Pop Culture Notions
AT&T Plagiarizes Christo & Jeanne-Claude
Sunday, June 27th, 2010 | Contemporary Art, Pop Culture Notions, Power & Politics, Under The Patina of Knowledge | 21 Comments
Dear AT&T,
Please take the money you shower upon the hacks at your advertising agency ( BBDO Worldwide ) and instead install more cell phone towers or hire more nerds or do whatever it’ll take to improve your stinkpie of a network. I can’t make calls from my studio in Redhook, Brooklyn so that’d be a good place to start.
love,
Tonky
Background:
2005-
Artist duo Christo and Jeanne-Claude finally realized “The Gates,” a massive ephemeral art installation covering NYC’s Central Park with thousands of yards of flowing orange fabric suspended from orange plastic gates.
The concept was 20 years in the making and was funded entirely through the sale of concept sketches/collages rendered by the artist. In the words of the artist, “an expression of joy and wonder.” No corporate funds, no government sponsorship, just pure aesthetics ( open to argument of course )
2010-
AT&T steals the work to sell its snake oil to the masses as part of its sponsorship of the World Cup soccer tournament. Despite a disclaimer stating, “The Artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude have no direct or indirect affiliation or involvement with AT&T” the advertisement is a straight forward pillaging of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s intellectual property.
Angel Puppy
Tuesday, May 18th, 2010 | Pop Culture Notions | No Comments
I promised puppies and so shall you receive. Does that even make sense grammatically? Anyhoo, from our friends at Engrish.com
“Immediate Communication of wisdom from mind to mind.”
Such joy.
-Tonky
Drill Baby Drill, Buried Sunlight, and BP Oil Rig Collapse
Monday, May 3rd, 2010 | Pop Culture Notions, Under The Patina of Knowledge | No Comments
DRILL BABY DRILL!!!
Ok another sublime set of photos. I PROMISE the next post will be warm and fuzzy. Perhaps puppy related.
Don’t deny this great followup to the Icelandic volcano. These images posted at AMERICAblog, taken by a DOE (http://www.energy.gov/) contractor depict the burning and collapse of the BP owned and operated Deepwater Horizon, the ginormous oil platform that is now sitting at the bottom of the ocean. Beyond Petroleum my ass.
This began unfolding just over a week ago and now an underwater oil gusher threatens the gulf coast with all kinds of black greasy misery.
I really had no idea how big these offshore oil platforms were. Since they drill in water over a mile deep they aren’t actually attached to the bottom with a tower of steel like you’d imagine, rather they FLOAT and are anchored with epic lengths of cable.
Note the tornado created in the weather systems caused by the fire. Reminds me of those alien ships falling at the end of independence day. So big.
All that sweet precious buried sunlight gone to waste.
-Tonky
Eyjafjallajökull Ljósahönnuður (Icelandic Volcano Lightning)
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 | Pop Culture Notions, Under The Patina of Knowledge | No Comments
<gulp>
I picked these night photographs by Marco Fulle from his shots of the Icelandic volcano shutting down Europe’s economy called Eyjafjallajökull. (pronounced: “AY-yah-fyah-lah-YOH-kuul”)
Ljósahönnuður means lighting.
Fulle masterfully shows us the violent electric storms inside and around the plume of ash belching forth from Eyjafjallajökull.
For me, these evoke notions of what the crucible that is our rocky crag earth must have looked like for the first 100 Billion years or so. And where it will return in another 100 Billion.
Simply sublime.
-Tonky
Miniature New York City – NY Lotto Commercial Shoot
Monday, March 29th, 2010 | Pop Culture Notions, The American Diorama, Tonky Graphic Design | No Comments
Have a gander at some pics from a set for a New York Lotto commercial for which I performed some design work.
Shown above is the spot’s NYC based production designer Julian Laverdiere towering in front of the Met Life Building and Grand Central Station.
I aided Julian in the creation of various generic and landmark buildings. My role was to run around to photograph various NYC sites and to grind away in Photoshop to create large-scale printable facades that would be assembled and detailed by Brooklyn Model Works.
The experience was so compelling that I bought a Mega Million ticket and …. LOST
Enjoy.
-Tonky
CREDITS:
Director- NE-O
Production Designer: Julian Laverdiere
Production Co.- SKUNK
Agency- DDB
-Tonky
Old SNL Potuses Advocate Consumer Financial Protection Agency
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 | Pop Culture Notions, Power & Politics | No Comments
BUAHAHAHA!
MainStreetBrigade.org has teamed up with Funny or Die to put a muzzle on the snouts of corrupt Wall Street Bankers with the founding of the CFPA.
I snort laughed when George Bush 1.0 mistakenly calls President Obama Borat… then Barbar.
CAST:
Fred Armisen: Barack H. Obama
Will Ferrell: George Bush II
Darrell Hammond: William Jefferson Clinton
Dana Carvey: George Bush I
Jim Carrey: Ronald Reagan
Chevy Chase: Gerald Ford
Dan Aykroyd: Jimmy Carter
Enjoy:
Mark McCormick Designs – Brooklyn’s Finest
Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 | Contemporary Art, Pop Culture Notions | No Comments
Loving the work and new portfolio site by Brooklyn based artist, designer, illustrator and all-around-dude Mark McCormick.
Mark is Senior Designer at CRUNCH Gyms and so you’ve likely seen his work across every aspect of that brand’s collateral. Cool icons for web, murals, print, you name it.
The melted snowman on treadmill above makes me yearn for Spring (dare I say Summer?)
Take a minute to look through the great concert posters, personal projects, and other goodies at his website: http://markmccormickdesigns.roxer.com
Also he’s participating in “Thing a Day” at his other website. Good for a daily intertube fix:
http://nakedfowl.posterous.com/
-Tonky
