Junkculture

The Wheel House: A Theatre Show Within a Circular Home

2013-05-23T08:51:00.000-07:00

Part performance art and part theatrical acrobatics, "The Wheel House" is rolling theatre show housed within a hand-built circular mobile home complete with doors, windows, curtains, pots and pans, and even a bed. The show unfolds inside and around the circular set as it rolls along at a gentle pace, with the audience walking alongside, watching the two characters climb over each other, moving the portable home on a path to nowhere. The project is produced by Acrojou Circus Theatre, a group formed in 2006 by artistic directors Jeni Barnard and Barney White and has toured to Ireland, Holland, France, Belgium, Spain and Israel.

Find out more about Acrojou Circus Theatre here.

via [My Modern Met] via [Lustik]

Photos © liveatlica

A Wedding Chapel Crocheted Out of Ventilation Pipes

2013-05-23T04:25:00.000-07:00

Designed by DUS Architects in collaboration with ‘crochet expert’ Sandy de Lange, this beautiful structure is a six-metre-long, three-metre-high 'dome' that can accommodate 50 people. "The Wedding Chapel" was commisioned by Villa Escamp, the temporary city hall for the Escamp district in The Hague and is crocheted out of two kilometres of flexible white ventilation pipes, creating an intimate space with soft acoustics and beautiful lighting. Couples can actually ‘marry for a day’ there, but the application to use the structure as a full fledged wedding chapel is still pending.

Find out more about the project here.

via [GessatoBlog]

Photographs © Myung Feyen

Kenyan Company Turns old Sandals into Colorful Toys

2013-05-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

Kenya's Ocean Sole sandal recycling company collects discarded flipflops that were previously polluting waterways and coastlines and transforms them into colorful handmade toy animals. The magic happens through craftsmanship, as talented artisans from local communities earn an income transforming the collected waste into wonderful flipflop creations. The company recycle 400,000 kilos of rubber waste a year and create masterpieces for sale across the world. The recycled flipflop creates awareness of our human footprint.

Find out more about Ocean Sole here.

via [Lustik]

Photos courtesy of Ben Curtis.

Classic Recipes Visualized as Precariously Balanced Sculptures

2013-05-22T03:59:00.000-07:00

Photographer Karsten Wegener and Italian stylist Elena Mora recently collaborated on a photo series depicting the ingredients necessary to cook various delicious meals, decontructed and organized into precariously balanced arrangements. The project cleverly titled "Ricettario: A Balanced Diet" features four classic dishes: Pizza Margherita, Apple Cake, Minestrone and Salmon.

Find out more about Elena's work here.

via [ETODAY] via [My Modern Met]

Dizzying Photographic Collages by Kyungmi Shin

2013-05-21T04:00:00.000-07:00

Using layer upon layer of photographs shot near her home and studio in Los Angeles, artist Kyungmi Shin creates architectural patchworks that capture the hustle and bustle of urban life while juxtaposing old and new building into a complex multilayered cityscape. Kyungmi says, "“I wanted to recreate the feeling of enchantment upon encountering the density of signage for the multitude of stores and restaurants as you experience the streets in the city."

Find out more about Kyungmi's work here.

via [Faith is Torment]

London's Iconic Skyline is Recreated Using 2,186 Sugar Cubes

2013-05-20T10:12:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Museum of London Docklands, artist Chris Naylor recreated London's iconic skyline using 2,186 sugar cubes. Weighing in at 13kg the sugar sculpture was meticulously assembled over a period of three days using a vast supply of sugar cubes, a stanley knife, and a glue gun. "I could spend 15 minutes carving a perfect curve into a cube, only to have it crumble into dust" Naylor told Wired.co.uk. "I must have inhaled my week's supply of sugar in the first afternoon."

via [Wired.co.uk]

Photographer Creates Tintype Images on Discarded Cans

2013-05-20T07:41:00.000-07:00

Arizona-based photographer David Emitt Adams uses a 19th century process known as wet-plate collodion to create tintype images on the surface of discarded tin cans found on the desert floor. The result is an object that has history as an artifact and an image that ties it to its location. David says of his work, "The deserts of the West also have special significance in the history of photography. I have explored this landscape with an awareness of the photographers who have come before me, and this awareness has led me to pay close attention to the traces left behind by others."

Find out more about David's work here.

via [Bhakta's Weblog]

Recycled Bicycle Parts Chandeliers Fill an Underpass with Light

2013-05-20T03:16:00.000-07:00

For their latest project titled "Ballroom Luminoso", artist Joe O'Connell and Blessing Hancock took over a freeway underpass in San Antonio, Texas and transformed the empty space into site-specific installation featuring six color changing chandeliers crafted from recycled bicycle parts. Each globe contains a custom-designed LED light fixture, which casts sharply detailed overlapping shadows. The chandeliers paint the underpass with complex color patterns and ethereal lighting thereby refashioning the space into a majestic ballroom shadow theater.

