An extremely beautiful experimentation with light, sound and design.
It’s collaborative effort between Chinese artists Wang Furui, CuiQin Xiang, Jang Young-dal, Yeting Hao, Wang Shibang and Liao Guanting. The piece explores digital technology through building shape and sound with the surrounding public buildings and landscape. A virtual interface illuminates the architecture to construct a boundary that continuously manifests and disappears.
‘Waves’ utilizes a basic construction of a long piece of elastic string and two motors to visualize the presence of people close to the installation. The string between the two motorized chambers reacts to the people presence and movements, it twirls to produce a sine-wave simulation that eloquently resembles both the digitization of real-time sound waves and patterns of flow and connectivity found in natural systems.
The simple act of making the “invisible” visible can produce profound effects in both our understanding of the world around us and the close relationship we have to the natural and built environment that we occupy daily. Although the project may seem like a simple visualization of intangible forms, it nevertheless connects to our visceral side by creating unique sound output and striking visual stimuli that engage with “persistence of vision” and our connection to the spaces we occupy and their sonic and electromagnetic inhabitants.
An amazing series by Cartsen Witte. The gorgeous models paired with the impeccable face paint give the work an eerie feel. I can’t really describe how much I’m enjoying these. There’s a bit of Richard Avedon, even some rawness from Lipari - but Witte does something unique and very special here.
We’d definitely like a large print of one of these in the studio.
We posted about The Death of Youth a while back, the popular photo blog of Giovanni Lipari. His growing catalogue of women have begun to attract a wide audience, both curious and interested.
Lipari’s curations depict seductive scenarios, contextually embedded in hopeful reality - but in actuality are an intelligent fabrication, showcasing good storytelling, a good eye, and a thoughtful message on youth, sex, and whim. Read our interview with the mind behind The Death of Youth below.
The manner in which you photograph these women appear to be extremely personal. The hyper-sexuality, the setting, the poses…the photographs seem to be set up as after thoughts - just documenting a specific sexual encounter. Are the situations real? Do you know these women personally?
I think that there is both a personal aspect, as well as a manufactured characteristic, to these photographs. Similar to an advertisement, these pictures seek to sell a certain lifestyle. In reality, there was no sexual encounter, but the way in which the photos portray the relationship between the photographer and the model emulates a romance that shows two lovers in an intimate situation. In general, in this project I met the women immediately before I started to shoot them. Very rarely would I have any interaction with a model before they got naked. Becauseofthis, the situations reflected in my photographs do not demonstrate the true relationship between myself and the models, but rather the fabricated lifestyle I sought to display in this series.
What was more pleasing - experiencing these fantasies as a young man, or reliving them in the contextof’DeathofYouth’?
I cannot say that I have ever personally experienced these fantasies, even during myyouth. I see these photos as nothing more than a fabrication, in which I did not actively fulfill a longstanding fantasy. In reality, I did not always enjoy the productionofthese photographs; it was hard work. I am simply showing that this lifestyle is easily manufactured, but that it is not a reality for most people. The only individuals who experience such a hyper-sexualized wayoflife are certain musicians, celebrities and athletes.
Is there a specific woman that you photographed that was more compelling than the rest?
This is a difficult question for me to answer. Manyofthe women brought a huge partofthemselves to the shoot, so it would be difficult for me to set apart one over another. I can say, however, that someofthe models were extremely difficult to work with, while others were absolutely pleasant and wonderful to spend time with.
What drew you to the specific women that you photographed?
In “DeathofYouth” I sought to portray a varied groupofwomen. For this series, I was particularly interested in seeking out women with distinct characteristics and looks. In general, I found that I enjoyed photographing the women who were truly comfortable with their bodies.
Do you pay these women? Or do they participate freely in this art project?
It was about 50/50 with the models that I photographed. I never paid anyofthem too much money, but yes, about halfofthe women took home a check. However, I think that the best shoots were often with the women who really wanted to help me out for the sakeofthe project. I definitely appreciated the women who did this for me.
Other than the driving philosophy behindofDoY, was there anything or anyone else that influenced your work? There are some obvious similarities to Newton’s work, as well as Bourdin’s. Where they instrumental to what you do?
The men that I mentioned as having an impact on myyouth, such as Hugh Hefner, Terry Richardson and Helmut Newton, all portray a certain illusionof machismo. As young men, we are told that the way that these playboys act is “cool,” and we aspire to be them. Yet, in my opinion, this archetype has been fabricated to sell ideas, products and a playboy lifestyle. By emulating this same lifestyle in this series, I have demonstrated how easily this image can be manufactured. In other words, partofthe realizationof this series, for me, came from deconstructing this imageofthe “jet-setting playboy” that had long influenced me as a young man.
Made in collaboration by Annica Cuppetelli and Cristobal Mendoza, this amazing installation is comprised of long, skinny strips, illuminated by a projector. The strips react in real time to physical stimuli - perfectly coded, impeccably designed and therefore highly responsive, creating a beautiful, interactive art piece.
Nike Air Lunar Flow+ Trainers, via Oki-Ni. I think these are G, for so many obvious reasons -
“The Nike Lunar Flow+, seen here in black and red.
By updating the retro styling of the classic Nike Air Flow and marrying it with their technical Lunarlon sole, Nike have created a hi-tech running shoe with some flare.
Created to be as lightweight as possible, the Lunar Flow features a breathable mesh upper and is constructed using Nike’s ground-breaking Fuse technology, which fuses together the component materials without the need for stitching. The result is a high-performance shoe that is as light and comfortable as it is durable.”
In 1906, American photographer Edward S. Curtis was offered $75,000 to document North American Indians. The benefactor, J.P Morgan, was to receive 25 sets of the completed series of 20 volumes with 1,500 photographs entitled The North American Indian. Curtis set out to photograph the North American Indian way of life at a time when Native Americans were being forced from their land and stripped of their rights. Curtis’ photographs depicted a romantic version of the culture which ran contrary to the popular view of Native Americans as savages. (via Denver Post)
Giovanni Lipari experiments with fantasies, photographing beautiful women - usually topless, or with very little clothing on - and ultimately unveiling how these desires were fabricated and what they actually mean. The images are stark and strong, making you wonder the back story. Were these sexual encounters real? In many ways, his work in Death of Youth is very much like that of classic advertising - compelling, riveting and selling you on an idea and a lifestyle.
We’ll be posting our interview Giovanni later this week. Below are some selects from his shoot with Rebecca.
