The Nike Graphic Studio Art Show @ Compound Gallery In Portland, Oregon = The Fresh AIRS Fund.

"Compound Gallery in Portland, Oregon, will be hosting the Nike Graphic Studio Art Show starting tomorrow, September 1st. The exhibition is inspired by Nike‘s long and rich history of innovation in design, and will feature pieces in various media created by a select group of Nike designers. Proceeds from the show will go directly to relief efforts in Japan, with Nike Foundation matching that donation amount. The show will kick off tomorrow evening with an opening reception scheduled from 7 to 10 pm with the artists in attendance.

Compound Gallery
107 NW 5th Avenue | Map
Portland, OR 97209

Exhibition Dates: September 1st, 2011 – September 30th, 2011"

Information Courtesy Of: Freshnessmag.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: At its core art is the only true universal language. And that language - not stymied by clumsy mistranslation - has the unique ability to speak to each of our hearts and minds and make material our wildest dreams. Word to Diego Rivera!

Contemporarily speaking, and particularly for young forward thinking fashionistas fresh out of flight school, sneakers are art. Enthusiasts marvel over and passionately discuss the finer points of kicks construction, debate the importance of certain models and excoriate "variants" (NOTE: That more or less means "fakes" for those poor, poor few of Y.O.U. unfamiliar with the online all things "Swoosh" related mecca that is the NikeTalk message board ... lol). I mean, have Y.O.U. ever seen the cue in front of a sneaker store when a super limited edition pair of Dunks drops? SMH. That shit could rival the lines seen @ the MET last month for the closing of the "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" retrospective show my nigga! LOL. Shit is most definitely real. As such, it makes perfect sense that the once and future king of athletic footwear, Nike, would commission the brilliant Nike Graphic Studio Art Show @ the Compound Gallery in Portland, Oregon (NOTE: Yup, where Phil Knight started it ALL!).

The just launched installation is an amazing assemblage of repurposed props that have been cleverly appropriated as art paying fanatical pop-culture homage to the legendary Nike brand. There's also an in-gallery store as well that I knooooooow is chock-full of all kinds of exclusive goodness. And that all of the proceeds from the door will be matched by the Nike Foundation and go directly to earthquake relief efforts in Japan only makes this already dope show that much better! See, art AND sneakerheads DO have heart afterall ... lol. Good shit!

Respect The Architects: Random Acts Of Flyness: JA ONE XTC x DUEL RIS: MTA Subway Tunnel "Throwies" (18th Street Station NYC) Circa 1997.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Niiiiiiice!

Jay-Z x Kanye West: "Watch The Throne" Album Cover x Tracklisting = This Had Better Be Good!

Tracklisting:

1. Lift Off (Feat. Beyonce & Bruno Mars)
2. Murder To Excellence
3. Illest Motherfucker Alive
4. Why I Love You So (Guilt Trip)
5. That Shit Crazy
6. Living So Italian
7. Who Gonna Stop Me
8. Whole Lifetime
9. We Are Young
10. Anthem


Information Courtesy Of: Youheardthatnew.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: In what looks like more gratuitous Illuminati symbolism than your favorite hyper-cynical NOT so critical thinking paranoid conspiracy theorist can shake a stick @, Jay-Z and Kanye West have just leaked the final(?) tracklisting and this seemingly mismatching gilded gold album cover for their forthcoming joint offering the highly anticipated "Watch The Throne". Designed by the always brilliant creative director for both Givenchy and now Christian Dior, Riccardo Tisci, this regal metal wrapping calls to mind all of the shrouded majesty of a Bavarian fete hosted by a NOT so Young Vito and his loyal sidekick "Mr. West, Mr. West" in honor of ALL of their many secret society white shoe occult elitist comrades in arms ... lol. *Cue Jim Jones "Adlib Of The Year" Voice* "Spooky!"

Anyway, this bad boy is slated for an August 2nd release date with the standard package featuring 10 songs and the deluxe version slapping on an extra 4 tracks. Pre-order your copy right here boys and girls. But hold up! Where's "Niggas In Paris"? I L.O.V.E. that song title. Fuck it. Cheers!

The Robert Verdi Vans® Slip-On x Hermès Customized Collection For Summer 2011 = Jeff Vans® Gully.

