When it comes to RVs, you’ve got your run-of-the-mill vehicles, which lead people to behavior like this, and then you’ve got the classier sort — namely the silver beauty known as the Airstream. The gleaming rock star of the RV world, the Airstream has been embraced by everyone from vintage enthusiasts to NASA since its first appearance in the 1930s. In conjunction with its Sailor Jerry Presents concert series, the retro-minded rum merchant has embraced it as well, outfitting an Airstream trailer to take its rock n’ roll mission on the road. Inspired by that iconic mashup, we went hunting for more adventurous Airstream appropriations — and we think you’ll be equally inspired by what we found.
Yesterday, 1,000 Israeli volunteers stripped down and hopped into the Dead Sea for photographer Spencer Tunick, who is famous for his large-scale nude portraits in public spaces. This photo installation is meant to call attention to the environmental concerns surrounding the famously salty Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, which experts warn could dry out by 2050. “The (human) body is vulnerable. Our bodies, which are so fragile, are driving this amazing sea to destruction,” Tunick said. “Hopefully my work with this will be associated with the human-made natural disaster at hand, and not with war.” Click through to see some photographs from the day, and then be sure to check out more of Tunick’s work at his website.
The largest funding platform for creative projects in the world, Kickstarter is the DIY artist’s dream-come-true. With a great idea, a fabulous video presentation, and some tempting swag, almost any project — regardless of how fanciful it may seem — can get off the ground. We dug deep into the site to pick the 10 best art projects, including some that are still open to contributions. From Spencer Tunick’s round up of nudes at the Dead Sea and Molly Crabapple’s five-day confinement making wall drawings to Swoon’s musical architecture in New Orleans and Eric Schwabel’s human light suit on the playa of Burning Man, Kickstarter helps make these imaginative projects a reality. Watch the highly entertaining video presentations that funded the projects and let us know if you’ve contributed to any Kickstarter dreams.
If an army of fully stripped people galloped down our street right now, we’d probably think, “Oh, that Spencer Tunick is at it again!” So what does it take to liven up this photography genre? Contemporary photography like Miru Kim’s nude jaunts has become iconic, but how many nighttime rooftops and decaying buildings does a girl have to climb to make a statement?
The newest photographer to join these ranks is Erica Simone whose series Nue York at Damon Dash’s New York City gallery opens next month. Let’s take a survey of the contemporary risk takers whose work toes the line between exhibitionism and fine art and how they evolve and stand out. Grab a jacket. It might get a little nippy.
Consider yourself brave? Outlandish? The kind of person who, in the privacy of your own home, contemplates trading it all in for a shot at competitive luge? Or do you prefer to read about the world in books, rather than experience it directly? A desk jockey with a Kayak/Qixo obsession, forever running the numbers on the ticket to Bangkok you’ll never buy?
Either way, you’ll find some serious inspiration in our list of the world’s most extreme art vacations. Use them for fuel for your next hijinks, or simply read on, and weep with relief in the knowledge that you’re safe at home.
Artist Spencer Tunick — who we hung out with last year in the Hamptons — has unveiled the stunning photo from his latest installation, The Base, which was created using over five thousand nude people at the Opera House during Sydney’s Mardi Gras festival in March.
“For me it was about bringing the gay and lesbian community together with the straight community to make an equal fabric, and to be the base of this incredibly historic Opera House,” Tunick told the Sydney Morning Herald. “So it is significant politically for me, because I am a believer that the base, the core, of any open-minded free society is its equal treatment of all its citizens — including gays and lesbians, and their right to marriage, and all of their legal rights.”
We went on location in Montauk this week to bring you a front row seat at the naked-est party in the Hamptons. We’re not talking Surf Lodge, or even P. Diddy’s infamous pool parties — instead, we hopped on the Jitney and trekked out to far eastern Long Island to participate in a new Spencer Tunick installation with a call time of 4 a.m. Read More »
