Entry #22: More Prefab Home Fun

I found a FABLIST for prefab homes.

Here is old, but new:
4 Architecture Dwell Home by Empyrean is a panelized version of our original prototype that was designed and built as a modular in North Carolina.

The Dwell Home by Empyrean
"The panelized method of delivery allows us wider spaces and the ability to offer The Dwell Home to more people in more locations. It differs in that the communal space is 18 ft wide, where as our modular is 16 ft wide, and The Dwell Home is now available in all 50 states and internationally as well.

As part of The Dwell Homes by Empyrean program, we offer modified versions of the Resolution: 4 Architecture Beach House and the Resolution: 4 Architecture Suburban, as standard models that can be purchased directly through Empyrean. We also have a new typology in the works we call The Vessel, designed specifically to leverage Empyrean's panelized method of delivery." -Joseph Tanney AIA of Resolution: 4 Architecture

p.s. I love Dwell.

Entry #21: Artist Sol LeWitt dies at 78

Cancer, that devil. I love his 3-D work.





“I would like to produce something I would not be ashamed to show Giotto” Le Witt has said referring to his “Wall Drawings” that had its beginnings in the historical Renaissance fresco paintings. While he has been known as an artist who has bridged the gap between minimal and conceptual art, LeWitt has also pursued the making of beautiful and well crafted art as well. His work through the 90’s to the present has pushed his work past his benchmark pure geometric forms into more fluid brushstrokes, undulating waves and layers that are more fluid in nature. LeWitt is one of the key artists that have evolved out of the 1960’s and has had major retrospectives worldwide including the Hague, the Whitney, the Museum of Modern Art and SFMOMA.

Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing No. 681 C, 1993
Sol LeWitt's obituary can be found at International Herald Tribune. The always informative Wiki also has some info on Sol LeWitt and his work.

The pictures were taken from: New Arts Gallery and National Gallery of Art.

Entry #20: Hay Carambola!

That is a rather sexy picture of the Carambola (porn star name: Star Fruit) and I will be planting these little hot tigers! When I googled the mess, there wasn't an ad for carambolas on the side bar! Whaaaaa? But EBAY came to the rescue!!

Some fast facts:
Origin: The carambola is believed to have originated in Sri Lanka and the Moluccas, but it has been cultivated in southeast Asia and Malaysia for many centuries.

Adaptation: The carambola is classified as subtropical because mature trees can tolerate temperatures as low as 27° F for short periods of time with little damage. Like many other subtropicals, however, young plants are more susceptible to frost and can be killed at 32° F. Carambolas can be severely damaged by flooding or prevailing hot, dry winds. The small trees make good container plants.

Fertilization: In soils of low fertility young trees should receive light applications every 60 to 90 days until well established. Thereafter, they should receive one or two applications a year in deep soils or three or more applications in shallow soils where nutrients are lost by leaching. Application at the rate of 2 lbs per year for every inch of trunk diameter is suggested. Fertilizer mixtures containing 6-8% nitrogen, 2-4% available phosphoric acid, 6-8% potash and 3-4% magnesium are satisfactory. In the more fertile soils of California, this program can be reduced. The tree is prone to chlorosis in many western soils but responds to soil and foliar application of chelated iron and other micronutrients.


Propagation: The carambola is widely grown from seed though viability lasts only a few days. Only plump, fully developed seed should be planted. Veneer grafting during the time of most active growth gives the best results. Healthy, year-old seedlings of 3/8 - 3/4 inch diameter are best for rootstocks. Graft-wood should be taken from mature twigs on which leaves are still present and, if possible, the buds are just beginning to grow. Cleft-grafting of green budwood is also successful. Top-working of older trees has been done by bark grafting. Air-layering is less successful than grafting. The roots develop slowly, and percentage of success often is low. Trees are small and rather weak when propagated by this method.

Further reading:
* Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990. p. 39.
* Maxwell, Lewis S. and Betty M. Maxwell. Florida Fruit, rev. ed. Lewis S. Maxwell, 1984. p. 19.
* Morton, Julia F. Fruits of Warm Climates. Creative Resources Systems, Inc. 1987. pp. 125-128.

