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For nearly 50 years now… whenever anyone has “accused” me of (or praised me for) being a Socialist, I have taken that to be a compliment. Just sayin’…
(image source : Pulitzer Prize-winner Joel Pett)
“I am convinced there is only one way to eliminate (the) grave evils (of capitalism), namely through the establishment of a socialist economy, accompanied by an educational system which would be oriented toward social goals. In such an economy, the means of production are owned by society itself and are utilized in a planned fashion. A planned economy, which adjusts production to the needs of the community, would distribute the work to be done among all those able to work and would guarantee a livelihood to every man, woman, and child. The education of the individual, in addition to promoting his own innate abilities, would attempt to develop in him a sense of responsibility for his fellow-men in place of the glorification of power and success in our present society.”
— Albert Einstein, Why Socialism?, 1949
London, UK
Royal College of Art graduate Gaspard Tiné-Berès has designed slippers made from just one piece of felt and a shoelace. “The shapes are die-cut from sheets of 5mm thick felt with minimal, simple and affordable tooling – making this product very suitable for small-scale local production. The slippers are delivered flat-packed and come with coloured laces that the user has to thread along the seam, which curls around the edge of the sole and over one side of the upper. The act of self-assembling the slippers increases the sense of ownership and emotional connection with them and allows for personalisation through the choice of laces used.”
(source)
London, England
“Anyone strolling through Canonbury Square in Islington recently might have noticed this interesting graffiti around some particularly pubic foliage. T’was rather a lovely bush. Sadly it was painted over and now remains only in ghostly shadow of its former glory…”
Thanks to my friend Matt Warburton… (source).
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
In concert with the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) a large outdoor installation of fish made of discarded plastic bottles appeared on Botafogo beach. The sculptures are illuminated from the inside at night creating a spectacular light show… see more images here.
(source)
New York, New York
Chilean-born artist and designer Sebastian Errazuriz seeks to create works “that can remind people of their mortality, invite them to look again at their lives and question their daily routines.” His obsession with the dichotomies of life and death are present in his sculptures, public art works, consumer objects, furniture, and even fashion…
(sustainability quotable | unknown source)
Galicia, Spain
Renowned street artist Isaac Cordal creates beauty from simplicity. He recently transformed ordinary kitchen colanders into shadow-casting sculptures which reveal surprisingly detailed faces. To create the effect, Cordal took the geometric mesh of the strainers and carefully manipulated their forms into 3D visages of two men and a figure resembling the Virgin Mary. The series of three small sculptures are part of a test he’s conducting for future projects which use the abundant power of city lights for their illumination…
(of potential interest to collectors)
This blog attracts attention from a wide variety of folks (+/-10,000 unique visitors per month). Today I heard from a chap named Michael Tyler in Bath, UK, who writes: “I came across your blog which featured some Cuban propaganda art. I have a small collection of OSPAAAL posters which you may be familiar with. I have been looking for collectors to trade as I have a number of duplicates… I’ve attached images of the duplicate posters I have to exchange. They are all original (some are very rare) and in excellent condition.”
Anyone who might be interested can connect with Michael via email at: m_w_tyler@hotmail.com
