I see "little" people.

Next time you go to London, be sure to keep your eyes out for those tiny little people that are allegedly scattered all around London Town.. 

Ravenscourt Park, London

"Manhole Swimming"

 

Victoria, London

"Dear Son"

Primrose Hill, London

"They're not pets, Susan."

And oh yeah, you kind of need a microscopical pair of glasses or something to serve as a magnifying glass cause they are literally tiny.. 

Part of the "Little People-tiny street art project" initiated and done by Slinkachu (**the artist), those "little hand-painted people are left in London to fend for themselves".. 

A very "Where's Wally?"-esque innovational art idea that is too cute to be disregarded yet too small to be seen.. 

So if you find one, you'd be lucky- something along the lines of a needle in a haystack, which is incidentally a lower chance of you being struck by lightening.. 

This project has been so successful, i mean come on who'd think of creatively incorporating small figures (**much smaller than lego) into a project and scattering them around town for that matter, that it has its own book out and is incidentally being sold in Amazon.. 

Dubbed "In the City:The Street Art of Slinkachu", this book can make an utterly cute coffee table book, even if its kind of "frivolous"..

Found this tres cute, especially after seeing my little brother's lego creations scattered around our house, he may have talent, hmmmm maybe a "Little people in Kuwait" a la little brother style..  

For more information about this project, go to their blog.

To check out the project's book, click here.

Photo Credits: all images are from the "Little People:tiny street art project" website. 

Ps. Stuck on repeat. 

 

I (ad)ore (ad)s..

Don't you just love clever TV ads? 

A good TV advertisement makes one think, provides a form of comic relief, and really catches one's attention, in my case makes me hum/sing the song over and over again in my head, or at the top of my lungs for that matter.. 

Nothing beats GAP TV Ads.. 

(**Never thought Claire Danes could be this much fun..)

I remember seeing my first GAP Ad whilst on summer holiday almost 7 or 8 years ago, when i stumbled upon it on youtube, i found that i could actually sing along with them (**the song is a no-brainer to tell you the truth, but to have hung on to it years after i had seen it is proof of clever advertising).. 

(**Ring a bell? I still remember this one..)

In our region, most of the Ads cater to Saudi families, or the Saudi population (**makes sence since KSA has a significant population in regards to size and consumer market, thus all the ads are made to suit them (**mostly veiled ladies who communicate in the saudi dialect, stereotypical).. 

No distinct Ads are Kuwait specific, and I'm talking about whole-year ads, and not the endless ones that pop up in Ramadan, our answer to the western "Holiday Season"... 

The only Kuwaiti ad that really shone was the "Yabeela!" advertisement, which is very clever and has become a mainstream artifact with the younger culture.. 

I believe that one of the many indicators of creativity in a society can be found on TV, and Ads are an example.. 

In a society that is not that dependent on Ads mainly because there are not many alternatives to choose from hence no paradox of choice involved, and an abundance of shoppers even though people are tightening their belts those days, you are not in need of heavy advertising and major product placement/publicizing.. 

But I believe that this is all changing now as consumers become more aware, and are becoming pickier when it comes to buying.. 

I hope that we will see more Kuwaiti Ads that accurately reflect our society and its creativity as opposed to generic ads that are flung at the whole region as a whole.. 

Yes.. I believe art has many forms and is not only found on canvases.. 

xx

-Baroque

Ps. "Anything you can do, i can do better."

Who said you can't look at life through art-covered glasses?

Rayban Waferers are already a hit with the fashion crowds..

Now you can get sway off the mainstream path and be unique (**something hard to do those days with globalization it seems), or atleast make your waferers stand out.. 

New York-Based Artist Chris Mendoza is taking those popular sunglasses and transforming them into miniature canvases.. 

He literally hand paints/etches those sunglasses, and will do 100 limited ones on site this Friday in Soho's Sunglass Hut in NYC... 

So if you're heading that way or will be there, check it out.. 

But if you're stuck here till Eid holiday, there is word going around that they will be also offered online on the Sunglass Hut website too, but I'm not quite sure about that.. 

What's really nice about this, apart from the cute etching-like designs on the sunglasses, is that 25% of proceeds will go to the "Give the Gift of Sight" Charity.. It's nice to see that some companies/artists try to give back every once in a while.. 

On another ever so random note: Sunglasses can help ward off wrinkles, since squinting at the sun creates creases... 

Wear sunglasses, protect your eyes, be unique, and give back! 

xx

Baroque

Ps. Lines aren't the only things that disconnect. 

