A joint venture of painter Antea Arizanovic and stylist Jovana Bozovic, Remake is all about breathing new life into used homeware objects. Featuring original, individually crafted artwork that sheds a different light on forgotten paraphernalia inside vintage kitchen cabinets, Remake’s range of products is both strikingly unique and wonderfully bizarre. From plates and teacups, bowls, mugs to pillows,and greeting cards, every object is carefully selected and turned into a brand new, exciting mash-up accompanied by sublime graphic messages. Going through their website I was unable to pick favorite designs, in fact I am obsessed with all of them.

Antea Arizanovic  studied to be a  painter and has been working as a conceptual artist. Jovana Bozovic is a costume designer and a stylist. Antea married Jovana’s brother and that’s how the two of them met. They both shared passion for vintage porcelain and  soon after they first had an ambition to make a single porcelain plate with their own signature and design, they continued to explore a whole range of homeware design.

Girls tell me what is REMAKE exactly?
Remake is a Serbian-Slovenian brand for homeware design. More than that it is a philosophy behind the brand – reviving beautiful, forgotten and unloved objects. Breathing them with new life, twisting and mixing old and new, paving the way to someone who will love these objects again. Remake philosophy transcends from salvaged pieces to limited edition collections of home accents – wall decor (prints and deer-heads), textile (pillows, aprons, laundry bags..) to notebooks and greeting cards. Whatever the piece is, it is always an elegant clash of traditional and provocative. Remake is exotic, wild and lovely, as is that weird part of the world it comes from.

Greatest inspirations or influences?
Everyday life is quite enough for inspiration. If you have the gift. Remake brand is a young one, we are quite excited about each piece we make, so we find inspiration in different places. Traveling around always brings something new, either new ideas or new objects for reviving. A few blogs we follow religiously and we are inspired by music, movies and fashion of course.
Some of our heroes and beloved brands:

• www.nathalie-lete.com/
• www.julieverhoeven.com/
• www.anthropologie.com/
• http://www.viktor-rolf.com/
• http://www.wimdelvoye.be/

Favorite websites, blogs, publications?

• http://www.anothermag.com/
• http://www.englishmuse.com/
• http://www.thelovemagazine.co.uk/
• http://www.designlovefest.com/
• http://www.nylonmag.com/
• http://ineedaguide.blogspot.com/
• http://www.kinfolkmag.com/

All Is Full Of Love. Ha! No joke, you’ve  got to love Remake, it’s beautiful, no?

Toofless & the Dub Poets Collective  release “Perspective” featuring Capone of Capone-N-Noreaga

More than ever today, hip-hop is increasingly taking a front-seat in the world of underground music in the Middle East, with new releases bringing fresh sounds and finely tuned talent. 28-year-old Feras “Toofless” Ibrahim is a UAE-based rapper of Sudanese origins. His hip-hop expression started to materialize at age of 17 after being inspired by acts such as Mos Def, Nas, Lost Boys, Wu Tang, Jehst, 9th Wonder and Talib Kweli. Formerly part of the renowned, forward-thinking and socially conscious hip hop collective ‘Diligent Thought’. Feras Ibrahim is now working on an experimental EP with DPC, Feras also performs regularly and is a vital member of Employees of the Month.Dub Poets Collective (DPC) employ scores of international, musical and social influences fused into their heartfelt productions. Their music has been featured on many albums, mixtapes, television, documentary films, and major radio stations across the world.

Perspective – Toofless featuring Capone of Capone-N-Noreaga by Feras ‘toofless’ Ibrahim

Lost Days – Toofless by Feras ‘toofless’ Ibrahim

Greatest inspirations or influences?
Everything from a wisp of smoke and streetlights to this earth and beyond. I’m not going to lie and say that inspiration is there all the time.  I face difficulties trying to find it, so I try to be aware all the time and expand my mind  because you never know where you may find it. I also notice little things and actively observe my surroundings to regain inspiration.
I am influenced by the music i listen to, my surroundings, family, friends, interactions, experiences and so on.

