‘This work is playful, but I’ve tried to throw a couple spanners into what people might expect from my art.  I’ve created 99 small, colorful paintings of tikis, but each tiki bears a symbol.

"Inscrutable Mystery Guide" is actually the little book that accompanies each small tiki painting.  It’s my hope that the books won’t be seen by anyone except the person who owns one of those paintings. I want to bring them into my own little cult and tell them some secrets.

In addition, I’ve created several large, panoramic canvases which will give further clues as to what the whole thing is all about.  In the past year my work has gotten darker and moved into new themes and imagery, but I’m trying to reconcile my old body of work with my new work, and trying not to be as manic depressive and serious as I was in the last year or so.’  - Josh Agle aka Shag

It was also a nice surprise to see Artist’s Proof prints of most of my favourite Shag paintings from previous exhibitions on display. Above Left: ‘Dickie Bird’ (the centrepiece of the Walsh Street House cocktail party) Top Right: ‘An Extraordinary Evening’ (the first Shag painting I ever saw and fell in love with) Above Left: ‘The Relentless Party’, Bottom Right: An original Shag painting from the 90’s

I love the stairs in this one (Hey! I’m an architecture geek – give me a break!) Funnily enough it’s titled ‘The Stairs’

Above Top: ‘The Marauder’ (I’ve got this one hanging proudly on my wall at home) and Bottom: ‘Rose Seidler’s House’

The exhibition is showing in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth:

• Outré Gallery Melbourne: August 14 – September 3
• Outré Gallery Sydney: August 21 – September 10
• The newly opened Outré Gallery Perth: August 28 – September 17

For an in depth review of this exhibition check out the Shagwatch Blog or for more info on Shag and Outré visit:

• www.shag.com
• www.outregallery.com

I’ll follow up this entry shortly with some photos from the Mid-Century soirée with Shag at Robin Boyd’s Walsh Street House so stay tuned…

This is a really cool letterpress project designed and illustrated by Ty Mattson of Mattson Creative to mark the announcement of the birth of his son. The letterpress printing was done by Studio on Fire onto 220lb. Lettra paper. I really love the type, simple colours and attention to detail.

• mattsoncreative.com
• beastpieces.com (blog of Studio on Fire)

Above: Ty Mattson’s original rough sketch and Below: the final illustration (pre letterpress)

This is the third post in a series of 26 on modern design icons (inspired by the Alphabet of Design Classics Poster by Blue Ant Studios.)

Italian brothers Achille (1918-2002) (pictured right) and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni (1913-1968) are considered one of the great innovative design partnerships in modern industrial design. Both studied architecture at Milan Polytechnic but due to the lack of architecture commissions in Italy immediately after WWII focused much of their attention to industrial design.

Arco Floor Lamp (1962)

The “Arco” is an iconic floor lamp designed in 1962 by  Achille and Peir Giacomo and can be found in many a modern lounge room throughout the world. Linking the qualities of both a floor lamp and a hanging lamp, the “Arco” satisfies the need for direct light on a table without having to be fixed to the ceiling.

The base of the lamp is carved from white marble and weighs approximately 65kg. Such a heavy base was required to achieve the 2.2m cantilever and marble was an economical choice at the time due to its abundance in Italy. A hole through the sides of the base serves two purposes –  a fixing point for the stainless steel stem and a space to insert a long object such as a broomstick so the lamp can be easily moved.

The arched stem is made of three pieces of stainless steel which can telescope into one another, enabling the light to be set at three different heights and concealing the wiring.

The lamp’s reflector is made of two pieces of aluminium: a perforated fixed dome and a swivelling ring for adjusting the direction of light.

The Arco floor lamp has been manufactured by the Italian lighting company, Flos since its founding in 1962.

For more info on the Arco lamp and Achille Castiglioni visit:

• www.flos.com
• www.achillecastiglioni.it
• www.designmuseum.org

Related Post:

• Alphabet of Design Classics Poster – Blue Ant Studios
• A is for Aalto – Aalto Vase (1936)
• B is for Bertoia – Diamond Lounge (1950)

For those of you that have been following the progress of Dabe Alan’s camera tattoo sleeve  things start to get a bit digital in Part 3…

“So for this video the main two things that you’ll see are my very own Canon 5d Mark ii, and my favorite mouse I’ve ever owned, the Logitech MX518 (I TOLD you this was gonna get nerdier). With the addition of the glowing mouse, all the green that was glowing on the other cameras makes sense. You’ll also notice the 35mm film turning into pixels as it gets higher. Oh but it’s not gonna stop just there…” – Dabe Alan

For more info on the tattoo and stop motion film check out Dabe Alan’s flickr page here. His website is also looking pretty cool these days – www.dabealan.com

For more great work and other impressive nerd sleeves check out Tony Touch’s flickr page here

If you haven’t seen the previous parts of this stop-motion film check out Part 1 here and Part 2 here

Titled the DHAN series, it consists of base modules that include a fully fitted bathroom, kitchen, bedroom and living space as well as smaller expansion modules such as additional bedrooms or living areas. With over ten different modules to choose from, multiple configurations can be created to suit any family, lifestyle or site. This allows owners to extend or add freestanding modules when needed as well as having the flexibility to downsize over time.

