However, for the main part these advances have been applied to the medium of film rather than theatre, there has been the occassional attempt by traditional theatre to "up the stakes" and incorporate technology into the experience, I remember a craze for holographic projections in the London scene a few decades ago. It wasn't the most successful of marriages, a commercial ideology that's more comfortable with the Las Vegas experience than traditional theatre. There are of course always those working at the forefront of innovation, some no longer tread the boards but instead perform in unusual locations such as industrial buildings and the great outdoors. Street theatre has developed in its own right over many years, becoming more and more ambitious throughout the years, more complex, and visually and emotionally striking. For me the idea of "walking through another's experience of the world" is far more of an exciting prospect than merely watching a screen, special effects pale in comparison to the intensity of all-encompassing performance art. There's one group that have taken the theatre closer to the public than any before, in keeping with Artaud's original philosophy, the apparently random and haphazard nature of their performances have really struck a chord with a far wider audience than most of their contemporaries.

Improv Everywhere

Improv Everywhere causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places. Created in August of 2001 by Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere has executed over 100 missions involving tens of thousands of undercover agents. The group is based in New York City. Take a look at some of the spectacular performances of the past.

Frozen Grand Central

Star Wars Subway Car

Human Mirror

Slo-Mo Home Depot

Food Court Musical

Improv Everywhere are probably thinking up their next interactive performance as I write, visit them at http://improveverywhere.com for more details.

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Available at:

PimpArtWorks – 24" x 36" – £32.40

Imagekind – 44" x 58" – $50.90

ArtsProjekt – 52" x 67" – $129.95

Hopefully I'll have created an original painting of this and limited edition screen prints ready by the end of the year

"Art on Track is a mobile art experience aboard an eight-car CTA train, which circles the Chicago loop for a day-long celebration of fine arts culture. Art on Track has transformed an eight-car CTA train into a spectacular exhibition for galleries and artists from all over Chicago, and beyond. Each train car will showcase unprecedented feats of creative dexterity by the artists and groups selected to re-imagine this every-day space. Situated in the heart of downtown Chicago, this melting pot of ideas and viewpoints reflects the rich diversity of the city itself, and promises work that will speak to every individual. It’s a fun event, so bring your friends, family, and art-nerd buddies. This Year, Art on Track will run from 5pm to 10pm on Saturday August 7th. Art on Track is produced by SALVO NFP, a non-profit group of Chicago artists and designers, dedicated to the empowerment of the visual arts. learn more about SALVO here."

Check out this video for more of an idea of the project. Elysabeth Alfano goes behind the scenes with Art on Track creator Tristan Hummel:

Here's some shots of what you'll find on the train:

I love the idea, not sure about the art, still it would make the lives of commuters a damn sight more interesting! Book your ticket here.

I'd call myself an artist rather than a designer, I do design, I do it cheaply, but only to put a little food on the table. For those who fetishize design in all its manifest forms I can completely understand the fascination, the consumer-designer relationship is a vibrant one, yet there are pitfalls. One of those being 'taste for taste's sake', i.e simply redesigning something to make it 'look cool', the other being the media's habit of latching on to big names for a decade or two, desperately hoping that those few mega-successful designers out there that make a household name for themselves actually know what they're doing.

I understand the fuss about designers that can simplify and stylise mundane everyday objects, such as Philippe Starck's lemon squeezer on a basic aesthetic level at the very least, James Dyson's vacuum cleaners actually do represent a leap in technology as well as style, and even I will turn my head for the occasional uber gadget, but the truth is that design for me is just a natural part of life, somewhat like evolution. The point when design starts to become interesting for me is when it challenges public perceptions and precepts, reimagining our society in another way, as with the Bauhaus movement, Le Corbusier, and even the Art Deco period to some extent, both reflecting new attitudes and predicting our future behaviour.

Ever so slightly reminiscent of the Biblical struggle between David and Goliath, the behemoth yawn fest that is The London Design Festival is looking a little less confident this year after a 9 year stint as a monopoly, The Anti Design Festival is preparing to pull the media rug from beneath them as it challenges what the organiser Neville Brody sees as a 25 year cultural freeze in UK design. Set to run simultaneously in the last week of the LDF, it should really cause a commotion. You can see it for yourself from 18-26 September on and around Redchurch Street in Shoreditch, London the ADF gathers contributions of art and design that challenge contemporary stereotypes. This is work that is seen as un-commercial, dangerous, and anti-establishment. For artists, designers, and other creatives, this is an opportunity to exhibit work alongside contributors including Jonathan Barnbrook, Stuart Semple and Stefan Sagmeister.

Here's what Brody has to say on the subject:

"This is the chance to show previous work that has failed with clients or instructors, or to produce completely new work without the imposition of market restrictions. Because this festival is completely non-profit in orientation, we cannot pay for contributions. However, this is an opportunity for your work to engage a wide audience in a context that will challenge and provoke the public to rethink the role of art and design in contemporary culture.

We have two separate streams that you can submit your work to. Submissions will be accepted until Friday, 13 August 2010 at 11:59PM BST. There is no need to confirm your interest.

The first stream is for small, reproducible multiples. Submissions can take any form you want, but the bulk of the work should be cheaply-made and reproducible so that visitors can take it and use it however they want. For more information, including creative prompts and a submission upload form, please see this link. Please write to andy@researchstudios.com with any questions related to this first stream.

The second stream is for large, one-off pieces of various sizes that will be framed and hung closely alongside each other. The theme for this stream is State of Mind, Mind of State, which considers the reciprocal relationship between personal psychology and state control. For more information, including submission details, please see this link. Please write to submit@antidesignfestival.com with questions related to this second route."

Read the full interview at It's Nice That or visit the ADF site at www.antidesignfestival.com.

Anyway, it only seems right I give the guy a big shout out seeing as he's about the biggest local name I'll probably ever drop in my life. Eine is famed for his typographic stencil art such as his series of shop shutter works and vast murals including titles like Vandalism and Scary. Here's what Wikipedia have to say on the guy:

Prior to becoming involved in commercial graffiti, Eine was a very famous and highly credible writer in the underground London graffiti scene.

Inspired by the work of fashion assassin Noki, Eine first started to explore more commercial avenues in a workshop above the Dragon Bar in Lenoard Street, London (now knocked down). Eine produced a number of custom clothing designs notably some custom "VANDALS" sweatshirts and started to explore screen prints.

At this time Eine contributed to sticker graffiti and was prolific in East London with his neon and black EINE stickers (multiple EINE names).

Eine first came to prominence in the "commercial" graffiti scene through his symbiotic partnership with London graffiti artist Banksy; through Eine, Banksy was able to access the underground scene and through Banksy Eine accessed the commercial world. Impressed by the work of Banksy Eine chose to focus on "commercial" graffiti.

In his commercial work he has produced numerous lettering styles including: shutter, circus, neon, elton, vandalism and wendy.

Of course there's much more to Eine's work than typographic stencils, I love his Cork Street Monsters canvases…

Money's too tight to mention…

See more of my prints at Imagekind, Artsprojekt and limited edition signed prints at PimpArtWorks.

Here's the press release "The BLDG is excited to announce the release of a new print series by artist Cleon Peterson. For those of you unfamiliar with Cleon"s work he is know for creating anxiety-riddled worlds fueled by violence and chaos. Cleon produces a world where deviance is the norm and his characters are forced to navigate through a lawless terrain.

Both prints measure 13.5 x 17.5 and are printed on heavy 100% cotton paper using ink so bright it may cause blindness. The prints will be released sharply at 1:00 pm EST on July 14th. For more information visit www.BLDGrefuge.com for more information.