Random Access Memories

photograph: Craig McDean

photograph: Craig McDean

photograph: Craig McDean

photograph: Craig McDean

photograph: Craig McDean

source: trendland.com, vogue.co.uk

Image: The Art of Doing

The Art of Doing | Portrait of Meka, Illustrator (n1) from Arno Faure/The Art of Doing on Vimeo.

In your editorial on the Art of Doing’s website you criticise the education system for restricting newer generations to intellectual boxes and making them forget who they are. How do you think schools can correct this?

Stop grading students! The mark — the good score — doesn’t mean you’re a good or bad student. We shouldn’t emphasize the importance of it, it’s not the point. If this is the only way we’ve found to make students learn something, well, we should be ashamed. I never understood something because I had to but because I wanted to. And everything I learned just for the test, I quickly forgot. What’s the point in spending hundreds of hours learning if you don’t even know why you have to know the stuff. I was a ‘good’ student, I did all my homework on time, I never missed school, my reports were good, but it didn’t make me who I am today.

I had to get rid of this ‘good student’ label to follow my own path. Being the best student in the classroom doesn’t make you the best guy in life. We should be taught how to be rather than learning tons of stuff

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t learn history, science, etc. Of course, knowledge is essential, but we should be told why it’s good to know more than what we have to know. Propose rather than impose: don’t grade the results but the reasoning, value assays, risks taken, etc. The cookie-cutter approach to learning is no longer the way. Push students to think for themselves from an early age, to find their own path of learning. Teach them what to search for and how to find information. They should be active in learning, not sitting behind their desks. Sitting in a room is already an aberration — who can listen to a teacher for more than an hour without being bored? I was. As Ken Robinson said: ‘Helping students to connect with their personal capacities is the best way to reveal the best they have to offer’. Today we are fortunate to live in an era where each of us can make a contribution, and bring out everyone’s strength to move forward together.
 

Image: The Art of Doing

We’ve seen portraits of Meka and Augustin, but will we ever see a portrait of Arno?

No, you won’t. It’s not about me but others. Well, that’s not exactly true because these portraits are my vision, not the pure reality. I try to express the feelings I felt when I was with them, what I saw and noticed while I was immersed in their ‘world’. I’m very attached to details: it could be the laces undone, the small gesture you made, the pen you abandoned on the table… I focus on what you left behind more than on what you said. I’m not saying that what we say is not important, but usually we speak much more without words. I think we are by what we do unconsciously.

Somehow, my portrait might be all the portraits I directed

The Art of Doing | Portrait of Augustin, Boxer (n2) from Arno Faure/The Art of Doing on Vimeo.

Meka is a designer and Augustin is a boxer — two very different disciplines. How do you select who features on the Art of Doing?

I used to plan everything, to be prepared, even over-prepared all the time. With this project I rely more on my instincts; I don’t want to establish the listing from the beginning but catch people on the fly. It could be someone I met, or an artist I liked at a show I attended, or a friend who talked about somebody he knew. As soon as I feel the flame of the art of doing, I go for it! Without wondering if it could be good for the project or not, and when you’re making art, you don’t know why you do it before you do it.
 

You’ve done your own custom designed trailers for Moulin Rouge, The Shining, There Will Be Blood and The Hurt Locker. Pick one of these directors (let’s pretend Kubrick is alive) to portrait for the Art of Doing and tell us why.

Without a doubt I’d pick Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood)! And why? Well it’s always hard for me to explain in words why I like something. Usually it’s just instinct. I just like it that’s all. I feel connected with it, it might move me, make me imagine, think or whatever… it talks to me in a way. It’s like if I ask you why you love your boy or girlfriend. You could pretend to use fancy words to explain the why, but actually it’s pretty simple, you just know it.
 

Image: The Art of Doing

The Art of Doing aims to inspire people, but through ‘Place Publique’ it also provides a platform for artists to share their work. Do you think the problem of not doing anything lies in people not being inspired or not finding the correct channels of sharing and distribution?

