Tag: Life

Eye-Fi releases Mac software to extend SD card functionality past End of Life date
Eye-Fi was on the receiving end of some serious backlash after announcing the September 15, 2016 End of Life (EOL) date for its X2 and earlier generation SD cards. The company cited security concerns for cards released before March 2015, advising owners that it was very important they ‘cease using these products no later than’ the EOL date. Customers weren’t happy about this, and many vowed to avoid Eye-Fi products altogether in the future, prompting a new announcement from Eye-Fi: it has developed a new software utility that will keep the cards operational past the EOL date.

The new software utility is called ‘Eye-Fi X2 Utility,’ and customers can download a Mac version of it now. The company hasn’t committed to creating a Windows version of the utility, but states that it is ‘exploring the feasibility’ of doing so. Though the utility allows images to be transferred to a desktop computer, it doesn’t have all the features of Eye-Fi Center and Eye-Fi View, and requires all Eye-Fi software to be uninstalled from the computer before the new utility can be installed.

Furthermore, Eye-Fi warns that it doesn’t offer any warranties or help desk support for the utility, and that the new software is ‘a one-time release.’

In a post today, Eye-Fi listed the following utility features:

X2 Utility Highlights
- Support for Pro X2 and all earlier generation products with the “Eye-Fi” branding as well as 3rd party branded cards from SanDisk and Visioneer
- Activation and set-up of cards to transfer images to a PC or Mac via an infrastructure or direct network connection
- Transferred images will be saved to a directory of users choosing but will be organized in a date based chronological order
- Eye-Fi Center software must be un-installed from the PC or Mac prior to installation of the X2U
- X2U will NOT integrate with Eye-Fi View nor Eyefi Cloud service: it will be limited to desktop transfer only
The company also issued the following advisory:

Today we are releasing the X2U on the Mac (OS X) platform. We will provide an updated notice if and when the X2U becomes available on Windows, and cannot guarantee such availability before the end of August and prior to the shutdown of Eye-Fi Center and Eye-Fi View.

The Mac version of the X2 Utility can be downloaded here.

Via: Eye-Fi

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
August 11, 2016
Go Big or Go Home: Athletes are Larger Than Life in Rio Art Installation

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

Athletes have arrived in Rio for the Olympics on a massive scale in the form of two monumental photographic installations supported by construction scaffolding, one looking like he’s about to back flip over an entire building. French artist JR brings his signature black-and-white style to the streets for a dramatic addition to his ‘Inside Out Project,’ a global series bringing real people and their personal stories to public spaces through art.

The athletes depicted aren’t household names – in fact, they’re not even Olympic athletes who will be physically present in Rio for the Games. The first, installed on the roof of a large residential complex, represents Mohamed Younes Idress of Sudan. “He lives and trains in Cologne, Germany,” says JR. “He missed out on the qualifications for the 2016 Rio Olympics but he is there some how.”

The second figure appears to be that of a diver about to leap into the adjacent ocean. This installation rises from a rocky jetty overlooking the water in the Barra neighborhood. JR says he’s been working on this new technique, with the images supported by metal beams, for almost a year.

We previously featured JR’s large-scale work of urban camouflage outside the Louvre in Paris, where a black-and-white photographic installation made the museum’s iconic 11,000-square-foot pyramid by I.M. Pei seem to disappear. Other ‘Inside Out Project’ installations have included massive paste-ups inside Paris’ Pantheon building as well as covering a mass area of the ground in New York City’s Times Square.

Larger than Life: 10 Giant Portraits, Murals & Sculptures

Portrait artists all have their own ideas about what makes for a great portrait: something that glorifies the subject, something that shows it in harsh realistic detail, or something that …

The Art of Architecture: 10 Incredible Installation Projects

Where is the line between art and design? If “function” is the word that comes to mind then there are many works which fall somewhere in the gray area between extremes. Perhaps the most engaging …

Livable Packing Tape Web Installation Worthy of Spiderman

It’s a spider web so large, a human family could set up furniture and make a home inside of it. But this stunningly sticky creation is no work of nightmarish monster spiders – it’s an art …

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

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August 4, 2016
Real Life LEGO Man: Fleshy Mini-Figure Cosplay Will Freak You Out

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Sculpture & Craft. ]

You’ll never hear the phrase ‘all thumbs’ the same way again after looking at this real life Lego man complete with eyebrows, wrinkles and the biggest, weirdest thumb nails you’ve ever seen. Dubbed ‘Creepyfig,’ this disturbingly fleshy cosplay project brings Lego mini figures into human scale and parades him around San Diego Comic-Con, where there are so many crazy things to look at, he barely gets a second glance from most adults before reaching the official Lego exhibit.

