Awesome...

A whole manifesto about awesomeness... what can I say other than awesome (you do know its one of my favourite words, right?)

Fall Reading List

You might know that I read quite a bit (I think a profession as a 'reader' would be quite appropriate for me)

For the fall, I've decided to put together a specific reading list (separating out the 'must reads', from my reading list on the sidebar) - so here it goes...

Design is the Problem
The Omnivore's Dilemma
Buckminster Fuller: Anthology for the New Millennium
The Archaeology of Knowledge
Silent Spring

I'll start with those... As I usually take notes, check back here for book reports...

And life just became more interesting

So, everyone who knows me knows how much I love the city of Montreal, in fact I'm loving it right at the moment, sitting in an open air cafe, watching all the people meander down the street, which is closed to cars for the weekend, and is a giant street festival/sidewalk sale. Oh how lovely.

While at the video store a couple of weeks ago, I saw a poster for the work of Brandon Ballangée (pictured above), and started to look into where this exhibition may be. It happens to be right here in Montreal, at the SAT ( the Society for Arts and Technology, or la Société des arts et technologiques). I must look into this institution further, as I see they are having an evening event next weekend called Art & Design Montreal - if only I had known earlier, I would have submitted some stuff for exhibition, but I will certainly be attending! Sounds like a really interesting group of people, and I look forward to seeing what's going on around here!

Textiles CAN save the world

Often when talking about sustainability and textiles, I often get the feeling that others believe the impact of textiles isn't big enough in order to require more thought past organic/fairtrade/reused/recycled or shared. Of course I beg to differ, and often cite the many sins of textile industries, and the impact of production, transport, use and disposal, and that the textile industry is not just big - but GIANT, and has the power and capabilities of contributing solutions for not just fashion, but many other industries, including architecture, agriculture, transportation, and many more I can't recall at the moment. I came across an article today in Azure of something I've heard of before, but had forgotten about, and I'm glad to have found it again. It is the solar harvesting textiles created by Sheila Kenndey and Frano Violich. They have been working on the creation of viable energy harvesting solutions using window blinds, and other surfaces, and worked on Portable Light Project, and are now working on a larger scale, looking at powering entire structures using their technology. I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants to get her hands on a bit to play with... This is such a lovely and feasible and implementable technology - if only we could get more ideas and technology!