I’d say both. My take is we need to inspire others and be inspired by others. But don’t wait to be inspired or for the right moment before doing something. Do it first and you’ll see. Think big, but start small. Don’t wait to be ready, you’re gonna miss the first shot anyway so better miss it quickly. We’re usually afraid to show what we do because we prefer to live in the imagination of being good rather than doing and realizing we might not be as good as we expected. We should all remember what Albert Einstein said: ‘Anyone who has never made a mistake, has never tried anything new’. So we should embrace mistakes not be afraid of them. And you’re right, nowadays, it’s hard to find the good way and the correct channels of sharing, but I think we don’t need to think about that. It’s not an issue anymore. For instance, twenty years ago, there were only two ways of showing your work as a filmmaker: theatre and TV. Now there are hundreds, too many for sure, but we don’t need to find where we could fit, but to do what we want and then the right place will come to us. The channels are not straight highways anymore but runny rivers. That’s why I don’t understand why we still all want to follow the old path. It’s not because you’re not featured in a theatre or in a famous festival that you’re not a good filmmaker. We need to get rid of this old-school way of doing things and get out of the box.

Don’t wait to be approved to be who you want to be. It’s not where you show your stuff that matters but what you say with it

Image: The Art of Doing

You say that society is too preoccupied with instant gratification and speed. How do you think this has disrupted the creation of art?

The most disturbing thing I ever encountered as a creator is what I call the RTF, or the real time feedback.

Today, we want feedback more than ever. Every time we do something, we wait for likes, shares, quick and fast success and wonder what people think about what we’ve created. We are only focus on how many people will raise their thumbs up. If René Descartes lived in the 21st century, he might have said: ‘I’m liked, therefore I am’

Think about Mozart, for instance. I do think that if he had access to all this feedback we get today, he would’ve never been able to compose his masterpieces. Feedback is great and essential in taking a step back and looking at what we do, but at the wrong point it can kill your idea. I think the (virtual) connection created something we didn’t need as a creator, or at least not the way we use it. If you do something just to please people and get likes, you’ll never do what you really want, because most of the time what you want to do is not going to work right away. You might even get only one or two likes or views or whatever, and if you rely on this you might change the way you do things just because people don’t like it. But what if what you do is not for now? What if people need time to digest it? What if Van Gogh had changed his style just because nobody liked his paintings? What if Godard had cut A bout de Souffle in the academic way just to be considered a ‘good’ filmmaker? Instant gratification should be the last thing we want. Unfortunately, this is the way nowadays, and I keep fighting against it myself to be honest with you. We should have the courage to face failure and to make and show what we really are. What’s better? Succeeding by doing something that anybody could have done or doing something that matters in our life and says something about ourselves?
 

Image: The Art of Doing

Your website has some Daft Punk and Radiohead mixes. When will we see the Art of Doing cover a musician? Which musician would you love to cover?

Actually, I’m working on four other portraits, and in one of them, I will cover a multi-talented and amazing guy who is a great Live Performance Artist.

If I had to pick one art amongst them all, I would choose music. Music could live by itself. It makes you imagine, dream, feel good or bad, cry, laugh and dance unlike any other art

That’s why music is the only words said in my portraits. I use music at the main part of my editing. I cut while the music is composed by Sylbi Vane. It’s a true collaboration. I let him express his point of view through his sound. We work together, it’s a simultaneous not a consecutive process. It’s back and forth between both of us all the time. I cut his tracks, copy, paste, shorten it, use the end for the beginning… like I’d do with a video shot and sometimes, it makes him go crazy! We’re still experimenting with this way of doing, it’s far from being easy but it’s exciting! And to answer the question, I’d like to cover, without any hesitation, Thom Yorke. Despite his success, he never stops trying, experimenting, pushing the boundaries. And every time I listen to a new album, I need time to enjoy it. It’s like I have to engage with it, and as with any engagement it needs effort to build sustainability. But once it’s there, it lasts forever. I’m also a huge fan of movie soundtracks, and they are often much more better and interesting than the films themselves. I do think that usually videos don’t let the music play. They’re just the ‘bed’ as it’s wrongly called. But without this ‘third wheel’, the most realistic visual effect would look like nothing. Imagine Star Wars or Jaws without the compositions of John Williams. So if we pretend he’s alive, I’d cover Bernard Herrmann, but there are also great living music composers that I’d love to portrait, my favorite: Hans Zimmer.
 
 

The Art of Doing | Portrait of Itzel & Jorge, Circus Coaches (n3) from Arno Faure/The Art of Doing on Vimeo.

South Africa has some pretty big talents that have yet to be discovered, but it’s hard to earn a living and work on the things you love. How can artists balance their need for economic support and their creative passions?

