Specimen San Diego. By Mark Quint
November 26, 2010
Located within the former Bay Park studio of Italo Scanga lies the Specimen shop, a retail side project of Quint Contemporary Art owner, Mark Quint. Although serving as a temporary outpost, the shop is an extension of its online counterpart—selling books, prints, photographs, paintings and other carefully selected goods by Mark Quint.
Aside form the art, the majority of the inventory is vintage. Supreme skateboard decks designed by contemporary artists such as John Baldessari and Ryan McGinness are just as likely to be available as a series of 60′s surf prints by Ron Church. A well-stocked library of out-of-print hardcovers are also available at bargain prices.
Specimen 4130 Napier Street, San Diego, CA 92110
Below, Neill Orje scrummages through the vast selection of used art catalogs and books. He ended up picking up an 89-year-old book of poems that I forgot the name of.
Wieden+Kennedy’s 10th annual Pie Contest… and Pie Toss!
November 26, 2010
Last Monday, Wieden+Kennedy held it’s 10th annual Pie Contest where about 85 agency members got a chance to duke out their culinary skills for crustworthy stardom—and not to mention an all expense paid trip (for two) to NYC! After much deliberation and two tiers of judging, Dan Wieden dubbed Michele LeFore’s Banoffee Pie as this year’s winner. The pie was a mixture of banana and toffee, hence the name. An honorable mention also goes out to our very own Emily Hemson, who took 2nd place in the chocolate-crust category.
To coincide with the contest, we (w+k12) spent the last two weeks organizing the Pie Toss Auction to help raise money for charity and to promote the W+K can drive. At the expense of our W+K chieftains getting pies thrown at their faces, we were able to raise about $7,000—all of which will go to the Portland Rescue Mission. Good cause. Tons of fun.
Gif via Gif Diary
On my desk: KAWS Book by Rizzoli
November 24, 2010
Recommusings: 049
November 22, 2010
Geigy at Le Lieu Du Design, Paris ~ Arkitip Intel
Maryhill Overlook. Columbia River Gorge in Oregon ~ Allied Works Architecture
Keepin’ It Casual: Mid-Century Informal Script Lettering ~ Communication Arts
Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion car is back courtesy of Norman Foster ~ Guardian
Currently listening to: “Sometimes” by Beach Fossils
November 21, 2010
Faile Mural at Wieden+Kennedy Portland
November 20, 2010
For Wieden+Kennedy’s 24th anniversary, Faile was invited to install a large scale mural on the 5th floor bridge over looking their atrium. Modular segments of the mural now decorate the walls of their garage. Click here to see it in full view.
Lunch with John C Jay (Studio J)
November 20, 2010
A few days ago, John Jay invited us (w+k12) over for lunch at his private creative consultancy space, Studio J. Over that last two months, we’d occasionally get a glimpse of him through the halls at Wieden+Kennedy, but would rarely get a chance to speak with him since he’d usually be on his way in-or-out of the building. So this was our formal introduction. John Jay is currently the executive creative director of W+K and also spends time overseeing their global offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo, Delhi and São Paulo.
Studio J is currently tackling a project with the city that would facilitate the construction of a multi-purpose hostel complex. The building would house artists, designers and creative-types looking for affordable spaces to hone their craft. This would be a definite catalyst to help re-energize Portland’s Chinatown district. Word is that Alex Calderwood, founder of the famed Ace Hotel chain, will be a collaborator of the project.
I’ve been a big fan of John Jay’s work for quite some time and followed his blogs within the NYTimes and Japan’s Honeyee. In 2008, I had the pleasure of hearing him speak at Imprint Lab alongside Jeff Staple and Hiroshi Fujiwara. This was definitely a great time to pick his brain in between bites.
During our stay, John made an interesting point about being an artist (or any creative type for that matter). He mentioned that you should always be wary of getting too comfortable and that you should always be challenging yourself. His decision to move from New York to Portland baffled his former employers at Bloomingdale’s—a brand he helped shape during the 80′s and early 90′s—but it was the challenge of a smaller city and the departure from the fashion industry that allured him to Wieden+Kennedy.
Above, are bricks of soap that will eventually be cut into smaller sizes. John and his wife Janet also utilize the space as a workshop for their boutique soap collection, Pearl+. Each block is hand crafted and made out crushed pearls. The thing that’s great about running a soap operation within your studio is that your space will always smell pretty damn good. The collection is only available at small handful of places including Colette and Ace Hotel PDX.
Below is John’s art collection. Some of my favorites were done by Chris Johanson, Tom Sachs, Jun Takahashi (UNDERCOVER) and Kaws.
Currently listening to: “Turns to Blood” by Flight
November 19, 2010It’s 3:44am with quite a few things to take care of before I call it a night. This song seems to be the only thing that can keep me awake. Available now via Zoo Music. Get busy.
On my desk: Musselman’s Cherry Pie Filling Print (W+K Can Drive)
November 18, 2010
Sara Phillips and Paul Wig of W+K12 created these wonderful prints in support of this years Wieden+Kennedy can drive. Donations over the next few weeks will help feed those in need during the upcoming holiday season. Sara and Paul were both kind enough to float me a print to help alleviate the sparse walls of my apartment.
Nosaj Thing, Toro y Moi and Jogger at the Holocene
November 17, 2010
Last Monday’s bill at the Holocene included Toro y Moi, Jogger and LA’s Nosaj Thing. It’s been a busy couple of weeks here at W+K and it was nice to finally attend a show at the Holocene. In spite of living on the opposite side of the block, this was my first time to check out the venue. It’s a deceivingly large space, with methodically partitioned rooms to help maintain a small-venue atmosphere.
First off, this has got to be the best live show I’ve ever seen performed by a DJ. Adam Guzman and Julia Tsao (Fair Enough) provided the visual choreography projected upon Nosaj Thing’s backdrop. The light show was dialed in so well with the music that it could almost fit into any contemporary art exhibition as a performance piece.
Toro y Moi provided as my soundtrack this last Summer and it was good to relive those warmer months back in San Diego. Unlike some of his older sets, he remained pretty stationary during his show. I would’ve loved to see him leave the keyboards for some of the dancier tunes such as Low Shoulder, but it was still an awesome set. Glad I made it out.
