Glam Ninja Hacker Stylist Woohoo

Contents Page

members

Prof. Adriana Valdez YoungPrerna Agarwal Emmy Reis Phelicia MagnussonEthan ThorpeJonathan BurdinJohanna GoossensJoanna KinghornMatthew Taylor Aakriti Kumar Zachary Kay

gl o b a l st u d e i s , A D R I A N A YO U N G

Spacing the GlobalMapping Downtown 6th AvenueThe Standard Hotel and IkeaApple + TiffanyEataly

Wearing the GlobalBond #7, United NudeChina BlueGood HairJR & Son

Moving the GlobalPort of NewarkSleep DealerGlobal Urban Art

Living the GlobalIKEAUrban SustainabilityLevi’s Workshop Google LunchEyebeam’s X-Lab

Taxonomy of Global Artifacts

tour guide

global tour guide

Adriana V. YoungaPril 12th 1978

Departments: Global Studies, Art History Design and Theory, Graudate Prorgram in International AffairsCurrently has:B.A. in History and Slavic Studies - Brown UniversityM.A. in International Affairs - The New SchoolHometown: New York CityOne dream: Better than living.


sPaCing the global s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l

editors of ChaPter introduCtion

index

Left: Prerna Agarwal Right: Emmy Reis

Prerna Agarwal january 16th 1989

Parsons School of DesignBFA Communication DesignHometown: Hong KongOne dream: own a boutique dessert place

Emmy ReisaPril 4th 1990

Parsons School of Design + Lang SchoolBFA Illustration + Global StudiesGraduation: 2013Hometown:One Dream:

Mapping Downtown 6th Avenue

The Standard Hotel and Ikea

Apple + Tiffany

Eataly


Spacing the Global

Global aspirations, lifestyles, and de-mands are relative things. Most of the locations we visited as a class were placesthat had their individual brand identities, but were nonetheless neutral and flat in the sense that due to their recognition of global values, they either A; presented the same services regardless of the loca-tion or B; promoted a specific globally aspired/recognized value in the one loca-tion. In this chapter, we examine places that represent these values and observe how locality becomes obscured through the development of such sites.Yet we also recognize the juxtapositionof how having these global frontline businesses is critical for a node of global lifestyles like New York. In this chapter we showcase some student assignments created after visiting the following sites; Eataly, the Apple Store, Tiffany & Co, The New York Standard Hotel, Ikea, and 6th Avenue.

maPPing 6th avenue s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l

assignment student resPonse


Mapping 6th Avenue

Our class was divided into two groups. One

group focused on streets 14th - 20th and the

other group focused on streets 13th down to 7th

street. In our groups we were sent out to make

various observations about the different life-

styles, shops, people, noises, communities, etc.

that take place within the given parameters. We

were divided into; the sketcher, the photogra-

pher, the interviewer and the journalist. What

did we find interesting or intriguing? What

were patterns we recognized? What common-

alities did we identify with our home towns?

What did our findings tell us about global liv-

ing in different communities? These were the

questions we were trying to answer. Through

this mapping assignment, we traced details of

specific individuals and sites in NYC in order

to craft an overall picture of the global city.

CChristopher Robbin’s work was thought provok-

ing; a lot of the processes that led him to his work

are ones that resonate well with my own experience

and I’m sure with anyone who wants to or has tried

to bring about positive change anywhere. Christo-

pher’s concepts for breaking down his design pro-

cesses into “loops” and “gaps” really got me thinking

about how the U.S. goes about placing itself in other

countries. The 6th Avenue transect walk pushed me

out of my comfort zone, which was a good experi-

ence. On the corner of 6th avenue and 14th street

was a man passing out Metro PCS flyers. In many

ways his employment situation reminded me of the

men I had encountered on Canal street. As an im-

migrant it seemed in the current economy this may

have been one of the only jobs he could take; he ex-

pressed that the $5 an hour was better than asking

people for money to catch the train.

by Philica Megnusson

Street14th street - 20th street & 6th avenue

Group MembersJoanna KinghornZach KayPhilica MagnussonPrerna AgarwalEmmy Reis

MapThis map focuses on 8 specific stores along 6th avenue. We related each store to a store from our hometown. We then noted how often we visted these stores. The diverse locations helped them to see that certain spe-cific needs are commonly catered to around the globe.

maPPing 6th avenue s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l


Graphics by Prerna Agarwal

the standard hotel s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



The Standard Hotel

The class took a field trip to The Standard Hotel,

downtown on the High Line. The New York Stan-

dard Hotel was a newly opened hotel with a strong

European concept. The hotel was filled with mod-

ern items, designs, and atmosphere. For example:

the bathroom on the top floor had one glass walk

facing the High Line, thus forcing you to do your

business in public; the showers in the hotel rooms

also had clear glass walls and were placed smack in

the middle allowing anyone in the room to see ev-

erything you are doing. The Standard seems to be an

open place where you can be yourself. There are cer-

tain invisible barriers to high-end environments, and

the Standard Hotel is certainly no exception. During

previous weeks, the class had studied the marketing

language of IKEA, which is also a business that ad-

vertises certain lifestyles in order to promote their

sales. With this information each student took their

interpretation of the Standard Hotel, and using the

IKEA language, marketed it as though it were part

of The Standard Hotel brand.

