In the mid 70s BMW began asking artists to paint their cars, getting the likes of Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and Esther Mahlangu to turn racers into artwork. You can take a look at the art cars from 1975 to 1999 here. But now it’s 2009 and just splashing a 7 series with some paint isn’t quite enough. So Robin Rhode got the idea of painting with a car. Using BMW’s new Z4 Roadster he choreographed a run across a giant canvas, while he used remote controls to distribute paint on its tires from a tower 30-feet in the air. I vaguely remember having a similar experience in kindergarten involving my Hot Wheels and a couple of bottles of paint. Also, if you are in New York, head down to Grand Central Terminal's Vanderbilt Hall, (87 East 42nd St.) to check out four of the art cars and the full 30' x 40' canvas of Robin Rhode’s work. The exhibition runs from March 25 through April 6 and is free to the public.
Reef the Lost Cauze has been making moves in Philadelphia since well before his debut, but the Army of Pharoahs MC is bringing real heat with his sophomore record A Vicious Cycle. The same grit and grime that made him an underground favorite pares with refined production. The result is a catchy, yet not poppy, sound that we are hearing more and more today. Beats by Marco Polo and Stress The White Boy compliment Reef’s consistently engaging rhyme style. If you live in Philly, you’re bound to see Reef play sooner or later, and if not keep an eye out for his tour dates.
The car people out there should take a look at this video, which covers the insane sticker job that Tristan Eaton (think: Kid Robot) and the rest of the Thunderdog team recently did on a Mini Cooper belonging to Matt Farah of the New York Motor Club. After-market auto tweaks are one thing, neon blue ground effects are another, but this glow-in-the-dark job, well, it’s something from another world. Matt’s request to Thunderdog was inspired by the BMW Art Car Project, which was going on between 1975 and 1999, and featured work by artists that we all know and love (e.g. Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein). My vote is that the Thunderdog crew get commissioned to kit out the next Batmobile– imagine that: a glowing black Lamborghini Murcielago.
Now… we’ve seen beautiful suits come from Italy, but the Germans have put quite the suit on this new BMW concept car. It’s called the GINA Light Visionary Model. With a mantra of “let the material do the talking,” the design gurus at BMW came up with a design that includes a lycra, shape-shifting exoskeleton that moves to expose individual functions only when they’re needed. The designers were not as interested in answering the question of how cars will look in the future as they were to conduct an exploration into the creative freedom the future designs will offer. Word is, that Patrick Bateman is going to be test driving this one, so those of you in the Financial District, be on the lookout.
One look at the WHITEvoid homepage and you can understand why it was FWA's site of the day this past Friday. The Berlin-based interactive art and design firm gives you the total package in a matter of speaking; they only ask that you click to open that package before a veritable Pandora's box featuring their top-notch creative work is unleashed. The outstanding interactive installations and products the company has created for exhibitions, trade, festivals, events, concerts, and clubs are offered up on visually stunning platter and arranged neatly into seven categories and twenty items overall, that seem to just be floating in what else but a white void. Their creative genius is no secret as WHITEvoid counts both The BMW Group and The Jewish Museum of Berlin among their wide range of past clients. Maybe it's time you entered the White Void and discovered a new dimension of creativity for yourself.
As we told you a little while back, the WIRED LivingHome — a collaboration between Wired Magazine and LivingHome, an innovative prefabricated housing supplier — is of equal interest to gadget heads, architecture fans and conservationists. Currently having its finishing touches supplied at its location in Brentwood, CA, this house combines the latest in environmentally-friendly (and tech geek-friendly) technology, with the refined architectural touch of Ray Kappe. The news we can share with you today is that the project will open to the public from Saturday, October 27th through Monday, November 5th Sunday, November 11th. In addition, we can share the project’s website with you, so you’ll know where to go to satisfy every bit of curiosity you might have about this house. At the website, you’ll find out things like what car the WIRED LivingHome has in its driveway (a BMW Hydrogen 7), and how much the whole thing costs ($4 million). What? Too extravagant for the environmental contingent? Come on, this is Brentwood, baby.
