This interview was just posted today on the Design*Sponge guest blog- fitting, since I only just discovered Yee-Haw. The photos of the shop look so interesting and it looks like they have an awesome type foundry! It would be really cool to see their studio in person. I will definitely have to see what I can pursue in the area of printmaking; it’s something I’d like to try my hand at, even if I have to rig up my own little print studio or revert back to lino-cuts.
Lately, I’ve become somewhat enticed by letterpress and printmaking. I think it’s something that I would like to look into in grad school and maybe carry into my career. At my school interview, they said that they have a new printmaking studio, but no one ever has time to use it (hmmm… well I’d at least like to check it out before the craziness begins).
The only printmaking I’ve ever done was in high school with linoleum blocks, but I really enjoyed it. (Interesting, given my later summer stint at the Speedball factory.)
I was googling letterpress looking for some companies that work in the field and hoping to find some artwork for my future home office, when I ran across Yee-Haw Industries. I really like their prints- so many of them, in fact, that I can’t decide which one I want to purchase.
I’ll be moving back home to NC in a few weeks and I’ve been doing some serious internet “window shopping” for weeks now. One thing I’ll need once I’m settled in is some flatware- the set I use now belongs to my roommate. After browsing the internet, I decided to go check out some silverware in person and took a trip to the Chinatown Bed, Bath and Beyond. I had already settled on a brushed, matte finish and wanted a more modern handle. When I saw the Meridian set (made by Robert Welch, but a cheaper version), I really liked their look- that is until my eyes fell on the shape of the spoon.
In the half hour that I stood at BB&B staring at the wall of flatware, I kept coming back to Meridian, thousands of questions flying through my head about (what I previously thought was) the simple spoon. As it is not clearly visible in the picture, I can only describe the shape of the head of the spoon as “whomp-head”. Now, one of the things I like about a spoon is it’s tip- it’s great for eating ice cream in small bites or sipping soup. Alas, these spoons have no tip, but they had everything else I’m looking for. Oh how I wish you could test a spoon out in the store, just to see if you would actually like eating your cheerios out of it.
I ultimately decided that I would keep looking for my flatware, but I did have quite a time weighing the finer points of, what I’ve now concluded, is the most important utensil. I now know that the design of a spoon could kill an entire meal and I just can’t risk it…
until I took a trip to West Elm this weekend. They had so many attractive storage options for the home office that it prompted me to do an internet search to see what other items I could find. I really love the products by Russell and Hazel. The colors are subtle and blend well together. I love the espresso and celery colors. Hmm… maybe some new organizational goodies would be good for all the new school supplies I’ll be buying soon.
Russell and Hazel Letterboxes
Compilation of the best storage options I came across:
I just finished watching Junebug, my latest Netflix acquisition. I thought it was a great movie- it really captured the small town North Carolina and Southern culture. The characters were slightly exaggerated, but charming none the less. Amy Adams was amazing in her role as Ashley- the hospital scene was really amazing and touching. I don’t know how this movie has escaped me, but I’m happy to have finally seen it. Next up, Gosford Park.
Belgian frites have officially infiltrated the DC area. Served in paper cones with trios of mayonnaise, they really are somewhat irresistible. Just this past Sunday I had frites at brunch and frites at dinner. I have to say, they are a nice compliment to a glass of Kasteel Rouge. The restaurants that serve the ultimate in frite goodness: Brasserie Beck, Belga Cafe and Marvin.
Every popular District restaurant seems to be Belgian right now. One has to wonder what the tipping point was.
The National Portrait Gallery is one of my favorite museums in DC, mainly because the exhibitions are ever-changing but also because I have seen some amazing works of art during my visits. Among my favorite permanent works are the portraits of Toni Morrison by Helen Marcus and Tom Wolfe by Everett Raymond Kinstler. Two of my favorite past exhibitions–Henry Benson: Being There and the Outwin Boochever 2006 Portrait Competition were so awesome that I took several trips to see them while they were on display.
