M.I.A. - Born Free

BOOM! bitches

here's the immensely NSFW video, directed by Romain Gavras, the same guy who did "Stress" by Justice.



neetrecordings.com
miauk.com

Mouse Pointer Torture at selfcontrolfreak

So while dicking around (browsing) the internetz I found this fun little website. It's basically this guy who interacts with and at times, abuses your mouse pointer. In one interactive video he eats it. In another, he runs away after seeing it. This is a really creative way to interact with the user in a video. I'd like to see something like this developed further in the future to implement things such as alternate endings/ storylines.

Anyway, click the picture. I dare you.

selfcontrolfreak.com

Acting Like I Mean It

So I assisted a friend film a piece for her video class today. It was a foray into acting for me, and it was quite the rewarding experience. It made my appreciation for actors and cinematographers and preparation deepen significantly. Filming is incredibly intricate, and to make a perfect product, everything must be perfect while filming. Editing can only do but so much. You are required to have the ability to envision the end product and its nuances, so filming can go smoothly. If not, hours will be required for what on paper seems like the simplest of shots. (Well, duh!)

In related news, Da Merciless has been calling me Art Bitch for the past few days (I said it once, and, as usual, he ran with it). Part of it is my insolent sporting of a mustache after Movember, as opposed to the tamed Octobeard. Another part is my sartorial daring, like my subtly detailed knit hat, new for late autumn/ winter. Anyway, Art Bitch refers to CSS’s iconic track of the same name from the cult classic Cansei de Ser Sexy. Here’s a live performance of it.

"My art is called egocentric-soft-porno

Or maybe it's just narcissism

My one and only subject

Goes from something like anything but

Me-ism"

Yeah. I love me.

Ordinary things come to life. Bent Objects by Terry Border

Check out the rest of the slideshow via The Telegraph's Culture Picture Galleries.

more on Terry Border's blog bentobjects.blogspot.com

"I should be doing a paper, but I'd rather show you a Juan"

This, ladies and gentlemen, is a Juan. It captures, quite accurately, the Vicious/ Merciless dichotomy. Definitely one of the hallmarks of his burgeoning photography career/ trade/ craft/ hobby. Now back to that paper.

This Is Your Life Passing By

A man's life...in 45 seconds. Dopeness

"Last Day Dream" - Chris Milk

chrismilk.com

Lenny Kravitz x Justice - Let Love Rule

I like 20th anniversaries.

lennykravitz.com

Where Fashion Meets Film Meets Music and...Landscapes?

Below are a couple of mellow, visually captivating videos displaying art at its finest. Photography is great, and it definitely works as far as catching one's attention when it comes to fashion, but these two take it a step further than this, as well as the usual advertising.

First is a video for a fashion magazine.

Anna Wolf for Untitled Magazine from anna wolf on Vimeo.

untitled-a-magazine.com

And here is a film showing Lifetime Collective's SS2010 line.

Lifetime Collective - SS2010 from Salazar on Vimeo.

lifetimecollective.com

Dope, huh.

Matt and Kim - Lessons Learned

Below is a dope video from the apparently brave and incredibly laid back Matt and Kim. I was introduced to this Brooklyn duo by way of a RCRD LBL mixtape with their song Daylight, which you may recognize from a recent Bacardi ad. Anyway, check out this fantastic clip.

Enjoy!

mattandkimmusic.com

MoMA x Muji: "I Like The Way This Feels"

A couple of days ago, I visited the MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art), only I didn’t get to see any exhibits. I had forgotten it was Thursday, so the museum itself closed at 5:30, as opposed to 8ish—I arrived at 4:45. Opting to not spend twelve hard earned dollars for just 45 minutes (I’d need a little more time), I ventured across the street to the Design Store. It was undoubtedly one of the highlights of my week. The store’s skillful, minimalistic interior design drew me in (huge glass windows helped), as well as the allure of air conditioning. Inside, my amiga Janday and I saw piece after piece that caught our attention. After about 15 minutes in the store, I noticed Muji has its own wing. Muji is a popular Japanese home goods/ wares store which arrived stateside just last year. The two stores combined were a match made in heaven. Honestly, I’m not too big on home goods, as I live in a dorm and I feel it’s pointless (maybe next year), but “everything just looked so cool.” Because of my home wares aversion, I ended up buying a pack of fun socks from the Muji end. But it was so simple for me. This is one of those stores where little-to-no purchases feel forced. Stuff just jumps out at you, then you’re sold.


MoMA Design Store 44 West 53rd St, NYC momastore.org

Head in the Clouds: Man on Wire

A few days ago, I rented Man on Wire. It’s a 2008 documentary about Philippe Petit, a high wire artist who, in 1974, walked between the World Trade Center roofs, some 415 meters off the ground. Upon hearing about the film, I thought it’d be exciting, but I quickly found out it’s a documentary.

Fear not, Carriers of the Rod, for this is not your grandfather’s BBC or CNN-style documentary. This film cleverly incorporates elements from Petit’s own recordings of his antics from the early seventies, up to, and including that eventful day in the August of ’74.

Petit himself narrates most of the film as his present-day self, so you already know what happens, as far as his near-death experiences goes. The film, however, finds a way to keep the viewer on pins and needles for the duration, making it a must-see. This is easily one of the best films I’ve seen in a while. Rod certified.

What These Women Can Do With Their Bodies

Please watch both of these videos, with or without sound.

Shakira - She Wolf

Shakira - New Music - More Music Videos

Ciara - Love, Sex, Magic (feat. Justin Timberlake)

Ciara featuring Justin Timberlake - New Music - More Music Videos

My, oh my! Some women can learn so much from these two videos (masterpieces).

Clothes kill individuality?...Not

I read a post on my friend’s blog implying fashion is the death of individuality. In my opinion, that is completely and utterly false. As a clothing connoisseur myself, I just could not come to the conclusion his implicit theory was true. If, like he says, a rapper makes a style “pop off”, he believes people who then dress like said rapper, or cultural influence, lack individuality. I partially agree with this statement, but what he fails to realize is such people actually promote individuality.

They present something of interest, which is new, fresh, resulting in an increased awareness about that style. Kanye didn’t set out for kaffiyehs to become popular. Some people love fitting in, others don’t. Some kaffiyeh purchasers thought it would be cool to look like Kanye. Others, presumably those who have a soft spot in their heart for fashion, thought “Wow, this works pretty well with this outfit, etc…”. I.e., they were NOT trying to conform. In fact, they sought to enhance their individual style by implementing this piece into their wardrobes. People on the outside looking in, so to speak, will not understand this. They’ll think “wtf, it’s 74 degrees out and everyone is wearing a scarf.” In addition, fashion is art, like it or not. You go into a store to buy pieces, and depending on how they look, how they’re worn, people want to buy them and have their own, similar to any other piece of visual art, like a painting.

As with modern fashion, there were movements in other art forms. During the Spanish Golden Age in the 16^th century, most painters drew naked figures, as opposed to clothed ones with no shape, little humanity. Sure, there were a lot of naked Spaniards on people’s walls at that time, but not for lack of individuality. If you ask me, their individuality is paralleled with this notion of fashion because they, and we, want(ed) to express ourselves as best we could, given the medium. It’s important to note that people can only operate in what is possible. If perspective hadn’t been introduced, we wouldn’t see beautiful landscapes and realistically imposing structures made on oil and canvas we still see today. Similar to that, increasing the exposure of a type of clothing only increases the possibility that it will be worn well and refined by the fashionistas, some of the great thinkers of today. Avant-garde, bitches.