Find out more about the project here.

via [Lustik]

The Week-End

2013-05-17T07:11:00.003-07:00

Our most popular posts this week featured a colorful installation created from thousands of rolls of tape, meticulously crafted dioramas built inside discarded televisions, a ready to brew calendar made from pressed tea leaves and beautiful photographs documenting the vibrant facades of hotels in Venice.

And from around the Web...

Classic paintings recreated using the faces of modern celebrities.

Dissident artist creates giant map of China from baby formula.

Giant rubber duck deflates in Hong Kong harbor.

Chimpanzee’s photographs set to fetch over $100,000 at auction.

A colorful canopy of paper lanterns.

A Spectacular Installation Made from Hundreds of Arrows

2013-05-17T06:19:00.001-07:00

A collaboration between Polish artist Karina Smigla-Bobinski and German artist Bodo Korsig, "Pfeilschaften" is a site-specific installation consisting of hundreds of arrows darted through the gallery walls and joined together to create a sculptural sphere suspended in space. The installation is part of a group exhibition titled gast.freund.schaft at TUFA in Trier, Germany and will be on display through June 9, 2013.

Find out more about the installation here.

via [My Modern Met] via [Lustik]

A Ready to Brew Calendar Made from Pressed Tea Leaves

2013-05-16T09:47:00.000-07:00

Designed by Kelle Rebbe for German tea manufacture Hälssen & Lyon, "The Tea Calendar" features 365 days of wafer-thin pages made from pressed tea leaves. Simply tear off one of the square pages and let it brew directly in a cup with hot water.

Find out more about the project here.

via [brandflakesforbreakfast]

Urinal Cake Decorations by Carmichael Collective

2013-05-16T07:35:00.002-07:00

Today is my birthday, so it seemed fitting to start the day with this hilarious project from the creative folks at Minneapolis-based Carmichael Collective. These delectable creations are actual urinal deodorizer cakes decorated to look like real cakes, including a two-layer strawberry cake, a birthday cake, a wedding cake and cupcake. Enjoy!

Find out more about the project here.

via [Laughing Squid]

Wearable Helmet Sculptures Crafted from Everyday Materials

2013-05-15T07:29:00.000-07:00

Influenced by Japanese flower arrangements, called Ikebana, Bermuda-based artist/photographer James Cooper created a series of wearable ‘sculptures’ using materials found in his immediate surroundings. Although the photographs are all staged, the helmets are intentionally kept simple, resembling the creations of a deranged DIY enthusiast. Speaking about the project Peter says, "Helmets are something that are around me all the time in Bermuda, people by law have to wear them on mopeds, so they are a super familiar object. I wanted to take that logical and everyday object and shift it into something more ridiculous and illogical. "

Find out more about James' work here.

via [Kastormag]

Mysterious Photographs of Gasoline Spills on Road Surfaces

2013-05-14T10:06:00.001-07:00

Inspired the play of light caused by refraction and interference on oil, photographer Charles Morgan Smith created a series of images documenting gasoline spills on road surfaces. Titled "Emissio" the project investigates the interrelationship between the everyday and sublime. Many of the compositions are reminiscent of Hubble's classic images of galaxies and nebula. Via his website, "Through his most current work, Smith has used images of the banal and everyday and created a series of ‘astrophotographs’, exploring notions of scale, aesthetics and the limitations of photography and representation."

Find out more about Charles' work here.

via [Introdex Magazine] via [2headedsnake]

Artist Creates Miniature Dioramas Inside Discarded Televisions

2013-05-14T04:02:00.000-07:00

Repurposing the empty frames of discarded televisions, artist Zhang Xiangxi creates meticulously crafted dioramas inspired by “real life” in present day China. Some of the miniatures closely resemble Zhang's own personal living experiences such as his old workspace in Guangzhou, the workers' dormitory he once lived in and his parent’s sitting room. "When you look at the work from a distance, it seems like the two-dimensional image broadcast on a television." Zhang explains, "It is only when you get closer up to observe it, that the picture becomes three-dimensional."

Find out more about Zhang Xiangxi's work here.

via [Nowness]

Facades Of Beach Hotels Photographed by Luigi Bonaventura

2013-05-13T10:10:00.002-07:00

Luigi Bonaventura's "Behind the Edge" is a series of photographs documenting the vibrant, eye-catching facades of hotels in Jesolo Beach, a town in Venice, Italy. Photographed in primarily static, symmetrical compositions, the buildings appear as abstract geometric patterns. Luigi says of his work, "The real mission is to show each structure as its Platonic ideal: that is, as the architect imagined it, not as it all too often looks in real life and mixing color encourage your own imagination around the picture."

Find out more about Luigi's work here.

via [designtaxi]

A Colorful Installation Created from Thousands of Rolls of Tape

2013-05-13T03:58:00.000-07:00

Art director and graphic designer Koji Iyama recently created an installation using rolls of masking tape, as part of a showcase in Sendai, Miyagi, promoting the multi functional uses of mt-masking tape. Koji covered the floor and walls of an old warehouse with masking tape and then proceeded to hang thousands of rolls from the ceiling. The colorful stripes tranform the warehouse, inviting the viewer to interact with the space by moving around it.

