A visit from Dan D'Oca and the MFA Curatorial Practice students

 

It's always exciting when we have visitors in our space and that's why most of us were really looking forward to Professor Dan D'Oca's lecture at MICA Place and a happy hour with the students from the MFA Curatorial Practice programme. Luckily, our new ping pong table arrived and it was installed in the studio!

What's interesting about meeting the Curatorial crew is we're both brand new programmes at MICA and MFA Curatorial Practice is the first of its kind in the country, initiated by founder and director of the The Contemporary Museum in Baltimore George Ciscle. Furthermore, the Curatorial crew is based in Station North, Baltimore's arts district, off campus and attempting to engage a community in their work just like us, which means we're sharing similar experiences.

Dan is challenged to a game of ping pong

 Dan discussed the work his firm Interboro Partners has done, the book they are releasing soon about 101 weapons that either open or close a city, his exhibit at MOMA PS1 and the Baltimore Open City exhibit. Overall, very interesting stuff. My favourite quote? "White people come in with their farmer's markets and think they'll change everything."

Some cool stuff from around the interwebs

Lacoste Legends


Lacoste Legends brings together 12 legendary collaborators from various fields like music, media, design and retail, to create an exclusive collection comprising of 12 shoes. For the launch in Argentina, they recreated a newspaper with 12 headlines presenting the shoes and a newspaper dispenser containing the newspaper. [Via: Behance]

Listgeeks www.listgeeks.com

A social network for people who like to make lists of things, Listgeeks helps you create, share and compare lists of things.
The world's most inspiring bookstores

Places of note that will make you rethink those e-readers (which I'm not a fan of as you know from this post)

Herman Dune X April77

One of my favourite brands April77 has teamed up with Herman Dune for their latest collaboration to create the DAD chino. Details are awesome as always and the collection is available exclusively at Colette [Via: Modissimo]

Bowties: a user's guide

There's a guide for the now ubiquitous bowtie. [Via: Materialiste]

Gil Scott Heron X Jamie XX

Unfortunately, the legendary Gil Scott-Heron passed away on Friday. His last LP I'm New Here released in 2010), was recently remixed by Jamie XX from the XX. We're new here was released in Feb 2011).
[Via: Hype Means Everything]

Ladies and gentlemen...

Last week I launched my new initiative, Kalimat Magazine - a magazine about Arab thought and culture created by Arabs (within the region and the Diaspora) for everyone. Kalimat is online for now but I'm hoping to be in print soon. Take a look at the online issue at www.kalimatmagazine.com and make sure to visit the interactive components (audio+video) under "New Media Extras". I hope you like it :)

i like stuffffff.

Nice! Old colleagues being used in the print ads. If I still worked at DDB, I wonder if I would've been suited for a criminal shot...hmmm...


Boys, get your summer ties out!

Kul stuff

I need a weekender bag.

Dope.

Social Design - Practice + Perspectives

If you're in or around Baltimore, drop your "Wire" jokes for MICA Place in East Baltimore (814 N. Collington Avenue) on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 from 17h to 19h and learn more about using design as a tool for positive change. I've had a chance to visit MICA, meet some of the panelists and also tour MICA place and it's awesome.

Panelists include Mike Weikert, director of the Social Design (MA) and Center for Design Practice MICA, advisor for Project M, an international social design initiative, principal of Weikert Design and the creator of Small Roar; Ryan Clifford, Faculty Director of the MICA Design Coalition, project manager of MICA’s Center for Design Practice and advisor for Project M; Ryan LeCluyse, former AmeriCorps Vista, co-director of the M Lab, a rural community design studio, and founder of the bicycle co-op, BikeLab; and Becky Slogeris, MA in Social Design graduate candidate with an interest in the role of design in education reform, co-curator of Baltimore: Open City.

A portion of the proceeds from the event will support Baltimore art + design programs for urban youth. For more information please email Elizabeth.

You can register for the event here.