The Middle East only gives me a view point to look out from, it does not influence my sound as it is, it only broadens my mind as to truly understand what is happening in this region. I was born and raised in the UAE so that definitely contributes to my perception,  to my lyrics and my beat’s choice.

Hmmm..I’m not big on technology and don’t surf the internet that much, but i am not against it either.  I guess I’m still old school when it comes to that, I still like holding a book in my hand and reading it. I disregard most of the information  from internet based sources, unless it is 100% valid. In this digital age anyone can say anything and eventually mislead someone vulnerable. so my interactions with blogs, websites and others are quiet limited. I check out www.mideastdynasty.com from time to time just to see whats new in the region in terms of music, other than that I check out my girlfriend’s and other friends/artists blogs.

Upcoming gigs, tour?
I am part of ‘Employees of the Month’ collective, and there is a red bull event that we are lined up for this month but nothing is confirmed so far. Last month was packed with gigs so we are just exhaling right now, however follow me on twitter @aka_toofless and get on our facebook www.facebook.com/EOMdxbto get more information on our upcoming gigs.

I am in the pre-phase of shooting a  video for Lost Days and trust me when I say, this is going to be experimentally different so look out for that in the next coming months.  I am also collaborating wtih DPC again to generate a hip hop/experimental/jazzy/trip hop kind of Ep so make you sure u check that out..i also have a lot of collaborative material coming out with well established producers such as Wriggly Scott, Nickodemus and many more. Last but certainly not least I would like to thank you for having me on your blog. Respect!

Sasha Siem was born in London to a British mother and Norwegian father, and began playing the ‘cello and writing, recording and performing her own songs at an early age. She studied music at Cambridge and Harvard and by her early twenties, she had written music for the London Symphony Orchestra, The Royal Opera House, Rambert Dance Company, Opera North, The Aldeburgh Festival, Le Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, Neue Vocalisten Stuttgart, The London Sinfonietta, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

In 2010 she became one of the youngest people to win a prestigious British composer award, which cemented her reputation as one of the most exciting young composers of her generation.

Sasha has also participated in a range of collaborations with electro artists including Samson of bpitch control – who she met while living in Berlin in 2009 – and has performed her songs at venues across Europe, including the Royal Opera House, London; HBC, Berlin; La Blanchisserie, Paris; Issue Project Room, NYC.

The Guardian recently noted that, “Siem is making waves in the music scene.” Of her work for the London Philharmonic Orchestra, The Times wrote, “Siem is clearly a gifted musician.” Sasha will be performing today at Le Poisson Rouge at 158 Bleecker Street, NYC. at 9:30PM

Event details: http://lepoissonrouge.com/events/view/3330

Greatest Influences: 

• Music: Tom Waits / Bjork / Joanna Newsom / Jacques Brel / Laurie Anderson / Ani di Franco / Leonard Cohen / Claude Vivier / G. Ligeti / G. Kurtag / J.P. Rameau / D. Scarlatti / F. Couperin
• Poets: Anne Carson / William Carlos Williams / Yechuda Amichai / Marianne Moore / Rumi / Mark Strand / Franck O’Hara / Jonathan Swift
• Other: Puppet theatres / the moon / pockets / mannequins / fossils / patchwork quilts / wishbones / chain-mail armour / old buttons / love letters found at flea markets

Developing the next album. Touring starts up again on September 11th with a performance of new songs with the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra at the Ultima Festival in Oslo.

Tell us about your  electronic music collaboration  with Samson: 

Samson and I met while I was living in Berlin in 2010. After a year of sharing ideas and improvising, we snuck away to record our collaboration at a dilapidated Chateau in Bordeaux. I played cello and sang at the same time; Samson wove his electronics around the ‘cello part.

How does NYC inspire you?