This week we visited The Standard in New York

City. The Standard is a famous, unique hotel with

its own style. For this assignment we had to create

an advertisement about this hotel using the IKEA

slogan that “home is where your most important

meetings are.” For the front page of the ad, I found

a image online and photoshopped The Standard

logo over it. This image and the words,”Art, Sex

and The Standard” really represent the personal-

ity of the hotel. The back of the flyer has six im-

ages that were taken of the inside of the hotel and

the words “A place for all your meetings.” In this

section, each image is supposed to show different

“meeting” places in the hotel. These images are

meant to give the viewer some creativity and imagi-

nation of themselves there. Also we left the back

mostly blank, this is to symbolize the hotel and how

with everything there you really do what you want

and make the experience your own. The Standard is

a place where you can show your true self.

by Joanna Kinghorn & Matthew Taylor

Group MembersJoanna KinghornMatthew Taylor

The Standard Hotel + IkeaTaking the Stand hotel and using Ikea’s marketing language.



Graphics by Joanna Kinghorn & Matthew Taylor

aPPle + tiffany s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



Apple + Tiffany

Apple and Tiffany&Co. are both businesses

that have a certain legacy about them for manu-

facturing products of quality and authenticity.

Both are globally known and aspired towards

because of their capability to fulfill a certain

function while simultaneously suggesting

achievement of a lifestyle with a particular level

of sophistication. The students were assigned

to combine Tiffany and Apple together. Take

a product and market it as if it were an Apple

product. Some students took a Tiffany product

and converted it into a technology object and

others took a current Apple product and incor-

porated Tiffany.

Prerna and I recognized that Apple and Tiffany

possessed brand identities that are quite similar.

The colors and spacial use was minimal and simple

in both cases, which successfully communicated the

professional attitudes of the companies. We found

it intriguing how both brands had become so well

known that it had come to the point where just

by looking at certain visual components like color,

font, and spacial use, the origin of the brand be-

came identifiable. Then we realized that it would

be appropriate to create something that was small

and wearable. Both brands created things that were

compact but with great value and potential. We cre-

ated a product called iPrecious, which has wearable

and portable WIFI connection in the form of Tif-

fany jewelry. Our goal was to create something that

satisfied both the elegance and authenticity of Tif-

fany & Co. as well as the smartness of functional

mechanics in a compact and beautiful form.

by Emmy Reis

Group MembersEmmy ReisPrerna Agarwal

Apple + Ikea“we took the Tiffany ring and earrings and made it into a Wifi remote con-trol for your ipod, itouch, shuffle etc.” - Emmy Reis

Group MemberMatthew Taylor



Left: Matthew Taylor Right: Prerna Agarwal + Emmy Reis

eataly s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



Eataly

Food is one of the most intimate and ultimate examples of global-

ization that we constantly consume in our daily lives. On yet another

excursion, the class made a trip to Eataly, an Italian food market/

restaurant complex newly opened on 23rd street. The Eataly slogan

is “We cook what we sell and we sell what we cook.” Indeed, like

many of the other businesses we examined -such as IKEA or the

Apple Store, Eataly stresses just as much importance upon selling

the experience as well as selling their products.

We roamed around the complex, looking at the winery, the cheese

and salami market, the fresh pasta section... and experienced “Italy,”

filtered through the magic eyeglasses of globally-conscious market-

ing. In addition to the Eataly excursion, students also completed an

assignment where they photographed an ordinary meal and made

observations about how the meal represented the global. Here we

post two assignments that have to do with tracing the global through

the food we consume.

By the end of November we had made a good number of field

trips to various locations across NYC that showcased what

global living was, in different way. We were given an assignment

where we had to construct a product that represented the global

market using the materials we had collected from the site visita-

tions. Prerna and I returned to Eataly to see what could be done.

We were thinking of making something fancy and conceptually

rich, because health and environmental consciousness is a big

part of how Eataly identifies itself.

Our idea was to construct an item that would help promote

Eataly as a brand, because it was a new development. When we

spotted the ribbon-shaped pasta shells we were inspired to make

jewelry. We felt that changing the function of an item is a great

way to attract attention and create amusement. We also recog-

nized that having customers wear the pasta shell jewelry in public

is a nice way to discreetly advertise Eataly products.

by Emmy Reis

Group MembersEmmy ReisPrerna Agarwal

EatalyFarfalla Wearable Pasta




global meal s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



wearing the global w e a r i n g t h e g l o b a l

jonathan burdin & PheliCia magnussun














moving the global s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l


Joanna Kinghorn

january 16th 1989

Parsons School of DesignBFA Communication DesignHometown: Hong KongOne dream: own a boutique dessert place

Matthew Taylor

aPril 30th 1990

Eugene LangColleBA in Urban StudiesHometown: Riverside, CAOne dream: Build a nationwide bullet train


Moving the Global

It is movement – across oceans, cultures, and ideas – that

makes our global capitalist economy happen. The mobility

of capital and labor is what makes our global world tick; it is

what makes possible the physical movement of goods and the

ephemeral movement of ideas across hemispheres possible. At

the Port of Newark, New Jersey, a huge majority of interna-

tionally-produced goods and commodities enter the United

States on their way to the shelves of the Eastern Seaboard.

