The next big epidemic to strangle the western world is projected to be obesity. It’s the direct result of our reliance on fatty, fried, overly processed and otherwise convenient nutritional options. Additionally, the widespread lack of participation in proper recreation and fitness programs has created a sedentary generation of couch and mouse potatoes. Sure there’s WiiFit, the Slow Food Movement, and hot yoga, but these “solutions” are simply trends followed by a minority. Some of us need to be reminded to shape up before it’s too late. And for that, Fitness First has created a bus stop advertisement, which employs a scale embedded in a bench that is connected to a large digital display. It’s extremely invasive, but it undeniably drives home the point that more people need to think about the lifestyles they lead.

Via ArchDaily: World expos are fantastic. In the literal meaning. They show man kinds fantasies. They allow for this great opportunity to express excitement and admiration. The past has given a series of true world wonders that express that rare combination of entertainment and education, of research and achievement, like the Eifel Tower in Paris, the Sphere at the NY expo, the Montreal Habitat building, Buckminsterfullers dome in Montreal. What to add to this history? Can the chosen theme lead to a new powerful object?
The world expo in Yeosu focuses on the power and beauty of the oceans. How to express that the best? Could it be done by – simply- making a pure visible block of water that obviously expresses the beauty and the power? A block that is extracted from the ocean. This block is hollowed out, to create a great water space, where one is surrounded by water. Along the sides, above and below. Where light filters through and give every activity a glance. That can be used for the exhibitions, the gatherings, during and after the world expo. One is in the water. MVRDV’s water cube is constructed out of a surrounding wall with a series of water basins that are stacked on top of each other. Based on the maximum structural capacities of the glass facades and floors. It allows showing all the different aspects of the oceans! The façade turns into a mini museum, into a library of the oceans!

Baptiste Debombourg’s creates incredibly detailed art that is only fully appreciated up close and personal. Using just a white wall as his canvass, Debombourg spent over 75 hours meticulously placing over 35,000 staples to create two pieces of staple art. The pair are titled Air Force One and Air Force Two. Baptiste descibes the work as follows:

The protagonist Icarus, the Mannerism of the Renaissance and the symbol of sublime power Air Force One -the plane of the American President- are the main points in this work. The combination of pathos, beauty and unnatural movement of Italian Mannerists concealing some aggression. Is it why this “Superman” flies straight down towards the earth? Here it’s used the tacker as a material and media, which plays with the contemporary agression and the profanized utility of the everyday life.

Turbo (way up at the top/left) is another one of Debombourg’s works that we were instantly drawn to. It resembles the damage you’d expect to find as the result of some severe flooding. Debombourg provides some strange context:

the turbo wave of the 80’s left its mark on the industry and on the whole cultural situation in Western Europe. It became a model of behaviour. The sound effect gives sensation of real physical power. To advance, the people from East Europe put some more “tuning” everywhere – for example in their folk music.

Who doesn’t love unique and customizable pieces of highly sought after home decor? Today’s Maison Monday feature shows off Jordi Canudas’ Less Lamp, which is essentially a lamp shade in the shape of an oversized eggshell. The fun and customization comes into effect as the buyer pokes big and little holes into the shade, shearing off entire pieces and otherwise making it their own. The end result, well, it’s whatever you want it to be. Less Lamp is described by the MoMa Store as follows:

An innovative design concept, the Less Lamp is a sealed lamp shade made of plaster. In order to use, the lamp must be “broken” to release the light within. The lamp’s included pickaxe is used to crack the lamp’s shell, allowing the user to decide on the appearance and position of the lamp’s holes and the direction of its light emission. Uses one standard incandescent light bulb

Two-hundred and twenty-five t-shirts, two days of shooting, one fire extinguisher and a lot of talent is all you need to make a movie like this. The T-Shirt War is a short created by web video masters Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal, aka Rhett&Link. Not only are all of the t-shirts used in this video available for sale on their accompanying online store, but Rhett&Link have also posted a behind the scenes video showing off how they pulled it off.  If you already haven’t done so, be sure to hit the play button on the video above.