"What’s a guy to do when his favorite sneaker company won’t collaborate with his favorite fashion house??? Well, Robert Verdi took the collaboration into his own hands by kindly requesting that Vans make him a few pairs of custom kicks out of his vintage Hermes scarf collection for his personal use. We have to admit, the end result was brilliant! This marriage between upscale prints and rubber street soles make the collaboration seem like a typical case of the old saying, ‘opposites attract.’ On the contrary, the union of Hermes and Vans make more sense than what meets the eye, by the use of the two distinctive materials that represent each company. Since 1937 Hermes has been designing their classic silk scarves, which elevated the company to an iconic status. Equally so, it was 1966 when Paul Van Doren sold his first pair of Vans on the streets of Anaheim California, with the same rubber sole we see today. The rubber of the shoes, and the silk of the scarves, are the two materials in which society identifies these brands to be. Though Hermes and Vans are from opposite worlds, they both found their identity, and stayed true to it!"

Information Courtesy Of: Knstrct.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: As a fashion purist, I generally regard unsolicited collaborations (NOTE: If such uncooperative unions can even truly be called "collaborations". Hmmmmmm, me thinks such forced fusions are more akin to date rape. No?) as disrespectful bastardizations of style that usually always run counter to the borrowed label's hard earned and understandably closely protected brand image. Nope. No sir, I don't like it. However, my attitude towards sneaky collaborations can prove to be quite malleable when the item(s) in question exhibits as fresh a design brilliance as this Vans® Slip-On x Hermès Customized Collection for Summer 2011.

I'm not even a fan of slip-on Vans® like that homie, but the awesome otherness that has been achieved by blending the aristocratic flair of the House of Hermès and their legendary highly collectible silk scarves with the "kick-push" kingly character of Vans® sneakers is the perfect marriage of the pretty and the gritty. This is "Heroin Chic" ... like burning a bag of dope in a sterling silver Tiffany & Co.® spoon. Now, THAT'S what we call "imagery" boys and girls ... lol.

Oh yeah, points have been deducted because these bespoke beauties aren't available to the public (NOTE: Maybe I should petition stylist Robert Verdi for a pair. The internet can be a magical place ... lol), but these kicks are still official my nig. Hey, I like what I like. Good shit!

The Brand New Piper-Heidsieck Brut Cuvée By Jean-Paul Gaultier = Burlesque In A Bottle!

"Piper Heidsieck have collaborated with Jean Paul Gaultier on a limited edition of their Brut Cuvée. The bottle is inspired by Jean Paul Gaultier’s designs and Parisian night life. The bottle is dressed in a fishnet stocking with a mask below the cork and a bow tie on top of the cork. The Piper Heidsieck Brut Cuvée by Jean Paul Gaultier is available exclusively from Piper Heidsieck and comes with black Champagne flutes and a matching ice bucket."

Information Courtesy Of: Sybarites.Org

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: The Pied Piper of fashion minded cuvée collaborations, the legendary Champagne house Piper-Heidsieck, has made haute couture habit of joining talents with luxury designers; particularly with favorite co-conSPIRITStor Jean-Paul Gaultier.

What began in 1999 with an S&M bondage bottled theme tie-in has since blossomed into a full fledged romance of creative initiatives from which we, the public, ALL benefit. The latest overture in this series of fly gestures is the can-can inspired Piper-Heidsieck Brut Cuvée By Jean-Paul Gaultier.

Recently debuted @ an ultra exclusive V.I.P. party in France for the 2011 Cannes International Film Festival, this frolicking fishnetted, "Eyes Wide Shut" masked and sequence bow-tied beauty is a decadent decanter for those of us whom still believe that nothing exceeds like excess ... lol. Bottoms up!

M.I.A. x Swizz Beatz Choppin' It Up In The Studio 4-20-11.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Newly converted fine art addict Swizz Beatz hits the studio with M.I.A. and shows off his Sotheby's Auction House gallery approved tattoo sleeves while "Ms. Vickileekx" swoons and tokes on some boom for 4/20. It's cool. Something light for a Thursday night ... lol. Good shit!

