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Shops Pop Up Around Basement Windows in Urban Sofia

04 Dec

[ By Steph in Global & Travel & Places. ]

Once the Berlin Wall came crashing down in 1989, many surrounding nations – including Bulgaria – began to escape the grip of communism. But the ability for Bulgarian people to start businesses of their own in the capital city of Sofia was hampered by the high rents of urban storefronts. That’s when these enterprising people began opening ‘klek’ shops – small pop-up stores organized around basement windows.

Artist Ivaylo Getov has documented many of these fascinating little storefronts in a series on DeviantArt. The photos depict a variety of cases displaying examples of the wares found inside, or simply posters printed with their images. Customers crouch to view the selection of drinks, snacks, cigarettes and other small items.

Twenty-three years after klek shops were borne of necessity, they’re beginning to disappear, remaining in small numbers mostly for the benefit of tourists. While visitors from other countries, including America, are likely accustomed to vendor carts and other sidewalk shops in their hometowns, the sight of these makeshift shops – which fold closed and lock like shutters when business hours are over – is still unusual and intriguing.

See the whole series at DeviantArt.

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Top Pop-Up Shops: 14 Temporary Retail Stores

Literally erected overnight, pop-up shops can appear just about anywhere and aim to dazzle onlookers with unusual exteriors and stunning interior designs.
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Fresh Blends: 12 Cool Multi-Functional Coffee Shops

Multi-purpose ‘combo’ coffee shops combine a beverage bar with other services like washing clothes, printing documents or getting a pedicure from a tank of fish.
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[ By Steph in Global & Travel & Places. ]

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Rad Wrappings: 15 Modern, Quirky & Fun Gift Wrap Designs

03 Dec

[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

Gift wrap can be just as important as the gift itself, enhancing the sense of anticipation and reflecting the personality and tastes of the giver. If you’re unsatisfied with the standard Santas, snowflakes and christmas trees found on the holiday gift wrap supplies at your local big box store, check out these 15 modern options. Some are even free templates for cool gift wrap designs, tags and 3D geometric gift boxes that you can download and print in minutes.

Free Printable Pac Wrap

(images via: minieco)

While this is technically ‘Halloween’ wrap, why not use it for other occasions, too? Minieco offers free printable gift wrap designs in ‘Pacman Ghost’ and ‘It’s Raining Again’, simple black-and-white graphic patterns that would definitely stand out under the tree.

Mustache Gift Wrap

(images via: ruff house art)

Mustaches may be hip among the set who like things just because it’s ‘ironic’ to do so, but this wrapping paper printed with a variety of facial hair styles is fun for anyone.

DIY Paper Diamond Gift Boxes

(images via: minieco)

Why buy (and wrap) a boring cardboard gift box when you could simply fold a cool 3D diamond shape out of the paper of your choice? Minieco has a template to make it yourself, and it’s perfect for small items like jewelry.

Crossword Puzzle Wrapping Paper

(images via: the dieline)

No matter the occasion, this wrapping paper fits – just find and outline the appropriate sentiment, whether it’s Merry Christmas, Happy Easter, Congratulations, Recover Soon or just ‘You Are the Best.’ Universal crossword puzzle paper comes with a key so you can find and circle the greeting you desire.

DIY Paper Ornaments/Gift Boxes

(images via: minieco)

These geometric shapes, including tetrahedrons and cubes, are meant to be used as ornaments – but they could double as gift boxes. Get the templates at MiniEco.

Free Printable Anchor Gift Wrap

(images via: heyook)

Anchor-printed wrapping paper and gift tags are a lot more fun than garish store-bought Santas, though perhaps not as festive. Get these free printable templates at HeyLook.

Pawling Ikat Wrapping Paper

(images via: mint design)

This ikat-print wrapping paper by Pawling is so simple, yet so beautiful.

Fun and Festive Wrap by Hemlock Printers

(images via: hemlock.com)

If you prefer festive seasonal designs, Hemlock Printers’ set of double-sided holiday wrapping paper is a playful modern option.

