Link About It: This Week’s Picks
Nicholas Felton’s annual report, train-hopping photography, an underground library and more in our weekly look at the web
1. Train Hopping Photography
After recording over 50,000 miles of train hopping across the United States, photographer Mike Brodie unveiled his series “A Period of Juvenile Prosperity.” The images—taken between 2004 and 2009—offer a glimpse into the adventurous, nomadic lifestyle undertaken by thousands of American youth.
2. The Underground Library
Bringing knowledge to the people, a group of students from the Miami Ad School have proposed “The Underground Library,” a public project that would allow NYC subway riders to digitally sample books during their morning commutes. The system would use Near Field Communication (NFC) to transfer information from digital ads to smartphones in the WiFi-deprived train cars.
3. Paint Flung Photography
Brightly-hued and seemingly inorganic, photographer Fabian Oefner’s latest project, “Black Hole,” is a trippy experiment in color and movement. Oefner used a high-speed camera and fast flashes to capture the beauty of vibrant pigments as they are flung from a spinning metal rod.
4. NY Times Website Redesign
The New York Times has introduced the redesign of their website to the public with selective access to the beta version. The new streamlined layout allows for easier browsing with intelligently placed buttons, offering readers quick access to other articles, sections and user comments all with a simple click.
5. Water + Sound
Brusspup—who specializes in science and illusion demos—released a new video on YouTube this week which places a stream of water under the influence of a 24hz sine wave. Captured at 24 FPS, the mesmerizing result appears to be a glitch in the natural world.
6. Dblcam iPhone App
Unless you are an avid FaceTime caller or a big fan of taking photos of yourself, the front camera on your iPhone probably doesn’t get much love, but with the new app Dblcam, you can ensure both sides of your camera are getting equal exposure. Available for free in iTunes, Dblcam enables users to take two pictures in quick succession—one from the back and one from the front—and stitches them together into one photo before sharing.
7. Feltron 2012
Industrious designer Nicholas Felton has just released his annual life report for 2012, and his collection of infographics cataloging his daily routines are always one we look forward to since he started in 2005. To assist in mining so much personal data, this year Felton collaborated with friend Drew Breunig in creating an iPhone app called Reporter, which pings Felton for updates every 90 minutes.
8. Bunkerization
For nearly 20 years Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha executed a “bunkerization” program that resulted in one bunker for every four citizens, or 750,000 in total. An obstructive part of modern Albania’s landscape, the bunkers are also the subject of David Galjaard’s series “Concresco,” which pointedly examines the concrete structures as they stand today.
9. Y I Do
Much like his racy 2012 track “Ima Read,” we can’t stop listening to rapper Zebra Katz’s new video “Y I Do.” Directed by Nathaniel Brown for VMan Magazine, the video is an enticing mix of surreal visuals and is absolutely dripping with bass.
10. Most Prized Possessions
Gabriele Galimberti has been photographing children from around the world with their favorite possessions as a part of her series, “Toy Stories.” Galimberti’s images depict a broad range of children from Massa, Morocco to Orly-Brownsville, Texas. Collected together, the images offer an interesting comparison about lifestyles from around the globe.
11. HiddenApps
15-year-old German iOS developer David Goelzhaeuser snuck one past Apple this week with HiddenApps, a super clever program that allows users to disable and hide iAds without the need to jailbreak the phone. While it didn’t take long for Apple to catch the slip and remove the app from their store, props are still owed to Goelzhaeuser for his ingenious temporary fix.
12. The Knit Heads
Known for creating knitted sculptures for a variety of magazines and prestigious storefronts like Mulberry, artist Jessica Dance’s latest commission sees her create a series of knitted taxidermy-inspired busts for a branding firm’s meeting spaces. Arguably our favorite collection to date, it is both delightfully campy and curiously lifelike.
