We first told you about Max Zorn in July this year when his fresh tape-art works were just in Amsterdam. Tinkering with nothing more than an exacto knife, some packing tape and plastic sheets, it takes wrapping his work around street lamps to see the pieces in all their glory as the complex layers of slicing and shading formations take their full effect.

To show exactly how he does what he does, he’s just recently released this superb time-lapse video. To date, he’s spread the tape love around the globe with his stickers and full scale art pieces hanging around the likes of Toronto, Cologne, Berlin and Hamburg and is spreading the tape love with every passing week.

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Memories of the Structure of the Universe is Cristina Guitian’s 38 metre long mural commissioned by the AMC Hospital in Amsterdam to decorate their staff area.

The result is a representation of the human body where the limbs extend the whole length of the corridors.The artwork was hand-drawn in Guitian’s studio in London, digitally coloured, printed on transparent sticker and then pasted on the glass offices of the hospital. Different textures, such as semitransparent frost and opaque white, are used throughout resulting in changes of appearance in the daylight and with the opening and closing of doors.

As if the cobbled lanes and canal lined streets of Amsterdam needed any more romance injected into them, along comes street artist Max Zorn. With some humble PVC plastic sheets covered in sliced and layered packing tape, he is creating emotive and dreamy portraits laced with the mystique of years gone by.

Whether it’s an urban twist on the classic, Girl with a Pearl Earring, or a Casablanca-esque tender moment between lovers, Zorn’s ‘tape art’ can be found creating silhouettes from street lamps around the city.

January 24 was the official opening night of Amsterdam’s latest Fur Free project. Hosted at one of the world’s oldest botanical gardens, the Hortus Botanicus, five fashion designers such as Bas Kosters, And Beyond, exhibited a fur-free fashion showcase in the greenhouse.

Proef Amsterdam is a little restaurant in Amsterdam West. Proef means ‘taste’ in Dutch, and it’s all about tasting honestly produced food, presented in a very original way. Order a pear juice and it’s served in a jam jar; on the table is a notebook with funny questions in it. Creativity is literally boiling in every square meter of the place.

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Taking inspiration from the work of the originator of this origami artform, Professor Masahiro Chatani, Amsterdam-based Ingrid Siliakus does paper replicates of the ‘buildings of master architects and intricate abstract sculptures’.

Attention all hipsters: Stumptown Coffee Roasters are setting up shop in the land where cafes rein king: Amsterdam. Adding to its Portland, Seattle, and New York locations, this all-too-trendy coffee boutique is due to open its European doors on 1 May.

Stateside, this independent coffee roaster has a massive reputation for pushing out copious amounts of caffeinated goodness to an ever growing, cult-like following. In Amsterdam, the bar is planning lots of espressos, a few tastings, and daily cuppings. It promises to be a great way to recover from those neighboring coffee shops.

Tablecloths made out of pastry dough, marshmallow installations, meals where diners take small bites as dictated by a drum. These are just but some of Dutch-designer Marije Vogelzang’s fabulously quirky and over-the-top creative projects, executed via her Amsterdam-based food design company Proef. [image via Eat Me Daily]

A self-proclaimed ‘eating designer’, Vogelzang focuses heavily on the verb ‘to eat’. She cares less about designing the food than she does feeling inspired by its origin, the preparation of it, and its history, etiquette, and culture; in essence, everything that surrounds the act of eating from sensations to psychology.

If this is all feeling a little far out, check out her latest book, Eat Love: Food Concepts. In this heavy collection of her last ten years work, her eight point philosophy is comprehensively laid out, lovingly interspersed with colourful full-bleed photographs and bold design. And if the inspired pages are not enough to convince you, a fair share of awards and nominations speak to the inventiveness of Eat Love and Vogelzang herself.

While it all feels pretty eccentric, there is a fantastic quality about Vogelzang and her approach to eating, design, and food culture. So next time you’re looking to eat off a table made of curry — or at least have a look at one — Marije Vogelzang is definitely your girl.

On August 27, a fundraising traveling group show opens at Maxalot Gallery in Amsterdam. Eleven artists from around the world were asked to create a piece that would help to enlighten the public to the every day life of the children of Mozambique, in the hope of inspiring awareness and positive action in some capacity. Some beautiful works will be on display from Marcos Chin [above], Catalina Estrada and Para, among others.

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Designed as offices and commercial spaces for creative industries, the Matchbox is the work of design team Allard Meine Jansen and ‘houses twenty-two corporate units, a rooftop restaurant and semi-underground parking in the artistic hub of Amsterdam North’. The building’s shape was derived from piling boxes of matchbox on top of each other [see the photo below] and has been conceptualized to give every company its own space and identity. In addition, ‘bridges constructed above a central atrium garden act as catalyst for the networking between companies, while distributing sunlight through the building’.

This video is so cool. Our friends over at the Amsterdam-based SubmarineChannel, an online portal for, and about, global digital media, have this animnated piece up called Molotov Alva and His Search for the Creator. It’s just brilliant, and one of many interesting interviews and animations that the SubmarineChannel host on their Vimeo page.

Tucked along one of Amsterdam’s many narrow, gorgeously paved streets, I.d.e.a. Living stocks a range of jewellery and homewares perfect for kitting out an outfit or apartment. Modern whites, splashes of strong colours, clean lines and a distinctively European style make ]]> http://www.lostateminor.com/2008/07/29/idea-living/feed/ 1 http://www.lostateminor.com/2008/07/27/the-nine-streets/ http://www.lostateminor.com/2008/07/27/the-nine-streets/#comments Sat, 26 Jul 2008 23:20:49 +0000 Andy http://www.lostateminor.com/?p=8822 The Nine Streets, or ‘De Negen Straatjes’, is so named for the nine small, cosy streets between Raadhuisstraat and Leidsestraat, just minutes from the heart of Amsterdam. The streets house a great number of vintage stores, alternative fashion, and specialised theme stores – including some particularly good Dutch bookstores. It sure is a spectacular area, [...]]]>

The Nine Streets, or ‘De Negen Straatjes’, is so named for the nine small, cosy streets between Raadhuisstraat and Leidsestraat, just minutes from the heart of Amsterdam. The streets house a great number of vintage stores, alternative fashion, and specialised theme stores – including some particularly good Dutch bookstores. It sure is a spectacular area, and is encased by some of Amsterdam’s finest 17th century canals. I can imagine years ago it would’ve been incredible for discovering new art, literature and fashion, but recently Paul Frank, Carhatt and Vans managed to sneak in there – amongst others – so it doesn’t feel quite so adventurous anymore. A must see all the same, some of the more eclectic vintage stores are amazing.

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