The La Nuit de l'Homme par Yves Saint Laurent (Men's Cologne) Mini-Movie/Commercial Starring Vincent Cassel (Directed By Darren Aronofsky)

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: DISCLAIMER: I Speak NO French, so I don't really know what the fuck is going on in this glorified mini-movie/commercial. Additionally, I am NO student of Le Cinema Francais. Strike 2 ... lol. I do, however, know a ton about art and high fashion, soooooooooooo, I don't feel so b-a-d about posting this video ... lol. Hey, actor Vincent Cassel and director Darren Aronofsky - both of nauseatingly-over-hyped-though-very-good-Academy-Award®-winning-film "Black Swan" fame - linked back up for this YSL ad i.e., this is worth a look ... lol. Good shit!

Behind The Scenes: Odd Future (OFWGKTA) x Terry Richardson Photoshoot For The Vice Magazine "Knuckle Sandwich" Issue April, 2011.

OFWGKTA Vice Photoshoot from Terry Richardson on Vimeo.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: On a related note, I really miss Vice Magazine. I mean, of course Y.O.U. can always read it online, but I've always preferred to read the actual, physical copy. This Canadian based zine and all of it's many contributors played a major part in influencing my early blogging style. Truth is truth. Where have all of the pretty print magazines gone?

A Livestyle Haiku: I L.O.V.E. Y.O.U. Pilot Marker.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS:

Oh, Pilot Marker

Thank Y.O.U. for so many ups

Y.O.U. make the streets smile.

Lady Gaga - Born This Way (Official Music Video)

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: The visual for Lady Gaga's chart topper of pandemic proportions, "Born This Way", is a mini-movie ... a very weird mini-movie. Ummmmmmm, I don't quite know what to make of this, but I think it's good ... lol.

Lady Gaga x Terry Richardson For Supreme = Worn This Way!

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Last Summer, under the art direction of Matthew "Dada" Williams, the undisputed pasha of the Polaroid©, photographer Terry Richardson captured these flicks of Lady Gaga for streetwear magnate Supreme for Vogue Homme Japan. The photos just leaked. Really? Who knew? Go Fame Monster go!

Banksy Drops A Bomb On Hollywood AKA Dear L.A., Your Favourite Fat Cap Chap Is Back!

Image Courtesy Of: Highsnobiety.Com

"Banksy Billboard On Sunset Boulevard Removed


Banksy has been popping up all over Los Angeles this week. From a stencil of a boy soldier (armed with crayons) in Westwood to a mischievous Charlie Brown, Banksy seemed to be reveling in childhood nostalgia. But while these two pieces (located in an alley and on an abandoned building) are still standing, his third mural was quickly torn down.

The third piece, on a prominent Sunset Boulevard billboard, depicted a strung-out Mickey and Minnie Mouse partying with the advertisement's model. YouTube user flashmobsandiego, who posted footage of the sign being taken down, says "Someone, somewhere is gonna make a looooot of money off that piece of 'trash' as they called it. I feel privileged to have had a Banksy mural outside my window for 2 days."

Information Courtesy Of: Huffingtonpost.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Sooooooooooo, what's the 1st thing that a world renowned graffiti artist does when they touchdown in Hollywood, CA for the Oscars? Don't ask stupid questions. They go bombing of course! And that's exactly what Bristol, England's finest contemporary street artist Banksy did. In Los Scandalous for a fortnight to vie for Tinsel Town's most coveted golden trophy - for his brilliant foray into cinema, "Exit Through The Gift Shop", which is up for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Film - the shadowy virtuoso of vandalism has taken it back to the streets in a major way.

What began with his unmistakably unique stencil and spray painted brand of punditry popping up on random buildings throughout L.A. earlier this week has seemingly(?) crescendoed with this billboard hack above the 76 Station @ Sunset and North Laurel Avenue. Now, THAT'S entertainment! The message here is that clearly even super models like to party with a skidrow Mickey and Minnie Mouse gone off flasks of cheap booze and a Charlie Sheen sized briefcase full of booger sugar! Nice.

Alas, just as I prepared to go to press with this post, preeminent gossip source of record, TMZ, has reported that this Disney® on dope billboard was snatched down by the billboard company and rolled up ever so gently for "safe keeping". Yeah, the billboard company most definitely knows what time it is. One man's defacement of private property is another man's high end art auction house dream come true! Act like Y.O.U. know bro.


BONUS:

Uno.



Dos.

Above I have included video of the actual billboard and it's removal from earlier this afternoon.

The Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2011 Ad Campaign As Photographed By Steven Meisel = Dope In A Tiffany & Co.® Silver Spoon.

