Small arty presents for total strangers
It started as a joke, a mail out of twenty tiny presents enclosed in matchboxes to friends, containing gifts so personal that they could safely be tracked back to me, despite being sent anonymously. Then came the suggestion that I start leaving them randomly, like a kind of calling card, on a whim, wherever I went. Two years on and I’m still doing just that. Matchboxes containing everything from tea bags, miniature harmonicas, baby babushka dolls, Spiderman knitted fingerpuppets, ten-pin bowling sets and a crazy amount of novelty erasers have been left around Sydney and the world; their contents and locations blogged semi-religiously. After a year, the donations started trickling in. People who had found out about the project started sending their findings, little gifts arrived in international matchboxes or in paperbags with tiny hearts printed on them. Boxes have been left as far as Paris, dropped into the handbags of unsuspecting women, on windowsills and in galleries. Currently there is a slight problem of distribution, with excess boxes building up in my bag as I trek from work to home everyday. So if you want a box, or have any suggestions, I’m all ears.
Tagged: matchbox project
- 6
- 2
Also by SONYA GEE
Last week, a bunch of young Sydney creatives were asked to describe their vision for the city in the time it usually takes to run to the bus stop, boil an egg, or listen to a decent pop song. Three Minute Sydney launched the two week Creative Sydney festival, the city’s first winter festival to celebrate and promote local creative industries. Sydney’s acclaimed but extremely humble comic artist Matt Huynh stole the show with a three minute time lapse video presentation, a speedy sequence of comics created one frantic Sunday afternoon. From the iconic Eternity message chalked on the city sidewalks to scenes from the city’s late night meat-market bars, indie gigs and packed trains, Huynh explored the places and stories of Sydney in black and white. Read more
Bababa International: curries, manicures, pooch shows
Somewhere in a Sydney park, exact location undisclosed, sits a custom built wooden house fit for one. And if you happen to stumble across it, you simply lift it up, climb into the hole dug underneath it and make yourself at home. The makeshift shelter, which loosely resembles a human-sized kennel, is the latest work of Sydney art collective the Bababa International. The trio, consisting of Stephen Russell, Ivan Ruhle and Tom Melick (fourth member Giles Thackway has temporarily absconded to Mexico and is probably wearing a protective swine flu mask at present), say there are plans to install a radio at some point to make the shelter more homely and install similar constructions in parks across Sydney. And they reluctantly offer some hints of this particular houses’ location, saying it’s located in a park in Sydney’s Eastern suburbs, past a hedge and close to a tennis court. Read more
Sarah-Jane Cook is thoroughly stitched up
Some things are better said in thread, which probably doesn’t make sense unless you’ve seen the extensive stitched work of Sarah-Jane Cook, an Australian visual artist who works primarily with needle, thread and lace trimmed hankerchiefs. Sweet from afar, a brief admiration of Cook’s handiwork gives way to an inspection of the messages embroidered. Ranging from a thank you for the easter eggs note from child to parent, to pro and con lists, scribbled shopping lists, recipes and abusive notes left for housemates, the collection is diverse and reveals much about the unknown characters who probably penned them in haste. Read more
YOU'RE SAYING (2)
Sonya said | 12 April, 2009
Hey Katie!
The blog address is http://www.blurty.com/users/matchboxproject
I love found mag! And thank you for your offer of matchboxes, I’ve got heaps at the moment thank you. If you’re in Syd, I’m having a show with the project next week at The Wall:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/event.php?eid=75984945755&ref=mf
Son
HAVE YOUR SAY
Christopher LaMarca has been photographing activists and loggers since the summer of 2003. Of his Forest Defenders series, he says: ‘My connection to this project revolves around the passion and endless work that consumes these people who live in the back-country for months at a time; and who are willing to sacrifice their comforts’ to stand up for their beliefs. Although these activists are often seen as radicals or eco-terrorists, little has been documented about their activities outside of these stereotypes. These stunning landscapes will continue to be decimated due to political pressure and lack of education, these are some of last truly wild places left in America’.
