one hundredth monkey

observing the world from afar

Archive for category art/design

cardboard boards

May 18

Posted by shawndagan in art, art/design, design, stuff, video | No Comments

I heard about these last year when my friend Sascha came back from Maker Faire full of tales of beautiful surfboards made of cardboard. Now that Maker Fair is coming around again, I’m again interested in whether Mike Sheldrake has started to produce these for the average Joe (he’s made one for Alex Knost but to my knowledge has started selling them yet, referring to do more R&D first). What are they? They’re surfboards made completely of cardboard that are put together in a shape and pattern used in by aerospace applications to make the weak material strong by dispersing the support throughout the board. This cardboard is then draped with the normal fiberglass and resin to make it watertight. They’re made out of material that is often made of recycled material, and lets just face it: They look just plain rad. Mike’s site is here, although last time I checked no one was home. Hmmm maybe he’ll be at this year’s Maker Faire. Video of assembly after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: , , ,

glennz

May 14

Posted by shawndagan in art, art/design, design, stuff | No Comments

With the crazy success of Threadless.com there were bound to be some offshoots. Now, one of the graphic designers behind some of the better T-shirts at the site has gone all independent, creating his own site at glennz.com. His style is great at communicating the hilarious and ironic. Thanks Jon.

Tags: ,

rework

Apr 13

Posted by shawndagan in Books, art, art/design, design, stuff | No Comments

I was just listening to a story on the NUMMI car plant closing in Fremont on a recent This American Life, and it was frustrating to listen to how GM bungled their business to bankruptcy in ’08. How could they not see what was coming? How could they be so inefficient? With this frustration hanging in the air, I was recently introduced to the book Rework. Apparently authors Jason Fried and David Hansson from 37signals, go through their strategies and dispel many of the “truisms” of business and entrepreneurism. Maybe it’s time to rethink some things. If you want to get an example of their writing check out 37signals, or the book here.

Tags: ,

nomad

Apr 2

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, bike, mountain, outdoor, stuff | No Comments

Well Santa Cruz Bicycles continues to up the anty on their line of bikes by giving their already great Nomad a carbon makeover. By their reckoning the bike has lost 1.25 lbs in weight while actually getting stronger. Sounds like their are only upsides to this change, and has me seriously wondering if I’m man enough to handle the crazy 160mm of suspension that this thing provides. It should be going on sale in a couple of months, but in the meantime you can start building your own custom config using their website and the present aluminum model (just remember to subtract the pounds from that estimated weight at the top). Found via Pinkbike.

Tags: ,

da vinci

Mar 31

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, audio, music, stuff | No Comments

Much like the world of espresso, the world of audiophiles is thought to be rather niche and arbitrarily expensive. Well I’ll tell you right now that audiophiles blow espresso lovers out of the water when it comes to expense. “You have to pay to be refined!”, should be the motto of Da Vinci, the company behind products such as this turntable. What’s the big deal? Well, in the world of turntables vibration is your enemy and apparently this turntable (the UniSon MK II) has conquered it. What are you expected to pay for this champion of the stable? A cool $27,800 please. Found via Gizmodo.

Tags: ,

spyder

Mar 2

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, cars, green | No Comments

What’s up with car companies making really really sexy hybrids? Even the company behind the monster that is the Cayenne has thrown their hat in the ring with their new plug-in hybrid the Spyder 918. With a 0 to 100km/hr (hey they are germans after all) of 3.2 seconds, a top speed of 198mph, and a 98 mpg… the future is almost here. I just wish that I could afford it. Damn you, you crafty Deutchlanders. Found via Uncrate.

Tags: , ,

twist

Feb 19

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, espresso, espresso machines, stuff | No Comments

I’ve been looking at this little guy for a while now, but just couldn’t get my head around the idea that you could get decent espresso from something the size of a normal portafilter. But oh wouldn’t it be nice to make a shot right there in the office rather than drive 10 minutes for a mediocre alternative? I still think so, so I was interested to read a pretty thorough review (or re-review as the case may be) where the good people over at Home Barista give the Mypressi TWIST a good going over. The device works by using compressed gas (replaceable N2O cartridges) that enters a water chamber full of preheated water and pushes the water through the espresso. You can go here to read the review, or hereto check out the Twist on your own.

Tags: ,

samsung 9000

Feb 1

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, electronics, stuff | No Comments

A while ago I was looking for a TV, and I was split between those offered by Samsung (their LCD’s) and those from Panasonic (Plasmas) and other than the obvious difference of LCD vs. Plasma I was concerned with the look of the TV (it does end up sitting pretty prominently in your living room after all). At that time Samsung didn’t really blow me away with its red-tinted looks and I went with the Panasonic. Now if this upcoming LED LCD from Samsung was available, I don’t think that I would have been able to resist its charms. On top of  some superfluous add-ons (in my opinion anyway) such as 3-D capabilities, this TV does just about everything but serve you espresso (that’s what the Slayer is for) and it does so while being the best looking TV ever made…
Found via Uncrate.

Tags: , ,

simon

Jan 29

Posted by shawndagan in art, art/design, artists, design, stuff | No Comments

Simon Page has a way of bringing back all of those sci-fi posters from the 50′s-70′s with a rush, while at the same time breaking new ground in abstract media. His ability to invoke scenes by breaking them down to very basic shapes and lines is pretty astounding. His ability to do this and make something this beautiful is amazing. These are from the set that he produced last year for the International Year of Astronomy, and you can find them at his homepage here or purchase them here. He’s also working on a new set this year that is titled “Futurism” and is almost as inspiring (keep in mind that when I say “almost” it’s only because I have a slight bias toward anything to do with space).

Tags: , , ,

iPad

Jan 27

Posted by shawndagan in art/design, computers, electronics, stuff | No Comments

Well, just like every other website on the internets I thought that I’d let you in on a little secret. Apple has come out with a tablet PC and, as they usually tend to do, have made it sexy. Do you need a tablet PC? No, probably not. But going by their track record, Apple will probably make me want one nonetheless. The most appealing part of this device is the fact that apple will be supporting it with applications meant specifically for its multi-touch goodness, and that they were somehow able to bring it in at a starting price of $499. As an artist, I’m also hoping that it will make a breakthrough on how artists can interact with the digital realm. They also somehow managed to get 3G access through AT&T (I know, I know, ATT coverage sucks but here’s a little ray of hope for their future coverage.) without needing a subscription. You can check out all of the details on Gizmodo, complete with video from the unveiling.

Tags: , ,