Our newest (and personal favorite) edition of Smoke & Mirror Playing Cards designed by Si Scott will be available this spring. We had them printed using green metallic ink on recycled paper. More details will be posted soon.
If you’re coming to Magic-Con this year you’ll be pleased to know that they will be available for immediate purchase. The “official” release date will be announced shortly.
I have recently become fascinated with a particular style of art that has lately been getting lots of attention on the internet blogosphere. 3D Street Art, have you heard of it? HAVE YOU SEEN IT?
Only when looked at the right point of view does the three-dimensional painting become a perfect illusion. “It gets thrilling when the observer runs into the picture.” For example, Edgar (the artist responsible for the Ice Painting) encourages the spectator(s) to place themselves within the creative elements thus turning a painting in a magical story.
Click HERE to watch the making-of the Ice Age painting. To learn more about this artistic technique I encourage you to watch Anamorphosis, a brief documentary of the subversion of perspective.
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Anamorphic Street Magic: A few years back, Magician, Marco Tempest ingeniously applied the same principle into one of his virtual magic tricks.
There are many 3D Street Artists out there, Kurt Wenner & Edgar Müller are just the two examples I used. Do a search in google and let us know if you come across something truly magical by using the comment box below. I look forward to seeing the progression of 3D Art in the years to come and can only imagine what will be conjured up next.
Japanese designer, Tokujin Yoshioka, conjures-up illusion for Hermès new window installation.
It’s nice to see an artist turn something so simple into something so amazingly beautiful… and magical. It really reminds us of the little things in life that we take for granted.
The installation will run from now until january 19th, 2010 at the Maison Hermès in Japan.
The following is a collection of everyday household items that have been re-designed and developed for the sake of adding mystery into the overtly common – as well as making great conversation pieces. Almost all the items shown are available to buy. Let us know if you know of any other designs of mystery. Enjoy!
ONE: Light the candle by using the match with an internal sensor. No buttons at all! When you’re finished, just blow the light out, and it flickers as you blow. The LED Magic Candle from Metaphys looks like it has a real flame in the tube, but it’s really an LED light that flickers in the wind, just like the real thing. Designed by Chiaki Murata, the HONO candle is stylish and modern.
TWO: Both The Floating Bookshelf & The Sticklebook Bookshelf allow you to stack up to 8 books (10 pounds) on the wall creating the illusion of a line of books hanging unsupported.
THREE: It’s hard to think of a light source as mundane as the naked bulb. In a surprising twist, the Lamp/Lamp gives the lowly light bulb a new and delightfully absurd personality (not to mention mysterious and magical) by simply adding an extra socket.
FOUR: Tobias Wong’s wireless On/Off Light Switch in a lucite box, is a classic Tobias creation. Place this wireless on/off switch anywhere in your space and control any light fixture up to 100 feet away.
FIVE: All Illusion tables are handmade, individual and unique. The design gives the impression of a table cloth on a round table. However, the object uses the structural strength of the folded material to create a magical and surprising experience – an illusion.
SIX: Your eyes do not deceive you: that sleek slab levitating in midair is in fact a bed, and it is floating unsupported–though lightly tethered at its four corners–16 in. above the floor. The Air Mattress is the daydream of a Dutch designer who says he was inspired by the monolith in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.
SEVEN: This heat-sensitive wallpaper changes patterns when you crank the thermostat. Designed by Shi Yuan. Not available for sale, yet.
EIGHT: The Shadow Chair integrates shadow into its structure…At first glance it is a simple chair that seems to defy gravity by standing upright while only having two front legs, but on closer inspection the shadow is part of the chair and made from steel, which is attached to a metal frame built inside the chair.
NINE: The Magic collection consists of furniture developed in collaboration with magicians, borrowing some of their illusionary techniques to make lampshades that appear to hover in the air, chairs that seem to balance on one leg and drawers that appear not to be there.
TEN: This modern space-age device is actually a record player. The red sphere contains a needle, amplifier and speaker while the base is outfitted with a magnetic and auto-calibrating control system that carries the LP into thin air. Unfortunately the Void LP player is not available for purchase, yet. Similar antigravity technology is being developed by Crealev and you may also wish to checkout Jeff Lieberman’s wirelessly powered levitating lightbulb.
Please help us build the ultimate Mystery House by adding more products of mysterious design to the comments below.
Grab your 3D glasses (I know you all have a pair lying around somewhere) and watch Daniel Madison perform Card Flourishes in 3D right through the inter-web!
The above clip was featured on Derren Brown’s 3D Spectacular, broadcast in the UK this past evening.
In this video, Dave Buck talks briefly about Magic-Con 2010’s Special Guest of Honor. Although his identity hasn’t been revealed, Dave does say, “He is one of the most universally respected performers, thinkers and creators of magic,” and that “You won’t want to miss the opportunity to see a true master and one of magic’s living legends.”
On December 1st, Magic-Con will proudly announce their 2010 Special Guest of Honor.
Using the comment box below, let us know who you think the Special Guest of Honor is going to be.
Thank you for your interest in attending Magic-Con 2010. Registration is now available.
The price for registration is $299. We are also having a contest for the first 200 people to register: Out of the first 200, 11 will be randomly selected for VIP treatment including:
This podcast features one of the most respected and creative minds in magic, Chris Kenner. Listen in as he speaks about the art of magic, what makes Magic-Con different, and what we can expect from him and others in March.
The conference will be held March 18th through the 21st in San Diego, California. Registration opens this Monday, October 19th at 12:00pm!
Download the podcast here, or listen to it now via the player below.
As a longtime fan and admirer of the TASCHEN art books, I have wondered when the “magic book” would come for severals years now. When I first heard it was going to become a reality a few years ago and that Mike Caveney and Jim Steinmeyer were involved, I didn’t think it could come soon enough. Anyone familiar with TASCHEN books knows they are of the highest quality and some might say as beautiful as the art they showcase. Expensive books they are (a few limited editions sell for upwards of $10,000), MAGIC is no exception and priced at $200. However, for a 650 page master archive of our arts history (1400-1950), is a a fair price in my opinion and well worth it. I have already placed my order and can’t wait to divulge its pages.
MAGIC, 1400-1950, is a book on the art of magic featuring 500 years of magic’s dazzling visual culture as a performing art. Read more information and leaf through a sample of the book on the TASCHEN website.
Available November 2009. Pre-Order Now.
Shelter, a housing and homelessness charity in the UK, has set up a campaign to “to raise awareness of the housing insecurity facing millions of families in the UK.”
The campaign has also reached out to 52 artists and designers to create artwork of each card of a deck of playing cards. Artists involved include Alexander McQueen, Damien Hurst, Nick Park, Ron Arad and possibly YOU. The artwork will first be exhibited and then auctioned in aid of Shelter.
To find out how you can submit your own artwork for a chance to be included among the other artists involved, visit the House of Cards website.
They will also be producing a limited run of playing cards featuring the artwork of all 53 artists. (It is not a deck of cards, but A5 prints of the artwork.) The proceeds will go towards Shelter “and help people facing homelessness and eviction.” Register on their website and be the first to know when the cards are available.
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Dan and Dave Buck (yes they are twins), are professional instructors of card magic and author several books and DVDs on the subject. They are world renowned for their unique style and transformation of the craft into a visual art. On this site, you will find their acclaimed line of magic products as well as a curated shopping guide for both the amateur and professional magician. | |
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