"Louis Vuitton Women's Collection Spring Summer 2011


"We started from the very beginning this season talking about glamour and something very stylized, very glossy," says Louis Vuitton Artistic Director Marc Jacobs of the process that led to the Spring Summer 2011 advertising campaign, shot once again by Steven Meisel. "We arrived at something which I would compare to the Eiffel Tower lighting up every hour on the hour – something of artifice that is just so gorgeous, and glamorous, and beautiful, that you are completely mesmerized by it."

Shot in a New York studio, the new campaign captures the decadent glamour of the Spring Summer 2011 fashion show, and stars two of the models who walked in it – Freja Beha Erichsen and Kristen McMenamy, whose body was famously painted with zebra stripes for the finale – alongside a flame-haired Raquel Zimmermann. The dazzling colors and shimmering textures of the clothes, the glossy hair and makeup, and the sparkling Seventies influenced décor combine to create a spectacular set of images, with the models striking louche poses in color?blocked Lurex, silk cheongsams and lush iris prints.

The mood, reflecting the deliberate artificiality of Marc Jacobs' Orient inspired vision, is vastly different from that of the previous season – indeed these three "bad girls", with their long tasseled earrings, Monogram lace fans and two tone leather or python trimmed jacquard bags, seem to deliver a riposte to the three "good girls" of the demure Fall Winter 2010 campaign.

Pietro Beccari, Executive vice president of Louis Vuitton, comments: "Once again, Marc Jacobs and Steven Meisel have created a remarkable campaign. What is extraordinary about these new visuals is their vivid rendering of the gloss, glitter and glamour of the fashion show. Its visual impact will be second to none this season."

Information Courtesy Of: Newemotion.It

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Fashion - when viewed as a mode of individual manner as opposed to the forced function of acceptance of prepackaged trends - is all about imagination. Yes, as a favorite Livestyle mantra goes, "Style is enduring" and, implicit in one's adherence to that rule, is the ability to digest influences new and old, from both near and far and deftly add them to your ever evolving palette.

To that end, when Marc Jacobs serves up the opium den meets the Ritz decadence of this, the Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2011 Collection on silver platter, only an equally brilliant photographer such as Steven Meisel is fit to shoot it. Y.O.U. see the results boys and girls. Watch and learn.

The Pep Williams Experience.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: This little blog of mine has not only connected me to my incredible legions of followers, but, also to a greater community of immensely talented artists as well. Case In Point: Pep Williams. This Los Scandalous based photographer has snapped his way into the Livestyle "Circle Of Trust" 1 riveting picture @ a time. Press play on the video above and view the world through the unflinchingly honest lens of the homie Pep Williams ... a true shutterbug for the thugs ... lol. Good shit!

Random Acts Of Flyness: Biggie Smalls "Squeeze 1st ... Ask Questions Last"

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: The iconography of some pictures is such that truly, few, if any, words are needed to describe them. This picture of the late, great Biggie Smalls, seen here captured @ the height of his undisputed "King Of New York" powers by renowned American Hip Hop photojournalist Ernie Paniccioli is 1 of those very special images. "My trigger niggas represent! Driving dirty in J30's gettin' bent ..." Stop playing. "Who shot ya!?"

Helloooooo Ladies: The Agent Provocateur "Watching Josephine" Spring/Summer 2011 Short Film Starring Josephine de la Baume = Sexy For Dummies®.

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: As chief curator of the Livestyle Museum Of Modern Art, rather than stand idly by and impishly watch as Mother Nature brushes off her tall shoulders once again to blanket my city in bales of snowy dandruff, I have arrived @ the conclusion that the only way to truly counteract today's storm is to crank up the temperature a bit around here! Thankfully, I found my answer only a few short keystrokes into my daily Google search routine.

The always sultry sultans of high end lingerie, Agent Provocateur, continue to impress with this Agent Provocateur “Watching Josephine” Spring/Summer 2011 Short Film Starring Mark Ronson's girlfriend the striking Josephine de la Baume.

This voyeuristic visual offers the world a sneak-peek of Agent Provocateur's latest collection as we (READ: Presumably a group of salivating PERVS. Which I am NOT completely NOT on-board with ... lol) play "Peeping Tom" spying on an unsuspecting Josephine de la Baume as she peels down to her rich girl skivvies and kicks it in a swanky hotel suite. Nice.

