Shepard Fairey  •  May Day

Recap – Opening in NYC at Deitch Projects – May 1st, 2010

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•  Click here to see the whole story, with lots of event photos and videos  •

Shepard Fairey’s current show at the Deitch Projects will be the last exhibition at Jeffrey Deitch’s groundbeaking SoHo gallery.  After a decade of presenting art here, the doors will close on May 29th. Deitch has been appointed the directorship of L.A’s MoCA.  You should catch this show if you’re in NY before May 29th.

Shepard Fairey’s illustrious career is highlighted in this ambitious exhibition, a fitting New York finale for the Deitch Projects. An impressive body of work is shown here, prolific in intent, from the artist who’s iconic red, white, and blue Obama/Hope campaign has made Shepard Fairey a household name, and made his style a deliberate viral cultural brand upon the brain of society’s visual literacy. Pure genius!

The opening night of this event was an epic art mob scene. The lines to get in extended for blocks, stopping traffic on Wooster St. for hours.  Artists, collectors, fans, and excited hipsters were out in force in the hot and humid night looking to catch a glimpse of the magic that was in the air.   - JD

•  Click here to see the whole story, with lots of event photos and videos  •

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On April 29th, 2010, we at Unusual Life were thrilled to attend the gala opening of The Gay 90′s, the newest set of masterpieces by artist Mark Ryden. The show is at the Paul Kasmin Gallery in New York City. You can see the full show of 5 paintings, and 18 watercolors and drawing studies online at the Kasmin Gallery website, or in person at the gallery thru June 10th, 2010. 

Guests attending the opening were asked to dress in the Olde Tyme theme. Mark’s friends and supporters showed up from all over the country, ready to congratulate him on yet another remarkable body of work. The crowd was thick with artists, creatives, and smiling admirers.  

-  Click here for many fun photos from the opening celebration!  -

-  Click here for many fun photos from the opening celebration!  -

My brother Den David sent me a link to the new 7-8-9 from n2a. No 2 Alike. He recalls correctly that my first car was a 1959 Chevy, saphire blue and white like the tail end of this hybrid with the Chevy styling of a ’57 front, ’58 sides, and ’59 tail comprising the body, all on a C6 Corvette 440 – 1000 hp powerhouse, touting a top speed of 180 mph. Yes please!!!

Well folks, Jana has done it again and in honor of Elvis’ 75th birthday may I share with you “The Elvis Aaron Presley Cake”!

See more of Jana’s Fun Cakes here.

Bruce and Melanie Rosenbaum of Sharon, Massachusetts have  remodeled their 1901 Craftsman style Victorian home with an unusual steampunk design aesthetic, and actually have a business where they will give your home it’s own Steampunk Home Design. 

Read the Steampunk Workshop’s wonderful account of their visit to Bruce and Melanie’s home for the detailed description of the artistic and functional updates to this makeover, plus many more detail photos. It looks so intriguing and comfortable that I’m all ready thinking of ways to seriously employ this aesthetic into parts of our 1914 home.

And a Tip-o-th-hat to Cory Doctorow at boingboing.net for the heads-up on this gem!

The title character of Ray Bradbury’s book The Illustrated Man is covered with moving, shifting tattoos. If you look at them, they will tell you a story.

New LED tattoos from the University of Pennsylvania could make the Illustrated Man real (minus the creepy stories, of course). Researchers there are developing silicon-and-silk implantable devices which sit under the skin like a tattoo. Already implanted into mice, these tattoos could carry LEDs, turning your skin into a screen.

Read lots more about this in the WIRED Gadget Lab and h+magazine

OK, I want my own trilobite vehicle. Who doesn’t? This is The Electrobite Olenoides, A Trilobite Vehicle which Jon Sarriugarte and Kyrsten Mate of Form & Reform created from an electric wheelchair to get around at Burning Man 2009. Watch the Boing Boing Video below to check it out, and here’s a Flickr Set of the build process. Giddyup!

We’ve posted previously about the incredible performance art pieces by France’s Royal de Luxe street theatre company, and now they’ve outdone themselves once again with a stunning land and sea performance earlier this week. This is part of celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the falling of the Berlin wall. Check out the photos below, and the beautiful set of 35 photos just posted on The Big Picture. Please read the beautiful story associated with those pictures. Also check out the videos below and many more through the video links. Art and spectacle at it’s best. Pure magic!

Here’s the whole story on Buddha Shaped Pears.

James May, with the help of 1,000 volunteers built a two-story Lego house using 3.3 million Lego bricks. The kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom were all furnished with Legos, down to the last detail, even a “stained glass” window. The home needed to be moved and May was willing to give it away free, but he ran out of time and it was destroyed yesterday.

Link of 13 photos originally posted in the Telegraph, and more information posted in the San Francisco Chronicle.
A big tip-o-th-hat to Ken Duffy for the heads-up on the Lego house.

We’ve featured the Walker Rock Garden in Seattle here before on Unusual Life. Here’s a jodavideo taken recently when we revisited there.

Read more about the Walker Rock Garden here.

Though we’ve previously featured Steve’s Strange House on Unusual Life, I wanted to add this post including some recent videos I’ve captured at the home of Steve Bard so you can see for yourself how things are progressing there. Thank you Steve for the gracious tour of your home. – jodavid
( …and lots more videos right this way…)

…and lots more videos right this way…

Summer in the city is sizzling hot and urban hipsters constantly need to come up with new ideas to entertain their creative urges. This brilliant new idea is the latest way to beat the city heat and throw a party on these hot summer nights.

Check out the great New York Times article, and slideshow by Yana Paskova

More great pictures and an explanation of how MacroSea, a team of urban planning visionaries, has been staging “guerilla pool parties” inside retrofitted dumpsters.

…And here in ReadyMade.

Unusual Life needs to share this gift with you and asks that you share it with those you love. PLEASE PLEASE watch this most astonishing video that has been released free on the internet today, World Environment Day. Find time to watch this 93 minute documentary, preferably by linking to the HD and view full screen. Please share the love.