Pitchfork   The Dissolve   Festivals: Chicago | Paris
:
James Turrell at Roden Crater

In the world of art museums, James Turrell has been hard to miss this summer. He currently has major exhibitions open at the Guggenheim in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Put simply, Turrell’s medium is light. He creates indoor and outdoor spaces designed to demonstrate both the powers and limitations of human perception. As Turrell puts it, “My work has no object, no image, and no focus. With no object, no image, and no focus, what are you looking at? You are looking at you looking. What is important to me is to create an experience of worldless thought.”

To pique your interest, here are five of our favorite Turrell works: 

Hard Scrabble Sky
In the midst of the University of Illinois, Chicago’s campus, Turrell created one of his signature “Skyspaces”—a structure with an opening at the top that obscures the horizon, allowing viewers inside the elliptical structure to observe the ever-changing light and sky patterns through the roof above them. 

Stone Sky
This 2005 work at a private home in Calistoga, CA combines one of Turrell's Skyspaces with an infinity pool. The large square at the end of the pool holds the Skyspace, accessible by swimming underwater at the end of pool. The interior is lined with teak and a square opening at the top opens the structure to the sky. 

End Around
Many of Turrell’s works focus on enhancing the experience of looking at the sky or the natural world, but works from his Ganzfeld series use electric light to challenge the power of our eyes. "End Around" (2006) is currently being shown at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and like his other Ganzfeld series works, "End Around" simulates a total loss of depth perception. The viewer is bathed in a field of blue light and, at some point, the light almost becomes a physical presence because of the loss of depth perception.

 

Roden Crater
Turrell has been working on this massive space in a natural cinder cone volcano in Arizona since 1972. Turrell’s site picks up on the ancient tradition of creating manmade monuments to view celestial events, with different rooms heightening the viewer’s perception of sunrise, sunset, the stars, and natural light. Roden Crater combines Turrell’s explorations of light and perceptual science into one unique site in Arizona’s Painted Desert but, unfortunately, it’s not open to the public (yet).

Perceptual Cells
These works are Turrell’s most intense. He’s been creating these types of immersive pieces since the late '80s, and there’s at least one on view at LACMA this summer. In a Turrell Perceptual Cell, the viewer enters a small, enclosed space alone to experience an intensely bright light that slowly changes over the course of the visit. Most viewers describe the experience as somewhat hallucinatory, while some find it too unsettling to view twice. 

At this point in the summer, collective groans begin and people start saying things like, “Summer’s almost over, man.” Ignore the buzz kills, summer winding down is all the more reason to spend every second possible outside. And if the humdrum of the fluorescent light is tying you down, it’s time for a little motivation.

Luckily, we’re #soblessed to live in a world where inspiration is just an infinite scroll and double tap away. Follow these brands (the majority of which, we noticed, originate in the Pacific Northwest) if your life could use some fresh air.

 

Juniper Ridge @juniperridge
If you call the trails of the Pacific Northwest your “office,” chances are you’re going to have some views to share.

 

Teranishi Brand @teranishibrandBeautiful shots of Vashon Island interspersed with behind-the-scene shots into the leathercraft of Teppei Teranishi.


Almond Surfboards @almond_surfboardsThe lifestyle brand out of Newport Beach, California exemplifies the laid-back beach life.


Herschel Supply @herschelsupplyThe travel goods brand does a fine job curating customer photos and gives good reason to pack up your things and hit the road.


Wood & Faulk @woodandfaulk
In addition to documenting his craft, Matt Pierce offers clear, crisp, and relaxing captures of some of the best views Portland has to offer.


Topo Designs @topodesignsThe Colorado company’s photo feed is filled with images of its gear in use all over the world, and they’re always equally colorful and vibrant.


Best Made Co. @bestmadeco Best Made Co. is constantly releasing well-designed camping stuffs in addition to its signature axes. And they’re not afraid to take pictures of 'em.

 

Mission Bicycle @missionbicycleNon-stop photos of custom bike builds will make you want to hop on your own two-wheeler.

