While most artists struggle to be big in the States, others strive for the glory of being big in Japan after they’ve flopped in America.  

Of course, that isn’t really the case with (our dear friend) the Canadian-born multi-disciplinary artist eepmon (Eric Sze-Lang Chan), an already-successful creator who will be touring Japan all this May. During that time, eepmon will put on two solo exhibits and be a part of many other art events in Tokyo. Though a large part of his work features poppy, bright colors and subjects like flowers and animals (pieces in this style will be shown at the Design Festa Gallery in his “i am my introspection” exhibit), we suspect Akira influenced him more than Takashi Murakami. Shapes fall upon one another in monstrous, jumbled ways, so that each time you glance at a piece, you can continue to find new and exciting images buried inside.

His other paintings, revealed within the “Intersections” exhibit at the Gallery O2, are also brimming with color, but are abstract and Pollock-like in their fury. Nevertheless, whether you’re viewing calmer works like the organic “Chaos Bloom 8″ or the abstract attacks on canvas in “Intersections,” his creations are visually arresting. We love them, more after the jump.
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When we last wrote about California-based metal toy-makers FullyVisual, they were throwing a sale. This time, they’re (literally) providing a way for you to save money. The catch is, you have to spend it first. In clever coordination with the last day to pay your taxes, the company is dropping nickel (edition of 35 for $135) and copper (edition of 5 for $235) Anarchy Reagan banks by Frank Kozik. Each piece comes with a signed and numbered print. Get yours after 11AM today here.

Formula Werks teamed up with Loyal Locals for a new series of Build Your Own city-themed clothes. Whether you’re representing Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, the Bay Area or beyond, you can wear your home teams on a fully customizable T-shirt. You choose from a spectrum of sizes, fits, shirt colors and text colors. Formula Werks does the rest. The artist-driven streetwear company was founded in 2003 and draws from skateboarding, tattooing, low-brow art, design and graffiti cultures, with a healthy dose of humor. They make soft shirts, cut right with in-your-face sloganeering. Don’t follow sports? They’ve also got your shoe fetish and toy fetish covered.

One of my favorite things to do is read in bed. If I can get comfortable enough, I’ll go so far as to even work on my laptop there—a no-no for psychiatrists advising sleep-deprived patients that a bed should kept associated as a place to rest. After about 15 minutes though, I have to plump up that pillow on my back again. Though this process isn’t that much trouble, the only problem with having the Cama Clina from Faro Design in Brazil is that I’d likely permanently give up the work table for the work bed. The company tapped into a system they developed in 1988 for canvas patio chairs for this ultra comfy recliner bed, which works via hinges that move a leather piece that works as back support to the front. When not in use, it’s incorporated into the aesthetics of the wood headboard so you wouldn’t even know about its hidden other use. Rad? Yes. Dangerous to productivity? Likely. But what’s a bed for then?  

San Francisco-based photographer Geoffrey Ellis’ photo journal blog Sadkids is aptly named: its coverage can be as blue (with posts entitled “Sometimes, progress can suck it” and “Burn Santa burn”) as it can be lighthearted and youthful (”Easter valley of the sun” and “Hawaii + Halloween = Hawaiiloween” come to mind). But no matter the mood, the imagery featured has the same lovingly cluttered, colorful aesthetic as Ellis’ self-published photo zine of the same name, now in its fifth edition. The winner of the Bay Area’s Phelan Award in Photography, Ellis chose the name for his photo collections as a tribute to 1960s paintings featuring large-eyed kids, cats and dogs in the style of Walter and Margaret Keane. When asked how he chooses where to point his lens, the photographer said he likes to shoot “old signs, antique shops, junk shops, flea markets, bars and record stores (unpolished America). My wife [author Sarah Lacy] doesn’t let me bring junk home anymore, so I have to photograph it instead. It’s a good compromise. She’d much rather see a photo than a bunch of crap on the dining room floor.”  

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