finding cain

Motoi Yamamoto is a Japanese artist creating a name for himself by making intricate, large-scale installations using table salt. He recently finished two massive artworks inside an old castle: Floating Garden and Labyrinth . Both pieces are part of Univer'sel , an exhibition inside the walled medieval town of Aigues-Mortes in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France. The event opened two weeks ago and also includes the salt sculptures of Jean-Pierre Formica . Their work will be on view until November 30. [h/t: designboom ]

Art Bastard is about American painter Robert Cenedella — a contemporary of Andy Warhol's who set himself up in the '60s as the anti-Warhol. Critics call it " a vibrant and tender movie ." It opens in New York June 3. The film's IMDb entry provides more flavor: "What is art and how does it relate to society? Is its value determined by its popularity or originality? Is the goal profit or expressing one's personal vision? These are some of the questions raised as we follow fiercely independent New York artist Robert Cenedella in his artistic journey through decades of struggling for creative expression. A student, protégé and friend of German artist George Grosz, Cenedella is now passing on the legacy of Grosz's approach to art, in the very same room where Grosz taught. In portraying Cenedella's determination to buck the system of what's popular while critiquing that popularity in his attempt to turn the art world upside down, ART BAST...

Set to Julia Holter's This is a True Heart, Eagle Blue follows the story of a mother eagle looking to feed her young, but is lured into the town with the temptation of an easy meal.

I've never specifically asked myself what Jesus might look like as a bulul but I can't say I'm disappointed that Filipino artist Ronald Ventura made this mashup a reality. Anito Kristo , his most recent sculpture exhibition at Secret Fresh Gallery , reimagines Christ as the rice guardian of Northern Philippine tribes. Traditionally, bulul are installed in barns to protect rice from pests, thieves and spoilage. They are also credited for an increase in harvest, or even magically increasing rice in storage. Now they have lost their ritual significance and have been relegated to souvenirs and decorations. I've come to expect the unexpected with mashups, but I'll admit—I didn't see this one coming. Ronald is arguably the Philippines' most commercially successful visual artist. In 2011, he set a historic record at the Sotheby's Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Paintings auction in Hong Kong when his piece sold for nearly 47 million pesos. ...

While most artists use paintbrush, pen or pencil to create beautiful illustrations, Damien Noll wields his magnifying glass to etch elaborate designs on animal skulls and bones. His beautiful pyrography creations are born out of patience as he carefully applies solar heat on his 'canvas'.  Damien is originally from the US, but now lives in France. His work reminds me so much of another artist I previously featured, Jordan Mang-osan . To my surprise, these two know each other! Both artists met through social media, keeping correspondence until Damien decided to travel to Benguet to meet Jordan. The Filipino artist also harnesses the power of the sun to produce portraits that depict the rich heritage and landscape of the Cordilleras, where he is from. "Many of these skulls were processed by me from animals passed to me by local hunters in Southern France, Colorado, and Texas," Damien says. "In processing the animal skulls, one becomes intimate with these anim...

Cigarettes are as much an environmental problem as they are a health hazard. Walk along a beach or a bustling street and you step on a lot of cigarette butts. They have poor biodegradability, and for decades they have been thought of as 'unrecyclable'. But an engineer at Australia's RMIT University has found a way to not only divert some of those used filters from ending up in the environment, but also a way to make them into something useful: bricks. Dr. Abbas Mohajerani and his team discovered that fired-clay bricks made with cigarette butts can save energy and help solve a global littering problem. They were found to be lighter with better insulation properties, and their quality is hardly different from that of normal bricks. Mohajerani said: "Incorporating butts into bricks can effectively solve a global litter problem as recycled cigarette butts can be placed in bricks without any fear of leaching or contamination. "They are also cheaper to produc...

Mad Men fans now have the chance to own Don Draper's wallet, Peggy Olson's typewriter, and Roger Sterling's sunglasses. ScreenBid and the show's producer, Lionsgate, are auctioning off more than 1,500 props and memorabilia from the TV series to commemorate the one-year anniversary of its finale. The online sale begins June 1st and closes June 15th. Other items in the auction include Peggy's moving banker box, Joan Harris' office ice bucket and tumbler set, Harry Crane's AR coated eyeglasses, Bert Cooper's antique ashtray and Don's 1964 Chrysler Imperial that he used in episode 3 of season 4. According to ScreenBid's notes, the convertible is one of only 922 ever built. It has power steering, brakes, windows and antenna, and features "the iconic 413 V-8 wedge engine mated to the smooth-shifting 727 TorqueFllite push button automatic transmission." The initial bids for most of the items will start at under $100. [h/t: Th...

Love birds? So does Texas-based artist Kathy Boortz , who creates colorful sculptures of owls, parrots and other avian creatures using wood, clay and metal. I love them all, but I have a special liking for her sculptures made out of found pliers. Notice the starling below. Love its beak and claws. [h/t: True Blue Me & You ]

Everyone loves a good optical illusion, and this vanishing act by JR is nothing short of impressive. The French multimedia artist has spent the past few weeks covering the Louvre Pyramid with black and white wallpapers that mirror the famous palace behind it. When viewed from a certain angle, the pyramid seems to disappear completely. The eye-tricking installation will remain in place until June 27.

