Category filter: Inspiration

David Wightman

On a recent trip to London we were offered some accommodations with some family friends Fran Giffard and David Wightman. Our stay with them ended up being the most delightful and inspirational part of our trip. The entire time they apologized for their “extremely shabby flat” while we reminded and assured them that it was infinitely more cozy, clean and comfortable than New Yorkers are used to.

They are both artists, and work from home and so we ended up having lengthy conversations about process, commissioned work, gallery snafus and life. The most remarkable part was that we ended up getting a lengthy tour of David’s studio. Where he showed us in detail the methodical process behind his work and the never-ending search for refinement and purity in color.

Pictured here: Celestine, 2015 David Wightman (acrylic and collaged wallpaper on canvas 70 x 105 cms)

20 March 2015 . Art . Inspiration . Minimal . Painting . No Comments

Jamila Lyiscott – 3 ways to speak English

I won’t waste too many words introducing this besides saying that the self affirmed “trilingual” Jamila Lyiscott is enlightening in this recent TED performance.

15 November 2014 . Art . Inspiration . No Comments

James Victore – Mini Documentary

I have always admired the work and teaching of James Victore. He breaks it down here on design, life, and growing up in this great little documentary by Like Knows Like.

(via swissmiss »)

9 June 2014 . Design . Heroes . Inspiration . No Comments

Michael Zelehoski

I feel truly blessed that the contemporary artists I am inspired by and admire the most happen to be life long friends. Michael Zelehoski is one such person and has been a friend since we were kids. His process is ever evolving and the humble and effortless nature with which he approaches his work are some of my favorite qualities about Michael. In conjunction with signing to Mike Weiss Gallery he completed a semi-perminant wall installation, which interacts with this huge niche in the front desk space of the gallery. If you are in New York and haven’t made it over to see Mike Weiss’ new location on West 24th Street or Michael’s piece I highly recommend making the trip over to Chelsea.

photos courtesy of: ArtSlant

28 May 2014 . Art . Inspiration . No Comments

Hackschooling – Logan LaPlante

Ever think you would get schooled by a 13 year old? Well watch this video and then you will have. Logan LaPlante is pioneering an entirely new approach to schooling self titled Hackschooling. By putting together a curriculum based on his interests and the things that he enjoys Laplante is able to “maximize happiness”.

10 January 2014 . Inspiration . No Comments

Worn Wear

I wish I had come across this sooner as I am in love with the stance that Patagonia is taking with this video. Part of a new marketing initiative called Worn Wear. The campaign revolves around the beauty that develops through out the shared experiences a person or family has with a garment as they go through their lives. The resulting stories are both awe inspiring, humanizing and tear jerking. The anti Black Friday message that floats on the surface is not overly preachy and finds a delicate and positive way to communicate itself. I commend Patagonia for making this video. I also applaud them for continuing to make quality clothing and technical gear built to stand the test of time even when the fashion industry and world seek the opposite.

Buy things that last! As Patagonia has shown us, the reward is far greater than the value of the savings.

12 December 2013 . Green . Inspiration . Travel . No Comments

Interview With Mark Firth

I absolutely love coming across amazing things by my friends on the internet. This one especially. It is a photo essay and interview by my friend Fiona Breslin and Grace Villamil about my friend Mark Firth. For those of you who don’t know Mark the names of his restaurants are pretty much household names for anyone who has spent anytime in NYC. He founded Diner, Marlow and Sons and the long since shuddered Bonita(the Fort Greene one was a personal favorite!). A few years ago Mark left the urban life with his wife Bettina and two kids in tow and relocated to the Berkshires where I grew up and still spend a great deal of my time. Fiona’s article captures Mark in his element farming and hanging both on his property and on the porch of his new restaurant Praire Whale in Great Barrington, MA. Head over to Freunde von Freunden to see all the photos and read the interview.

20 November 2013 . Food . Inspiration . Kitchen . No Comments

Experiments in Speed

Tom Donhou of Donhou Bicycles, inspired by the speed seekers on the Salt Flats in the 1960s, built a fixed gear bike with the sole intention of testing the limits of speed. This video by Spindle Productions captures Donhou’s insight into the process of building the bike as well as riding it and going for speed. Donhou also collaborated with Royce to to create the drivetrain for the 100mph Bike, which features a 104 tooth chain ring(that’s really really huge).

6 August 2013 . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

Doc 2 Doc

Public Record made this awesome video for Doc 2 Doc that explains what it is their organization does. If you are currently trying to validate the potential for positive impact of your startup idea, you should take some notes from D2D.

17 May 2013 . Inspiration . Travel . No Comments

Beat Making Lab

After hearing about the new series Beat Making Lab from PBS a few words are filling my head. Empowerment, activism, creativity, strength, community, music, and of course beats. The lab itself was initial started by DJ and producer Stephen Levitin(Apple Juice Kid) in collaboration with professor and hip hop artist Pierce Freelon. The premise of the program is Levitin and Freelon travel around the world and set up music studios and teach beat making. Over the course of their stay in a locale they both teach and collaborate with their students to create unique and amazing tracks.

The video below is episode 1 where they travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo and partnered with local organization Yole!Africa to engage its students in cultivating new music making skills.

