To all the artists in the hizzouse, I'm asking you not only as a friend, cohort, and supporter of the arts, but also as a desperate museum professional, to please help spread the word about a design contest we're hosting. Deadline is March 13, 2009!

The Asian Art Museum is counting on talented designers to come up with a provocative, compelling creative treatment for MATCHA — our popular evening mixer program that unites art and culture with cocktails and mingling. Geared toward the younger crowd, this is a thriving Thursday evening event offered at a discount price.

The winning design will be used prominently in the MATCHA marketing campaign, which entails but is not limited to print ads, posters, online banners, postcards, club cards, t-shirts, website, e-blasts, etc. Prizes include $500, membership to the museum, guest passes for friends and family, MATCHA swag, a conceptual and visual challenge, and good exposure. More importantly, the winner would be part of a vibrant, fun, educational program from the largest museum in the western world devoted exclusively to Asian art!

For details, guidelines, and more, please visit (yup, it's Posterous!):
http://asianartmuseum.posterous.com/

Questions? Shoot them over to: jyin[at]asianart[dot]org

I'm hoping that I can count on you to share this with all of your friends and family. I know y'all are in the know and have a ton of creative pals. THANK YOU!

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i had a fabulous meal last night at picco in larkspur, marin. i'd never live in this area (self-righteous wealthy [white] people; sean penn lives in the area, 'nuff said) but it is nice for 1) forays into beautiful nature and 2) a handful of good restaurants. picco is one of the said dining destinations. other than the food, the other awesome thing about picco = these sweet bad boys hanging on the wall of the bathroom.

they're obviously vintage collectibles. there was also a framed collection of the baseball player pog-type discs but it was too dark to get on the phone. there were three bathrooms. i was curious to see what the other ones had for decor…

ryan or some other japanese culture expert can prob comment on what these are about, but i'm dumb. slightly slightly reminiscent of wacky packs but only in format.

See the full gallery on posterous

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an indie based t-shirt company in beijing just couldn't resist the recent zhang ziyi $ex(y) "scandal" as fodder for its topical design content. i can't help but love the juiciness either. the chinese character stands for privacy. not sure if i care for this concept and typeface, but i dig the graphic on the back.

i think i'm the only person who actually finds the photos titillating and fun, but apparently zhang ziyi has shamed her country with such "indecent" behavior in public (even though they were on her wealthy fiancee's private beach). i've always been a poo-pooer of zhang ziyi. it's her conventional if not boring face and her seeming lack of personality. i just felt like, if there was gonna be an "it" girl representing china, she falls short of the job. she certainly is no gong li, that's for sure. the only time she did anything for me was in 2046. OH, worst of all, she has publicly stated that she prefers western men. now that's just not cool, girl ! regardless, i have some empathy for her in this case.

gotta credit ryan with sharing the pix with me before it really blew up.

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been neglecting this stupid thing so it’s time to get back on it with some big ol’ updates. i’d like to take a moment to remind (beg) visitors (hi mom, hi sis) to please please PLEASE leave comments! they bring me more pleasure than any lethal narcotic ever could. it’s all i want for xmases and my bdays for the rest of my life.

and away we go with the backtracking.

*
november kicked off awesomely with APE, that beloved annual tradition of nerding out and seeing old friends. this year i ingratiated myself to the coolest kids in the hall, the bang gang (see happy shiny people below). you’ve all heard me wax poetic on what a nostalgic thing APE is for me. it’s nice seeing the same passionate, geeky folks year after year after year, but again, it reinforces my reputation as a lame groupie. oh well. at least this year i was a barnacle at the bang gang table.

(that’s johnny ryan with our ryan)

it was a synergistic year for the bang gang, with hotly anticipated debuts, such as hellen’s jin & jam. it’s awesome, sexy, and sweet. if you like beautiful girls and/or remember what it was like to meet someone who mystified you and with whom you developed an electrifying chemistry, it’ll resonate even more. i remember when hellen started working on it last year during her residency at the museum (for the tezuka exhibition), and the pages were gorgeous. now the finished product is even more gorgeous. it sold like hot cakes. dan clowes told hellen she’s going places. well duh.

anthony peddled gorgeous prints and magnets alongside evan’s trademark photo-illo prints in candy color frames. anthony and derek also reminded ppl of their purdy pieces in the newest popgun. derek debuted deth’s head (the red mini on the table, you can spot it in other pictures), a punchy and hilarious mini about digging for maggot-infested burgers; features a splash page that still cracks me up to this day.

calvin sold out of his prints and ramble on, a lovely mini that i suspect music fiends may especially appreciate. like everyone else in the bang gang, calvin is an incredible soul and talented artist.

another ssssssizzling debut at the bang gang table was ryan’s electric ant zine! it’s a real beaut, aesthetically and content-wise, a reminder of why i got turned onto zines in the first place — passionate people with something interesting to say channeling their earnest energy into a compendium of cool. this one’s got an interview with our hero fred schodt, a gallery of bad guys from our cartoon-infected youthl, NIN mad libs, comics about first kisses, etc.

