happenings

zingo!

i am officially in boston, and loving the ability to people watch on the train and smell the urban air! mm, the smell of the commute! ha. seriously though, besides the street parking rules (absurd!), it's great to be near friends and family and the city.

my first day was today, and i took the much welcomed opportunity to wear some sneakers to the office. i figured the hot pink prismatron II's (above) were bold enough to make a first day statement, so i went with those. all in all, everything seems dope, and even the not-so-dope parts have a bright side.

i'll be back blogging on the regular soon when things settle in.
until then, holla.

two thumbs up

kanye rates celebrity fashion HERE.
pretty funny. (the faces - not the commentary...duh)


_k

full circle

i recently started posting on the core77 design forums again - but check out this post i did on a core77 forum in 2005 (!!) about my interest in color and materials design for footwear. (click to enlarge) it's cool how stuff comes full circle like that...

my 2 cents

50 cent's new album 'curtis' has been pushed back until september 4th due to reported lack of response to his first 2 singles. (read mini interview on NYmag HERE)

it would seem to me that whether you liked 50 or not (i usually fit with the 'NOT' group), that the success of his new music has less to do with its quality and more to do with the fact that his music is not really evolving. ok, candyshop, amusement park, and licking the lollipop made millions - but what's next? the most interesting thing is that he never ceases to be arrogant and never shows the flaws or human qualities in his music that makes music..well, artistic..and beautiful.

Cause lets be honest, hate or love someone like jay-z or kanye - their albums are consistently an honest reflection of their state of mind, interests, and personal feelings at the time.

in addition, he really likes talking about how he destroyed ja rule's career (no one will disagree with this), but never talks about how the same fate that ja and dmx suffered could ultimately be his. at least vitamin water is poppin' off.

just my 2cents.
if interested, take a closer look at fiddy HERE and HERE.

Dear Common,
Can u please help hip-hop? And tell Bilal to put out a new album?
Thanks.

Love,
kiana

big ideas

one of the cool things about industrial design is the different things that you can do in the field. everything from designing color schemes to cars to conceptual ideas is all in the realm of what we do.

one of the areas of ID that i always thought was cool is conceptual illustration for films. it's the conceptual illustrator's job to visualize what the script writer's words will look like visually. this is especially important when visualizing imaginary worlds and fictional scenes from the future like in ai, minority report, and irobot.




two designers that have done this type of work for some of the biggest films are harald belker & james clyne - their work is amazing. they both have the ability to envision concepts as well as sketch them visually so that others can understand the ideas. as IDers, these 2 skills are of primary importance to getting the job done. and they do it really well.

hit up their websites (above), or read an interview with Harald HERE.

holla!

just incase

with all of the hype around the iphone (in case u were wondering, i'm waiting until around version .03 to get my own - i remember the ipod!), incase has a new website up showcasing some of the accessories designed to accompany/cover/protect your apple gadgets.

i can't even front - in true apple fashion, their design is always amazing, and their construction and attention to detail is always on point. the iphone case above showcases their 'topographical print' and...it's bananas.

check 'em out.

_k

inside/out

with all of my free time transitioning to the new job, i must say that i've been getting my fill of television, music, and some heavy duty relaxation (um..while packing that is :). watching tlc (what not wear, hello!) i've come across commercials for this new show "big medicine". the show focuses on the world of bariatric (weight loss) surgery and the issues associated with it.

however, one episode that was particularly interesting is an episode where a woman has already lost the weight, is skinny and looking great, but mentally she feels like she's still in the old body and can't function as the woman she is currently.

i suppose the interesting thing about this is how memory and emotion can alter our perception of reality - and likewise how drastic changes can render our minds unable to cope. i understand that obesity is a tremendous health risk, but does the ability to change who we are externally jack up our minds?

another special on msnbc about people who feel like they were born in the wrong body (transgender youth) and their journey becoming the opposite sex brought about similar issues. because we can change our exterior dramatically, should we? and at what cost do people do it?

psychologists & psychotherapists play a large role in both of these transitions as they are extremely intense, life-changing and quite serious. i was surprised to hear, however that trans-gendered people are ultimately diagnosed by psychologists as suffering from a mental disorder - much like body dysmorphic disorder - which is quite different, but often ends with altering ones body image. Michael jackson is said to suffer from this disorder. whoa.

who said television can't be educational?

holla.

the next level

in mouth adornment.

how's that for independence?

oh, the media.
at least someone's taking a stand.
happy 4th of july.


_K