Our web open call, developed together with the Mayor’s Fund for London, is rolling on. #BEOPENDesignCity challenge is inspired by the City Pitch Leadership Programme, and here are a few outlines of this great inspirational project.
Category: BE OPEN Blog
Dear friends, BE OPEN is launching its next global Internet open call together with the Mayor’s Fund for London. The open call is named #BEOPENDesignCity. The challenge presents the opportunity for those who are eager to share their love of their city as well as any ideas on how to make it a better place.
Win €300 by posting a visual piece (photo or a video) on Instagram with the hashtag#BEOPENDesignCity and write some words to explain your idea.
Check out the details: beopensocial.com
(the photo is from BE OPEN Sounding Space Symposium project)
Dear friends, the BE OPEN Foundation is happy to announce the winner of our Instagram #BEOPENUrbanPattern open call!
Our congratulations go to Giancarlo Cazzaniga from Italy!
Giancarlo’s photo with a distinct futurist poster vibe has been chosen as the winning one by our jury comprised of BE OPEN Founder Elena Baturina and the members of BE OPEN Community from the shortlist of entries with the most likes. The winner will be awarded the prize of €300.
We applaud all the contestants: we are truly amazed by the number of outstanding submissions we have received in response to our challenge. Thank you all for taking part in the open-call!
Please, stay tuned, as the next open call is just a few days away!
Each year the world demands more flexibility from each of us. The need to adjust to the constantly changing environment is a great challenge for designers these days. Divided furniture, inclusive furniture, mix-and-match, mobile and flat-packed furniture — many names and many ways to in fact respond to the same urge for sustainability and minimalism, boosted up by an extensive housing crisis. Still, before our furniture gets intelligent enough to transform and fit our needs with the help of AI, let us marvel at some of those smart design decisions.
The saying “Art for the art’s sake” might as well go further to visiting museums… for the sake of museums. At times the architecture of museum buildings can even rival the art hosted inside. Each of these museums has a spirit and a philosophy of its own, attractive enough to inspire us for a long journey. Here is our list of the museums with the most impressive architecture.
As the housing crisis becomes a major issue in cities all over the world, architects and artists are pitching in to search for unusual ways to solve this problem. Yet most of the ideas that have already come into reality seem to be more of art projects, speaking the words of urban poetry and bringing cities’ fairy tales to life: houses on roof-tops, in parks, affixed to other buildings walls… Check out the most interesting alternative urban spaces of today.
It might be the ‘lo’ season for vacation travels in Europe, but not for art connoisseurs. Whether you prefer classical arts, contemporary or surrealist, this autumn in Europe will offer you so much more than rainy weather. Here are the top exhibitions to see in the old world before the Christmas season comes with its crowds and scary prices.
Reverse graffiti has already become an independent art form. There is no need to buy any paint or canvas, all you need is a dirty wall or pavement. Clean tagging or grime writing are the other names for it.
In a way similar to the “wash me” notes you can find on dirty cars, it is about scrubbing or cleaning the dirt off the surface to make a creative statement. You don’t make any damage to the walls or cars, so it is relatively ‘harmless’ comparing to other forms of street art. There are no toxic materials used — only soap and cleaning tools. But still, the artists sometimes get arrested by the police because it is still considered to be graffiti.
Check out these cool examples of reverse graffiti and get inspired for our Instagram #BEOPENUrbanPattern open call!
Urban street installations open up a new dimension in the everyday city reality. They bring the fairy-tale, the magic and sometimes even a hint of madness to public places. It can be found in locations we least expect them to be, or follow the trotted paths of street artists. Either way, they heighten our sense of reality around us and change the way we observe the usual city landscape. Check out those marvelous street installations and get inspired for our Instagram #BEOPENUrbanPattern open call!
These days underground movements and curb trends are paradoxically becoming more of a mainstream. And guerilla art might be a good example.
Leaving anonymous art pieces in public places, where everyone (or at least the most mindful ones) can see it and, possibly, engage in some action with it, is now becoming a much more powerful creative tool than finding your way through galleries. It started out in 1980’s as a response to the take-over of public spaces by commercial interests. It is not only about installing your art on the streets but also making subtle (or bold) statements, an attempt to change the reality. It can be a graffiti, a sticker and flyer art, notes and bookcrossing, even letters to strangers or some objects installed or left behind. It can be politically motivated, or just poetic or strange. Check out these great examples of guerilla art to find inspiration to take a better look around your city environment… or, maybe, create something alike yourself.