ALSO, i had the major honor of contributing to the dark lords gallery in EA. being a part of this special project made me feel very, very good. i’m no artist, but to have something i created keep company with artists whom i admire is a throbbing emotional boner for life. drawing it was healthy practice; challenging but fun. i’m surprised i was able to do it. it’s no big deal, just a drawing, but i actually got off my lazy bum and made something. if i’m lucky, i’ll have the pleasure and honor of doing it again.

if you’re curious about my contribution, see if you can find it on EA’s website (tip: preview gallery).

i’m also deliriously giddy, not only cuz Ain’t it Cool News (and others) gave EA a glowing review, but cuz there was direct reference to my piece: “you’ll never look at Shredder the same way again”

and then stuff like this, as silly and non-eventful as it is, makes me high:

so the moral of the story is, surround yourself with the funniest, smartest, most talented friends you can find (artists, writers, strippers, car mechanics, etc) because it’s good for your health, and you can live variously through them! also, it can kick you out of your crippling self-pitying stupor and make you do something that makes you happy.

ALSO, you can support the arts and buy copies of what i’ve mentioned above by clicking on the links.

ps – this is definitely not an exhaustive report of APE.

pps – publisher last gasp held their usual pre-APE shindig (on halloween) where they open up their vaults to the public. i had such a great time. you can see pix here. the warehouse is a wonderland; i could’ve spent hours and hours there!

me & larks!

calvin & hellen as pigsy and monkey king

i’m back, but will need a long time to recover from the taiwan trip. there are 600+ pix that need to be uploaded and organized. it’s daunting.

for now, behold the captivating charm, elegance, and novelty of hong kong’s china club. it exudes the sexy old world allure of a shanghai art-deco restaurant/club and the sophistication of an art gallery with its kitschy, compelling, and/or beautiful contemporary art. many of the furnishings and decor are authentic pieces from a romantic bygone era.

the menu is extensive, the food is good enough (i’ll be damned if the bbq’d pork didn’t melt in my mouth in an explosion of flavors), there’s a chanteuse (might as well have been shu qi), AND AND AND…originals from the lao fu zi (“old master Q”) comic — a childhood favorite. that pretty much sealed the deal for me before i even sat down.

real letterpress coasters bearing the club’s insignia. classy

retro menu design

one wall – note the interesting painting in the middle

another angle of the dining room

more

restaurant entrance with moody lighting

majestic but somber painting in the restaurant doorway

you take the elevator up and step into this foyer / waiting area before entering the restaurant

the view looking up the staircase

YES YES YES. how great did it feel to see these all over?! ohhh nostalgia

i really love this. talk about conversation piece

the walls lining the staircase boast an impressive art collection. this isn’t the best example but i liked it

the reading room is on another floor, housing games and literature on all things chinese. oddly reminiscent of league of extraordinary gents

the piece de resistance — the terrace on the top. cushioned seating along the wall, and bar service i believe. these weak photos don’t do the view any justice

the latest in beijing olympics mascot merchandising. i admit, i like it.

via shanghaiist via this

it was huge when the news broke that james jean would be loaning his inimitable talent to luxury giant, prada. this was a very long time ago.

of course everyone was excited, including yours truly, a james jean fanatic (who intends on collecting every single print from his recess series – i only have two right now). i thought it was brilliant, and happy that he had elevated to such a level of art celebrity. i usually diss the whole luxury glamour lifestyle (i’m part disgusted and part jealous), but i can’t walk by a prada shop without peering into the window and salivating. it’s probably one of the few places i would drop stupid amounts of $$$ on if i was you know, rich.

i’m not sure how i feel about the end product, though really the man can do no wrong in my books. he’s supremely, sickeningly amazing. taiwanese AND young to boot. one of my all time favorite artists. EVER.

anyway, i spotted this prada satchel (?) at the salon. it was my first and only sighting of the prada + james jean collaborative effort. mixed feelings, really. but hell, like i said, it’s james jean. you can tell that the leather is buttery and sumptuous.

your crazy western wear slut here, giddy about her new purchase from a magical place in denver called rockmount ranch wear. we wanted to buy the entire historical store, but i somehow managed to walk out with just two tops (thanks to my shopping companions for “reining” me in, hyuk hyuk). though they cost an arm and a leg, i’m proud to add them to the western shirt collection i’ve slowly accrued over the years.

i present to you, my denver acquisition #1:
(please pardon my bloated chubby man face)

wait for it, waaaaaait for it…

unfortunately i like to roll up my sleeves, which means i can’t show these babies off

floral motif and a surly lookin’ cowboy

(photos of me courtesy of jan)

you can thank this guy, 107-year-old jack weil, founder of rockmount ranch wear, for introducing snap buttons, sawtooth pockets, and bolo ties to the world

i wanted this, but they didn’t have my size

one wall is lined with photos of celebrities rocking rockmount ranch wear

we seriously could’ve spent all day in here, if it weren’t for our flight

gotta have them all

if you have any vintage western shirts, check the label to see if it’s rockmount! can’t wait to wear my denver acquisition #2. soon. very soon.

ps – sorry about the way indulgent post. i was just super excited!

so THAT’S where they got it! this logo always struck me as, at best, smart and catchy, and at worst, mediocre. it’s always so inspirational to know how designers come up with their creations.

via poplicks

i’ll never be good enough to be a contender, but at least i can front with these, right?

i don’t know what it is, but i feel that it is my life calling to throw down the $43 for THESE SICK NINJA SHOES. perhaps just gazing upon them from time to time would please me enough. compelling, aren’t they? if you want a pair you can find them in san jose, here.

don’t forget to pick up sai and knuckle weaponry while you’re there.