menodesignoart

A Bathing Ape has released a preview of its Wallabee-inspired CROCODILE PATTERN MANHUNT BOOTS, included in the brand’s seasonal footwear drop. The mid-cut boot is dressed in a brown textured crocodile-patterned leather and sits on a jagged white sole. Tonal laces complete the look. Expect a number of new BAPE footwear releases in the coming weeks.

Streetwear legends FUCT and its SSDD subsidiary have produced this pair of brown sunglasses for Spring/Summer 2012. Handmade in Japan, the glasses feature matching brown lenses and subtle FUCT branding on the inside of the arms. Coming soon to FUCT’s online store, you can reserve a pair by contacting info@fuct.com.

To celebrate UEFA Euro 2012 which is coming up in June, adidas Originals has put together a small collection of retro football shirts, inspired by Europe’s top national teams. Exhibiting a good old vintage look and feel, the shirts will no doubt conjure memories of a different era in football. The English, German, French, Polish, Italan and Spanish shirts be seen above and will be available at adidas Originals retailers in the weeks leading up to kick off on June 8.

The Leather Tote bag by Spanish design studio Antiatoms is a minimal piece of craftwork – to the point it seemingly resembles that most basic of luggage items – the brown paper grocery bag. Rest assured however, the level of quality here is more than marginally higher than the afore mentioned item. Elongated handles are attached to a luxurious leather body, while the serrated edge at the top gives the bag it’s recognizable look. The bags are currently sold out, although Present London is expecting another delivery soon.

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Holton Rower @ The Hole

These things are huge

Lot o’ art in this post

My new favorite kick it spot…”The slab” as we call it

Alex Prager @ Yancey Richardson Gallery

Ed Varie Interior

Opera Gallery group show. Too many people to get good photos. Revok mixed media

Went back the next day for better photos and they were having an event and couldn’t even look at the art….weak. Not going back a third time. Liqen close up

Interesni Kazki

Hyuro

Nunca

Tauba Auerbach @ Paula Cooper Gallery

Ryan Mcginley @ Team Gallery

Irak @ Fools Gold Records

Ari Marcopoulos @ Marlborough Gallery

Hanna Lyden @ Maccarone Gallery

Group Show @ The Chicken Hut

UFO mechanical sculptures

Mike Brodie age 8 drawing…hahah

Aminah Slor..a favorite

Current June 2012 issue of Juxtapoz I interviewed Utah and Ether

Pick up copy to see the rest!

I have not been receiving any mail and I believe it’s all backed up somewhere from moving. Where are all my zines USPS?

Peter Coffin

Pharrell Williams presents the vision behind his new brand, i am OTHER, which will foster and produce new and existing music, film, television, apparel, tech and multimedia.

“The idea for i am OTHER really came from the fans. They often say I inspired them to think outside the box and I wanted to establish a creative collective which represents that same philosophy,” says Williams. “I believe individuality is the new wealth and I am dedicated to creating and supporting projects that encourage originality.” His manifesto about the OTHERS, people who defy expectations and stereotypes, can be found at iamOTHER.com

Hot Chip’s Night & Day

Sony Pictures have released the first official trailer for the next installment of the 007 film franchise, Skyfall. Starring Daniel Craig as Bond, as well as Judy Dench, Naomie Harris and Javier Bardem, the film is set to hit theaters on October 26th, 2012.

Viberg have collaborated with Singaporean menswear brand WanderWonder on an oxford shoe, giving the silhouette a characteristic work-shoe inspired makeover. With a black/mocha Chromexcel leather upper and a Vibram ripple outer sole, the oxfords offer the sort of quality we’ve come to expect from all Viberg products and are limited to just 145 pairs.

Kempt puts together a classic photo round-up

Jun Takahashi released 15 tee shirt designs from the last 22 years of UNDERCOVER collections to the public and let them vote on which 5 they’d like to see re-released. The votes are in, and the above 5 tee’s are now available here for ¥8,925 JPY (approx. $113 USD).