Via Inhabitat: In the hurried and fast paced lives we lead, travel can be just one more stressful, cramped and environmentally unfriendly activity. What if you could slow it down, take some time, and relax – all while aboard a zero emissions luxury cruise that travels not on the water but in the air?! That’s what London-based designers, Seymourpowell, are proposing with Aircruise, a solar and fuel-cell powered airship designed for luxury travel.
It may seem a little over the top, but it is a zero emissions means of travelling, and the idea of spending more time relaxing while getting from point A to point B does sound rather appealing compared to the typical frenzy of flying. The concept actually shows some promise and has even attracted the attention of the leading Korean firm Samsung Construction & Trading; who happens to be the leading contractor for the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Inside, the luxury cruise liner would be a combination of hotel and zeppelin, with luxury apartments, a bar, lounge, and other areas to rest, relax and take in the skies.
The airship would float by means of hydrogen filled into 4 air pockets in the craft. In case of a rupture on the external membrane or any of the envelopes, each one is capable of self-sealing to minimize disaster. Powered by solar panels and Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) hydrogen fuel cells that utilize hydrogen stored on board and oxygen from the air, the airship is capable of travelling at 90 mph. At that speed, a trip from London to New York City would take 37 hours and a trip from LA to Hong Kong would take a little under 4 days.

The Gyre Seascraper is a floating zero emissions eco-development from Canadian-based Zigloo Design, and a conceptual underwater skyscraper created to bring together scientists and tourists to better understand the ocean. The Gyre Seascraper concept design was created for the Evolo Skyscraper Design Competition. The 212,000m2 (52.3 acre), multi-level design, uses wind, solar, and tidal energy generation technologies while providing adequate space for living and working, shops, restaurants, gardens, and recreation activities.
The inverted underwater skyscraper features four radial arms extending out from the central area that stabilize the structure while also creating a 1.25km (0.78 mile) long port, large enough to accommodate the world’s largest ships. The centre column of the Gyre Seascraper features multiple floor levels within a double-hulled vortex with glass windows. The top two levels are dedicated to restaurants, shopping and community activities. The intermediate levels are designed to accommodate long-term residents, ocean experts, and hotel guests, with room for more than 2000 people. The lower levels are dedicated to oceanographic research and also features space for a public interpretive centre.

The idea behind BBDO’s latest set of advertisements for SanDisk is simple, and memorable.  The print ads show off exceptionally large figures, specifically a fish, Elvis, and a ship.  Beside each figure is a miniature counterpart, fish-can, Elvis-jump suit, and ship-bottle.  The end result suggests that something considerably large is meant to fit inside something so small, it defies the laws of physics.  While this idea would work for almost any portable media device, BBDO claims it for SanDisk.

If you’re a member of the online social stalk-fest known as Facebook, chances are you’ve spent more than an acceptable amount of time selecting that perfect profile picture. Don’t feel bad, we’ve all done it. Most of us want our profile pictures to be fun, witty, unique and otherwise overblown representations of the looking glass self. That’s where Anton Mircea comes into the picture, as his Facecrook series takes the pain out of picking an entertaining profile picture. The set of 5 pictures are essentially deviations of the original, faceless profile image. The same one you’d see if you refused to upload your own image.  Anton describes the series as follows:

I’ve always found the no profile pictures really fascinating. I believe we can enrich visual contexts that are supposed to be standardized or flattened into a template, even transform them into something popular although they were supposed to be the opposite – no profile pictures.

Over the past few years, it seems as though bottled water has fallen from grace. Once heralded as a safe and clean source of H20, the industry is constantly under attack from environmentalists, who focus attention on the dirty little secrets of the industry. In response, many bottling companies have begun to purchase carbon offsets, as well as incorporate more recycled materials into their plastic bottles. With that in mind, I suppose it was only a matter of time until someone came up with the anti-bottle. Enter Vapur, which is the first flexible, BPA-free water bottle that’s designed to fit in your pocket, purse, backpack or briefcase.  Unlike traditional rigid water bottles, Vapur can be rolled, folded, flattened and tucked away.  The minds behind Vapur describe their idea as simple, while their task is otherwise great.

Refillable water bottles are a great way to help fight the global water and environmental crisis. But let’s face it, carrying bulky water bottles around everyday can be a pain, especially when empty. So we designed the Vapur flexible bottle to “fold-and-go”— which means it can be rolled, folded or flattened when empty—making it the most portable and convenient water bottle on the planet. We hope this simple idea will help put an end to the use of bottled water.