Favorite websites: 

• http://www.poetryfoundation.org/
• http://www.thewire.co.uk/
• http://www.theschooloflife.com/

Anything else you’d like to share: 

Let go. Let the light in

The first serious camera Timor Kodal held in his hands was his father´s Canon AE-1 in 1984 and ever since has been fascinated by the art of photography. However, the years to come were primarily dominated by Timor’s devotion to playing piano and composing music, finally leading to a fairly successful career as an electronic musician under the pseudonym “teamore” and a strong involvement in Berlin´s netaudio-scene, which peaked in the foundation of the netlabel and netaudio-community “pulsar.cc”, a royalty-free party-concept called “net-lag” and a series of festivals he was organizing in Berlin and London.

Shortly after the replacement of his  dusty old Canon AE-1 with his  first DSLR, a Canon 400D, his passion for photography received its next substantial impetus from a trip to Granada in 2007. Timor’s arousing interest for portrait-, nudes- and fashion-shoots led to an aggregation of studio equipment and finally to again replacing my camera. The Canon 5D II (along with an EF 24-105mm 4.0L) purchased in preparation of a trip to Japan in February 2011.

Greatest inspirations or influences?

Putting a focus on society, urban life and decay along with street arts in my photo-journalistic work, I could not live without Berlin, my beloved native city. This metropolis with its manifold art- and music scene and its eventful history provides an immense wellspring to draw ideas and suggestions from, making it easy to find utterly talented artists to cooperate and share inspirations with. However, I also would not want to miss the abundant impressions I derive from my travels.

Most interesting or memorable shoot to date?

My first ever indoor studio shoot with a professional stylist and makeup-artist was pretty exciting. Nevertheless, I well prefer shooting outdoors with available light to arranged setups, therefore all my photo-journalism jobs were very fulfilling to me. My hitherto urban exploration field trips have been very exciting and memorable, too.

Favorite websites, blogs, publications?

• http://www.iheartberlin.de
• http://www.notesofberlin.com
• http://www.spreeblick.com
• http://spreeufer.com

The Australian blogger, model and jewellry designer Millicent Nobis is a wonderful and amiable person to work with:
http://miesinberlin.tumblr.com

I also deeply admire the works of Hannes Caspar, who is  a true master of empathetic portraits:
http://www.hannescaspar.com

An artistic fashion or nudes shoot in the decaying ruins of Detroit.

Most interesting response to your work?

The overwhelming feedback I have received for my “bathtub” image in the context of my photojournalistic coverage of the protests and parties taking place on the streets of Berlin-Kreuzberg on May 1st, 2012.

Anything else?

Myself. I am a passionate photographer focusing on journalism, (urban) society, people, portrait and nudes photography, and I am always up for exciting new projects.

Last night I had the opportunity to check out ART DUBAI and saw a couple of art works that really called my attention. One of my favorites was a piece at Opera Gallery in the DIFC by Korean artist Yim Tae Kyu  who is apparently known for his unconventional method of classical eastern painting. His painting demonstrate a busy utopian world, the colorful scenes of which are based around the pleasures of life. By juxtaposing the reality of cultural and social issues with their fictional representation, Yim Tae Kyu is an excellent storyteller that disguises the message with his intricate child-like animation. Yim is also an avid dreamer, which helps him attain the optimistic energy in his works.

“I first started with black and white works, looking at people alienated from society. But I then began to see that these people have dreams, hopes, and aspirations. I felt marginalized because I was an artist, but I also started to have my own dreams; that’s when I started using color.”

Yim Tae Kyu, on his ‘Marginal Man’ series

Soon after his graduation, Yim was exhibited in solo and group shows in Korea, Paris, New York and China. His paintings were auctioned at Christie’s Hong Kong, and his work is part of the main collections of the KUMHO Museum and the Song Eun Art & Culture Foundation. Yim’s talent is continuously being recognized with awards, the most recent one of which was given by Korea’s National Museum of Contemporary Art.

Yim Tae Kyu was born in 1976 in Seoul. He lives and works in Beijing.

What is the Al Kafiye Project?

The Kafiye is the strongest symbol to come out of the Arab contemporary world. The story of this powerful symbol, accessory and design detail has played many parts in diverse phases and keeps adapting with globalization and time.   Using the Kafiye as a platform for change, we would like to open up new angles on Arab identity and provide stronger design tools for future generations.

