Cool Hunting

Art Force One Sneakers
Manu Angot has become pretty well known in recent years for his Manu Customs. Specializing in hand-painted designs on everything from shoes to electronics, Manu has created quite a name for himself with his brand Art Force One. On our recent trip to Paris, we discovered that there was more to Manu than Nikes and Reeboks. Walking into Aimecube in the 1st Arrondisement, we...

Ramon Vega: Bomb Scare
Appropriated images become pop kaleidoscopic spectacles in Ramon Vega's work. By isolating figures from the barrage of pop culture, the RISD grad creates snowflake-like patterns—the repeated symmetry has the meditative feel of religious mandalas—referencing sports and fashion. The results, like "Inside Upside" (pictured, click for detail) retain their slickly commercial feel and are also surreal configurations of the body, not unlike the work of Jean-Paul...

Paul McCarthy: Head Shop/Shop Head
From gross-out, almost juvenile humor to absurd pop spectacles—like his ongoing outdoor series of large-scale inflatable sculptures—Los Angeles-based artist Paul McCarthy's work is known for poking fun at consumerism by making even the most unassuming objects intimidating and bizarre. His latest show, "Head Shop/Shop Head" at Moderna Museet in Stockholm that opened this month (through 3 September 2006) includes an extensive array of new...

Found in Translation
The innovative Japanese sneaker brand, Onitsuka Tiger teamed up with Ramp Industry to develop Found in Translation, a new website that went live earlier this month celebrating the latest designs and movements of Anglo-Japanese talent. The site's combination of audio, video, and animation, as well as special downloads that users can turn into their own customized pieces, makes it well worth a visit. Cultural...

AKA x NikeiD Charity Auction Nears $15,000
On 10 May 2006 Also Known As put seven pairs of NikeiD patent leather Dunk Lo's on Ebay in an auction to benefit Free Arts NYC. The bidding has already reached $14,800 with over 100 bids! The colors were inspired by vintage spray paint and the sneakers made exclusively for AKA, the New York based graf art collective. Free Arts NYC is a non-profit...

Joshua Gurrie
While Australian illustrator and painter Joshua Gurrie takes inspiration from the racier elements of contemporary popular culture, his work also seeks to counter the over-saturation of "pop media, web junk and glossy sneakers." He achieves this with clean black lines that pierce the page with their directness and his work is notable for its lack of excessive ornamentation. Gurrie’s background in design contributes to...