Balance, Design
April 17, 2013
By Jamie Latendresse
In the heart of Detroit’s creative and cultural midtown lies Nora Modern, a treasure trove of modern housewares, gifts, and accessories. The store was created by four friends looking for a way to change the tone of retail in Detroit. Together, owners Liz Boone, Toby Barlow and Joe Posch, and manager Michele Unverzagt offer Detroiters a unique source of thoughtful design — everything from stone and glassware, to timepieces, bags, and artwork. The Nora team has a saying: “We honestly don’t know what you want, but we have a store filled with things that we love, and maybe you will, too.” Sounds good to us. And speaking of sounding good, check out Nora Modern’s musical soundtrack in this week’s Playlist.
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Balance
May 9, 2012
By Jamie Latendresse
Born and raised Detroiter Antonio “Shades” Agee has been know to hit a wall or two. In fact, as a graffiti artist he’s hit pretty much every kind of surface you can imagine, and then some you might not imagine. Now a 15-year arts veteran, his career has taken him everywhere from the streets to galleries to corporations, internationally. The infusion of his surroundings, influences, and personality into his artwork has drawn the attention of clients like Fiat, Chrysler, and Quicken Loans just to name a few. So what does Antonio listen to while he’s painting? The answers to that question reside within this week’s Playlist. Read more
Balance
March 28, 2012
By Jamie Latendresse
Artist, photographer, designer, and DJ Bethany Shorb has a lot going on. She’s been working full-time in her bisected Detroit studio for almost seven years. In one half she runs Cyberoptix Tie Lab, where she’s hand-screenprinted over 80,000 neckties, and in the other, she’s been exploring a series of screenprinted works on metal, paired with reclaimed automotive emblem text, and a series of sculptural pieces made from deployed airbag fabric. Cyberoptix is located on the fabled “Techno Boulevard” at the edge of Detroit’s historic Eastern Market District; so, despite the fact that Bethany is an avowed workaholic, it should come as no surprise that she enjoys staying up all night and deejaying under the monikers Dethlab or Toybreaker. She has been published and exhibited throughout the U.S. and her musical alter-ego has performed in venues throughout North America, including the Guggenheim Museum in New York and Movement: Detroit’s Electronic Music Festival. Take a listen to the music turned up in her studio right now in this week’s Playlist. Read more