contemplating

thinking, a LOT, of getting a hair cut. I always can't decide when it comes to getting a haircut. I've never really had a long long hair so on one side, I want to grow it out, but I can't help but to like the fact that it's so much easier to manage short hair. what to do... what to do...
a wavy bob would do, I think. with or without bangs is the question.

but this is awesome, only if I had a full thick hair, *sigh*

[EDUN]

[Rag & Bone]

[Javier Senosiain] living in a fairy tale

Nautilus by Javier Senosiain

Magalli Mayorga and her family are the current resident of this dream-like house in Mexico City. It is an extraordinary giant snail.

The house taps into the natural climatic drama of Mexico City: during the rainy season, downpours crash into the Perspex skylights and are channelled around the roof and down the spiral to a fountain in the garden. But Senosiain has told the family not to worry about the earthquakes that periodically shock the city: constructed in one piece, from an iron lattice framework filled with cement, the house is unlikely to crack or crumble when shaken. -excerpt from [guardian]

Javier Senosiain is a Mexican architect celebrated as a key exponent and explorer of so-called organic architecture. The work some have likened to that of Frank Lloyd Wright, Bruce Goff, Paolo Soleri, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Buckminster Fuller, Antoni Gaudi and Rudolf Steiner. He is currently a professor of architecture at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). -from [wikipedia]

[senosiain arquitectos]

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Not really my idea of ideal home, but it will be an awesome house to live in with children. It seems so magical and 'organic' as the architect intended. I love the colourful stained glass window and the warmth the structure has. Rain will definitely add the feeling of living under water in this giant shell.

[Nicholas Jones] book sculptor

I've posted about a book artist few days ago and found another book artist by the name of Nicholas Jones.

 Blue Wave

 Treble

Current Affairs Bulletin 1

Greek Art

Nicholas Jones is a Melbourne based sculptor who uses books and printed paper to make works which question the manner in which books are 'read'.

Books are capsules; vessels designed to hold information, borne of investigation or of personal expression. These objects are often venerated, held aloft as are amulets, as the source of reasoned knowledge, the fecund field awaiting the harvest. Sequestered away in dusty libraries, spines anticipating the eye of the beholder, these books tactility remains at arms length.

The physical act of folding, tearing and sewing book leaves, may be considered iconoclastic (extinguishing the fire of reason, perhaps). Although sometimes iconised for their content or historical importance, more often than not, books are discarded as cultural detritus. These transformed books aim to highlight the poetic nature of the book as form. As historical phenomena, books have reflected the evolution of mankind, and although beseiged by new technologies, the book remains steadfastly both the solver of the riddle and the creator of the labyrinth. Melbourne, Australia [Nicholas Jones]

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Jones and Dettmer both used books as their medium but the approach to the subject is different. Dettmer's books are more alive with details and characters and Jones' books are rather elegantly planned out (don't get me wrong but I thought his statement was little bit magniloquent ;-P)

free museums

Free-to-view art is an investment for growth

The government may be thinking about charging for entry into our museums and galleries. It would be a big mistake

Posted by  Jonathan Jones  Wednesday 30 June 2010 16.04 BST

The new era of fiscal sado-masochism is going to hit our museums hard. They have never been over-funded. In all the years of New Labour, museum directors never came near the budgets they would have loved to spend on enriching their collections. But they have become good at appearing to be rich and glamorous. This might make them tempting targets for the cutmasters.

There is one feature of our museums, above all, that is a huge loophole – a miracle, actually – of generous civic pride. No other country rivals the British tradition of free entry to museums. You can walk into our public collections without paying a penny. At all the other great galleries of Europe you need to buy a ticket. This is a sitting duck, isn't it? If I were deciding how to save money on museums, I would want to look at the idea of charging for admission. But it would be a terrible mistake. There is massive cultural value to free museums. It is one of the greatest educational assets we possess. Take it out of the equation and the amazing excitement about art in 21st-century Britain would become much more muted.

It is sad to visit museums in Europe and find their galleries empty. I have had this experience at some extremely fine collections, even at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. What is wrong? At London's museums, the fizz of crowds is not tiring, it is stimulating: there is no downside to the huge numbers of visitors they get, and while welcoming tourists, they also attract many British people whose desire to learn is evident from the numbers who sign up to gallery tours and attend lectures. It's great to see people in the National Gallery discussing a Bronzino in depth, just out of interest. Does all this depend on museums being free? Well let's say the chemistry is working: take free out of that chemistry and you might be startled at the loss of energy.

For me, what matters most about free admission is the fact you can go as much as you want, whenever you need, to feast on art, culture and history. It is like going online except the exhibits are real, not ethereal. Culture and education are actually the same thing. To love art is to want to know more about it: to enjoy it is to learn about it. A society that is learning is one that is growing. Free museums are the most magical and marvellous treat of living in this country. To take away that elixir of knowledge would be stupid and sad. So hands off this universal good

article [link]

Happy Canada Day

This is my first Canada Day fireworks viewed live in Toronto... sad... I know... I guess I've been lazy avoiding going out to where there will be traffic jam by all means of transportation; cars, ttc, bikes, walking.. BUT I really enjoyed it today. It was definitely worth going down to the waterfront and seeing the beautiful fireflies dancing in the sky. love love love loved it. I heart you Canada Day fireworks! After some photoshoping, my iPhone fireworks photos are not too shabby, awesome!

[Julie Morstad] horrific yet languid

gluttony

a la terreur

black eye

boat

"Of all the modes of modern art, surrealism is the one least susceptible to sloppiness or imprecision. If you are going to create a dream like environment, you have to be a damn good draughtsman, able to fool the eye into believing impossible things. It’s generally the case that the best surrealists have been the artists with strong basic drawing skills: Pavel Tchelitchew, Max Ernst, Winsor McCay. Morstad belongs to this tradition." - an excerpt from Jeet Heer's review on MILK TEETH. read the rest at [drawn and quarterly]

Julie Morstad graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design in 2004 with a BFA. She has done illustrations for The Globe & Mail, Warner Brothers Records, Bust, and The Walrus. Her artwork is featured on the cover of Neko Case's album Fox Confessor Brings the Flood. Morstad lives and works in Vancouver and divides her time between drawing, illustration, animation and design. Vancouver, BC  [Julie Morstad]

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As a child, I was very much frightened by the wonderful stories of Alice as she stumbled upon the Wonderland. The image of her [stretched out neck] was very traumatizing and I've developed aversion for people with exceptionally long necks like the [Kayan]. Anyways, seeing Morstad's drawings reminded me of the horror of reading through Alice in Wonderland as a child. Silly, but childhood experiences are not to be ignored!

Morstad does have some friendly illustrations too, which I like. Bit odd, but not as creepy.

One of the reasons why I love etsy

Bike Knuckle Ring from [Rachel Pfeffer]

This is an awesome ring!
Though I don't think I will be able to wear it (not much of a ring person here) but I love the idea and the fact that it is so big! I'd love it as a pin and would wear it everyday!!!