Find out more about the project here.

via [Spoon & Tamago]

The Week-End

2013-05-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

Our most popular posts this week featured photorealistic murals that defy gravity, abstract images of nature distorted by fire, a life size newsstand made entirely from denim and a series of weapons crafted from organic materials.

And from around the Web...

How historical figures might look today.

A stop-motion animation charting the history of typography.

Modern painting models in real life.

Homemade inventions from China.

Graffiti artist uses rotten food as paint.

Animated GIFs Show Deteriorating Star Wars Action Figures

2013-05-09T11:39:00.000-07:00

Merchandising is Forever" is an ongoing project and Tumblr blog documenting in photographs and animated GIFs the minute variations of deteriorating vintage Kenner Star Wars action figures. Via the website: "Starting in 1978 the toy company Kenner produced the first line of Star Wars toys. Although these toys were mass produced, each one has gained a unique identity throughout the years. Some were played with, some were forgotten in attics, some are completely unrecognizable, and some are still mint." Sorry for the slow loading time of the images!

Find out more about the project here.

via [Laughing Squid]

Assault Rifle Created from 1,200 Suspended Ping Pong Balls

2013-05-09T11:02:00.000-07:00

American multimedia artist Michael Murphy has recently created a sculpture composed of hundreds of suspended black ping pong balls, which when viewed from the right angle transform into a graphic illusion of an AR-15 assault rifle. The piece called “Damage” aims to generate discussion around the subject of gun control. Speaking about the project Michael says, "Historically, the black ball was used in secret ballots to signify opposition. Here they are used openly to signify opposition to the gun culture and culture of violence that we currently have in the United States."

Find out more about Michael's work here.

via [huhmagazine]

Revealing Photographs of Food Cut in Half

2013-05-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

For her project titled "Cut Food", New York-based still life and food photographer Beth Galton, in collaboration with food stylist Charlotte Omnès, created a series of still-lifes showcasing dynamic cross sections of packaged food. "This series was inspired by an assignment in which we were asked to cut a burrito in half for a client." Beth Says, "Normally for a job, we photograph the surface of food, occasionally taking a bite or a piece out, but rarely the cross section of a finished dish. By cutting these items in half we move past the simple appetite appeal we normally try to achieve and explore the interior worlds of these products."

Find out more about the project here.

via [Feature Shoot]

Artist Transforms a Chain Link Fence into Shimmering Lights

2013-05-09T04:06:00.001-07:00

American artist Soo Sunny Park recently created a gorgeous sculpture, called "Unwoven Light", constructed from sections of chain link fencing whose joints have been connected to create a wave-like form studded with thousands of iridescent Plexiglas pieces. Speaking about the project Park says, “We don’t notice light when looking so much as we notice the things light allows us to see. Unwoven Light captures light and causes it to reveal itself, through colorful reflections and refractions on the installations surfaces and on the gallery floor and walls.” From now till August 30, the installation will transform the Rice University Art Gallery space into a shimmering world of light, shadow, and brilliant color.

Find out more about Soo Sunny Park's work here.

via [My Modern Met]

Harmless Weapons Crafted from Organic Materials

2013-05-07T10:31:00.002-07:00

Australian designer and stylist Sonia Rentsch was recently commissioned by January Biannual to create a series of weapons made from organic materials for a feature article inspired by Nick Knight’s imagery of dried plant specimens. The resulting images, created in collaboration with photographer Albert Comper allow for a meditation on the fragility and impermanence of nature.

Find out more about Sonia's work here.

via [not shaking the grass]

A Life Size News Stand Made Entirely from Denim

2013-05-07T04:22:00.001-07:00

British artist Ian Berry (aka Denimu), has created a remarkably detailed NYC newsstand using nothing more than discarded jeans. Ian constructed the life size stand by layering cut-up pieces of denim using only the varying shades of the fabric to provide contrast and shadow. The effect is amazingly realistic, with a depth and texture that is hard to reproduce in print and online. The installation is currently showing at the Shooting Gallery in San Francisco.

Find out more about Denimu's work here.

via [Juxtapoz]

Image number two courtesy of Rachel Ralph.

Abstract Images of Untouched Nature Distorted by Fire

2013-05-06T10:30:00.000-07:00

Using the theme of "Water and Oil" with consideration to the large BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Chicago-based photographer Peter Hoffman created a series of abstract photos that questions our relationship with our natural resources. Titled "Fox River Derivatives", the project is part of a larger experiment that utilizes water and gasoline in the actual image-making process. Hoffman shot the photos on medium format film, after which he coated the negatives with gasoline and set them on fire for a few seconds before pouring water over them. He explains, "I wanted to transfer that feeling I had, which was maybe something like a sense of powerlessness or dread, to the image making process. I wanted to lose control, having the resulting work border on ceasing to exist in any recognizable form."

Find out more about the project here.

via [PetaPixel] via [Feature Shoot]