Kalimat Magazine

Back in the summer, I had an overwhelming amount of ideas floating in my head. The months of uncertainty that followed were spent sketching ideas and conceptualising.

In December, I finally had the finalised design and text for my latest project Kalimat Magazine and had a soft "spread the word" type of launch. April is the month where I will be launching the online portion of the magazine, which will be followed by a print edition in the summer (hopefully). On April 16th, Kalimat is hosting a Livestream of TedXRamallah, as part of our partnership with the TedX event. We're also going to have a few talks and live performances of our own. So if you're in the Toronto area, make sure you head over to Beit Zatoun at 612 Markham Street at 18h00 and attend this event.

And don't forget to check out and support Kalimat.

From my Reader: great ads from across the universe

A friend suggested I use Feedly for my RSS feeds and I haven't looked back since. It compiles all your content in a nice magazine layout and has multiple sharing options. If you're using the Google Reader interface, switch to Feedly, not only because it's aesthetically more pleasing but because it gives you great options to discover on the sidebar and integrates more than one social network. After over a month of letting the unread count on feedly pile up, I finally got around to checking it a few days ago. This "From my Google Reader" post is a collection of great advertisements I stumbled upon and thought you'd enjoy to. So, yep, enjoy!

Agency: Giovanni+Draft FCB, São Paulo, Brazil [via 1, 2, 3]

A commercial using Star Wars is bound to be hilarious.

Agency: Deutsch LA [via: Fubiz]

"Put even your worries to sleep" - what the rich, powerful and famous dream about.

Agency: McCann Worldgroup, Mumbai, India [via: 1, 2, 3]

Agency: DDB Barcelona [via: I believe in advertising]

Agency: Colle+McVoy, Minneapolis, USA [via: I believe in advertising]

[Via: David Lanaspa]

[Via: ViaCom]

[Via: Fubiz]

[Via: September Industry]

[Via: Coute que Coute]

[Via: The Shiny Squirrel]

[Via: The Sartorialist]

You don't need to have a lot of money to be presentable.

As someone who has experience working with non-profits and community groups, one thing that bothered me was the mentality that presentable communication materials were only possible if the organisation had a lot of money. This is not the case. I will admit, not all organisations can afford to have such strong and effective messaging like Amnesty International who works with reputable advertising agencies like TBWA and Leo Burnett to name a few, but other communication materials such as newsletters, websites and posters can have great design and content and cost very little. All it takes is to trust that you CAN have these materials and looking for the help in creating them. Most organisations completely set aside the importance of these materials and attempt to produce anything using any software on hand.

The most wanted ipad app

Since the launch of the Apple ipad back in April (more imitations to follow), more and more people are opting to download digital books and substituting the physical book for the ipad. This disappoints me for a number of reasons, mainly because with the ipad (or kindle, etc), you can't be a thumb licking page turner. I mean, the mundane act of watching someone read a book is made very entertaining when said person licks their thumb, index finger, or whichever one, to turn the page, but with the ipad, this humourous act is completely eliminated. So I started thinking and sketching a digital solution to an analog action, and came up with an app which, I hope one day will be developed (sorry I don't have these skills) in order to make reading books on electronic devices entertaining for those of us who still like to carry a book, turn a page and admire other aspects of this ancient communication tool.

Enter "Thumb licker", an app for the ipad that gives you that old school thumb licking/page turning feeling with a new school feel. Coming soon to the app store.

A scanner internetly

Being an old wannabe secret agent, I've limited my abilities to the internet. So I go M-16 on the internets and share with you a variety of links copped from Google Buzz feeds of friends, or things I came across via Google Reader-Twitter

LOOK/FLIP

• Gaza'rt: proving that there's art in the Arab world
• Persianissimo: contemporary Iranian posters an exhibit curated by Majid Abbas presents 50 posters of 28 contemporary Iranian graphic artists. via: Abitare
• FLAUNT...this magazine
• Publications not many people would have so they'd make good additions to your collection
• Oooohhhh look at all these magazines
• Fashion follows politics
• Animated Oscar award winner that you should watch