Here, our class visited the Seamen’s Church Institute, an inter-

national organization with roots in Manhattan’s 19th-Century

dock workers’ culture that provides hospitality to the seafar-

ers. SCI’s mission is to provide relief to seafarers from the

lonely, harsh realities of moving the global to its myriad des-

tinations. The 2008 independent film Sleep Dealer addresses

some of the difficult questions surrounding a debased labor

force. The ever-widening class gap between those who create,

innovate, and consume versus those who produce, labor, and

maintain is a pressing issue of the globalized society. What

would happen, the film asks, if the xenophobia that is paired

with out neoliberal late-capitalist economic system were car-

ried to its logical end?

ind

exPort of N

ewark Sleep D

ealer Global U

rban Art

sleeP dealer s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l

assignment


Sleep Dealer

This film takes place in a near future in which

neoliberal capitalist economic regimes have

paired with global technological infrastructure

to ensure the global elites the ultimate luxury:

limitless, cheap labor to build and maintain the

socioeconomic divide that is also 100% invis-

ible.

In the film, laborers in Tijuana, Mexico – a

stand in for the global supply chain’s pool of in-

expensive, disposable workforce – are hired to

work in illegal underground work centers where

they are plugged in to an advanced communi-

cations network. Through this, they operate

the robots that care for American babies and

erect American skyscrapers. But even with the

physical dangers of such work made remote,

the work is exhausting, long, and psychologi-

cally draining.

Sleep Dealer paints a picture of a dismal fu-

ture dominated by a corporate-industrial com-

plex and dismal in its iniquity and social de-

spair. Perhaps the most unsettling aspect of the

film, though, is its plausibility. At times through

this course it has seemed that the exploitation

and deprivation characterized in Sleep Dealer

is only the next logical step in the expanding

global capitalist economic system.

Directed by Alex Rivera, 2008

Port of New

ark Sleep Dealer G

lobal Urban A

rt

Port of newark s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



Port of Newark

Each time I go there, I learn and see new ways in

which our seemingly seamless global economy comes

at the expense of extreme sacrifices we ask of other

human beings to fuel inject our container ships hold-

ing 14 layers of 7,000 cars with toxic tar that we hope

will never escape raw and un-combusted into our

seas so that we can continue to combust slightly less

toxic fumes from our individual automobiles on land.

Our present globalized civilization is truly absurd,

and as a class, we have been trying to perform due

diligence to trace the footprints of our global goods

with invisible histories and detect and speculate

upon their former lives.

I think our day can only be summarized in this way:

“After the prison,

Before the mall,

Before the cat barfed.

Everything that New York wanted and

then didn’t want any more:

I’m getting Moe’s and bringing it back.”

- by Adriana Young

I was excited for this field trip because it is an opportunity to see

how and where goods come into this country, but for me this trip

ended up being more about the discovery of people and myself.

Without this class I never would have gone to the port and if for

some reason I did it certainly would not have been by Path train

and bus; that is just out of my comfort zone. Those who know

me best don’t believe I took a public transit bus (my first time).

More important are the sailors, those that leave home for

months on end without having any contact with their friends,

family or the outside world. They work long hours with few days

off only to make less in a month than most of us pay for rent; and

yet the sailors are the ones who bring the global to us.

At the beginning of the class I defined the global as a concept,

something intangible. While I still see the idea of the global

as a concept I now see how an item can be a physical represen-

tation of the global. The scarves we packeged are a physical

representation; the yarn was grown in one place, processed in

another, shipped to a port where they were loaded into a con-

tainer, boarded a ship to another country where they were then

dispersed, only to be made into scarves that found their way

back to the port.

by Zachary Kay

Port of New

ark Sleep Dealer G

lobal Urban A

rt

global urban art s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l



Global Urban Art

During this week a guest speaker, architect

Annie Kwon, visited our classroom. She taught

us all about global urban art and how it is shown

throughout the world today. For example Kwon

showed a Muto wall painted animation by BLU,

which was a graffiti animation that explored

the globally recognized themes of death and

birth. Kwon also showed us a JR exhibit called

“Women are Heroes”. This exhibit was a dis-

play of photograph of women’s eyes placed on

the top of a train that ran through that ran

through the slum of Kibera, Nairobi.

Our assignment after viewing these examples

was to create a proposal for our own global ur-

ban art to be displayed in the city, while also

connecting to the global.

So much of our global lives are predicated on the

invisibility of that which goes on halfway around

the world to make the things we take for granted

possible. Chinese sweatshops, Brazilian clear-cuts,

African mines – all of these are the unsavory under-

belly of our fabulous global lifestyles.

What if you could see the other end of the way

you live, on a live feed, Times Square-sized, in the

middle of your city?

Live from Union Square would broadcast a live

feed of the human and natural resource production

and extraction that goes on to stock the big-box

stores of the Square with all of the goods the global

economy has to offer. How might you change if you

could see who made your jeans, live?

by Matthew Taylor

“New York MTA art proposal”Group MembersEmmy ReisPrerna Agarwal

“If you see something, say something”Group MembersPhelicia Magnum

“Live from Union Square”Group MembersMatthew Taylor

Port of New

ark Sleep Dealer G

lobal Urban A

rt

global urban art s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l

student resPonse student resPonse


I have thought a lot about how many messages regarding safety the average New York resident is bombarded with daily. It seems people are relatively un-phased by these cautionary interruptions, or so it looks that way on the surface—in my morning commute the majority of train passengers seem to completely ignore the anouncements about watch-ing your valuables and remaining alert. Often I stare at these warnings, my favorite being the poster on the subway that says “If you see some-thing say something”. I know that even though these instructions read very broad they are feeding into very specific fears with cultural, racial and im-age specific ties that yell to 9/11. I feel that the “if you see something, say some-thing” posters provoke viewers to search for who/what from their cultural memory could possibly be suspect on a New York subway. This is an issue that to me this leads back to the same stereotypes and issues about racial profiling. Until the city is ready to have a conversation about safety that includes EVERYONE and doesn’t conjure up the kind of so-cial and stereotypical the media circulates and fear relies on I am going to find ways to spark politically incorrect conversations about what I’m supposed to be looking for; I think we should have some.

by Phelicia Magnum

New York City is an convenient environment where

you can pretty much find spaces of any and every func-

tion somewhere within reach. Yet how many people here

can actually call this home? There is no doubt that many

people still dream of other places as they go about their

busy lives.

