It goes way back to 1907, before mid-century modern, before Eames, Nelson and even the Bauhaus… it’s an oldie but a goody for sure. This is more than a lamp, it’s a work of art, more than capable enough to be viewed as a sculpture… yet powerful enough (about 500W) to do the job it was built for.

It doesn’t come cheap though (too bad) but on the bright side, it can be a good DIY project (think photographic equipment).

Painting that wasn't meant to be

Not long ago we moved into a new apartment (well old but new to us) and my wife and I haven’t had much time to decorate or even come up with a plan or solid idea for our décor.

At the moment our whole apartment is stark white and void of any personality or color… kinda sucks. So I’ve been keeping my eyes open for art, anything that can bring in a shot of color and liven up our space a little.

A good piece of art, photo or other wall hanging can bring just enough color, texture, design and focus to a room to make up for its (the room) starkness… at least enough to make it livable. I like to hang art on the walls that are visible as you are entering that room and also as you are sitting in it. Hanging a piece of art or photo in a place no-one looks is kind of pointless don’t you think?

A quick tip, browse through eBay on occasion and you might even find something nice for cheap.

I don’t know much about this chair as the site I found it on is in Italian, but I though it was a novel idea and that you’d also enjoy it…

What I did manage to pull out of the text is that it’s called “Ball Chair” by David Di Benedict. The text also mentions that the chair is completely covered with footballs (Soccer balls) and is custom make to customer specs (colors). Price is upon request only.

Arrivederci. ;)

As summer continues to steam ahead and temperatures soar, many of us are trying to stay cool. Here in Belgrade we’ve been having a serious heat wave with unofficial temperature readings in urban areas getting up to 50*C (that’s about 132*F) and Official readings (probably in a forest somewhere by a stream or other body of water) at about 42*C (again, about 117*F)…

That’s some serious heat!

Needless to say that despite my best efforts to keep cool without the A/C in the end I had to turn it on (otherwise I would MELT!). This got me thinking about A/C units, or rather one in particular, the LG Art Cool.

The Art Cool came out several years ago and from day one it was an instant favorite for many people. This really is a sexy looking unit that anyone would love to hang on their wall (it’s a split system so it’s permanently wall mounted, not in the window). But that’s not all there is to the Art Cool… Although the name might imply that the A/C unit itself is a work of art (I’d agree), the best part is that you can actually mount a picture to the unit. So basically the A/C unit acts as a picture frame (or mounting point to be a little more accurate) and goes completely unnoticed.

Retail prices are dropping on these and I’m pretty sure they can now be bought for under $1,000.

No I’m not losing my mind, I’m talking about the revolutionary Light Drop by Brazilian designer Rafael Morgan.

Why revolutionary? Well because of what it stands for, the message behind it… that’s right, it’s not just a light but instead a light with a message.

“The Light Drop is supposed to make people think about how we are dealing with our natural resources, in this particular case, the water, which is the main source of energy for every living organism in this fantastic world. Water is energy indeed.

I really hope that people really get my message….”

We all know the importance of conservation but I can’t recall seeing a single lamp or light that made me think about both energy conservation and water conservation at once. A fantastic idea, powerful message and a gorgeous design… a hat trick for design.

PS: As of my writing this, the Light Drop is not currently in production. Rafael is seeking people who might be able to help him put this product to market so if you’re interested just send him an email (or send me one and I’ll pass it on to him).

With digital cameras as the norm, what do people think of the good old 35mm film camera?

Personally, I like them. In fact I choose the classic 35mm over digital any day. I do have a digital (of course) but I prefer the film cameras… ok, maybe I’m bias (I used to run a photo lab) but I just can’t see myself capturing ALL of my life’s most important and joyful moments exclusively on digital media. I still need a negative. :)

Besides the archival and image quality of film (since 6MP and up can actually have higher resolution) I just like the fact that it’s a REAL camera.

Which brings me to another point, I really like the old ones (like 1970s models)… sure they’re slower and slightly more complicated to use but they’re just so cool and feel so natural, like a real camera SHOULD!

That’s my rant for today (a friend of mine is looking for a 35mm camera so it’s on my mind), any thoughts?