"oben hui, unten pfui"

There is a German expression that does not translate well into English: "oben hui, unten pfui." (literally "haute on top, phew underneath") My mother would use this idiom when I was a child to remind me that my underwear should always be clean - not just the clothing that showed. This is obviously an admonishment that the designer of this ladies room in the brand new terminal at RDU airport never heard. Yes, there is an elegant granite countertop, but mostly what you see is this mess. What was the designer thinking? Could that "granite" budget not have been spent for a more elegant solution?

Le Corbusier is in London this Spring

This is more inspiration for today's "Small House Movement" and for the "Life is Good despite the Economy" crowd. Various exhibitions are being shown this spring in London showcasing the Bauhaus architect Le Corbusier's work. The most intriguing is a replica of the simple yet charming vacation house Cabanon, on a rocky coastal cliff that he presented to his wife as a gift - showing at the Royal Institute of British Architects. Cabanon is truly what I would call a vacation house, where the view is everything. Easy to maintain, it has no kitchen - only a door to the restaurant next door. The replica is sponsored by the Italian furniture maker Cassina, who holds access to all Le Corbusier's furniture designs, sketches and prototypes. LUXURYCULTURE.COM has all the facts in case you are in London this spring and gorgeous photographs in case you can't be there. (The photo show above is from Wikipedia.com by Berthold Werner)

More on Graffiti - Art or Crime?

Was getting arrested for vandalism a PR stunt for his museum show or denial of freedom of speech for Shepard Fairey? Fairey, famous for the Obama poster, (New York Times story) was arrested on his way to the museum opening at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Boston recently, but there was no proof that he was responsible for the posters of his work that had been put up in public spaces all over town. I guess this is like Martha Stewart going to jail for selling her stocks at the same time that the real criminals like Madoff are robbing people blind - but then I just posted that I found charm in graffiti on a gray day so I guess I have come to the conclusion that graffiti is no crime. At the end of the day, I still find that graffiti is a nuisance and should be controlled.

Was this instance more of a publicity stunt on the part of the authorities to say: "We are watching out for the public," while real crime and defacement of public and private property goes on unabated?

Germany's graffiti problem has reached a tipping point - at some point they must have unofficially declared graffiti as art and they have left it to fester everywhere in frightening amounts. But no where was it more frightening than in the New York subways before Mayor Guiliani cleaned things up there.

historia de un letrero (video original)

It is not what you say, but how you say it.

What does modesty have to do with the economy?

USA Today regularly gets the zeitgeist right. An article entitled "Retailers widen options, including more modest clothes" says we are covering up more because we want more versatility and longevity from our fashions.

The article features a group called PureFashion.com, a group of teen models. Founded by Brenda Sharman in 2006, she "already knew public sentiment was starting to lean in favor of her modesty mission. However, she didn't think there would be much concern about low necklines and high hemlines in a time of staggering economic pressure and spiraling unemployment. But now, she believes the economy has become a boon."

It will be interesting to watch to see if the new modesty has a relative impact on the bottom line of such retailers as Aberchrombie and Fitch or whether the retailer will change its emphasis in response to the trends.

What do Acela and Louis Vuitton have in common?

Having spent the snowiest day in 5 years in New York traipsing around SOHO, I was happy to be on the Acela looking out from behind my long down coat. New York to Boston is such a spectacular ride along the shoreline, I always make sure to get a seat on the Long Island Sound side. On this particular day it was the graffiti that caught my eye and seeing it at the "speed of Acela" I was charmed by its appeal - it cheered up a dreary, dismal and colorless afternoon for me.

I have previously taken notice of and reported on the crossover of graffiti and tattoo art to luxury items, but never personally could see it. Today I could, or maybe it was just my memory of seeing the Stephen Sprouse revival in the Louis Vuitton window in Soho - it too was more noticeable on that snowy morning.

For an engaging riff on the artistry of handbags see Handbags of the Apocalypse.