The object of this installation piece is to allow people a

moment to think about the places they may be longing

for, perhaps without realizing it. Little tabs are installed

all across the wall so that people can hang their expired

Metro Cards. Sometimes it is so hard to get out of New

York, away from life- which is ironic because the city is

supposed to be a convenient space where everything is

accessible. Where would we go if our Metro Cards could

take us anywhere in the world? Instructions are given for

passengers to write the location on the wall behind the

Metro Card. Others can swing the card to the side and

peer beneath. This project allows people to interact and

realize similarities or dissimilarities in their longings for

other places. The accumulation is also meant to fascinate

viewers by visualizing the vast number of subway com-

muters. It also utilizes expired Metro Cards which would

otherwise go straight to the trash.

by Emmy Reis

Port of New

ark Sleep Dealer G

lobal Urban A

rt

s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l


Graphics by Prerna Agarwal + Emmy Reis

global urban art

Graphics by Phelicia Megnum

s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l


Graphics by Matthew Taylor

global urban art

living the global l i v i n g t h e g l o b a lj o h n a n n a g o s s e n s & z a C h a r y


index

Johanna GossensoCtober 7th 1989

Eugene LangGlobal studies, minor in Gender studiesHometown: No home town, grew up in 9 different countriesOne dream: To do something that will help solve an injustice

Zachary KayoCt 6 1989

Parsons School of Design, Design and ManagementHometown: West Bloomfield, MIOne Dream: I dream of one day owning a global fashion store.

IKEA

Urban Sustainability

Levi’s Workshop

Google Lunch

Eyebeam’s X-Lab


Living the Global

This section is about how our lifestyles have been transformed by the global. The global is an imagined community that has been created by globalization. Globalization is the integration of re-gional economies, societies and cultures through a global network of communi-cation, transportation and trade. This integration produces different lifestyles because it affects the things we inter-mingle with every day. It has affected our clothing styles, food available to us, and even our personalities through commu-nication networks like Facebook. Our class on Representing the Global has investigated what living the global looks like, and what it means for us as individuals. The three mediums of the global that we observed were Ikea, Ur-ban Sustainability, and Levi’s Workshop. The students analysis of living the global are as intriguing as they are diverse.

ikea remix l i v i n g t h e g l o b a lj o h n a n n a g o s s e n s & z a C h a r y k a y



Re-Make the IKEA catalog

To create a mini-version of the IKEA catalog,

“Hooray for the everyday.” Students worked in

pairs to author our own interpretations of liv-

ing the global. Students had to select a show-

room/display area in IKEA and re-arrange it to

create a vignette that represents an alternate

global domestic scene using different Ikea slo-

gans. Students set up our pictures to mimic a

catalog-style. Students also had to blog with

captions and product descriptions (for new

products that we created, or new purposes of

existing products) in the same narrative style

that the IKEA catalog uses.

Slogan: Where You Dream

By Prerna Agarwal and Emmy Reis

LocationIKEA Red Hook Group MembersPrerna Agarwal & Emmy Reis

Where you DreamEmmy and Prerna isolated that one of the key ingredients to the aspiorational lifestyle that the IKEA showrooms feature is natural light, and that beyond actual furnishings. access to large windows with lots of sunlight should itself become a desirable decorative object for purchase.

ikea remixgl o b a l st u d e i s , A D R I A N A YO U N G l i v i n g t h e g l o b a lj o h n a n n a g o s s e n s & z a C h a r y k a y

Telekonferens Home Office

Because the workplace is more mobile than ever

For those that work to make the global economy

move, even from the comfort of your home

office. Efficiency, flexibility, and comfort in this

smart corner desk fit for any space large or small.

Saskia Sassen writes in “The Impact of the

New Technologies and Globalization of Cities”

that new technologies and infrastructures

change not just patterns of global commerce

and production, but contribute to new

urban forms themselves. Water and rail no

longer dictate where powerful commercial

centers aggregate - communications and the

infrastructure that support it create a new,

more diffuse and geographically nodular

system of the production of information.

Slogan: Where all your important meetings take place.

By Matthew Tayler and Joanna Kinghorn

ikea remixgl o b a l st u d e i s , A D R I A N A YO U N G l i v i n g t h e g l o b a lj o h n a n n a g o s s e n s & z a C h a r y k a y

Haaswyfa Living Room Set

The perfect cozy environment for your

end-of-day entertainment

Because, honestly, some of us rush off to

our favorite network reality star reunion

specials with the same abandon as we

would the quarter’s biggest sales meeting.

For this shot, we gathered implements of

couch potato comfort from around the show

room - wine glasses and bottle, serving tray,

popcorn bowl, and throw blankets. We wanted

to make a comment about the centrality

of the television to so many of Ikea’s living

room environments, and the way in which

that is a reflection of the dominance of media

of all kinds in contemporary global society.

