On Monday, we got all excited about the launch of the Behance Network, and now, a work-week later we’re happy to report that the response to this incredible new platform for creative professionals has been overwhelmingly positive; we’re even happier to hear feedback from those of you who received exclusive invite codes from us and are loving Behance as much as we have for the past few months. I sat down with Scott Belsky last night for a quick chat about the network’s background, his feelings on making the site public and the team’s plans for the future. We still have invite codes left (and until Monday, this is the only place you can get them) information for scoring one follows this interview.

JoshSpear.com: You guys went live this week after fourteen months of development. What’s been the scariest thing that happened, so far?

Scott Belsky:The scariest thing is seeing a project that has been, for the most part, completely isolated for 14 months, suddenly live. We went through so many philosophical debates about the needs of the creative community and the balance between simplicity and functionality. Certainly the scariest event so far was our first focus group during testing. We recorded the screen movements of our testers and ended up with hours of video to watch. READ MORE…

First of all: we are not trying to keep you indoors over the weekend. However, what we are talking about is a design contest Spreadshirt is running in hopes of finding a new company logo, and since I know logo design is right up many of our readers alley, I thought I’d share. We’re also talking about a MacBook Pro, an interview in Computer Arts magazine, an interview on Computerlove, and $3,000 dollars — and since I know that is right up everyone’s alley, I thought I’d share it on a Friday. Sorry.

I don’t really understand why Spreadshirt is putting forth such a grand effort to find this logo, but any contest that includes a la Fraise community prize (meaning people that don’t even enter can win something), and over $15,000 of prizes — on top of all the goodies that will go to the first-place winner — sort of piques my interest. This is big people; bigger than a weekend, even. Full details here.

You may recall some of Jonathon Keats’ previous whacky yet positively pertinant conceptual art projects — there was the silent ringtone, a 4:33 "interlude of digitally-generated silence,” and also the one where he observed the drawing prowess of “non-sentient” spruce saplings in Maine. Keats’ most recent project is admittedly a bit risqué, but heck, we’ll cover it anyway. Cinema Botanica: Pornography for Plants features the “explicit acts of cross pollination,” and is sure to solidify Keats as a motion picture mogul. In his quest to reach out to the plant species market — which just so happens to be much more vast than the traditional human market — Keats racked his brain to find the most alluring film genre for plants. His final decision was to feature plants in the salacious act of sex, editing his uncensored footage into a gritty black-and-white porn video. The trailer you see here is just a short, teasing clip of what you’ll see if you attend Keats’ showing at 1078 Gallery in Chico, CA, starting September 10th. Just remember… you may be battling a gang of eager saplings to get in the door of the gallery.

The perennial question in a new move is finding the perfect furniture. For me, it doesn’t exist. Call me fussy, but it’s a frustrating experience to buy pieces because I never find what I’m looking for. Let’s put it this way: I’d rather clean out the family garage with its decade’s worth of mysterious boxes and gross cobwebs than go furniture shopping, that’s how much I dread it…so somebody hurry up and take this out of the concept stage already. It’s Formable Furniture, a modern furniture piece by designer Reed Crawford showcased on Yanko Design that allows for a change-up of its shape — a totally handy thing that’s as flexible as the occasions you’d use it for. That means anything goes, whether it’s a sleek coffee table to a chair and back again. The key is in the interlocking pieces, which form to your desired shape when you tug on the wire cable. Tug away all you want: there are endless possibilities to what this can look like in the end. I’m already seeing this in my digs as a low-to-the-ground chaise converted from a temporary Mod-style shelving unit.

Antenna Mag is about stuff. Material stuff, that is — and mostly the kind that just exists to make people feel good about themselves/better than other people (sunglasses, super tight jeans, alcohol). But, unlike so many of the other online magazines today (and all magazines, really), the presentation of this stuff is not formatted in the sneaky, complimentary copy, cheesy kind of way we’re so unfortunately accustomed to; instead, Antenna Mag just kind of — puts it out there — in the way one might expect of a magazine solely dedicated to products. Their goal, ultimately, is to become a guidebook, “without using celebrities, models, concept shoots, service stories and whatever else we deem superfluous.” This outline leaves Antenna with a website that simply lists product, price, and where to get it, with the hopes of eventually becoming the “most extensive collection of products ever compiled in a single publication.”

Antenna is fairly new, so we’ll have to wait around to see how this little mag grows up. My fingers are crossed for them, though, because I freaking love the idea of embracing my materialism without having to read what someone else thinks about it first. I, um, think that will help me feel more individualistic or something. Anyway! I found this belt there, and it’s awesome — so enough with the reading and the brain-using, go to Antenna and find yourself some STUFF.

Here’s a good way to get my attention: show a guy on a surfboard getting towed by a Jet Ski right into the teeth of a giant effin’ wave, then continuing to ride that wave against all odds for another thirty seconds as about a ton of water splashes on his face. Did I mention that this is a really goddamned big wave? Remember that Powerade commercial where (with the help of some special effects) LeBron makes four full-court shots in a row? This video is that ill, and I think it’s totally real.

BoardRideTv, which hosts the video I’m talking about on its homepage, is Youtube for thrill seekers. Go to the snowboarding channel and you see a bunch of kids just absolutely killing it on the mountain, furthermore I’ve actually never seen anything as fun-looking as some of the videos up in the body boarding section. Of course, if you search Youtube for snowboarding you’ll probably find more content, but BoardRideTv is a place for extreme sports denizens to impress their own, not the masses. As Alec Baldwin would say, “Go and do likewise, gents.”

Key rings are one of those things we use without much thought; usually you get a fresh one when you rent a new apartment, or buy a car. Sometimes you get fancy and someone buys you an “expensive” key ring for graduation or something. I mean, come on, they hold your keys right? Well, not these.

Kiel Mead’s key rings are just that: rings made from keys. Available in a variety of styles from Ford Mustang to Standard House, these are sure to put a funky twist to that boring graduation “key ring” gift. A graduate of Pratt’s ID program, Mead is one of those people who just seems to see the world with a little bit of a slant. Who else would have thought to make a literal object out of a “key ring” or to cast the “forget me knot” — usually a piece of string — in silver and gold?

Anothercompany is the pseudonym of Joachim Baan, a Dutch graphic designer and photographer. Judging by the quality and prominence of his work, though, I’m not sure why he’d want to do anything to confuse people. See Baan’s website is named after his company, but the work on display there is his own. Three things deserve your attention:

The first is Baan’s book of photography from his recent, wide-ranging travels called For As Long As I Can’t Remember. Amateur travel photography is good because it exposes you to places you’ve never seen before; Professional travel photography is better. Baan’s photography is professional. The second is the work Baan did for Evian, whe. he designed invitations — printed on Plexiglas — and “interior objects” for a traveling storefront that the company operated to publicize its spas. And third is the House of Bols, a museum of Genever (that’s Dutch for gin) that Baan worked on. Baan’s pictures of the museum and the museum’s website make me feel a teensy bit drunk, which I guess is the idea. (And this has nothing to do with the bottle of Early Times sitting at my left hand. Baan is just that good.)