That’s the trickiest part, and I’m still struggling with it, but actually that’s what The Art of Doing is about. I don’t want to blame money, because we all need to make a living, but as an artist, as soon as you earn it, you want more… you become like a prisoner. My belief is: do what you’d like and the money will come eventually, even if it’s not a lot. We don’t need that much anyway. To be honest with you, back in France, I used to earn a great living by doing something I didn’t like. Of course, it was comfortable but I wasn’t very happy. Since I arrived in Canada my salary is four times less, I’m not saying it’s easy, no it’s not, but I’m feeling much better because I’ve started doing something I like, and I do know it’s going to be a long journey. One of the goals of The Art of Doing is to show that we all can do what we like.

We use money as an excuse for not doing, but actually I think we’re just afraid and lazy to do, because we need to make effort to get what we really want. It’s not gonna be an easy trip for sure, but at least if we try, we’re gonna live a more meaningful life

Image: The Art of Doing

Your videos of Meka and Augustin capture ordinary people doing amazing things. How important is it to make these guys seem ordinary and relatable to audiences?

Actually, I don’t make them seem ordinary, they are. We all are. Artists are like us and we are all artists of our life. I think TV and the star system create a false image of who an artist should be. You don’t have to have perfect skin, wear the perfect suit, live in a 4 000 sq/ft house to be an artist. For me, an artist is someone who does what he loves to do and lives with it. Meka and Augustin are both artists because they wake up every morning to do what they want to do. They dream big but they know it takes time and effort to achieve their goals. Nothing happens overnight, that’s the reality!
 

You describe the start of the Art of Doing as a scary experience, but say that you’re no longer waiting for something to happen. Before the Art of Doing what were you waiting for?

I was waiting to have the guts to do it. Actually, I was waiting for the blue fairy to come and help me find the strength, but once you realize that she’s never coming you have to find something else. I was also waiting for the right idea, you know the one that makes you instantly-famous, the idea that nobody thought about, but I realize it doesn’t work that way. The right one comes when you’ve already tried hundreds. It’s so pretentious to believe that you can come with the best idea just like that, and I thought that way.

We shouldn’t be trying to look for the next best thing, but seek what we want to say. You might not be heard but at least you brought something different to the table. And if it’s hard and you doubt yourself, it means you’re on the right path

It doesn’t matter being famous anymore, what matters is being happy, and once you understand that, your life will be better. But again, it takes time, so enjoy the journey!

Image: The Art of Doing

Images: The Art of Doing

The Danish singer’s debut single for Chess Club Records lets her affection-inspiring, highly melodic vocals hold their own over softly sliced bass-ey beats. Her name roughly meaning ‘unmarried’ or ‘virgin’, the electropop singer’s innocent quirkiness is much anticipated on her still-to-be-completed debut album. Watch out for it!
 
 
 
Standish/Carlyon – ‘Nono/Yoyo’

Formerly members of indie rock band The Devastations, Tom Carlyon and Conrad Standish are trying their hand at something more ‘now’ — with success. Labelled ‘futuristic dub pop’, their recently released debut album Deleted Scenes — some of which you can stream here — is one that’ll have you embrace the winter blues. Here’s the hauntingly chilled ‘Nono/Yoyo’.
 
 
 
Savages – ‘She Will’

All-female London-based post punk band Savages have the same post-revolution spirit that their late 1970s associates are famous for. Heralded ‘Joy Division’s younger sisters’, they unabashedly live up to this cliché with their awakened guitar-screeching single ‘She Will’ from their debut full-length Silence Yourself.
 
 
 
Daft Punk feat. Nile Rodgers and Pharrell Williams – ‘Get Lucky’

Already having sold 500 000 copies in the UK, this tune is bound to stick in many an eardrum for a fair amount of time. ‘We’re up all night ’til the sun. We’re up all night to get some, We’re up all night for good fun, We’re up all night to get lucky…’
 
 
 
The Editors – ‘A Ton of Love’

‘A Ton of Love’ from British alt rockers The Editors serves as a teaser to the band’s forthcoming album The Weight of Your Love. Much like the album it’s an uplifting rock melody ridden somewhat contradictorily but nonetheless effectively by Tom Smith’s steady but longing vocals.
 
 
 
Vampire Weekend – ‘Diane Young’

Taken from their recent third album Modern Vampires of the City, this song still demonstrates what the band is best at — combining catchy with unique and indie. What is more, Ezra Koenig’s exclusive voice will never bore, rendering every new release a relief that the band’s still producing music. We hope that it will never stop, here’s ‘Diane Young’.

Words by Christine Hogg

image: billboard.com

EPISODE 1: Giorgio Moroder

The first episode features disco music pioneer Giorgio Moroder speaking about his experiences with the genre such as his records with Donna Summer and experimenting with synthesizers.
 

