The Art of Jose Mertz

Jose Mertz is someone who doesn't mind breaking out of his comfort zone. The Miami-based visual artist blends the contemporary and the traditional and draws inspiration from science fiction, ancient civilizations and the mystic arts. Whether it's a collaboration with Adidas, a mural for Dr. Smood, or a poster for Pacific Rim: Uprising, Jose seems to approach each project with the same passion.

After graduating from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2002, Jose decided to live in New York and studied Zen for several years. During that time he also traveled the world and encountered different people that would eventually inspire his work and change his life.

Below are some of my favorites, but you can check out his website and Instagram for more.

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Powered by body heat, this tiny flashlight doesn't need batteries

For the past ten years or so, I've made it a habit to carry a tiny penlight in my pocket whenever I travel. I wouldn't consider myself a hardcore flashlight enthusiast, but when I was younger I used to collect flashlights of different shapes, sizes and output colors. I still have them, lying somewhere in the house, ready for action in case of a zombie apocalypse. If you're looking for a small flashlight with enough light output to find objects in the dark but would rather not keep supplying it with batteries, you might be interested in Lumen. It doesn't need any external energy source except your body heat. Ross Zhuravskiy is using Kickstarter to raise funding for his creation, and with 26 days until his initiative closes, he officially surpassed his initial $5,000 goal thanks to 477 backers. So how does it work? "Lumen has relatively simple work principle - you touch TEG (Thermoelectric Generator) - small ceramic bar that can produce electric current when ...

Preserved tattoos of the dead

The idea of preserving tattoos after death came into existence long before NAPSA . London's Wellcome Collection has over 300 specimens of preserved human flesh bearing tattoos , collected in the late 19th century. There are many more examples of smaller collections in Paris, Poland, Portugal, Berlin, and Austria. But what fascinates me the most is this lesser-known museum at Tokyo University, the Medical Pathology Museum, which houses pieces of skin collected since 1926 by Dr. Masaichi Fukushi. "Fukushi would perform autopsies on donated cadavers and dissect off just the skin. He created a method of treatment to preserve the skin and kept them stretched in a glass frame, essentially like a leather. Later the ownership of the tattooed skin collection was passed on to Fukushi's son Katsunari. Katsunari added a further 20 tattooed skins himself and it's believed that the Medical Pathology Museum has 105 in its collection, many with full body suits." ...

The Unexpected Visitor

Eugene Silva was born and raised in Tanauan, Batangas, the youngest of five siblings in an upper middle-class family. He went to the Philippine Science High School and then U.P., where he intended to major in applied physics. Eugene is around 5'9, with dark sad eyes, a small birthmark on his nape, and wavy hair half covering his ears. He's six years younger than I am and he has this serious look on his face, but he's really a humorous guy who always takes time to talk to everyone he encounters. I first met Eugene when I was working at Runway Productions, an events management company filled with hot biracial women. "This is f*cking brilliant – why on earth didn't I do this before," he whispered in my ear while taking photos of Michiko, a gorgeous half-Japanese model he was attracted to. I used to supply Mich with weed and hash. She grew up in Boston and was a funny lap dancer, but that's another story. Although the idea of becoming a physicist intere...

finding cain

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