Orouni’s A Matter of Scale
According to his biography, Orouni is the name of a parasitic plant that lives in damp woods, dependent on a host tree for its nourishment. Quite what the artist behind the name is feeding on at the moment is open to question. A listen to his album, A Matter of Scale, triggers memories of early Velvet Underground brought back down to earth a bit: that drifting, almost dreamlike, narrative, this time influenced by pure nature rather than the manufactured products of it. The off-the-wall song concepts and lyrics are mercifully grounded by a minimalist backing, usually consisting only of a guitar, glockenspiel and tambourine. The singing hasn’t been over-tweaked in the production, lending it an intimate feel carried further by sporadic duets with his female counterpart. A Matter of Scale is jangly, experimental folk — promising good things for Orouni’s future and generally a tad more optimistic than Lou Reed et al could manage.
Tagged: experimental folk, Orouni
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Also by FRANCIS ANDREWS
The blind date of the food world has finally arrived, and it’s proving more palatable than the awkwardness of an evening spent in superficial conversation. Secret Supper clubs are springing up in the backstreets of London: what are attics and living rooms by day get converted into makeshift restaurants catering for an evening of surprise tastes and conversations. Read more
Young British designer Adam Farlie takes a leftfield approach to how people experience interaction with objects, often taking everyday items and toying with their potential to harbour deeper meaning and greater usage than first perceived. He transforms a bed into a ‘vessel that captures and contains the audio-memories of past occupiers through sound’, allowing those who lie on the bed to recall past intimcaties or conversations from years ago, while his take on a chest of drawers’ purpose of holding records of people is similarly intriguing.
Interestingly, the idea for these headphones was inspired by the theory that dementia could be treated by music therapy. Designer Kirsten Black, whose grandma lived in a nursing home, said: ‘Nan had dementia and because music is recognised by a part of the brain that is so primal, it could give her a sense of familiarity and security in an increasingly unfamiliar and hostile environment. Looking at headphones available, none could be used in the nursing home environment’. Halo are small, soft, hi-fidelity speakers that fit inside a customised headband, surely soon to be every jogger-music fan’s dream accessory.
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Andrew Foster’s whimsical and erotic nudes seem to simultaneously lampoon and pay homage to the Impressionists. His pastel landscapes are completely devoid of men, and the women that inhabit them seem not to mind. Read more
Empty Bottles was the first track by Santa Cruz songwriter Reed KD where I really felt like I was getting a sense for him as a lyricist. Read more
Our online store has been kicking along nicely for a while now, featuring prints by Andy Smith [pictured], tees by Das Monk and jewellery by This Charming Man to name a few. We have visitors from all across the globe and some of our pieces have been racing out the virtual door faster than we imagined possible. Aw, shucks! Now it’s your turn. If you design, create, or distribute products and artwork that fits with our style, and you’d like to see your goodies stocked on our shelves in time for Christmas, drop us a note introducing yourself and we’ll take it from there. Psst … we’re planning some Christmas gift ideas and subscriber offers too. We reckon you’ll like them.
Grace is part of a new series of books by author Dale Cusack. The story chronicles the lives of Grace and her feline companion Boot in their struggle to fight the evil Drawl and the cover illustration was done by Auckland-based artist, and Lost At E Minor contributor, Dennis Juan Ma. We asked him about what shaped the colour choices for the piece: ‘I wanted to create a mystery world within the reality. I wanted the colour to encourage readers to stimulate their imagination. I illustrated the covers with a classical Japanese wood block look to show the oriental flavour of the cat’s world. And it just happens that I’m a wood block art fan’. Read more
This awesome promo video for the Lost At E Minor site was created by our friends over at New York-based design studio, Lifelongfriendshipsociety. It’s all about looking into a black mirror and seeing the creative energy burst back out at you. We think it’s very cool and the first in what we hope will be a series of short videos exploring what it really means to be lost at e minor. Hit us up if you’d like to have a go at creating one.
We have reported on Danish firm, JDS Architects, before. And here their memorable work continues. This glorious design for the Holmenkollen Ski Jump in Oslo is the result of an international competition and is to be completed in time for the 2011 World Championships. Read more
We love the vivid colours in the Freak La Notte range of t-shirts. The French label’s collection of shirts are like little canvases of super-styled surrealism – bold, elegant, and enchanting.
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Born in a sub-provincial city of China, and raised in the suburbs of Northern California, Brooklyn-based artist Jing Wei attended the Rhode Island School of Design where she ‘developed a great affinity for printmaking, snow, and pizza’.
Saira McLaren’s interpretation of the spiritual world
Saira McLaren is a Canadian born, Brooklyn-based artist whose blurred paintings of the natural and spiritual world are disturbing for what they reference as well as what they deny. McLaren has shown at Heskin Contemporary, New York, NY, Acuna-Hansen Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, and Mississippi State University. Read more
Argentine illustrator Poly Bernatene miraculously creates many of his beautifully textured, painterly images in Photoshop. Despite his twenty-first century method, his illustrations achieve a sort of timelessness that is bound to mesmerize children for years to come. Read more
While I am as impressed as anyone with an artist’s ability to render accurate and lifelike human figures, I’m more often compelled aesthetically by looser and more stylized images such as Camilla Engman’s. The wide-set eyes, bulbous bodies, and skewed proportions of the people and animals in Engman’s paintings lend them a certain expressiveness and melancholy. Read more
This remarkable construction is located in the Swedish village of Jukkasjärvi and is built entirely from scratch every year. It features 10,000 tonnes of ice from the nearby Torne River, and 30,000 tonnes of snow, covering more than 30,000 square feet in total. Oh, it even has its own ice chapel. But be sure to bring your winter woollens. It could get a little, errr, chilly at night. Read more
Legendary pop culture artist and Agit Pop founder Ron English will be a guest compiler of an upcoming issue of our email newsletter, writing about his favorite cultural discoveries. To read Ron’s edition of Lost At E Minor, simply sign up to our weekly newsletter. It’s free, you win!
Australian fashion label Das Monk is my new favourite t-shirt label and this shirt is more comfortable to wear that a thousand pairs of Ozone socks. Super soft 100% cotton. Grab one now from the Lost At E Minor store for $35. Read more
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Ana said | 5 March, 2008
I will have to listen.