:: it’s not often you see good stencil graffiti in China – see below for a some at Beijing’s 798 / Dashanzi art district. This photograph was taken by Beijing-based Mårten Strassburg. To see more of Mårten’s photography, link here. If you spot graffiti or urban art anywhere in China, please share it with us at . We’d like to document it on NeochaEDGE. For more graffiti in China on NeochaEDGE, link here.  // AjS

This post was originally published on NeochaEDGE, a site I regularly contribute to. To see more of my posts on NeochaEDGE, link here.

NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China.

:: my favorite Shanghai-based graffiti artists Dezio and Popil recently returned from Beijing, but not before they left their mark on 798, the capital’s preeminent art district. If you spot graffiti or urban art anywhere in China, please share it with me at , I’d like to document it. For more from Dezio or Popil on NeochaEDGE, link here or here, respectively. // AjS

This post was originally published on NeochaEDGE, a site I regularly contribute to. To see more of my posts on NeochaEDGE, link here.

NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China.

:: for more from Sulumi on NeochaEDGE, link here. /// AjS

This post was originally published on NeochaEDGE, a site I regularly contribute to. To see more of my posts on NeochaEDGE, link here.

NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China.

:: the Beijing edition of City Weekend magazine recently interviewed me about NeochaEDGE and the creative community in China, see below (or news-stands) for the print article. To see the full interview online, link here.  // AjS

:: see below for a fun stop-motion film titled Webcam (摄像头). The short was made by Neocha.com-user Lvmu, a third year student at the China Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, and it tells the story of an adventurous webcam trying to break free from the laptop its tethered to. Forty-five seconds of enjoyment – I promise.  // AjS

[full disclosure: fifty 5 is a partner at Neocha.com]

:: Dominic Johnson-Hill, the founder of Beijing-based designer / hipster clothing-maker Plastered T-shirts, is now creating stained glass portraits of famous Chinese revolutionary figures. Five Chinese artists have been commissioned to create the pieces, and versions of Mao Zedong, Lei Feng, and Deng Xiaoping are already done – see below. Dominic says there will be more pieces, so watch this space or check out Plastered T-shirts’ blog. /// AjS

:: check out this superb 3D animation by Neocha.com-user ZP686 titled Fatman & Moto. It was nominated for awards at the University Animation Festival and by the Beijing Film Academy’s Animation Institute. In his infinite modesty, ZP6986 told me that he’s actually in the process of redoing Fatman & Moto because he doesn’t think it’s very good. At any rate, enjoy – I’m sure you’ll agree with me when I say it’s excellent. To view the video on VIMEO, link here. Below the video I’ve also shared a slideshow of “making of” photos – it’s very interesting to see the process of the character coming alive.

ZP686 is originally from Baotou, Inner Mongolia. He graduated from the Beijing Fashion Institute’s new media and animation school in 2008. Although trained as an illustrator and animator, he is currently employed in Beijing by the American special effects company Base FX as a concept art designer. // AjS

[full disclosure: fifty 5 is a partner at Neocha.com]

:: I snapped these photos on a recent trip to Beijing. To my regret though, the top two are only half as fun as they should be. They were taken earlier in the morning because I didn’t have a proper camera with me when I first spotted them the previous evening. Unfortunately, both pieces were harmonized overnight. At any rate, they’re still worth sharing. The top piece was a distressed bunny stuck behind the bricks asking in despair, “唯, 有人吗?” meaning, “Hello, is anyone there?” I ask the question: what looks better, a playful piece of street art or this random blob of pinkness? Sigh. The second photo was a flying sofa – I’m not sure where the sofa went, but it left its wings behind. Can anyone help identify the tags in the other pictures?  // AjS

:: Apple is apparently opening a second official store in Beijing, near the Qianmen area. Ben Wood, the Shanghai-based architect of Xintiandi-fame, and his Shanghai Studio design firm are behind the project. Link here for more. Uh, when can we get an official Apple store in Shanghai. Pretty please? // AjS

:: a special thanks to Danwei for helping me learn that this image is actually an Ai Weiwei photograph. I honestly had no idea. For the longest time I thought it was just a Zuo Xiao Zu Zhuo (左小祖咒) album cover, which, incidentally, hung framed on the the wall of my Beijing apartment from 2003 to 2006. Does anyone know where I can find more information about this photo?  // AjS

:: a couple years ago I had dinner with a budding Beijing-based artist / illustrator Yan Wei and her now fiance (Blake Stonebanks). As I was poking around online today, I was re-introduced to Yan Wei via some of her latest work – all of which is superb. See below for some examples.

When I first saw Yan Wei’s work, I couldn’t help but recall my Garbage Pail Kid-dominated childhood. That same exaggerated / manga-esque style and “unnecessarily grotesque and disturbing images of children” aesthetic is definitely (probably unintentionally) apparent, and I think that’s great – such images were the cornerstone of my youth! See more of Yan Wei’s work on her blog, or here for older pieces. I have also uploaded these images to a Flickr album. Bravo, well done.  // AjS

:: taken in Beijing, on West Dawang Rd. close to the Guanghua Rd. intersection. I snapped this photo without much thought, but it has turned out to be one of the best photographs I’ve ever taken. The funny thing is – I took it with my iPhone. With all due respect to an otherwise great device, the iPhone camera is usually a mediocre-at-best camera.  // AjS

:: a fun animation short / MV titled Road from Chinese photo-blogger Wang Chengzhi (王承之, A.K.A. Photobluer) about an upset child running away from his bickering parents and an overbearing teacher. The clip ends with “我们一直奔跑, 但找不到尽头,” meaning: “We are always running, but we can’t escape.” Background music by Beijing-based band The Gar (嘎调), a song titled Quan (圈). The Gar is also on Douban.  // AjS

:: an excellent animated film titled The Face (面) by Chinese multimedia designers Ray Lei (雪磊) and Chai Mi (柴觅), AKA Ray and Penny. The film was apparently awarded the Best Art Design in Animation at an International Animation Festival (still looking for details / link) and was Ray and Penny’s graduation project for the Academy of Art & Design at Tsinghua University in Beijing in 2007. They both have degrees in animation from the prestigious university. The below video is also on Tudou for faster loading in China. I’ve written about Ray’s work before on 56minus1, link here for more. Bravo, well done.  // AjS

:: a slideshow by the creative force behind the Beijing-based independent design brand Odi Et Amo and Neocha.com-user Wang Shaobei (王晓贝). I met Shaobei at this year’s MIDI Music Festival in Zhenjiang and was refreshed by his confidence, he told me then (and reiterated on his Neocha blog): “We will make the #1 independent and original brand in China. If we can think it, we can do it. Nothing is impossible in youth. A lot of people have similar ideas, but the difference is that I am going to make it happen. I believe in us, we have youth, we will do it.”  Check out a video interview with Shao Bei to learn more about Shaobei, his brand, and his world domination plans. See some of his designs below.  // AjS

[full disclosure: 56minus1 is a partner at Neocha.com]