Regular visitors should know by now that Monday’s are devoted to the wonderful world of in-home designs.  Be it funky furniture, trend setting technology, or eco-friendly advancements, we do our best to cover it all.  Today’s find comes to us from designer Sarah Lovgren, who has created a modular lounge dubbed la Bande.   This ultra modern piece can be used as both a seat or a recliner. La Bande splits up into two independent sections at one end, while the longitudinal split and the flexibility of the material allows the two sections to bend separately to form space.
Both the sections of the bande are hooked into a slot in the base, which gives stability of the furniture to rest the users in utmost comfort. This project was a result of the designer’s bachelor thesis, which is summed up by her Lovgren’s desire to illustrate space in the context of its sensual perception.  While this may be a bit too advanced or otherwise out there for most homeowners to pull off, it undoubtedly demonstrates the promise of this talented, up and coming product designer.

Via Design Related: Chiquita’s latest ad campaign imbues its audience with an instant sense of wonder. Using playful illustrations on stickers juxtaposed to the iconic Chiquita stickers, the product and brand become more engaging to the consumer—plus they just look cool. We got a chance to ask the Creative and Art Director, DJ Neff, some questions about the process of making bananas (even more) fun.
What can you tell us about creating this new campaign for Chiquita?

The process relied heavily in spending as much time with the product as possible. In this case it meant eating a bunch of bananas a day. Thankfully, I like bananas. In most of my work I like to immerse myself in the product and research as much as I can. In this case that emphasis was on the fruit and its cultural significance. After filling up on information, I let it all spill out in different ideas, drawings, sayings, photographs, then I start to figure out truths. It helps to start with the product and work outward, pulling from research and ideas to build upon the foundation.

The cornerstone of the campaign relied on the little blue stickers, the biggest icon for the brand. It wasn’t long before we had the idea to create the sticker characters. From there we thought about giving bananas personalities and how all bananas start out good but eventually go bad (and for consumers not to let that happen). When building the website we integrated this idea into its core. This gave the users opportunities to create their own banana personality and battle against bananas that have turned to the dark side.

Notion is an industrial design studio based in Dublin who developed the Air Helmet as a new form of head protection for snow-sports. The helmet is designed to break away from the established helmet styles of the industry to provide users with an alternative designed for their needs. The helmet deliberately avoids falling into the street and backcountry categorizations and instead aims to be a versatile option for users of all kinds. Their design utilizes lots of textile padding that is surrounded by a hard plastic exoskeleton that provides structure and protection. This design allows lots of ventilation in a different form factor complete with a peaked brim. The intent was to give the average snow sport participant a helmet solution to encourage them to wear head protection. Sadly in Canada, safety protocols governing helmets are not set, so the Air Helmet would fall in the pile of other unapproved helmets.

Tofer Chin is an amazing artist who mixes elements of graphic design, sculpting and pop art.  Recently, Fecal Face sat down with him for an interview that spanned everything from process to materials and even places he’d take us if we came for a visit.  Regarding how he creates his amazing works, Tofer responded:

Have a few, three cups of coffee… followed by lots of daydreaming, research, and sketching. For a painting, custom paint colors are mixed, tested, then bottled. A panel is made and then stretched with canvas. Gesso is applied to the surface and sandblasted. The painting gets painted. Each piece can take between a week to four months to complete.

So, where would he take someone for a visit? Tofer humorously responded as follows:

If you came here tomorrow (Sunday), I’d take you to Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles (Pico location) for brunch. We’d go downtown to see the Frank Gehry designed Disney Concert Hall… then walk up the street to MOCA Grand to see the first half of their 30th birthday exhibition. Grab a coffee… then drive to Little Tokyo to MOCA Geffen to view the second half of their 30th birthday exhibition. Hungry? Walk over to Shabu Shabu House in the Japanese Village Plaza Mall and have some beers while we wait. Eat. Drink. Smile.