EPISODE 2: Todd Edwards

Episode two revealed that Todd Edwards had contributed to the album; he expressed that it was difficult keeping his involvement a secret.
 

EPISODE 3: Nile Rodgers

The third episode features Nile Rodgers, who spoke of his background as a founding member of Chic as well as his numerous collaborations throughout his career.
 

EPISODE 4: Pharrell Williams

Pharrell Williams participated in the fourth episode in which he elaborated on his experience with the creation of the album
 

EPISODE 5: Panda Bear

Noah Benjamin Lennox aka Panda Bear discusses the very first time he heard a Daft Punk record, how he felt in the days leading up to working with the guys in the studio, and more.
 

 
 

source: YouTube, Random Access Memories, Wikipedia, Daft Punk, infinitylist.com, billboard.com

Resource Furniture

Image: resourcefurniture.com

Resource Furniture is an American-based furniture importer and distributer that collects innovative designs to transform and reinvent spaces. Their goal is to increase the space of living areas through providing furniture that serves more than one purpose. Watch as a wall of shelves converts into a cosy bed, or a coffee table unpacks into a fully a functional dining table. The Italian designs are modernly minimalist and colourful, and will undoubtedly allow smaller living spaces to be comfortable homes.
 
 
 

Facebook Home

Image: mashable.com

Facebook’s latest app will keep you connected no matter what you’re doing. Transform your mobile home screen into a Facebook newsfeed where you can get the latest updates and photos from your friends. Turn on your phone, and you can chat to your contacts without entering the original Facebook app. The handy function means that whether you’re searching the Internet or checking the weather, you can still get notifications from Facebook. Check out the video to see how Facebook Home is making social connectivity that much faster!
 
 
 

Thug Kitchen

Image: thugkitchen.com

Image: thugkitchen.com

Eating vegetables isn’t always the most exciting experience, but luckily we’ve found a way to help you get your daily fix of healthy greens. Thug Kitchen is a bitchin’ blog with kickass recipes to get junk food lovers eating right. The hilarious guide schools people on what they need and why they need it by playfully scolding its readers with some valuable information. So put the burger down and check out this website! It’ll have you eating healthy and keep you laughing while doing so.
 
 
 

Wooden Headwear by Andrea Deppieri

Image: tetedebois.it

Image: tetedebois.it

Using industrial design, architecture, and fashion design, Italian architect Andrea Deppieri has crafted the first line of wooden headwear. From B-Boy hats to oversized sunhats, the innovative designer has named her collection Tête De Bois (which is French for ‘head of wood’). The creative designs will be launched in five different styles fashioned from either the light-coloured tanganika wood, or the darker mahogany. The pieces are constructed with wooden slats and washers, with slats being used as both an appealing, fresh look for the headwear and a functional visor to protect its wearers from sunrays. The designs are lightweight and comfortable, and with an adjustable sizing feature as well as a simple appearance, they can be worn by both men and women.
 
 
 

Rubber Barber by Chen Lu Wei

Image: thisiscolossal.com

Image: thisiscolossal.com

If you’re looking for a fun way to erase your annoying errors, then check out the Rubber Barber created by Chen Lu Wei for Megawing. The erasers come in four different colours and each one is painted with a little face that is surrounded by a chunk of hair. Every time you scuff your eraser against your work, you’ll give your miniature rubber face a haircut. So while you’re struggling to produce your best work, rest easy knowing your eraser’s new ‘do might surprise you when you’re done.
 
 
 

Glass Art by Martin Blank

Molten Nature from Ethan Steinman on Vimeo.

Image: daltonicfilms.com

American glass artist Martin Blank gives viewers an inside look into just what it takes to mould molten glass lava into sculptures of art. From blazing furnaces that melt red-singed liquid glass to the bustle of teamwork that goes into producing a single ornament, the video captures the sizzling fun of playing with fire. Blank has his work exhibited in museums around Canada, the States and China. The successful artist is based in Seattle and the video is a sample of a day in the life of Martin Blank Studios.
 
 
 

Google Street View Hyperlapse

Google Street View Hyperlapse from Teehan+Lax Labs on Vimeo.

Image: designandprojects.com

Teehan+Lax Labs has worked their magic to create some incredible visuals inspired by Google Street View . Hyper-lapse photography is becoming increasingly popular on online video sites. The technique uses time lapses and sweeping camera movements to develop a rollercoaster view of the world. Photographs of different locations are carefully weaved together to streamline the video map. Experimenting with hyper-lapse methods and Google Street View, Teehan+Lax has put together a site powered with a WebGI interface that enables you to create your own hyper-lapse view of the world. Check out Google Street View Hyperlapse and get started on awesome experience.
 
