The Dancing House

The dancing house is a building in Prague. I first noticed the dancing house as almost all the building around Prague either show extravagant period features or a more simple modern touch. However this build stuck out, but in a good way.


The house was made after the bank ING gave Frank Gehry an almost unlimited budget to produce an icon. It is apparently based on a man and a woman dancing, which can be seen within the buildings forms.


For me the thing that makes this building so special is how innovative it is. At the time is was made in 1996 is crated a lot of debate, people said it was too radical and didn't seem iconic however the aim in design is to preserve with your work if you feel it is something special, and so after 12 years the building is now considered an icon. I love the idea of deconstructionist architecture, the building looks almost as if its been twisted and sucked into its middle, also the idea of building or creating something to look like its falling apart or its unstable is a very interesting idea that could apply to my own design work.

Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition

The summer exhibition happens every year at the Royal Academy. It is a huge exhibition of known and unknown artists featuring thousands of pieces of work from across the world. One of the more famous artists featured this year was R B Kitaj, an American painter and graphic artists who had his own exhibit alongside the other work.


There was a huge variety of artwork from paintings to sculpture and video installations. I saw some very interesting artwork by artists who are completely unknown and was surprised by the quality of the work shown. One piece that caught my eye was Tracey Emin's sculpture, although I didn't like it and found it a bit graphic it was definitely the most unexpected piece of art I have ever seen. There was also a piece of video art looping a naked woman's torso as she had a hula ring made of razor wire roll around her cutting into her. I at first found this disgustingly shocking, but that was the intention of the artist to which she definitely succeeded.


However for me the most inspirational and interesting thing was to see completely unknown amateurs have there work selected to be displayed along side professional artists. There was something incredibly refreshing to see new ideas by artists not normally given a chance to show off there ideas. I have been to this exhibition the last 3 years but for me this one seemed to resonate the most, the ideas that the amateur artists showed let me believe that anyone can truly show artistic spirit and skill, and I can only hope that it's as good next summer.

Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

This is one of the most unusual movies I have ever seen. The films follows two people who undergo a medical procedure to have each other erased from there memories. However it's only after they have this procedure that they realize what they lost by having it done.
Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet star as the the couple within the movie, both characters are odd and quirky, one very outspoken and outgoing, the other quiet and complacent. The thing that really stood out about this movie is how it is shot, you get pieces of the story, sections of the plot and as the film progresses it starts to play on your mind until all is finally revealed in its dramatic conclusion.
It delves deep into the characters minds and shows a side to on screen characters you don't normally see, I liked this sense of getting inside the characters minds, as it truly opened them both up. One of the things that this movie will leave with me is the idea of appreciating what you have, and really thinking whats worth working for. Also a very odd idea that if I had the choice is there anything with my life I wish I could erase from memory. it really made me consider the things in my life I value and the things I don't, and whether it would be worth changing what I'm doing.

Jim Dine

Jim Dine is essentially a pop artist, although I view his work in a higher regard. From the 1930s, he is one of the pioneer's along with artists like Lichenstein and Warhol to first develop the pop art style that would shape art in the early 20th century. The idea of pop art was to take famous or commercial imagery and take it out its context, mass producing it or combining it with other imagery to make it artwork. Dine also used this idea using objects from everyday life to turn into pop art.
Of all his art I like his 'From Ten Winter Tools' series the most. He created 10 prints of ordinary everyday objects, but by the process of mass producing them he gave them significance. He showed how objects of everyday use had been integral to how we lived and shaped our lives, which I find a truly inspirational idea and one that I even used in my own art work during my a levels.



Of all his pieces of work the sculpture Walking to Borås is seen as his best. Its basically a huge sculpture of Pinocchio, an incredibly famous and mass produced image. Dine said that Pinocchio was just like art for him. A stick being transformed into a boy, was like art where something ordinary becomes somethign amazing.


The idea of taking ordinary ideas or objects and making them extraordinary is an interesting idea that has effected my work in the past and I hope it would do so in the future.

Political Street Art Online

I found this website featuring some of the best political street art from around the world. Some of it features politicians from the past, but there is a lot showing politicians who will be shaping our futures. This is an example of some of the clever humour used in these images:


A lot of the art is based on the upcoming presidential candidates, so anyone who likes good satire like me should check this website out, some of the ideas are truly inspirational, and funny.