Photo Credits: PaperMag, Fashion Week Daily, and Fashionista.

Summer Sandals Get Revamped?

Winter Sandals: sandals worn with stockings or tights, so as to conceal and warm the toes. 

Spotted: Burberry's Fall 2008 runway. 

Personal Consensus: cute, but i feel like they are a tad bit slutty, no idea why though?; but they look adorable on the runway, I wonder if they'd go from run way to real life.. 

Your Consensus? 

Photo Credits: Style.com

 

Kuwait Heritage Online.

I've always been a fan of "culture", more precisely our "خليجي" heritage, and traditions in the form of artifacts such as old photographs, costumes, songs, dance, words that are ceased to be used by the young generation, etc.. 

I am also currently working on something that has a certain degree of involvement in this area which I am ever so passionate about. 

Through my research and online extraction of information I stumbled upon this website:

Kuwait Heritage

This website is so cool, in fact its the best website I have seen about Kuwaiti Heritage.. 

Upon entering it, you get the feel of old Kuwait, it's like you are suddenly back in the days of old mud houses  and "فريج"'s (**no idea what the plural of that word is). 

Complete with an old Kuwaiti home as a template for the website, you enter the site by going through an old Kuwaiti Door, after which you get several links to other "chambers" of the house such as the costume room, the chest of information modeled after an old diver's chest, a bunch of notes and coins which better inform you about the history of Kuwaiti currency, and etc.. 

It's like this interactive grandfather/grandmother you never had whom through their story tales tell you about the old Kuwait and you feel like you were there, and not in our modern concrete and cement built houses equipped with air-conditioning, where pearls are something you go to the Jeweler to get and  where you don't have to go for months at a time to trade/buy things from abroad, but instead just pop into the supermarket. 

Yes, i hang around with my grandparents and hear all about the "good" old days.. 

It's so nice to have a website that is easy to navigate, and which is credible (**it lists where the information comes from and the sources).

But best of all, in a time where they are trying to delete "الغزو العراقي الغاشم"/Iraqi Invasion on Kuwait from our books and call it a friendlier version of itself (**i forgot what they call it now, does anyone know?) its brilliant to see that some people out there like Sulaiman Adel Al Foudari (**the website creator) are keeping old Kuwaiti traditions and culture alive.. 

Click here to go to the Kuwait Heritage website

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Forget Dams, some people can do a better job. 

"In a perfect world...."

Even though I am thankful for my life and feel blessed without a doubt, I'm big on that phrase.

In fact I have a tendency to start "in a perfect world such and so would happen.." conversations; which re-enact endless possibilities and outcomes to certain events that have happened or will happen shortly or on the long term.

Sometimes they make me sad, since the possibilities I dream of are "too good to be true", other times I am over the moon; especially when something I only dream of actually does happen, but with a different twist or turn which makes it amazingly worthwhile.

That's life really, everything is unexpected, for if it was, it would be a perfectly "boring" world.

Saying this I by no means consent that life is perfect. On the contrary its the imperfections that jazz up life. They make it unique, and special; and like my best friend always says, "I love imperfections, they tell a story and give character."

But that's not an excuse to stop envision-ing a "utopia-stic world" or perfect situations. For sometime those perfect situations do happen; and when they do they are so much more special.

They are a reminder that "wishes do actually come true" and set free that little child that was trapped within by adult logic.

So in context I ask you,
Dare to dream?

xx
Baroque


Nb. Picture taken by yours truely, one fine sunny cloud dotted day.

PS. In a perfect world, you'd make my day.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone from Zain Kuwait

Bill Clinton at NBK

Yesterday the National Bank of Kuwait hosted an evening with former President of the United States Bill Clinton, which yours truly had a chance to attend.. 

The night revolved around an address by the 42nd President of the US, and founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and was followed by dinner.. 

The audience was very selective and consisted of the Kuwaiti Business Community Elites, Founders and Stakeholders of NBK, as well as NBK customers.. 

Things I learnt about Bill Clinton were that he was allegedly one of the best Presidents the US had ever seen.. He transformed the US economy around and took it's deficit and turned it into a surplus for the first time in years.. 

In his Presidential term he also helped create millions of jobs as well as help give the US, its best economy ever.. 

But the best thing was his speech, he sure was charismatic! 