LEARN

• Free and high quality resources on web design and development
• Complex Magazine countsdown the 50 most racist films via: This World Town
• What hipsters would call an ideal blog. No. This isn't one of those lame links to unhappy hipsters of LATFH.
• This is what some people may call "deep"
• I hate museums, ask me why one day, but the internet tries to "culture" us regardless
• Reality of the binational solution to the Palestine/Israel question - read this

DISCOVER

• You like before and afters? If yes, then you'll like Toronto Before, a blog that features photos from yesteryear, sometimes side by side with photos from today.
• Spacing is a great publication that discusses urban life in some of Canada's largest cities. I personally read the Ottawa blog more than the Toronto blog, because I feel the nation's capital (and my former home) faces a lot of challenges when it comes to urban landscape. As an advocate of Ottawa transforming its look to accommodate its growth, I'm happy to see Spacing take the initiative and devote a magazine to Ottawa.
• GGRP sound cardboard record player
• Yes, I really do enjoy this blog
• The greatest voice of the Arab world - Umm Kulthum via: Avant Caire

skip the bunnies, eid is for sheeps.

Eid Mubarak to everyone! It's Eid Al-Adha, I find myself celebrating only with friends, away from my family due to time and distance and although I spoke to my parents this morning wishing them a happy Eid, I would've liked to celebrate with them.

Some ads:

Via: http://adsoftheworld.com/forum/43273

Via: http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/mcdonalds_eid_mubarak

Although relevant to Ramadan, this one is too good not to post:

Via: http://muslimtees.wordpress.com/2008/09/13/brilliant-advertisement-brilliant-message/

Some gift ideas:

Make sure to keep the evil eye away (from Etsy)

And eat the proper portions (from Etsy)

Sites to check out for some great stuff:

Hijab Man (controversial?)

Muslim Girl.net

Muslim Girl Magazine

Jetpack, or how I figured out how to get across checkpoints

Last night, a brilliant idea came to me. I merged my love of Boba Fett, human rights and innovation and created this:

"JETpack: for wherever the IDF decides to take you"
click image to view larger
Thank me when you get through Kalandia in under five.
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/michaelimage/504743509/

Discoveries, IV

The Yuppie is back with her fourth (roman IV) installment of my latest discoveries from the world wide web and beyond. Read them, appreciate them and spread them.

Fashion World:
Tick tock, fashion weeks are approaching, some like Copenhagen Fashion Week have already passed, which means only two things: 1) revive your champagne and kit kat diets and 2) show packages have been released. These cards let agencies get creative, some splurging huge amounts on their cards. Check out the show packages here.

Major Management

Scoop Copenhagen
Illustration:

How tacky that I was in a rental this weekend. Hehehehe, enjoy these illustrations from Molly Schiot, whose more than just an illustrator, but you'll know that when you visit her website.
Via Shiny Squirrel
Craigslist:
Toronto has a lot of talent, but it also has a lot of bad art and pseudo everythings. Vaneska finds an interesting Craigslist job posting claiming to the same old hipster/yuppie bullshit. Laugh it up here.
Advertising:
The Middle-East may have its restrictions and popular culture you may or may not understand, but their recent Ramadan ads have been nothing short of fantastic. Subscribe to AdBlog Arabia and MediaMe to view more campaigns from all over the Middle-East.

Via AdBlog Arabia
We're all faced with ignorance, sometimes from people we wouldn't except. If you're tired of the old "you're not even allowed to have water?" question from someone who doesn't understand Ramadan, just point them to this campaign.

Via MediaMe
Architecture:
Now if this villa was in Southern Spain I would do everything in my power (fundraising, angel investors, begging all family members, illegal things (maybe)) to purchase it. And although it's tempting, I'm looking at a big expense so might as well have it in the ideal location. For now, I'll admire from afar.



Via Contemporist
Music+Branding
Amazing video by Nike paying tribute to old 90's hip-hop. The beat is catchy and the video is fun. Spot any "familiar" faces in this one?

Via AdFreak