FIFTY-FIFTY’ – produced and curated by DAN CASSARO, who also happens to be a fairly recent SVA Graphic Design graduate.
RICHARD MEHL at the opening of ‘untitled type 5’ at s’Nice. Dec 11, 2012.
behind him work by PABLO DELKAN, left and, by LAUREN HOM, on the right.
‘These Heels Don’t Hurt’ . . . by LAUREN HOM.
the fun thing about this show – was the use of very ‘outright’ fonts to really try and say something: well, personal !!
looks like trippin’ over a lot of rude people – is a never-ending part of the reality battleground.
urban dictionary has some even more colorful uses, just … don’t get me started, or I’ll be a-naming names !!
‘I’ll Be There in 5 Minutes’ – by LAUREN HOM.
see: LAUREN HOM – HOM SWEET HOM (!!)
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH. NYC DEC 11, 2012.
NOTE: MORE PIX – FROM BOTH SHOWS – TO KEEP POSTING . . . GOING FORWARD !!
~GRAPHICS .. seem to be the name of the game . . . ‘sNice !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 3rd, 2013, 2:31pm
HAPPY HOLIDAYS – ANIMATED !! – 2012 – FROM . . . LUKE MURPHY !!
see: h@ppy hOL1d@y5 at LUKE LAB – and watch the tree glitter and shimmer … its digital dance !!
not to mention – throw snow – up, backwards !!
or, are those … sparks of .. light ?
shooting stars ?
see: more of Luke’s digital/program projects, here . . . LUKE LAB
LUKE MURPHY – designed & runs that mighty elegant ‘banner’ animation, that appears at the top of this homepage.
it’s infinitely random & it’s also infinitely ‘pinpoint’ capable – of being engaged by any individual user, and that means: YOU !! just shimmy your mouse over it & click.
and you wonder why I’m into … astronomy/astrology, and the infinite … design / pattern vs random – of the universe/skies.
~HAPPY NEW YEAR . . . PRESENT !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 2nd, 2013, 12:02pm
from our archives !!
TAYLOR McKIMENS . . . GREETINGS 2010 – !!
TAYLOR McKIMENS – HAPPY NEW YEAR – 2010 !!
~HAPPY NEW YEAR . . . PAST !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 2nd, 2013, 11:55am
TAYLOR McKIMENS – PARTY ON !!
MIKE KELLEY – R.I.P.
TAYLOR McKIMENS will be showing a new painting, a portrait of artist MIKE KELLEY, which he made especially for this show, a solo show of work by TOM SANFORD, which contains a group show curated by Tom Sanford, as well.
the group show is an assortment of artists … “making portraits of important figures that have died during 2012.”
TOM SANFORD – ‘100 LITTLE DEATHS’ – OPENING NEW YEARS EVE MON DEC 31 / 6-9 PM
the show runs DEC 31, 2012 – FEB 9, 2013.
BRAVINLEE PROGRAMS – 526 W 26th ST #211 – CHELSEA, NYC
more info on the show: TOM SANFORD – ‘100 LITTLE DEATHS’
remember TOM SANFORD ?
he’s the guy who did that eerie ‘dead-on’ painting of . . . WHITNEY HOUSTON in her last bath … for that way crazy … FREIGHT+VOLUME SUMMER SHOW: ‘THE DOUBLE DIRTY DOZEN’ – rated XXXXX !!
see: THE DOUBLE DIRTY DOZEN
PORTRAIT OF RECENTLY DECEASED (2012) MIKE KELLEY – BY TAYLOR McKIMENS. IMAGE COURTESY of the artist.
~TAYLOR McKIMENS . . . PARTY ON !! OPENING NEW YEARS EVE !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 30th, 2012, 4:46pm
there’s ‘BRANDING’, and then there’s . . . . BRANDING !!
for the past year, as DUKE RILEY tells it:
Sully, Annie and myself have been the proprietors of a speakeasy called ROTGUT.
When we got together and decided to open a bar — a cheap place for our friends to hang out and drink on the low-down, occasionally do art, screen films and have bands play, we had no idea that this experiment would catch on and grow as it has.
We’re at 113 Franklin St, GREENPOINT, BROOKLYN – behind the wheelchair ramp.
Membership cards are $20 and come with 5 complimentary drinks (meaning, it’s dirt cheap!).
Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights after 11pm
We’re planning to extend the nights to Sundays for the month of January, for those of you who haven’t been down, and regulars who want more time.
And we’re taking suggestions for any final performances people might want to see there.
We will also have some ROTGUT memorabilia for you sentimental fools.
Anyone who has left their undergarments in the corner over the past year, this is the last month to pick ’em up.
DUKE RILEY.
see: DUKE RILEY
see: facebook.com/dukeriley
continues ….