Metallic Pens on Kraft Paper

(images via: papercrave)

Plain old brown kraft paper looks a lot more interesting when you add some basic designs with a silver sharpie. It’s easy and cheap, and the result is clean and modern.

Gift ‘Purses’ by Treeo Design

(image via: paper crave)

Treeo uses FSC-certified paper to create their gift wrap and gift boxes, which means that no trees were harmed unnecessarily during the process of creating their products. These gift boxes, shaped like purses, are an interesting twist on the conventional rectangular or square design.

Zebrawood Veneer

(images via: corinna wraps)

If you have any type of wood veneer laying around, take a cue from Corinna Wraps and use it to cut out shapes and paste them to your wrapped gifts in custom designs of your choice.

Modern and Monochromatic by Loop

(image via: loop)

Meticulously hand-drawn designs adorn the boutique wrapping paper by Loop, which is printed on FSC-certified and recycled paper using soy ink.

Simple and Rustic at Design Sponge

(image via: design sponge)

Sometimes the simplest, most rustic wrapping job is the most elegant. Design Sponge demonstrates how to pretty up some brown kraft paper with branches, pine cones, raffia and a paper tag.

Arrows and Trees from Urban Bird and Co

(image via: urban bird and co)

Two designs available from Urban Bird and Co, in black-and-white arrows and tree shapes, illustrate how easy it is to transform kraft paper with stamps. Buy it pre-made on Etsy, or make your own using stamps procured from craft stores.

Easy Gift Wrap Kits on Etsy

(images via: OnceUponSupplies)

Too busy to think about creative gift wrapping, but not crazy about the options at your local big box stores? A number of Etsy sellers, like Once Upon Supplies, offer ‘gift wrap kits’ containing ribbon, twin, tags, stickers and other decorative accents in matching color-coordinated sets.

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Righteous Wrappings: 33 Incredible Packaging Designs

Judging a product by its package is how we shop, and designing packaging is hard work. These creative packaging concepts are all bold enough to grab attention.
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30 Brilliant Vinyl Car Wrap Designs

The custom vinyl car wraps industry is relatively new and rapidly growing. It relies on wildly creative precision graphic design teams and skilled installers.
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[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

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Clock Watching: 15 Amazing Movie & TV Time Machines

02 Dec

[ By Steve in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

Time travel is a relatively modern concept first popularized by British author H. G. Wells in his pioneering sci-fi classic The Time Machine. Over a century of virtual time exploration has given us a wealth of variations on Wells’ antique Brass Age time machine, showcased in technicolor on TV and theater screens. Here are 15 of the most memorable.

The Time Machine (1960)

(images via: MSN Entertainment and Mark Bourne)

H. G. Wells may be more famed for his classic War Of The Worlds but his 1895 novel “The Time Machine” proved the prescient Englishman was no one trick pony. Wells’ masterpiece has spawned a number of radio, TV and film adaptations but 1960′s theatrical release remains a stunning tour de force half a century later.

(image via: Forces Of Geek)

The time traveler’s handcrafted Victorian-era contraption mixes elements of Santa’s sleigh with steampunk accessories in turned brass, red velvet and faceted crystal. Definitely a keeper and well worth bidding on should it show up on eBay… morlocks optional.

Doctor Who (1963+)

(images via: TARDIS Corset, RTP Films and Starstore.com)

Over five decades, eleven Doctors and one well-worn TARDIS, the iconic BBC science fiction television show has become a cultural institution worthy of inclusion (audio only, pity) in the 2012 London Olympics Opening Ceremonies. As for the TARDIS (an acronym standing for “Time and Relative Dimension in Space”) itself, the show’s hagiography describes this unassuming and quintessentially English time machine as being an obsolete, unreliable museum piece whose “chameleon circuit” froze up during a visit to 1963 London, locking it into the shape of a police call box.