Poler Stuff @polerstuffThe travel enthusiasts at Portland-based Poler Stuff hold one of best hash tags on Instagram: #CampVibes 

Patagonia @patagonia Live some real adventure vicariously on the outdoor brand's feed. 

Some are surely dealing current heatwave across the States by getting wet and staying wet as long as possible. Pools, lakes, rivers, oceans, anything watery will do. With our old trust swimsuit fraying, the new swim trunks from Choctaw Ridge have arrived just in time. Cut and sewn in the USA, the vintage-looking trunks remind us of our big brother's old Birdwell's or maybe something Don Draper would wear in Hawaii, but have a techy advantage in their Japanese fabric, a 60/40 cotton-lyrca blend. The piping gives them some extra panache. And there's a coin pocket, too, in case you need to grab something at the snack bar.

Available in Navy or Sky Blue at ChoctawRidgeNYC.com

With warm weather approaching and beach getaways creeping up on the calendar, some of us are experiencing anxiety. The itty bitty string bikini isn’t for everyone or every occasion—and finding a flattering swimsuit with style isn’t as easy as it sounds. So when we came across Beth Richards recently, we found ourselves excited about swimwear in a whole new way.

The Beth Richards Spring/Summer 2013 collection puts a modern twist on classic and vintage silhouettes, where iconic patterns like florals or exaggerated crosses entertain monochromatic palettes. Versions of high wasted two-pieces are ideal for flattering curves, and come with easy post-water options in crop-topped cover-ups. Richards has a way of expressing a cohesive vision for the female form, allowing the contemporary woman a chance to frolic in the sun with a generous reserve of elegance. We can imagine a Bardot or a Hepburn rocking one of these in Antibes. Bonus: Her one-piece swimsuits, made-in-Canada, double as sleek bodysuits.

Visit Beth Richards online for a list of stockists.







Warm weather is finally here and we're hoping to make some upgrades in our beach bag this year. Noticing that Need was stocking a Pendleton Oversized Jacquard Towel suitable for the beach, we knew we'd found a little something extra to help us approach 2013 summer in style. It's cotton velour, sheared on one side, looped on the other, and comes in a Native American-inspired pattern for which Pendleton is known. Digging a bit further, we found Hank's Clothing stocking the large Pendleton Beach Towels in 13 styles. We don't want to roll up to the shore in the exact same pattern now, do we?

Made in Oregon carries a range as well.

 

 

Los Angeles label The Quiet Life just released a very limited Mahalo Girls Pack of caps and bucket hats for spring and summer. They're out front in terms of pattern that explodes with color. If you can rock this much flavor, then rock it now, we say. Get on it now, only 100 packs (each with three hats and one bucket) were made available to stores.

The Mahalo Girls Pack available in select stores and online at thequietlife.com

 


We're evangelists for anything Outlier, their action-ready chinos can turn a chino-hater into a true believer in less than a day, so when we started feeling a hankering for a good summer jacket, we had to see what they were currently offering up. Note that Outlier doesn't issue clothing on a season-by-season schedule, rather it comes up with one new, and usually great, item at a time. Like many guys we know, we like to buy not just for this season, but for next year's, so we're on the same page. The two-button, breathable Ultralight Blazer, "a classic sportcoat with a 21st Century twist," has all the makings of a perennial winner in our eyes—and is made in NYC to boot.

Combine the blazer with the Ultralight Summer Trousers for $696 until April 19 at outlier.cc

In recent years, Penfield has become one of our go-to brands for outdoorsy outerwear such as down coats and 60/40 jackets. The label has built on the classics from its heritage as a New England camping and adventure outfitter and given them details and contemporary twists that make them a good fit for the style and budget-minded young man or woman. That said, its Spring 2013 lookbook has our heads spinning. It trends sportier—these threads seem to call for activity, more than carefree leisure. It features more contemporary detailing and style: just look at the patterns, the color choices, the camouflage, the flower-patterned pocket tee. Penfield seems to be taking more chances this season—question is, is it taking us along with it? 

Browse Penfield's SS13 collection online.