Yesterday evening, in the middle of too much green tea at a local sushi spot, a friend asked me what today’s interview was going to be about. I kind of mumbled the answer; “Krudmart, with this guy Steve,” expecting the response of a few politely interested, half-garbled-sushi grunts. However, I was met with the opposite reaction, as several of the table’s occupants mentioned they’d been to Krudmart, or emailed with Steve, or had “…really wanted this one v-neck t-shirt there, even though, ugh; hate v-necks.” I was kind of shocked, because Krudmart is a young streetwear shop located in Buffalo, NY — making it about 3,000 miles away from the location of our little dinner party — and a strange-ish subject on which to find common ground.
That conversation solidified what I was already thinking about Krudmart: Aside from being a ground-up operation that has made a huge name for itself (with a very un-huge amount of people power), the small store has one very big thing going for it. This is sort of a risk, but I’m going to say it anyway; that “thing” could very possibly be a man who calls himself Steve Kay. Krudmart’s founder, visionary, and voice (though in all fairness, I have to point out that the entire team over there kills it), Steve has taken a place to buy jeans and turned it into something worth knowing about… even on the opposite coast.
This interview is probably going to make you laugh. That’s an awesome thing, because it’s Friday, and we all need to shake off the shoulder tension that’s been building over the work week. If you quit laughing long enough to experience befuddlement over the question regarding a brick, it will help to note that that is in reference to a little act of vandalism that recently befell the shop. If you want the juicy details of that story, crawl over this way; if you’re ready for another tasty SpearTalks, scroll on down…
Joshspear.com: Walk us through Krudmart; its roots, its progress, its future…
Steve: I started out in 2002. I’d just come off a year and a half stint of moving around (Australia, LA) and learning a bunch of random life lessons but had no real direction, money or college education. I went back to the skate shop I worked at right out of high school and talked the owner into letting me sell some of his inventory online and taking a percentage of the sales. Shit blew up pretty quickly and even though we were friends, he and I weren’t seeing eye to eye on where to take the project so I went off on my own.
From there I started working out of my dad’s apartment. Growth was slow but steady for a year or so then it just kind of went nuts again. READ MORE…
Yesterday, the German automotive giant BMW launched their newest media campaign, BMW-web.tv. What might be called The Ultimate Marketing Machine, the YouTube-esque site is filled with content encompasses all of BMW’s divisions. Each division gets its own channel so it is simple to switch between cars and technology, for example. The site uses Adobe’s Flash player which (usually) makes for quick loading videos. The content is surprisingly varied with the expected commercial pieces to interesting behind the scenes interviews and glimpses into the what goes into creating BMW’s. One small complaint I have is that the site is plagued with slow speeds, even on a high-speed pipe, due mostly to the decision to make videos auto-play and the physical dimensions of the videos. BMW promises to provide plenty of exclusive content (including product launches) on their web magazine so it’ll definitely be worthwhile subscribing to.
It’s a happy coincidence that the men behind L.A. based True Love and False Idols share the same name. If it weren’t for that association, one might lean towards pairing the two in something other than their actual situation as founding partners — something like a cagefight, perhaps. Alex Vaz and Alex “2tone” come from two very distinct, very separate realms: hardcore punk/metal and rap. With alternate backgrounds in areas as varied as Fashion Design and Tattoo Art, its no surprise that the boys of TLFI generally incorporate several elements into each of their unique designs. However, what is surprising is how well those elements manage to work together; a characteristic personified not only by the success of Alex and Alex as a team, but also in the hugely diverse list of personalities that TLFI can count as fans.
Yep, from TV on the Radio to Chuck Liddell , TLFI’s been doing some serious time on the backs of high-profilers. And because this “premium streetwear” thing’s been blowing up in our faces for quite awhile now, we decided it would be a good time to chat with the two Alex’s about what exactly it is that’s helped propel their barely two year old brand into to the spotlight. Read on for a exclusive peak into the pleasantly diverse — yet beautifully aligned — minds behind TLFI, streetwear’s rising star.
JoshSpear.com: True Love and False Idols is a rather ironic name for a line based in appearance-obsessed Southern California. How did this pairing of words come to be?