Artist Frank Ippolito created the mask and hands and donned the costume himself, getting a spirited reaction from kids who poked his head curiously and placed Lego bricks in his clumsily large hands. The head – complete with its characteristic peg – is made of 14 pounds of silicone and includes realistic details like dark eye circles and frown lines. In the video, Ippolito remarks that the eyes are difficult to see out of, but he completed the project in just a week, leaving no time for refinement. By the end of the day, sweat is literally pouring out of the silicone costume components.

Created in collaboration with Adam Savage’s Tested, the Creepyfig set started out as a giant lump of hand-sculpted clay. Ippolito specializes in makeup for film and television, giving him the skills to nail those details (no pun intended.) See the whole process from start to finish in a second video, courtesy of Tested.

Now, if only someone would make appropriately sized Lego bricks and accessories so we can see this project take a sharp left turn deeper into Uncanny Valley.

Smart Bricks: Life-Size LEGO-Style Blocks for Human Habitats …
World’s Largest LEGO Model: Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter …
LEGO Brooklyn: Artist Recreates Borough with Plastic Blocks …

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Sculpture & Craft. ]

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August 2, 2016
Figurative Furniture: 15 Designs With Life of Their Own

[ By SA Rogers in Design & Furniture & Decor. ]

Does the human tendency to place a higher value on living things that resemble our own image even extend to furniture? You might think so from the range of anthropomorphic designs we’ve created for our own comfort and entertainment, especially when the objects are designed to mimic human contact. These creations seem like they could spring to life at any moment, bringing a sense of anticipation to an otherwise ordinary indoor setting.

Companion Stools by Phillip Grass

Standing curiously or sitting in contemplation, Phillip Grass’ ‘Companion Stools’ stare back at us with a single oversized eyeball affixed to the wooden seat.

Fleshy Seats That Smell Like Human Skin

Not only do these rounded skin-toned stools look like lumps of human flesh – they smell like it, too. Artist Gigi Barker’s A Body of Skin collection is made of silicone that matches the body’s temperature when you sit on it. Leather covers are infused with pheromones and aftershave to add to the effect.

Nel & Maria Bedside Tables

With hat-shaped lampshades and drawer holes resembling faces, ’Nel & Maria’ bring a little bit of abstracted anthropomorphism to your bedside. The straw hats are reminiscent of those found in the Portuguese region of Baixo Minho, the home of the designers at DAM.

Man-Shaped Collection from Samal Design

Designer Dzmitry Samal fuses realistically sculpted human bodies with lockers and tables for this strange series. The human legs definitely take up more space than average furniture designs, but most of the pieces are still surprisingly functional for all their dramatics.

Free Hug Chair

Somewhere between a living human and an oversized stuffed animal, the ‘Free Hugs’ chair is a soft fur-covered creation with extra-long arms made to wrap around you when you take a seat or provide cushioning on the floor.

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
Figurative Furniture 15 Designs With Life Of Their Own

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[ By SA Rogers in Design & Furniture & Decor. ]

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June 15, 2016
Souped Up: 12 Larger Than Life Campbell’s Soup Cans

[ By Steve in Design & Graphics & Branding. ]

The red & white Campbell’s Soup can has been a huge pop culture (and occasionally pop art) icon for decades. HOW huge, you might ask? THIS huge…

The classic Campbell’s Soup can has been around a LONG time. Look closely at the gold medallion superimposed onto the divide between red and white: as stated, it was awarded to the company at the 1900 Paris International Exposition. More recently (1962 to be exact), pop artist Andy Warhol immortalized the by-then familiar can in one of his best-known paintings.

In 1981 Warhol visited Colorado State University in Fort Collins, which was holding an exhibition of his work in the art building. The acclaimed artist signed one of three huge replica Campbell’s Soup cans mounted outside the University Center for the Arts. In the summer of 2013, the restored signed can was unveiled at its new location at the UCA.

Soup Can-tonese

Campbell’s Soup cans can look a little different in other parts of the world – take Hong Kong, for instance. The jumbo can above, snapped in the city’s Admiralty subway station, depicts a flavor one wouldn’t expect in such a region.

