Holy Millions, Batman!

Last year, a copy of the first Superman comic sold for $317,200. Now a copy of the 1939 comic where Batman made his debut sold for more than $1 million! The buyer remains anonymous, it was sold at a Dallas auction house. This purchase of Detective Comics No. 27 broke all kinds of records. A couple days ago, another copy of the 1938 edition of Action Comics No 1, featuring Superman on the cover, also sold for $1 million. But this recent purchase of the Batman copy has beaten that record.

Twitter Background Dimensions

I wanted to re-tweek my twitter profile's background (for my daytime job) recently. I scoured the web for the background dimensions but didn't find one that worked for me. I tested a few sizes and came up with one that worked well.

Dimensions: 1280 px x 800 px, 72 dpi
Branding/design area: Start from 0.2 inches off the left side and end it at 3.7 inches from the left.
Start from 0.2 inches from the top.

I only used the left side of the profile for the designs so you'll have to experiment with the right side, but it probably is around the same dimensions.

Here is the example: twitter.com/weroqq

Remember, how it looks depends on what kind of resolution you set for your screen. If anyone has different ideas, feel free to leave a comment.

Sex Club Opens in Art Gallery

The Secession is a world-renowned venue for contemporary art in Vienna. Currently they have installed "Element 6," a sex club that's part of a project by Swiss artist Christoph Buechel.

The club only opens during afterhours. The art hall is decked out in mattresses, erotic pictures, bars, whirlpools and non-working saunas in dimly lit rooms. It all leads to Gustav Klimt's "Beethoven Frieze," (shown here) located in the basement of the building.

"Beethoven Frieze" was first exhibited in 1902 and was considered as obscene and pornographic. Naturally it fits perfectly with Element6.

Buechel aims to cause a large scandal but no one is shocked - merely amused. Of course, there are some controversy from Australia's far-right Freedom Party. The point of the project was "to give as many people as possible the opportunity to overcome their inhibitions."

Dig Up Leornardo Da Vinci's Corpse

Italian scientists are asking permission to dig up Da Vinci's bones in hopes to reconstruct his face to discover if the masterpiece Mona Lisa is actually a disguised self portrait. Da Vinci is believed to be resting at Amboise Castle in the Loire Valley, where he died in 1519.

As everyone knows, the identity of Mona Lisa remains a mystery. Some scholars believe that due to Da Vinci's alleged homosexuality and love for puzzles, he painted himself as a woman. French cultural officials already agreed to exhumed Da Vinci's remains.

One of the reasons Mona Lisa is such a masterpiece is its mystery. How about we leave the dead alone and let Da Vinci rest in peace, not in pieces.

Museum Goer Rips Picasso Painting!

A woman visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC accidentally lost her balance and fell into a Picasso painting, leaving a six inch gash. The six-feet tall painting is the 1904-1905 work, "The Actor" and it's worth about $130 million. The painting is now removed for repairs (always wondered how these kind of things get repaired).

So the question is - did this woman get any repercussion for ruining a $130 million painting?

Bottle Caps Tapestry

The above tapestry was weaved out of bottle caps - enough said!

It's done by an artist named El Anatsui.

Oh, Hello There

A few months ago, I decided to try my hands on Cafe Press with one of my designs. The design is my favorite creation so far, the ever so quirky Monkey Shake. Without any real marketing tactics, largely due to laziness, I uploaded the image and plastered it on all available items Cafe Press offers. A few months later, I felt like amusing myself by logging on to see if I sold one teeny item -I did, and then some.

To my surprise, I actually sold a few shirts and even a pair of boxer shorts. I know, not a big deal but it makes me giggle that a few people out there likes my monkey. The most popular one seems to be this yellow shirt that happens to compliment my monkey's butt very well:

You can get your own here.

I already have a lineup of cute critters going, just working on some background designs and will try out some variety.

I'm also looking into Zazzle - anyone has any experience with that site? How does it compare with Cafe Press?

I really would love to get back on Etsy, which previously did well for me. Maybe I need to pair up with an indie shirt manufacture shop. Ideas, ideas.

I'm also working on some simpler designs, so I can make some stuffed felt dolls - should be an adventure!

Leonardo de Vinci Exhibition in Time Square

Photo from Wired.