Al-Kafiye project is educational and inspirational – By bringing together designers and thinkers to lay down foundations for Arab identity, we can offer generations to come a new path to uncover. A group of exceptional Arab visual artists and designers have been invited to participate in an exhibition in New York about the Kafiye. Each one will interpret an angle of the discussion according to their unique creative vision. One more participant will join the show through an open call for entry. The exhibition will be part of a bigger event/symposium and book launch on the same subject.

Check out the following link to find out more about this competition and unique design opportunity http://www.kaflab.org/pages/homepage/al-kafiye-project/call-for-entries.php

Meet the co-founders of Kaflab:

Hala A.Malak is a design critic, writer, curator, branding consultant and Middle East expert who has her own particular view of the world. She heads her own consulting firm, The Design Critic – www.thedesigncritic.com and currently resides between Beirut and New York.

Tarek Atrissi runs a leading Netherlands-based design studio, Tarek Atrissi Design, specializing in Arabic design, branding and typography – www.atrissi.com. He has received the Adobe Design Achievement Award and the Type Directors Club’s award for typographic excellence. He is also the founder of www.arabictypography.com.

Adela Loconte, is a Photographer and Senior Producer based in Williamsburg, NYC with an incredible energy who captures the world with images she likes to keep as raw as possible.

Her roots are Italian, but she was born and raised in Caracas-Venezuela- a music lover from very early on- a passion that is clear in her visual work. After spending a few years in the UK, she finished her photography studies at the University of the Arts London, then moved to Barcelona, where she lived and worked for almost four years including as a planner for the CMYK International Independent Magazine Culture Festival, before deciding to settle in New York City. Currently, she is a freelance photographer and her body of work includes music, portraiture, journalism, and nightlife.

Your greatest inspirations or influences?

Music & day-to-day experiences.

Most interesting response to your work so far?

Last year at M83′s Webster Hall show I experienced a challenge with a very surprising outcome. The venue was packed so it was really hard to move anywhere, and the crowd was so excited they were actually really unfriendly with the us journalists. We were 9 photographers in total,( I was the only female shooting) and we all tried to help each other out during the performance including jumping on speakers, etc but I left dissapointed that I hadn’t captured the right shots. Two weeks later their publicist contacted us and thanked us for the review and mentioned my photos were their favorites. Two weeks after that, he wrote me again saying the band and crew agreed that my shots were the best photos from their tour and asked to have my photos appear on their ABC news documental.

• http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/entertainment/2011/12/m83s-anthony-gonzalez-tells-us-a-story/
• http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/video/m83-on-new-album-hurry-up-were-dreaming15157108?tab=9482931&section=1206836&playlist=153887204. Most interesting set or shoots?

Most interesting set or shoot?

So many!!! Every night is a different story and experience

Favorite websites, blogs, publications?

CMJ, Pitchfork, Bullet Magazine, and many of my friends and colleagues blogs!

Other  creative stuff your doing Adela?

I’m also a Senior Producer, currently working at PBS Channel Thirteen/V-Media Inc as a Programming Information Manager in New York, and have directed Sheik ‘n’ Beik events for almost 3 years with my partner Julio Santo Domingo. I produced Metal Magazine Fashion Week party in 2010 and also worked at the Sónar Music Festival when I lived in Barcelona.

Best part about living/working in Brooklyn?

The music scene, having some of my dearest close to me and obviously the walking distance to the places I like! That’s priceless!

Anything else you’d like to share?

Love & Music obviously most happier sharing!!!

• My Website: www.adelaloconte.com
• My Blog: http://adelaloconte.tumblr.com/
• Twitter: adelaloconte

UNER is one of the most important names of the new generation of Spanish electronic music producers. His musical training allowed him to develop at a very early age a different dance music concept, based on the pleasure for harmony and the search for a unique, personal sound. This has lead him to edit for labels like Diynamic (where he’s an active member and has edited some of his most celebrated works, “Raw Sweat” and “Bassboot”, one of the most RA Top Charted Tracks in 201 1 ), Cadenza (making his debut on the label with “Pallene” and “Cocoua”, most-hyped UNER’s tracks ever), 2020 Vision, Get Physical, Defected or CR2 to mention a few. UNER has earned the respect of the music industry with talent and work: names like Luciano, Carl Cox or Laurent Garnier play his music on a regular basis; clubs like Berlin’s Watergate or Space Ibiza book him oftenly and his number of fans increases by the day; all of this because of what he does best, his music.

