Link About It: This Week’s Picks
Naming space objects, a new design for Rockefeller Center Plaza, the history of pink and more in our look at the web
1. Help NASA Nickname New Horizons’ Next Target
A small, frozen world known as (486958) 2014 MU69 is the next flyby destination for NASA’s New Horizons. Understandably, the space agency thinks it needs a snappier name. Some billion miles past Pluto, MU69 is located in the Kuiper Belt and is now in the market for a nickname. Hosted online, there’s a contest where the public can suggest names and vote on them. (Perhaps NASA should be reminded of Boaty McBoatface.) Read more at NASA.
2. Nienke Helder’s Sensory Objects for Rehabilitation
Presented at Dutch Design Week this year, Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Nienke Helder’s sensory objects are made for rehabilitation, not just pleasure. Created to help women recover from sexual abuse, the pieces are made for people to explore their sense of touch—to rediscover in a way what they enjoy and what they don’t. Helder worked with medical experts and women in recovery, and also used her own experience of rehab, “I was really frustrated with the way we treat these kinds of issues. In my opinion, the treatments that I got only made it worse. It was totally taking me away from the sexual context; it became really clinical. It was so focused on this end goal of penetration that I totally lost all fun in my sexuality.” Read more at Dezeen.
3. Rockefeller Center Plaza’s Radical Redesign
Italian architects Citterio-Viel & Partners have been tasked with the future of one of NYC’s best-known landmarks: Rockefeller Center Plaza. A rendering has been revealed, showing the planned redesign. It will add 35,000 square feet of retail space and stairwells into the subterranean space. Learn more at Architectural Digest, where they probe whether it “will take away any of the fame or glitz of the nearby sunken ice rink in front of 30 Rockefeller Center.”
4. Cindy Sherman To Collaborate With Supreme
Perhaps an unlikely collaboration but one that we’re notably excited about, artist Cindy Sherman will be working with Supreme on two limited edition skateboards. The decks will feature works from Sherman’s 1987 “Grotesque” series of photo stills, for which she moved away from self-portraits. Featuring “Untitled #181” and “Untitled #175,” the artworks are glossy and as the title might lead one to believe, also a little gross.
5. A New High (Note) at the Met Opera
In 137 years, NYC’s The Metropolitan Opera has played host to many firsts. And yet, only with their new opera production, Thomas Adès’ “The Exterminating Angel,” has the venue heard an A above high note. Soprano Audrey Luna delivers the masterful moment, which most likely will go unnoticed by many. As the New York Times points out, “a high A—a combination of genetic gifts, rigorous training and psychological discipline over two fragile vocal cords—is monumental.” It’s beyond rare and demanding. Adès’ opera, an adaptation of the 1962 Luis Buñuel film, runs through 21 November. You can read more at the Times.
6. COS + Snarkitecture’s Huge Marble Run in Seoul
Suspended from the ceiling of Seoul’s Gana Art Gallery is COS and Snarkitecture’s latest collaboration: a huge, lilac-colored marble run. The installation (titled “Loop”) has four tracks on which every five seconds, a glass marble is released and travels the run—only to be dropped into a pile of marbles in another room. Snarkitecture co-founder Daniel Arsham says, “While we wanted the design to be playful, we were mindful of creating a work that provided an escape. It was important to offer a setting and feeling that were completely new and inspiring to visitors.” Read and see more at Dezeen.
7. Singapore Airlines’ Fancy New First-Class
Debuting in December on Singapore Airlines’ Singapore-Syndey route, the company’s new first-class suite is a serious upgrade. Not only are the rooms 60% larger than the old ones, but they also include a leather recliner and a single bed—couples seated together can even double up and receive a double bed option. This update—which will ultimately be applied to 19 Airbus A380s—is part of the airline’s three-year plan to make it more efficient and profitable.
8. The History of the Color Pink
Known in Chinese as “foreign color,” pink has a rich and interesting history—in nature, art and culture. From its use in the 1700s in fashion and decor, to the 18th century Rococo movement, and today’s “millennial pink” craze, it’s a hue that has plenty of historical signposts. Perhaps most fascinating about the color, it’s not part of the electromagnetic spectrum, Christina Olsen says, “When we see pink, we’re not seeing actual wavelengths of pink light. It’s an extra-spectral color, which means other colors must be mixed to generate it.” Read more at Artsy.
Link About It is our filtered look at the web, shared daily in Link and on social media, and rounded up every Saturday morning.