(via The Fox Is Black »)

10 May 2013 . Inspiration . Music . Travel . No Comments

Beer Friday: Solemn Oath Brewer

Michael Kiser of Good Beer Hunting talks about and shares with us some great shots of the holistic process behind the beer at Solemn Oath Brewery in Naperville, Illinois. Similar to any other craft manufacturer or skilled laborer with a focus on the end product, the folks at SOB are focussed on each element of the process, from the ingredients they use, to the bar top in their tap-room, and on to the logo their beers wear out into the world. This video was made for Issue 1 of Apartment Number 9†, a new editorial project by the Chicago based menswear shop.

26 April 2013 . Beer . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

Irving Harper Paper Sculptures

Credited with being one of the forces that shaped how we view 20th century design, Irving Harper is an industrial designer and artist. The Why Design series by Herman Miller recently posted a video interview with Harper talking about his paper sculptures and his innate need to create. His paper sculptures range from masks and other African art references, to models that demonstrate complex architectural engineering concepts. One of my favorite statements made by Harper in the video was on the subject of sketching and how he never does it. Instead he envisions the end result and constructs it in his head and then goes directly to the creating the finished piece in paper. “All you have to do is sit down, cut paper out, and score it, bend it, and glue it.” Harper says, which demonstrates his immense modesty and also illustrates how his mind is able to solve problems in paper.

Definitely check out the rest of the Why Design series, which features some of the greatest designers and creatives both contemporary and past.

Read More »

28 February 2013 . Art . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

Instrument Office

I have followed the work of Instrument in Portland for a little while. All of which is super impressive. It’s really cool to see in side there space and see where all the great work is being created. Extremely open and fun looking space that feels like it would inspire play as well as work. Guess we will be starting on an office remodeling tomorrow. Checkout the whole studio visit over on Visual Supply Co.

(via The Fox Is Black »)

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21 December 2012 . Architecture . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

Creative Mornings: George Lois

Last month’s CreativeMornings/NewYork was an extra special one. Legendary art director and author George Lois shared his inspiring words in the awe inspiring Metropolitan Museum of Art. Lois is best known for his nearly 100 covers for Esquire magazine created between 1962 and 1972. It is truly amazing to see how far CreativeMornings has come.

14 December 2012 . Design . Heroes . Inspiration . No Comments

Aaron Draplin Speaks at YAY Festival

The saga continues with another installment of the Tall Tales From a Large Man tour of Aaron James Draplin. Draplin opened up Brookly Beta this year to a roomful of the best, brightest and coolest people from around the web. This talk from YAY Festival in Stockholm is another great appearance by the big guy.

(via The Fox Is Black »)

11 December 2012 . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

Jon Contino Profile

Even if you aren’t familiar with Jon Contino there is a pretty sure chance you know his work. Beautiful hand drawn type and extremely natural textures wielded as the tools for creating unique and amazing logo designs, illustrations and just about everything else you can imagine. Kevin Steen recently created this great profile of Contino, which encapsulates his process, drive and vision a concise three minute film.

(via Look my backpack »)

6 December 2012 . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

An Ode to Creative Work

I have always appreciated both the mission, the products and the services that Behance makes. This video they created is both visually stunning and inspirational. Their content is always succinct and eloquent at summing up creative pursuits. Especially in the areas beyond being creative. The darker harder parts which require perseverance and perspiration.

(via better taste than sorry »)

30 November 2012 . Inspiration . No Comments

Even Air Travel Can Be Fun

In the beginning of this video the flight attendant says “those of you have flown us before know that we do things a little differently on Southwest”. Different can be better and a change from the norm can be enlightening. So many people know air travel to be drudgery of straddling increasing rules regulations and extremely crammed uncomfortable spaces. A little bit of good fun can improve even the most infuriating or annoying things. Let’s give a big thank you to this flight attendant and to Southwest for creating a work environment where people can experiment and make the experience more enjoyable for their customers.

(via swissmiss »)

17 October 2012 . Inspiration . Travel . No Comments

New York Skyline From Memory

I have been in awe of artist Stephen Wiltshire’s work since first seeing it several years ago. Stephen is autistic and his condition allows him to see the world differently. He understands and remembers places, skylines, cityscapes in ways few others could even comprehend. Last year UBS commissioned Stephen to draw a cityscape of New York City, and this video shows his process and the resulting artwork. During the video some audio of his sister talking about him and is artwork is overlaid, which gives an added context of his creativity and also his personality and profound need to draw. She describes his drawing as if it were water or air for regular people.

19 September 2012 . Art . Inspiration . No Comments

Why Design

Herman Miller has recently launched a new series entitled Why Design. The site features profiles, images, and videos highlighting influential designers and aims to explore the world through the eyes of these designers. Through October 29th a new profile will be posted weekly. Check out the line up below.

9.10.12 — Yves Béhar — “Surfing Is Like Improvisational Jazz“
9.17.12 — Don Chadwick — “The Camera Becomes an Extension of Your Eyes“
9.24.12 — Ayse Birsel — “Your Life Is Your Most Important Project“
10.1.12 — Irving Harper — “Paper Is a Versatile Medium“
10.8.12 — Gianfranco Zaccai — “Great Food Should Be Like Great Design“
10.15.12 — Studio 7.5 — “Design by Its Nature Is Collaborative“
10.22.12 — Steve Frykholm — “It’s the Breaks That Allow My Mind to Refresh“
10.29.12 — Sam Hecht + Kim Colin — “We Need Contrast and Tension to Be Able to Create”

Read More »

14 September 2012 . Design . Inspiration . No Comments

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