“Tommy Roberts is a towering figure of British fashion and design – a truly original retailer and entrepreneur. In the 60s, he pioneered the vintage clothing trade, selling antique threads to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and the Who at his Carnaby Street shop Kleptomania. But it was with London fashion label Mr Freedom’s fun, rainbow-hued, pop art-inspired clothes – all cartoon and fruit-machine motifs, all satin and flash – that he made the biggest splash. Also referencing Art Deco and 50s kitsch, Mr Freedom ushered in a new playful eclecticism in fashion which infected design, too, throughout the 70s – especially as, in the wake of the 60s pop movement, creatives of all colours rebelled against modernism throughout the decade.”
The first DeLorean DMC was made in 1981 by John DeLorean (that swank dude pictured above). About 9000 rolled off the lot and into the hands, or driveways, of drivers during its two years of production. DeLorean was a brilliant engineer, responsible for the Pontiac GTO muscle car, the Pontiac Firebird, Pontiac Grand Prix, who dreamed of something even greater. Unfortunately, after he created the badass DeLorean DMC-12 (made of stainless steel!) he ran into some drug smuggling problems and the whole company went down with him. Regardless, he got off on his charges, as all cool engineers do, but by then no one was interested in the car anymore …
yep, this one is solid gold!
… but today we have Steven Wynn serving as president of the DeLorean Motor Car Company, and he has big plans to bring back the defunct vehicle from the dead. Look for it in 2013! I’d buy one.
Published in a small format paperback in 1971, the Peter Max Paper Airplane Book is beyond cool. Each page features amazing graphics, and a foldable paper airplane so that kids could “get [their] message across with a paper airplane in cosmic colors!” Yes please.
The level of oddity in Tokyo is pretty off the charts (which I love!) You can find pretty much anything your heart desires, and so much more that you never could have dreamt existed. Cast in point, these chopsticks …
Because we should obviously all be eating in style! If you’re interested in upping your utensil game, AmiAmi has you covered.
I hated going back to school in the fall. Summer break was always so long (but short at the same time), relaxing, and indulgent. Then September would hit and the dread would start to build. The one thing I LOVED to do before the beginning of the year, though, was go school supply shopping. I would dream of my new color coding strategy, then buy an amazing pencil case to hold by rainbow of writing instruments, then find matching folders to tie the whole system together. It was neurotic and amazing. So, in honor of back to school shopping, here is my fantasy list of supplies …
a Candy Kingdom binder from Paperchase
Muji aluminum pencil case
Some Clipit paper clips
Some Washi masking tape
A zillion Sakura Gelly Roll pens
a Fjällräven backpack
a giant Oops eraser
I think a few more things might also seem necessary once I got to the store, but this is a pretty good start!
Before stores like Design Within Reach, IKEA, Crate & Barrel, and Habitat brought design to the masses, there was the Design Research store in Cambridge. In it you could buy anything from design objects by Charles and Ray Eames, Alvar Aalto and Arne Jacobsen to eclectic folk materials and textiles from around the world (including Marimekko).
The founder of the store, Ben Thompson, wanted people/consumers to think about how to use and experience the spaces they lived in. His goal was to create a store that would help customers get ideas about how to put things together in their home and develop a modern style. Mission accomplished.
Humberto Campana (1953), began his “adult life” as a lawyer. But when his brother, Fernando Campana (1961), completed his architectural degree in the mid-80s, the Campana brothers seemed to say “fuck it, let’s make some badass furniture.”
“Our designs were born in the street, from the urban kitsch of the popular quarters and contact with nature,” they say. “Whenever we can, we go back to our farm. Nature revitalises our ideas.” In 1998 they had a show at MoMa (the first Brazilian artists to ever do so, might I add), and the rest is history.
Daniel Johnston is a multi-talented, but oh-so-tortured guy. Johnston is often described as a genius, but he also suffers from manic depression (Bipolar Disorder) and Schizophrenia (for the record, I can easily imagine those two three going together); his overwhelmingly original creations have landed him spots on MTV and college radio, on the soundtrack of Kids and Where The Wild Things Are, in gallery exhibitions and the Whitney Biennial, while his illness has placed him more often than not in mental institutions. Johnston was born in 1961. He grew up in the northern panhandle of West Virginia where he spent most of his childhood drawing, until Johnston discovered his love of music. His favorites wereBob Dylan, David Bromberg, Neil Young, the Sex Pistols, and the Beatles. As a teen, Johnston and his friends would record their own tapes and trade them amongst each other. ‘Songs of Pain’ and ‘More Songs of Pain’ were just a couple of his contributions. They told the tale of Johnston’s anguish for Laurie – his long-time crush who eventually married an undertaker. Bummer.
He moved to Austin, Texas and slowly but surely began to gain notoriety within the Indie music scene. In 1988, Johnston visited New York City and recorded 1990 with producer Kramer at his Noise New York studio. Then, Kurt Cobain began to wear a t-shirt featuring the cover image of Johnston’s album Hi, How Are You. By the early 90s Johnston was officially a star. The only problem? He was in a mental institution at the time
Mental breakdown or not, a bidding war to sign Johnston ensued. He refused a multi-album deal with Elektra Records because Metallica was on the label’s roster and Johnston was convinced that they were possessed by Satan and would hurt him. He also dropped his manager (who brokered the deal), because Johnston believed he too was possessed by Satan. Ultimately, he signed with Atlantic Records and released Fun, produced by Paul Leary of Butthole Surfers in 1994.
Throughout all of this, Johnston was always drawing. He made his album covers, and just about everything else. And his demonic obsession is evident in every one of his creations.
In 2004, he released The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered, a two-disc compilation. The first featured artists such as Tom Waits, Beck, TV on the Radio, Jad Fair, Eels, Bright Eyes, Calvin Johnson, Death Cab for Cutie, Sparklehorse, Mercury Rev and The Flaming Lips covering songs written by Johnston. The second disc featured all of the original recordings. Johnston has also continued to draw and his work has been featured in art shows around the world (currently at Agnes B in NYC). In 2005 The Devil and Daniel Johnston was released by Director Jeff Feuerzeig. It tells the story of this amazing artist better than you could ever imagine.
Such a great story. And Johnston’s most recent collaboration is with Supreme – way cool.
