A Look into the Minds, or Rather, Desks, of Washington Art Notables

Photographer E. Brady Robinson photographs the desks of art notables in Washington. The assorted objects and clutter, or lack thereof, speak volumes about the desks’ owners.

Photographer E. Brady Robinson sits at one of the two desks in her apartment. Robinson decided to take pictures of desks while wandering around the offices of the Cultural Development Corporation, which hired her to take staff photos for an annual report. (Bill O’Leary / The Washington Post) Continue reading »

GroundBot

Mobile surveillance robots are supposed to cut costs. But if they keep getting into trouble and need help, they can prove to be expensive. GroundBot is unlike any other mobile robot on the market – it was originally designed to explore other planets. In other words, the nearest helping hand would have been millions of miles away. GroundBot moves through mud, sand and snow without getting stuck. The spherical design is simplicity itself. With its large circumference, GroundBot takes all kinds of terrain in its stride. And yet its appearance is friendly and unthreatening. Continue reading »

tck tck tck Global Campaign for Climate Action

Thousands of South African youths form a giant lion head on a beach in Durban, to call for urgent action on climate change, on the sidelines of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. The event was in partnership with international artist John Quigley and supported by the “tck tck tck Global Campaign for Climate Action.” (AFP/ Greenpeace / Shayne Robinson)

Still in Steel

A member of the pro-Kremlin youth movement Stal wearing a Darth Vader mask participates in a rally in downtown Moscow. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Tuesday he’s satisfied with the performance of his party in Russia’s parliamentary election even though it lost a significant number of seats. (AP)

From ‘Full Beards’ to ’99 Percent Beards’, Competition gets Hairy in New York

Judges Justin “Count Justidian,” left, and John Reardon, second left, inspect Kevin Cuomey’s moustache during the Second Annual Beard and Moustache Competition on Dec. 3, in Brooklyn, N.Y. Cuomey traveled from North Carolina to compete in the “Styled Mustache” category. (Claire Schneider / AP) Continue reading »

Fantastic Chromatic Typewriter

This is modified 1937 Underwood Standard typewriter, created by artist Tyree Callahan. This is fantastic – type as you draw! Please, let Tyree to win, vote for him, – just read his Facebook for details. Continue reading »

Nano Hummingbird

Named one of the “50 Best Inventions of 2011” by TIME Magazine.

AeroVironment is developing the Nano Air Vehicle (NAV) under a DARPA sponsored research contract to develop a new class of air vehicle systems capable of indoor and outdoor operation. Employing biological mimicry at an extremely small scale, this unconventional aircraft could someday provide new reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities in urban environments. Continue reading »

Protest Mural

Protesters take snapshots of a mural picturing people with eye patches symbolizing protesters wounded in clashes with security forces near Tahrir Square in Cairo. (AP)

Dancing in the Streets: Vintage Movie Musicals Posters

Film producer Mike Kaplan has been an avid collector of posters of movie musicals for years. As an exhibition of his favourites goes on display in New York, he offers a guide to the cream of his collection.

Three Audrey Hepburns in a black leotard, Fred Astaire with straw hat and cane, all dancing within four adjoining circles, plus a full colour Hepburn portrait, keep this Belgian poster for the delicious Funny Face in motion. Style in the movies was never better achieved than in Stanley Donen’s toast to romance and fashion. Continue reading »

Skateboard Fashion on the Catwalk and High Street

Since the 1950s, skateboarding has been synonymous with surf culture, slacker kids and an anti-mainstream culture. Fast forward to 2011 and the baggy jeans, sneakers and caps that have become the skateboarder’s uniform have made their way to the catwalk.

From Martine Rose’s Spring Summer 2012 collection, her seventh season. This collection featured a collaboration with Icon Brand. Continue reading »

Skeleton Key

This Skeleton Key is a highly versatile precision mini-tool made in the USA by Triple Aught Design from a solid 6AL-4V Titanium billet. There are two variations available – Spanner and E-Key. The Spanner version is specialized for Strider pivots and our E-Key version is for electronic locks that usually require coins to unlock. Both variations are capable of removing a pestering nail or opening a cold drink. This tool will surely become an instrument for every day carry. Continue reading »

‘Give U My Heart’ Ring by Innopark

‘Give you my heart’ ring by Hong Kong’s Innopark design studio. Two well-placed cuts cleverly transform the continuity of a sterling silver band into a small inset heart shape, left either unfinished or plated in red. Material: sterling silver 925 with platinum plating. Continue reading »

