How do you transform a 60-yr old underground Trolley Terminal into an underground park complete with growing vegetation? Dan Barasch and James Ramsey want to use fiber optic cables to reflect surface sunlight underground. The result will be a first ever of its kind park lying under Delancey street, in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. [Read more...]
The “LowLine”– New York’s Proposed Underground Park
2011: A Look Back at The Year in Kickstarter
Kickstarter is officially a phenomenon! From funding civic projects like turning derilict New York lots into urban farms, to creative ventures like turning Michigan’s Rabbit Island into an Artists Residency or launching an inexpensive tool for shooting smooth video pans, the funding powerhouse is quickly revolutionizing the way we see grass roots projects come into reality… and no wonder: is there anything more exciting than being directly connected to making well thought out, world changing projects come to life and getting something back in return?? [Read more...]
Ikea Hack: Decorate With Records
I’m not sure how many of us have a collection of vinyl records these days, but according to graphic designer Shane Keaney, they could be used as an inexpensive and attractive decorating idea. Calling his project Rekordit, Keaney is currently seeking support through Kickstarter, the website that helps get funding to creative projects by anyone with a new and innovative idea. [Read more...]
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Brilliant: App Predicts Weather for the Near Future
We’ve all had plans to do something outdoors during a day when the weather prediction says 90% chance of rain… but when is that rain going to hit? Now, an in development app called Black Sky aims to answer that question, and look beautiful in the process [Read more...]
The New America: A Wooden, Laser Engraved Film
Nando Costa is burning his way toward the perfect Kickstarter. He’s making a unique animation using a laser engraver to precisely cut each frame of a film on a piece of wood. Temptingly, people that give to his project will get a unique piece of art from him and if you give $70 you will receive a one of kind engraved wood frame from the film. Costa has been directing animation for over 10 years and we enjoy his clean style, so we are looking forward to seeing the movie. You can see examples of his work at nandocosta.com, then head to his Kickstarter project where the more is donated the longer he can make the film [Read more...]
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Warped Paintings & A Proposition
Artist Evan deSpelder takes digitally manipulated, distorted images and paints them in what he describes as “photorealistic versions of abstract expressionism.” The playful interaction of realistic imagery with stretched bands of color reminds me of some imagined meeting between Salvador Dali and Mark Rothko.
Now deSpelder has a new project: he’s created a Kickstarter campaign to raise support for his work while at the same time allowing contributors to commission small works from him. Smaller contributions gain prints, while the smallest garners praise. Interest in the project has been enthusiastic and the goal of $2500 has already been reached, showing that small Kickstarter projects with good content can really benefit the artist. [Read more...]
Revolights: Let Your Wheels Light The Way
With the advent of LED lights, the world of illumination has been revolutionized with a tiny, low power alternative. As we showed you before with Project Aura, the technology is now being applied to the revolving wheels of bicycles. This new prototype by the Palo Alto California based Revolights continues a growing trend with a novel new take on the idea: by using a set of side mounted rims on each wheel the system is able to both call attention to your presence and cleverly illuminate the road both in front and behind your bicycle. For more information, peddle over to revolights.com, then swing by their Kickstarter campaign to get these made! [Read more...]
A Revolutionary New Pool for NYC?
The unique idea of 3 overheated New Yorkers, this concept for a new floating public pool in the waters around Manhattan could be a welcome relief from the sweltering city heat. Their project, the +Pool, is currently raising support through a Kickstarter campaign and matches the iconic ‘+’ shape of the cities intersections. What makes the design really different? In order to give swimmers a direct connection to the river, the pool will utilize a unique green tech filtration system within it’s walls to fill itself directly from the surrounding river… and because of it’s shape, it will be able to be sectioned off for multiple uses, from free swim to swim meets. [Read more...]
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#killswitch: A Documentary About the Free Internet
From historic uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East to the Telecom mergers in the States, 2011 has already proven to be a pretty tumultuous year for the Internet… and we’ve still got 6 months to go.
Enter the new documentary #killswitch. The filmmakers at Akorn Entertainment aim to make the case that a free and open Internet is essential for democracy and they launched a kickstarter.com campaign to prove it. Topics of the film include: the special relationship between Internet Service Providers and the United States Government; media consolidation; Julian Assange and WikiLeaks; and the revolving door between governments and big media. [Read more...]
