We Learned Stuff in 2012

The folks here at Pattern Pulp all tend to be inquisitive, always looking to learn and grow. Whether we’re exploring the world of DIY, hearing about the details of someone else’s process or learning about each other, there’s always something to gain and connections to be made.

This year we:

1. Learned how to frame our art from Ms. Lim.

2. Made a music video on a shoestring budget with Lesley Morphy.

3. Celebrated our mothers and realized how much they’ve influenced our closets.

4. Found out how to sew a sock lock.

5. Were blown away by the live performance (and the clothing!) in Sruli Recht‘s SS13 presentation, Circumsolar and Fragments of Dying Light.

6.Spotted a fascinating chocolate mill and it’s many layered hidden textures.

7. Stumbled upon a fabulous mysterious patterned building in Bushwick.

8. Enjoyed silly, beat-driven music with Sam and the Womp.

9. Went to lunch with Katie and Kristine.

10. Talked about the importance of Role Modolls.

December 21, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik

Set Design using Cymatic Patterns

Here’s an example of life imitating art and vice versa, compliments of Meara O’Reilly. O’Reilly created these designs as a multimedia backdrop for Björk’s Biophilia world tour. By day, Meara works as a sound artist and educator, in residence at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. This is just one of many projects where she uses cymatic effects to reflect the texture in sound through vibration in matter.

December 3, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik

Merging Creativity & Criminal Justice

Busy, graphic and bold, just like it’s purpose. The Young New Yorker’s Project was recently forwarded along by Sam Fleischner, a very talented NY-based filmmaker, who (fun fact) also went to my high school. He recently shot Santigold’s Disparate Youth video and is in the process of creating Stand Clear of the Closing Doors, thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign.

Fleischner’s known for uncovering and artfully sharing stories belonging to segments often forgotten by society and was an active part of this initiative over the summer. Founded by Sara Feinberg and Rachel Barnard, the goal is a simple one, to revise the curriculum for 16 and 17 year olds prosecuted as adults within New York State. Ambitious at it’s core and responsible in it’s execution, it’s refreshing to see alternative methods of system reformation.

October 23, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik

Kaleidoscopic Styles on Film

Have you heard of Matt Sundin? This film is a delicate window into his artistic style. Sundin shoots video while simultaneously shooting stills. The results are soulful and the emerging and disappearing shapes speak to the ever-present kaleidoscopic theme that’s been a fashion mainstay over the past year. Camille Mervin-Leroy is the star and the styling is by Meagan Camp.

After watching Gia Coppola‘s presentation a month ago, and Barney’s autobiographical model stories a month before that, it really got me thinking about film, and the soulful narrative it should emit. I realize this is an obvious point, though when you think of fast fashion and consumerism, there’s often a mental roadblock. In the age of social media where bloggers and click-through rates rule, the industry grips to the most shareable, trend-worthy topics: internet memes and viral pop songs. This piece is a nice reminder that an abstract, artistic work can make a similarly strong impression.

October 5, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik

Lessons in Technology from Estonia

Sometimes our posts are a little monkey-see-monkey-do, but that’s the nature of a visual site: to provide bright, compelling content that’s thoughtful and relevant throughout the market. Today I’d like to return to my researcher roots and share a few thoughts on an article that I was particularly moved by.

This past weekend, Thomas Friedman wrote a piece for the New York Times entitled, New Rules, describing how schools in Estonia are adding coding to the elementary curriculum in the hopes of solving hiring problems for the future.

Having just returned from Tallinn (Estonia) I witnessed the technology boom first hand. It almost felt like San Francisco- save for the fact that I was on Russian/Scandinavian territory. Skype was developed there and many of the conversations at the cafes and restaurants I visited were tech related. Unsurprisingly Tallinn’s Foursquare tips were also abundant.

There’s free wifi on every other street (Paris could take a hint) and Facebook, Google, PriceWaterHouseCoopers and many other American businesses have engineering offices based in Estonia- it’s one of the coding and development capitals of Europe. So that brings me back to patterns. And the future. And the idea of staying relevant in today’s fast-changing world.

Friedman puts it best quoting futurist Alvin Toffler, “lliteracy will not be defined by those who cannot read and write, but by those who cannot learn and relearn. Any form of standing still is deadly.”

Here are a few photos from my time in Tallinn. I thought it would be nice to share a taste of the creative culture. So what are your thoughts on the matter? Do you ever think about the evolution of your industry, where it’s going and how you’re going to stay relevant?

September 11, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik

Texturizing Moving Media

Moving into the realm of video game design, IBM’s recent banner ads promoting Pure Systems playfully animates their famous campaign graphics. Though the reel plays a bit too quickly to capture progressive screen shots, you get the idea. In our opinion, this teaser illustrates a meeting of the minds and tools needed in a toolkit. Do you get it?

September 7, 2012 | By: Shayna Kulik