A small shop packed with books, magazines and good coffee sounds like heaven to us. It’s the ideal formula. And it’s one that Slovakia’s Alexis Books and Coffee Bar have nailed perfectly. Creatively offering more than your typical big box retailer, Alexis matches substance with ingenuity. Enormous book shelves line the walls brimming with a range of titles. While their amphitheater style flooring and low level coffee tables provide visitors with a place to sit anywhere. The shop also doubles as a great location for talks, community panels and readings. We’d love to see more places like this pop up state side. Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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Kurt Perschke’s RedBall Project is an ingenious example of city engagement. It’s simple, beautiful and blunt. It’s a large ball placed in a major-city amidst the din of everyday living. Sometimes it lands in obvious locations, other times it leaves you wondering, “How did it get there?” Either way, the inviting ball gets the job done. It taps your imagination.

As Kurt describes it, “Through the RedBall Project I utilize my opportunity as an artist to be a catalyst for new encounters within the everyday. Through the magnetic, playful, and charismatic nature of the RedBall the work is able to access the imagination embedded in all of us. On the surface, the experience seems to be about the ball itself as an object, but the true power of the project is what it can create for those who experience it.” The RedBall Project visited Toronto, Chicago, Tapei, Sydney and many other cities. Maybe it’ll visit yours next. We have a few photos of the project below. Click Read More to view.

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One of our favorite artists is currently on show in Brussels. Boris Tellegen aka DELTA presents Abundance at the Alice Gallery. It’s a collection of visually stunning work displaying his signature paintings and sculptures. As he describes it, “My work is in collage, sculpture, drawings, videos and installations. It investigates the tension between planning and happenstance; the semblance of order undone by schematic chaos. Mankind is driven by an unshakeable faith in progress, where modern technology and constant growth leads us to a better world. My work explores a different outcome, where the automated forces unleash developed structures and minds of their own.” We have a few images from the installation posted below. Click Read More to view.

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Four friends scattered across the globe come together to form a creative agency focused on beautiful and inspiring design – Kinfolk Studios is born. Known mostly for their award winning bicycle company and excellent client-work with brands like Nike, they’ve entered the field with resounding success. Their latest venture is no different. Kinfolk Brooklyn is an event space and venue that takes on many roles for the city’s creative community. Part café, part bar and part gallery, Kinfolk Brooklyn is a fantastic spot to relax with friends, see art and enjoy a great cup of coffee. If you’re in the area, be sure to stop by. We have a few images posted below. Click Read More for additional information.

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New York’s Lower East Side has seen its fair share of transformation. Despite these changes it still maintains a certain grit and creative energy. During the late 70’s Sol LeWitt captured the neighborhood’s raw beauty and expression through photography. Torn posters, splattered paint and scrawled graffiti were his muse. He saw things differently. Where people saw vandalism, he saw a narrative – a social documentary of sorts. As he once explained, “When one sees a wall, it is the impact of the whole that is understood at once – emotionally more than intellectually. It is only by reading the wall that the viewer understands it fully.” To honor his work the Morgan Hotel Group created a massive installation of his photographs at the Mondrian Soho Hotel located in the Lower East Side. It’s a fantastic installation. We highly recommend checking it out. Click Read More for additional information and to view more images.

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Cloud City is an imaginative exhibit on display at the Hamburger Bahnof Museum in Berlin. It’s fantastical and interactive. Upon entering, visitors roam through bubble-like structures and suspended gardens to discover the artist’s real intent. Tomás Saraceno wants to challenge architecture’s status quo. He was inspired by soap bubbles and spider webs to create this exciting exhibit which introduces new shapes and support techniques within the realm of architecture. It’s on display until January 15, 2012 and we highly recommend checking it out. Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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Ai Weiwei’s life is the message. His continued push to exhibit art all over the world, despite being restricted by the Chinese government, adds a civic beauty to each show. His latest installation, entitled Ai Weiwei Absent, is on display at the Taipei Fine Art Museum. It consists of 21 works created over a 30 year period and features several standout pieces – most notably, a set called Forever Bicycles constructed with 1200 bikes that represents an evolving and connected society. We have a few images of the show posted below. Click Read More to view.

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