Olaf Bruening

First of all, GREAT intro to the site! I love when artists share their space to the public, even if it is via internet. It is such a helpful peek into their world, which is a huge insight into their work. Regardless, this was brought to my attention via VAFROMVA's tweets, and I am instantly in love. Kitschy, slightly NSFW drawings, and a multitude of twisted links showing random things like the location of her studio via Google maps, a refreshing page with "Click Me" appearing endlessly, and "Scroll Downs" which reveal nothing but a picture of a man holding a bottle of Orangina. However, there are some serious links as well, such as her blog, shop (just kidding!), photos, installations, drawings, and more. Just the site itself is a delight, so once you actually maneuver to her portfolio the happiness only grows. Line drawings exploring the seemingly innocent figure in perhaps innocuous situations, sometimes dangerous, silly, risque, and more. Great quick work by an artist that I can describe as "fun." There might not be a lot of serious "work" behind it, but who needs it to bring a smile to your face?

Eye-Catching Ads

Learning how to Live is a pretty extensive daily blog focusing on "the art of living"- at quick glance, I'm not super interested in much that this guy has to say, but the latest post was brought to my attention by the lovely Virginia Ivey, who was recently accepted in the prestigious VCU BrandCenter Master's program! The Top 5 Interactive Ads That Catch Your Attention is a great collection of quirky, innovative, and edgy ads that either force the viewer to participate whether they like it or not, or draw you in almost involuntarily with unsupervised participation.

My personal favorite is this swooping photo of a custom ad floor in a mall in Jakarta, Indonesia, which replaces fleas with unsuspecting shoppers. People on the higher levels can observe what seems to be human fleas crawling all over the animal as they scurry to and fro about their business. I'm sure there were many tweets about this.

The Grid Book

Hannah B. Higgins has mapped the history of the most prominent grid systems in Western culture in her book "The Grid Book", which had an opening a few weeks ago at Printed Matter in NYC. She examines the brick, the tablet, the gridiron city plan, the map, musical notation, the ledger, the screen, moveable type, the manufactured box, and the net as the underlying structures for the world around us perhaps even more than any of us realize. These 10 "grids" have moved and shaped the world around us, and even as the landscape changes these basic structures remain the same. They are used in art as well as urban planning, technology as well as simple games.

She is the an associate professor in the art history department at the University of Illinois at Chicago, which I think would present a really interesting point of view for such a potentially mathematical subject. I've always been fascinated with the idea of structure in a seemingly structureless object, like parallel lines in nature. Thinking about the invisible harmony of the world is truly a spectacular mind exercise.

Los Angeles Festival of Books!

UCLA is hosting a weekend-long book festival at the end of the month that is FREE!!! Nothing in LA is free, but somehow this is (however, parking is not). The Los Angeles Festival of Books will take place Saturday and Sunday, April 25-26 on the UCLA campus in West LA. There will be book readings, signings, and local authors on hand peddling their wares. Click the link above to get more information on what's happening and who will be attending. Tickets are free but required to enter some of the events and panel discussions.

Pritned Matter NYC

Nieves
An Exhibition
April 4 – May 23, 2009

Opening Reception
Saturday, April 4, 2009, 5:00 – 7:00 PM

Printed Matter is pleased to announce an exhibition with the legendary Swiss publisher Nieves. The exhibition will feature a full retrospective of Nieve's zine program since 2004 as well as a selection of the books published by the press since its founding in 2001. The opening reception will also serve as a book launch for new titles by Henry Roy, Katerina Christidi, Harmony Korine as well as the compilation Zine Box 2008. The exhibition will open on April 4, 2009 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at Printed Matter, which is located at 195 Tenth Avenue (between 21st and 22nd Street) in New York City.