If you order now, you could probably have them by the weekend.

Buying guide below.

The Critical Slide Society Frankies Boardshorts

Ralph Lauren Tiger Floral-Print Swim Trunk

Billabong x Andy Davis Sea Stallion Boardshort

RVCA Civil Stripe 18″ Trunk

Paul Smith Swimwear – Blue Optical Print Swim Shorts

Swim Trunk by Steven Alan

Birdwell Beach Britches

Vilebrequin Gray Langurs Moorea Swim Trunk

Saturdays Polka Dot Boardshort

Yellow Rat Fern Trunk

This great new Oversized Printed Messenger Bag by Lanvin for Spring 2012 is now available at LN-CC. The geometric print and signature Lanvin way of mixing luxury with function make for a versatile travel bag. £820 at LN-CC.

Undefeated have teamed up with Converse again, this time to re-interpret the classic Jack Purcell. This is probably my favourite collaboration between the pair yet. A simple make-over to the iconic sneaker. The shoe will be available in the 3 colours shown at Undefeated stores and selected Converse First String retailers globally from May 25th for $55.

The world of child mafias, gooey relatable beasts, funky leathery space dudes, soft bodies, diseased bodies, and crusty bodies, is the world of DeForge. Toronto-based Michael DeForge is running amuck in the independent comic’s scene. He is consistently putting out top-notch work executed in his very distinct style, a style that allows for plenty of room for experimentation while still being immediately recognizable as the “DeForge touch”. At age 24, with just a few years solidly devoted to comics, it’s amazing to imagine what he will achieve in his lifetime. On top of that, he does prop and effects for the wonderful Cartoon Network series Adventure Time. He has the drive. He has the look. He has it all. He is King Trash.

OK. Let’s start with the Deforge physical specs.

I think I’m 5″8? I’m not really sure. I’m probably like 160 or 170 pounds, but I don’t own a scale. I’m 24, my eyes are brown, I have black hair.

Alright, cool…so how’s that Adventure Time job?…character design right?

Mostly prop and effects design, but sometimes characters and other stuff. It’s awesome. I really like working for cartoonists. I work with Andy Ristaino, and he’s really patient with me and all of my screw-ups.

(from Fred Seibert’s Flickr)

Yea, that sounds really rad…tell me about the toronto comics scene, seems really strong.

Yeah, we have a nice group of cartoonists here. I see the Wowee Zonk group around a lot (Patrick Kyle, Ginette Lapalme, Chris Kuzma,) Zach Worton, Johnny Martz, Steve Wolfhard, and a few others. It’s nice that the Beguiling is here, since they’re really supportive of everyone and are the best comics store in the world.

(cover by Patrick Kyle)

Solid group… have you ever not drawn in that very distinct way you draw, it feels like you were born to draw like that way without any hesitation?

I think I purposely try to switch up my style a bit. I think it still always reads as something I’ve done, but something like Incinerator was drawn really differently from the way I went about, say, Lose #2. I like working on multiple projects that are all different from each other. If something is really densely gridded, I’ll want to move onto something airier right after – or if I’m working in black and white for a while, I like having the option of switching to color for something like Ant Comic.

Yea, makes sense…how many comics you got going right now?

Right now, my main projects are Lose #4, Kid Mafia #3 and Ant Comic. I also have some smaller stuff on the side, like my monthly strips and some mini-comics and work I’ve promised to anthologies.

Cool…so how is that 50 cent kid mafia experiment going?…I’m curious about that not so distant future of comics.

It’s going well! Paypal takes 30 cents of every transaction, but I think it at least subsidized the shipping cost of the last batch of minis I sent out. I’m always really late assembling my minis and sending them to stores, so I thought this might be a more efficient way of getting the comic out there for now.

Yea, and you embrace the digital world pretty fully right?…you’re a Cintiq man?

Yeah, I’m scanning my pencils and inking them with my tablet, for the most part. I’ve been working this way a while. If the pages are smaller, sometimes I can lay them out digitally too.

