On Color 1: Helga Steppan

As blogged by hipstomp on core77 yesterday, Helga Steppan's new photographs in her series "Be Long A Part" are gorgeous portraits of her belongings arranged by color. (See them here.) Besides their being stunning works of art and examination of one's stuff, they provide an interesting look into what objects are typically what color. Color clearly has deep meaning for us in some amygdala place, and I ain't no color theorist so enough said on that; but I love scanning through Steppan's images to get a sense of functionality from the objects as an after thought to the sense I get from the colors themselves. For example the grey objects seem so predictably utilitarian, and the pink and yellow so joyful but unnecessary. There's got to be a lot to say about color and function, and a lot to read for that matter. Maybe someone out there will look at these photos and leave an interesting comment on this. Check em out.

Ice sinks to a new low!

K and I were shopping in what we thought was our local conscientious grocery store when I spotted Genets' IceRocks. Inside the cardboard box are vacuum formed ice trays containing spring water that's hermetically sealed beneath a plastic peel-off top. Just freeze, peel, serve, and waste! How gross! And what's worse folks is that this is not another diabolically ignorant company from our own republic. Do not be fooled by their name, the Water Bank of America, these people are Canadians! Socialists! Their mission is some bullshit about preventing traveller's diarrhea (no pun intended) and providing clean water to those without. From the looks of the packaging and website, this is among the most effete and wasteful luxury products I've ever seen. Obviously these guys are not reading about our plastic waste epidemic due to bottled water consumption. (Poor Seventh Generation paper plates got stuck on the bottom shelf in the photo.) I'll take dysentery over this any day.

How can I be sure I'm in a Hotel?

I wake suddenly in the early morning, disoriented from a dream. I look around. Is my taste really this bad? Do I have friends who decorate their guestroom so hideously? Where am I? Ah yes. I see that tell tale product that lets me know I'm in a hotel somewhere. The door closer. Vacation... back to bed.

U2 guitarist sues AT&T for defamation of pseudonym

In the wake of poor public response to AT&T's "Edge" network which provides internet service to Apple's new iPhone, a lawsuit has been filed by Apple's own puppet and lead guitarist for the band "U2," David Howell Evans (aka The Edge). Mr. Evans, or The Edge as he refers to himself, claims that AT&T's Edge network "is slow and lame," and that its name is a defamaton of his pre-existing pseudonym and jeopardizes band loyalty. Furthermore, The Edge claims that the delay in loading a web page on AT&T's Edge network infringes on his signature guitar style. Neither AT&T nor The Edge could be reached for comment.

Sustainable Branding

Walking past The Trash Bar in Williamsburg tonight was a breathe of fresh air. What commitment they show to their brand image!-- unsightly people loitering, a huge pile of trash bags, and a man digging through their garbage, and right outside the front entrance! No big bucks spent on glittering signage, no flyers being handed out. This is the recommodification of trash in true form. The people behind Trash Bar aren't creating trash in order to grow, they're using existing and available resources from the streets of Brooklyn to build their brand image. Bravo!