Don't judge yourself too much for liking this kind-o-creepy clip. Please be advised that I enthusiastically encourage ALL of my Livestyle Ladies to watch this titillating tutorial and take notes. Sometimes it's as much about what Y.O.U. show as what Y.O.U. don't show. Get it popping in the boudoir baby!

Jay-Z x Kanye West Set To Drop "H.A.M." 1/11/11 = This Swine Had Better Be Divine!

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: This had better be good! Don't think that I forgot about that bullSTUFF "That's My Bitch" that dropped a few months back. Smh. Stop playing.

Swizz Beatz Talks Art Appreciation x Investing @ Blackenterprise.Com.

Theselby.Com Visits Pharrell Williams @ Home In His Miami Condo AKA Deffer Homes & Gardens.

Spotted Online @: The305.Com

View The Entire Gallery Online Here: Theselby.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: I'm just gonna post these pictures for your viewing pleasure ... no long talking. Pop the cork. Open your mind. Let the awesomeness breathe.

Tonight's Ralph Lauren Polo 4-D Spectaculor On New York's Madison Avenue = Sensory OverLOad!

"Witness the ultimate collision of fashion, art, and technology.” “Be prepared to see Madison Avenue in a whole new light.” The invite to RalphLauren.com’s tenth anniversary celebration tomorrow night makes big promises. David Lauren, son of Ralph and Polo Ralph Lauren’s senior vice president of advertising, marketing, and corporate communications, had even more during a preview of the event he gave Style.com: “It’s not just game-changing, it’s life-changing.”

So what exactly is the “it” he’s talking about? Come 8 p.m. on Wednesday, two lanes of Madison Avenue will be shut down to traffic and filled with spectators (not just the fashion set; it’s open to the public as well). There, they’ll be treated to a 4-D experience in which the new Ralph Lauren women’s flagship will sway, turn into fabric, collapse, and reappear before the walls retract and a virtual runway complete with models materializes. In addition, giant neckties (a nod to the first product Ralph Lauren ever designed) will spill from the roof, but the coup de grâce will come when members of Prince Charles’ polo team break through the building’s facade and charge down the street. As for the 4 in 4-D, that would be the real Big Pony fragrance that’s going to spray from the virtual perfume bottles spinning over the crowd’s heads. “It’s like the movie Inception come to life,” David promises."

Read The Full Article Online Here: Style.Com

CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: Much has been made of the importance of establishing and maintaining a strong online shopping presence in today's ever evolving new media age.

Yes, as evidenced by last week's release of the Prada Fall/Winter 2010/2011 Fantasy Motionbook short film, even celebrated luxury couturiers face the pressing existential conundrum of how to remain tastefully true to the heritage of their storied firms while simultaneously attempting to take the lead in merchandising innovation. Indeed, striking a balance between art and commerce can be quite the tortured tango.

To that end, few, if any, brands have recognized and continue to proactively respond to this 21st century reality better than Ralph Lauren Polo. Just when Y.O.U. thought that Jackass 3-D was the be all, end all, tonight, Ralph Lauren will launch a futuristic 4-D spectacle of sight and sound AND scent (NOTE: Ralph Lauren's signature "Big Pony" fragrance will be benevolently spritzed upon onlookers from on high) to celebrate 10 years in the online shopping game and lay to rest any doubts of the company's ambitious commitment to the fusion of high end fashion and technology.

At 8:00 PM, the facade of the brand new Ralph Lauren Polo Mansion flagship store (NOTE: The original Polo Mansion, the Rhinelander Mansion, is now strictly menswear. The new mansion, located directly across the street, has been appropriated for chic chicks) on New York City's ritzy Madison Avenue will be transformed into a 22,000-square-foot, 4-story high screen for this breathtaking presentation.

Models will frolic, vintage cars will wind down country roads and polo players will dab their W.A.S.P.y brows after a spirited match and last chukka has come to close - all images of which that are intended to sell Y.O.U. the romance of the Ralph lauren lifestyle as much as the actual garments themselves. Basically, Ralph Lauren and, more specifically his son, senior vice president of advertising, marketing and corporate communications and the visionary behind this brilliant event, David Lauren, GETS IT! Whether we're talking about music or fashion or anything else for that matter, the name of the game is consumer engagement and lifestyle marketing. Watch and learn.

So, who's gonna join me underneath the stars on Madison Avenue tonight, huh? Go for the show and stay for the clothes ... lol. Cheers!