So I’m assuming that you as a comic artist grew naturally out of a lifetime of drawing…when did that happen exactly?

I’ve always been interested in drawing comics, but didn’t really commit to it until a few years ago, before then I was still drawing and did the occasional comic, but was more focused on working as an illustrator and I was pretty directionless with all of it. Like, I knew I wanted to write jokes, and I knew I wanted to draw, but I didn’t know how to put those things together yet. I had a lousy work ethic, too. I’d only draw whenever I “felt like it,” so when I did work on comics I wasn’t really putting my all into it. Anyway, I ended up having a year where I went through a lot of lousy stuff in my personal life, and also realized that I hated all my crappy artwork up until then, and decided to actually double down and try to take drawing comics seriously.

I get the feeling you love science, all the microscopic and interior views of life in your work…this right?

I think I love fake science. I like making things up, and diagrammatic drawings, but I’m actually a big dummy with those things, and lately I intentionally try to ignore information I hear or read about insects, since I don’t want too many actual “facts” to influence Ant Comic.

(for more visit What Things Do)

You got any pets?

I don’t!

Ok…do you have any interest in androgyny? That one comic in Thickness #2, and some of your interests on your Tumblr hint towards that…certain rock stars ‘n such.

I think it shows up in my work – definitely in some of my character designs. I’m not sure if it’s androgyny specifically that I’m interested in, but I’ve drawn comics focused on identity and ornamentation and body transformation, and gender definitely becomes a part of that.

Right on…any comic recommendations to the folks out there?

I really like The End of the Fucking World by Chuck Forsman right now. it is currently my favorite ongoing comic. Lately I’ve also been liking comics by Andy Burkholder, Katie Skelly, Alex Schubert, Patrick Kyle, Noel Freibert, Jane Mai, Edie Fake and Michael Comeau.

Anything you dieing to say right now?…or did we cover most of the Deforge?

Hahaha! Yeah, I don’t think there’s anything like burning inside of me to say!

Cool, that’s that then. THANKS MAN!

Sweet! Sounds good, dude!

Thanks for your time, I appreciate the patience.

Not at all! That was cool, it was nice talking to you!

Cash money.

Whether you’re a collector, a dealer, or just an observer, the art market can be a confusing place. Right now, since we’re in yet another art bubble, it’s a very expensive confusing place. Like most expensive confusing places, it’s full of people who want your money, and who would like you to believe that giving it to them constitutes a wise investment.

So, to commemorate the launch of artnet’s new art market index and the eruption of ill-advised bright ideas that’s sure to follow, we’re here to remind you that art will probably never make you any money.

Here are nine published statements from economists who have studied the art market professionally, with numbers and math and everything, categorized into four general lessons to be learnt from academia.

1. Art is a terrible investment, unless art investment is your full-time job.

Mandel, B. (2009) “Art as an Investment and Conspicuous Consumption Good”

“The empirical literature measuring average art prices is extensive, and the estimated long-run real return on art is quite low.”

…

“These studies find that art often underperforms relative to equities and bonds. While there have been stunning individual success stories in art investment, long-term average returns are lower than for equity and, in several cases, the mean real return of “risk-free” government bonds exceeds that of art, implying a negative risk premium.” [Ed.: That is, investing in art is less safe than investing in bonds, and also less profitable.]

Worthington, A. and H. Higgs (2003) “Art as an investment: short and long-term comovements in major painting markets”

“Unfortunately, little empirical evidence exists concerning short and long-term price linkages among differing art and financial markets and the concomitant prospects for portfolio diversification. The evidence that does exist is generally mixed.”

Goetzmann, W.N. (1993) “Accounting for Taste: Art and Financial Markets over Three Centuries.”

“While returns to art investment have exceeded inflation for long periods, and returns in the second half of the 20th century have rivalled the stock market, they are no higher than would be justified by the extraordinary risks they represent.”

Agnello, R. (2002) “Investment Returns and the Risk for Art: Evidence from Auctions of American Paintings”

“In contrast to the anecdotal evidence on returns, economic studies of painting investment have not supported claims of financial success.”