Television and, much later, the Internet

contributed to the shrinking and melding of

our world (at least to those with access to those

amenities - an unequal distribution at best).



ikea remixgl o b a l st u d e i s , A D R I A N A YO U N Gt

l i v i n g t h e g l o b a lj o h n a n n a g o s s e n s & z a C h a r y k a y

Pliistā Kitchen Island Because life’s important negotiations happen over food

From Svalbard to Soweto, food - and the

conversation that happens over it - is a unifying

global experience. So why not do it in style?

Take home the sleek and handsome Pliistā

Kitchen Island today and just maybe she’ll stay.

In this shot, Joanna and I gathered some

laundry baskets and other bags and rearranged

some of the kitchen items we found nearby to

recreate a less-than-pretty domestic scene in a

very pretty domestic environment. What the

Ikea catalogue does not acknowledge is that the

home the setting for some of life’s most difficult

moments as well as some of it’s most pleasant.



urban sustainability

assignment


Sustainable Global Lifestyles

Carina Molnar, Collaborative Programs Manager of the

CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities gave a guest lecture and

left us with this design challenge: Pick a sustainability challenge.

Food? Water? Energy consumption? Urban health and well-

being? Social psychology?In your own words, describe why

it is a challenge and what exactly is vulnerable or needs

changing in this system. Then begin discussing the links to

it and how many other systems it effects, eventually assem-

bling a muir web (either written or visual). Design an inter-

vention that successfully deals with the challenge, without

negatively impacting the other links in that system.

One of the most interesting facts I learned about was the psychological effects na-ture had on humans. During our class we were told about research that was done in regards to the effects nature has on peoples brains. We learned how nature restores a human’s brain and how it can even help you heal from injury faster. Af-ter thinking about all the benefits of bring nature into an urban society I tried to image one of the places many New Yorker’s go on a daily basis that causes stress. The subway is one of the most stressful and unhealthy places in New York. In the image above I place potted plants along the track and flower boxes and vines on the gate. I believe the benefits of this project would give a less stressful environ-ment to the passengers. I also believe these plants would not only effect the social psychology , but the urban health because the air quality in subways would be improved and finally the economy.

by Joanna Kinghorn


denim lifestyle zone

assignment


Levi’s Workshop in SoHo

Levi’s Workshop is a temporary creative space set up by the

Levi company for free. It is meant to inspire collaboration

by appealing to creative aspects of many different commu-

nities. In the space, one has access to a free photo booth,

gallery, computers, printers, tee-shirt printer, cameras and

studios for videos or photo-shoots. The students had to

visit the workshop and catalogue the experience of the

pop-up store through a photo collage and a short written

response.

Although the Levi’s Workshop’s objectives were to promote collaboration, I felt as though it left something to be desired in that regard. Even though the atmosphere triggered creativity because there were so many mediums available to you as well as a lot of art in the space to inspire you; the atmosphere was also intimidating. The tension in the room gave the impression that if you were not a serious artist then you didn’t belong there. This was mostly perceived because of the beautiful and immaculately dressed individuals that were busy at their tasks. So, the space had a contradictory quality because it inspired creativity but also hindered its production. Therefore, I believe that the capacity of collaboration was more performative rather than de facto, but the concept of having that space open to the public is undoubtedly philanthropic and inspirational. By Johanna Goossens and Zachary Kay


google lunChing

assignment


Google Lunch and Special Sauce

The assignment for Google involved everyone in the class

choosing their own “Observation Adventure.” Basically,

there were three possible “adventures” to choose. There

was the “things” adventure, in which the blogger noted

every brand/company name they observed (on packaging,

interior décor, clothing, etc.) during their time at Google.

Next, there was the “Things to Do” adventure in which

the blogger noted how the Google brand “comes to life” in

social programming. The last adventure focused on people.

This is where the blogger observed the different types

and groups of people working at Google, and then made a

diagram of the placement and activites of these character

archetypes.

l i v i n g t h e g l o b a l

student resPonseGoogle to me is like the real life version of the Willy Wonka Chocolate factory. There’s a lot that seems placed for comfort and entertainment. As a class we discussed how having all the food options right there and for three would limit people from tak-ing their lunch hour somewhere else and increase productivity. The lunch room conveniently has to-go-container and there are 3 cafeterias (I thought the one we ate in was a dream come true, apparently it wasn’t the biggest). There are a number of differ-ent areas where it seems one could become distracted like the game room areas where there are huge TVs and video games, or event the workout areas, yet once again if people have a space where they can relax for a minute perhaps they will be more in-clined to come back to their work. Productivity seems to be also supported by the medicine balls as sitting in a chair in front of the computer all day is supposed to be murder for your spine.The most interesting observations I made were about peo-ple; even though Google looks like a total fun house, socially it looks like I would expect other offices to: mostly white and male and being in the computer business, outside the white male domain you have Asian and Indian male. It was nice to see younger faces, but the pressure to hold your own as wom-en in the corporate world seemed echoed by the way women dressed as opposed to men; more formally, dressed to impress.

by Phelicia Magnusson

google lunChinggl o b a l st u d e i s , A D R I A N A YO U N G l i v i n g t h e g l o b a l

By Prerna Agarwal

While at Google, I mapped the cafeteria and the types of people sitting around each table, specifi-cally, the groups that formed and if there were any stereotypes I could pull out from the group interactions and attire. It was interesting to see that along the long tables were mostly men and along the small circular tables on the other end of the room were all the women.

WomenThe women were usually in pairs and nothing bigger than 3 people. The women barely wore make-up and were all dressed comfortably and not looking for male attention which I found interest-ing.