Campbell’s Coop

Californians Steve & Chris White employed a little creativity and a lot of red & white paint when designing their one-of-a-kind Campbell’s Chicken Soup Chicken Coop. The pair adapted a hexagonal dog pergola (whatever that is) to suit the needs of their chickens, who thankfully can’t read.

Bigger in Texas

You’ll find this jumbo Campbell’s Soup can storage tank at Johnson’s Ranch in Uncertain, Texas. The oddly-named east Texas town only has about 150 residents, all of whom could presumably be fed for days if the tank really held tomato soup. Speaking of which, “The public restrooms at JOHNSON’S have been updated and improved.” Good to know!

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
Souped Up 12 Larger Than Life Campbells Soup Cans

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Whether for effect or out of necessity because of the size of the canvas, here are 10 of the most interesting and mind bogglingly large portraits:
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Cans Do! 35 Super Creative Sculptural Supermarket Displays

Supermarket shelf stockers have few opportunities to express their creativity but when they do, look out… and when curious shoppers get too close, LOOK OUT!
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Trash Can Art? 28 Garbage Cans That Belong In A Gallery

Dump that dirty old trash can into an even larger one, because it’s time to upgrade! Here are some fantastic artistic trash and garbage cans.
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[ By Steve in Design & Graphics & Branding. ]

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WebUrbanist

May 23, 2016
Metallic Life Forms: Kinetic Sculptures Undulate in the Wind

[ By Steph in Art & Sculpture & Craft. ]

There’s something alien about the way these metallic structures move, a fluidity that makes them seem as if they’re alive. Each one transforms so completely as it spins, the results almost seem like optical illusions. It’s really all a play of light and shadow on cleverly designed kinetic sculptures, which are engineered to spin effortlessly whether the winds are barely blowing or gusting with extreme force.

Working through many a night in his remote workshop on Orcas Island, Washington, Howe refuses commissioned orders, working only from his personal creative inspiration. Hundreds of his sculptures have sold to private and public collections around the world, including large-scale urban works in several cities.

“Kinetic sculpture resides at the intersection of artistic inspiration and mechanical complexity. The making of one of my nieces relies on creative expression, metal fabrication, and a slow design process in equal parts. It aims to alter one’s experience of time and space when witnessed. It also needs to weather winds of 90mph and still move in a one mile per hour breeze and do so for hundreds of years.”

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Moving Art: Unbelievable Kinetic Sculptures of Theo Jansen

A new species of animal roams the beaches of Holland. Made of plastic tubes, Theo Jansen’s kinetic sculptures move along the sand in a surprisingly organic way.
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Wind-Powered Art: Air Sculptors & Sculptures Harness Nature

Whether sculptures are kinetic or static, gritty and down to earth, or large and exotic, wind powered sculptures bridge the boundaries between man and nature.
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Sound Sculptures: Music Translated Into Transforming Objects

An experiment in intentional synesthesia, this combination of sculpture, music and technology enables us to actually see the physical form of individual songs. …
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[ By Steph in Art & Sculpture & Craft. ]

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WebUrbanist

May 5, 2016
14,000 Refugee Life Jackets Wrap Berlin Konzerthaus Entrance

[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

In an effort to raise awareness about the growing refugee crisis, Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei has wrapped six giant entry columns to a landmark concert hall in central Berlin with life jackets collected in Greece.

Weiwei has been living on and working from the Greek Island of Lesvos, a destination currently swamped with income refugees, many coming across Mediterranean Sea from Turkey.

He regularly shares images and videos of asylum-seekers from his stay on the island via social media accounts, but the installation takes things a step further, bringing the point home to those living inland on mainland Europe.

These 14,000 jackets are by no means a complete collection, and that is also part of the point: they are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg, a sampling of the suffering and strife. Hundreds of refugees have also died trying to reach safety away from conflict (images via mompl and Frank Löschner / Konzerthaus Berlin).

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Ghosts of the Berlin Wall: 8,000 Glowing Orbs Span 10 Miles

For the 25th anniversary of its fall, this Berlin Wall installation project will illuminate the historical divide between East and West, temporarily recreating …
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Cities of Tomorrow: Refugee Camps Require Longer-Term Thinking

Former mayor of the world’s second-largest refugee camp, humanitarian Kilian Kleinschmidt notes “the average stay today in a camp is 17 years. …
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Details & Diagrams: $ 1,000 IKEA Flat-Pack Refugee Shelter

Emergency shelters are designed to be short-term solutions, and many cannot withstand rain, wind and sun for more than six months. Yet the average stay in …
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[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

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February 19, 2016
Van Gogh’s Iconic Bedroom Brought to Life & Available to Rent

[ By WebUrbanist in Boutique & Art Hotels & Travel. ]

The Art Institute of Chicago has brought one of the most famous paintings of Vincent Van Gogh to life like never before: a complete replica realized in three dimensions and available as a rental to art fans in for a night of surrealistic immersion. The details, furniture and decor have been painstakingly drawn from the image, right down to crooked chairs, suspended paintings and heavily brush-stroked colors.

