Bobbing along in the water of Miami’s Biscayne Bay, Brooklyn-based fine artist Michael Kagan’s 400-pound space capsule sculpture looks as if it has just dropped down from an astronomical adventure above. Presented by New York’s Half Gallery, the work strikes a mesmerizing balance of realism and fantasy. This isn’t Kagan’s first foray into space-exploration art. As Artnet reports, he “has long made paintings of astronauts, …
$325
SVNR designer Christina Tung collaborated with stylist Mecca James-Williams to create a lush, hand-dyed slip dress that celebrates and pays homage to the stylist’s homeland. “My ode to Jamaica is rooted in honoring my ancestors as well as my future and finding my creativity to connect the diaspora in the here-and-now. Jamaica is a magical place where nature meets spirit,” says James-Williams. Capturing this magical …
At Special Music School, NYC’s only music-focused K-12 public school, English teacher Shannon Potts assigned her sixth, seventh and eighth grade classes to study Florence Price, the first Black woman to have her music played by a major American orchestra. But as her students learned more about Price—whose contributions have become largely erased from historical and cultural memory—they realized there was little written about her, …
Mayukh Sen writes about food and its relation to cultural symbols through a decolonialized and anticapitalist perspective. In his recently released, debut book, Taste Makers: Seven Immigrant Women Who Revolutionized Food in America, he does so by crafting profiles on overlooked chefs and cooks in order to rectify what he calls the “cultural amnesia” that erased them from history. “Who has to take on the burden …
Located in California’s Inyo National Forest, the most ancient tree on record—a bristlecone pine named ‘Methuselah’—is over 4,800 years old. Dendrochronologists (researchers who study the science of dating tree rings) discovered bristlecones are some of the oldest individual trees by taking core samples from trunks, which indicate the tree’s chemical, climate and growth history. This method is especially fruitful for future planning. “What we’re seeing …
A new study published in the journal Nature Communications revealed that scientists created an ink from the toxic microbe E coli. These researchers found that when growing and feeding E coli bacteria, it secreted an ink made of living cells, which they then they used to plug into 3D printers. This project, while still underway, holds greater implications with regard to the future of sustainable, self-producing …
$29
This fortune cookie kit yields a total of 48 of the beloved Chinese takeout treats in an easy but creative way. It includes all ingredients (flour, superfine sugar and cocoa powder) as well as a silicone baking mat, 60 pre-written fortunes and customizable blank ones, an edible ink pen and step-by-step instructions to make the process stress-free. Thanks to Global Grub’s giveback program, proceeds from …
$15
Including one .5g hemp pre-roll accompanied by a sleek refillable lighter, Her Highness NYC’s Last Prisoner Project Set offers more than a relaxed smoking experience: 50% of the proceeds go to the advocacy and prison reform non-profit, which directly supports women who have been unjustly incarcerated for low-level cannabis infractions. Each pre-roll has been filled with CBD flower that’s been sourced from a minority-owned hemp …
$60
Handcrafted in Connecticut from durable punk wood, this incense bundle utilizes essential oils to repel bugs. The scent options include: lemongrass, orange and sage (a citrus-led formula); sage, coffee, cinnamon and cedarwood (a rich, warm and spicy blend); and tea tree, lavender and neem (a herb-heavy and minty aroma). Each stick provides around two hours of burn time and, due to their 19-inch length, can …
$95
Designed by marijuana and pottery enthusiast Seth Rogen for his cannabis smoking accessories company, Houseplant, this new moss-colored set pairs a deep-well ceramic ashtray with a saucer and a vase for flowers. The glazed two-tone earthenware style is both minimal and soothing—and, as the brand notes, the saucer can double as an ashtray itself.
With their brand new two-track EP, B.O.Y., recording artist Miles Francis offers two upturned, unexpected renditions of famous boy band hits. Francis reworked *NSYNC’s “I Want You Back” from 1996 along with (our personal favorite) Backstreet Boys’ “The Call” from 2000. The singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist’s gripping take brings new dimension to the tracks. “Boy band music dominated my life when I was young,” they …
Iranian Dutch singer-songwriter Sevdaliza announced her upcoming Raving Dahlia EP (out 25 February) with “The Great Hope Design,” an ominous and bewitching track she wrote and produced with Mucky (aka Reynard Bargmann). The song comes along with the reveal of Sevdaliza’s robot—a Femmenoid named Dahlia which was created “to convey the harsh truth about navigating in the music industry as a woman who does not …
With “invisible design” at its core, innovation-centric brand MOFT (which stands for Mobile Office for Travelers) aims to eliminate fuss and add freedom to your experience when using tech devices for work or creative play. Crafting compact, lightweight and practical accessories remains paramount for the company, whose products are robust without being clunky, practical without being dull and portable without feeling flimsy. This is possible …
$23
Crafted from hand-poured, sustainably sourced beeswax and natural pigments, each of the eight crayons in The Rounds set represents a different skin tone. These thick drawing or coloring implements have rounded tips, allowing for smooth lines. It’s the mission of the brand behind these thoughtful art tools, All of Us Crayons, to allow anyone and everyone to portray their loved ones within their art.
$42
Mason’s Planets Handmade Sidewalk Chalk features each of the nine celestial bodies from our solar system (yes, including Pluto). All of the orbs are composed of multiple layers of color that are revealed through use. The Pennsylvania-based brand that produces them, TWEE, donates $2 from the sale of each set to benefit autism research at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
British artist Ama Lou puts a Drill-inspired spin on her latest four-track EP, AT LEAST WE HAVE THIS, from which the last song “Talk Quiet” stands out. Across strong 808s and creeping keys, the singer and songwriter flexes her varied vocal tones, flowing to effortless rhythm. In her live performance, the track gets an acoustic, stripped-back rendition where her potent voice and instrumentals are even more …
Jakarta-born, LA-based artist NIKI (aka Nicole Zefanya) has released her gorgeously languid, retro-tinged “Split” on 88rising. With soft percussion and a bluesy energy, the song chronicles the feeling of living away from home—splitting time and life between two places. “I wrote it about having to split myself between Indonesia and LA and feeling like I have to constantly ‘split the difference,’ adapt, assimilate all the …
$65
Handmade at the The Engine House Studio in Salford, Greater Manchester by multi-disciplinary artist Amy Victoria Marsh, every single Furry Friend Ornaments is unique—as Marsh creates them in the likeness of your pet. Once a purchase is made, customers simply email photos and descriptions of their furry friend so Marsh can immortalize them in stoneware clay and ceramic pencil. While every piece differs, most measure …
$40
From the imaginative plant enthusiasts at London-based Ilex Studio comes the newest iteration of their beloved root-magnifying vessel line: the Avocado Vase in Emerald Green. From the clarity of its minimal design to the simple nature of the growth process it supports, the Avocado Vase can enable anyone with an interest in sprouting a bit of flora at home. Price is in Pounds.
$45
Made in Hawaii by Ilio and Co for Portland-based Kiriko, these dog collars use traditional Japanese fabrics for an accessory that’s as sturdy as it is stylish. The brass hardware compliments the prints and this Seigaiha (or “sea and waves”) pattern is our favorite. Two sizes are available—15-inch medium or 19-inch large—along with matching (or mismatching) leashes.