Political Street Art

Roald Dahl Museum

I thought that visiting this museum with my younger cousin would be like any other museum aimed at children, however I was pleasantly surprised. The museum features descriptions of many of the characters made famous by his books and also delves deeper into there story lines.


The museum was genuinely fun, the large scale objects taken from his books and unusual activities made it enjoyable, however it was more than just fun. At the museum there is Dahl's writing hut, this is the room he wrote his books in, where he devised his fantastical ideas and adventures and wrote the books that thousands of children around the world have enjoyed. It was in this room that I remembered the stories I had enjoyed as a child, such as James and the Giant Peach, the Twits and many more. It reminded me of what it was like to be a child again, and of the stories that inspired my imagination and dreams and made me who I'am today.

St Paul's Cathedral

I'm sure almost everyone is aware of St Paul's and many have probably visited it, despite its popularity I still find it such an inspirational building. One of the reasons is how it has stood the test of time, it has been refurbished many times but it has still stood strong for hundreds of years.
Another is the sheer level of craftsmanship and technical skill throughout the interior and exterior featuring the iconic dome. The stone work and Mosaics throughout the cathedral are simply stunning, they are an example of some of the most beautiful stone work the world has to offer.


The dome inside the Cathedral is intricately detailed with complex patterns, gold leaf and religious imagery.


When you stand inside the Cathedral surrounded by so much beauty you do feel like your in the presence of something special, I'm not a believer in God but I did feel the presence of something inside the Cathedral. The architecture is truly awe inspiring.
But another reason to find this build so inspirational is what it stands for. It stands in the middle of a city surrounded by money and an obsession with possessions and greed, yet this building reminds me of the spiritual side of life, something which we shouldn't forget.

Monet

Monet is a French impressionist from the 19th Century. He is probably the most famous of all the impressionists and he lead to movements such as Fauvism coming about. Monet has always been one of my favourite artists, his amazing use of colour and composition led him to making some of the most beautiful pieces of art I have ever seen.
The idea of impressionism even came about based on one of Monet's own paintings, Impression Soleil levant or impression sunrise.


The idea of impressionism was not to paint necessarily what you saw, but how it made you feel, how the light effected the image and how the forms within the composition effected its mood. These style of paintings often use very open compositions with a focus on changing light and colour. Monet's worked developed over his lifetime as he focused on capturing the moment of the piece perfectly, capturing the mood and light and colour of the landscape around him. All of his pieces I feel that 'Grain Stacks at Giverny, Sunset' best portrays the style of his art.


You can see how he has captured the soft light of the sunset and how it glows as it reflects off the grain stacks. The colours are incorrect, but that's the idea of impressionism, its not what you see it's how you feel, and the colours he used express the feelings he felt when he saw that landscape. This is one of the reasons why I find his work so inspirational, you can see how these landscapes he captures made him feel in the colours and composition of his pieces. Every brush stroke helps describe his emotional reaction to the landscape and I can genuinely feel some connection to Monet when I look at his work. No other artists work I have ever seen creates the same effect on me, his work is beautiful, powerful and inspiring.

Zodiac

There are few movies that after watching you want so much more, Zodiac is one of those movies. It is based on the true story of the Zodiac killer who was a serial killer from the San Francisco Bay area in the 1970's. The film focuses more on the obsession of the people tracking the killer down rather than the killer.



The thing that separates this film from other detective thrillers is the atmosphere and level of intelligence it shows. The casting is perfect having Jake Gyllenhaal as Robert Graysmith, the news illustrator, and Robert Downey Jr. as the reporter Paul Avery. The films follows Graysmith's obsession with finding who the killer is as he tried to piece through masses of evidence and information for answers. The cartoonist tries to carry on from where the police couldn't and realizes how difficult a task it is bringing all the evidence together and trying to pull out viable suspects.
The thing I found so brilliant about this movie is that it has the viewer following the evidence and trying to form there own conclusions, it genuinely gets you involved in the detective work or trying to find the identity of the movie, and leaves you seeking answers once it's finished.
There are few movies that have had such an effect on me, and even though it could be considered too long and confusing with the level of information presented, the quality of the casting and the exciting and intense atmosphere it creates makes it one of my favourite films.