He did not falter, slow down, or get lost once during his 45-60 minute speech; note he wasn't even reading or seemed to even possess a paper on hand.. I was amazed by his oratory skills to tell you the truth and the confidence/posture/overall demeanor that he kept throughout.. We need a couple of Bill Clintons here, and not that endless yapping in the Parliament, which seems like child-play when compared to his speech yesterday.. 

He stressed about the following points (which i felt were noteworthy of penning down):

-"The Central Character of the 21st Century world is its interdependence"  (**key-word "globalization") 

-He advised that we keep pumping more liquidity into the system until confidence comes back to the economy, thereby emphasizing that one of the key players in this crisis are the investors/people who have lost confidence in the overall system, and by getting that back, we can get back on track.. (**makes sense, especially after the big drop in the Kuwaiti Stock Market today, "الله يستر", people are afraid of the risk) 

-He suggested that we stop rescheduling/putting back investments and business plans, etc. till after the economy comes back, on the contrary we should invest in things that have independent value (**something along the lines of strengthening our base), so that we can get out of this crisis in a better solid shape (**in other words, follow this crisis with economic development).. In a nutshell, he feels like the more "economic stimulus" we create, the better at this point.. 

-He said we should worry about "Global deflation" and boost economic activity such as interbank lending, confidence, investment, and all round productivity).. 

-He gave a lengthy explanation of the negative externalities the US would go through if they lost General Motors (**for non-financial folk out there, GM is bankrupt and might go out of business, its one of the biggest manufacturing companies in the US).. Economic activity across the US, according to Bill, will be disastrous since GM engages suppliers, employees, etc across the US and the globe; thus the people, be they suppliers of parts, employees, salespeople, etc. involved in the GM productions curve will all suffer.. 

The speech was followed by Q&A, in which a lot of questions were politically inclined even though he was speaking mostly about finance and the economy; odd i know.. 

They asked him about whether Hillary Clinton was going to serve as a Secretary of State, and whether Obama asked her; he dismissed the question by saying he didn't know since when they started those rumors or whatever, he was here (**in Kuwait), but its noteworthy to mention that he took a couple of minutes to praise Hillary and her work/brilliant grasp of economics, etc. which i thought was so cute. (**the fact that he was sincere showed)

They also asked him what he had wished to have done before leaving office in which he answered three things:

1)Persuade Yasser Arafat to keep his work and sign Clinton's peace plan; if he did, Palestine would have had its independent state, and that would have stopped most of the blood shed and "War on Terror", since that would allegedly stabilize the region a bit. 

2)Gotten a universal health care plan initiated in the US, which they are working towards now apparently.. 

3)Stopped the Rwandan Genocide..

Overall, it was an amazing evening, and as my best friend put it "a once-in-a-life-time" chance to see such an amazing public speaker and one of the most influential people of our time in action.. 

For a more thorough and in-depth read about yesterday's event, refer to this article by the Arab Times: "Negative Psychology Fuels Economic Downturn."

PS. One day.... 

Friendly neighborhood Bunny?

Meet Fifi.. 

Fifi Lapin that is.. 

Not only is she an adorable bunny, she also is tres stylish with a smashing wardrobe to prove it.. 

Featured in Vogue, Fifi has her own blog showcasing various pictures of her many outfits..

She's like a model/"it-girl", an "it-bunny!" that is.. 

My favorite Fifi looks are :- 

Balenciaga 

Victor and Rolf

Temperley 

Pucci (**for N) 

Roberto Cavalli

Here is an excerpt of Fifi's witty yet clever alleged autobiography:

"Hi, I'm Fifi. Fifi Lapin. I was born one of 257 brothers and sisters but sadly there was an outbreak of myxomatosis when I was one year old and I was the only one that survived. My parents are therefore incredibly protective of me and spoil me rotten. I'm an hare-ss to my fathers fortune which he made playing fast and loose with carrot and lettuce shares on the international stock market. There are a lot of rabbits out there so I guess he just struck gold (or orange you might say). Some people think I’m just a socialite but I think there is more to me than just an extremely stylish clotheshorse!"

I don't know who is behind that blog, but its simply delightful! 

I've never stumbled on any blog like it, thats for sure.

Oh and it also has a Fifi Gift shop, where you can buy a lot of the prints/pictures featured on the blog, and other Fifi-fied things.. 

Go check her blog out. *click here*

xx

Baroque

Ps. Trying to learn new chords, not easy. 

Photo Credits: All images and the excerpt of Fifi's Autobiography all belong to the author of Fifi Lapin.

Painting the town "red"? Literally.

