Mural on St. Laurent

As photo'd in Montreal, July 2010.

Super-Shorts

As I excitedly bought a Marvel Superheroes McDonalds Happy Meal toy yesterday, on a road trip home from Montreal, I was reminded of an item that I had wanted to post a couple weeks ago...

With the well of popular characters to make films out of beginning to run dry, Marvel Comics’ film studio (Marvel Studios) is rumoured to be exploring an interesting idea to both introduce audiences to less popular, or “B” list characters, and to gauge their potential success if translated into films.

For those who care, it goes without saying that Dr. Strange, Luke Cage, and Black Panther do not have the same draw as Spider-man, X-Men and Iron Man. Therefore, Marvel may produce short films, featuring these characters, that will be roughly 10 minutes in length. These films will appear before upcoming movies featuring their more famous characters (such as Thor – 2011, Captain America – 2011, The Avengers – 2012, and the Spider-man reboot – 2012). In doing this, Marvel expects to get an idea of what characters’ films might fly with audiences, without risking too much financially.

This approach would continue to set Marvel apart from its rival DC and their canon of heroes. Already their film approaches are distinctly different, with Marvel focused on making film adaptations of its stable of popular characters, where as DC (excluding the Batman, Superman and the upcoming Green Lantern film) has tended to focus on its more off-beat characters and graphic novels, such as The Watchmen and Constantine (from Hellblazer).

Of course, the successful testing of a character does not guarantee that its film would be a success, whether critically or financially. Particularly critically, for every Iron Man 1 & 2, Spider-man 2, and X-Men 2, that Marvel has had, there has been a Wolverine, Daredevil and Fantastic Four 1 & 2, and many other lukewarm, at best, films to name.


The lesser known Dr. Strange, Black Panther, and Ant-Man.

Critter

Wheat paste poster, Macklin and Main Streets, Hamilton, ON. Summer 2010.

*Cusp Articles will return on Friday July 30th!

Uber?

Kensington, July 2010.

Souls of Mischief - Cab Fare

It has been in my head, plus it has got to be one of the best examples of an old sitcom opening theme being sampled... if (m)any others exist.

Also... July 24th is just about here, remember YouTube's Life in a Day experiment.

Roar for the Afternoon

Every year around this time Governor’s Island in New York City hosts Jazz-Age themed, week-end afternoon park parties. The parties are $10 per ticket and include a jazz orchestra, dancing (with instruction), picnics, era attractions and games. Those attending are encouraged to wear period costumes, though, judging from the amazing photos that always appear on the Sartorialist blog this time of year, encouragement scarcely seems necessary. In the past the gatherings have also been held in June, one can scour the Sartorialist archives of previous years’ Junes to see older pictures from these parties. It would be amazing to see something like this coordinated locally, perhaps the old bandshell at Gage Park, or Dundas Driving Park, the lawn of Dundurn Castle, or at least somewhere in the GTA.

Pictures are courtesy of the Sartorialist.

Conductor

Kensington, Toronto, July 2010.

The Oxford

Not surprisingly, the much more style savvy and focused fellas at Street Etiquette already beat me to a post on this topic. A couple weeks ago, when the heat was not hell, it occurred to me how comfortable I was in an Oxford shirt, and how applicable the comfort was to all seasons, and thus, how it would make a simple, quick, and effective style post. And then it got hot and thoughts of any sleeve longer than 10 centimetres were wholly forgotten.

Well, with the weather in Southern Ontario at last mellowing out, I found myself able to comfortably wear an oxford once again, however, I also found that the well researched Street Etiquette gents had already written an extensive, and generally better article than I would have on the topic.

Suffice it to say that the Oxford (often the name given to dress shirts in general, but actually descriptive of the material that these specific shirts are made from –oxford cloth) is a mainstay, a classic of prep culture and style. Yet its more, the material, generally more rugged than a typical dress shirt, also tends to be more durably comfortable. As well, their appearance translates so well to both dress up and down requirements, easily adapting to either a casual suit or un-tucked on torn jeans. Finally, unlike many dress shirts, the more worn they are, the more character they develop. Proudly exhibiting frays on cuffs, collars and elbows (see photo below of one of mine) shows an entirely authentic lived-in quality, badges of life, unlike, say, store bought “distressed-jeans.”

Check out the Street Etiquette article here.
To find oxford shirts… go anywhere. To find cheap, lived-in ones, go thrift.

Pile Up, Looking At

Same piece as yesterday, Andrew Dunn Clarke, photo'd at Function 13 in Toronto.

Pile Up, Looking Up

Forgot to jot down the name of the piece, but it's by Andrew Dunn Clarke, photo'd at Function 13 in Toronto.

One Day out of Life for a Lifetime

“...I saw a film today, Oh boy...”
- John Lennon (via The Beatles), A Day in the Life

On July 24th, 2010, life in a single day on earth will be documented and assembled into a feature film, brought to you by collaborators Google, YouTube and LG Electronics.

The project, entitled Life in a Day, encourages people all over the globe to upload video footage of any event happening to them throughout the 24 hours on July 24th, the experiences can and should range from the celebratory to the tragic, and from the traumatic to the comforting.