SinglesThe people who were sitting by themselves were the most interesting people for me. They were highly concentrated on a particular thought. None of them looked like they were lonely but instead were very focused on solving a problem or thinking about something. They didn’t seem to care about the people around. They showed confidence and determination.

MenMost of the men wore striped shirts. These guys seemed quite out of it, none of them seemed filled with energy but rather appeared worn out and serious. It was interesting to see all the different groups of men.

Some had their laptops beside them while others had a typical “geek” features including wearing glasses, wrinkling their noses, and keeping messy hair. Then there were the “cool” men who dressed semi-smart and had a confident look as they strode through the cafeteria.

IndiansI’ve noticed in every country/school/class/organization the Indians all seem to gravitate towards each other. This was also true at the Google cafeteria. There was on long table where only Indian men in their mid-30s sat together.

global taxonomy s PaC i n g t h e g l o b a le m m y r e i s & P r e r n a a g a r w a l


Aakriti Kumar

oCtober 2nd 1989

Parsons School of DesignBFA Product DesignHometown: New Delhi, IndiaOne dream: Travel the world

Ethan Thrope

june 26th 1989

Euguene Lang CollegeBA Global StudiesHometown: New OrleansOne dream: Hike the silk Road


Global Taxonomy

The global is all around us, everything we touch, experience

or ignore has some direct or indirect relation with the Global.

In this section of the book we have compiled a series of objects

that we believe have the right to be called a global artefact.

Through out the semester we have tired to identify atleast a

few objects that we come across in our everyday routines and

believe them to be considered of a gloabl nature.

ind

exPort of N

ewark Sleep D

ealer Global U

rban Art

Global Artifact TaxonmyGroup MembersAakriti KumarEthan Thrope


PheliCia’s finding


The claim: ”24 unique shades of high-quality color. It is manufactured in the USA. It is completely DBP, toluene and formaldehyde-free.” The hype: “We think this nail polish captures what American Apparel is all about, a Made-in-the-USA, high-quality product in a beautiful range of colors,” stated Marsha Brady, a creative director for American Apparel. “Like our clothing, the palette is intended for year-round use. It’s a painterly range of colors designed for long-term appeal and creative interpretation. We put equal focus on making sure the polish and the colors were both durable and beautiful” (Told to Women’s Wear Daily, December 2009). What’s implied: Diversity,perfect application, health safety, unique colors, fair labor “American made” What it is: 0.5 oz (15ml) glass bottle, American Apparel logoIngredients: Butyl Acetate, Ethyl Acetate, Nitrocelliulose, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol/Trimellitic Anhydride Copolymer, Acetyl Tributyl Citrate, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Stearalkonium Hectorite, Isopropyl Alcohol, Camphor, Benzophenone-1

by Phelicia Magnum


Prerna’s finding


Item: Moleskine Notebooks

Global Lifestyle Promise: A break from regular notebooks, to cater the more creative minds out in the world

Origins: It is created by an Italian company in Milan

by Prerna Agarwal


emmy’s finding


Item: Soyjoy nutrition bars. It comes with these flavors - Banana, Blueberry, Strawberry, Berry, Mango Coconut, Apple Walnut.

Global Lifestyle Promise: This product uses Whole soy, as opposed to many other soy products that use a less natural form of soy. With Soyjoy, nothing is discarded. All the natural nutrients are retained. There are approximately 35 beans that go into one bar. Soyjoy has been renewed to be fruitier, moister, and better. Soyjoy is a smart and fun snack that gives you longer lasting energy.

Label lexicon: All natural fruit and soy bar.

Packaging: It has simple and clear label. Simplicity and the good design are a part of this product. The concept is the smartness of being able to carry around a baked treat that is not only delicious but also nutritious.

Naming rights: Otsuka Pharmaceuticals, Japan. Package design and naming by sense analyst Ihoko Kurokawa.Physical Encounter: Pharmacies, Groceries

Analysis:Partial translation of description of the concept behind the naming and package design (found on the Japanese website:Soyjoy is a nutritious product that uses soybeans and fruits. It was important for the soy be part of the name. It was decided that “daizu” (Japanese for soy) should some how be incorporated. However, Soyjoy was part of a project aimed to expand a new and different way of eating soy globally into countries like the United States and China. Thus, it was decided that “soy” would be more appropriate. The other main theme was that Soyjoy was delicious because it used a lot of fruits. To


joe’s finding


I chose this as another global image because of how this magazine represents itself. The marketing is specifically geared towards a global lifestyle, particularly a very glamorous lifestyle. However, not only does this magazine cover the aspects of fashion, beauty and travel globally, but it also prides itself on covering global issues. In 2003 it was the first Fashion Industry partner with the United Nations Environment Programme because it also discusses issues of sustainability and consciousness concerning the environment. The way that this magazine markets itself is global for two reasons. The first is that the things they offer are recognized globally as a desirable lifestyle, one that is not only glamorous but also socially responsible. The second is the way that, “Lucire encourages each woman to be true to herself and her values”. This I believe represents the global idea of the “individual”, which is highly contradicted by the homogenized images (like the ethnically vague woman on the cover) and items being sold in the magazine. You don’t buy these things to be different, you buy them to fit into an idea of what a global lifestyle should look like, but at the same time, you live this way and buy these things to be part of an exclusive lifestyle. I believe this to be representative of the global because not only does it appeal to global sensibilities but it also is the hybrid combination of a globally “imagined community” and how that is transformed by the individual.


ethan’s finding


Artifact: Flimsy, Bright Pink Cardboard box housing dry angel hair pasta, along with a packet of “Parmesan” powder. The xox is labeled with both Stove-top and Microwave directions, as well as “Less Fat Directions” section.