Awesome and Free Birdy Twitter Icons

The Amazing Twitter Birds

“After a huge success that we had with Ugly Birds for Twitter we have decided to continue development of icons that our users could use for Twitter. This time we’ve decided to cover all possible styles and implement them on the same bird’s shape. This is what we’ve come up with so far, but it is work in progress and we would like to extend this list, so if you have ideas for other interesting styles that we haven’t covered yet, do send us a tweet @designcontests and we may include it into the next release.” Continue reading »

Sand Portrait of Ponce de Leon

Mark Mason of Sarasota works on a St. Augustine-themed sand sculpture with a bust of Ponce de Leon at the West Palm Beach Waterfront Commons on Saturday. Mason’s company, Team Sandtastic, had four sand sculptors working on multiple sculptures throughout downtown West Palm Beach as part of the city’s Hot Cocoa Beach holiday festivities. “It’s a fast medium from conception to finish,” said Mason when he explained the sculpting process to onlookers. (Thomas Cordy/The Palm Beach Post)

iPhone Alarm Dock

That’s no ordinary cell phone you’re using. It’s a space age, multi-tasking, micro-computing, futuristic wonder. But once they’re out of your purse or pocket, too many iPhones become nothing more than fancy paperweights. Continue reading »

The Tipping Point

Inclined to have a cup of tea? This 2011 Red Dot Design winner will turn your break into a meditative escape, steeped in contemporary style. The teacup has an unusual angled bottom that allows it to rest in two different positions. On one side is a screened compartment in which you place your favorite loose tea leaves. Pour hot water through the screen and allow it to steep. Once it’s done, simply tip the cup in the other direction, lifting the leaves up out of the water. Continue reading »

The Space Hotel

Like a scene from Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, it looks like there’s a UFO landing in this forest. But far from being an opportunity to meet E.T. or the martians, it’s actually a place to sleep. That’s because the bizarre retro-looking 50s-style flying saucer situated near the town of Harads, Sweden, is actually a HOTEL. (Daily Mail Reporter) Continue reading »

One Snappy Dresser

Staff at a salon Down Under have given a particularly scaly customer a ‘bikini wax’ and full body exfoliation. In a bizarre bid to show off their skills to potential new customers, they plucked and pedicured a crocodile.

Now this might sting: Louanne Grasmeder gives the croc a waxing at the Parap Day Spa in Darwin. Continue reading »

Artist Creates Amazing Picture from Cake Decorations

Joel Brochu, a fine art student meticulously created the piece using 221,184 coloured sugary balls usually used on cakes and ice cream. The Canadian artist said he used double-sided sticky tape to attach the myriad of sprinkles to a board using a customised template.

Shower of sprinkles: Artist Joel Brochu created a work of art that appears as a high definition photograph however it was created using thousands of sprinkles. Continue reading »

The Marvellous Miniatures on Display in a Doll’s House

Karon Cunningham, owner of a miniatures shop in Bath, uses the doll’s house, below, to showcase some of her wares – each with an amazing attention to detail and period design.

Twelve rooms, illuminated by tiny LED strip lights in Karon Cunningham’s show cabinet in her Bath shop, show the various ways miniatures can be displayed. Continue reading »

Crucifixion by the Romans

A Christie’s auction house worker poses for photographers sitting in front of a 1887 painting by Vasily Vereshchagin, entitled ”Crucifixion by the Romans’ in London, Britain. The painting will be part of Christie’s Russian Art Sale on November 28, 2011. (AP)

LEGO Christmas Tree

Duncan Titmarsh, the UK’s only LEGO Certified Professional, places the star on top of a Christmas tree made entirely out of LEGO at St Pancras International. The tree is 12.2 metres high, is made up of 600,000 LEGO Bricks, and has 172 branches and 1200 baubles. (David Parry/PA) Continue reading »

Hand-Made Road Sign

A frustrated homeowner has painted a 15ft road sign on the side of his house because he became tired of speeding cars racing through his village. Tim Backhouse, 47, spent five hours painting the sign after he had repeatedly written to the Highways Agency asking for a review of speeding on the road outside his home. The father-of-three finally snapped and with the help of a friend designed and painted the mural on the side of his four-bedroomed semi-detached house. The house is situated on a busy main road on the side of the A3072 in Bow, near Crediton, Devon. (Adam Gray / SWNS.com)

Season Food Styling

Andrea Bricco and food stylist Diana Perrin depict the changing seasons through the medium of food, with spring, summer, autumn and winter created using ingredients ranging from blue cheese for the ocean to sliced lemon for the summer sun. (Andrea Bricco/Diana Perrin / Rex Features)

Elf Sculpture made from Engine Parts

An elf sculpture made from engine parts by Tom Samui. The Swiss artist has created hundreds of sculptures and statues made entirely from scrap car parts. Tom Samui and his team of 15 people spend hundreds of hours building sculptures of animals, vehicles, people, fantasy creatures and furniture. (Tom Samui / Rex Features)