Blog
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BMW Art Cars
Thank you David for bringing these to my attention. No-one ever told me this, but apparently BMW has been commissioning artists since the 70’s to give their classic models custom paint jobs. Looks like they’ve trailed off as of late, but this is definitely worth checking out.
What i think is most intriguing is how the cars, if you lay them out in a timeline, are a great reflection of the state of art/design over the years (the 90’s specifically stick out as particularly terrible). After 1982, I’d say these cars started to look worse and worse. Look for yourself.
Here are my six favorite, of the 15 they have done so far (they also happen to be the first six) . . .
1975
1976
1977
1979
1982
1986
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Bad Word Pairs #018
“Fortune Cookie”
It’s a simple concept really. First, you type a ridiculous “fortune” on a sheet of paper, making sure to keep the fortune generic and written with poor grammar (some spots will even print lucky numbers on the back-side: bonus).
Then, stuff the paper inside a tortellini shaped “cookie” made of glazed cardboard.
After that, enclose the cardboard treat inside a plastic wrapper and stuff four of them in the bottom of your customer’s five pound carry-out bag.
Yum!
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Glago’s Guest
First-time feature director of the film Bolt, Chris Williams, has also completed a short-film called Glago’s Guest which apparently will screen before Bolt. I have to say that this one looks much more appealing than John Travolta as a talking dog.
Here is a :40 clip online, which looks strange, sparse, stark and super cool.
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Polemic Perspectives
The art of Stefan Exler.
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Quote of the Week #018
“What’s past is prologue.” -William Shakespeare -
Obama Loves the Little Children
I find the idea of children singing a song about Obama in the spirit of Sunday School songs about God extremely disturbing. I wonder if Obama finds it slightly creepy as well?
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First Sequel Ever Made
A random fact: The Fall of a Nation, a 1916 film directed by Thomas F. Dixon, Jr., was cinema’s first sequel ever. It was a follow up to the film, conversely titled The Birth of a Nation. Both of these films unfortunately glorify the KKK, despite the notariety of being such landmarks in cinematic history.
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Blowfish Embellishments
The art of Lloyd Walsh.
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Bad Word Pairs #017
“Single-Ply”
I connote this hyphenated word pair mostly with paper products and wood. Whether toilet paper or paper towel, single-ply is nothing but a misleading phenomenon. The theory is that single-ply TP will give you twice as much paper per roll, but the truth is that you end up using twice as much, and it’s twice as coarse.
Same goes with wood, a single-ply of plywood is hardly durable, and it usually takes 3 or 6 or more layers to have anything worth your while.
Single-ply: the poor man’s rationale to efficiency.
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TOP 5 UGLIEST VEHICLES
(CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION)
5. Pontiac Aztek
On par with the Honda Element, this stand-outish SUV looks much worse in person. The aphalling rear-hatch looks like someone started crushing this thing in the trash compacter and then changed their minds at the last second. Too bad for us.
4. Honda Fit
I have a thing for hatchbacks, I’ll admit it. With the exception of the Audi A3, I pretty much loathe them. But this one takes the notion to a new level of suck. Along with the Pontiac Vibe’s and the Toyota Prius’s of the world, this car proves further that the car exec’s think twenty-something women prefer cars that look like crap.
3. PT Cruiser
Possibly the most infamous example of homage gone awry, the PT Cruiser somehow, miraculously, continues to sell. Maybe it’s just me who doesn’t get the irony of reimagining the original Ford Woodie, but man . . .
2. Chevy SSR
I don’t know who told the fine folks at Chevy it would be a good idea to take the Dodge Neon and turn it into a mini-truck from a Jetson’s future gone wrong. But they did it anyway, and now we get to watch as these identity-crisis inflicted car/truck things cruise past us. We can’t stand to look, but we can’t look away. Must be the fluorescent colors they paint these monstrosities in.
1. Scion xB
I feel the pity for post office workers and milkmen across the nation. Ever since Toyota went ahead with the Scion line of vehicles, they’ve rubber stamped the first-car community as idiots who think aerodynamics is only theoretical. This van/truck/car is the equivalent of what it would look like if you asked your non-artistic friend to draw a car on a piece of paper.
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Quote of the Week #017
“I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.” -Jorge Luis Borges -
Why Haven’t You Bought This?
(GENE WOLFE’S “AN EVIL GUEST”)
Perhaps the better question is why haven’t I bought and read this yet? The answer: oh I will, and you should too. It’s a novel set 100 years in the future, but written with the diction and characterization of the old film noir era. For lovers of pulp fiction (not the Samuel L. Jackson kind) mixed with some Blade Runner meets H.P. Lovecraft-style sci-fi, this book promises to deliver.
Let’s all buy a copy and rejoice in its wonder together (I mean, it’s GOT to be great, right? It’s Mr. Wolfe after all).
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Woke Up New
This isn’t the newest video, but perhaps slightly overlooked. My friend Rian Johnson directed this mind-bending clip. There are no post visual effects, no slick compositing. All of this was done in-camera.
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Meanwhile at the KFC
The art of Chris Cosnowski.
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Bad Word Pairs #016
“Rhubarb Pie”
Now I know that lots and lots of people love rhubarb pies, but I have a feeling they really don’t. Rhubarb on its own is a terribly tart flavor, and requires a small mountain of sugar to make the pie edible.
And more often than not, it’s strawberries that complete a rhubarb pie. The rhubarb stalks, tart and nasty as they are, are the best part of the plant. The leaves are toxic, inedible, mostly to repel pesky animals from eating it (I don’t think rhubarb has to worry about that).
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Quote of the Week #016
“Turns out there’s a tiger, and I understand he’s hungry, so we’re staying away from him.” -Galveston Judge Jim Yarbrough (on the aftermath of Hurricane Ike) -
Stayin’ Alive
The art of Euginio Merino.
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Desperate for Love
Here is a music video I co-curated with Bran Dougherty-Johnson from PSST!. We came up with the idea of having 7 teams participate in interpreting sections of the song. The results were unexpected and fun to see come together.
View Quicktime.
A big thanks to all the participants. Here they are, in order of appearance:
Team 1: Ryan Dunn (me)
Team 2: Paul Cayrol
Team 3: Masayoshi Nakamura + Erik Montovano
Team 4: Ryan Rothermel + Thai Tran
Team 5: Jon Saunders + Cary Janks
Team 6: Caroline Attia
Team 7: Bran Dougherty-Johnson