Nieves was founded in 2001 by Benjamin Sommerhalder, following the demise of his short-lived magazine Zoo. From the start, Nieves has published critically acclaimed, yet diverse, publications from a who's who of visual delinquents: Rita Ackermann, Linus Bill, Robin Cameron, Larry Clark, Marcel Dzama, Chris Johanson, Kim Godon, Spike Jonze, Harmony Korine, Ari Marcopoulos, Mike Mills, Rick Myers, Aaron Rose, Ed Templeton, and Andrew Jeffrey Wright to name but a few. The publications have taken on a variety of forms, from limited edition, photocopied zines, to more-formally recognized hardcover, perfect-bound and offset books. In the last eight years, Nieves has become one of the most talked about names in European publishing and Sommerhalder recently won the Jan Tschichold award, a prestigious award given annually on the occasion of “The Most Beautiful Swiss Books” competition.

Although I have collected artists' books for several decades, this is the first time that I have trusted a publisher's tastes and program to intersect so completely with my own. Perhaps this is because Benjamin Sommerhalder, who is Nieves itself, is not so much a publisher as someone taking pleasure in artists' zines and in the act of publishing.

AA Bronson
“Nieves”, The Most Beautiful Swiss Books, 2009



The exhibition will feature over 100 zines published by Nieves since 2004, making them available for reading and perusing. Also on view will be a broad selection of books published by the press since 2001. Nieves authors Rick Myers and Tim Barber will be on hand to sign their publications at the opening reception, which will also serve as the launch for four publications:

Henry Roy's new zine August is about cinematic and dreamy vision of Ibiza, where he spent his last summer holidays (and has been visiting many times since the late eighties). August is saddle stitched, black and white, and 20 pages. It retails for $8 and can be purchased at Printed Matter's storefront in New York City or online at www.printedmatter.org.

Katerina Christidi's C'est pas angoissant is a combination of charcoal drawings drawn from her large scale works and her series One Year Drawings. The figurative work creates tension as the artist describes “between the anxiety of existential discomfort and it's comical response evoked by human figures.” C'est pas angoissant is saddle stitched, black and white, and 20 pages. It retails for $8 and can be purchased at Printed Matter's storefront in New York City or online at www.printedmatter.org.

Harmony Korine's Devils and Babies is as the title suggests, drawings of devils and babies in the artist's characteristic brut style. Devils and Babies is saddle stitched, black and white, and 20 pages. It retails for $8 and can be purchased at Printed Matter's storefront in New York City or online at www.printedmatter.org.

The Nieves Zine Box 2008 is produced in an extremely limited edition of 20 and contains a complete set of the zines that produced in 2008. The authors include Keegan McHargue, Beau LaBute, Mari Eastman, Geoff McFetridge, Frédéric Fleury, Reala / Körner Union, Eddie Martinez, Susan Gianciolo, Anthony Record, Tal R, Jonas Delaborde, Beni Bischof, Himaa, Rick Myers and Stefan Marx. The Nieves Zine Box 2008 retails for $250 and can be purchased at Printed Matter's storefront in New York City or online at www.printedmatter.org.

For more information, please contact AA Bronson at aabronson @ printedmatter.org.

Printed Matter, Inc. is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1976 by artists and art workers with the mission to foster the appreciation, dissemination, and understanding of artists' books and other artists' publications.

Printed Matter, Inc. has received support, in part, through grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Altria Group Inc, the Milton & Sally Avery Arts Foundation, The Cowles Charitable Trust, the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, The Gesso Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, the Schoenstadt Family Foundation, The Roy and Niuta Titus Foundation, The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, and individuals worldwide.

Marcos Chin

Sometimes when I read articles by or interviews with professional artists it's hard for me to grasp the concept that their lives can be true. This interview with illustrator Marcos Chin was one of the most refreshing reads from a professional in a long while. I especially liked the part where he talks about brunch! Anyway, it's a very clear article that outlines his metamorphosis from student to professional and all the steps he takes to maintain his life. PS. I am VERY jealous of his studio. It's nice having a studio in our apartment, but I bet it's REALLY nice to have a totally seperate space dedicated to creation. Regardless, the article is a winner. Read it.

Alexander Girard

Folk art isn't one of my favorite genres, but add a contemporary twist to any sort of toy and of course my attention is grabbed. My sister actually sent me this link to Alexander Girard's work, and I was intrigued. His estate now handles the ongoing branding of his work, which includes dolls, fonts, puzzles, woodwork, and more. Here's a few from his doll collection:




It's like broccoli, cats, color and dolls all in one! FUN!


