1988’s Bombin’ is another fine documentary on hip hop and graffiti culture directed by Dick Fontaine (Beat This! A Hip Hop History). This time Fontaine chronicles how a scene born in the Bronx travels across the Atlantic and hits the streets of Britain’s ghettos.
 

 
For their new exhibit at the White Cube gallery in London, controversial British artists Jake and Dinos Chapman worked isolated from each other in separate studios. They only became aware of what the other brother had done when their “collaboration” got staged:

Since their work featured in both YBA exhibitions in the mid-nineties the Chapman brothers - Jake and Dinos - have become synonymous with controversial art, often having their work labelled as vulgar and offensive. But despite the labels and occasional spats with the press the Chapman brothers have been hugely important to British art and were nominated for the Turner prize in 2003. Here, Crane.tv talk to the brothers about their latest exhibition at the White Cube gallery, which for the first time they worked separately on, and finds out their message for fellow YBA Tracey Emin.

The White Cube show runs until September 17, 48 Hoxton Square, London, N1 6PB and 25-26 Mason’s Yard, London, SW1Y 6BU
 
Watch the video:

 
The demented doll freaks at Creepy-Ass Dolls have just published a book of photographs of demonic porcelain and plastic playthings for degenerate kids and twisted adults. You can buy a copy here.

A sample of the horrors lurking among the dark shadows in the doll houses of hell:
 

 

 
More creepiness after the jump…

 
Redditor smsilton says it took him 150 shots and over two hours to capture this image of a water drop in front of an MC Escher painting.

This is very much in the spirit of Escher, almost pulling one of his seemingly multi-dimensional 2-D masterpieces into 3-D space. Very cool.

(via My Modern Metropolis)

 
This is annoying: The BBC have decided to cancel one of its very best comedy series, Graham Duff’s brilliant Ideal starring the great Johnny Vegas as Mancunian pot dealer “Moz.” I’m a huge, huge fan of Vegas and Ideal, it’s one of the most-sharply written and acted comedies of the past decade. It’s got everything: Dope. Sex. Severed limbs… It’s also a rock snob’s delight with a terrifically curated soundtrack. Duff has actually used Throbbing Gristle’s music in the show and has even name-checked Carter-Tutti (aka Chris & Cosey) in a dog whistle meant for only a certain percentage of the viewing audience (I love stuff like that).

Here’s what I wrote about Ideal when I was guest-blogging at Boing Boing a few years ago:

One of my favorite British TV comedy series — and I’ll be blogging about several during my tenure here at Boing Boing — is a show about a Mancunian pot dealer called Ideal (geddit?). It’s consistently well-written, extremely well-acted and provides comic genius Johnny Vegas with a role worthy of his almost Shakespearean-level verbal talents.

Vegas, the funniest fat man since John Candy, is “Moz” a small-time weed merchant who may or may not be agoraphobic. But Ideal, which has so far aired for four seasons on BBC3 and is scheduled for a fifth beginning in early 2009, isn’t a comedy about drugs per se, it’s more about the dramatic device of Moz’s bohemian line of work bringing whimsical (and psychotic) characters in and out of his flat all day long. “Ideal” is truly one of the best things on television anywhere in the world right now and thanks to the wonders of technology, should you decide it’s something you would want to watch, there is surely a way for you to see it, too. Just get your hands on it, trust me, you’ll love it!

I have seen every episode and own the DVDs. My lovely wife Tara, who also has great taste in TV, forwarded this most depwessing and distwessing news from Graham Duff’s Facebook page. I’ve counted her saying “It really sucks that they cancelled Ideal!” about eight times in the past hour:

As some of you may have heard, the BBC have decided against commissioning an 8th series of Ideal. The reason given was that the new channel controller wanted to make a clean sweep.

It is a source of both pride and frustration that, at the point of cancellation, Ideal was attracting its biggest ever audiences, its highest profile guest stars and its best ever reviews. And the show is now being screened in more countries than ever before - from America to Finland and beyond.

I just want to say a huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who has appeared in the show and worked behind the scenes over the last 7 years and 53 episodes. And a very special thanks to everyone who has supported the show and spread the word. We really wouldn’t have got this far without you.

It’s been a truly wonderful journey and to work with such a genuinely amazing team has been both an honour and a solid hoot.

Best wishes
Graham xxx

Not only is this sad, it’s stupid! What TV channel controller worth their salary makes the decision to yank a show that’s been on for seven years and has a growing international audience??? (Not a declining audience, an audience that is getting bigger worldwide every year—what gives?). How do you justify wanting a “clean sweep” over creating profits from a proven hit in a corporate environment, anyways?

WHO IS THIS PERSON WHO CANCELLED IDEAL?

And why do they still have a job?

Someone needs to organize a protest! Maybe mail this moron rolling papers care of the Beeb?

This sucks! It’s a travesty, I tell you! Let Graham Duff know how much you love Ideal at his Facebook page.
 

 
Nevie Pie Cakes made these whimsical carnival freak show cookies for a 40th birthday party. I like the bearded lady.
 

 
(via Cakehead)

 
From photographer Zhang Xiao:

These photographs were taken in Shanxi Province in the Northwest of China. They document the ancient customs, which originate from pagan religious beliefs. Today a number of these customs have survived as one of the most important cultural practices in the Lunar New Year. People dress in stunning costumes, paint their faces, and stage themselves as mythical creatures. I suppose, by contrast to their daily peasant lifestyle, on this special occasion everyone must have felt quite extraordinary, especially since they were representing powerful ancient deities. When I first saw them line up and walk around in the village, I kept on wondering: did I step into wonderland?

Zhang Xiao captures his images with a Holga camera, known for its “low-fi” aesthetic.
 

 

 
More of Shanxi after the jump…

 
More goodness for you weekend hippies.

The Universe is psychedelic. Just take a look.

Or just close your eyes.
 

 
The Amy Winehouse teapot by artist Charles Krafft and Mike Leavitt. As Dangerous Minds pal Adam Parfrey puts it, “Here’s how everyone can enjoy Amy Winehouse forever, and also pour poppy tea…”

 
Tess Adamski’s Jack Kerouac tattoo by Thor at Yonge Street Tattoos.

(via Everlasting Blort)