Lunar New Year Ceramics and ’80s Hip-Hop Flyers

Photo: The Record Issue, El Museo del Barrio Collection, New York. Gift of El Foco, Inc., @studiomisch/Mischelle Moy, Courtesy of Photographer/City Museum of New York

Every two weeks, I’ll collect and share stuff, designers, news, and events worth knowing about.

This hand-painted silkscreen by Charlie Ahearn is printed by Gary Lichtenstein Editions, with flyers from Pete Nice, Sureshot LaRock, DJ Ross, Paradise Gray, and the Cornell Hip Hop Collection.
Photo: The Charlie Ahern Collection

There’s a sprawling exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York about the music scene in the 1980s, a time when every artist seemed eager to make something new and hungry to see and hear what others were doing. Show curator Sean Corcoran describes the time as “an era of genre-defying creativity and performance that, in my opinion, is one of the most influential in musical and cultural history.” movies like Wild Style And the music video for “Rapture” gave me a glimpse into how strong the city’s music scene was before Koch cracked down on nightlife and redeveloped iconic venues. The gallery tries to recreate that energy by focusing on a handful of shows at venues like CBGB, Danceteria, and Mudd Club. But the piece that stayed in it the most was a 1980’s silkscreen painting Wild Style Director Charlie Ahern of hip-hop artist Dot-A-Rock and his flyer collection. Seeing who was performing with whom, where, and all the hand-drawn lettering and illustrations sums up the energy of time. Until June 2022.

Last spring, the designers at Standard Issue, a consulting firm in Gowanus, began photographing open-air restaurants they had discovered in their neighbourhoods. They didn’t know what to do with all the pictures while they were taking them, but now they can be found in them Al Fresco: Resilience in New York CityThe first book on the streets made it to my desk. It is a pleasure to flip. The book captures a very specific moment in early street design, after the custom structures survived their first winter and before some of the more elaborate architecture began to emerge. “One friend referred to barns as contemporary urban folk art,” says Michael McGinn, Partner at Standard Issue. “We like to think our little shot of New York City shacks tells that story.” The studio initially sent the book out to friends and clients, but plans to have a second print because so many people have requested copies of it. It’s not available for sale yet, but if you’re interested in one of them, send a note to info@standardissuedesign.com.

Stayed a few weeks to see En Foco: The Puerto Rican New York Experience, 1973-1974. Charles Biacini Rivera, Roger Caban and Felipe Dante, founding members of the En Foco collective in the Bronx, created this collection of 79 images to make sure everyday life in Puerto Rico is represented in fine art photography. En Foco made the collection a correction to fine art documentary photography in the early 20th century that “visually whitened an entire community,” according to Biasiny-Rivera. Images show small business owners appearing in court at luncheons and barbershops, smiling migrant farm workers with huge heads of just-picked cauliflower, and elegantly dressed students in a public school cafeteria. One of the images that stuck in my mind was Biasiny-Rivera’s photo taken in 1974 during a protest at PS 188 in response to the school board’s removal of two co-directors: a woman sitting and putting her hand on her chin – much like Dorothea Lange. immigrant mother – While Raising a protest banner against racism in the school system. It’s a scene that could have happened today. Photographers have donated the 79 photos of El Museo, which she showed in 1979. This is the first time the complete collection has been shown since then. Until February 27.

Photos: @studiomisch/Michelle Moy.

Photos: @studiomisch/Michelle Moy.

The oldest store in Chinatown has a constantly exciting contemporary art program, led by Mi Lum, the owner of the fifth generation. Next week, Wing On Wo & Co. is launching. A new series of artistic collaborations with the WOW creative team centered around the Lunar New Year. These bundles – which will be rolling out over the next month – include a set of bok choy bowls; Ceramic tray by Tiffany Saw for sharing sweets and treats that represent abundance; And a pumpkin-shaped wine set by Saw and Tomie Arai for an altar that comes with pumpkin-shaped and clementine-shaped candles. These collections beautifully show how traditional sacred objects and rituals can be modernized from a modern perspective.

Photos: MoMA Design Store.

Photos: MoMA Design Store.

With Florona spreading across the country, entertaining at home seems to be the only responsible way to see friends. So I’m thinking of upgrading my cutlery to make sharing a meal more special. I was looking forward to these ’80s Bodum sunglasses that the MoMA Design Store reissued for their fall-winter collection. Since the pandemic began, the team has relied more on archival research because visiting trade fairs to obtain new products has been difficult. MoMA Store buyer Annie Uchenklaus got hold of some vintage Bodum catalogs where she’d seen these chunky geometric eyeglasses and worked with the brand to bring them back. Mugs, martini glasses, and champagne flutes are dead rings of the original 1983 products—the same colors and same shapes—but made from recycled plastic.