Apparently he also has a large collection of nativity scenes, with focus on color and simplicity in composition. I should send some to my mom to mix with her Fontanini nativity. A good mix, right?

Japanese Young Artists' Book Fair

Last year I was lucky enough to be at Printed Matter in NYC for the 2nd annual Japanese Young Artists' Book Fair, and let me just tell you there are some SHARP book artists coming out of there right now. I picked up a few gems, and I'm sure this year is going to be just as spectacular. I actually caught it at 2 locations, the second being Spoonbill and Sugartown in Brooklyn, and this year it'll be in a variety of locations across the city as well (Kinokuniya Bookstore and St. Marks Book Shop along with the two aforementioned). Over 100 artists are participating, and it's going on from February 15 – March 8, 2009.

If you plan on being in the NYC area during the show, be sure to stop by one of the four locations. Book art is underappreciated and overwhelmingly beautiful to anyone who hasn't really experienced anything like it. I took a class about Book Arts at VCU last year, and it really opened my eyes to the entire world of tangible art that can be held and appreciated physically. There's definitely something to be said about the ability to hold something created in your hands. It's a great feeling.

SD Punks for Presents

Punks for Presents is a great Richmond based organization that is creepin' into San Diego via my very own cupcake Ashton! It's basically the newbie of the San Diego scene, and here's the site to check for updates. The Tower Bar in City Heights is the first participant, and mas events and flyers coming soon, so collect your pop tabs and stay tuned!

what do we want? equal rights! when do we want them? now!

California just passed Proposition 8 to ban gay marriage in the state, and seemed to shock people across the country with the idea that California is generally a front runner in terms of progressive legislation. Needless to say, Ashton and I live in what seems to be the Gay Capital of Southern California, so there was a huge backlash from the community today. Apparently in 2 days, 3 people came together and organized a march to repeal Prop 8. I had NO idea this was going on, so when we went out for our regular bike ride we came across a steady stream of people as far as the eye could see.





Well, being the curious citizens we are, we followed the rally down to a neighborhood park. It's interesting to see such a quickly organized gathering with such a stimulated response. I'm not going to totally get into what my personal beliefs are, but basically I think that if you believe in the Constitution- liberty, justice, and equality for all, then gay marriage is an absolute American right. BUT, if morality is your bigger concern, then that's an entirely different set of bananas. It's ignorant and discriminatory to stand against it without moral conviction backing your claim. I absolutely believe that gay marriage is the civil rights movement of our generation, and in 50 years we will look back and be shocked that this was ever even an issue. Thinking back, even Christian churches preached "separate but equal" and now would never even think that race should be in issue in any way. I'd be willing to bet that the rhetoric preached now will be swung further to the left preaching tolerance in the future. I guess it comes down to whether you think homosexuality is nature or nurture, but I guess it's something you can never be absolutely positive about. Time will tell!

Great video

This kid definitely has upper management written all over him.

favorite word

I really like patterns in words and numbers. I can remember phone numbers and credit card numbers if there are certain patterns within them, and I like the way certain letters look next to one another more than others. For example, I kind of hate the way my license plates look, because they start with KMA. I just don't really like the way that K looks with M and A. They're all too pointy. I wish it was an S or B or U or something. anything but K. I know it's freakish and obsessive, but I don't care. It's a quirk.

I have recently discovered that my favorite word is "muffin". Not only are muffins delicious, it is the perfect combination of letters. I am a huge fan of double letter/number combinations (which means i can never change my phone number because it has 599 in it and I love that more than anything). I also like that you can easily picture the word as the object, meaning I can see the word muffin shaped as a muffin. It makes so much sense. I love saying it. Muffin.

fight the fatties!

MSNBC reported that there LA okayed a one year moratorium on building new fast food restaurants in low-income neighborhoods to fight obesity. An interesting solution to a growing problem, and the first of its kind. Read more here.