Aardman

Aardman.com is a website for the company Aardman that creates Wallace and Gromit, Chicken Run and Creature comforts. You would expect the site top be simple and colourful and aimed at children using there distinctive style. However the inventive and incredibly artistic use of flash makes this website stand out from many others I have seen. The style of illustration and animation really shows how creative you can be and still create a functional website. I especially like the studio information section as an animated house folds out to reveal the various sections.

check it out at : http://www.aardman.com/

Vikkii Church, Helsinki

I wouldn't describe myself as particularly religious, however I couldn't help but feel amazed by this church. It's located near a university in Helsinki and is designed for a new urban area with 13,000 residents. Churches that I have seen are normally large stone structures either build hundreds of years ago or featuring characteristics of those that were. However this church is almost entirely made of wood, and the use of long beams of wood throughout the church give the sense of being surrounded or standing in a forest itself which was the idea of the architects.


Churches are meant to be communal areas where people are reminded of a greater power than themselves, and where they look to heaven for answers. This church definately creates the idea of a greater power, a sense of community and worship. Although I dont believe in God i can understand how this building could heighten such a feeling. This is also the reason why I find it so inspirational, they took a risk by making this church so different, so radical in its design, but despite that it still fulfills its purpose entirely. It shows how you can be led by design and not necessarily the purpose of the design and still be successful on both parts.

Tate Modern

I visited the Tate Modern during summer. I have been many times before and each time i try to find a new artist or piece of work that I like. This summer they had a exhibition called "Sign and Texture" which explored work from the last 50 years or so that was based on an abstract style of painting and mark making. A lot of the work featured seemed to be landscapes that had been almost deformed or altered through the use of unusual textures and forms. One of the most dominant artists there was Fred Williams who used these abstract ideas to alter the feel of landscapes.


I personally have struggled with the reasoning and messages behind a lot of abstract work however I felt differently about a lot of the work shown. It displayed such creativity and variation in styles and methods that I found some of it to be quite inspirational in its creation. Even though I'm not a huge abstract fan, I found myself enjoying the exhibit quite a lot, and I left the Tate having found several new pieces of work and artists I now considered favourites.

Remember Tibet

This website was created in the shadow of the Beijing Olympics. The idea of the site is to create awareness of Tibet and the issues surrounding it, so that they can be discussed and perhaps in the future dealt with. The thing that separates this from other sites is that it hope to create awareness through design, the site is created by designers who want there unique and vivid design style will help to draw in attention towards the issues of Tibet. The site states it objectives, which many other protest groups also follow, however its not the message but the way the message has come about that inspires me. There are many ways of getting your point across, and its nice to see a new method being adopted as this is an idea that could be applied to many other issues effecting global politics.

Check it out here: http://www.remembertibet.org/

Escher

Escher is one of my favourite artists. He has been made famous through his unique and incredibly complex style of prints and artwork. He was a dutch artist who used ideas based on architecture and infinitely progressing imagery to create is mathematical works.


One of the things I love most about his work is how he makes the impossible, possible, it's almost like looking at a magic trick when you see his work, and each time I'm just as amazed. One of the other area's I found inspirational was how he used various forms of rotational and translational symmetry to make images transform and morph across the print.


The way he would create trickery and impossible imagery is one of the things I like so much about his work, he plays with perspective to the extent of confusion for the viewer. I try to make sense of his imagery and find where the impossibility effects it but he so carefully disguises it.
This play on symmetry and the comprehensibility of reality is one of the most fascinating things about his work, some artists try to amaze with deeper meaning and the emotional impact of there work, but for Escher the work speaks for itself. It needs no real explanation to appreciate how amazing and brilliant it is, and that's why I find it so inspirational.

One track mind

When i first saw this book I thought it would be an attempt to make a book with all the intelligence of lads mags. However the subtle photography inside shows a really clever sense of humour. I'm not sure if it necessarily gives an insight into how men constantly think about breasts, but I think the quality of the photography make up for any doubts as to the serious reason for the book.


The photographer, Tony Davidson, said he didn't want it to be only for men or seen as an anti feminist, sexist piece of work. He instead wants everyone to enjoy the imagery which I think is fun and playful in its style. Sometimes its difficult to see the representation, and by the end of the book I found myself looking at the landscape around me slightly differently. It just goes to show how some clever camera work can create an inspirational idea thats done in a funny and clever way.