I personally believe that our answer to the Italian Renaissance is  "Street Art."

Street Art is a new wave of art branching from modern art, but one thing's different, instead of a canvas/paper/metal base, street art is splashed out on walls and other public structures..

It's sad to say, but it's considered elaborate and creative "vandalism."

In fact, many hard-core classical-art-inclined people like to call this act of drawing on walls, and decorating once grey and boring spaces into art pieces as "Eye-sore" and brand it under the Criminal Acts" category. 

I say, it was a crime, keeping some of those spaces grey and blotchy. 

Not everything is "Street Art", according to Gotham Gazzete, "Street Art usually has a political or social message and aims to encourage the viewer to think", like Art really, don't you look at a picture and let your mind wander? sometimes into the canvas, interacting with the characters, ink blots, or colors? (**My Art History Professor would be so proud right about now..) 

Those so called "Rogue Artists" or "Street Artists" are often anonymous and have half the world standing on one foot wondering who they are. Others have their Art sold for millions, such as Banksy's many frescoes? or should i say wall-coes? 

In fact they once stripped/knocked down a wall just to sell what he had painted on it.

"Street Art" is not criminal vandalism, its making empty un-maintained spaces into public pieces of art that the public can enjoy, and is a way of spreading the creativity. 

We need Street Art over here, I am sick of those lame excuses of alleged street art/graffiti loitering around Kuwait with swear words sprayed on walls (**often misspelled for that matter) if you want to paint/spray something, do it right would you? 

Or at least paint something enjoyable, something that would actually make me look away from the spot of traffic i am stuck in and think..

Here are some examples of Street Art: 

By Julian Beever

By Gore B

By Jimmy Cauty

By Blek Le Rat

By Banksy

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Strangers who know each other well, sad. 

Lanvin's taking the trash out.

Lanvin and Garbage Bags..

Take a few seconds, and think of how those 2 distinct and opposing words compliment each other.. 

Okay.. Okay.. 

Lanvin fans don't get me wrong, J'adore Lanvin and their flowy tres feminine, ultra style without the excess fuss and frills fashion, but the following dresses from their Fall 2008 collection caught me by surprise.. 

Yes i know they are not made of actual black plastic fabric per say, but are made of "Lame" fabric (plastic; nonetheless they look like they are tall, skinny garbage bags in motion.. 

You think he's been influenced by the whole global warming trend? and the fact that our waste management strategies are insufficient to meet the current demands?

He might be taking a stand, and re-using garbage bags, so as to stop the depletion and degradation of fabrics thus limiting Lanvin's overall carbon footprint? maybe start a new "green" or should i say "black" trend? 

Either way, After Checking out some of those dresses in the Lanvin, "Al-Ostoura" shop at Thuraya mall, here in Kuwait, i stand adamant on the fact that i'd rather "recycle."

Disclaimer: the rest of his collection is adorable though.

Enough Said. 

Ps. The world is not flat. Thank God.

Me against Us?

One of the main aspects that contributes to the differences between cultures can be summed up in one question, "Are they individualistic or collectivist cultures?"

In other words, are they a culture which puts more emphasis on the self/individual (**individualistic) ,or a "family comes first"/the group is more important than the individual culture (collectivist)? 

Most Eastern cultures are collectivist, and they include the Arabs, Indians, Chinese, Japanese, etc. 

Most Western cultures are individualistic, and they include Europeans, Americans, etc. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now, since we're done with my little mini lesson in Cultural differences, I introduce to you Liu Yang, a budding graphic designer who took this concept of "Individualistic Vs. Collectivist"  went above and beyond that and transformed it into graphics to illustrate this interesting contrast in cultures.. 

Blue symbolizes the West, and Red is East. 

ME

In the Restaurant

Que-ing 

Trendy Eating (**So true! Sushi is so popular in the west, Clever observation!)

Transportation Before and After (**Notice how in the west they have switched to bikes, the whole global warming/cut costs while in the East we have just developed to cars, clever!) 

Shower times (**Wow, never thought of this one..)

Prompt-ness (**am guilty as charged, i love using 6-ish, 7-ish, the "ish" suggests that i will be late as usual)

Problem Solving (**the black spot is the problem)

Opinions

Moods concerning the weather

Meals

Life 

Kids (**Its weird how in the West, some people consider their dogs their kids; call me Collectivist, but i find that weird..)

Overall, her work is inspiring and really delves deep into the whole East Vs. West/ Individualistic Vs. Collectivist cultures, and was a hit worldwide.. 