Via Inhabitat: Ocean-bound shipping containers are an often-overlooked source of CO2 emissions — over 90% of all non-bulk cargo carried worldwide arrives in containers, and many of them are sent back empty. Enter the innovative Cargoshell collapsible shipping container, which can drastically cut emissions on return trips by collapsing to a quarter of its full size. The Cargoshell, which is manufactured by a Dutch firm of the same name, takes just 30 seconds to fold and unfold. The shipping container is made of a composite material that weighs 25% less than standard shipping containers, lightening its carbon footprint even further. There’s just one problem: the container costs three times as much as steel shipping containers. But there are still a number of advantages. The Cargoshell material doesn’t corrode, it’s easy to clean, and it provides excellent insulation. And if we ever decide to replace the world’s steel shipping containers with the Cargoshell, it would cut down on 10,000 trips across the ocean each year.

From time to time products get re-worked, and then it becomes hard to believe we used to do things a certain way. Take squeezable mayonnaise for instance.  Can you remember the days when mayonnaise used to come in glass jars, which required us to fish around with butter knives.  In that same vein, squeezable ketchup in convenience, fridge door-friendly containers also succeeded glass bottles.  Recently, we became aware of another advancement in ketchup delivery systems, specifically the new dip and squeeze container.  Heinz describes their latest packaging product as follows:

A true packaging breakthrough, the Heinz Dip & Squeeze dual-function package gives ketchup lovers two ways to enjoy Heinz Ketchup: either peel back the lid for easy dipping, or tear off the tip to squeeze onto favorite foods. The new Heinz Dip & Squeeze product marks the first ketchup packet makeover for the foodservice industry in 42 years. In the past, on-the-go eaters have struggled to open multiple ketchup packets while worrying about making a mess.

Phrases on postcards such as wish you were here are cliché, heartwarming and sometimes loathsome.  Nowadays, do people still send postcards? With Email, smart phones and other modern technologies, it’s a lot easier for one to snap a photo of the Eiffel Tower and send it to someone electronically, than take the time to actually sit back and pen a thoughtful message on a costly postcard.  With the value of penned correspondence in mind, enter Beste Miray Dogan’s MapEnvelop.  MapEnvelop is essentially a clever envelope that is lined with an image from a Google Earth map, which one could use to identify their location at any point in time.  It’s a pretty neat idea, however if the recipient were to use a letter opener, as opposed to carefully unsealing the envelop, the map would ultimately go unnoticed.

Who doesn’t love a fireplace? While condo boards and bank books might disapprove of installing a traditional wood burning fireplace, there are other options that require zero ventilation, less mess and so forth. While bio-ethanol fireplace’s are anything but new, today’s in-home feature is something you can take anywhere. Say you want to have a fireplace in your living room for a party, in the bathroom for a relaxing soak in the tub, or even on the patio for some summertime romance, Roll Fire has you covered. Roll fire is the creation of German designer Michael Sieger of Sieger Design. This elegant solution to installing a fireplace in your home is a minimalists dream come true. That said, from our experience, bio-ethanol does not generate a lot of heat, while fuel is a tad on the expensive side.

Take a good look at photographer Andrew McConnell’s latest series on E-Waste. He describes the series as follows: The suburb of Agbogbloshie in Ghana’s capital, Accra, has in recent years become a dumping ground for computers and electronic waste from Europe and the US. Hundreds of tons of e-waste end up here every month as countries in the West attempt to unload their ever increasing stockpiles of toxic junk. Of the 20 to 50 million tons of electronics discarded each year 70% will end up in poor nations, and in the EU alone 6.6 million tons of e-waste are unaccounted for every year.
Increasingly this e-waste is finding it’s way to West Africa and countries like Ghana, Nigeria and Ivory Coast. Traders bypass international laws by labelling the equipment as second hand goods or charity donations, but, in reality, as much as 80% of the computers send to Ghana are broken or obsolete. Their final resting place is Agbogloshie dump where they are broken apart, mostly by children, to salvage the copper, hard drives and other components that can be sold on.
The disposal of electronic goods in the West is a costly arraif and must be done in an environmentally responsible manner, however in places like Ghana there are no such regulations and as such toxic metals like lead, beryllium, cadmium and mercury are continuously being released causing untold damage to human health and the environment. For a real, and shocking look at this dumping ground, check McConnell’s e-waste series.