Alex 1: I wanted to call it True Love and Alex 2 wanted to call it False Idols, so we combined them. I wanted to call it True Love because I feel like everyone is searching for that one True Love in life and my work would be it for me so far.
Alex 2: The honest answer: Alex 1 wanted to call the line True Love, and I wanted to call it False Idols. There you go. I might be the more cynical of the pair, hence the “False Idols” half.
Who taught you to drive? This question will undoubtedly spark some interesting stories from almost anyone you ask and it’s the question BMW asks on newly launched, RelearnToDrive. Relearn features hilarious videos with different characters (agro gym coach, war vet grandpa, cig smoking “drive with both feet†mom, etc.) who may have taught you to drive, but have no clue what they’re talking about. After a hearty laugh, you can “Undo the Damage” at the BMW Performance School site that highlights everything the school has to offer — which is more than plenty — and showcases some insane driving footage. The ‘Testimonials’ and ‘Instructors’ sections are must sees!
We're thrilled to have “firsties†on the just-launched site and even more thrilled to have you, the readers, share the funny, humiliating, exhilarating, and scary stories about how you learned to drive. Without further adieu, I’ll give you all the green light!
When I saw this nifty BMW promo on Motionographer, I couldn’t understand all of the lingo they were using to describe it. Terms like “3D cutscenes” and “sprite based games” may as well have been written in greek. But I did see those three letters together that always get me excited: B, M, and W. We’re pretty big fans of the BMW driving experience over here, and since mine’s in the shop right now, I thought I’d give this little game a whirl. The first stage of the “pursuit” is open to everyone, but after that, you have to sign up to continue the race. I had fun with the first stage, and have to agree with the guy who commented on Motionographer who said it reminded him of F-Zero for Super NES. Credits: Electric Umbrella did the cutscenes, Artificial Duck did the actionscripting, and Interone Worldwide is the Agency behind it.
I had the opportunity to take the BMW Hydrogen 7 car for a spin yesterday afternoon with an engineer from BMW in Munich– something only open to TED attendees. While the experience wasn’t exactly life changing, essentially everything inside and out looks and feels the same as your normal 7 Series BMW– the realization that I was driving a car which exhaust was nothing more than water was wonderfully fascinating. There’s literally a button on the steering wheel titled H2 that you can press to seamlessly switch between gasoline and H2– I tried it at full throttle and although the engine sound drastically changed, I felt little difference in acceleration (apparently there is almost no change in performance). The hard lesson BMW is facing (or perhaps denying) is that basically the energy outlay to create hydrogen is more than the use of hydrogen itself saves. With that said it was definitely a blast to drive!
Fresh off a 2006 Italian Illustration Award, Marzia Sanfilippo is showing some serious promise, producing some great work for people of all ages. I love how she even has her online portfolio separated into four age ranges– and her work is truly that diverse. She has been educated in both fashion as well as multi-media animation, and currently works as an illustrator for the Atabaliba design studio in Milan (alongside Dario Albini) and also continues to work freelance. Some of her esteemed international clients include BMW, Glamour Magazine, Amnesty International, and Trox. Marzia has quite the unique design repertoire– I’m excited to see where she decides to focus her talent.
From the looks of this concept camper by BMW, I wouldn’t pitch it anywhere near an open flame. Whether a camp stove, a campfire, or just a lighter, this think looks like it could take off like a dead dandelion in the Santa Anas. Jokes aside, this two-person bubble tent was reportedly developed by BMW as part of its 1-series launch a couple of years ago, and recently surfaced in the blogosphere. You inflate it with a low-voltage fan that runs off of your car’s cig lighter. While I don’t think I would ever have a use for it, I think it’s at least an interesting concept as far as a camping accessory that works hand in hand with your car– car camping in its purest sense. I wonder how fast it would go down a snowy hill?
Reef the Lost Cauze has been making moves in Philadelphia since well before his debut, but the Army of Pharoahs MC is bringing real heat with his sophomore record 
As we told you 
Yesterday, the German automotive giant 