Pixel Couch

I'm not normally a fan of interior design, as it's not an area I focus on a lot. However this Royal Collage of Art's couch design really grabbed my attention. It's fabric based on a pixel concept Cristian Zuzunaga had devised. I like the style and quirky nature of the design, the potential for taking this idea further is also quite huge. Its also nice to see inspiring design ideas to come from areas I wouldn't normally find them, which I why I was so pleasantly surprised by this work.

Pursuit of Happyness

Yes I know Happyness is spelt incorrectly, however thats possibly the only thing I found wrong with this film.



Will Smith stars as the main character in a true against the odds story. The film also features Smith's actual son playing his son in the film, this helps to create far stronger chemistry between the two. The films follows Chris Gardner, and his son also called Chris as they are made homeless due to increasing debts and a contract to sell medical equipment from a failed endeavor. Chris's wife leaves him, and so he is left trying to find a home for his son while trying to earn enough money to keep them both alive. He also applies for a job in a large financial company, and even though he is under qualified, his persistance gets hima shot in an apprentice program. The film then follows the dramatic struggle as he is made homeless with his child, but still has to try and work towards his job.
The film itself has a fairly predictable plot however the thing that really stuck with me was the sense of the pursuit of dreams, and how far we will push ourselves to achieve them. After watching I wondered whether I would have the mental strength to keep going in a similar situation, and it made me think what I would do to pursue my own happiness. This film really touched me, I defy anyone to watch it and not feel uplifted by the end, but also to consider there own personal goals and what for them is happiness.

A book about books

I know it seems strange to loko at a book about books but Candida Höfer's photographs of libraries from around this world captures these places in such a stunningly surprising way.


You may think that these buildings would be dull, simple structures, but these libraries are almost like Cathedrals, the architecture is at times beautiful as the book shows great period buildings from around the globe.

Even if you find no interest in the knowledge contained in libraries, you can't help but be amazed by some of the intricate architecture they behold. I found this book surpirsingly impressive, I never thought I could be so interested in such buildings.

Hadrian, Empire and Conflict

I visited the Hadrian exhibition at the British Museum because i wanted to see if it would live up to the hype. Upon first entering you are presented with the face of Hadrian. The sculpture is so delicately made it is like staring the Emperor directly in the face, this made a definite impression on me, looking into the eyes of one of the Roman Empire's greatest leaders.
The exhibit talks about his legacy, his personal life and his accomplishments. One of the most interesting things i found was how he was struggling to deal with problems and conflicts arising in mesopotamia, which is bascially the middle east areas like Iraq today. It was strange to look at the problems a leader faced thousands of years ago and see similarity with the problems the leaders of today face in that very area.
Another thing that interested me was that all of the sculptures of Hadrian featured a crease in the ear lobe, this showed that the sculptures were accurate to the man, but also it was a physical sign of heart disease, which gave the stone faces a more human side. I felt like i began to understand and know Hadrian better by seeing this weakness. You can see the crease on the image below:


Hadrian also was a lover of architecture and the arts, he built some amazing private houses to live in and get away from the troubles of his empire. A lot of the exhibit focused on how he reunited the fractured Roman empire and made his nation strong again, however I feel the focus on his character and how he lived and acted was more interesting. I have been to many exhibitions at the British museum before but this one left a long and lasting impression on me like no other.

Max Ernst

Max Ernst is a German painter, who's style was based on Dadaism and surrealism. Normally when you look at surrealist artists most people will focus on Dali and his works, however I believe Ernst captured the sense of surrealism more effectively than Dali, and produced some incredibly inspiring and imaginative work during his time. One of my favourite pieces of his work is Loplop Introduces a Young Girl.


This piece shows the style of his art. he often experimented with paint by pressing it between two different surfaces to create a bold effect, he would also use rubbings and textures within his work to create a more dynamic effect. This piece also gives insight into Ernst himself, as Loplop was Ernst's alter ego which he had developed through a fascination with birds he had picked up from childhood. The picure features unusual; shapes and perspective, but suggests the theme of the piece, the little girl cuold be his sister who was born when his bird died as a child. I really like the warped imagery, and sense of texture and depth this picture creates, and it's one of my favourites.
Ernst painted for many years, and worked with other great artists such as Miro, many artists since have featured references to his work and even bands have adopted imagery from his pieces. For me one of the most brilliantly absurd of his pieces must be Celebes.