If you live in NYC, you should stop by the Discovery Times Square Exposition. The inventions of Leonardo de Vinci is being displayed through March. Some inventions come to mind is the Great Kite flying machine. De Vinci invented all sorts of futuristic machines, including robots, weapons and mechanical devices.

Shepard Fairey: I Lied

Turns out Shepard Fairey did use AP's photo of Barack Obama for his famed Hope poster. When AP claimed Fairey used one of their images, he went to length and lie and delete evidence proving that he did use the picture. See our original post here. Tsk tsk.

Fairey still believes he has a case, arguing his work is protected under fair use. He believes that the image was altered enough that he can claim it as his. Well, that's fine - maybe he should've just stick to this argument in the first place instead of lying. His credibility is now in the gutters.

McDonald's in The Louvre

In December, McDonald's will be opening a food court in the underground mall adjoining The Carrousel du Louvre. The Louvre is the world's most visited museum and France is McDonald's second largest market (next to the U.S.).. seems like a perfect match, yes?

Some people are having their disdained with a fast food chain next to high art. Something about mixing Mona Lisa with cheeseburger seems a bit strange. Thoughts?

Naked Brooke Shields: Art or Child Pornography?

Photo by Garry Gross

An exhibition entitled "Spiritual America" by American artist Richard Prince was supposed to be displayed at Tate Modern, but Scotland Yard removed it, afraid that it would break obscenity laws. The object in question is the above picture, a naked 10-year-old Brooke Shields.

Garry Gross, a photographer from New York originally took the photo as part of a series entitled The Woman in the Child - a comparison of the adult woman in girls, or to show off the femininity in a young child. Gross was hired by Brooke Shields' mother to take pictures of her little girl (as a model), and even signed a contract giving him full rights to exploit the image.

Brooke Shields attempted legal actions to stop Gross from publicly displaying the photos but failed. However the multiple legal proceedings left Gross in financial burden and his reputation ruined. Richard Prince offered to buy the rights of the photos.

The photo was supposed to be a part of the Pop Life Exhibition in Tate Modern, but as stated previously, it was taken down by officials, afraid that the photo might be viewed sexually.

Honestly, whether it is art or not, I have to say I'm bit uncomfortable looking at the picture.

Yummy Body Part Art

The picture above probably speaks for itself.

A Thai art student sculpted, er.. baked.. realistic dismembered body parts out of bread. The son of a baker became fascinated with anatomy and decided to bake displays of human parts. Using dough, raisins, chocolate and other ingredients, this guy built "Body Bakery," the attraction that's being displayed and sold in Thailand.

I am particularly fascinated by the morbid nature of this piece, especially since I can hardly bake normal looking bread. Would you eat those heads?



Read the story here.

First Superman Comic Sold for $317,200!

A copy of the first Superman comic is a rare item. But one was sold at an Internet auction for $317,200.

The 1938 edition of Action Comics No. 1 features Superman lifting a green car on the cover. Only 100 copies of this still exists.

The man who won the auction was John Dolmayan, drummer for rock band System of a Down. He was purchasing it for a client of his.

The previous owner who sold the comic only paid 35 cents for the item.

I saw a copy of this at the NYC Comic Con and drooled.

Subway Motion Art, aka Masstransiscope

I live in Brooklyn and works at lower Manhattan. To get from point A to point B, I take the subway - the B line to be exact. During the ride, most of the time my head is buried in the book. But one morning I just finished reading my book so for the rest of my ride, my eyes were wandering around while the subway takes me to my destination. Right after the train left Dekalb Ave, I noticed something was moving out the window. It looked like a series of animated paintings. They kept going until the train hits the Manhattan bridge.

So the next day, to prove that I wasn't insane, I paid closer attention. And sure enough, there goes the animated paintings again. I did some research and the piece is called "Masstransiscope" by Bill Brand. The motion art was done in 1980, placed on an abandoned platform at Myrtle Avenue. The art disappeared for a while and apparently in late 2006, work was being done to the art for restoration. And now it's back for our viewing pleasure.

According to the nyc subway website:

The animation was based on the zoetrope, essentially a series of single frames viewed through slits as the train moved past the station. The brief glimpses of the frames appeared to animate the artwork.

It's pretty cool. Take a look:

Art or Vandalism?