Yesterday I went for a gallery visit to find some interesting new exhibits. The current Portraiture Now exhibit “Recognize” features contemporary work inspired by hip-hop. The walls of the gallery hallway are lined with panels of graffiti and hip hop music emanates from one of the side rooms. Several of the other rooms feature larger than life paintings by Kehinde Wiley. His works of the kings of hip hop were visually sophisticated and included bright colors and ornate patterns. I was interested in his combinations of baroque style with contemporary subject matter. I was especially drawn to the colors in the portrait of LL Cool J. (below) And I have to say, I loved the portrait of Ice T, mainly because it was of Ice T (his one-liners on Law & Order are always classic).
I also got to view the limited-time portrait of Stephen Colbert, positioned between the men’s and women’s bathrooms outside the American President’s gallery. Among the other excited gallery-goers who were happily snapping shots of their kids standing underneath the comedian’s portrait, I must say I was somewhat disappointed. The quality of the painting was horrendous. It looked like a bad photo to which someone had added the Photoshop blur filter. I guess that’s the point, but the fact that people were crowded around that painting in the same fashion as people crowd around the Mona Lisa at the Louvre, well, that’s even more disappointing.
Another piece that I have long wanted to see was the enormous light installation of the map of the United States, part of the museum’s modern art collection. Each state on the map was outlined in neon light piping and each one contained a grouping of television sets upon which a video pertaining to the certain state was playing. Clips from “The Wizard of Oz” played in Kansas, the Empire State Building was featured in New York and a simple pan of a mound of potatoes made up Idaho. Much to my chagrin, North Carolina featured a rather dark clip of packs of cigarettes lit on fire. What? Um, what about the Wright Brothers? Or maybe the Blue Ridge parkway. I hate that tobacco is my home state’s “claim to fame.” All that aside, the piece was rather incredible and one that I’ll have to revisit while I’m still in the District!
My new font-love: Whitney by Tobias Frere-Jones. We just purchased it for a new publication I’m working on and I’m especially excited to use the Numeric range for all the tables and figures that will be involved. You would never guess what kinds of things a slightly out of line number chart will make people do. Let’s just say I’ve encountered scenes that could have come straight from 28 Days Later. I’m sure the designers for Zagat’s breathed a huge sigh of relief at the discovery of such an eye-catching yet user-friendly element.
The other morning while I was walking to work I saw a discarded Safeway soda can. I’d noticed that the Safeway soda line had recently been redesigned, but I hadn’t really taken a look at the new cans. So last night I made my way over to my neighborhood Safeway and spent a little time in the soda aisle.
I like the new designs – they’re much more interesting than the old Safeway Select design. They have a pop art feel to them and the design is simple enough that it can be altered according to flavor. I like the way that the name of each soda is presented in a straightforward way. The designs are so simplistic, but they emit such a fun vibe of “try me, i’m fruity and delicious.” The bright color blocks really tie the whole lighthearted design together.
I got to thinking, wouldn’t it be interesting to repurpose empty cans into a some sort of pop art piece – maybe a sculpture? Or what about a series of prints, each featuring a single flavor, a la Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s soup print? How about a play on a Rembrant-esque still life featuring a can placed beside the actual fruit it represents on a bare wooden table? I think that’s my favorite.
The folks at Safeway have included some pretty interesting flavors in the mix, grapefruit being the one that caught my eye. Then again, that may be because the grapefruit soda was the only flavor still fully stocked on a Wednesday night at 8:00. They don’t call it Soviet Safeway for nothing.
Maybe there should be a writer’s strike more often. Last night’s SNL show was one of the best I’ve seen in a long time – full of hilarious political and social commentary and (to my excitement) several Oscar-worthy ribs. I’ve seen all the best picture nominees and, although I loved Juno, I have to say that my two favorites were “There Will Be Blood” and “No Country for Old Men.” Apparently, SNL felt the same way, and worked up a skit including both movies that is bound to become a classic. “I Drink Your Milkshake” was the perfect precursor to the Oscars. Seriously, Amy Poehler, you don’t even have to speak to be the funniest person alive.
