Supermoon Rises This Saturday

Want to see the Supermoon this weekend? Look up. On Saturday, March 19, the moon’s expected to be about 350,000 kilometers from the Earth,  — the closest in 18 years, according to NASA. And while the moon’s distance change is marginal, a “Supermoon” falling on a full-moon night has only…

Downtown’s Third Friday and Art Detour (March 18, 19 & 20)

Downtown Phoenix’s Third Friday and Art Detour combined make a weekend full of, well, art. The 23-year-old event, officially organized by Artlink, will take over galleries and studios on Grand Avenue, Roosevelt Row and the Melrose District (and a few in between). Wonder what’s open? Just look for the yellow…

12 Months of Neon Love

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? On February 14, Victoria Lucas and Richard William Wheater installed their first of 12 neon signs on warehouse rooftops in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. Their…

Van Buren’s Mahoney Building Receives Restoration Grant

Large blue bins are making their way to and from the Mahoney Building at 2500 E. Van Buren St. in Downtown Phoenix. They’re a sign of change, and a much-needed face-lift funded in part by a recent $5,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The 100-year-old building’s located…

Triptychs of Strangers

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? German photographer Adde Adesokan’s has no qualms about strangers. In his latest series, titled “Triptychs of Strangers,” Adesokan approaches people he doesn’t know, takes…

Zachary Levy’s Strongman: The Story of Stanless Steel

Zachary Levy met Stan Pleskun when he was filming a network television show. Stan, whose stage name is Stanless Steel, was performing one of his strongman acts — a variety of bending pennies, lifting cars, and crushing steel rods with his bare hands. Stan’s a professional strongman in a post-carnival…

The Hipster Trap

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? Spotted in New York City: randomly placed (cardboard) traps with hipster bait, including Ray Bans, Pabst Blue Ribbon, American Spirits, and colorful bike chains.We…

Super Spartan Race: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Wild West of Rawhide Western Town in Chandler hosted a horde of warriors on Sunday for the annual Super Spartan Race — 8 miles and 15 obstacles including rock walls, mud pits and yeah, of course, fire. The thought of a few fit people and “deadly” obstacles sounded pretty…

Say it in Chalk

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? Dana Tanamachi’s been busy since chalkboard paint became the new, hip back splash on almost any surface in a home or office. By workday,…

Write by Colors

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? Every day, for 100 days, Rachel Berger stuck her hand into her bag of paint chips, pulled one out, and responded with a short…

Big Brain Update: Spencer Hibert

In preparation for this year’s Big Brain awards, we’re checking up with a few of last year’s winners. Know an emerging creative who could use $1000? Nominate ’em right here before March 14. Our Big Brain today: Spencer Hibert. Spencer Hibert’s a plastic man — that is, he’s wicked talented…

Boom Goes the Mural

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? We’ve seen murals created with traditional paint, airbrush, paper and paste, and even dirt, but Alexandre Farto, aka Vhils takes a different approach.The Portuguese…

Shepard Fairey Paste Tagged in Tempe

In today’s example of why we can’t have nice things: the Shepard Fairey paste on Mill Avenue that we blogged about this week’s been tagged, and we’re not talking a few scribbles. We’re actually not including a full photo of the damage — the writer really doesn’t deserve the recognition…

A Moment in the Japanese Friendship Garden

Phoenix’s Japanese Friendship Garden, at 1125 North Third Avenue, is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today. Garden docents say there are no gatherings or benefits currently planned following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan this morning, but note that the public is more than welcome to stop by…

Draw a Portrait of the City

One new idea for every day in 2011. We’re talking big, small, local, international, in action and on the drawing board. Here’s today’s — what’s yours? When James Gulliver Hancock moved to Brooklyn, he took on a rather time-consuming project — drawing every building in New York. At first, he…

Scan Your Favorite Movies

The images above aren’t technically bar codes but the result of compressing every frame from a feature-length film into a single, horizontal image.The collection, including Bambi, The Big Lebowski, and The Social Network (pictured) are hosted on Movie Barcode, a Tumblr full of the compressed images with zero explanation or…

Big Brain Update: Saxon Richardson

In preparation for this year’s Big Brain awards, we’re checking up with a few of last year’s winners. Know an emerging creative who could use $1000? Nominate ’em right here before March 14. Our Big Brain today: Saxon Richardson. Spring Break might be around the corner, but local filmmaker Saxon…

Francisco Garcia on Buster’s Market

It’s about time Phoenix sees some serious mural love. In the interest of giving credit to their artists and because we’re losing track of the times we’ve said, “Woah, when did that go up?”, we bring you Mural City, a series on the murals springing up around town — their…

A.R.T.S.: An Activation Approach to Empty Lots in Phoenix

The empty lots in Phoenix could use a little face-lift, and Roosevelt Row CDC has just the scalpel, er, solution. Adaptive Reuse of Temporary Space (A.R.T.S.) is a revitalization and activation program that hopes to turn the many vacant lots into temporary arts markets, community gardens, cultural fairs, public arts…