Melnik, A.L. and S. E. Plaut (2008) “Art as a Component in Investment Portfolios”

A small but growing body of academic research has addressed the question of whether art  should be a part of an optimal investment portfolios and, if so, to what extent. Frey and  Pommerehne (1989) examine an interesting sample that stretches over 350 years and conclude  that painting investments yielded on average a 1.5% real return, less than financial assets. In other recent papers, such as Renneboog and Van Houtte (2002), the conclusion has been that it should be at most in very small proportions and indeed may well be absent altogether from optimal portfolios (or even shorted).

2. If someone uses the term “masterpiece” to refer to a work of art, it has probably already peaked.

Ashenfelter, O. and K. Graddy (2002) “Auctions and the Price of Art”:

“The evidence clearly suggests that, contrary to the view of the art trade, “masterpieces” underperform the market.”

Moses, M. and J. Mei (2002) “Art as an Investment and the Underperformance of Masterpieces”:

“There is strong evidence of underperformance of masterpieces, meaning expensive paintings tend to underperform the art market index.”

3. If anything works, it’s probably buying and holding.

Landes, W. (2000) “Winning the Art Lottery: The Economic Returns to the Ganz Collection”:

“As the title “Winning the Art Lottery” implies the Ganzes turned a modest investment in art over a 50-year period into a collection worth more than $250 million. Yet the term “lottery” doesn’t quite capture the journey they traveled or the way they succeeded. They didn’t hit the jackpot overnight. Rather they spent a good deal of time and effort searching and acquiring art over many years. And like long-term investors in general, they had enough confidence in their purchases that they followed a “buy and hold” strategy. Occasionally they exchanged works for other works but they rarely sold art. They held only three of the 83 sampled works auctioned in 1986, 1988 and 1997 for less than 10 years. They held seventy-three for more than 20 years.”

4. Art market bubbles occur “whenever income inequality rises quickly.”

Goetzmann, W.N., L. Renneboog, and C. Spaenjers (2009) “Art and Money”:

“Taken together, these results demonstrate that it is indeed the wealth of the wealthy that drives art prices. This implies that we can expect art booms whenever income inequality rises quickly. This seems exactly what we witnessed during the last period of strong art price appreciation, 2002-2007. Indeed, in many countries with  large numbers of art buyers, income inequality has risen significantly in those years, mainly due to strong increases in managerial compensation. Andy Warhol, for one, would probably have applauded this evolution: “I don’t think everybody should have money. It shouldn’t be for everybody—you wouldn’t know who was important” (Warhol, 1975).”

The Avant/Garde Diaries is a digital portrait magazine that invites leading creatives to talk about the cutting edge of art, design, fashion, music and film. In each digital portrait, featured diarists are asked to introduce someone or something they consider to be ahead of their time. The result is a collection of very personal snapshots that celebrate new ways of thinking and spread inspiration. Be sure to check out the complete video portrait library at theavantgardediaries.com.

One recent video, “Taking Chances,” features Swiss pro snowboarder Nicolas Mueller and L.A. based action sports manager Circe Wallace. The two met in Muellers picturesque hometown Laax in Switzerland, went snowboarding and spoke about taking risks and the need in recognizing chances.

Find out more at avantgardediaries.com or facebook.com/avantgardediaries

Sang Bleu was very happy to  recently have been featured as a part of Facing Pages. Facing Pages is Europe’s biggest event on independent magazines which was held from the 20th until the 22nd of April in Arnhem, the Netherlands. The weekend explored unique magazines and featured renowned magazine makers giving lectures.

The event itself takes on the form of a magazine, and shows which part the independent magazine currently plays in the development of our visual culture. The organizer of this event is the Arnhem-based O.K. Lab, which over the last few years has developed itself into a center of the independent magazine world.

For a list of some of the other excellent magazines exhibited look here

Facing Pages are in the process of touring the exhibition around other areas of Europe so check out their website here:

http://www.facingpages.org/