February 2nd, 2012
by Amir

 

Ever since I was a little kid I remember flipping through the L.L. Bean catalog. I never really bought anything from them but I always thought of them as a heritage brand and a classic symbol for Americana. To celebrate their 100th anniversary L.L. Bean tapped famed photographer Randal Ford to recreate their popular  Spring 1933 catalog cover using local residents from Maine’s Acadia National Park. L.L. Bean documented the entire photo shoot in all its outdoorsy glory with a short behind the scenes documentary. Witness how a vintage painting gets transformed into a modern photograph after the jump!

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January 10th, 2012
by Amir

 

Ink & Paper is the tale of one of LA’s oldest letterpress printshops Aardvark Press and Los Angeles’ oldest artist paper distributor McManus & Morgan Paper.  These two shops were once part of the thriving printing community but with the advancement of cheap (and poor quality) digital presses and inferior low price paper they have lost the booming business that they once had. Hear how these two historic Los Angeles landmarks stay in business and help one another survive in this era of “Cheap Is Better” and If you’re in the Los Angeles area make sure to stop by and support them! Watch the full documentary by Ben Proudfoot after the jump!

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December 21st, 2011
by Amir

 

Yevgeniya Kilupe, a Holocaust survivor and self-taught artist, started making masks to supplement her pension after a life of working in the factory. Around six years ago, artist Christine Jurjane discovered Yevgeniya and her otherworldly masks at a market and immediately recognized Yevgeniya’s talent. Christine introduced Yevgeniya to Linda Luse, the owner of Galerija Istaba, and they soon put on an exhibition of these fantastical papier mache “characters” to wide acclaim, eventually supporting Yevgeniya to open her very own Etsy shop. Watch the full documentary after the jump.

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November 29th, 2011
by Amir

James Loveday’s project about the people who use Craigslist documents who they are, why they respond to the ads and what eventually happens when they get in front of the camera.

Over a period of several months James placed adverts on Craigslist offering a free portrait to anyone who wanted to come by my studio in Brooklyn and have it taken. Each time a person would come, he’d have everything set up and take their portraits. Some people would show up ready, knowing what to wear and what they wanted, others had a vague idea of getting famous and wanted to have pictures of themselves for their future careers as actors and models and some people were just intrigued, or bored.

Everyone filled out a questionnaire about themselves and why they wanted to be a part of the project. Their answers are included with their photo.

 

Today’s post is made possible by the fast business card printing company, Next Day Flyers.

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November 9th, 2011
by Amir

 

Pulling John is the universal story of a champion, who after 25 years of success is now burdened with the inevitable transformation of aging. John Brzenk, the legendary armwrestler, who works as an airline mechanic by day must decide whether to leave the sport he was raised on or wait to be defeated by 2 up and coming titans. Voevoda from Russia, Bagent from West Virginia and Yoshi from Tokyo are the colorful characters who have been raised on the legend of John Brzenk. These men define themselves by not becoming champions but by defeating the legend that is known as Brzenk. In a philosophical and thrilling ride, ‘Pulling John’ culminates at the Zloty Tur Championship in Warsaw, where Bagent and Voevoda have the chance of their life, to dethrone the conflicted Brzenk. Watch the trailer for the documentary after the jump.

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November 8th, 2011
by Amir

 

Poverty, rituals, shamans, human skulls, religious shrines, animal sacrifice, and hanging out in the caves all can be found in photographer Paul Kwiatkowski’s images of Haiti.

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November 7th, 2011
by Amir

 

Meet writer turned knife maker Joel Bukiewicz of Cut Brooklyn. He talks about the human element of craft, and the potential for a skill to mature into an art. And in sharing his story, he alights on the real meaning of handmade—a movement whose riches are measured in people, not cash. Watch the full documentary by Made By Hand after the jump.

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October 20th, 2011
by Amir

NYC photographer Rachel Citron has been documenting the more creative side of the protests from the imaginative protest signs to the colorful and sometimes outrages protest uniforms. Read a short article by Citron about her experiences on the New York Times blog.

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