Ana Ventura

WE'RE SUPPORTING

Tyson McAdoo is responsible for depicting these salacious bombshells, taking seemingly ordinary situations — like sitting on a couch, riding a motorbike or riding an invisible horse (things I am sure we’ve all done at some stage) — and adding some sassy young minx as the focal point, creating a playground for your eyeballs. Apparently McAdoo is imprisoned within his creative universe, or some dungeon according to his bio, accompanied only by ‘two pathetic ghetto rats, Squeezie and Pocket’, and forced to draw the Empress of Ink over and over each day so she dare not fade. You can pick up prints of his work online, and they are damn reasonably priced compared to what some prints go for these days.

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

Called the Lighthouse (BRE House), this is the UK’s first ever net zero carbon home that also meets the highest level of the UK Standard Code for Sustainable Homes. It is a leading example because not only is it made with the most sustainable materials, but is also designed to encourage and shape a more sustainable lifestyle for its occupants. Read more

WE'RE WEARING

Once upon a time there was a real connoisseur of jeans, Hidehiko Yamane, as expert and demanding as only certain Japanese ‘otaku’ can be. Read more

WE'RE THINKING

I’m so digging the work of Santa Monica artist Andrew Hem. Painting seems to have become relegated in the illustration world these days, so I’m pleased to see Hem rocking it in a big way. His bold brushwork, lush colors, puppet-like figures and painted type make for a body of work that really hits the painted spot.

WE'RE READING

Let them sing it for you is a web widget that allows you to type in a sentence which is then played back using the same words culled from a library of popular songs. For instance if you type the word “I” it will play Chris Isaak singing that word in the song Wicked Games. If a word cannot be found, you can enter a song which contains the missing word and expand the library.

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

WE'RE LISTENING TO

I got to check out Extra Golden the other night at the Floristree in the H & H Building in downtown Baltimore. Despite a bill of heady, contemplative, experimental music that preceded the DC-based band, the crowd was chomping at the bit to see them when they finally hit the stage well past 1am. It’s still cold and rainy here in Charm City, but these guys made it feel like summer with their sunny blend of Kenyan benga music and guitar-driven psych rock.