If you were unable to attend, here are some pics from the opening night of King Chaka’s first solo show presented by Mid-City Arts. The interior of the gallery, as well as the backyard was completely covered with Chaka’s various tags, including the walls, fire hydrants, newspaper bins, street signs. Everything was created new for the show and fans were able to purchase pieces created by Daniel Ramos AKA Chaka. Around 700 fans showed up as well as LA’s graffiti community like RISK, SLICK, REVOK, RETNA, RIME, SEVER, Estevan Oriol, Joe Connolly – the graffiti guerrilla, OILER, MOSH and SLEEZ, all to support the artist of the night.

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UPDATE: Sorry, I had to remove the video because it was the irritating ‘auto-play’ kind. I was annoyed by it and thought you might be too. Check it out after the jump.

If you’re a fan of fixed gears, this past weekend was the release party for the Macaframa limited edition 2 disc DVD. Directed by Colin Arlen and Colby Elrick from San Francisco, the film features Macaframa Crew Members from San Francisco, Portland and Seattle doing what they do best on their bikes. Order the DVD box set here.

Thanks Rod.

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Not too long ago, I never saw myself with a man bag until picking one up from Jack Spade not too long ago. Now Lanvin has a killer one out. Looking like a part tote bag, part laptop case, this 24-hour bag is a nice mix of nylon and calfskin leather. The color scheme is simple, but for whatever reason, really stands out to me. Even the included luggage tag is nice. Available here.

[SOURCE] Thanks B!

Coca-Cola is getting into summer with a limited edition series of cans. While I don’t likem them nearly as much as I liked what So-Me did for Coke, I applaud Coca-Cola for continuing to refresh its designs.

We’ve been following this story through Lance Armstrong’s Twitter feed for awhile and now you can see the making of Lance’s Trek bike with Shepard Fairey’s artwork.

Barbour is one of those old school brands that my British blood can’t help but appreciate, I’m pretty sure that we were taught in school that anything with the Queens seal was better, without question. They make some incredible products specifically for the tempermental weather of the isles, this shirt is no exception, made with 100% thick 215g cotton.

Visit Barbour for more info.

I really love this. It’s one thing for a brand like Dorritos to hold a contest for user generated content, but to have an upscale brand like Hermes with a long standing history of quality to change with the times is really something. Hermes has partnered with designboom for a contest for “innovative and original pattern designs for ties that brighten up men’s wardrobe” looking to be “surprised by refined ‘all-over’ designs – repeating or non repeating patterns in which the motifs recur in a design covering the entire cloth”. Contestants are asked to develop a new pattern that could be either a re-interpretation of the Hermes classic patterns or something completely different, that could be used for the silk-screen printing – or weaving technique.

The winner receives future royalties from the winning design’s sales and $3000 EURO cash.

More details over at designboom.

I wouldn’t consider myself a big follower of the art scene, but I’ve always appreciated the work of British artist and illustrator Dave The Chimp. Previously a designer for a skateboard company, he’s since been featured in books alongside Banksy and Shepard Fairey and now has a solo show, his first ever, in Berlin entitled Prints for the New Power Generation. Currently running at the ATM Gallery in Mitte until 23 May. As the name suggests, the artwork shown takes the form of prints – screen, lino and stencil.

Dave The Chimp: Prints For The New Power Generation runs until 23 May at ATM Gallery Berlin, Brunnenstrasse 24, 10119 Berlin Mitte. email: info@atmberlin.de Open Tues – Saturday, 12-7pm

Click here to read an interview with Dave The Chimp.

I’m not sure if a cuckoo clock has ever ‘impressed’ me, and if you’ve never been impressed by a cuckoo clock, we’re glad to be able to share this experience with you. Stefan Strumbel, heavily involved in the graffiti and street art scene has come out with this collection of oversized clocks complete with bright colors, crossbones, skulls, hearts and machine guns. There’s also a little taste of his German heritage with deer antlers. See others after the jump. Note: They make pretty dope wallpapers too.

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Just came across these sneakers over at SlamJam and remember hearing about them back in late March. I’m really happy to have found them online as I haven’t been able to find them in stores. Aside from Jordan’s, I don’t ever fall in love with Nike high tops at first sight like I did with these. After doing some research and discovering all the thought and ideas put into them, I just had to share. Plus, that strap is some straight up Lanvin style. Here’s the deal: Berlin based artist Feride Uslu (and his own brand: Uslu Airlines), well known for his quality air brushing has worked with everybody from the good folks at colette to Bernhard Wilhelm. This collaboration with Nike for an AF-1 HI was inspired by airplanes, note the sheep skin lining reminiscent of old school fighter plane jackets. The green tongue, an homage to the green signals normally found on airport control towers, the yellow tongue, straight off airport security vests, the pink laces replicate parachute cords, topped off with a reflective 3M Nike check and airplane seat belt-like top strap. Is it just me, or do you love how there are designers and artists out there that think up this stuff?

Available here.

This absolute stunner of a fixed gear bike is concept from German designer Menke Arndt dubbed the Holzweg. Along with it’s minimalist design and simple materials, this bike weight a mere 2.3kgs. The color scheme is fresh as hell but there’s no word on how sturdy a wood framed bike really is.

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I’ve still be listening to the Kid Cudi – A Kid Named Cudi mixtape, and although I’m not bored with it, I finally got around to listening to some newer albums. Rick Ross’ Deeper Than Rap album is pretty solid with a nice mix of certifiable club anthems, featuring hip-hop’s usual suspects: Nas, Robin Thicke, Lil Wayne, and Ne-Yo amongst others. I found Jadakiss’ The Last Kiss to be forgettable, even with 18 tracks. The track ‘Stress Ya’ featuring Pharrell however, is not forgettable. Luckily for me, I’m still getting my Jadakiss fixes with randomly found remixes of The Lox. Star Trak’s Chester French is doing some big things with Love The Future. Think indie rock with The Neptunes sans-N.E.R.D. influence. The Dream’s Love Vs Money isn’t at all what I thought it was going to be after I heard the track ‘Walking on the Moon’ featuring Kanye West. Then again, the Grammy award winning songwriter of Umbrella, knows a thing or two about putting together a solid R&B’ish type of album. I’ve also really been liking the lyrical madness in the UKNOWBIGSEAN mixtape from Big Sean. Finally, I haven’t gotten around to it yet, but I’m anxious to listen to the J.Period & Q-Tip: The [ABSTRACT] Best Mixtape, which you can download HERE.