Paradox of Advertising

For large scale, outdoor advertising, digital printouts on vinyl may be faster, cheaper and more disposable, but does that make them inherently 'better'? Check the video above that compassionately makes the case for the fading craft of hand-painted signage...

By The Time I Get To Arizona...

In protest to the refusal of local Arizona government to observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1991, Public Enemy put this jam together and demanded a boycott of the state. Due to the current (and completely ill) sociopolitical legislature happening again in Arizona, I think it's time to revisit this righteous number by Chuck D and the boys.

Mike Vallely / Label Kills

Powerhouse footy of Mike V. during his tenure at Black Label/Etnies, 2001.

Benny Gold

Congrats to fellow skateboarder, SCAD alum and SF resident Benny Gold on the grand opening of his first retail space. Benny has been quietly doing a signature line of apparel for a few years now and is known for his quality design work. Check out his site/store at BennyGold.com.

DIY America / Graffiti: Part One

Aaron Rose along with Weiden Kennedy Entertainment continue their DIY America Series, this time exploring the empowering allure of traditional graffiti. Note the relatively rare footage of Stecyk doing his thing...

See the DIY America/Skate and Create here.

DIY America / Skate and Create Continued

These recent episodes of DIY America series focusing on the topic 'artists' and 'selling out' skateboarding...note the footage of Fausto Vitello, the legend who gave birth to both Independent Truck and Thrasher Magazine (RIP).

From Weiden Kennedy Entertainment.

Reference Library / CLASSIFIED 2010

A selected assortment of reference/inspirational/influential imagery for a long-term design project I am working on...

PiL at Coachella

Although I didn't venture out to the logistical nightmare known as 'Coachella', PiL did and it appears they played a great 80 minute set. Cynicism aside however, I am really happy (and thankful) that I did venture out to Hollywood a few weeks ago when they played a 30 minute set in the parking lot of the Kimmel Show. (Besides being the first time I had ever seen them live, reliable reports from industry insiders that also attended the Kimmel Show performance state that this is undeniably the best incarnation of the band to date; Johnny and the guys were musically tight and full of passion).

Above is a clip from the live Coachella webcast, featuring the songs Public Image (one of my favorites) and Rise. Check out more at PiL's site here.

Six Stair

It's been a while since I've hung out with the boys at Six Stair....I just happened to be in their neighborhood today (Fairfax/Melrose) so I stopped by to catch up (and tell them how stoked I am on the Pool School shorts, set to air on Fuel TV very soon.) The East coast transplants have been searching/destroying secret pools, editing a lot of footy and generally trying to keep the vibe alive. Check the above excerpts from Fuel TV's Daily Habit for a little more in-depth info...and peep the official Six Stair site/blog here.

Be sure to check out this great series of shorts for Red Stripe in Jamaica a few years ago, including a few moments with local sign painter/graphic artist, Mobay. Beautiful stuff...

Keep on keepin' on, boys!

Charno, Buddy & Lord Salba

My friends at Six Stair, Buddy Nichols and Rick Charnoski (responsible for Deathbowl to Downtown), recently met up with the legendary Screamin' Lord Salba at a secret spot somewhere outside of LA. Listen to Charno get heckled hard by Salba after bailing his stair carve...but fear not, Charno hopped right back on, rose to the challenge and pulled the stair carve next try.

Check the whole blog entry by Mark O'Meally over at TWS. I can't wait to see the footy that Rick and Bud end up putting together...and Rick, I hope your head is OK.

Friends of Type

The folks at Friends of Type just posted this great typographical homage to McLaren...what a fantastic tribute.

Rest In Peace Malcolm

The legendary personality known as Malcolm McLaren, most well known for creating/managing/destroying the Sex Pistols, has passed away at age 64...what a bummer. McLaren was also involved with fashion pioneer, Vivienne Westwood, with whom he was partnered with the seminal London retail fixtures that became Sex, Seditionaries, World's End, etc.

Thankfully, I was fortunate enough to meet McLaren on a number of occasions and found him to be a relatively likable fellow, even though he bummed a few cigarettes off of me...RIP Malcolm.

Public Image Limited

I ventured into the heart of Hollywood last night to catch the legendary PiL doing a free outdoor show for Jimmy Kimmel Live. It was their first concert in 15+ years, essentially 'warming up' for their upcoming gig at the Coachella Festival.

Although the musicians backing him (Jake Phelps is moonlighting on percussion?!) aren't part of the original line up, the band sounded great. It was a fantastic mix of traditional and synthetic instruments and their signature 80's 'new wave' sound was quite refreshing to my ears. Old man Johnny Lydon seemed much less irascible than expected, and his 'PiL voice' (that Jonesy despises so much) was heroic. The band performed Rise, This is Not a Love Song, Albatross, and Flowers of Romance, which was the unexpected highlight of the evening.

And for the record, the classic PiL logo is still as amazing as it was twenty five years ago...

Banksy's 'EXIT' Trailer

A new trailer is circulating this week, showing us a little bit more about Banksy's Exit Through The Gift Shop...and even though I adore Thierry/aka MBW (as a person), I am kinda rooting against him in the film. Can't wait to see how it plays out, and I will be getting a sneak peek in just a few days.

Gonz & Adidas

Check out the Gonz taking some hard licks on a frontside slappy....definitely diggin' some of these esoteric, SF spots.

Segment by Juice Design for Adidas.

House Industries x Eames II

The crew at House Industries continue to prove why they are (respectable) maniacs...fresh off of their Eames House and Eames Office exhibits, which included the release of an officially-licensed Eames typeface, these guys (and gals) have just completed their usual printed mischief. Can't wait to get my copy in the mail...in the meantime, I promise to post photos from the Eames exhibit soon.