The DHAN series is characterised by finishes and details developed in Donovan Hill’s domestic architecture. Off-white interiors with timber window and door frames allow the personalisation of interiors by owners. The timber pelmet incorporates general room lighting as well as provision for art and curtain hanging. Plywood exteriors suit Australian environmental conditions and are offered with a colour choice to suit individual settings. Distinctive roof forms and coloured ventilation flaps characterise the exterior form.

Completed entirely off site in controlled factory conditions the modules take between 4-12 weeks to complete and can be installed on site within days. This is great for the environment as only one trip to the site is needed instead of builders and deliveries having to travel to the site each day over a number of months.

Due to their quick construction and flexibility this type of housing can also make a difference in emergency relief. Donovan Hill’s Happy Haus model was amongst nineteen designs selected for the Bushfire Homes Service for rebuilding homes that were destroyed in the 2009 Victorian bushfires.

• www.happyhaus.com.au
• www.donovanhill.com.au
• www.wewillrebuild.vic.gov.au

Photography: Jon Linkins

Images via archdaily

“The themes in Audrey Kawasaki’s work are contradictions within themselves. Her work is both innocent and erotic. Each subject is attractive yet disturbing. Audrey’s precise technical style is at once influenced by both manga comics and Art Nouveau. Her sharp graphic imagery is combined with the natural grain of the wood panels she paints on, bringing an unexpected warmth to enigmatic subject matter.

The figures she paints are seductive and contain an air of melancholy. They exist in their own sensually esoteric realm, yet at the same time present a sense of accessibility that draws the observer to them. These mysterious young women captivate with the direct stare of their  bedroom eyes.” audrey-kawasaki.com

Hit the jump below for more images and check out Audrey’s blog Okonomide for more photos of her process and close-ups of her latest work.

Vitra recently presented new products at the Milan Furniture Fair including a new variation of the Eames Lounge Chair.

“Since the lounge chair went into production more than 50 years ago, the average height of the human body has increased by up to 10cm, depending on region. To continue providing the best possible comfort, Vitra has adapted the Lounge Chair’s dimensions, working in close cooperation with the Eames Office and the Eames family to do so.”  Vitra Magazine

For further reading on the Eames Lounge Chair click here.

via vitra magazine

Philip Johnson (1906-2005) was one of the most influential American architects and  the inaugural Pritzker Prize winner back in 1979 (considered by many as the Nobel Prize of architecture).

I don’t know many old architect greats, let alone old men that would be into a light hearted photo shoot like this. Philip Johnson = champion.

Below is one of his most famous buildings, his personal residence, The Glass House, which was built in 1949.

This is the second post in a series of 26 on modern design icons (inspired by the Alphabet of Design Classics Poster by Blue Ant Studios.)

Bertoia Diamond Lounge (1950)

Harry Bertoia’s 1950 experiment with bending metal rods into practical art produced a revered collection of seating, including the exquisite Large Diamond chair. Innovative, comfortable and strikingly handsome, the chair’s delicate appearance belies its strength and durability. In Bertoia’s own words, “If you look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, like sculpture. Space passes through them.”

Harry Bertoia (1915-1978) was born in Italy and while visiting his brother in America, chose to stay and enrolled at Cass Technical High School where he studied art and design and learned to make handmade jewellery. In 1937 he received a scholarship to Cranbrook Academy of Art where he met Charles and Ray Eames for the first time. In 1950, after working with Eames’ for a number of years he moved to Pennsylvania, to establish a studio, and to work with Hans and Florence Knoll. (Florence was also a Cranbrook Academy of Art graduate). He designed five wire pieces that became known as the Bertoia Collection for Knoll.

They were also produced with varying degrees of upholstery over the steel wire grid-work as shown below.

For more information on Harry Bertoia and the Diamond Lounge visit the Knoll website here.

Related Post:

• Alphabet of Design Classics Poster – Blue Ant Studios
• A is for Aalto – Aalto Vase (1936)

The Osler House by Marcio Kogan is located in Brasilia, Brazil.

The house is composed of two rectangular volumes, stacked one on top of the other and arranged perpendicularly to create a sheltered entertaining terrace at ground level. Concrete, timber and glass form the simple palette of materials and add to the house’s minimalist nature.

Rotating wooden panels allow the ground floor rooms to open up to the yard and pool, while also enabling cross-ventilation.

The upper floor is organised as one open space with walls of glass on either side and is only interrupted by one long bench that solely forms the kitchen. With all appliances and storage contained in this bench and no overhead cupboards, a sense of visual transparency is maintained.

There is also a garden terrace on the roof of the ground floor that can be accessed via the living room and set of sculptural external stairs.

Check out the website of Marcio Kogan here.

Also visit archdaily for more images.