Ron van der Ende

WE'RE SUPPORTING

Hindu, Greek, and Buddhist mythology informs the work of Brooklynite Chitra Ganesh, who makes cryptic, surreal sculptures, murals, installations, multimedia drawings, and photography that draw from Indian comic books, Bollywood posters, and other ephemera of South Asian culture, as well as 19th century portraiture, anime, and the standard touch stones of a globalized psyche. The absurdity and sexuality of her work present the war between modernity, tradition, and nationality over the idea of femininity – her figures are almost entirely female, and watchful, menacing eyes are a common motif in her work. A lot of her stuff is reminiscent of Raymond Pettibon, in a good way. Read more

WE'RE WEARING

I know at least five or six people who could make you a Gizmo skirt for like $50 or a couple cases of beer. But if you really want to pay $2,100 to buy the one by Brian Lichtenberg, I won’t stop you … I’ll just spill water on you.

WE'RE READING

A Paper Tiger is a new venture that launched in January of this year selling exclusive prints by some of my favorite artists such as Jack Long [shown above]. Read more

WE'RE THINKING

I’m such a sucker for colored pencil these days and I’m really digging the way UK illustrator Peter James Field goes at it. The pencil brings a soft, folkiness to what might otherwise be pretty straightforward renderings.

Kirk brings Molly to meet his family for a pool party but she doesn’t have her swim suit. Kirk, an average Joe, can’t believe his luck when gorgeous babe Molly falls for him even though he’s the first to admit She’s Out of My League. In cinemas April 1.

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

On the roof of Bangkok’s Banyan Tree Hotel is a dining experience like no other. The Vertigo Bar sits sixty one floors up, and serves delicious gourmet meals and cocktails. These are expensive by Thai standards, but cheap enough for shoestring travellers to indulge in now and then (a cocktail costs around AUD$12). I’ve spent hour after hour in the bar, drinking and smoking and taking in the amazing view. Most nights at Vertigo end the same, with fast-moving storm clouds rolling in without fail at about eleven pm. While wait staff scurry to move tables, and drunken diners navigate the steep stairs down to the safety of the hotel, the more hardy can sit and watch the clouds race closer and closer towards the building, soaking in both the atmosphere and the rainwater until the lightning gets too close for comfort.

WE'RE LISTENING TO

I usually steer clear of anything smelling of disco-breaks: the thought just bores me. But with Padded Cell’s new release, Night Must Fall, I see a bit of a U-turn on the horizon. There’s something really interesting going on here: it’s a cocktail of 80’s swank laced with woozy narcotic undertones and flecked with snappy drum loops: weird, undeniably dark and ominous, but nonetheless pretty damn satisfying. Read more