The Time Tunnel (1966)

(images via: MidAtlantic Nostaligia Convention and IANN)

“Two American scientists are lost in the swirling maze of past and future ages, during the first experiments on America’s greatest and most secret project, the Time Tunnel.” So began most of the 30 hour-long episodes of The Time Tunnel, an ambitious TV series helmed by veteran master of disaster Irwin Allen. Starring James Darren, Robert Colbert and Lee Meriwether, the show was a minor hit for ABC-TV in 1966-67 and featured an enormous, pop-art tunnel reaching back into the mists of time. After being picked up for a second season, The Time Tunnel was abruptly cancelled when regime change at ABC saw the network’s programming reshuffled. As for Doug & Tony, they’re still out there, somewhere.

Star Trek: The City On The Edge Of Forever (1967)

(images via: Victory Tastes Yellow, Subspace Communique and Giant Freakin Robot)

First broadcast on April 6th of 1967 to end the first television season of Star Trek, The City On The Edge Of Forever saw the series’ main three characters traveling to 1930′s New York City via the “Guardian of Forever”, a time portal built by a long-lost civilization. While many journeys are possible using the Guardian as a gate, the consequences of doing so should not be taken lightly.

Time After Time (1979)

(images via: Scifi-Movies, Home Theater Forum and Movie Poster Shop)

The 1979 film Time After Time doesn’t just employ time travel as a plot device, it positively revels in it. H. G. Wells (played by Malcolm McDowell) and Jack the Ripper (played by David Warner) play a high-stakes game of hide & go seek in the time stream as both characters attempt to assert control over Wells’ time machine to assure the triumph of good or evil.

The Terminator (1984+)

(images via: MENNO and Terminator Wikia)

The Terminator series of films and TV series’ takes a slightly different tack when conceiving time machines… there’s no actual time-traveling machine, only a base station in the future from which “time bubbles” are created and launched. Only organic matter can complete a Terminator-style time trip, which explains why both Terminators and humans like John Connor’s father arrive naked and weaponless. One surmises H. G. Wells would not approve.

Back To The Future Trilogy (1985, 1989, 1990)

(images via: Joystiq and Collider)

As we approach the 30th anniversary of the first Back To The Future film, it’s somewhat amusing to note the vast differences in the filmmakers’ world of 2015 and the much more pedestrian world of almost 2013. Levitating skateboards, anyone?

(image via: Collider)

Quibbling aside, the enduring star of all three films is Doc Brown’s ultra-modified DeLorean and its mysteriously evocative flux capacitor. Why a DeLorean? “The way I see it,” explains Doc himself, “if you’re gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style?” Now THAT’s heavy.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

(images via: DailyFlix and Movies Top)

There are times when a DeLorean isn’t quite big enough for your purposes, or in the case of 1986′s Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, porpoises – really BIG ones. Replace Doc Brown with Dr. “Bones” McCoy and enlist a captured Klingon Bird of Prey (rechristened the H.M.S. Bounty) to do the time traveling and all’s whale that ends whale.

Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Bogus Journey (1989, 1991)

(images via: Amazon.com, Shawn Lyman and Bougz Movie Gossip)

Imagine a TARDIS operated by idiots and you’ve got 1989′s Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, followed two years later by the equally ridiculous, er, excellent Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey. Their telephone booth-like time machine superficially resembles the TARDIS except for one crucial property: it’s NOT bigger on the inside.

Timecop (1994)

(images via: Alpha Counter, One Click Too Many and GME Podcast)

Jean-Claude Van Damme, the “Muscles from Brussels”, has his detractors to be sure but like him or not, most film fans agree that 1994′s Timecop was one of his better efforts. Naturally, time travel was the central theme of the flick and the time machine used – sort of a rocket sled on steroids – was highly unusual to say the least. Bloodstains on the sled run’s backing wall gave new and chilling meaning to “terminal” velocity.

