When the wall came down in 1989, an era of both lawlessness and creativity surged in East Germany. Due to a sudden influx of cheap, cheap real estate — and the artists that rushed in to take advantage of the low rents — the city of Berlin became a cauldron of artistic expression. It truly […]
Book
15
May
A remembrance of what was up once the wall came down
9
May
Revise the 10 commandments of design theory
Dieter Rams, the product-design mastermind behind four decades of Braun products (and this iconic watch), first published Less, but Better in 1995. Though the book has since gone out of print, the titular phrase has withstood as emblematic of his approach to design. Or better yet, how Rams would say it “Weniger, aber besser”. The classic has now been […]
8
May
A collection of the first color postcards from the "New World"
This country may be young in terms of its years of history as a “New World”, but that doesn’t speak any less of its capacity for volumes of photographic documentation. With the photochrom postcard of the late 19th and early twentieth century, the significance and possibilities of photography rose immeasurably. As the marking point in […]
6
May
Finally, stick the bar tab where the moon don't shine
We used to think of moonshine as something that only inbred cousins in the hills could ever perfect, once they got too toothless and sauced to really amount to much on the banjo. Or perhaps moonshine referred to the liquid gold in barrels that kept gangsters in shootouts during Prohibition. But things are different now […]
5
May
Nearly four decades of custom Bimmers collected
Beginning in the 1970’s with Alexander Calder being commissioned to paint a BMW race car for driver Herve Poulain in the 1975 Le Mains endurance race, the tradition of the BMW art car has flourished. In the decades that followed that first custom car in ’75, 17 art cars have since been added to what has […]
28
Apr
Celebrating one of the finest films in science fiction history
A crucial piece of film history, 2001: A Space Odyssey has been noted for its great strides in special effects, remarkable approach to storytelling, and commentary on human evolution. To honor this indelible sic-fi classic, Taschen has compiled The Making of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey box set, a completely thorough study into every cranny of the film’s creation. […]
25
Apr
Contributions from Chuck D, Henry Rollins & Shepard Fairey
Glien Friedman, accomplished, respected and otherwise bomb-ass photographer of all things skate, hip-hop, punk and otherwise cool as hell, has found a hardcover casing to commemorate his work by way of Rizzoli publishing. That is, of course, in addition to the countless periodicals, magazines, fanzines and museum walls which have displayed his work. Being the […]
24
Apr
"Those who believe in telekinetics, raise my hand."
Kurt Vonnegut, prominent author and one of the greatest American minds in our short history, changed the course of twentieth-century fiction. Beyond the brilliance of books like Cat’s Cradle, Slaughterhouse Five, Sirens of Titan, Welcome To the Monkey House and more,Vonnegut is also known for the many whimsical doodles he flourished his books with. (On […]