The shapes and froms represent an elephant but with a surrealist nature to it. The scale within the piece varies from object to object and it leaves you uncertain as to what is being represented, i like the sense of confusion perhaps even madness the piece portrays, although the paint might not be as rough and textured in its appearance and application as other pieces I still feel this is also one of his strongest works.
Of all the surrealists and dadaist artists I think Ernst is one of the best, his work was so creative and vivid it's no wonder he is still popular today.

Francis Bacon Exhibition

The Francis Bacon Exhibition is being shown at the Tate Britain. It opened on the 11th of September featuring numerous rooms of his work. Each room is themed around a different part of his artistic life, and each room features a collection of his work based on that very theme. Bacon is seen as one of the best painters of the last century, he worked using various techniques of applying paint to the canvas and he would often experiment with these to create more vivid and grotesque imagery.
I have never been a massive Bacon fan, but this exhibition helped to introduce me into his work and see how powerful and raw his style of paintings was. One of the best pieces I saw was Pope innocent X in the portrait section, I feel it perfectly shows the style and method that Bacon adopted in creating his work.


The exhibition seemed to focus on the development of his work over the time that he painted. A large amount of his work seemed to focus on the human form, but also animal forms. He created dark, powerfully disturbing imagery that stayed with me once I had left. I went to the exhibition hoping to see why he is considered such a great artist, and I left realizing he deserves such praise.

In Bruges

In Bruges, starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, tells of two hit men spending some time in Bruges in order to lay low after a hit went wrong, well that's at least what they are first told. The film reveals that Ray ( Colin Farrell) had killed a child while on a job and now his best friend was tasked with taking his life, but he cannot go through with it. And so his boss Harry, played by Ralph Fiennes, has to go to Bruges to deal with them both.
The film has the feel of a small, independant movie, the script is engaging and incredibly funny, and Colin Farrell plays probably the best role I've seen him in to date. Here's a clip showing the style of comedy used in the film, in one of the best shootouts I have ever seen:

Bearded Children!

This clever poster campaign by the Natural History Museum is being used to sell the new Antarctic Experience. Aimed at children under 7 its designed to put them in the roles of Arctic ice cadets where they deal with numerous challenges. I think the posters are incredibly eye catching and funny, although there is something slightly odd about children with beards.

Walkman NY

This very simple yet clever Ad by Sony selling the Walkman bites back at the dominance that Apple's advertising has. Created by Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney, it brings a sense of coolness and innovation back to the Walkman brand showing the entire NY underground network with the Walkman earphones. It's just a shame the I pod is still a more innovative product.

Virgin Offices

Virgin took redesigning there offices very seriously. Because the average age of there employees was 23 they wanted a more youthful look that kept in keeping with the brand but didn't cover the walls with huge Virgin logo's.


The focus was on re-designing areas that are often ignored, and focusing on the way people behave in those areas so that by using carefully considered design they can create a more relaxed and friendly work atmosphere across there offices. The design shows a sense of humor as well, a lot of it comes across in quite a lighthearted and fun way such as the parking spaces.



This style of fun, considerate design is really impressive and shows how you can infuse a brand within a design without the need for showing off the brand.

Karaoke!

Japanese Karaoke has been the butt of many jokes and bad movies giving it a reputation for being unfashionable and tacky yet it is making a comeback into cult status culture in Japan. This private karaoke club shows just how palatable it has become.



The rooms are individually designed by artists and feature many anime and manga based illustrations. The level of creativity used to revitalize karaoke into a popular modern activity is what really impresses me.

Baumraum Treehouses

This has to be some of the most unusual and interesting architecture I have ever seen. At a German company called Baumraum, an architect, a landscape architect, and a craftsman create purpose built tree houses specifically for the client. These have to be the most amazingly designed tree houses ever made, although whether it's worth the extent they go to in creating these structures is questionable. However even if you think there not worth the effort you can't help but be amazed at the level of craftsmanship and intricate consideration of the surroundings and its placement within the trees.

Mega Beasts!

Pop up books are normally aimed at a younger audience, where simple card structures are used to create more visual impact for the book. However Robert Sabuda's and Matthew Reinhart's Encyclopedia Prehistorica series of pop up books takes simple learning aids to the level of intricately created art work.



The ornate designs of the beasts are incredibly complicated, showing the movements of the creatures depicted in a bold colorful way. Although they may be aimed at children they still deserve appreciation for the technical skill and craftsmanship shown.