For rent on AirBNB, the project is part of a larger exhibition around Van Gogh’s various bedroom paintings made in the late 1880s, one of which was made during a stay at an asylum. The recreated room is located in the River North neighborhood of Chicago, next to one of the AIC’s campuses.

At just $ 10 a night, this place is likely to rent out entirely if it has not already. For whatever reason, the space also comes with a television and internet connection, though authentic experience-seekers may want to skip those, turn down the lights and just enjoy a night living inside of a classic work of art. The exhibit runs through early May and features over 30 of the master’s works.

More from the AIC: “Van Gogh’s life was short and nomadic. By the time he died, at the age of 37, he had lived in 37 separate residences across 24 cities, mostly as a boarder or a guest dependent on the hospitality of family or friends. In 1888, he finally moved into the only home he truly considered his own: his beloved ‘Yellow House’ in Arles.”

“Of his many bedrooms, Van Gogh immortalized only the one from the Yellow House—three times in fact. He first painted the room in 1888 shortly after his move to the Arles and then painted the composition twice more in 1889: once to record the first version that had been damaged when his home flooded and then again as a gift for his mother and sister.”

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Starry Night: Glow-in-the-Dark Bike Path Inspired by Van Gogh

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Moving Pictures: Stunning Photographs Brought to Life

These still photographs have some surprising elements of movement tucked into their scenery – some quite obvious and others very subtle, but all truly stunning.
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[ By WebUrbanist in Boutique & Art Hotels & Travel. ]

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WebUrbanist

February 17, 2016
YoCam is world’s smallest waterproof ‘life’ camera

A new pocket-sized camera called YoCam, claiming to be the world’s smallest waterproof wearable camera, has been successfully funded through crowdfunding site Indiegogo. Available for pre-order now, Molify’s YoCam features a versatile design suitable for a variety of situations, including underwater recording.

YoCam is indeed small at 85 x 30 x 21mm / 3.3 x 1.2 x 0.8in and 55g / 1.9oz, and is compatible with mounts like clips and lanyards as well as being waterproof to a max depth of 6m / 20ft. The camera has a maximum video resolution of 2.7K / 30fps with an F2.0 aperture, 140-degree wide-angle lens. Features include P2P remote connections for live video feed monitoring, image and video stabilization, HDR, a life-logging mode for continuous capture and a looping video option.

Molify also has a line of accessories for YoCam, including a Bluetooth remote control, an adapter compatible with ‘almost every action camera accessory on the market,’ a 3-in-1 magnetic stand, clip and clamp mount, ‘AnyBar’ bar mount, a suction cup mount, wrist strap, dog harness mount and lanyard.

Pre-orders can be placed on the YoCam Indiegogo page for $ 169, while the retail price is $ 199. Shipping to backers and those who pre-order is estimated to start this April.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

January 30, 2016
Geometry + Humanity: Beirut Shutterbug Abstracts Everyday Life

[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Photography & Video. ]

Photographing real people in actual places, Serge Najjar manages to make the mundane seem strange and fantastical, highlighting the intersection of humans and the architectural spaces they inhabit.

His planned-looking portraits of people in urban environments are surprisingly spontaneous, appearing staged but usually featuring strangers he has never met and captured as he wanders cities.

Technically, Najjar, a lawyer by trade in Beirut, Lebanon, is not even a professional photographer, though the beauty and popularity of his work would suggest otherwise.

His work, which spans from his home city to Rome and Berlin, features both generic architecture and famous places, all with his eye for making the familiar stream foreign and fresh.

While there are common threads, themes and angles to much of his photography, it is impossible to describe the commonality strictly in terms of perspective, as various works break the very conventions he generally follows.

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The Secret Life of Everyday Things: Art by Terry Border

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An MIT SENSEable City Laboratory project, Wiki City Rome seeks to create a “Real Time Rome” from various data sources and does an amazing job of it, too.
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[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Photography & Video. ]

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December 12, 2015