Long Day, Time for Something Else

This limited edition print by Gary Baseman is available from Decoder. I have been a longtime fan of Baseman and Decoder, who have teamed up to produce this edition. Check out the the other fine art editions and posters.

Monday InStyle

After a weekend filled with bird watching, painting garden furniture, designing and building a small stone patio and overhauling the basement, it's time to speed back to Manhattan to prep for a busy Monday. Brilliant Surface (me) will be busting out 6 custom surfaces for InStyle. I'm working with one my favorite still life stylists, Julie Flynn. She can make anything look beautiful.

In the Paper Boat...

SHINE comes from Vitamin D(esign). Every once in a while one needs an inspirational poster. Especially a really pretty one.

Pine Plains

Today's Color Palette

Lee Friedlander at the Met

A special exhibition: Lee Friedlander: A Ramble in Olmsted Parks is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His work is compelling in its detail and stillness.

Cat Cabin

I love this cat cabin! It's from Homebasic. Stylish, rustic, modern. What cat would not dig this cool cabin? Check out Moderncat for more cat things that you can stand living with. We all know that cats are fine with paper bags and cardboard boxes.

Muji Cookie Cutter

A simple way to start the day. I found this brilliant food organization tool on Maison Lunatique, a blog full of great resources.

Dutch Still Life on Mercer Street

This serene and refined interior is the creation of Martin Raffone Interior Design. I spent a glorious evening at this loft, enjoying a swank party that Martin and his client threw. Martin took a narrow, somewhat cursed space and magically transformed it into one of the most tranquil spaces I have ever spent time in. Martin's visionary ideas constantly remind me to find beautiful solutions to design problems, even the big problems. His work is lovely.

Happiness Empire vs. Misery Regions

Aside from being a nice color chart, which many old maps are, this map has a timeless message conveyed through imagined geography. Those kooky Temperance people just coming up with a non-real map to confuse drunk drivers.... But it is mighty pretty.

For more information about this inspirational map check out the 3/18/08 post on stangemaps.wordpress.com

Creative Agricultural Food Design

RISD Students Saved from Tyranny of Beige

I recently had the opportunity to work with Nader Tehrani and Remon Alberts of OfficeDa and Brian Janes at the Rhode Island School of Design to develop a color plan for student housing at 15 Westminster Street, Providence, RI. The current hallways resemble bland hospital corridors and not the hot/hip art school that the students attend. Antidepressants came to mind. 

I figured that the students could handle a bit of stimulation and set to designing a color plan that overrode the bland institutional architecture and created a vital spacial dynamic. Pale gray is used to locate all non-public/service zones, while more vibrant colors are used to locate student housing, recycling rooms, project rooms, lounges, laundry and elevators. Panels of chalkboard paint are located at several intersections in the hallways to encourage communication. All paint specified is by Benjamin Moore & Co. Small plaques with color names and numbers will appear on all wall color panels to assist with maintenance and provide information about the colors and materials used to transform the space.

RISD has not implemented the new scheme as of this post, but plans to paint during the summer break. Beige's days are numbered.

Sheep with Time to Spare

Sheepdogs are trained to obey their master's every word. So when farmer David Kennard decided one of those words would be "Spring", his dogs did not hesitate. They rounded up the flock on the hills of Mr. Kennard's Devon farm and, with a little help from their master, created a picture that reminds us that, whatever the weather, this is officially the first week of Spring. The scene did call for a careful scattering of feed to make the sheep form themselves in the shapes of the six letters. It took 3 hours and 3 border collies to create. Happy Spring and up with farmland creativity.

Greenfoot

I found these very natural shoes on TreeHugger. I think they must be best on sunny, dry days, lest they be prematurely disposable. 

Inbox Dust Bunny

I have been thinking about how to communicate with my "people" for a long time. At first I imagined doing web based newsletters from Brilliant Surface and Eve Ashcraft Studio, but that seemed like an email dust bunny blowing into an already spam burdened inbox, destined to be unseen, unwanted and deleted. Not good and potentially annoying. Hence, Studio Horn. This way I can sound my horn, so to speak, and reach like-minded souls. 

I have an unusual work life/life life that swirls together, making it difficult to define. Some right brain, some left brain, occasional heavy lifting, color picking, surface making, part time chain saw operator, wildlife stalker, furniture builder, cat whisperer, dog walker, art student, design snob. 45 years of experimental career and life shaping. Studio Horn will document and share this collision. 

What Is The Name of That Color?