Global Lifestyle Promise: That you can eat this Parmesan pasta in the same old kitchen you eat in every night, but it will take you and your taste buds to Italy. It is like a trip to Venice with every bite.

Label Lexicon: “Join the trolley on a taste adventure around the world. From the zesty to the savory to every delicious corner of the earth.” They also have the normal Pasta Roni PhraseL “The San Francisco Treat.” Which is funny because they are simultaneously trying to sell the brand as something global and local at the same time.

Naming Rights: Well, “Pasta” is a very familiar food to people all over the world. Everyone from China to Puerto Rico are probably aware of what the word “pasta” means. Roni is simply the end to Macaroni, another food that is extremely widespread throughout the word. Pasta Roni takes a global food and a part of a global food (unless they are referencing the 1988 single “Roni” by Bobby Brown, which I highly doubt, but even if they were, in a sense it would still be global because that song was huge all over the world). Pasta Roni is the regular name, but this is a particular type of Pasta Roni. It is Pasta Roni: Parmesan Cheese flavor. Notice, the word “flavor” is much smaller and paler than the words “Parmesan Cheese.” The latter phrase is in bright white letters in an “artsy” font. The reason for this is because Pasta Roni wants people to associate this product with actual Parmesan cheese, real Parmesan cheese from Italy. They want to “take” the person to Italy and they do this by making the phrase


ethan’s 2nd finding


Guggenheim’s Last Supper It’s a shame that I have no camera other than the horrible one on my go-phone because this painting is fantastically global. The most obvious global aspect of the painting is the diversity of the people there. The original Last Supper had absolutely no diversity. Jesus and all of his apostles in the painting are white, while in this one, there is an equal mix of Latinos, Asians, African Americans, and Caucasians. The painting alludes to Da Vinci’s The Last Supper, which is very Global on its own. That is, it’s a painting of a man born in Bethlehem byItalian. Oh, and the man born in Bethlehem is probably the most well-known figure in the world. On the far left of the table is a box of KFC, which was obviously started in Kentucky, but is now sold on every continent in the world (excluding Antarctica). To the right of the KFC is a hamburger. The hamburger was originally created in Hamburg, Germany. British Sailors would ship the meat to Britain. They referred to the meat as “Hamburg Steak.” British immigrants in America were the first to call it a “Hamburger.” Hamburgers eventually were sold in mass in fast-food stores like McDonalds and Burger King. Now, many of the same fast food establishments that originally made the Hamburger can be found on every continent (excluding Antarctica). Finally, there is a Dos Equis bottle on the left of the table. Dos Equis was originally brewed by a German immigrant in Mexico. It can now be found in most U.S. bars.


jonathan’s finding


ITEM: Diesel Be Stupid Shirt

ARTIFACT:It is a simple, black shirt with the print on the front in red saying “Be Stupid.” Instead of a size tag it has a quirky little text.

GLobAL LIFESTyLE PRoMISE:Be crazy, and do what you whatever you want. The crazier you are the more fun in life you’ll have, but do it in diesel.

LAbEL LExIoN:“Enjoy xxx, One size fits all. If it’s too big for you. Eat more. If it is too small, diet. If it fits you. Congratulations. Be stupid at diesel.com”

PhySICAL ENCouNTER: Purchased something at diesel and it came in the bagVirtual Encounter: http://www.diesel.com Company Place of Birth: Italy

Retail outposts: World Wide


jonathan’s 2nd finding


A Chinese Candle Looking around to find something that could be affected by the Global I was presented with a lot of options. Searching my area I found that there were many objects in my daily routine that had been objects representing the global or at least they were affected by it. Ultimately, I decided to go with this candle that had a Chinese symbol hanging around the center. To me the candle represents how objects have become globalized. I found the candle in a really small Asian store down Mott Street in China Town. Most of the time when I see candles with Chinese symbols it is at high-end stores where the candle is $40+ and marketed towards Americans who are buying into the Asian aesthetic. The candle was $3 dollars in a store where I was the only non-Asian. Everyone in the store was speaking Chinese. I feel like this object was created with the intent and purpose of being sold to the Chinese population in the city. It’s interesting to me how the candle traveled all the way here and the stickers on the bottom have Chinese script probably preventing it too be sold at any other store than the kind I was in. In conclusion, I would say the Global Forces affecting it would be that there is a marketable Asian population in our area that has enough buying power to make selling a product that is made strictly for someone from a distinct region a possibility.


