The XSProject
XSProject is a design effort finding new ways of utilizing consumer waste to create fresh products, reduce trash and provide new livelihood opportunities. This messenger style laptop bag gets you noticed without broadcasting to everyone what you may have inside. Each bag measures 10 x 31 x 39 cm on the outside and has a zippered front pocket. It fits up to a 15-inch screen laptop in the padded sleeve and still has room and pockets for your mobile gear and files. This version of the bag has black nylon lining and a 4.5 cm wide shoulder strap for carrying comfort. The XS artisans cut, select and stitch together pieces of plastic packaging waste to design a unique patchwork pattern for each Carpal Tunnel Syndrome bag. You will see packaging of brands of detergents, cooking oil, toothpaste, and drink pouches from Indonesia which otherwise end up clogging landfills. It’s a process that takes time and attention to detail but results in an original piece of wearable art.
Tagged: bags, wearable art
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UK-based charity, Bottletop, whom we interviewed a while back, have a quirky line of products for sale on their website, including their flagship ring-pull bags. The bags are made by a community group in Salvador, Brazil, and then distributed throughout the world by Bottletop and their partner in the project, Fenchurch. The proceeds from this are then channelled back into health-related educational programmes in the community — one of many blighted by AIDS in Latin America.
Now this is fun! Produced in Australia, Limedrop Duffel Bags come in five colourways: Black, Yellow and Blue, PVC Lycra, Mirrorball Black and Metallic Silver and can be worn as backpacks or shoulder bags.
The original Lomography Sidekick bag has had a revamp. Though it still maintains its 2-in-1 design, it now houses a smaller section to comfortably hold compact cameras, and a larger compartment for all the other things you need. It also fits your laptops. Oh, and the exterior is made from 100% water-resistant TPE. Fun!
Also by DERRICK STEMBRIDGE
Hailing from The Netherlands, Chris Berens works predominantly with ink, varnish and acrylic. Although, by his own admission, his paintings are not made with a particular message in mind, he works from recollection to create his very personal and intimate images. ‘I treat every painting as I would a diary’, he says, ‘in which I paint my thoughts and feelings’.
Paul Smith limited edition Fisheye No2 camera
Are you into wide angles? Then you might want to check out the new Paul Smith limited edition Fisheye No2 camera. Paul Smith collaborated with Lomography cameras to make this special item, which has a 180 degree wide-angle view and amazing fish-eye barrel distortion. Included is a bulb setting for long exposures and a switch for multiple exposures on the same frame. You also have the ability to use hotshoe flash or the built in flash. The body of the camera is attractive in a fashion sense with its metal accents and the Paul Smith signature multi-colored stripes.
Speck fitted case for iPhone 3G
Here’s one for all you tech savvy fashionistas. Outfit your iPhone 3G in form-fit style with a case from Speck. The lightweight, snap-together design lets you instantly make your iPhone 3G a fashion statement, while the soft fabric provides added comfort and extra grip in hand. Personally, I’m digging the plaid. But maybe that’s just because it’s getting chilly outside.
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Ukrainian photographer Julia Kissina has made meat gadgets famous for more than ten years. Her series, Feen, describes assorted wigs that are made of meat. Read more
The controversial and multifaceted International contemporary art exhibition Trailblazers hits Sydney this month. Boutwell Draper Gallery will grace multimedia works by pioneering Australian, American and European artists from November 19 onwards. I’m thrilled to see groundbreaking pieces by Ben Frost, Kill Pixie, Copyright and Cleon Patterson [above], to name a few. The vast array of paintings, photography, sculpture, installation, video and digital arts is on display until December 13. C’mon, you know you want to culture your soul.
Clara Kraetsch and Doreen Schulz are the designers behind the hot Berlin design label C-Neeon, which hit hard onto the fashion radar after winning the Young Designers competition at the Hyeres Festival. Read more
Though artistic genres from the last couple centuries inform Marc Burckhardt’s style, he is not a period fetishist. The playful way in which he incorporates visual jokes and modern themes has a simplicity to it, making each of his images self-contained and elegant. Read more
DJ Spooky — That Subliminal Kid — is just about the deepest crate digger around, trawling the barrels of long-lost record stores for choice vinyl to spin in his wickedly dubby sets. He gave us the inside word last week on his eight favourite songs right now via our sister website, My Secret Playlist. This is what he had to say about Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Panic in Babylon: ‘If there’s anything that the twenty-first century has told us, it’s that dub is the real original hip-hop. Lee Scratch even had to make it clear in 1965 by adding “Scratch” to his middle name. Take that, Grandmaster Flash!’ Read the rest of DJ Spooky’s Secret Playlist.
An intelligently told, morally complex tale with a raft of unexpected twists, Gone Baby Gone is one of the most original films of recent times. Most films give you a sense of their narrative arc and it is easy to recognise the major plot points. Read more
Tallest Man on Earth, the rasping Swedish folk singer-songwriter and one of the unsung heroes of 2008, recently recorded the beautiful song A Field of Birds, a nice adjunct to his summer album release, Shallow Grave. His sound is so loose and unmanicured, and carries a poignancy reminiscent of the rusty, early Bob Dylan.
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Trip out with Sparrow Vs Sparrow’s retro illustrations, I love their aesthetic, color use and sense of humor. Read more
Amazing cake designs by Charm City Cakes
Baltimore company Charm City Cakes produces the most innovative wedding and party cakes on the market. Inspiration for these creative bakers comes from everywhere: art, fabric, furniture, architecture, landscapes, science, and music, and each cake is individually designed to match your personality, and the theme of the occasion you are celebrating. Don’t miss these cakey engineering masterpieces. Read more
Alex Passapera’s dizzying pen and ink drawings are cascades of images melting into one another, often looking like contorting, mutating creatures spewing blood-like ink splatters. Read more
There is not a medium that UK illustrator Lizzy Stewart cannot wrap around her little finger to make the most beautiful, whimsical images. Read more
1970s and 80s Soviet Union buildings
Cambodian born photographer Frederic Chaubin is the editor of French magazine Citizen K. His photo series on bizarre buildings built in the former Soviet Union during the 1970s and 80s is absolutely fascinating. Read more
Thanks to Sony Australia, four Lost At E Minor readers will win personal audio prizes, including the new 8GB Walkman S series video MP3 player and the MDRXB500 Extra Bass headphones. Read more
This beautiful archival pigment print by New York-based illustrator, Fernanda Cohen, is called Fashion Ruined My Life. And it speaks for itself. Just look at her face! We have it for sale for just $75 in the Lost At E Minor online store. Read more
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Cassandra said | 22 July, 2008
There is an Australian website too:
http://www.xsproject.com.au