The Simpsons: Time and Punishment (1994)

(images via: WikiNoticia, UGO and Die Blog, Die)

“Time and Punishment” was one of a trio of special episodes that together made up the fifth episode in the Treehouse of Horror series. The story was very loosely modeled on Ray Bradbury’s classic sci-fi short story A Sound of Thunder and we do mean VERY loosely.

(image via: Art Storm)

In a nutshell, Homer tries to fix a toaster but fails even more spectacularly than usual, inadvertently creating a time machine. The toaster time machine works fine… Homer, not so much. After swatting a mosquito, giving his cold to the dinosaurs and causing other time-changing mayhem in the past, he finally returns to a world much (but not exactly) like the one he originally left.

Galaxy Quest (1999)

(images via: UGO, UberNerdNation and Rankopedia)

Imagine you’re driving down the freeway and suddenly an 18-wheel semi in the opposite lane veers out of control… a horrific head-on collision is mere seconds away! What to do? Well, if your vehicle was equipped with the spaceship NSEA Protector’s top secret Omega-13 device, you’d just activate it, go back in time 13 seconds, and take the off-ramp out of danger. The 1999 cult classic film Galaxy Quest was riddled with similarly improbable (but highly useful) plot devices but when it comes to getting an interplanetary mulligan you just can’t beat the Omega-13: in the words of Tech Sgt. Chen, “it’s a hell of a thing.”

The Time Machine (2002)

(images via: All Movie Photo and Inkscape)

The 2002 re-boot, as it were, of 1960′s The Time Machine was directed by Simon Wells, great-grandson of H. G. Wells and it’s likely great-grandad would be suitably impressed with the result. Modern critics were less charmed, however, though the special effects are a significant upgrade. One scene of note is the final fight between time traveler Alexander Hartdegen (Guy Pearce) and the uber-morlock played by Jeremy Irons – watch it here.

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)

(images via: This Or That and Famous When Dead)

2004′s quirky modern classic Napoleon Dynamite isn’t a time machine movie per se, but it does feature a scene in which one is used… well, attempted to be used. The device is about as low-budget as it gets for time machines, even those bought online that need to have “crystals” inserted before setting the dial for 1982 and flipping the ON switch. Needless to say, the machine doesn’t work but Uncle Rico could have told you that.

Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

(images via: Tunefind, I Think, Therefore I Blog, The Guardian and AWN)

Well we seem to have come full circle in the time machine comfort zone department though it’s doubtful our original 1899 time traveler would feel all that comfortable immersed in a Hot Tub, Time Machine or not, with four other guys. Then again, it’s not every day one trips back to 1986 when Ronald Reagan was president. “Ronald Reagan, the actor?” Yeah Doc, one & the same.

(images via: Free Is My Life and IGN)

Yep, owning a working time machine must be pretty, pretty cool judging from the fantastic adventures enjoyed by a host of lucky TV and movie characters. Then again, the one place time machines DON’T make appearances is on reality shows… or in reality. As Uncle Rico can attest, it’s caveat emptor all the way when it comes to time machines. Odds are your fondest dream could turn into your worst nightmare.

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Screen Bean Machines: 10 Classic TV and Movie MINIs

Most recently seen in the Opening Ceremonies of London’s 2012 Olympic Games, the iconic Mini boasts an impressive resume of memorable TV and film appearances.
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27 Fan(tastic!) Home Made Movie Posters

Fans with a ton of enthusiasm and even more photoshop skill have taken their favorite film posters to a new level.
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[ By Steve in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

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Click, Hum, Whir: An Orchestra of Obsolete Technology

02 Dec

[ By Delana in Technology & Vintage & Retro. ]

In the broad scheme of audio technology, cassette tapes had a rather rough go of things. Their predecessor, the vinyl record, had been around for decades before and even now continues to be a favorite of audiophiles. Compact discs came along to dethrone cassettes before the tapes had much of a life in the spotlight. But now, as is customary with most obsolete audio technologies, a feeling of nostalgia has finally begun to grip a small number of those who grew up listening to cassette tapes.

