Ai Weiwei Rocks Gagnam Style, Guest Edits New Statesman

Over the past several months, Ai Weiwei and his legal team have continued to fight the tax evasion charges that saddled him with 15 million yuan ($2.4 million) in fines. The artist recently lost his second and final appeal. “We’ve been making a lot of effort getting our evidence, documenting our company’s financial activities,” he told CNN on the day of the latest court ruling. “And the court didn’t really show any hard evidence today to convict us. They’re openly violating the law by infringing on tax payers’ basic rights and ignoring lawful requests time and time again.” Nonetheless, Ai’s work—and play—continue apace. A video (below) shows him rocking Gagnam style dance moves in a pink t-shirt that he occasionally accessorizes with handcuffs. On a more serious note, Ai served as guest editor for the October 18 issue of the New Statesman, the London-based political and cultural magazine. “This special issue, on China, its complex present and its future challenges, is written by Chinese authors and activists and showcases work by Chinese photographers,” said editor Jason Cowley. “It is the New Statesman, made in China.”

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The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

As a needle passes over this vinyl globe by Japanese designer Yuri Suzuki, it plays folk music and national anthems from around the world (+ movie).

The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

When the needle moves along its metal arc it plays sounds from the grooves cut into the sphere, much like a traditional vinyl record player. Suzuki has been working on The Sound of the Earth since 2009 and has now unveiled a prototype, although the design doesn’t work perfectly yet – as the movie above shows, the music skips as the globe turns.

The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

“Initially this project idea came from [a desire] to store data in physical media,” he told Dezeen. ”I have travelled to many countries and each country has a field recording, so you can experience a 30 minute soundscape from top to end.” The sounds include pop music, national anthems, traditional folk music and spoken word recordings.

The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

The globe is the latest of Suzuki’s creations involving sound, which also include a set of pens that record sound as a line on paper and a stylus and speaker that run along a vinyl track. More recently we featured his radio made from a circuit board based on the London Tube map. Suzuki has been nominated for the PAD Prize for young designers this year.

The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

This isn’t the first music player shaped like a globe to appear on Dezeen – we also featured a round CD player mounted on a tilted axis.

The Sound of the Earth by Yuri Suzuki

Photographs are by Hitomi Kai Yoda.
The movie is by Alice Masters and Pierrick Mouton.
Concept collaborator: Yoshihiro Katsumata
Development and engineering: Kimura (Tasco Inc), Akichika Tanaka
Sound programming: Bengt Sjolen

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Ops! Rock Collection: Jumbo gems and soft silicone in a new line

Ops! Rock Collection

Having made a playful name for itself with its ultra-thin Flat watches, Ops! Objects has most recently added to its silicone and jumbo gem family with the Rock collection. The oversized rocks point to the hyperbolic notion of “bling” with a light attitude and bright colors. Swapping out precious…

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The Ganzfeld EP: Matmos celebrates 20 years of experimental music with a psychological thriller

The Ganzfeld EP

For their 20th anniversary as both musical and romantic partners, M.C. Schmidt and Drew Daniel—a duo better known as Matmos—are releasing an evocative new EP that dives deep into the psyche. Dubbed “The Ganzfeld,” the intriguing three-track compilation is a literal reflection of four years of telepathic experimentation and…

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Ceramic Subwoofer: Joey Roth takes his porcelain speakers to the next level of audio bliss

Ceramic Subwoofer

In 2009 product designer Joey Roth wowed us with the debut of his beautiful Ceramic Speakers, made by hand with little more than porcelain, wood and cork. Now after three years of extensive prototyping and numerous other projects, Roth announces a matching Ceramic Subwoofer to seamlessly improve his speaker’s…

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Sia – She Wolf

Le réalisateur Hiro Murai nous présente un combat entre nature et univers digital dans ce clip « She Wolf » réalisé pour illustrer le morceau de David Guetta et Sia. Tournée en Islande, cette vidéo illustre l’évocation de la puissance des loups pour se venger de chasseurs impitoyables. A découvrir dans la suite.

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Stolen Moments

Our interview with photographer Ruvan Wijesooriya on following LCD Soundsystem for seven years

Stolen Moments

Best known for capturing snippets of NYC nightlife and portraits of art-world celebrities, New York photographer Ruvan Wijesooriya also served as the official photographer for music label DFA. While shooting for them Wijesooriya worked closely with its co-founder, James Murphy—perhaps better known as the founding member of LCD Soundsystem….

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Piramida

Sampled sounds from an Arctic ghost town comprise the unlikely music on Efterklang’s new album

Piramida

Perpetually in search of new possibilities in the realm of music, the trio behind the Danish band Efterklang set out on a sound-seeking mission last August to the remote island of Spitsbergen to create their fourth album, Piramida. Over the course of their nine-day expedition on the Arctic isle—one…

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Institute of Incoherent Cinematography

Silent films set to a background of live music bring culture for the China Tour

Institute of Incoherent Cinematography

Located in the former Hong’en Daoist Temple in the heart of the old city, the Zajia Lab has become an epicenter of Beijing cultural life. In the past several months, it has welcomed some of Beijing’s most respected musicians and documentary filmmakers to the stage, so it was hardly…

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Hand Lettering Experience

En s’inspirant de la vidéo de Bob Dylan « Subterranean Homesick Blues » et en reprenant le même concept des paroles écrites sur des panneaux, Leandro Senna nous propose de découvrir en vidéo 66 cartes proposant chacune une typographie différente pour un rendu époustouflant. A découvrir dans la suite.

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