~DUKE RILEY . . . PARTY ON !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 30th, 2012, 4:22pm
MY SO-CALLED CRAFTY LIFE !! GOES SWEET – on XMAS !!
so, of course in the middle of ‘trending’ the new season as a purely ‘graphic’ one – wouldn’t you know – a little hands-on folksy ‘crafts’ site out of NORTH CAROLINA – pops up on the radar.
well, I guess that’s what you get, when you start googling for vintage Christmas ornaments, and snowy Christmas card scenes.
though I think what really attracted me to this site – was not so much the ‘how-to’, as the cheery and simplistic, and (very authentic) vintage-originated graphics/dynamics . . . of the projects, of the craft imagery, and of . . . the over-all website design.
no, everything does not begin and end . . . . in Brooklyn !!
it’s also an interesting ‘end-run’ on the graphic ‘gentrification’ or generic secularization of Christmas, from baby Jesus in a cradle surrounded by the 3 wise men – to … ‘can-do’ toy trains, gaily wrapped presents, and jolly ole SANTA, himself !!
that secularization/illustration/design evolution, the hijacking (/) of Christmas, is an interesting story – waiting to be told. it doesn’t fit that neatly into simply … a spiritual vs commercial definition, that’s for sure.
back to the site itself, MY SO CALLED CRAFTY LIFE – can also be seen – as an interesting window into … Americana.
and how one other artist/crafter/blogger lives, to tell her tale and – share her world. if you look closely enough, little clues, of all kinds – pop up.
it’s as American – as apple pie. and Christmas. or should we make that . . . XMAS !!
check out: MY SO-CALLED CRAFTY LIFE … by ASHLEE
that seems to be: ASHLEE PARK, out of FUQUAY-VARINA, NORTH CAROLINA, according to the ETSY SHOP/PAGE
from: MY SO CALLED CRAFT LIFE – a hand-made CHRISTMAS BOWL – made with VINTAGE CHRISTMAS CARDS:
ALL IMAGES C/O MY SO CALLED CRAFTY LIFE
~XMAS CRAFTIN’ & BRANDING . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 30th, 2012, 3:44pm
Chingle bells, chingle bells . . .
FILE UNDER: DESIGN . . . CHINGLISH, or what ?!!
you know, ‘Chinglish’ – a kind of mangled English – most commonly encountered when reading a how-to-manual accompanying a cheap made-in-China product.
SO: just to show how ‘locked-in’ accurate – those centuries-old ‘celestial’ astronomer/astrologer ‘brandings’ were, across once greatly separated and very diverse patches of culture, and . . . how well their [very complicated] information . . . traveled through the ages . . .
consider this 2012 Christmas ornament, found in a local 99 cent store !!
ok. so it’s a great color – scarlet red, even though it’s made of thin, but hard plastic, and it’s nicely reflective, too. and, YES !! the white glittery ornamentation – is hand-painted !! the whole deal, 2 for 1 dollar – !! – approximates ‘real’ vintage Xmas ornaments – pretty nicely. but, there’s something mighty weird about it, no ?
something is definitely – OFF.
what the hell . . is that FERN-LIKE ‘flower’ or tropical tree-like shape – ablowin’ . . . in the snowy wind ?
I guess this is what – they were really, or originally going after . . . snow-covered Christmas tress !!
. . . rising out of the snow-covered ground, but having never experienced the reality, or just somebody dropped the ball design-wise ? the Chinese factory-worker artisans switched, as in inverted – the organic orientation, and put them – upside-down !!
Chingle bells, or what !!
yep, something got lost in the translation.
PHOTO: antique Christmas ornaments c/o Vintage Christmas Ornaments
these are the exact type of antique Christmas ball ornaments – that the Chinese 99 cent marketers were hoping to emulate. Made of shiny glass, they have hand-painted snowy glittery white scenes, greetings & details. I think I even have one or two with that exact snowy Christmas tree scene, but not exactly on hand. they are pretty common, or were. too bad there aren’t any in the collection pictured, above.
what an interesting graphic mix-up.
the implications re the transmission of ‘garbled’ multi-cultural info – in today’s global/babel world is apparently wide-open, you can only respect the ancients – for the strength and accuracy of their art, ‘branding’ & informational graphics.
PHOTOS & ARTWORK: NANCY SMITH, unless otherwise noted.
~LOST in TRANSLATION . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 29th, 2012, 9:30pm
JUPITER – PERSONIFIED !! image via Astrology on the Web
sweet info / communication / graphic design logo !! or what ?!!
talk about ‘BRANDING’ !!
JUPITER OVER MANHATTAN . . . .
well that does bring some other thoughts to mind, esp about cameras.
it’s funny, as in INTENSE (!!) . . .
if you think on it. the contrast between the kind of information early man picked up about JUPITER, that distant tiny bright orb they saw up in the sky . . . and the way they went on to classify its influence on them, which in turn – lead them in fact to . . . ‘deify’ it.