(all images via: Stephen Cornford)

Stephen Cornford, an artist/musician whose work “exists at the intersection of sculpture and music,” puts a beautifully musical spin on this nostalgia with his installation piece called Binatone Galaxy. The installation features 28 vintage cassette recorder/players mounted to the walls of a single room, each outfitted with a custom microphone-fitted tape.

The machines are interesting pieces of technological sculpture, to be sure, but Cornford has recast them into a role they have never before played: instruments in their own right. The players are all hooked up to proximity sensors which cause them to begin playing whenever a visitor steps near and to shut off when not continually activated.

These cassette players are not playing the latest Top 40 tracks, however; they are playing only themselves. The machines become instruments as their characteristic clicks, whirs and hums are showcased in the installation. Each machine makes a different set of sounds depending on its motor, materials, age and other variables. The composition changes constantly as viewers move about the room, activating different machines and causing new and unique combinations to spring up and then fade away…much like the medium itself did.

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20 Amazing Examples of Art from Obsolete Technology

Growing trend in the art world: turn old tech items that would be junked into masterpieces of art.
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Ghost in the Machine: Uniquely Musical Cassette Art

Subject and medium are perfectly paired in this series of portraits. Famous musicians are recreated in the unraveled tape formerly hidden in cassette cases.
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[ By Delana in Technology & Vintage & Retro. ]

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For The Love Of Santa! 22 Crazy Christmas Decorations

30 Nov

[ By Marc in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

The holiday season is about friends, family, and feeling close to one’s fellow man. This is all well and good, but it’s also an excuse to go absolutely insane with decorations. After a couple of decades living in the same house, some people build up quite a collection of decorations, until it all gets awesomely out of control.

(Images via dontcallmebecky, manolaw, sweetfineday)

The top image showcases a truly wild light show that takes place annually at a private residence. Seeing just one corner of a yard is only a hint of what else they have up their sleeve, and you can see the rest here. The middle image is from the San Antonio River Walk, a festival that celebrates with an incredible array of beautiful lights, with a lot of the high class decorating that is not always present in these set ups. In New York, this glimpse at another private residence makes one wonder how much it costs to power all those lights each year. Click here to see more.

(Images via gridto, forwardeverforward, sketchysantas)

In Toronto, Canada, Benjamin Boake Trail leads to one of the most intense Christmas displays in the city. For sheer luminescence, it’s a difficult one to beat. The second house looks more like the Vegas strip than a place that someone actually lives, while the final image shows a tad bit more class.

(Images via mindlessmirth, villageorigin, christmaslightsetc, dontcallmebecky)

Most homeowners stop decorating once they literally don’t have an inch of their house left to color in lights… thankfully, not everyone does. Whether the house is plastered in lights like the top left example, or the lights leak out into the lawn like the house at bottom right, it’s amazing to see the effort some people put into their setup. Going a bit simplistic is better for some folks, as the top right and bottom left images attest.

(Images via fooyoh, timnealon, tampalights, welovedc)

If someone doesn’t own a house to decorate, or just wants to bring their zest for the holidays out on the road, there’s always the option to decorate a vehicle. This pickup truck takes the cake (and probably extra car batteries) for its intense setup that covers every square inch of its body. Not to be outdone, a blue sedan takes to the night with cool blue colors lighting up the street. A more humble Beetle sits stolidly as a piece of decoration, while a chopper makes waves with lights that make it appear like it’s simply an illustration and not an actual street vehicle.

(Images via gawker, coolfwdmail, 1funny, stickyboydaily)

When it comes to decorating, more is better, right? Some people definitely think so! This top house seems to have entire scenes going on, while the inside of this person’s house in the United Kingdom is filled to the gills, with an annual display they had to shut down after the power bill became too much to handle. The bottom house looks like it’s being weighed down by the incredible number of inflatable decorations they have in place. While the final home has a good mix between luminescent decorations and good old inflatables.

