The Brilliance!

HTTP://WWW.THEBRILLIANCE.COM

We’re really internet and we’re really back. A website about things Benjamin , Chuck , Virgil , and various friends & guests think are interesting. Little-to-no specific focus, a bit odd, speling errors, and incredibly culturally relevant.

105 small

PS3 Screenshots / Bast graff in bg!?

I’m not a huge video game fan, I enjoy a fair share of Halo 2 with friends from time to time…maybe a little NBA Live 2005…Maybe some Mortal Kombat or Yu-Gi-Oh…Or not…Anyways, here are some unbelievable Playstation 3 screenshots from the game “2 Days to Vegas.” Now - if this is real - and they’ve managed to get games to look this crisp and this realistic, that will be wild. What REALLY got my personal attention was in the first photo on this site - the background - check out that poster on the wall in the background from Brooklyn graffiti artist Bast. That is some nice attention to detail right there…Nice.

104 small

The Extra Apartment, Marlon’s Green Space!

ApartmentTherapy.com is a website run by two brothers, Maxwell and Oliver, out of New York City. It’s serves as a resource for all things apartments. Including interior shopping guides, furniture classifieds, and hilarious open threads. Recently they started a “smallest, coolest apartment” contest. They capped the entries at 30 and have an amazing judging panel. Unfortunately, the 31st entry was over the size limit of 500 square feet, but the apartment itself was amazing that they showed it anyway. Usually interiors aren’t worth talking about but this one is just so fresh. The Kaws artwork collection is arguably one of the best personal collections I’ve ever seen. Listen up, gentlemen: This is what your pad should aspire to. Take notes.

103 small

The Royal Magazine launch party photos!

You saw them here first! If you didn’t make it to the Royal Magazine launch party last night for issue five, you are a total n00b. Ok well, I didn’t make it out, mostly because I couldn’t go to NYC from Chicago on a Wednesday night…BUT I would have…Anyways, check out some photos, courtesy of Lauri from The KDU. Look, there’s Daaaave Gensler looking happy, so you KNOW it was going well…And my man Kareem Black…And some other people. Hey - if you were at the Royal party and took pictures - PLEASE send them to us at Review@thebrilliance.com and CC Pressoffice@thekdu.com. We’ll be doing a feature on the party and new issue soon and we’ll post & credit your pictures if you send em! < lil jon >yeeeeeahh!< /lil jon >

102 small

Getty Images, Editorials!

A different entry… This site is simply incredible. The Editorials is simply an off-shoot of Getty’s classic stock photography model, but so much more fun. Every event, every candid, every concert, every everything. Wherever the ‘stars’ may be you’ll surely find a pesky photographer taking a zillion shots, this is where they end up. The site is geared towards print and web publications as a source for fresh shots to accompany press/new related write-ups. But I find it as a brilliant resource for extra fresh trend watching and tracking. Everyone from Sarah Jessica Parker to Damon Dash, and everything they are wearing, driving, doing, etc… And yeah, I’m not a stalker; I just enjoy watching people and trends as they emerge. And I know this isn’t new, so don’t email me, you’re not clever.

101 small

Futura Nosferatu - soon!

OK so let me just say - Futura is one of my favorites. I think he’s a lot of people’s favorites. A nice guy, a living legend, and a very admirable and influential artist. The Pointman figures are always hot - they fly off KidRobot shelves and online toy stores, and pre-orders are no exception. Enter the Futura Nosferatu. A sick new figure coming out very soon in mid-May. Here’s a rundown:

8 Colors of Nosferatu will be produced - 400 in each colorway - Each territory region will receive a specific colorway. Eric So will retain an HK version while Maharishi will retain a Euro version. MSRP is $120.00 USD. 360 Toy Group is putting this out so you KNOW it’s going to be quality, since they’ve worked with KAWS, ALife, etc. There is info all over the net about this so I’ll just link to my favorite, Toy Tokyo, where you can pre-order if you move fast enough.

100 small

Promise Land ft. Mister Cartoon!!!

THE BRILLIANCE! loves Mr. Cartoon. How many people can say they’ve tattooed 50, Travis Barker, Nas, and a sweet Wu “W” on Method Man’s arm?!? Mr. Cartoon is a staple in today’s art world. A true modern master, his culturally inspired work, clean lettering, and unbelievable tattoo work coupled with a very easy to use and nice site completes the package. Now on to the news since you either already knew this or now know. Promise Land, hosted by Mister Cartoon and presented by Nike is going on TONIGHT - Thursday April 28, 2005 from 8:30 PM - 1AM. Live boxing and musical performances?! Mister Cartoon!? Art auctions? If I wasn’t dwelling in the Chicago suburbs who didn’t get out much other than to the post office and the grocery store, I’d fly out to LA for this. Check the flyer for more details.

Thedrama

The Drama!!

I’ve known Joel, the guy who runs The Drama Magazine for some time now. Not only is he a great guy, but he sends me copies of the magazine for free. And I love free stuff. But I love free stuff even more when it’s actually worth keeping, unlike AOL CD’s. ... Anyways, this new issue is packed with illustration and great artists. From front to back it’s just great work. People like Jordan Crane, Maya Hayuk, Cody Hudson, James Jean, and more all contribute to the genius “A to Z” section, a nice photo journal feature on the Row Boats Home exhibit, and more. So definitely cop this one for real, along with the new issue of The Royal, and lay them out together on your coffee table right next to that issue of Pen World you’ve got there. OMG PWNED.

Umbro

UMBRO x Kim Jones SS05!

Maybe I’m a bit late, so what, I need to do a quick write up on this. This whole line is fresh, maybe with the exception of the footwear… Not really my style. But the ready-to-wear stuff is lovely. I love the “I won’t sit still” …I love the feeling of that. And the colors are sick too, the men’s line has some fresh muted colors, I like it. We have seen a lot of brands do large collaborations with cool results, UMBRO was really one I didn’t see coming, and it’s fresh to see that they are being well received. The official site is Umbro-contrast but make sure to check the ‘more info’ link below for Shotgun… Buy some.

Wooster

Wooster Launches Mobile Collection Series 2!

This is cool in quite a few different ways. One because it’s original, I love the idea of people customizing their phones with artist’s work that were designed specifically for phones. Second cool thing is that the nominal fee goes to the artist and to the Keep A Child Alive foundation… Wooster makes no money off of the sales. That’s real. The pieces are done by various artists, not limited too Jeff Soto, Dalek and London Police. Also check the story on Wired.com about Wooster, real fresh. THE BRILLIANCE! loves Wooster Collective. Check their site…

Takumi

Takumi Shimamura’s Monacca Bag/Case!

This is refreshing. I would personally use this to tote around a laptop or maybe just a bunch of cash. Either way, no matter what you carry you’re going to get some attention. Basically it’s a vacuum formed wood case/bag made from Japanese cedar. Beautiful. The center part that connects the two wood halves is made of canvas which is hand sewn to the wood to ensure there is no cracking in the wood, very nice. The canvas also expands a bit to accommodate different sized objects while still offering protection. Can’t you just imagine what this bag would look like after a while, all the little nicks and wear marks in the natural wood… Seems like it would take on some cool character. Nice bag/case, buy it for about $300.