Apart from traveling around the world as a Dj, in 2011 UNER presented his live gigs, an audiovisual concept in which he uses state-of-the-art software and hardware (from iPads to mini midi keyboards) to explore his most solid, personal side. The artistic expansion of the Catalonian producer will go on during the following months with the creation of several artist albums where he’ll express his way of understanding electronic music from a musical point of view and from the center of the dancefloor. UNER’s bound to reach higher tops with the only limit of his music… so there’s still loads to see, listen and dance.

Greatest inspirations or influences?

I always try to not have big influences but thats a difficult thing.  Classical music in all his ways is strong in my background and maybe it is the strongest influence since I was a child. In electronic music, Laurent Garnier, Orbital or Depeche Mode, they still are always on my mind. I also find  inspiration in the silence.

I like to stay updated about news on electronic music, but my schedule is so busy, with studio time and gigs, so I try to spend all the time as I can with my family and friends or resting. I currently don’t get so much leisure time.

Summer tour dates?
Almost all the gigs in the summer time will happens in Ibiza: Vagabundos @ Pacha, Ushuaia, Diynamic Neon Nights @ Sankeys and Space Ibiza (opening and Carl Cox nights, 3rd year in a row) . I will play in Berlin, Paris or big spanish festivals like Sonar, Monegros or Rock in Rio… www.facebook.com/unermusic.

It’s difficult to say just one favourite set when you are doing 7 or 8 gigs each month. There are a lot of big events and awesome clubs but if I have to choose one of this year, I’d pick  live PA in Nikki Beach past WMC with the Cadenza guys and the last Dynamic night in Watergate, which was amazing!

I would like to say to all the new electronic music artists that they have to keep working hard to reach their goals. This is the best work in the world, and the most special, but it requires a lot of effort and sacrifice. Keep the good work and fight for your dreams.

Rasha Khouri is a modern nomad, who’s lived in Paris, Beirut and New York but has been based in London for 12 years and has always loved fashion.  She didn’t start off in a fashion, but as an investment banker at JP Morgan in New York where she was able to fuse her interest in fashion and career as a luxury goods analyst. After an MBA at INSEAD Rasha launched DIA-BOUTIQUE which sells niche independent designers in 2010 and has just launched a second venture DIA-style.com which sells over 50,000 pieces from global luxury brands and designers for delivery anywhere in the world.

How would you describe DIA-boutique?

The idea for DIA-BOUTIQUE came from my travels, where I saw the most gorgeous fashion pieces that you just don’t find outside of the country they’re made in. I’ve always been an avid user of technology and the internet so decided the best way to share and celebrate these pieces would be to set up an online store. We have a range of ready-to-wear and accessories; whether made-to-order leather gladiator sandals from Beirut, a unique twist on ‘it’ bags from a designer in Saudi Arabia, to linen kaftans trimmed with handmade Swiss lace.

Your greatest inspirations or influences?

Grandmother who had a fabulous wit and great sense of humour.

Fashion icons in your opinion?

 Grace Coddington, Tilda Swinton and Kate Moss

Up and coming creatives you think we should know about?

Nilufer Tarzi Kuran a jewelry designer who is inspired by Afghan and Turkish heritage pieces.

What do you look for when you consider bringing on new talent to DIA-BOUTIQUE?

Craftsmanship and quality as well as a design aesthetic that offers a unique perspective. We have around 50 independent designers on the site and are constantly scouting for new and interesting additions to the site.

Three things you can’t live without?

My ipad, music and my daily diet coke.

Favorite websites, blogs, publications?

Nowness, The Business of Fashion, Showstudio, Techcrunch and Mashable