Robert Bradford's Crap

Arts and Crap: Robert Bradford's Recycled Toy Sculptures
Recently, a friend of mine told me of an artist who is working on an artpiece. Apparently, that piece is a big jar where he can put different items like coins, toys, movie ticket, etc. But not all objects can be placed in the jar, the stuff has to have sentimental value (like condom).
My friend asked why the jar is half empty, and the artist said " it is meant for more great things and experiences to come." The jar is like a time capsule. When filled, it can be reopened and an object can represent important moments in his life. In short, each object can be a catalyst for self-gratification, appreciation, emotional crash and nervous breakdown....

What I like about Bradford's work is that it's the productive version of that jar. It turned into something useful, like an artwork that we can all appreciate and mock when we are bored.
For instance, this dog can be smelling .... another dog crap made of Robert's scraps.
I wonder if his pieces can be touched. Because it is possible that somebody might have licked, sucked and nibbled some of those plastics. Or used it as spatula that scraped something green or brown pasty stuff....

Robert Bradford creates his life-size and larger-than-life sculptures of humans and animals from discarded plastic items, mainly toys but also other colorful plastic bits and pieces, such as combs and buttons, brushes and parts of clothes pegs... via TheCoolhunter

Did Rob use chewed gum to glue the plastics together?

Morphosis' 41 Cooper Square

You can almost imagine being sucked into that Thom Mayne vortex...zapped into the complex and weird world of design and architecture (nerd!)...
This is the new Academic Building for the Cooper Union in NYC. So fresh...and soooo Morphosheeees.... At first glance,it is one of those buildings that make you conclude that it is just a "wrapper" thing...or the skin treatment technique that compensates for the toned down craziness of "function follows form" ---nth used cliche.
Well, NA-UH. Anyway, you can't expect a building to be as perfect or as similar to its original plan because there so many dynamics in construction, not to mention the mood-swings of architects. At the end of the day it's all about the money, this case,the program it serves. From the outside, this looks like a box with some playful perforated steel outer skin. Well, it kinda look that IT IS. I still have to figure out what those folds and creases are. But the skin is very functional, as it serves as insulation during winter and heat buffer during summer. No wonder it earned a high LEED rating. The interesting part is the stair. So Morphee jammed the elevators to stop on the first, fifth and eight floors only. This way, Coop peeps can actually use his glorified stairs. (IT would have been fun if he didn't include the first floor). This staircase is the Thom Mayne vortex.... In High School terms, vortex refers to a place where losers are sucked in.

They are actually using it...unless this shot was arranged. It it was, wouldn't it be nice if they hired models to work the stairway? ...to make people think that this school is for BEAUTIFUL people only? LOL....That way the vortex "image" will be erased.
I can see Wall-E ...crushed version

Description:

41 Cooper Square, the new academic building for The Cooper Union, aspires to manifest the character, culture and vibrancy of both the 150 year-old institution and of the city in which it was founded. The institution remains committed to Peter Cooper’s radically optimistic intention to provide an education “as free as water and air” and has subsequently grown to become a renowned intellectual and cultural center for the City of New York. 41 Cooper Square aspires to reflect the institution’s stated goal to create an iconic building – one that reflects its values and aspirations as a center for advanced and innovative education in Art, Architecture and Engineering...via Morphosis


All Photos by Roland Halbe via Dezeen