“Influenced by Dada and, especially, Fluxus, [Tobias Wong] questioned authorship through appropriation; held a mirror to our desires and absurdities; upended the hierarchy between design and art, and the precious and the banal; and helped redefine collaboration and curation as creative practices.” (Source)

Early Sunday morning, May 30th, designer and artist D. Tobias Wong passed away. Know for coining the term “Paraconceptual” Tobias helped redefine conceptual product design. Always an admirer of his product designs, I felt his objects were designed with a purpose, a function, or a message. And the best thing about his products, they were affordable and fun.

In the picture above the product names (Left to right): Ballistic Rose, Coke Spoon, Engagement Ring, 24-Karat Gold Pills, Light Switch Watch, Rubber Chandelier, Smoking Mittens, D. Tobias Wong.

His products are available at MOMA, MOCA, and most contemporary musuem stores. Also Citizen-Citizen

Thanks for the tip DV Clothing.

Comme des Garçons is a Japanese fashion label created and headed by designer Rei Kawakubo. French for “like boys”, Commes des Garcons over the years has collaborated with various other labels including Lascoste, Louis Vuitton, Nike, H&M, and many others. A year ago, I attended a Comme des Garcons creative space that was set up in the historic district of downtown Los Angeles. A high conceptualized store allowed their selected to designers to set up the store and design it as they pleased. I can steal remember entering off the street through a narrow alley pushing through some refrigerator flaps.

The stores and boutiques I come to love over the years are those who feature and recognize the efforts of individual designers. Treat this collection of designers organized by Complex Magazine as your latest edition of cliffnotes.

I don’t mean to be so vulgar…Wait this is my blog…I can.

“To Pop A Boner” is a Furniture Exhibition featuring furniture from Rick Owens’ collection. Managed by German publisher Angelika Taschen, Owens’ furniture was created using bones and colored plywood.

“To Pop A Boner” will be on display on the upper floor of the iconic store Apartment Berlin during Berlin Gallery Weekend.

Graffiti Analysis 2.0: Digital Blackbook from Evan Roth on Vimeo.

Graffiti Analysis is an ongoing study of the motion of graffiti. More than customizing and recording the handwriting motion of the graffiti artist, special software captures the in-between-transitions, normally unseen as we are writing.  It records the flinches of the wrists or how you fingers curl when transitioning from certain characters.

000000book.com is an open source database where users can come together to record and analysis their results.

But before you go there, check it all out here Graffiti Analysis

Using a money counter, Rethink Communications promotes Icograda Design Week In Vancouver.

Stylish and chic. An alternative way to tote around your box wine. Perfect for tailgates, picnics, outdoor concerts, and the dinner table. I think you could walk down the street with this jug.

Baggy Winecoat

- Rose Etherington, Dezeen, Design Magazine. Read more about Scottish artist Geoff Mann at Dezeen, Design Magazine.

Cross-fire from Studio Mrmann on Vimeo.

Take a look at this fine looking bookcase.

Question: Do you still put books in it?

“The Moving Mondrian bookshelf is designed by architect Vladimir Ambroz and made from DuPont Corian in Glacier white, with Hot, Sun and Nocturne movable doors. The bookshelf has wheels, drawers and shelves of various sizes suitable for storage or concealing items. The design is a play on Dutch artist Mondrian’s static canvas but with three dimensionality and movement.” – A.M.O.S. Design

Artist Marina Abramovic (L) performs during the 'Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present' exhibition opening night party at The Museum of Modern Art on March 9, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)

“This performance retrospective traces the prolific career of Marina Abramović (Yugoslav, b. 1946) with approximately fifty works spanning over four decades of her early interventions and sound pieces, video works, installations, photographs, solo performances, and collaborative performances made with Ulay (Uwe Laysiepen)…the exhibition includes the first live re-performances of Abramović’s works by other people ever to be undertaken in a museum setting….All performances, one of which involves viewer participation, will take place throughout the entire duration of the exhibition, starting before the Museum opens each day and continuing until after it closes, to allow visitors to experience the timelessness of the works.”    – Organized by Klaus Biesenbach, Chief Curator at Large, The Museum of Modern Art, and Director, P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center.

Q&A with Performance Artist Marina Abramovic in New York Magazine

Also, I came across a slide show in which she opened up her homes to The New York Times. Her modern eye inspires me. Click here to check it out.

The style eyes at la.racked.com just reported that Tokidoki  is  opening up a flagstore on Melrose.

So  you will have Kid Robot, Bathing Ape, and now Tokidoki. [Offical Site]