(Images via rofltime, californiathroughmylens, coolfwdmail, walyou)

Intense decorations can look classy, as these homes show. Using only white lights make this house stand out, and the snow around it only serves to help the image. Giant nutcrackers stand in front of the Mission Inn during their festival of lights in Riverside California, and they do just fine without any snow to help. The bottom house wins the award for sheer number of lights, yet they manage to keep it orderly enough to not look too garish. Last but not least, a large house stands adorned in classic decorations, with a faux tree made out of strings of light to decorate the yard.

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Lisbon Lights Up with Modern Christmas Decorations

The city of Lisbon, Portugal got creative in the face of budget issues this year with an annual Christmas light display that’s as festive as ever.
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Holiday Giants! 31 Hugely Out Of Control Decorations

The holidays are nigh! The decoration pros have already spent the last 6 months carefully constructing 60 foot-high Santa Claus’ to grace their front yard.
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[ By Marc in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

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Metropolitan Cityscapes: Maps Honor Favorite Places

30 Nov

[ By Steph in Art & Drawing & Digital. ]

Each city is as different, and as beautiful, as we are. That’s the sentiment behind ‘Metropolitan Cityscapes‘, beautifully complex city maps with the negative space around the streets meticulously cut out, leaving delicate patterns behind.

Perhaps your tie to your favorite city is family history, or perhaps you walked down one of those unfamiliar streets as a visitor and have never forgotten the way it felt to take part in something entirely new. Designers Chauntelle Trinh and Eckard Buscher didn’t just arbitrarily choose the cities for their series of papercut maps, they explored them and set out to capture their essence.

Rather than simply modifying a city map and cutting it out, the designers undertook what they call ‘expeditions’ to gain an intimate understanding of metropolitan cities like Hong Kong, New York and San Francisco. Walking the streets to get a sense of the terrain, discovering the features that stood out to them, colored the way they designed each map.

“The centre of a city, its beating heart, is a palimpsest overflowing with imagery. Layers upon layers of stories have accumulated and disappeared through time. Behind each facade, each brick, each pathway, untold stories, memories and dreams are waiting to be narrated. Above all the noise, if you listen carefully, you can hear your own tale of the city.”

“To tell our stories of the city, we peeled away all the complex urban layers so that only the bare bones of place remains. Each line drawn and cut on every cityscape has a distinct story. Metropolitan Cityscapes are a new vision of the city as organism.”

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Wear You Live: T-Shirts and Totes Printed with City Maps

CityFabric creates t-shirts, totes and prints that are painstakingly hand-printed with maps of the city of your choice, including Raleigh, Brooklyn and Seattle.
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Creative Cartography: 15 Artists Transforming Maps

These 15 artists cut, sculpt and rearrange paper maps, create their own from unexpected materials like money or use them to illustrate interesting data.
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[ By Steph in Art & Drawing & Digital. ]

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Fast Track: A 557-Foot Trampoline in the Russian Woods

29 Nov

[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

Pedestrian roads would be a lot more fun if they were bouncy. Maybe that’s why Salto Architects decided to complete this unusual installation, a 557-foot-long (170 meter) trampoline walkway that runs through the woods of Russia. ‘Fast Track’ eschews the entirely practical nature of most roadways, choosing to infuse it with an element of fun that encourages users to pause and laugh for a while.

Bouncing along the trampoline gives pedestrians more time to take in and appreciate their surroundings as they walk, leading them to interact with it in a different way. The Estonian architecture studio sought to “create intelligent interactive spaces that emotionally correspond to its local context.”

The walkway was built for the Archstoyanie Festival in Russia, giving attendees a fun and interactive way to get from one end of the event space to the other.

The project is reminiscent of a recently unveiled concept by studio AZC for an inflatable bridge in Paris that is more recreational than practical. While this approach to infrastructure isn’t likely to spread on a large scale, for obvious economic and efficiency reasons, it’s a nice change of pace as a temporary installation.