joanna’s finding


In class we were asked to find something that represented the global, and the thing that came to my mind was food. Food is the way that we not only express ourselves as individuals but also how we express the world around us. The latter has become particularly important in today’s world because of the how easy it is now to interact with the global due to the explosion of information because of the advancement of technology. Immigration, capitalism and information has exploded onto the world and this means that identities are constructed differently because they now have to reconcile the ethnic vs the global. The reconciliation happens within food.You may wonder why I specified immigration, capitalism and information as central features to how these identities get reconstructed within food. I have done so because in relation to immigration, there has never been the movement of people like there are today, bringing within them their particular cultures, practices and food. In relation to capitalism, food has to be marketable to those that consume it, therefore it is de constructed to fit the paradigms of the country it has entered, and food is in itself a commodity of the global. In relation to information, we now experience the world differently because we have so much access to information, this means that we are allowed to conceptualize the global much more easily and therefore we are able to much more easily conceptualize the way that food is a product of the global. Two perfect examples of this are a new genre of restaurant called Chinese/Mexican and the different types of coffee you can get from different parts of the world at Starbucks (which is in itself very global).Although I could not take a picture of the food I was eating, due to a lack of camera and lack of funds for camera. What I ended up enjoying at the Chinese/Mexican resturant that evening (located on 6th Ave and 14th St.) was a Sha Che Chicken dish that contained a very


matthew’s finding


ISAbELLA WATERIf you can forgive the blurriness of my camera phone pictures (and the tardiness of this blog post), I chose a reusable stainless-steel water bottle as my global artifact. Usually, there is nothing extraordinary about these; they’re everywhere. But this one is the centerpiece of a non-profit charity marketing campaign much like those we discussed from Nike and The Gap. Isabella Water advertises that 50% of the proceeds from the sales of their sleek stainless-steel reusable bottles will go to building wells to bring clean drinking water to those who need it, presumably in far-flung “Third World” nations.

Like the other worldwide retail-benefit campaigns we critiqued, the recipients of this purported aid are completely invisible. This could be because of the fledgling nature of this particular effort, but nevertheless, it’s almost as if the individuals and communities struggling with access to good, clean water are a massive, globally unified “They” to which we can trust non-profit organizations such as Isabella to apply their monies.

Add to that the bottle’s tag says “Responsibly made in China”. Here we have the collision of fashionable social responsibility and ecological stewardship in the stylishly charitable urban, educated, elite United States; an invisible needy multitude to receive the benevolence of our purchases, and an allusion to challenging and unjust environmental and labor conditions in the manufacturing center of the world. All this is tied up in one trim and chic water bottle, both as a symbol of globalism and a material object.


ms. young’s 1st finding


ITEM:Uniqlo Boyfriend Jeans

ARTIFACT:Plastic-coated, metallic-reflective paper label sewn onto the back pocket of one pair of Uniqlo Boyfriend jeans.

Global Lifestyle Promise:A break from the shackles of “history,” newness, delight, freedom, and participation/inclusion in a “new generation” of jean wearers with “evolved” standards and expectations.

Label Lexion:“UJ_the new standard for jeans. With design, quality and value to bring fresh surprise and delight to people worldwide, they’re the new generation of innovative global jeans from Japan. UJ by UNIQLO is turning to the future, a brand breaking free from history and challenging conventions. For finish, style and comfort, it’s the brand that is focused on innovation and evolution, always ahead, setting the standard for global trends.”

Naming Rights:“Boyfriend” as a globally understood term that is translated into a style of fit. Included in this are assumed and projected gender qualities and desires that women who wear jeans have or want to have or have had a “boyfriend” whose pants they would/have/used to wear. UJ Boyfriend Jeans offers the opportunity for women to enact this fantasy or memory without the need to “have” a boyfriend. Absent in this representation of a global desire/identity are “Girlfriend Jeans.” At UNIQLO women can buy regular women’s jeans or women’s jeans with a “boyfriend” fit, but neither men or women can buy “girlfriend” jeans, nor can men by “boyfriend” jeans. In this one product, the constraints of heteronormativity and binary between what is acceptable for global women and men to wear are reified.

Physical Encounter: Uniqlo Flagship Store on Broadway, New York CityVirtual Encounter: http://www.uniqlo.comCompany Place of Birth: JapanRetail Outposts: China, France, US, Japan, Singapore, UK, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Russia.


matthew’s 2nd finding


LA MER hANd TREATMENT

My global artifact is one of my favorite hand

lotions “La Mer Hand Treatment”. This product

has a French name, was developed by a German

cosmetic company that is owned by Estee Lauder

an American company and it was made in Belgium.

This is a global artifact because it illustrates how

everyday items like lotion are touched by so many

different people around the world. The back of

the tube has 5 different languages printed on it,

presumably so it can be sold in a minimum of five

countries using the same packaging. The use of a

french name makes the product feel more luxurious

and uses the stereotype of french beauty being

superior in order to sell more products.


matthew’s 2nd finding


ITEM: Shriracha Hot Chili Sauce

ARTIFACT:Chili sauce found only in the united states. clear plastic bottle with green top.

Global Lifestyle Promise:Chili sauce made from sun ripened chilies is ready to use in soups, pastas, hamburgers etc… label is also translated into spanish and french as well as some languages I am not about to decipher. Label Lexion:Sriracha Chili Sauce(Sauce Aux Piments Forts)

Shriracha made from sun ripened chilies, is ready to use in soups, sauces, pasta, pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, chow mein, or anything to add a delicious, spicy taste.(same label translated in French and Spanish)

Naming Rights:The idea behind having a rooster in the front of the packaging covered with text from three different languages as well as a few more in the back label and ingredient section of the bottle, gives me a feeling that the company is trying to find a mass appeal of the product. I think NYC is a great place to publicize the product since it can cater to a number of different people from all across the world. Also the fact that from far it seems like its your average chili sauce catering to people who have left the eastern hemisphere and have to deal with the bland food around them in the west. The idea of catering it to the western market where it can easily adapt to pastas and pizzas and make them more delicious is what appealed to me to most. the fact that its made in California adds to the global feel of the product!

Documents

Glam Ninja Hacker Stylist Woohoo