Entry #19: For the love of Shoes!

Nicholas Kirkwood, you steppa you!!

Entry #18: Out of Africa: Travel Clothing 101

If everything goes as planned, I will be traveling to good old Tanzania (airport code DAR) for a bit. The perils of travel clothing doesn't really exist unless you are in love with designer handbags that scream DESIGNER. Otherwise, travel clothing is about... wearing what's in tune with the weather forecast and avoiding highly American things like T-shirts with the names of American companies or other logo-oriented wear. Side note: Not handling your liquor is an American thing to do, as is being snooty. So Don't!

For the most part, I’ve discovered that it’s best to dress how locals dress without calling attention to yourself and paying careful attention to comfort over fashion. O, yes, none of that crazy American tourist in Disneyland or National Park thing is allowed. A few years back in Morocco I was mortified to find out that a bible thumping travel mate of mine was wearing a t-shirt with an American Flag. (Don't) This was during the 2004 Presidential election, where everyone outside of America was on edge about our cowboy’s War on Terror. I survived, so people are actually very forgiving. I like to blend in as much as possible though, so a quick google on x country will get you to the right site, right quick!

But here is my Travel Clothing 101 List:
Spain:
Pretend that you are visiting your hippie parents for a semi-formal dinner when you’re in Spain. They dress by the season with dark clothing in the winter and super bright in the Spring. Mother Nature rules. They dress up more than we do in Los Angeles (I think the rest of the world dresses up more than we do) and they can smell an American quite easily, so avoid the flip-flips and Rainbows that we so love out here in California... Also, the Spanish ladies are tall and skinny! So maybe they dress the same, but just look better doing it?



France:
These suckaz can’t decide on politics, but they sure as hell know their fashion. Black and black, and perhaps a dark stone gray is what you’ll find here. Imagine a bunch of New Yorkers going to a funeral and you get the picture. But they look so good mourning maybe 2 years of mourning should come back? I'll post a blog about some research I did regarding The Little Black Dress... but back to France...their fashion is high street beauty. (pssst! They aren’t so big on jeans, it seems).


Amsterdam:
Bikers, bikers, and more bikers of the Critical Mass variety populate this o-so-friendly city. I suggest super comfortable shoes and looking both ways before you cross. Everything else is pretty much up to you.

Taiwan:
The clothing here is more American than America. They wear things slightly looser than Americans (ode to heroin chic?) and they seem to be much neater than other parts of the world. Additionally, there are tons of odes to various name brands…and yes, they are real. The older women are especially guilty of this phenomenon.

Thailand:
The beaches of Thailand consist of very well dressed travelers in comfortable clothing. I don’t know how they do it, but they just LOOK rich and REALLY relaxed and they bring sexay back. So travel clothing here is about updated, chic, but ultra comfortable in amazing patterns… a lot of the clothes you can actually find in Thailand and it may be interesting to pick out their various sarongs during your stay here. After a while, you’ll adopt the carefree nature of travelers here and this will somehow show its way into your clothing.

Entry #17: Letter Writing Etiquette circa 1869

"No one should write letters at all who cannot write in a clear, fair hand, that "those who run may read." In a busy ago like the present, when every one's time has a certain value, we have no right to impose the reading of hieroglyphics upon our correspondents...The handwriting of a lady or gentleman should not be commercial or scholastic, but firm and characteristic. All affectations in writing should be avoided, such as sloping one's hand to the left, the use of flourishes, undue size in the characters, or a diminutiveness of the same to try eyesight and patience. The signature should be simple and unostentatious. Nothing can be more absurd than to see a person whose name can have no significance to the world in general, sign himself as elaborately as if he were the Pope or President at least..." (Frost, 151)

The above is from the book, "Frost's Laws and by-laws of American society: a condensed but thorough treatise on etiquette and its usages in America, containing plain and reliable directions for deportment in every situation in life," by S. A. Frost (c. 1869)

Entry #16: WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution

My dear friends and I went to WACK! at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles a few weeks ago and I forgot to mention that the exhibit with the mattresses = most fun ever. We jumped, jumped, around like no one was in town and I think we started a revolution of our own. EFF The Princess and the Pea, we screamed as we collided into the air.