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The Art of Architecture: 10 Incredible Installations

Installation art fuses lies at the intersection of art and design, architecture and interiors, and blurs the boundaries between form, function and innovation.
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Towers of Trash: 5000-Foot Junk Skyscrapers to Fuel Cities

Instead of burying our legacy under the Earth’s surface, these structures showcase the impact of the millions of tons of trash major cities produce on an annual basis.
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[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

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Wind Shield: Invisible Air Umbrella Keeps You Dry in the Rain

29 Nov

[ By WebUrbanist in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

Umbrellas are already halfway there: compact as possible, they deploy in a quick motion and retract almost as easily. But problems remain: they are wet when you walk indoors, and their intentionally-then structure remains fragile.

Thus the Air Umbrella (or perhaps: unbrella) by Je Sung Park & Woo Jung Kwon which forces an artificial wind up through its handle that shoots out the top and deflects incoming raindrops before they can hit your head.

Adjustable by design, the power of the air pushed through the system can be varied based on conditions or the desire to extend your protective canopy to a walking companion. Likewise, the rod you hold can telescope based on need and for portability.

The feasibility remains to be seen – one could imagine it would be difficult if even possible to produce the kind of force required, and that batteries might drain too fast for it to be broadly useful. Still, technology has a way of catching up to good design. Another point of skepticism: its creators pitch it as a green alternative to plastic bags or one-use ponchos, but what about regular umbrellas? Perhaps, depending upon the durability of the latter versus the power usage of the Air Umbrella alternative.

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Gray-Sky Thinking: 15 Uniquely Modern Umbrella Designs

From the best in pugilistic umbrella-mayhem to the sweetest way to woo a loved one, these 15 examples are guaranteed to chase the clouds away.
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Graffiti Umbrella for Drawing on Walls & Sidewalks

You could take a rainy day and make it warm and fun with this playful umbrella design. It uses rainwater to create temporary sidewalk graffiti.
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[ By WebUrbanist in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

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Illuminating Inventions: 10 Twists to Simple Street Lights

29 Nov

[ By Delana in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

Street lights are a ubiquitous part of the urban landscape – so much so that most of us hardly notice their presence at all. What would happen if improving the aesthetics, functionality and environmental footprint of street lights suddenly became a priority? A few forward-thinking designers would have a head start. These concepts for improved street lights may just be the lights that guide us in the coming years.

Solar Trees

(images via: Ross Lovegrove)

Taking streetlights off of the sometimes-unpredictable electricity grid is a priority for many designers. Ross Lovegrove created the Solar Tree, an LED-lit fixture that relies on the power of the sun to illuminate the streets. The array of up to ten leaf-like photovoltaic (PV) structures soaks up solar energy during the day and stores it in integrated batteries. When the built-in light detectors sense that the sun has set, the lights flip on, using much less power than traditional street lamps.

Flowlight

(images via: Shane Molloy)

The Flowlight uses an incredibly powerful natural force to light the way: tides. Designer Shane Molloy used the tidal river called the River Sur as the basis for his design, which would light up piers and other waterside areas. A water turbine-equipped arm dips down from each light into the water, gathering energy from the movement of the waves. The arm floats higher or lower depending on the position of the tide, ensuring that it never misses an opportunity to build up some more energy for lighting the path after dark.

sTREEt

(images via: Kibisi)

Utilizing a brand new kind of network or grid, the sTREEt concept would connect neighborhoods through a series of “urban furniture” pieces. The central part of the plan is the “mother tree,” a tall structure outfitted with lots of solar panels. The big “tree” feeds energy to smaller structures all throughout a neighborhood. These smaller modular structures feature changeable configurations which can be set up as just street lights or street lights with advertising space, convenient seating, or even fun swings.

