WE'RE SUPPORTING

Brooklyn-based artist, Katie Yamasaki, did a Bachelors of Arts degree at Earlham College and a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Illustration at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. She now ‘teaches 4th-8th grade art at Ballet Tech, The New York City Public School for Dance, and shares a studio with fellow illustrators and friends John Hendrix, Marcos Chin, and Yuko Shimizu’.

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

The Suit Up exhibition comprises a number of artworks from various Australian street, comic, and illustration artists, each of whom has applied their unique style to that ubiquitous — yet, rarely tapped — canvas, the playing card. The designs have been produced as giclee prints, signed and numbered by the artists, and are limited to 10 prints of each design. Real-size decks of cards have also been produced for sale. The Suit Up crew is a close-knit group of predominantly Melbourne-based artists who are passionate about Australia’s ‘low-brow’ art scene, which is more collaborative and less ego-driven than much of the the high-brow art world. The exhibition runs between February 13 and 25.

WE'RE WEARING

We used to depend on sundials back in the day, but now there are multiple ways to tell the time. And Tokyo Flash has just invented another one. Based on LED technology, these watches are not only stylish but futuristic and wildly innovative. They even have a watch from minimalist designer Naoto Fukasawa that is more than just your basic timepiece. The Tokyo Flash site says that their watches are supposed to ‘resemble the various moods of a human’, and they’re definitely an attention grabber. These are watches to take us right through to the 22nd century.

WE'RE THINKING

Scott Teplin’s candy-colored paintings and incredibly detailed line drawings of wrecked vehicles as well as his Sims-like images of surreal, fantastical urban structures express both malaise and wonderment at the spaces we have created for ourselves in modern life. Read more

WE'RE READING

Square America is a photo blog that’s sort of like Found magazine, but with more rhyme and reason. The eerie, antique photos are organized by theme, subject matter, and even the ways in which time or lens imperfections distort the images. Read more

History is the story of the winners, and western dominated culture recounts few triumphs from the east. Mongol is an effort to correct this balance, and the eastern influence is evident in much more than just the storyline. It is more like a fairy tale or legend handed down through generations, than based on fact, with mythical elements playing a major part, and the character’s motivations remaining simple. Read more

WE'RE LISTENING TO

Austin band The Low Lows are one of my most prized finds of the year so far. It’s introspective music — staggered harmonies delivered by a distant, agonised voice that filters through a wall of tranquil guitar distortion and measured drumming. Every instrument carries a powerful emotion, sometimes keeping their distance from one another, floating up and around the airwaves, and other times colliding and crashing back to earth.