All video footage that is uploaded will be accessible on the Life in a Day YouTube Channel, however, select footage will be edited into a feature film by director Kevin MacDonald (The Last King of Scotland) and overseen by executive producer Ridley Scott (Gladiator). This Life in a Day film will then be entered into the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. All creators of selected footage will be credited as co-directors and an exclusive 20 spots will be available for co-directors to attend the film festival.

It could be said that video platforms such as YouTube already, likely, nearly, capture the entire gamut of global human experience and beyond. As of this year, there was an estimated 120 million videos on YouTube alone, with 200 000 uploaded daily, and an estimated timeframe of 600 years required for one individual to view them all. Yet, the Life in a Day project adds a unique angle, namely, how does a single, time capsuled day in the human experience look, when sent through the grinder of cinematic art.

It could almost be accepted that YouTube as it currently stands is more representative of life on earth in all its frenetic, random, and varying-in-quality glory. I certainly do not doubt MacDonald’s talent as a director, but it must be posited that having a director who ultimately over sees the project’s compilation, will naturally skew the vision of the world. Self efficacy is, of course, possible in film, but with an anicipated over 200 000 videos to be uploaded on July 24th, selection will be an unavoidable expression of preference and perception. Nevertheless, perhaps this will be part of the film’s attraction, viewing the world through foreign eyes for a single day.

Lastly, as an interesting little calculation, if the aforementioned video statistics are true and it would take 600 years to view YouTube's 120 million videos, then if July 24th sees the (at minimum) expected upload of 200 000 videos, it would take approximately one year to view one day's worth of life on earth.

Happy Fella

A happy truck-trailer, Great Glebe Garage-Sale, Ottawa Marathon weekend, Spring 2009.

Denim Futures

Now, I do not want to get into the habit of talking about the same topics/organizations within short time spans (see Urban Outfitters last week, and now Levi’s), but sometimes curiosity is peaked by interesting ideas worthy of being shared.

Braddock, Pennsylvania was once a thriving municipality with an economy built around the steel industry. Following the decline in the North American steel industry in the 1970s and 1980s, and an influx of drugs, Braddock saw such a fall from prosperity that by 1988 it was declared a financially distressed municipality. However, since 2005 Braddock has seen growth in its creative sector with the targeted attraction of artists, urbanists and other creative individuals, and it is because of this that the city has begun to see a grassroots driven reversal of fortune.

Enter Levi’s Jeans and their We Are All Workers campaign. Telling the tale of how work is in everything (and presumably, how such various workers enjoy Levi’s clothing), Levi’s has invested in Braddock, both physically, in providing urban infrastructure funding, and public relations wise, through its short film episodes detailing the story of Braddock and its citizens, (see We Are All Workers: Episode 1 –Seeds of Change).

Related to my previous post on Levi’s jeans, the marketing goal here seems to be in linking the story of Levi’s being a pioneer of cool to the grassroots pioneers of a reinvented community that are the current citizens of Braddock. Such investments in social causes are not rare for large corporations; Nike, for example, has in the past put much in the way of resources towards sponsoring inner-city athletic programs (among many other things). What is particularly interesting here is the promotion of the city, and results that the seemingly selfless short films could yield. As well as the inspiration that the activities of the citizens of Braddock, as documented in the film and its following episodes, could provide to likeminded individuals in similarly afflicted municipalities.

Many in Hamilton, Ontario could likely sympathize with the residents of Braddock, PA. Some may even feel that they could directly and understandably identify with them, though luckily, Hamilton’s fortunes did not reverse to the same tragic extent. Nevertheless, Hamilton, like Braddock, is a city of proud citizens, new and old, that are working to rebuild the city under a new image and with a vibrant creative sector.

As stated, an important component of Levi’s investment in Braddock is the public relations contribution made through the short film and its following episodes. In doing this, Levi’s has made less a public service announcement than it has a declaration that creative labour and gentrified communities are cool. As far as attraction and development are concerned, it is this partnering, of the work going on in Braddock and the iconic brand image of Levi’s, that may be the most resounding effect offered by the We Are All Workers film. Moreover, it is this identification of grassroots, sleeve-rolling, creative community development work as cool, that similarly afflicted municipalities may want to leverage (properly) as they look to push things forward.

Drawn Up

Repurposed road posts into street art, Nimes, France, spring 2009.

Digital Incubation

Yesterday the Imperial Cotton Centre for the Arts’ Cossart Exchange ran an “e-Commerce for the Artistically Minded” workshop, located in their Jackson Square office in Hamilton, Ontario. The open event had guest, author, technophile, and Personal Computer Museum curator Syd Bolton, discussing the various means by which an artist or artisan can go about making a living (or at least generating some measure of monetary return) off their works/crafts.

Pointing out that, for many, e-commerce marketplace participation can be a full time job, Bolton illustrated how sites such as eBay, Etsy, iStockphoto, and Lulu can be important tools in the effort to both make a name for oneself, and make some coin off one’s passion. Additionally, that greater usage and participation in social media facets, such as facebook, twitter, digg and blogs, can bolster this awareness and transform the aforementioned marketplace sites into electronic check-out counters.