What was painful to watch was the Yoko Ono footage. ACK! I said.

The Andrea Zittel: Critical Space exhibit showed me that it IS possible to do everything you want in regards to art... you just have to outsource the labor work! In truth, Zittel's work was very good, as were her ideas, but a part of me felt that she didn't have enough PART in the entire PROCESS. It just sorta shows that a lot of art and design depends on how much money you have... which sorta ruins the whole simplistic design ideals that I have (btw, I am super messy, which is why I want a prefab home and as much as nothing as I possibly can have). I MAKE SENSE.

Since Entry #16 is getting personal, I might as well announce my upcoming work as the wardrobe stylist for a country music video. sa-weet!

Entry #15: CA Boom Design Show, la-la LOVE!

All access passes to the CA Boom 4, West Coast Independent Design Show in Santa Monica, CA were granted to yours truly by her awesome brother and eco-friendly floor manufacturer gal. Here's a run down on some amazing stuff.

Pre-fab homes:
Pre-fab homes have been around for decades, particularly in the environmental design classroom so it's a bit surprising that there aren't that many in the nation today.

The OA-SYS (Open Architecture System) was first introduced to me in 2003, while leafing through my brother's design studio book. This system is a collaboration between the Austrian Architect Oskar Leo Kauffman and the modern timber construction company Berlinger Holzbau, based in Vorarlberg, Austria. I expected prefab homes to pop up everywhere, but I forgot to look, and I realized I forgot to look because they don't really exist in the numbers I expected (and was hoping). Fortunately, green friendly homes are getting attention, as seen in Sunday's NY Time article, Factory Fresh: Interstately Homes.

The following companies were at CA Boom's Prefab Zone, which made its debut at last year's CA Boom.
1.) Alchemy Architect: "Alchemy Architect's mission is to make stimulating, engaging, and efficient design accessible and affordable for a wide audience."


2.) CleverHomes: They have good stuff, but I don't want to go to the trouble of converting their flash images to jpgs. I actually like them less because of their excessive use of flash. Hmmm.. it's about the total package. Anyways, I think they are on view at the Pacific Design Center.

3.) H-HAUS: "H-Haus models are the ultimate showcase of intelligent home design for the 21st century. The architectirally modern home designs from H-Haus, LLC is introducing elegant living paired with eco-friendly designs designs adopted from European housing standards to the American Market.


4.) Hive Modular: "Attainable modern modular home sales and design."


5.) Kithaus: "KitHaus is about modularity. True modularity. The kind destined to revolutionize the conventional rules of prefab." (note: TRULY amazing. Check out their website for more pictures.)



6.) LivingHomes: "LivingHomes creates homes by world-class architects, which feature war, modern designs, functional amenities, and great price value." (Note: Check out the website... slightly TOO grandiose for me)

There were actually ten total Prefab homes, but I think the above gives a great idea of what is in the future. Prefab homes have not "made it" yet. I think it "made it" if something crazy like IKEA sells em happens (O PLEeeeeASE, for the love of the environment!)

I would have to spend another entire blog section on the AWESOME furniture at CA Boom 4! I just have to say that I am absolutely thrilled that there are so many eco-friendly products that combine high style and I am hoping that eco-friendly will lose its hippie status soon.

Entry #14: A Tribute to Fruits.. in Helsinki

My friend currently studying fashion in Italy sent me an email regarding street fashion. She is about to start a series similar to other street fashion websites in Italy and I'm excited about it because the various nuances of fashion is good eye candy. Differences in street fashion is subtle, maybe even obsolete within musical genres. I think my next research paper will be on the "End of Borders in Fashion (& How to Transfer That Politically)."

