Tender Loving Empire: 170 artists, a roster of musicians, and a screenprinting studio

Posted on February 10, 2009 by Arthur Smid

Group hug

Here in Portland there is a Tender Loving Empire. Now, this is for real. Meet Brianne and Jared Mees. A Portland couple who created Tender Loving Empire. It’s the sunshine embrace of creative power. It is all things. Are you an artist with something you absolutely must share with the world, right now? Are you a musician who wants to put your CD in a store? Are you looking for new music? Are you looking for affordable art? The perfect gift? The Tender Loving Empire just opened it’s heart to you.

Okay, but really folks. Brianne runs the retail shop. It’s a consignment store. Everything – and I mean down to the fimo robot – is handmade. Jared focuses on the record label, and he handles the screenprinting orders. The Tender Loving Empire store is in ActiviSpace on the corner of NW Lovejoy and 18th Street.

I stop by on a Monday evening at closing time. Jared is in the screenprinting studio working on a big order of orange bandannas for Oregon State University. He stacks them in a rack to dry and washes out the screen. He has band practice. His friends hang out waiting for him to finish. Brianne shows me the store. It’s full of artwork. It’s a little shop, but really, every imaginable handicraft is there. It’s all there in the Tender Loving Empire. Continue reading →

Weekly Updates for 2009-02-08

Posted on February 8, 2009 by admin

Shepard Fairey was arrested last night on graffiti charges (his 15th arrest) from a warrant issued last month. #
Just got back from the opening night of lightbar. The theme was white: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shootityourself/sets/72157613466235104/ #
Chicago hosts Art & Code hack conference for the rest of us: http://hackety.org/2009/02/05/theFundamentalLittleHackersSummit.html #
Just got confirmation of my SXSW wristband. Now need to plan the trip. #
Alright, the blog is officially online! http://www.blogityourself.org #
Maker Faire wants the risk-takers with their re-make America callout: http://makerfaire.com/bayarea/2009/callformakers/ #
Boing boing revisits their favorite dumpster diver: http://tinyurl.com/c5gbwo #
Hoping to have the new blog going tonight! #
Bolivia votes in favor of new constitution granting autonomy rights: http://www.narconews.com/Issue55/article3368.html #
Transform a parking garage into a tennis court: http://tinyurl.com/d2v9pk #
Inside the Tunnels of Gaza: http://tinyurl.com/csr8hs #

Lightbar Begins Tonight

Posted on February 6, 2009 by Marc

How to deal with the Portland winter? Author and Portland resident Mykle Hansen has found one way to combat the darkness.

house-with-dome Lightbar is a yearly transformation of Hansen’s backyard into a creative space where he and his friends can inspire and “enlighten” each other, he says. A few years back Hansen and his friends were sick and tired of the depression that residents of the Pacific Northwest must battle for the eight-plus overcast months out of the year. Hansen recently writes:

Words alone cannot fully capture the bleakness, the torpor, the world-weariness and soul-sapping ennui that is Seasonal Affective Disorder, or S.A.D. This desperate psychological condition runs rampant in Portland, Oregon during the dark, cruel midwinter months.

Instead of waiting around for a groundhog to decide, Lightbar was envisioned as a way for its participants to usher in Spring through creative performance and community gathering. To make up for the missing sun, a dome-like structure is constructed to bream light out

bamboo Mykle and his friends are creating Lightbar by pulling together everyone’s skills and available materials. He began last month by planing the structure: a 5/8 dome out of 170 sticks of bamboo and some duct tape. Bamboo can be harvested using a Forest Service permit to remove non-native species, he points out, but soon he realized he needed more and was able pick up a variety from the yards of friends. “Lightbar eats more bamboo than a giant panda” he remarks.
Continue reading →

Linked stories for 2009-02-01

Posted on February 1, 2009 by admin

Jobs With Justice is hosting today’s economic crisis town hall: http://tinyurl.com/brgwnn #
Lightbar, the answer to Portland winter depression by @Mykle, is coming together: http://mykle.com/msl/?p=32 #
Town hall meeting this weekend to discuss how to deal with the economic crisis: http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2009/01/385858.shtml #
Bicyclist in front of me on NE 9th at Lloyd just got doored. Driver seemed to be blaming the biker. They want this to be a bike boulevard? #
LA bicyclist knits sweater to tell drivers “this lane is our lane” http://tinyurl.com/bodsow #
Should Blog it Yourself travel to Austin to cover SXSW? #
Blog on Urban Edibles http://tinyurl.com/c5ebtt #
Attended tonight’s NTEN / NetTuesday meeting organized by @annanten & @meximese where @siliconflorist presented to us nonprofit folks #
Building community with local currency: http://tinyurl.com/ar5nz5 #
Graffiti bar codes for pirate radio stations? http://www.yurisuzuki.com/graffiti.html #
DIY City – a project aiming to rebuild cities from the bottom up: http://diycity.org #
Plant trees by bike: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gregraisman/sets/72157612960755978/ #
University of the People in the works: http://tinyurl.com/abnm2k #
Next Bay Area Maker Faire tickets: http://tinyurl.com/cnergs #