Northern Sky Circle x Molo Design

by Karen Day

Today's wintery mix in New York has us thinking we're over snow. However, Molo Design studio's installation, Northern Sky Circle—created for Freeze Project in Alaska—will have you happily gathering with friends in this ephemeral outdoor amphitheater comprised of nothing but snow and ice.

The Vancouver-based design team began construction on the amphitheater on a pitch black, −30°C morning in Anchorage but they quickly realized that building would be a bit harder than they originally planned. The snow they were going to use had been plowed in from parking lots resulting in a mix of gravel, sand and snow. Fluctuating temperatures throughout the day didn't make it any easier.

Molo Design Director Todd MacAllen tells CH, "We tested the snow by piling it and loosely shoveling it into formwork. We realized that the snow could become almost concrete-like as it sintered (crystallized into a solid mass) in such cold." They played with the walls, creating different shapes and textures in the walls by hand. MacAllen continues, "the resulting walls contain a geology of formations and textures that can be read at various scales, including that of the imagination."

Celebrating Alaska and boreal life, Northern Sky Circle is one of 14 installations created for the Freeze Project. All are on display until 1 February 2009. With only a few days left, the best way to view all of them is on 30 January at AntiFREEZE—a music, dance and video performance taking place among the installations. More info available at Freeze Project.

Casio G-Shock MTG 1500-1A

by Bailee Wolfson

One might think the Casio G-Shock MTG 1500-1A was James Bond ready with its super sleek exterior and 6 Atomic Timekeeping technology. This tougher than nails watch is comprised of stainless steel and resin. Virtually indestructible, it is shock and water resistant up to 200m.

Features include a full auto LED backlight, 1/100 Second Stopwatch and 4 daily alarms. For superior accuracy and increased reliability, Tough Movement automatically checks and adjusts hand positioning at fifty-five minutes after every hour despite extreme shocks and vibrations. Even better, the G-Shock MTG 1500-1A features self-adjusting multi-band 6 atomic time keeping. Multi-band 6 is the worlds first radio-control system built to receive time calibration signals from up to six transmission stations—two in Japan and one each in North America, the United Kingdom and Germany, plus a new station in China. These technologies come together to create one of the most accurate watches on the market.

The G-Shock MTG 1500-1A also features a small solar power panel, making the need to replace the battery almost obsolete. Perfect for any occasion whether it's a business meeting or the rugged outdoors, purchase it at G-Shock for $500.

Bradley Peters: Home Theater

by CH Contributor

by Kelsey Keith

Bradley Peters is a recent graduate of Yale University's renowned MFA program in Photography and one of photo curator Amani Olu's rising stars. Olu teams up this month with Brooklyn gallerist Melanie Flood to present Peters' images of family and strangers in mundane situations.

Peters explains that he arranges his subjects in a scene and then "waits for something to happen"—in effect, capturing the idiosyncrasies and unplanned moments of everyday life. The result is full of both humor and discomfort, and likely to induce recollections of adolescent tension.

Influenced by the method of Henri Cartier-Bresson and the saturated color photography of Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Peters' first solo show consists of select works from his thesis project at Yale.

Amani Olu is co-founder of Humble Arts Foundation, as well as director of Bond Street Gallery in Brooklyn. Melanie Flood Projects, a new gallery in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, is hosting "Home Theater" as its third exhibition, from 28 January to 28 February 2009.

Home Theater
28 January-28 February 2009
Melanie Flood Projects
186 Washington Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11205 map

Zhi Tea Of The Month Club

by Jacob Resneck

All tea comes from the same plant, Camellia sinensis, but that doesn't mean there isn't a wide variety of sub-species, different blends and flavors. Zhi Tea of Austin, Texas has dozens of flavors of tea, from a plum oolong that actually has the pleasant tartness of plums to a chocolate chai that doesn't taste like watery hot cocoa.

Zhi offers gourmet organic varieties in black, green, white and oolong. There are also a variety of herbal blends from Turkish Spice Mint to Egyptian Chamomile.

These blends are easily ordered from the online store. Or for those that are overwhelmed by the choices, there's a Tea of the Month Club, which will deliver a new variety each calendar month over a six to twelve month span.

Photographer Michael Lavine

by Lost At E Minor

New York-based photographer Michael Lavine took the iconic photo of Kurt and Courtney for the cover of Sassy magazine back in the early 1990s.

When asked to recount the story behind the shoot he comments, "we shot the photos at my Bleeker St loft on the Bowery. I remember that my friends Andrea Linett and Janet Billig were there. I remember the ridiculous twelve foot silk lighting setup I used. I remember people having to go out and score dope. I remember Kurt telling me that the reason that he loved Courtney so much was that she was the only girl he knew that would stand up at a party and smash a glass table to bits just for the hell of it. I remember thinking that was a pretty odd reason to love someone."

There are more examples of Michael Lavine's work along with an extensive interview at Feature Shoot . It's well worth a look.