Here are some photos that I took earlier today. The first couple of photos highlight a painting by Os Gemeos and the second series of photos highlight a mural by Shepard Fairey. These were both put up within the last couple of days and coincide with the MCASD’s Viva la Revolución: A Dialogue with the Urban Landscape. Read here for more info.

The faces of Renaud Monfourny’s photoblog. Check out the rest of them here.

Erin Hanson’s Need to Want series provides me with some much needed enlightenment. Check out the rest of her witty compositions here on Recovering Lazyholic. Thank you to WeAreCosmos for the heads up.

Why San Diegans should be excited this summer.

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The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) will present Viva la Revolución: A Dialogue with the Urban Landscape, a multifaceted exhibition that explores the dialogue between artists and the urban landscape, opening July 18, 2010 at MCASD’s downtown Jacobs Building location. The exhibition, which will feature works both in the Museum’s galleries as well as at public sites throughout downtown San Diego, will be on view through January 2, 2011. Click HERE for more info. Keep your eyes open. This will be good.

The exhibition includes a diverse range of 20 artists from 8 countries that are linked together by how their work addresses urban issues:

Akayism (Sweden)
Banksy (U.K.)
Blu (Italy)
Mark Bradford (U.S.)
William Cordova (U.S.)
Date Farmers (U.S.)
Stephan Doitschinoff [CALMA] (Brazil)
Dr. Lakra (Mexico)
Dzine (U.S.)
David Ellis (U.S.)
FAILE (U.S.)
Shepard Fairey (U.S.)
Invader (France)
JR (France)
Barry McGee (U.S.)
Ryan McGinness (U.S.)
Moris (Mexico)
Os Gemeos (Brazil)
Swoon (U.S.)
Vhils (Portugal)

The graphics shown above were done by Steph Walker, a good friend (and an amazing designer!), for 2K by Gingham. Starting February 20th, she will be showing at New Image Art Gallery in Los Angeles as they host 2K’s first US Exhibition and Pop-Up Shop. The inaugural exhibition, entitled 2THEWALL, is dedicated to the artists that have collaborated with 2K by Gingham during their 12-year history. The show will also feature original artwork by some of my favorite artists/designers including Milton Glaser, Barry McGee and Andy Meuller.

Runs through March 2nd. Please visit New Image Art for more info.

Perhaps one day, my future dwelling would be lucky enough to house one of these Paulistano Chairs. Made with an oxidizing-prone carbon steel, the modern rendition of the chair retains its aging characteristic intended by its designer, Paulo Mendes da Rocha, in 1957.

When Jean Touitou felt that there weren’t any suitable preschools in France for his five year old daughter, he decided to lay down his own ideas along with his collaborators to establish an institution that he deemed rightfully fitting. His motivation was to bring a creative alternative to the monotonous structure of state-ran preschools within France.

The end product… Aterlier de la Petite Enfance [A.P.E]. With a price tag of nearly $16,000 per year, your little protégé will get to take advantage of mind-expanding activities within a mini theater, art workshops and a do everything space conceptualized by Laurent Deroo; the interior architect behind Toiuitou’s parisian A.P.C. label.

DIY at its finest. Here are a few recent images of the school from the Laurent Deroo site. Great design facilitating the minds of the future! Read what W wrote.

I spent a good three years working next-door to San Diego illustrator, Chris Bilyeu. In between the dead hours of his shifts, he would always fetch over some of his sketches for feedback. Here are a few of his finished pieces.

I had the day off today and spent my time over at the MCASD to check out the newly installed Tara Donovan exhibit. The Eternal Ruler left me a museum voucher before he moved to Japan a few months ago but I just now got around to using it. It was midday, and I pretty much had the museum all to myself (I like it that way). Upon entering the show, I was really blown away by Donovan’s appropriations of familiar objects into an artistic experience.

Stacks of plastic cups are turned into a world of organic swells, while layers of paper recreate topographical dioramas of canyons. The large-scale installations definitely create a setting that can only be experienced in person. Sometimes, the atmospheric experience is the medium, at least, this time, for me it was.

This Thursday, MCASD will be hosting their first TNT since their last, earlier this spring. Admission will be charged this time around, but I can assure you that it’ll be worth it. Mark Ramos-Nishita aka Money Mark (also the guy who plays keys on the Beastie Boys’ Ricky’s Theme) will be performing live; and that alone will be awesome. A museum membership will save you money in the long run and will even get you and a friend in for free. Get one. It’s a gift that keeps on giving.

The wall instilled with cloud-like forms (shown bellow) was entirely constructed out of straws cut in various lengths. Its pretty deceiving from a distance, since looking at it directly from a horizontal point-of-view creates a brownish cloud around your focus point. I you move parallel to the wall the cloud seems to move along with you. When you get closer, you begin to notice how important each straw is to the composition as a whole. [Did that make any sense?]

I was also able to check out the 1001 Kettner building, a portion of the MCASD, across the street. Here are a few photos.