The urban planning for Dubai increasingly has the city looking more and more like a still out of a Jetsens episode. The futuristic architecture that charcterises its evolution is pushing the boundaries of design, the buildings climbing ever upwards with their blindingly original facades. Apparently Dubai is home to between 15 and 25 percent of the world’s 125,000 construction cranes, which is hardly surprising. This image above is a sneak preview of how the famed Dubai waterfront will look in a few years time.
Swedish designer Paula Hagerskans has a cool masculine-edge to her female fashion lines. But it’s her attention to detail that really blows my mind. Her perfectly tailored jackets, along with her flat dress shoes, make dressing up fun, comfortable and classy. When asked what she keeps in mind while designing, Hagerskans responds, ‘Bohemic music lovers, humor, graphic design and the female body’.
People tend to think we illustrators carry around our sketchbooks everywhere. A confession: I don’t. That is one of the reason why I love looking at other illustrator’s sketchbooks. Virginia-based Tin Salamunic’s sketchbook tells me a bit about an everyday life in Richmond. And his obsession for cars. Read more
Now, c’mon, if you had the chance to lay a clever one liner on William Shatner, you would, right? Yeah. If you could look him in the eyes, gently brush his laser gun out of your face, and unleash that killer put down that you’ve had swirling around the deepest cavaties of your subconcious ever since episode six of the fourth series, you’d grab it with both hands and offer up a thanks to those strange looking alien creatures who rule our universe. Well, guess what? You can. And while you’re at it, why don’t you give Dustin Diamond an ear full, too. Ah, the joys of unrequited paybacks.
Films involving characters faced with an impossible choice never make easy viewing, an example being the Nick Cave Australian gem, The Proposition. A nightclub manager, played with understated power by Joaquin Phoenix, is the victim here, and you actually feel truly uncomfortable as his predicament unfolds. Set in the 1980s, We Own The Night shows a real nostalgia for that period — particularly in the costumes. Read more
The Presets are a Sydney-based electronic duo, consisting of Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes. In September 2005 they released their debut album, Beams, to positive critical response. That same year Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes also toured with The Dissociatives, which is co-fronted by Daniel Johns of Silverchair and Australian dance producer Paul Mac. Johns also played guitar on Presets single Cookie. Hamilton and Moyes are also members of Sydney instrumental group Prop.
Listen to The Presets song, My People.
WE'RE RESPECTING
WE'RE POSTING / SOME OF THE BEST
Hong Kong-based illustrator Man-Tsun draws dark and beautiful painterly images that look like they are straight off a high-end Japanese animated film. Read more
Trip out with Sparrow Vs Sparrow’s retro illustrations, I love their aesthetic, color use and sense of humor. Read more
Yum, yum, cupcakes are fun. These creations are so clever, so arty, so damn bizarre that it would almost be a shame to eat them. Almost! 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
I live the upbeat, feel good tempo of the new single — A Hundred Hearts — from Philly group, The Swimmers. Off their latest album, People Are Soft, this song is a strangely fitting anthem for the blustery day outside.
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 cool black unisex t shirt by UK label Client is made in England, printed in Berlin, and beautifully packaged in East Berlin cartonage, especially designed for Client. Read more
FOLLOW US
DISCOVER MORE
SO...
SEARCH: Can't find what you're looking for? Do a search..
IS IT GOOD FOR YOU TOO?
We hope you're enjoying your time on Lost At E Minor, but it’s not over yet. Got something to share? Tell us about it and we'll look to publish it. If you want to have your work featured on the site, we'd love to hear from you. Pssst, we also have an online store stocking some of the goodies we feature on the site.
If you're a media agency and want to use this platform to connect with our readership, then drop us a line and tell us about it. Oh yeah, and we do digital consulting for cool brands that want to reach the sort of demographic that visits this site.
Katie Blake said | 11 March, 2009
Hi Sonya
I was happy to read about this ongoing project/ habit of yours. But am sorry I didn’t see where I could read more about it if that were possible. It’s interesting and given one of my favorite publications “Found” magazine I can’t help but want to tie the two together somehow if briefly as a showcase for you both.
Shall I send you my old matchboxes to be used or do you have so many you can’t use more?
Cheers,
Katie