Here is a sampling of the street fashion in Helsinki, Finland. Go to this website to check out what they said about their fashion and to check out over 40 pages of street fashion. I think you'll love or at least enjoy it!

A great project would be to take a picture of what you wear everyday or whenever you change outfits. I would love to be directed to such a website- so pray- do tell!

Entry #13: Introducing some worthy pictures

To be honest: I'm not very cute when I eat, sleep, or cry. Dammit. The following records, however, are very lovely. I haven't actually heard the music (sorry).

Entry #12: Rooftop Gardens, O fantasy!

What: The Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) made a mandatory regulation for contractors to submit a greening plan for the rooftops of new buildings in 2001 in order to combat rising temperatures in the urban environment.

In the heart of Tokyo, Japan, the skyline is a picture of modernization with touches of elegant and deceptively simplistic designs. A closer inspection reveals outlines of cherry blossoms and haphazard greenery sprouting from roofs.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government would say that their plan has been a success, far beyond their expectations when they made a mandatory regulation for contractors to submit a greening plan for the rooftops of new buildings in 2001. For public buildings, 30-percent of the accessible part of the roof must be covered with vegetation on land over 250 square meters. The requirement is 20-percent for the private sector whose development is over 1,000 square meters. Companies who do not comply face hefty yearly fines. The law is aimed at reducing rising temperatures in the metropolitan city, but it has taken on its own path.

Rooftop gardens have become a competition between larger companies, particularly between hotels and malls. It has fueled older buildings into renovating their structure in order to place a garden over their roofs. And finally, it has caught the attention of developed nations all over the world. In a culture well known for the quality of their products from superconductors to cars, Japan has been able to blend modernization with ancient beliefs and values. For crane maker Komat’su, time is finally catching up.


Thirty eight years ago, the chairman of Komat’su began to plant greenery on top of the ten story building. Now, there are 1,000 different types of plants and flowers covering 1,300 square meters of the roof. There is an intricate irrigation system as well as research about rooftop gardens which has led to the installation of spongy floors and ways to deal with tree roots. The garden is a source of pride for the company, and the government has used it as a model when working out the details of the law.

On the seventh floor of the Tamagawa Takashimaya shopping center, there is a garden that has pushed the envelope for future developments. Covering over 4,100 square meters, the garden is complete with a waterfall that cascades down to a rock garden, as well as thirty different types of fruit trees that tower well over four meters tall, a pond, and various sculptures. You can click here for a bird's eye view map of the shopping center.

We now see that the role of the garden is the same as its early beginnings. The garden is a symbol of power over nature. The rooftop garden, in particular, is a strong message about power because the ability to wield nature from its natural environment and have it thrive is mythical. Kings used it as their way of showing the lowly class that they were, in some way "touched by God."

Entry #11: Monograms are amazing

Monograms were made popular a few years back with canvas bags, shirts, sandals, towels, and even slippers having monograms on them. The typography generally had a modern touch with curvy letters, but still had an ode to the past with the trademark three initals.

The little used middle name experienced a moment of much needed love.

As did the Proper Name.

The Rules of Monograms were first created in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries. The simple beauty of the monogram is enough to start a passionate affair with the subject, but monograms go back to a time where traditions are followed and strictly adhered to. This is often lost in the commercial art world (sometimes for good reasons), which makes Monograms refreshing (say Ahhhh!). In the world of monograms, Bill is "William," Bob is "Robert" and Chuck is...

Anyways.

The monogram began hundreds of years ago and was popularized by Charlemagne who was illiterate and used it to sign his name to important documents, according to "Crane's Blue Book of Stationary."

For most of us, a monogram consists of the initials of our birth, or "given" names. When the letters are all the same size, the monogram reads in order, first initial, middle initial, and last initial. When the monogram style includes a larger center letter (which many of them do) the order is first initial, last initial (the larger one), and then middle initial.

For married women the formal style is to use initials representing first name, maiden name and married name. For single women and married women retaining their married name, then the usual first initial, middle initial and last initial rule applies. You can learn more about the rules of monograms at The Rules of Monogramming.