Flights of Fancy, Wonders of Whimsy

Think of when you were young, imagining surreal creatures and day dreaming about your larger than life ideas. When I was a child I was constantly thinking of ideas and acting on them, making by hand a million small projects without looking up directions. On my own I learned how to make bound books, clothing, jewelry, puppets and even went through a phase where I would sit in my backyard and make small "fairy" towns and villages out of sticks, flowers, etc.

I feel when we grow up we can look that whimsy and try instead to be very strategic and methodical, so I was happy to see this project on Kickstarter about The Museum Proper, a contemporary performance troupe working to create a 12-foot tall puppet. Obviously, to make their puppets involves a lot of sketching and preliminary design. Their Flickr account of their sketches is inspiring. Also, take a look at a video of a demonstration of their prototype here.

"How Haiti Could Change Design"

Design Observer had an article about how the earthquake in Haiti could lead to a revolutionary way to look at design and architecture. The article by Thomas Fisher discusses how natural disasters (Haiti, Katrina, South Eastern Tsunami) and attacks (9/11) have increased over the past few decades. It does not take extensive research to understand the destruction such events had on people's lives.

Fisher continues saying that by using strategic design in architecture and civil planning, the scope of the aftermath of a tragic event can be reduced. We can't "predict when natural disasters will occur, we can predict where they will likely happen and what effect they will have." By ensuring that structures are designed to withstand the elements, the cost overall of rebuilding a community would be greatly reduced. Fisher also suggests that instead of waiting to be commissioned for a project, architects should be proactive and offer their services to protect a community from the unpredictable forces of nature.

Down to Earth

6. Madrid Barajas International Airport, Terminal 4 (Richard Rogers)

5. JFK International Airport, TWA Terminal (Eero Saarinen)

4. Heathrow International Airport, Terminal 5 (Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners)

3. Incheon International Airport, Seoul (Fentress Bradburn Architects)
2. Bilbao Airport (Santiago Calatrava)
1. Beijing Capital International Airport ( Foster + Partners)
Travel + Leisure came out yesterday with the world's ugliest airport terminals. They are appalling, so much so I can't share them with you. I have also been reading "Home From Nowhere" by James Howard Kunstler that discusses how the United State's civic planning has a negative psychological impact, specifically how suburbia discourages our participation in communities. Inspired by that, I have been thinking about travels and coincidently found on Flavorwire some images of the world's most beautiful terminals. Only one is in the United States - how does that makes us feel?

Come on over baby

This is FlexibleLove, furniture created from paper that is "ecological, adaptable, and practical" by Taiwanese designer Chishen Chiu and manufactured by Pinzaan Company Limited. Made from recycled cardboard, this innovative design is practical and can be adpated for any sort of space and any sort of idea. FlexibleLove furniture utilizes an "accordian-like, honeycomb" structure to create durable furniture pieces. "Flexible Love" comes from the idea of a "flexible love-seat" that could seat up to 16 individuals. It currently cannot be purchased from stores in the United States, but if you so desire you can email them with an inquiry.

AH! AMAZING!

This is a video of a speech by Dr. Michael Wesch, an Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology and Digital Ethnography at Kansas State University. He was named 2008's US Professor of the Year, so I would say he is credible when he calls himself "a cultural anthropologist exploring the impact of new media on society and culture."

Fun fact: After two years studying the impact of writing on a remote indigenous culture in the rain forest of Papua New Guinea, he has turned his attention to the effects of social media and digital technology on global society. Digital Ethnography

In this speech at the Personal Democracy Forum held at Jazz Lincoln Center last summer, he discusses the anthropological introduction to Youtube:

Re-Visiting the Reptilian Mind

Visual Thesaurus : Yet again marrying two of my great loves: concepts of visual design and words.

J.D. Salinger's "Catcher in the Rye" Vocab List.