Shepard Fairey, the artist that created the fame "Hope" posters for Barack Obama is now facing charges for graffiti. Fairey is also the mysterious artist that posted those Obey Giant posters all over cities. Boston is now placing two charges of vandalism on him.

There was also some dispute with the Obama poster. Fairey used the image of Obama from a photo taken by an ex-AP photographer, Mannie Garcia. Garcia doesn't feel the need to fight Fairey for copyright infringement, but AP does.

Fairey believes that public places shouldn't be just used for commercials, so he filled those places with his posters. Is this considered art or is it vandalism?

Spiderman Swings to Broadway!

"Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark" is the new musical coming to Broadway. The music and lyrics are by U2's Bono and the Edge and it's directed by Julie Taymor ("The Lion King")

The musical will start previews at the Hilton Theater on January 16, 2010. Rumor has it that this is the biggest budget Broadway show - about $40 million. Even though the producers have been hush-hush about the casting, Evan Rachel Wood is rumored to star as Mary Jane Watson. Wood was quoted to TV Guide that she was "definitely going to do it."

The Broadway version will involve an origin story as well as introducing new characters.

The storyline might be a hit or miss, depending on how they spin it. But big Broadway productions are always pleasing to watch. 

--

Please update your bookmarks and links to SHUKYSHAKE.BLOGSPOT.COM on March 1.

--

The Met Closes Shops

You know those Metropolitan Museum of Art stores sprinkled around the country? Say goodbye to them. Due to the economic crisis, The Met announced that they're closing 15 stores around the country. There were 23 stores, so doing the math, that only leaves 8 stores left.

In addition, the Met is also imposing a hiring freeze and cutting down travel and entertainment costs for their employees. Their revenue had decreased 25% since June 2008 due to lower numbers in membership and attendance.

The Met currently accepts donations for entrance fee. Perhaps they can charge a minimum requirement entrance fee. I don't think people will cringe if they charge everyone at least $5 to get in (as long as they don't go crazy.) It might help out a little? 

--

Please update your bookmarks and urls for this blog to SHUKYSHAKE.BLOGSPOT.COM on March1.

--

Women Use More Brain than Men!

According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (fancy!), women use more brain than men when it comes to beauty.

Researchers tested 10 men and 10 women, asking them to rate photos and paintings as either "beautiful" or "not beautiful." Scientists also examined images of magnetic fields produced by electrical currents in the brains. The results were in the first 300 milliseconds, there was no difference but longer than 300 milliseconds, activity was greater for objects that were rated "beautiful." They also noticed that men were more focused on the right side of the brain while women uses both sides of the brain.

Surely we do not need research like this for us to know that women use more of their brain than men!! But all kidding aside, the measure of beauty can't really be determined through datas and experiments. The factors varies from preference to environment, etc. 

--

Please remember to update your bookmarks and links to SHUKYSHAKE.BLOGSPOT.COM on March 1.

--

Las Vegas Art Museum Closing

The Las Vegas Art Musuem is closing its doors on February 28 thanks to the current economic turmoil. The Museum's executive director already resigned because the board members announced that there will be budget cuts, which would affect salaries and layoffs. Three months after the director's resignation, the museum decided to close down.

The musuem was formed 59 years ago. The board members say the musuem will remain an "entity" and keep its name in hopes that when the economy improves, they can open the musuem again. Let's hope so!

Remember - on March 1st this blog will be changing its URL. Please update your links and bookmarks to SHUKYSHAKE.BLOGSPOT.COM.

Famed Comic Book Artist, Michael Turner Died

You might not know the name Michael Turner but you might recognize some of his work. The comic book world certainly knows his name. He drew some major covers for "Superman / Batman," "Justice League," "The Flash" and "Civil War."

Michael Turner passed away on June 27 due to complications related to bone cancer. He was only 37. He has battled bone cancer for eight years.

Turner is absolutely amazing at his craft. Not only is he in high demand for comic covers, he also adapted NBC's series "Heros" into an online comic. He created "Fathom," a deep-sea femal superhero and co-created "Witchblade," a female detective who battles evil after discovering a mystic glove. Witchblade was the comic that pushed him into the fame, setting standards for his works to come.

The 500th issue of "Uncanny X-Men" is due out next week, and it will feature a special edition cover by Turner.