Motorboating around with an outboard propelled table

Table Motor Boat

I love this picture. It is part of a video by the name “Under Discussion” by Jennifer Allora and Guillermo Calzadilla that fetched a whopping £ 39,650 ($ 64,550) at a Christie’s sale in London, today:
A simple dream of mine – Just motor-boating the inland canals, rivers and lakes all year long – in its most simplified form.

Via Christie’s

Last edited by GJE on March 11, 2012 at 4:33 pm

Burning Man – Must See Festival

Burning-Man-Unicorn

A magnificent unicorn struggles to emerge from the cracking dust-covered playa

Burning-Man-Flames

Rotating installation that breathes four hot streams of fire into the air at night.

Sand(wo)man made out of metal bowls celebrates the universe with outstretched arms, a fertile womb and dancing feet.

Over 200 feet long and 50 feet high, this awe-inspiring Conexus Cathedral, built in 2006, was a hallowed place that inspired both reflection and dancing.

Burning Man

Never knew what it was. Now I know … a bit.

Freelance Journalist Meredith Price describes the magic of the Burning Man Project, held yearly in the Nevada desert, with the help of some truly amazing photos.

Every year, over 40,000 people come together in a Utopian experiment showing the most stunning artwork, grandiose costumes and outlandish art cars and there is some fire too.

Held in Black Rock City, Nevada, the festival is named Burning Man after the ritualistic burning of a wooden effigy in the shape of a man.

Via the Tripbase Blog

The 10 Burning Man Principles are:

  1. Radical Inclusion
    Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.
  2. Gifting
    Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
  3. Decommodification
    In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.
  4. Radical Self-reliance
    Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.
  5. Radical Self-expression
    Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
  6. Communal Effort
    Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
  7. Civic Responsibility
    We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
  8. Leaving No Trace
    Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.
  9. Participation
    Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
  10. Immediacy
    Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.

How Tripadvisor Influences Corporate Travellers

TripAdvisor

I’m brooding on an article about Tripadvisor for quite some time now. In anticipation I’m putting several snippets here.

TripAdvisor and similar user review websites now influence corporate decisions on hotels to the tune of £500m a year, according to research firm BDRC.

In a BDRC survey of 1,000 business travellers, 28% said they actively seek advice on websites featuring consumer reviews; 46% were influenced in their hotel selection by consumer reviews, while 41% decided to change their original hotel choice after reading about other travellers’ experiences.

The influence of word of mouth recommendations – both on and off line – outweighs the star ratings offered by the AA and RAC and official ratings and advice from travel agents, the survey revealed.

Via Catersearch

Street Art (14) – Mark Jenkins

Istanbul-Biennial-2007-CRW_2281a
Two years ago I took this photo when I visited the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art on the occasion of the 2005 Istanbul Biennial. The following photos made me remember it.

Street Art by Mark Jenkins 00 Mark Jenkins in Washington, DC.

Street Art by Mark Jenkins 01 Mark Jenkins in Royan, France.

I didn’t take notes when I took the first photo. Therefore I’m not sure the installation had something to do with the Street Art of Mark Jenkins, but there are similarities. Mark has a canny eye to create situations that take you off guard.

See Through Reading Tray by Yu Hun Kim

See Through Reading Tray by Yu Hun Kim

I like to share this See Through Reading Tray by Yu Hun Kim with you, because a cuppa java with something to read is an ultimate moment of luxury relaxation. With this tray you can have both pleasures at once, even in your hotel bed!

Via Fubiz