Links published in August 2009 — Most recent at top.
If you enjoyed Micheal Pollan’s NYT article “Out of the Kitchen, On to the couch” I linked to last week, here are two other follow-up articles worth a read: 1) Micheal Ruhlman takes a hit at Pollan’s essay, mostly agreeing with him, though despising and retorting to opinions and arguments from Pollan’s food-marketing researcher Harry Balzer, he basically thinks we’re somehow going back in the kitchen more than ever; 2) An 11,000+ word New Yorker article on Julia Child dated December 1974. I admit I haven’t gotten around to reading it yet, it’ll have to wait for the weekend, with a coffee on a terrace. But that’s why I use Instapaper! •
The inevitable confluence of ideas and brands: BMW sponsoring the new Mad Men season. Pick up a september copy of Vanity Fair and you will see what they call MAD-Vertising “in which the network creates custom content for Mad Men advertisers”. More of this branded content airs during commercial breaks. Its all so deviously clever, it hurts. •
Wired asked a few leading interface designers to ponder on a hypothetical Craigslist redesign. Khoi Vinh, the man behind the online version of the NYT, is one rigorous designer. •
No matter how much you love or hate their product, the facebook new offices are gorgeous, going from lofty office space to 70s chic living room.
The company has remained committed to providing free gourmet meals, snacks, and drinks in micro-kitchens located throughout the building. In order to keep the company agile and fresh, employees are encouraged to write on walls, add artwork, and move furniture as they see fit.
Welcome to the 21st century office. The formula is simple: respect your employees and they’ll respect you. Heck, they’ll even work overtime just because it’s so damn pleasant.
•After reading Nicholson Baker’s review of the Kindle 2 for the New Yorker, I’m kind of joining the bandwagon for some kind of Apple tablet anytime soon. The iPhone seems to be so close of something better than a Kindle, notwithstanding its size. Feels like Kindle is only good as it can be, being pretty much the only one out there. •
Micheal Pollan for the NYT: Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch. If you’re interested at all in contemporary food and television culture, this is well worth a read.
Pollan’s essay overviews the decline of everyday cooking in today’s kitchens. He tackles the question by asking why we, [north] americans, are spending more time watching others cook than cooking ourselves. Like everything around it, cooking has changed from the time Julia was on screen to today’s celebrity chefs kitchen stadiums and unfortunately, cooking shows—or food shows as he retitles them—are not teaching or even inciting us how to cook anymore. The average amount of time one spends in the kitchen making food has dropped to 27 minutes daily, less than half the length of a show on the Food network.
The paradox is explored further and the “decline and fall of everyday home cooking” isn’t evidently solely based on the metamorphosis of television cooking shows. But like many other cultural artifacts, television shows are a good indicator of what’s happening in front of the screens.
•Excellent analysis of the cinematography of Mad Men. Complete overview of how the camera works amplifies the storytelling and character development. Bonus points with the Hitchcock connection. (via kottke and design observer) •
Design*Sponge: Marie-Ève Best cooks up for them a concise Montreal design guide by neighborhood. Copy paste to friends coming to town wanting to know what else is there to bixi-stroll to in Montreal besides the tamtams and old-port, both already described too many times in their tourist guide. •
In industrial design, first there are ideas, then comes the concept images. Many many projects unfortunately never go further, but the ideas are nevertheless always there. Bike lovers check out Pulse, Seattle based design firm Teague’s concept bike. Love them turn signals. Pedals that are “always up” hit you over the head, you’ll shout “why didn’t I never thought of that?” and make you despise your current pair. Vinyl lovers on the go, Linos, a portable record player, is for you. What other object do we assume its size by simple convention? •
BFF, c’est pas juste ton home boy ou ta chum de fille, c’est aussi le Bicycle Film Festival, et il aura lieu pour la première fois à Montréal à l’ONF, les 14, 15 et 16 août prochains. Beaucoup de courts, la bande annonce pour le plus long film, Where are you go (Canada, 60 min), présenté le 14 août à 19 h. (via Gabriel velomane Béland) •
For Patrick, Francis and other design brains: Ten Reasons to buy the BLDGBLOG book. I have a weakness for books that encompass more than single subject—or a single subject which is approached and treated in many numerous ways—and who celebrate that spirit instead of shunning the idea and streamlining the whole thing way too much.
I know magazines are supposed to fulfill this precise approach, neverhteless, I feel that many should take note, cause it ain’t happening.
•Creative Review: The best film titles ever made. Funny thing is, you’ve probably seen most of these movies already. •