eBoy Pixorama

by Brian Fichtner

Fans of eBoy's pixel-based artistry should jet over to Barcelona sometime this winter to check out their latest exhibition, Pixorama, at the ROJO®artspace. The exhibition features beautifully backlit renditions of their pop-colored urban scenography. Incredibly detailed and ever evolving, the Eboy cityscapes are populated with hundreds of modular, pixelated objects that the studio has created since their inception in 1997.

If you can't make it to Spain, head over to the eBoy store, where you can purchase their first self-designed, produced and published book, Pixorama, for €18.

Pixorama
Through 4 February 2009
ROJO®artspace

c/Girona 61 Local 02, Eixample

08009 Barcelona, Spain map

via Computer Love

Sofie Hannibal and Nan Ha Hvass

by Lost At E Minor

I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across the intensely colorful work of Copenhagen illustration duo, Sofie Hannibal and Nan Na Hvass. I'm already a predisposed sucker for busy, vibrant work but Hannibal and Hvass' use of color and subtle narrative is impressive.

There are so many fantastic shapes and layers to soak up that I find myself staring at their works for a long time. I've yet to come across a piece on their website (and there's a whole lot there) that doesn't grab my attention.

Click on image for detailed view.

All My Pretty Ones: Tone Poems

by Doug Black

Two years since releasing the Handsbreath EP, the Bay Area folk group All My Pretty Ones return with their debut full-length, Tone Poems. A mix of brand new and previously recorded tracks, the record transcends the somewhat limiting "folk" classification seems limiting. While the disc's 11 songs are heavily based around traditional folk ingredients (acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies) the collective's eclectic musicianship shifts through bluegrass to rock and even jazz.

Lead by singer and guitarist Derek Schmidt, members Genessa Kealoha, Jesse Wade, Jocelyn Bentley-Prestwich and Matt Payne indelibly color each song. Using a wide assortment of string, brass and reed instruments, they transform Schmidt's modest guitar numbers into lush, fully-realized orchestrations.

You can buy Tone Poems through CD Baby or catch an upcoming performance.

New Vespa.com Focuses on Community and Vesponomics

by CH Contributor

by Lynne Johnson

Does driving a Vespa really reduce your carbon footprint? Yes, says Paolo Timoni, CEO and President of Piaggio Group USA. And that's why his company recently updated its website, to teach consumers about the benefits of driving a Vespa.

"The site can offer solutions, sometimes proposing combined usage depending on the driving situation. It's ok to own both, the site just shows you how to optimize your cost effectiveness," Timoni shares. The site's interactive fuel calculator offers a quick snapshot of just how fuel economy can improve if drivers park the car occasionally and opt for two wheels instead.

The site's best new feature is the user-generated charted rides area, where a Google Maps-based Community Rides tool helps scooter commuters or tourers uncover, share, rate, download and comment on new riding routes. Shortcuts to popular destinations, scenic weekend rides, regional routes that avoid local traffic snarls or multi-state adventures are all archived and available in one convenient location. With this feature social networking quickly replaces the need for GPS.

"Community is very important to Vespa riders," says Timoni, "you can see how others use the scooter to learn about and understand the convenience and the economics."

Overall, the site's functionality and user experience has become much simpler and easier to understand and navigate. And the additional tools, like the community rides and the interactive fuel calculator are just candy. The new site was designed by London and New York-based design firm Last Exit, already winning the Interactive Media Awards "Best In Class" for automobiles category site in 2008.

The new site needed to meet the needs of the rapidly growing base of potential new riders in the U.S. while building strong relationships with Vespa's community of ultra loyal existing owners. As a result, the new site is full of tools that invite visitors to learn and play, making the site fun and functional — just like a Vespa.

Hope in the White House Tees

by Karen Day

You may not have been able to get your hands on a ticket to Obama's historic inauguration taking place this Tuesday in D.C., but you can still show your support and sanguine sentiments for the new President with New Orleans artist Dan Tague's clever t-shirts.

While the folded dollar bill concept takes us back to our high school days, the statements Tague has created with them put us in the right frame for the future with phrases like Yes We Can, One For All, and Hope In The White House, all spelled out with nothing but the letters provided on each George Washington. In order to really spread the faith, Tague joined forces with New Orleans gallery owner Jonathan Ferrara, who most recently helped organize Prospect.1, New Orleans' first biennial and the largest-ever international contemporary art show in the United States.

You can purchase the shirts online, where they range in price depending on style, but no matter which you choose $1 is donated to New Orleans Habitat for Humanity.