The SR-71, here shown in its A-12 variant, is the most beautiful design object of the 20th Century.  It was a burst of raw vision, literally conceived within a dream, and built with the lovely precision of a Faberge egg.  Fragile as an egg, it’s skin consisted of hundreds of intersecting geometric panels, [...]]]>

The SR-71, here shown in its A-12 variant, is the most beautiful design object of the 20th Century.  It was a burst of raw vision, literally conceived within a dream, and built with the lovely precision of a Faberge egg.  Fragile as an egg, it’s skin consisted of hundreds of intersecting geometric panels, allowing the plane to flex and expand as the airframe heated up.  It looked like a panther and it moved like one.

National Geographic has posted a selection of previously unreleased photos from the crash of an A-12 outside Wendover, Utah in 1963.  Enjoy.

Currently going for about a thousand bucks, one identical pair of photos of Theodore Kaczynski, courtesy of our government.

The Library of Congress keeps bringing the heat of history to Flickr’s Commons.  For the 150th anniversary of the War of Northern Aggression, they’ve loaded up a cannon load of stereographs, analglyphized them and blasted them across the bow of the internet.  So dig up the old red & blue shades and enjoy [...]]]>

The Library of Congress keeps bringing the heat of history to Flickr’s Commons.  For the 150th anniversary of the War of Northern Aggression, they’ve loaded up a cannon load of stereographs, analglyphized them and blasted them across the bow of the internet.  So dig up the old red & blue shades and enjoy the Civil War in 3-D.

I know he promised to keep us out of Flickr, but he went ahead and joined anyways.  The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library has unleashed 634 images of Wilson-era photographic fury into Flickr’s Commons.  Images range from crazy flagfish postcards like the one above to lots of WWI stuff, including this excellent horse & [...]]]>

I know he promised to keep us out of Flickr, but he went ahead and joined anyways.  The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library has unleashed 634 images of Wilson-era photographic fury into Flickr’s Commons.  Images range from crazy flagfish postcards like the one above to lots of WWI stuff, including this excellent horse & rider in fetching, matching gas masks.

I’ve posted about this before, but the Smithsonian has been just keeps piling on the awesome in the Gottlieb Jazz Photos Flickr set.  They’re up to over 1500 images in the set now, nearly double my last peek, and they continue to be amazing in every possible way.  If you haven’t lost a [...]]]>

I’ve posted about this before, but the Smithsonian has been just keeps piling on the awesome in the Gottlieb Jazz Photos Flickr set.  They’re up to over 1500 images in the set now, nearly double my last peek, and they continue to be amazing in every possible way.  If you haven’t lost a day in the set yet, the weekend is almost here.  That’s drummer Ray McKinley at the Hotel Commodore in 1946, above.

OK, this is kind of a “Dad Joke” of a post, but it’s really just another excuse to direct folks over to The Selvage Yard to see more of Tempest Storm and Blaze Starr, to bad girls in black and white.  The Selvage Yard remains one of the best blogs about style, fashion, [...]]]>

OK, this is kind of a “Dad Joke” of a post, but it’s really just another excuse to direct folks over to The Selvage Yard to see more of Tempest Storm and Blaze Starr, to bad girls in black and white.  The Selvage Yard remains one of the best blogs about style, fashion, American icons, rock ‘n roll, motorcycle culture, anything that was ever classically cool, a little dangerous or maybe outlaw in the 20th Century.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images.

Flickr user Sirkullay/Una Feral just uploaded a set with a derailed circus train’s worth of vintage tattooed lady photos.  Enjoy!

Once again the Library of Congress has delivered a death touch of awesome to Flickr’s Commons. This time it’s 700 tintype and ambrotype portraits of civil war soldiers, many of whom have awesome beards (and, tragically, all too many who were too young to even grow one).  These are all from the Liljenquist [...]]]>

Once again the Library of Congress has delivered a death touch of awesome to Flickr’s Commons. This time it’s 700 tintype and ambrotype portraits of civil war soldiers, many of whom have awesome beards (and, tragically, all too many who were too young to even grow one).  These are all from the Liljenquist Family Collection, and the collection is called Faces of the American Civil War. Enjoy!

Bonus Link:  These images remind me of the surreal ambrotypes of Los Angeles-based artist Stephen Berkman. Check them out.

Torrance-based Flickerite and global traveler Brandon Shigeta is in Asia at the moment and has the most beautiful set up, Mobile Vendors, which I believe was taken entirely in Thailand.  He’s shooting with a 5D MkII, so the quality, colours and everything else is just [...]]]>

Torrance-based Flickerite and global traveler Brandon Shigeta is in Asia at the moment and has the most beautiful set up, Mobile Vendors, which I believe was taken entirely in Thailand.  He’s shooting with a 5D MkII, so the quality, colours and everything else is just droolworthy.

Via The OC Art Blog.  I got to know Jerry when we exhibited the artists of The Legacy Project as the Ghosts of El Toro exhibition at Angels Gate, back in 2005.  Jerry was very much at the center of the group’s energy, an incredibly smart and thoughtful fellow who as an educator [...]]]>

Via The OC Art Blog.  I got to know Jerry when we exhibited the artists of The Legacy Project as the Ghosts of El Toro exhibition at Angels Gate, back in 2005.  Jerry was very much at the center of the group’s energy, an incredibly smart and thoughtful fellow who as an educator and gallery operator created opportunities for a whole generation of emerging artists, as well as his peers.  Just a really generous, honest, creative fellow.  The OC Register has an article that has some really amazing comments from folks who knew Jerry far, far better than I ever did.  Jerry was 62, and will be sincerely missed.

At Top – Jerry Burchfield, Findings, from Ghosts of El Toro.