Siberian Nights is the latest track from The Kills, and it comes with a great video that reflects Jamie Hince's "icy, paranoid" vision for the song. The five-minute clip features a white horse and wolf dashing through the darkness, while a group of fancily-clad people seems to be performing some sort of ritual. It's directed by Giovanni Ribisi who, by the way, is one of my favorite character actors of all time.

Paris-based fashion brand Rombaut has created a line of unisex sneakers made from Piñatex, a non-woven textile that feels like leather and is produced from the fibers of pineapple leaves. It's very flexible but strong, making it a great alternative to animal leather. Other plant-based materials used in the production of these shoes include fig tree bark, wild Amazonian rubber, coconut fiber, tapa bark and potato starch. If you're interested in owning a piece of vegan fashion, check out Rombaut's web shop . [h/t: ecouterre ]

This is a $100 million, 500-foot-long replica of Noah's Ark. It's called the Ark Encounter , and is to become the main attraction at a unique Kentucky theme park set to open in July. The ship is seven storeys high, 85 feet wide and is perhaps the world's largest timber-framed building. Its design was based on dimensions in the Bible with an eye toward 4,000-year-old shipbuilding methods. Yes, it's huge. But it's also controversial. Ken Ham, the Australian fundamentalist responsible for the construction of the Ark, announced they will only hire Christians to staff the park — and future employees must sign a "statement of faith" avowing their beliefs. Of course critics slammed the "unreasonable" hiring process, but I won't delve deeper into the topic since I really don't care about religion. The gigantic boat will feature interactive exhibits including wooden cages with sculptures of various animals, including dinos...

ReadOn is a free mobile app that entices children to read. Every time a child turns on their mobile device, the first thing they see is a page of a children's book. The child has to read it, understand it, and then answer a question before the device is unlocked. The app was developed for Mexico but will be available worldwide.

Loving these Tarantino-themed posters by DC-based graphic designer and illustrator Tracie Ching . They're reminiscent of old tintype photographs and inspired by the filmmaker's most iconic films. They've been printed on French Paper's Steel Grey 100C and some even feature blood splatters on them. Beautiful! [h/t: From Up North ]

Here's a really interesting video that highlights some of the most unusual records ever pressed. I really like the zoetrope vinyls that produce continuous moving pictures when spun on a record player. But one of the coolest is probably The Flaming Lips's human blood-filled release of their 2012 album Heady Fwends . Among the celebrities who gave their blood samples were Nick Cave, Erykah Badu, Chris Martin and Ke$ha. There were just 10 copies made, with all of the proceeds going to The Oklahoma Humane Society and The Academy of Contemporary Music at UCO. [h/t: Sploid ]

Over the past couple of months, I've started following quite a number of hand-letterers and calligraphers on Tumblr and Instagram, and today I want to feature the work of Russian artist Pokras Lampas . The St. Petersburg native started off in the street art scene when he was just a teenager. He taught himself calligraphy when he was around 18 and, shortly after that, he started to merge the two techniques together, a style commonly known today as Calligraffiti. Pokras creates massive calligraphic compositions within an urban environment and interior, and he's always trying to experiment with forms and volumes of the typography. He is best know for his gigantic piece on the roof of the former Red October chocolate factory in Moscow , as well as his NSFW series called Calligraphy on Girls , where he uses the female body as canvas. Visit his  Instagram  and  online portfolio  for more stunning strokes.

This year has been amazing for animated music video s so far, and one of my favorites is this video for the song Hendrix off of Saverne's latest self-titled album. You could say that the inspiration for this short lies somewhere in between Mad Max and the graphic novels of Frank Miller. It's a little bit trippy, a little bit weird and a whole lot intriguing. Enjoy!

If you want to become a filmmaker, but don't know how to get started, and lack either the time or money for film school, take Werner Herzog's online filmmaking course. MasterClass has selected the eccentric German director to commit on video his thoughts about the craft, and taking lessons from one of the best filmmakers of all-time is a rare opportunity. For an enrollment fee of $90, Herzog's class offers twenty video lessons on every aspect of filmmaking, from "pre-production to distribution." Kevin Spacey and Dustin Hoffman both did MasterClasses on acting, and Usher did one where he teaches you how to become a better performer. Herzog is responsible for movies like Invincible , Grizzly Man , Rescue Dawn and Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call New Orleans.  He has produced, written, and directed over 70 feature and documentary films, and is regarded as one of the most influential directors alive. The trailer below offers a little taste of what you'll be ...

If you're after something to haunt your dreams for the next couple of days, look no further than these sculptures by French artist Paul Toupet. His work reflects the weird and the creepy; and you can easily tell that he is fascinated with the dark side.  Using mainly wax, papier mache and fabric, Paul creates all sorts of puppets inspired by animals, African and religious arts. From creatures that look they've just been hopping out of the crypt to children-like figures with bunny masks, there's no macabre sculpture that he can't accomplish with the right materials and a bit of imagination.

SRAM's new headquarters in Chicago is the ultimate office for avid cyclists. Considering that the company is the second largest manufacturer of bicycle parts in the world, it should come as no surprise that it has lots of bike-loving employees.  After securing a 72,000-square-foot cold storage warehouse in the Fulton Market district, SRAM asked design firm Perkins+Will to transform it into a comfortable place for the staff and their bikes, incorporating an indoor track, over 200 workspace bike racks, tire-filling areas, a bike washing station, and a fully-kitted locker room with showers. This is definitely one of the coolest office spaces in the world. [h/t: Bustle ]