The commercial potential of digital media/marketplace platforms is increasingly recognized, yet, despite this, participation, particularly from those for whom independent success and low overhead costs would be of great benefit, is still not what it could be. Such participation is often still portrayed in popular media as a novelty. What is important to recognize is that, in an increasingly globalized culture, a creative-entrepreneur’s audience and prospective customer may be on the other side of the world. Therefore, participation on such electronic platforms enhances potential awareness and bridges that commercial gap.

The Cossart Exchange, overseen by program director Steph Seagram, functions as an incubator, specifically aiding creative industry entrepreneurs, artists and other innovators in transferring their ideas from theoretical interests/hobbies into creative sector careers. For more Cossart events click here.

At the Market

In Kensington Market, summer 2009.

Pools on the Edge

When you’re a kid, the real test of any road-stop or family vacation hotel was whether or not it had a pool. Rarely did the quality, design or accessories (slides, etc.) of the pool matter (barring sanitary concerns), the idea of playing in the water and reeking of chlorine was good enough.

In my mind, many of the hotel pools visited on various past trips blur together into a mash-up of tiles, slides, underwater bars, occasional palm trees or adjoining fitness rooms. However, with the newly opened Marina Bay Sands hotel in Singapore (the world’s most expensive), the buck for cool hotel pools has officially stopped.

Dubbed an infinity pool, this artificial paradise rests on the ocean-liner shaped roof of the hotel, is three times longer than a typical Olympic length pool (longer than the Eiffel tower laid down), and is not for the acrophobic, as it appears to spill over the edge, 55 storeys above ground. Designed, by architect Moshe Safdie, the pool is made to look as though it vanishes into the horizon, colliding with Singapore’s skyline. The water that does spill over the edge is caught in a catchment and re-filtered back into the pool.

Though not the first pool of its kind, given its size and perspective, it is certainly one of the most exceptional, and with its placement, also one of the most exciting.

Yet, infinity pools do exist in nature, and despite the grandeur of the Singapore pool, for sheer breathtaking thrills it is hard to top the Devils Pool. Maybe the most dangerous, naturally occurring infinity pool, located at the lip of Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls, this small, peaceful basin, guarded by a slippery rock wall, is a stark contrast to the violent plunge that it precedes.

For travel options, neither are for the financially faint of heart, but for those who may not enjoy the sense of impending doom, the inspired design of the Singapore hotel pool provides an incredibly unique experience.

Shocked in Brussels

Street art as seen in Brussels, Belgium, summer 2008.

An Authentic Facade

Speaking of Urban Outfitters (see last Friday’s post), and the cyclical nature of styles, trends and looks of different sorts, the ironic-chic retailer has taken a unique approach to one of its new New York City storefronts. Finding its inspiration in NYC's streets of decades past, Urban Outfitter’s new store will stand out from traditional forms of street-side retail presentation and assume the identity of imaginary storefronts, mimicking the way the street would have once looked.

In keeping with the store’s strategy of ironic nostalgia, this new storefront will be comprised of a bodega, a hat store, a hardware store and a bar. Designed by creative advertising, design, and brand strategy firm Pompei A.D., who has had a 25 year working relationship with Urban Outfitters, the new storefront maintains current advertising trends by creating a story related to the brand. Creative Director Ron Pompei said this to PSFK in reference to the design:

“The whole idea was to do this kind of ironic statement of lining the building with storefronts that would be reminiscent of independent businesses. It’s the story about the streets of New York as they once were.”

Additionally, the following statement was found on Pompei A.D.’s website and refers to the firm’s design strategy for the retailer broadly:

“The selection of finishes and materials all reference the regional climate and aesthetic, and establish a foundation of authenticity for every project.”

Despite the inspired imagination behind this design, a challenge could be posed that the inherent irony runs a bit too negatively deep, even outside of the fact that authenticity in this instance is an impossible goal. Being a retailer of various goods, from clothing, to books, to furniture, housewares and other odds and ends, the design could be construed as Urban Outfitters thumbing its nose at the independent retailers of the aforementioned goods that could have otherwise existed in this space.

Leaving a Mark

Footprint near a spilled paint road stain, Sete, France, spring 2009.

Cash-In

Old cash register, from the auction at the old Dundas Deluxe Diner, summer 2009.

Cyclical Trends are So Mainstream

Today's post is short and sweet. A funny, yet telling, infographic detailing the cyclical nature of fashion (and other) trends, specifically from the perspective of that love to hate cultural icon, "the Hipster."
Created by designer Emily Miethner, and appearing on Flavourwire, this cycle accurately depicts what retailers, such as Urban Outfitters, have been implementing as a product strategy for years.
With a continuous resurgence in fashion and styles from as recently as the mid-1990s, there is an undeniable truth to this graphic. However, as Laura Feinstein of PSFK points out, not all things return, such as the hyper-wide rave jeans of the late 90s. These simply seem to exist outside the world of cyclical fashion. So far...