The Spit Swap – Aaron Draplin & Invisible Creature
Design community oriented events usually satisfy our urges to see our kind in a condensed time & space, almost an excuse to see each other away from our screens, drink in hand, and in our socks, so-to-speak. There are very few occasions however where this is accompanied by the ability to see great work, hear magnetic speakers, and get stuffed with inspiration. This phenomenon is called Designspeaks. I have a special relationship with Designspeaks.... Read More
Starbucks Reserve flagship Portland store
The coffee snob that lives a hearty life inside me generally says “Starbucks” as much as Harry says “Voldemort.” But I am attracted to the only Starbucks in the world outside Seattle that is offering food, wine, and a different atmosphere from the Starbucks I fled years ago. This company has taken its lashes from this town. In SE Portland rocks were thrown through a shop’s windows, and the neighborhood rose such a... Read More
HMCS Whitehorse + Dunderdon
June is parade month in Portland, which includes fleet week as part of the Rose Festival lineup. Our friendly neighbors to the North usually compliment our banks with a ship or two and this year I toured both the Saskatoon and Whitehorse which are twin Kingston class coastal naval defense vessels. Canada has 12 of these 55 meter steel beauties, 6 on each coast. They’re not heavily armed, but more used for surveillance. The Whitehorse, where... Read More
The Labrador, a floating gallery
It would be hard to imagine something more awesome than an art gallery on a boat. We’re not talking about a yacht, a skiff, or a retail pleasure craft. Imagine a WWII Naval vessel, that after the war went up to Dutch Harbor, Alaska to join the crabbing fleets of the frigid Bering Sea. It’s 135 feet long and weighs 200 tons, and casts a long shadow on all the boats in the surrounding area, with its three story tower. This craft is so large... Read More
The Powell that giveth
We’re keeping it up in the Fort, thanks to a faithful reader! The truth is I’ve let the busy get in between my grubby little fingers and I myself haven’t been able to keep up with the universe. But, never to fear, we are alive and well, and have plenty to share and plenty behind the curtain. Just you wait. In the meantime, I have (humility be damned) been given the honor of being Mayor of Powell’s books on Foursquare. Which... Read More
That particular Flying Pigeon
Sometimes you get an object in your life that is just so on-brand that every time you interact with it, it feels like the first time. Perhaps that’s the way 1/2 billion Chinese citizens feel when they hop on their Flying Pigeons every day? This bike is 61 years old this July 5. If an alien came to Earth and made a single request for “bike,” this would be the specimen given, based on number produced, and number in use today. Many... Read More
Oral histories of North South Portland
There are three very talented designers sitting with their hands in their laps among piles of cookies and hot tea poured in real mugs in North South Portland for the next few weeks. North South Portland isn’t meant to confuse you, Field Work sits on the Northern border of South Portland, and you should go visit. Justin Flood, Sarah Baugh, and Nicole Lavelle are crafting a visual representation of a region no one really knows about. They have... Read More
Will Bryant invades Portland
Will Bryant is still in the city as I write this, but soon he’ll head back south to his lair in Austin, TX, and the gents over at Public School. During his visit he was kind enough to share some of his work in real-life with Portland up at Land Gallery on Mississippi Avenue. Walking into a room full of work I’d seen on the internet over the past few years was surreal! Chuck Norris, girls holding their breath, Bulls, all of the work that... Read More
Typhoooooon
Man it’s been a while since I’ve written anything about music, or uploaded a playlist. That is to mean I haven’t had anything to say about the subject until I decided to spend a moment on Typhoon. Sparked, the other day, when I saw the band arrive (largely) intact into a dimly lit cinema where I was sitting and I realized, these people are in my life, why haven’t I posted about them? Happily, I gave a refrained shout out in-theatre... Read More
The locals are winning
It’s safe to say you’re on Flickr. Most of us are, but do you geotag your photos? I started to, then I realized it was pretty high maintenance (at least for me). Well if you’ve taken a photo in a major city in the last year and geotagged it, it’s likely that one of these blue or red dots is yours. Eric Fisher took it a step further, however, by organizing the photos into local vs. tourist photographs. The blue dots represent... Read More