I am not usually into fantastical images. I tend to be drawn to portraits and documentary(ish) photography. It’s not that such work is any less valuable, I just don’t like it.

That all went out the window this weekend when I was introduced to the work of Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison.

Behold.

Reclaimation

Low Tide

Garden of Selves

More at the ParkHarrison website and at Masters of Fine Art Photography.

My friend Lauren is a very talented graphic designer so I was thrilled when she decided to sell her gift cards on Etsy this year.

She is selling three different sets: One for Hannukah (named We Get Eight Nights), one tracking the lyrics to The Twelve Days of Christmas (my favorite) and a holiday collection.

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Dear Mr. Seal,

Don’t you know that your bald head (ok… and the scars if we are up close) is the only touchstone we have in our collective struggle to visually differentiate you from Tracy Chapman?

Kind regards,

Your concerned fan(s)

Thanks to Bret for pointing out that DeNiro (circa Tax Driver) appears to be backing for Seal in the first photo. Hat tip to Damon with regard to the second one.

I rarely have an out and out dress shirt calamity (when I was growing up, you could tell what one of my best friends had eaten for lunch by perusing his shirt… Doritos and a Pizza… Nice).

But nary a day goes by that I don’t get some little spec of a stain on my shirt. Today it was Jamba Juice. Yesterday, coffee. The frustrating part is that those little stains, if forgotten, end up getting baked into my shirts permanently after I wash and dry my clothes. So I lose a lot of shirts.

But all that is of no matter now. Because I have this:

After my Jamba Juice fiasco, I simply applied a bit of the Tide Stick and I was good to go. The stain is totally gone. Which raises the question: Why can’t Tide Detergent remove these stains while in the washing machine with a ton more product and a lot of water. Perhaps I should throw a Tide Stick in the mix and see if that works.

My Friend Ryan is DJing his monthly set at Royal Oak in Williamsburg. He’s great, the drinks are cheap, and the company is sublime. Come on out.

Rob Harvilla has a hilarious article entitled Hot Hot Heat -
A graphical dissertation on the number one song in America in the village voice about the breakout hit “This is Why I’m Hot” by Mims.

An excerpt:

The most amazing line in “This Is Why I’m Hot”—and, even at this early a juncture, quite possibly the most amazing line of any song to see release in 2007—is “I’m hot ’cause I’m fly/You ain’t ’cause you not.” Brutal and unassailable in its simplicity. Consider the reasoning, first, of just “I’m hot ’cause I’m fly”:

Mims is hot because he’s fly. But it raises the question: Does being hot guarantee one’s being fly? “You ain’t ’cause you not” would seem to clear that up:

It would appear that fly and hot are interchangable. If you are one, you are both; if you aren’t at least one, you are neither.

(thanks to jono for the heads up)

I lost about 45 minutes yesterday reading Randall Munroe’s comic strip xkcd. The subtitle to xkcd is “a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.” And that is exactly what he deilvers. I can’t remember the last time a comic strip evoked actual feelings (ok… Boondocks and Sinfest aside). As simple as his strips are, Munroe is on to something here. Enjoy.

I am currently in love with Bruce Davidson’s photos from the old New York City Subway (you know, the one with graffiti inside the trains and really big hair).

I love the old school subway map in the first photo. Visit the entire series, and be sure to spend some time with the East 100th Street series.

Charlie O’Donnell is doing a Super Bowl Charity Pool, wiki style. Your $10 dollars goes to charity any way it goes. But, if you win one of the quarters or the final, your winnings are donated to the charity of your choice in the following percentages:

10% to 1st Quarter Winner
25% to Halftime Winnter
15% to 3rd Quarter Winner
50% to Final Score (If game goes into OT, Final Score is final at end of game)

I am actually going to get out of the office in time to go to the opening of The Girl’s Room tonight at the Jen Bekman Gallery.

According to the Dreier Project:

“The Girl’s Room” is an art show featuring work done by an international group of female artists. Each artist submitted several small pieces, each which will be framed with an 8.5×11 frame. By keeping all the work at a consistent size, we can more clearly and objectively compare the respective works, without the the messages being obscured by irrelevancies such as size and prominence on the wall. The artwork itself will be the message and perhaps it will answer some questions about the place of women’s artwork in the artworld. Questions such as: What sort of work are women artists creating? How does it differ from men’s art? Are there particular subjects, methods and materials women artists are working with? What role does gender play in artwork? And regardless of any “political” agenda, sometimes its fun to get the girls together and see what’s on our minds.

If you can’t make the opening, the show will be running through January 13, 2007 with a closing reception on the final day of the show.

As you likley know, I am a fan of Swoon who has a piece in the show. I have been lucky enough to see her work on the street. I am also excited to see work by Youngna Park whose blog I enjoy immensely, but whose work I have never seen in person.

Photo by Youngna Park