Cool Hunting
| 12 December 2006view entries from: this week | this month | view previous day | view next day |
Robin Rhode
by SummerSeventySix
The work of Berlin-based South African artist Robin Rhode really caught my eye at one of the Art Basel events in Miami last week. Art Positions features 22 shipping containers next to the beach, which galleries use to show their wares. Some opted to approximate their permanent spaces, while others were slowly filled with sand (Aaron Young's installation in the container of Harris Lieberman, above right), but Rhode's "Color Chart" stood out in the container from New York's Perry Rubenstein Gallery.
Seemingly shot from above with the subjects lying on their sides, it's a stop-motion animation featuring a man dressed entirely in white who slowly dispatches several enemies, one at a time, with bricks. It may sound like it was inspired by an old kung-fu arcade game, but the photography and the way it's animated has a powerful zen-like quality, similar to that from Rhode's "Stone Flag" (above left). Rhode's work was shown in Tokyo this year, and in May 2007, he'll have a solo show at Perry Rubenstein.
You can also see other animated works of his here.
Juxtaposed: Religion
by Josh Rubin
The first in a series of conceptual shelves called Juxtaposed by design duo Mike and Maaike, this shelf brings all the major religious texts (the Bhagvad Gita, Bible, Qur'an, Confucious' Analects, the Tao Te Ching, Discourses of the Buddha and The Torah) together and puts them on the same level. For atheists and believers alike, the Religion shelf's an artful comment on the many religions of the world and a way to instantly create a complete library. At $2,500, it's for those who have a serious sense of humor about these things. Made from reclaimed hardwood, Juxtaposed: Religion is available from blankblank.
WoodWood, Berlin
by Ami Kealoha
Despite the recent influx of mega-stores, Berlin's indie shopping scene is still flourishing and continuing to attract an innovative international crowd of artists, designers, and other visionaries hoping to preserve Berlin's progressive rep. The newest addition to the city's prosperous center is none other than WoodWood, a Copenhagen export with an eponymous sportswear line, a selection of electric T-shirts and sneakers and a sampling of international designers who fit the store's as well the city's hip factor. WoodWood selects the most colorful and at times outrageous pieces for men and women by Nike, Commes des Garçons, Cheap Monday, Maharishi, Camilla Staerk, and Yazbukey—the kind of stuff that gives a playful context to the quirky collection of toys and elaborate mobiles that punctuate the space.
WoodWood
Rochstrasse 4
10178 Berlin
tel. +(49) 30 280 99 039
LOVE - LIFE Pillow
by Josh Rubin
This pillow is 16" square, 100% woven wool and exclusive to BASE and CH. It has the word Life on one side and Love on the other and is available in two color combos. All profits from the sale of these pillows will go directly to UNICEF's fund for children infected with HIV. Make someone happy with the perfect gift and know that you have done some good!
$98, Buy it at BASE
Cocoa Vino
by Letizia Rossi
Made with regional, sustainable and organic ingredients using ecologically sound wind power and packaged in recycled materials, Cocoa Vino's "eco-forward" business practices are as sound as their products are exquisitely decadent. The Fig Caramels are a blend of organic fig and buttery caramel with a dark chocolate shell. One box contains 12 caramels in three flavors: Madeira Wine, organic Orange with Anesone liqueur and farm-fresh apple with Calvados for $35. The extremely rich Drunken Figs are filled with vintage port and covered organic dark chocolate. Packaged in a reuseable tin, the drunken figs are $22 for four or $50 for ten.
Sharps Killer Shave Set
by Ami Kealoha
You will be forgiven for anything if you have a clean shave. Late for work? As long as there’s no hair on your face, it’s okay. Murder someone? A clean shave will get your sentence reduced by at least 12 months (unless you're Saddam Hussein).
So given the importance of a clean shave, I highly recommend Sharps’ line of shaving products. One of the better alt-brands out there, they're gaining a solid reputation for working better than those Gillette-like companies, who are evil anyway. Sharps, on the other hand, isn't animal tested, which is comforting since they suggest you contemplate the goat on the bottle while the shaving cream sets in, and for me they add about a day onto the amount of time I can take between shaves.
Go for the Killer Shave Set ($45 from Sharps) or, if you’re feeling splurgey, the Bestseller Box Set ($85). You can also get a nifty new gift package with smaller, travel-friendly bottles ($45) at spots like Bloomingdales.
by Rory Carroll