I find it amazing how art can touch reality, and can sometimes be a continuation of the real world, like something that picks up on a conversation/idea and explores it further thereby showing it in a different light and context.. 

After all, "Culture is the widening of the mind and of the spirit" -Jawaharial Nehru

xx

Baroque 

Photo Credits: China Digital Times,  The Nation, Notcot

The Baroque Campaign against "Winter-Wear" Now.

What is up with everyone and the sudden transform to winter wear already?  

It's like ever since that random 3 day rainy spot we faced,- keyword-tense "that" and "face(ed) to indicate the past tense, hence it has happened and its history- everyone has suddenly dug deep into the back of their closets and switched their summer/spring (**yes, we have 2 seasons only and they come in blends it seems) to winter/autumn wear... 

Sandals and slippers were traded in for UGGs and Boots, even though the weather is spring-y, and the temperature is still in the freaking twenties! (degrees celsius).. 

Coats replaced t-shirts, scarves are in abundance, and people have dusted off their winter tights.. 

Taking a stroll through university, i got the impression that the trees were loosing their leaves already (**not like they do here, but you get it, no? *keyword Autumn*) or better yet like it was snowing outside... 

I also felt like I had an extra layer of blubber or had this inconceivable ability to endure cold, after a girl next to me in class all decked in a sweater, zipped up ironically even though i was in a t-shirt and was kind of warm, snapped at me and asked me how on earth i was dressed like that, as if it was cold or something, which made me feel like i was naked or something.. 

"اشدعوااا"

Its funny really, but i guess, like Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: 

"One man's justice is another's injustice; one man's beauty another's ugliness; one man's wisdom another's folly." 

Or if, we edit it out and make it more "Kuwaiti", i'd say, "One man's spring is another's winter"? 

The weather is warmer than London's/Europe's  summer. 

Maybe there's a conspiracy behind this phenomenon? 

"Global-Cooling"-Kuwaiti Style? *LoL* 

Enough Said.

I refuse to give in to this "Winter-Fantasy-Dress-up" game; i'll wear my outerwear when the weather is "really" cold  and not just make believe. 

"Yes, We Can (still wear our Summer clothes!)"  *Pun Intended*

-Baroque. 

Made in India?

Are we going through another bout of "Indian-ess"? 

Remember the days where Bindis (Indian red spot stickers/marks that are applied on the forehead) and Henna were all the hype? (**I recall Madonna made them cool, but again i could be wrong, but she had a video clip with her adorned in Henna, no?) 

Then Yoga, suddenly became ever so hip, and everyone started muttering the various Indian Phrases that described it, "Ashtanga" anyone?  

And like every trend, it cooled off.. (**but never died it seems)

But Bada-Bing-Bada-Boom (**don't you love this phrase, i know i do), it's back! 

Ever since Elizabeth Hurley betrothed that British Indian Tycoon in that eye-opening Versace Sari Inspired gown, and splashed her wedding pictures everywhere, Indian has never been so cool..

Don't take my word for it, ask the so called "It" girl of the moment, Posh Spice- who was just snapped as the cover girl of Indian Vogue, in a sari.. 

Don't like Victoria, how about Kate Hudson, there is no one that does not love that girl... Yup, I'm a big fan,  but you can beg to differ.. Well she once wore a Dior Sari-inspired gown.. 

Anyhoo, so yes, Hindi seems to be back in style.. (**made in India has been playing in my head ever since i started this post; remember the Aishwarya Rai Miss.World moment..?)

Here are some Hindi-inspired looks that hit the Fall-Winter Runway; It's like Alexander McQueen has suddenly decided to go back in time to Imperial India, and as usual he adds that wacky yet ever so McQueen touch.. 

Either way, seems "Hindi" will always be in.. 

But to tell you the truth, I'm not a big fan of the whole trend, since almost everyone here is already influenced by India, due to the proximity and cultural history and ties between Gulf States and the Indian Subcontinent.. So its not something new here..

Even though, I love seeing "Saris" and Indian traditional clothing  (the colors and details are to die for) on the Hindi Actors/Actresses and in the multi-million BollyWood productions that look too good to be true, I don't feel like Hindi-style is for Moi..

Aap kaise hain ? (**How are you? )

Ps. Mujhe Doste Karoge? 

Nb. Title reminds me of the Made in India song.. 

Photo Credits: People Online, Fashion Spot, and Style.com.