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...