Beijing beds: Inside + Out

Check out the amazing blankets in the 2nd to last photo above...In observing the brightly colored floral graphics don't you think they may have traveled from Uzbekistan? However, I do know for sure that these cots and blankets belong to some of the thousands of immigrant construction workers that are flocking to Beijing for work these days. There is not enough housing in Beijing to meet the new demand, so its typical to see military tents pitched in the courtyards of temples or along construction sites to house all the young men. The implications this mass migration will have on the urban environment in terms of pollution, poverty, overcrowding and social welfare, is very frightening...China is so wrapped up in preparing for the 2008 Olympics (eg: beautifying facades) it seems to be avoiding its deeper urban issues all together.

On Monday, the NYtimes noted that Dubai is amidst a similar crisis (read). I would be interested to see if the Chinese have any "architecture for humanity"-type organizations dealing with this forced migration. Maybe you know?

2 momentos from Beijing
the orange clock, with the flipping calender, is my favorite

:Mollusk Surf:

A little detour from China
Board bags sewn by a friend of a friend
all things made retro at *Mollusk*

The Red Capital Club

I hope this spread isn't too noisy (unfortunately, I think it is!)...it's just that The Red Capital Club & Residence in Beijing is so very red! The illustrious interior spaces are so rich and vibrant with deco furniture, memorabilia and antique books, that it's nearly impossible to convey the retro sophistication of this exclusive residence in Beijing. (click on photos for greater detail)

Now a very petite-boutique hotel, The Red Capital Club used to be an elite private courtyard residence following the communist victory in 1949. Recommended by a friend, one can stay in one of six rooms all styled and named after prominent intellectuals like Mao Zedong, Han Suyin and Edgar Snow + 2 concubine suites. It's like traveling back into time because all the bedrooms are dressed in silk, with beautiful old writer's desks, stately antiques and piles of old books everywhere. Not to mention, most of the items and furniture belonged to Zhou Enlai, China's former Communist Party leader (1949-1976). I particularly enjoyed the secret underground bar...the stone ceiling lined with guerrilla mesh and a decor of old stools, dim lanterns, radios and bottles made it an extraordinary venue to watch old Chinese films.

I wish I could have taken one of these velvet Deco chairs home

CHINA: funky Interiors {Part II}

Balenciaga meets Brocade Country, China

I've been very inspired by Balenciaga's Fall 2007 collection (watch) of hyper-kinetic, fiery and tribal gang melting pot of Africana, Oceania + the America's folk textiles. The hot color palette of neon threads complemented by rich opaque grays (not to mention, Asian influences) kind of reminded me of something I just found in Shanghai:

I just purchased this really rad wrap skirt in Shanghai. Let me just say that much of the fashion I observed in Shanghai was either from upscale gaudy fashion houses, cheap knock-off stores or touristy side-walk vendors. However, my friend, a landscape designer and a great reference for cool, off the radar places told me to visit this store called: Brocade Country at the intersection of Julu Road and Xiangyang Road (616巨鹿路近襄阳路). Tel: 8621-62792677

REVIEW: It was pure visual eye candy for me! The textiles, table cloths, shoes and indigenous dresses were beyond beautiful. The small, humble, hole in the wall boutique belongs two very chic sister's of the Miao Zu ethnic minority of the Guizhou province. {{Here's the story}} Both of the sisters are designers. However, the elder Liu sister, Xialan, speaks English and seemed to be the creator behind it all. They were so sweet and we talked for a long time about Chinese design and their amazing craft work. As the story goes: their mom still lives back in Guizhou and helps send them all the embroidery work from their village in Gai Din County (sometimes the cloths are nearly 100 years old). With no former training, the sister's re-work and sew the pieces into more contemporary and paired down creations....retaining the essence of the original textile (eg: My skirt was tailored and cut to knee-length). I must say, that was the most innovative work I've seen in a long time and I was just so happy to support the designers..and all the Miao people they so honorably represent. Spread the word.

(I now wish I bought their really handsome and chic sandals too)

CHINA: funky Interiors {Part I}

At the old industrial factory park...798...host of Beijing's now flourishing art scene...Also note: [if you ever journey to China, please feel free to e-mail me anytime if you'd like travel advice. I can lead you to some great desginers/design spots as well as 'off the beaten track', funky, often a bit wacky, petite_hotels.]

The Great Disparity

Shanghai has both a lot of Glitz and Gloom

At Home Abroad = Shanghai

There is a fantastic New York Times piece on author, Emily Prager's, relocation from Manhattan to Shanghai. "Settling Down in a City in Motion" is a provocative and humorous account on the Day in the Life of an expat in China. Here 2 or 3 things I learned about dwelling in Shanghai:

1. Like in Cuba, after the Communist Revolution of 1949, single family houses in China were converted into multifamily dwellings (5 people could potentially live in a single room)
2. These multi-family dwellings are now being converted back to singles
3. Unlike NYC, when you rent a place in Shanghai, the landlord gives you house warming presents (Emily's land-lady gave her a TV and cable!)
4. For every neighborhood lane there is a lanekeeper who watches over the lane.
5. Floors are regularly waxed, "a gleaming floor is a sign of prosperity"
6. Never wear shoes indoors
7. Privacy is mental vs. physical
   
8. Buy fresh food and items daily, or as needed. "[people] do not hoard and their homes are not full of items they never use". (I love this)
9. And so much more, so read on...
   