How do you solve writers and/or designers block?  If only there was a pill that could cure these ailments.  This is the core concept behind The Creative Method’s invitation to their self-promoting, agency party. Humorous and memorable, the invitation takes the form of Imaginitol tablets, which are a pharmaceutical solution to those lacking imagination and creativity. Initially, prescriptions were sent to the guests, while the complete invitation which came in the form of a paper bag, which is true pharmacy packaging.  Outstanding!

Via Inhabitat: The National Ecological Institute of South Korea recently released plans for a large-scale nature reserve complete with an incredible series of eco domes, an education center, and an environmental think-tank. Designed by SAMOO, the Ecorium Project will be a striking environmental center comprising thousands of acres of open space in addition to greenhouses and a visitor center. Much like the Eden Project in the UK, the Ecorium Project will serve to educate people about nature, and provide a space for study of the world’s eco-systems and how best to protect them.
The Ecorium Project comprises a 33,000 sq meter nature reserve including a large wild plant area and a wetland reserve. In the center of the park is a large system of interlinking wedge-shaped greenhouses. These greenhouses will feature advanced systems capable of adjusting the internal conditions based on the outside climatic conditions in order to minimize energy usage indoors. The exterior of each greenhouse is built out of metal panels, low-iron and low-e double glazing, as well as wood and plexiglass. Seen from above the greenhouses will appear as a sinuous river.
The purpose of the National Ecological Institute is to study nature’s converging eco-systems while ensuring the safety, stability and the harmonious coexistence of humans and nature. A spokesperson for the NEI says:

The NEI will play a important role as a think tank for research and policy making. Additionally, this institution will foster and nurture the general public’s awareness, educate and [promote] the importance of the environment through exhibitions and education programs.

Calvin and Hobbes has a special place in a lot of people’s hearts, but believe it or not, the iconic comic strip has been out of commission for nearly 15 years. There isn’t a lot out there as to why the comic’s creator, Bill Watterson, decided to pull the plug on the highly successful story. In fact, there isn’t a lot out there about Watterson at all. While some may say that he is a bit of a recluse, others would argue that he simply enjoys his privacy. And why shouldn’t he?  Recently we located a rare interview where Watterson discussed his decision to stop writing Calvin and Hobbes, which he answered as follows:

This isn’t as hard to understand as people try to make it. By the end of 10 years, I’d said pretty much everything I had come there to say. It’s always better to leave the party early. If I had rolled along with the strip’s popularity and repeated myself for another five, 10 or 20 years, the people now ‘grieving’ for ‘Calvin and Hobbes’ would be wishing me dead and cursing newspapers for running tedious, ancient strips like mine instead of acquiring fresher, livelier talent. And I’d be agreeing with them.

Be sure to check out the full interview to find out more, including how Watterson deals with groupies. Yes, strangely enough he’s had to deal with a few crazy fans over the years.

For as long as I can remember, my household does not wrap presents. That’s not to say that we simply show up places with unwrapped gifts, rather, we are quite fond of reusable gift bags, boxes, and cloth alternatives. Aside from the ridiculous cost associated with wrapping presents, wrapping takes time and skill, while most varieties can’t be recycled. Recently, we managed to locate some eco-friendly gift wrap from The Local Paper, but their products are rather pricey, and you still have to spend time and energy wrapping gifts. Inhabitat gives the following low-down:

these couture coverings are based on unique themes that are inspired by the designers’ travel, nature, and life. Each elegant wrap comes in 24×36 inch sheets that are Forestry Stewardship Council certified, made with papers that are 30% recycled post-consumer fiber. Additionally, all of the packaging used is recycled, recyclable, and biodegradable. You can purchase The Local Paper at the Contemporary Arts Museum Shop in Houston, or online.

Oftentimes the best products and designs offer slight twists and improvements on the original concept. When we witness such things out in the wild, we’re likely to have a bit of inventor’s envy. One of those why didn’t I think of that moments. Admittedly, we were both excited and jealous to see Map2, the zoomable map. What is it and how does it work you ask? OhGizmo summed it up as follows:

The map is broken into 4 quadrants which can be individually zoomed (unfolded) to give an enlarged and more detailed view of that part of the city, and thanks to its clever design, when the map is folded to its minimum size you still have the ability to zoom in on any two sections for quick access. It comes printed on tear-resistant paper and includes a clear PVC wallet to keep it protected.