The Good Badlands

Embroidered Landscapes and Plants by Ana Teresa Barboza Using embroidery, yarn, and and wool artist Ana Teresa Barboza creates landscapes and other imagery that exists in the space between tapestry and sculpture. Mimicking the flow of waves or grass, each piece seems to tumble from its embroidery hoop where it flows down the gallery wall.   Good Badlands: Dry Terrain of the American West Captured in a Brief Moment of Color by Guy Tal The Badlands are a type of parched, sunbaked terrain characterized by jagged rock, cracked earth and, of course, minimal vegetation. It's a harsh environment of lifeless wasteland but there is also good news to be found in the badlands. For the patient observer, like photographer Guy Tal, there is a delicate beauty that reveals itself only so often. "On rare years," says Tal, describing his series of photos taken in the American West, "wildflowers burst into stunning display of color, transforming the desert into a veritable garden for just few precious days."        Explore the Past and Present of Street Art Around the World with Google Street Art Google's Street View, made possible by their custom-designed panoramic camera, has become the eyes of streets large and small in almost every major city. So it makes perfect sense that they're now pointing their panoramic lenses to the walls around the world by adding street art to their portfolio. Earlier this week Google announced the launch of their Street Art Project, a new initiative to document and preserve the often transient nature of street art. The project launched with over 5,000 high resolution images including work that no longer exists.   The New 'Inspiration Pad' Turns the Conventional Blue-Lined Notebook Upside Down Brussels-based design and advertising firm TM led by Marc Thomasset, just released the second edition of their wildly popular Inspiration Pad. The ruled notebook plays with the traditional red and blue-lined design of notebooks, turning each spread into a different layout to "inspire people to unleash their own creativity." Winners of the 2014 iPhone Photography Awards It's amazing to see the stories we're now capable of telling with a device that fits in our pocket containing a camera smaller than a dime. One of the primary champions of photography taken with iPhones is the iPhone Photography Awards which just announced the winners of their 2014 competition.   The New Pathe Foundation Headquarters by Renzo Piano Squeezed Into a City Block in Paris For the last 8 years the Pathe Foundation in Paris has worked with Pritzker-winning architect Renzo Piano to design and construct their new headquarters. Hidden mostly behind buildings, the new headquarters, which will promote the Pathe's heritage in cinematography with office spaces, film archives and a screening room, pokes its head out above the neighbors, looking like a giant armadillo. Walking by, an unsuspecting visitor would have no idea was behind that street-side facade.   New in the Colossal Shop: The Key Target from Areaware We all know that losing your keys is one of the most annoying everyday problems around. Key Target from Areaware makes solving the problem a ton of fun. With the addition of several strong unseen magnets, Key Target becomes a place to store easy-to-misplace metal items like keys, small tools, and desktop objects. Simply toss the item toward the Beech wood target and it affixes immediately. Included with Key Target is a branded key ring. Go for the bullseye!