Beijing Bicycle

In Beijing, one of the most insane cities I've ever experienced in my life...Half way around the world, 13 hrs across the Pacific Ocean, and at least, 5,000 miles from any familiar romance language, I’ve landed in the most dynamic, fascinating and surreal country of our age.

I would like to tell you how much I love the bike culture here! Imagine thousands of people on old antique bicycles everywhere--dodging crazy drivers, rickshaws and classy women carrying umbrellas to shield the sun (as if it were the 1940's)--very retro. There are more cars today than before, but imagine what it was like 10 years ago when entire streets were filled with only bikes. In Beijing, Ive been riding all over this city with my new Chinese friend, Bria, and have never had so much fun getting to know a city. Personally, it's such a high and a great duality of being totally exhilarated and scared out of your wits! Actually one of my favorite film's ::"Beijing Bicycle":: captures the very drama involved in riding one's bicycle around Beijing. If you've never seen it, go rent it, it's a really beautiful film/love-story. Watch the trailer here.

I can't say it enough: Beijing is a fantastic city and I could probably see myself moving here in the next year or so for work related purposes. But, in the meantime...

Next Stop: Shanghai

In the country, outside Beijing

Staying at this inspiring rural eco-ranch outside Beijing and was taken on a mind-blowing journey up an untouched portion of the Great Wall by a young Tibetan man. Indeed, the misty and quiet mountains around me was a silent reminder that I'm indeed far away from home these days. The climb was so steep and treacherous at times (only wearing Converse), that I kept on thinking about all the Chinese who worked and often died to build this over 6,000 mile epic barrier across the length of China...gripping the old wall stones with my bare hands, where people haven't touched for centuries, is a once in a lifetime experience. What a journey this has been!

I'm just so fascinated by this country.

Off to the Middle Kingdom

Leaving today for China, seemingly the most talked about country of our age...apart from Iraq, Israel/Palestine, North Korea..how the list seems to grow daily!

Food for Thought: Is it just me or is China just booming these days? Lately, we're hearing all about the country's "Great Leap Forward" into the competitive global marketplace...aka, capitalism. As China begins to open up more and more to the West as it prepares for the 2008 Olympics, the controversial 3 Gorges Dam and a massive migration of rural farmers to the urban (imagine the implications of this!), there is an aspect of China that is still so elusive and mysterious to me. Amongst all the scaffolding, cranes and bustling urban development projects, I've noticed how China seems to always be in dialogue with something so much greater and deeper than its heavily discussed GNP...or latest economic trends. Unlike most cultures, what the Chinese have, is the oldest continuous civilization of all time!

That just amazes me. I mean, damn, China has wrestled (argue ably better than anyone) with the best and worst of dynasties, emperors, wars and more recently, communism...and the country still survives, possibly even stronger. The Republic of China is now amidst a sort of Industrial Revolution, fueling for another great social structure, another great era. I was not able to experience America's industrial revolution, so I'm pretty stoked to witness this incredible dynamism, first hand, in Beijing and Shanghai.

Let's see what kind of design comes out of it too...!

Peace

Masculine/Feminine

Click on photos for greater detail and/or check out how Vogue Editor, Tabitha Simmons, takes on...menswear trends for women.
Watch Video

Clockwise

1. Marc by Marc Jacobs
2. Peter Som
3. Yigal Azrouël
4. Yigal Azrouël
5. Katherine Hepburn

Chris Jordan

Running the Numbers
An American Self-Portrait

Von Lintel Gallery, New York City (June 14 to July 30)

"This new series looks at contemporary American culture through the austere lens of statistics. Each image portrays a specific quantity of something: fifteen million sheets of office paper (five minutes of paper use); 106,000 aluminum cans (thirty seconds of can consumption) and so on. My hope is that images representing these quantities might have a different effect than the raw numbers alone, such as we find daily in articles and books. Statistics can feel abstract and anesthetizing, making it difficult to connect with and make meaning of 3.6 million SUV sales in one year..."---Chris Jordan, Seattle, 2007

Uniform Studio

Uniform Studio is simple, well crafted and beautifully austere clothing for children + adults. It's an artful ensemble of fashion, interiors, atmosphere & process (Check out the designer's journal here). The minimalism of a neutral color palette along with thoughtful, handmade and relaxed proportions is exceptionally chic & lovely...especially when much of today's fashion can be so gaudy and overtly 'accessorized' for children and women that it makes you want to puke...ah! How refreshing to see clothing paired down, raw, essential and oh so handsome.

uni - consisting of one.
form - to make; the essence of something

semina culture

In high school I spent a great deal of time reading in the upstairs attic room of City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco (much like my days at Shakespeare & Co in Paris). I was a book nerd and the beats got me. Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs and all the crazy adventures of the Merry Pranksters filled my life with surreal ramblings, dreams and of course, visual collages. Although, beyond Tzara, Picabia, Apollinaire and Breton, I had never heard of the oh so secret Wallace Berman and the Semina group until I saw an exposition at New York University's Grey Art Gallery this spring. Very much like the Dadaists in Europe, the Semina folks in California had a great love for collage, wood, scraps, graffiti and witty ridiculous humor.I could say so much more, but I think it would be best to check it out.

Maurizio Pellegrin

My former art teacher at NYU, Maurizio Pellegrin, is one of my favorite artists these days. Living between Venice and New York City, Pellegrin collects old objects, photographs and drawings and groups them together to create the most fascinating + surreal compositions since the 'dadaists'. What stories he tells and mysteries he propels!...it inspires me to rhyme

1. Alcuni Russi
2. Beyond the Window
3. About Senses and Rain
4. Delle Vibrazioni Sentimentali