WE'RE SUPPORTING

The French photographer and street artist, JR, has stepped up his game in an impressive way in recent times. He does huge xerox blow-ups of his own photographs and has done stuff in New York, Paris, and London. He did some huge work on the side of London’s Tate Modern, for instance. When I met the guy in Paris in 2003, he was doing 18×24 paste ups, and now he’s doing work that’s multiple stories high. It probably helps that he’s backed by Steve Lazarides, who was Banksy’s agent for a while. He’s got a big crew and some serious financial resources now. There are two components to effective street art: accessibility and the spectacle. Does it give me pause from the monotony of my usual day? JR may not be so much about the DIY anymore, but he’s definitely all about the spectacle. Read more

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

These twin sixty-story towers to be built in Malaysia feature a combination of ‘continuous, flowing, double-curved perforated surface with a flickering, crystalline, transparent single-curved surface that is triangulated on an enormous scale’. The design by New York-based architectural firm, Asymptote, includes a 400,000 square foot retail section and the Penang Performing Arts centre.

WE'RE WEARING

Creating modern-vintage inspired by 1950s Australian housewives and rock’n'roll style pin-up glamour, Peta Pledger has been producing one-off, made-to-measure or small-run garments and accessories since 2003. Her love affair with the sewing machine began in 1988 when — like many lovely ladies — she couldn’t find any clothing that flattered her figure. Read more

WE'RE THINKING

Oh man! I just want to curl up inside one of Will Cotton’s artworks and immerse myself in the sweetness of its surrounds. Read more

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

Improv Everywhere strikes again with a spontaneous musical in a Los Angeles mall. Wireless microphones hooked up to the mall’s PA system ensured the feeding masses didn’t slip into Cinnabon-induced comas until after the show was over. Note especially the angry dude in sunglasses at about 2:51 — apparently he thinks nothing can ever top Rent.

WE'RE LISTENING TO

Recently formed hip-hop duo, Rootbeer (Pigeon John and Flynn Adam), have just dropped a super fresh piece of audio pie right in your kitchen. Influenced by artists such as MGMT, N.E.R.D and A Tribe Called Quest, Rootbeer offer up an edgy and unfeigned lyrical style. Turn up their debut release, The Pink Limousine EP, to eleven. You’ll find it impossible not to make shapes.