Ayala's Herbal Water

by Laurice Parkin

While herbs have handily been cavorting with foodstuffs and teas over the years, water has been uncharted territory until now. Ayala's Herbal Water, one of the newest entries into the trend of water reinvention, is refreshingly tasty. While flavor combos like "lavender mint lemongrass thyme," "cinnamon orange peel" and "ginger lemon peel" might sound like an overpowering infusion, the effect is subtle, mellow and aromatic. Even better, all ingredients are organic with no artificial sweeteners, additives or preservatives of any kind. And, just like famed NYC tap, Ayala's has no calories as well.

The Ayala behind the name is doctor and artist, Ayala Laufer Cahana. In seeking an alternative to sugar-laden, unhealthy beverages, she created the blends hoping to harness the power (and flavor) of herbs long known for their calming, stimulating and aphrodisiac qualities. In the same way that a hot cup of tea soothes in the winter, herbs can now do their thing on hot summer days.

Currently Herbal Water is only available in New York City and Philadelphia, but you can also order online to get this summer beverage delivered right to your door. A case of 12 is $24.

Kittiwat Unarrom: Bread Body Parts

by Ami Kealoha

Since 2006 Thai artist Kittiwat Unarrom (whose family also runs a bakery) has used dough as his medium to sculpt gruesome renditions of hand, feet, heads, torsos and other body parts. The results are unnervingly realistic with eyes, lips and other details constructed out of cashews, raisins and the like. A lack of hair and blood-like glazes make the work all the more creepy. Sold at his family's bakery in Ratchaburi, Thailand, he displays the parts wrapped like food in plastic and hung from meat hooks. Apparently, the art is in fact edible and tastes like regular bread.

Watch the video below to see Unarrom at work and some visitors' reactions.

To see it with your own eyes, enlist Bangkok Day Tours to take you on one of their day trips to the bakery.

Daniel Eatock: Imprint

by Doug Black

"Imprint" is the first monograph from London-based artist and designer Daniel Eatock. The book chronicles a series of often personal, always conceptual projects that blur the line between art and commercial design. Written and arranged by the man himself, Imprint succeeds in depicting the diverse, scattered nature of his work. With no systematic structure, he litters the book's pages with almost 1,000 images of his various projects. The ongoing "Picture of the Week" project for instance, is depicted with a few small images on almost every page. The seemingly unrelated shots are intended to present "incidents, alignments, coincidences, viewpoints, temporary situations, and other small things that often go unnoticed." Many of these small things are not even photographed by the artist — though he does give due credit to the submitters — which reflects his commitment to the participatory project.

Eatock's other works range from simply collecting his fingernail clippings, to large-scale events like "The World's Largest Signed and Numbered Limed-Edition Artwork." The latter involved ten artists working every day for two weeks simply signing 1,000,000 individually numbered postcards (pictured below), which was later rejected by the Guinness Book because there was no applicable category.

Throughout the book, Eatock takes strides to make his document more than a just stack of colored paper. To make a more personal, unique monograph, each book bears his thumbprint. The artist went to the Indiana warehouse storing his books and inked each and every volume. He also included a page with a hand-drawn circle in every book. Randomly inserted by the printer at a different place in each book, it's meant to surprise the reader and add a level of uncertainty to the generally homogeneous process of mass book production.

Imprint is available for $60 at the Princeton Architectural Press store or Amazon. His exhibition, "Extra Medium," will also be displayed through September and October at Arcadia University in suburban Philadelphia.

Daniel Eatock: Extra Medium
18 September-26 October 2008
Arcadia University Art Gallery
Spruance Fine Arts Center
450 South Easton Road
Glenside, PA 19038 map
Tel. +1 215-572-2131

Nankeen Bags and Accessories

by Ami Kealoha

With their deep blue hue, bold graphics and contrast lining, Nankeen's bags, ties, pillows and other accessories win points for looks alone. The vivid color and name comes from an ancient Chinese hand-printing process using indigo dye (much like Japan's Nakajima), which has shown up as inspiration for artists and designers over the years — most recently on the runways of Thakoon. After toting one of their Wave big bags on a few different weekend trips, I'm also impressed by the thoughtful design elements, attention to detail and high level of quality.

Sturdily constructed out of thick cotton, the craftsmanship that goes into making the bags (they're all made by artisans in Shanghai) is apparent in everything from the perfectly-aligned seams to the tough zippers and the overall feel. These are products that will see you through the years; we can imagine the fabric taking on a pleasing patina of age as well.

Two zippered interior pockets (why just have one?) are useful, as are wide handles that work both over the shoulder and carried in hand. Without being overly bulky, the generous size accommodates a weekend or longer, even allowing me to stash a gallon water bottle when I was in a pinch. I also like the wide flat bottom, making the bag easy to pack and to set down while in transit (although I was hesitant to get it dirty) and the dual zipper pulls. Both the interior and exterior pulls are little cloth knots, further testament to the careful consideration put into Nankeen.

Bags come in a variety of other sizes too — from totes to clutches — and ties and pillows are the perfect way to add crisp patterns without being too stuffy or too out there. Big bags are $225 (extremely reasonable for its size) and all products are available online from Nankeen.