Hey guys, I’m opening shop this summer called Gym Standard. It’ll be a Footwear and Design Goods shop. It’s gonna be gooood. Visit, gymstandard.com for more info.

In terms of quality, usability and design, the guys at Nocs really kept the end user in mind when they produced their Nocs NS2 Air Monitors. With built-in Airplay technology, these speakers make the best use of your audio devices—letting you play music from your PC, Mac, iPod Touch, iPad or iPhone without the use of cables. This means, you can go from listening to Hall & Oates to Little Dragon beyond the perimeters of audio cables. That’s pretty rad.

With so many horribly-designed electronics out there, the Nocs NS2 Air Monitors from Sweden are a nice breath of Scandinavian fresh air. They’re beautiful and their minimalist approach is a good reminder of why good design is as little design as possible (Hi Dieter!). These things will look good forever.

With multiple color options including Black, White, Grey, Red, Yellow and Orange, you’ll be sure to find one that suits your style. Personally, I’d love to see a wood-grain version down the line, but maybe I’m just asking for too much.

For more info on Nocs’ full product range, be sure to check out their site—and for a daily feed of what they’re all up to, be sure to follow them on Instagram (@nocsdeisgn)

“Art ultimately is an intuitive act and you don’t always have a logical reason for making a decision—but if you can really trust yourself, then your intuition becomes really powerful”.

On the creative process: “What John Ferguson once said, who was my studio assistant for ten years, ‘Half the problem is knowing what to do and the other half is not knowing what to do’—and he doesn’t mean knowing what not to do, he means just not knowing”.

“You have to innovate in incremental steps. If you just indulge your creativity, it’s bitch work. You’re not standing on firm ground. That’s what your sketchbook is for—that’s your opportunity to fail”.

“When you build something for the world, you gotta stand behind it and really believe in it, but at the same time, it important to take risks, otherwise you’re just making the same thing over and over again”.

“I think there’s a huge religion of innovation and you see it in consumer products with things like perceived obsolescence—where this year’s product is better than last year’s product. It’s simply “new” to sell more product. I’m all for innovation, but only when we need it”.

»»» tomsachs.org

This weekend, over 40 of my favorite San Diego artists are all showing in a one-day exhibition entitled, Parachute Factory. When my friends at Yeller Studio asked me to jump on board to help them out, I was super excited and honored to finally get a chance to work with a bunch of artists that I can truly stand by and say that I’m a fan of. As long as I can remember, in regards to local street and contemporary art, I really don’t think that there has been a show in San Diego as in-depth as this one.

Split between paintings, installations and cinematic art, the artists will be filling a bi-level exhibition space, that at one time, was the main headquarters for Pacific Parachute Co—a company that would be responsible for the production and manufacturing of parachutes for American paratroopers during WWII. Hence, the name of the show.

If you’re in San Diego this weekend, be sure to swing by and say hello. It’ll only be up for one day. You don’t want to miss this. Much thanks to Mindgruve for hosting the event.

»»» Visit wemakeparachutes.com for more info.

#parachutefactory

When Printed Matter organized the first NY Art Book Fair in 2006, their aim was to bring together the worlds most respected art publishers and booksellers under the same roof. In fact, last years NYABF was presented by 283 international presses, booksellers, antiquarians, artists, and independent publishers from twenty-six countries.

Over the years, the fair became the perfect place where attendees could browse through a selection of zines, monographs and art catalogs—and at the same show, meet the people behind them. Independent booksellers also found the gathering as a good way to reach an audience much larger than the ones within their local communities.

Last week, Printed Matter made it out west for their first annual LA Art Book Fair. Much like their New York event, the fair was free to the public and brought in an audience made up of artists, designers and book-seekers throughout the halls of the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Some of my favorite installations included Larry Clark’s pop-up, hosted by the folks at BOO-HOORAY,  the Zine Masters of the Universe show featuring work by Mark Gonzales, Ari Marcopoulos, Ray Pettibon, and Dash Snow, and The Thing Quarterly’s booth, where people were finally able to see those brown mystery boxes in person.

The LAABF showed me that there is still a healthy subculture for printed publications, even with the growing popularity of the digital format. Yes, the fair was there to celebrate print, but more specifically, as described by the NY Times’ Holland Cotter, “This fair is primarily devoted to books as art, rather than to books about art”. I had a great time at the LAABF, but I must admit, it was a bit overwhelming. There were so many things I wanted to take home. As long as I’m living in Southern California, I’ll definitely make my yearly trip out for the show.

And lastly, Printed Matter, like many of our friends back east, was hit pretty bad by Hurricane Sandy. To help their cause and keep this book fair free, limited prints by David Benjamin Sherry, Andrew Kuo and Wes Lang are available for purchase. Go support if you can.

The Thing Quarterly!

Bad Day Magazine having a good day.

Above, the Larry Clark Pop-up. Below, shots from the Zine Masters of the Universe show featuring work by Mark Gonzales, Ari Marcopoulos, Ray Pettibon, and Dash Snow.

Above, the Werkplaats Typografie room. Below, Family Books.

Bam and Lannie profile.

#LAABF

In just a few days, New York contemporary artist, Tom Sachs, will be gracing the podium at San Diego State University’s Hepner Hall. Sachs, who’s work often takes a nod at consumer iconography, will be speaking on his career as an artist. Open to the public, the lecture will be held on Thursday, February 7th at 7:00pm. San Diego, you don’t wanna miss this.

Brad Harris captures the World Speed Trials ~ It’s Nice That
Charles and Ray Eames need your help (buy a print!) ~ Eames Foundation
Fresh Off The Boat With Eddie Huang: Back in Taiwan ~ Vice (pt 2)
The Ten Life Lessons From Steve Jobs We Should Never Forget ~ Forbes (pt 2)
End of an era for Gainey Ceramics, local (LA) maker of garden pots :( ~ LA Times