VS . . . the purely ‘pictorial’ information we get from that contemporary NASA composite photograph transmitted from space – in real time.
as to the question of the ‘greater’ force – i.e. the force behind the ‘ultimate’ design project – the night sky and the universe.
get this: the PLANET, SATURN itself – was/is the GREATER FORCE. it’s as simple as that.
I know it’s still hard for us to understand that a huge ball of ‘smoke’ and ‘light’- as opposed to an old man with a long beard or a beautiful damsel siren, or even a fire-breathing dragon – can be a ‘greater’ force. and that’s exactly why the early people ‘personified ‘ it.
and yes, that falls under: ART.
painting, sculpture, graphic design, logos, pictorial codes, maps, etc. etc.
the planet transmitted a powerful kind of ‘influence’ that drove civilization, just as surely as our mighty sun, sends warmth and drives agriculture, which in turn feeds, and nourishes us.
SATURN and its ‘impulse’ and perceived effect & interpretation of that affect – nourished us, intellectually – in the push towards advanced knowledge and evolution.
yep. it’s hard, even today, or esp today (!!) to get your head around that kind of ‘power’ transmission – it is so beyond our own 3-D existence – and that’s probably why – !! – the early peoples, and esp the Greeks, personified the planets, and the other heavenly bodies – as ‘GODS’ . . . .
in our own ‘image’. (also know as … the beginnings of ART !!, duh.)
like I said, talk about – the power of design branding !!
not to forget: informational graphics.
which is really quite amazing when we think on it, the knowledge they had of the planets and their inherent ‘powers’ – except to note how much more silent the world was once, and how bonded to the physical aspects of the earth and sky – our early ancestors – were.
so I guess the bigger question is: is there an even greater power, or master designer … behind the ‘planets’, an overall architect .. of the universe ?
IT’S SUPER INTENSE – to contrast that flow and ‘expression’ of ‘celestial’ power and information – to the technical triumph, (and, in way scale-back of intuited/experienced charted information) … of our contemporary world to being able to actually go up there – and actually photograph it !!
and then you realize at once – how absolutely ‘realist’ and yet inversely limited . . . the pictorial image really . . . is.
on some level, you really have to have had previous experience or detailed definition/knowledge of what is photographed – to be able to fully comprehend the ‘captured’ image.
I mean, just what does that incredible 2000 NASA composite photo of SATURN actually say, as in . . . . ‘reveal’,
esp with regard to the planet’s ‘powers’ or even its nightly journey.
or even, at base – that it rolls around in ‘space’. or even that it’s h-u-g-e.
our sense of its scale, does NOT come from the photograph per se – but from our previous knowledge.
in fact on some level, the photograph ‘denies’ the life force or ‘power’ of the subject. in case, the planetary sphere – where are the clues to its huge – centuries old documented spirit-existence ?
it brings to mind, just why those earth & sky bonded North American Indians were afraid of the photograph – it ‘stole’ the spirit, the life force of the photographer’s sitter. the photograph in its one dimensional ‘capture of ‘reality’ finds only the outer ‘image’ or physical plane . . By its very primal nature it – in fact DENIES the ‘hidden’ or inner life force aka the spiritual planes.
that’s why we, the art world so value photographers who can capture the inner aspect, such as WALKER EVANS, or even today … GREGORY CREWDSON.
and yes, you can file that under: ART.
SO, IT SEEMS, the more our modern super technology … ‘fact’ analyses the big planet … the more its spirit and powers … are minimalized at best, and downright denied at worst.
good-bye world as we knew it. maybe that’s what the Mayans meant about the end of the world /
yep, for sure. it’s hard to look at that photograph of a big ball of gases – and see “GOD”.
but WHOA !!
imagine the reverse scenario. instead of a big ball of yellow and gray swirling fumes – the space cameras had sent back an image of huge lone bearded guy floating all alone way up in space – in a kind of Christmas snowy snow-falling glass globe – ?
would we get it better, then.
I mean with all our centuries of religious imagery, maybe that would be more acceptable, but mighty w-e-i-r-d.
I mean do we really expect our ‘gods’ to be human in form ?
we are NOT supposed to.
most ancient religions are absolutely against portraying ‘god’ in a graven human form.
what do we expect ?
that out greater forces will be human-looking, just floating disconnected out there in infinite space.
????
I’m still waiting for the first ‘vocal’ recordings, from space. I do know from the Science pages – that they have finally admitted (!!) there are traces of ‘alien’ biology – in all of our DNA, from primordial micro creatures all the way up the food chain. I mean do we really think it’s going to come back as: a bearded man saying … ‘HELLO EARTHLINGS’ ???
more like, an alien from STAR WARS, how about JAR JAR !!
and he be saying . . . “WHERE ARE YOU ? HOLD ON, ON THE WAY TO HELP YOU ESCAPE” – !!
LISTEN TO: JUPITER …. NASA VOYAGER RECORDING
~JUPITER, PERSONIFIED . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 28th, 2012, 11:30am