EnergyMe

(images via: Dido Studio)

Would you donate your gym time for the good of the city you live in? That’s what the designers of the EnergyMe street light concept would like all of us to do. In order to keep the street lights on, the EnergyMe system requires citizens to walk, run, push, pull and pedal their way to fitness. The energy spent on working out is translated into power for street lights. The concept not only cuts down on the environmental impact of street lighting, but encourages everyone to get out and exercise.

Urban Green Energy Renewable Street Lamps

(image via: UGE)

As a commercially-available product, the renewable street lamp from Urban Green Energy has already proven that off-grid lighting is possible. The dual-powered street lights utilize both wind and solar energy to power lights that illuminate streets, parking lots and walking paths. The built-in battery keeps each light going for 3-5 days in the event that the sun doesn’t shine and the wind doesn’t blow. As an added incentive to businesses looking to add this type of eco-friendly light to their properties, the street lights also include ample advertising space.

Windtulip

(images via: Yanko Design)

Designer Mebrure Oral shakes off the usual stereotypes about ugly wind turbines with the Windtulip design. Meant to look like a sleek piece of urban art, the Windtulip is actually a covert energy-producing turbine. Its top spins with the wind all day, every day, charging the internal battery. When the sun goes down the efficient LEDs light up to illuminate the cityscape.

Dial4Light

(images via: Dial4Light)

Dial4Light is a German startup company that doesn’t want to change the way street lights look – just the way they work. Rather than keeping all of the lights in any given city on all night, their concept lets users tell the lights when they are needed.Citizens call a special phone number to turn on the street lights in a particular zone that they will be traveling through. The system has been implemented in several German towns already and is not without controversy, particularly since some localities require users to pay for the privilege of using street lighting.

Energy Seed

(images via: Yanko Design)

When you use up the batteries in a favorite gadget, the chances are very good that there is still at least a little power left in them. The Energy Seed street lighting concept from designers Sungwoo Park and Sunhee Kim would use those leftover bits of power to light city streets and sidewalks at night. Each light is “planted” in a pot with little round battery receptacles in the top. Users plop their old batteries in and the device (either through magic or some sort of unexplained mechanism) turns the leftover juice into illumination. Obviously this concept would need to be refined and expanded significantly before it could be introduced as an actual product, but the idea of using every last bit of stored energy is an appealing one.

Sunflower Street Lights

(images via: Tuvie)

A very straightforward and easily understandable design, the Sunflower street light from designer Riis Ros simply uses solar power rather than grid power to light up its surroundings. The “petals” of the sunflower feature PV panels on top and lights on the bottom, spread out in an array that does indeed resemble a flower. Entire gardens of these solar-powered flowers could one day light up towns and cities around the world.

Intellistreets

(image via: Intellistreets)

Perhaps the most controversial street light since towns changed from gas to electric lamps, the Intellistreets light is much more than just a light in the dark. It also features speakers, digital signs, a dual band transceiver, an emergency alert system, and a camera. It is, understandably, this last part that makes some people wonder whether this next-generation street light will be used to spy on citizens in the near future. The Intellistreets lamps were already introduced in parts of Michigan in 2011; according to city officials, they will help cities save money by using less energy and only operating when needed.

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[ By Delana in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

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Vintage Vandals: 6 Artists Monsterize Thrift-Store Paintings

27 Nov

[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Drawing & Digital. ]

You seem to see them at every garage sale: a chipped and battered, faux-ornate, gold-colored frame containing a bland and boring landscape that only holds meaning for the original painter and perhaps its first owner. Others, however, see the same thing as a blank canvas of artistic opportunity, like Steven Leduc‘s contribution of a giant kraken to the calm tides of a sea scene found on the side of a street.

Or take Chris McMahon, who finds the most pastoral pastels and mundane scenes he can …then adds monsters to their midst, breathing new life into landscapes otherwise destined to gather dust or be discarded entirely.

Driscoll Reid of Portland, Oregon, in another form of more-abstract monster mashup, turns a large canyon small with disturbingly friendly-yet-dark giants. They step ominously through a tacky old forest and straddle the dull waterway in which they are reflected.

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