Awesome Art & Design

Robert Burden makes amazing tapestry-style paintings of the action figures he loved as a child, from G.I. Joe to Voltron to Hulk Hogan. Print versions of his paintings are for sale at his website.

For almost 20 years now, the farmers of the town of Inokodate in the Aomori prefecture in Japan have been making amazing illustrations using only different colored rice plants.

After 3 years of meticulous production time, this haunting CG animated film about the beauty and mystery of nature has finally seen the light of day. And yes, it’s that Whoopi Goldberg as the red head.

NSFW: Movie titles can be very misleading. So Cracked asked its readers to make movie posters say what their movies are all about, and here’s what they came up with. More at the link.

Table-top jocks will love these foosball coat racks. They come in two, four or five-figure models. The figures can even be painted with the jersey of your choice. Rugby variant also available.

In Tom Judd’s animated short film, we get to see how modern technology will eventually lead us to our own desktop genetic engineering, allowing us to make our very own mini action heroes.

Liz Hickok creates scale models of urban sites (like San Francisco here) entirely in Jell-O. Luminously glowing, the fragile medium bears odd similarities to the city’s uncertain geological landscape.

NSFW. Science can be so boring. Why not spice it up with a little obscenity? The Periodic Table of Swearing helps you understand the difference between a Tfc, an Sfc and a Ysfac. Look it up.

This musical performance art piece consists of nine people wearing self-contained audio systems, moving together or individually to create an ever-changing, human surround-sound system.

We grinning at the looks of this guy expressing himself on this handmade limited edition print from Omar Noory. It’s letterpressed on heavy paper stock and hand painted with a light ink wash.

We’re not sure exactly how animator Surfap managed to get this speed-run through the classic NES platformer seamlessly layered onto this wall and ground, but we like Super Concrete Mario.

Dell Design Studio has partnered up with Threadless to create a series of cool artist-designed netbooks and laptops. 11 designs are on the way, but the first few are already available.

Storyboard artist Carlos Ramos, who’s worked on shows like Dexter’s Laboratory – created these whimsical images as an homage to the films of Stanley Kubrick. At Copro Gallery 7/10-7/31.

Gray Concrete created this sofa with a mold from a real Chesterfield to make a glass textile casting; the padding inside the cushions was replaced with a rigid foam modeled to make “bum prints.”

When we think about how much work it must have taken BLU to create this 10 minute long animation about the evolution of man, using graffiti on walls, floors and objects, it makes our heads spin.

This clever ad for HP Photosmart printers was shot by printing out each frame of its animation in real time. We’re amazed they didn’t jam or run out of ink. Nothing like a little movie magic.

Green City Energy GmbH commissioned animation expert Musclebeaver to make this short clip about “investing green”. It’s a humorous but sobering warning about where our money is going.

These prints aren’t works by the latest abstract artist. You’re looking at microscopic images of alcoholic beverages from BevShots. Tequila, beer and cocktails all could be hung on a gallery wall.

Randy Regier creates wonderful retro style toys and packaging. Although they may look like they’re from a bygone era, Regier’s works are actually attempts to reflect modern American culture.

To kick off their UK and European tour, bass guitarist and band-leader Murdoc narrates this part-animated, part-real world film which is well worth the 15+ minute watch for fans of the band.

Shoot to kill, play to thrill: it’s AC/DC vs. Iron Man in this cool architectural projection mapping project on the front facade of the Great Keep at Rochester Castle, which warps and tumbles before your eyes.

Made by IADT Film School student Conor Finnegan using a mix of hand drawn animation, stop motion and live action scenes. Well-meaning Fluffy Mc Cloud gets into trouble, but all’s well that ends well.

Artist Bruce Munro (and a crew of 140) created this installation using over 600,000 discarded compact discs to form an enormous shiny “painting”. In two months, all the CDs will be recycled.