Posts by Leah Pellegrini

Art
June 10, 2016

Body Artist Paints Surreal Optical Illusions Down Her Own Arms

21-year-old face painter and aspiring body artist Lisha Simpson uses her skin as a mutable canvas to make her fairytale-like tableaux. In some designs, she creates carefully shaded and proportioned illustrations that appear to pop off the palm of her hand as if she’s holding true 3D objects, from miniature books to Polaroids to paper cranes. Even more intriguing, however, are the optical illusions she applies down her forearms.

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Music
June 8, 2016

Animated Light Projections of Tiny People Seem to Play the Piano with Every Step

In classical music, the word “adante”—which means “walking” in Italian—describes a moderately slow tempo, like an average walking pace. MIT's Tangible Media Group has created a clever visual interpretation of the term, presented in a short film by the same name. In Adante, tiny digitized figures are projected just above an automated piano's keyboard, seeming to scale the keys—literally. Each animated step, skip, and stride sounds a new note.

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Design
June 6, 2016

Innovative Planters Let You Grow a Levitating Garden That Rotates in Mid-Air

Unlike regular greenery, Tillandsia—commonly known as air plants—absorb their nutrients from airborne particles via their leaves, with roots rendered unnecessary. The Swedish design team has now produced an inventive vessel known as LYFE to put the unique plants where they belong: floating above ground in an elegantly designed uprising against gravity. LYFE's two-piece system is comprised of a six-by-six-inch base of sustainably sourced oak and a 12-sided geodesic container made of silicone, with an inner reservoir for drainage.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.