 
 

Daft Punk: Random Access Memories | The Collaborators: Nile Rodgers

Image: nitversions.com

Image: rockfeedback.com

French electro dynamo duo Daft Punk have been making waves with their upcoming much anticipated new release Random Access Memories. The record is set to hit shelves May 21st but in the meantime the music giants are teasing fans with a web-series that takes a look at the album’s big-name collaborators. Crafted by The Creators Project, Random Access Memories: The Collaborators features interviews and discussions with names like Giorgio Moroder and Todd Edwards. The latest episode is a sit-down with RnB legend Nile Rodgers. Paul Williams, Pharrell Williams, DJ Falcon, Chilly Gonzales, Panda Bear and Julian Casablancas have also been named among the team of collaborators Daft Punk have recruited for their forthcoming sonic boom. Fresh from Coachella, you can listen to a snippet of their latest track with Rodgers and Pharrell called Get Lucky.
 
 
 

Fine Art Coffee by Mike Breach

STORYBOARD: The Fine Art of Coffee Portraiture from Tumblr on Vimeo.

Image: nowness.com

Image: nowness.com

We’ve seen portraits created through photography, drawing, painting, sculpture, and a host of other artistic pursuits. Barrister extraordinaire Mike Breach has found a new medium for crafting portraits… Latte foam! Sketching his work with a fine wooden stick, the New Yorker details the likeness of celebrities, cityscapes, animals or his customers onto their coffee. He uses his brush stick to swirl lines in the foam and create a colour palette in shades of brown, beige and cream. His creations last for a few minutes before they become a frothy mix of creamy goodness, but luckily he photographs them and adds them to his Tumblr before they disappear. Take a look at the video shot by the creatives at Tumblr Storyboard.
 
 
 

Black Diamond Brilliant 2-in1 Bluetooth Speaker

Image: nerdreactor.com

Designed by Yantouch, the Black Diamond Brilliant 2-in-1 Bluetooth Speaker can alter your music listening experience. With a built-in kaleidoscopic light display, the portable speakers can offer you good music connected through Bluetooth and some mood lighting to give you a great listening atmosphere. The clever gadget is integrated with an LED lighting display that is coordinated to change colour according to the beats-per-minute of the track you’re playing. The diamond-shaped light is embedded with 16 000 000 colours that can turn your space into a nightlife jam or a relaxing zone. The Black Diamond Brilliant 2-in-1 Bluetooth Speakers don’t just look good, they also produce good sounds with a powerful, thumping bass. A remote controller allows users to change both the lighting and the tunes with a tap of a finger.
 
 
 

Images: nerdreactor.com, nowness.com, daltonicfilms.com, thisiscolossal.com, tetedebois.it, thugkitchen.com, resourcefurniture.com, mashable.com, designsandprojects.com, nitversions.com, rockfeedback.com

Legendary electonica group Soulwax, who need no introduction, have released their very own live internet radio station aptly named Radio Soulwax.

Having your tracks remixed by Soulwax has become a gesture comparable to a blessing from the Pope among musicians worldwide. Going beyond simply releasing brilliant studio albums, Soulwax have made mixes for heavy hitters Justice, Klaxons, GorillaZ and Daft Punk among many more. Now with a career as exceptional as theirs, what was to come next for Soulwax had to be huge to top what has come before.

Introducing Radio Soulwax, released as an app for the iPhone and Android, it is a live online radio station with hour length sets based around a certain theme. You can also listen and view the seamless audio and visual mixes online at the official website. The band will periodically update and release new sets, each with a unique theme. In this way you’re privileged to hear ongoing new remixes from Soulwax, which is a privilege that cannot be overstated.

The story of Radio Soulwax is two years in the making, with the group stating their disgust of the obnoxiously loud music scene that is Ibiza; blaring from every club, bar and studio. “So we decided to make our own soundtrack to the white island,” explained the group. It wasn’t enough to simply hear the music though, Soulwax wanted to make it a full on experience. Using the Fairlight CVI, they were able to take retro vinyl sleeves and meticulously remix the images into the music like something out of an 80s video. It was out of this that Soulwax was born and is now available for us to enjoy.

Head over to Radio Soulwax and download the application for your iPhone or your Android platforms.

Source: Q Music Magazine