No nudity at the Met

Photographer Zach Hyman is getting his models into trouble. The New York artist received press earlier this month for taking nude photos of models on the subway.

His next photo shoot though received attention from the police as well as the media.

Hyman and model Kathleen “KC” Neill were stopped by police from taking nude photos at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The police objected so strongly that they charged Neill with lewd conduct.

The Associated Press reported that Neill disrobed in the arms and armor area while Hyman snapped the photos. Hyman says he’s inspired by the nude sculptures and paintings in the Met’s collection.

Apparently nudes at the museum are only acceptable in paint and marble, not in the flesh.

Well-designed water

A new beverage is on the market for the health conscious, Whitewall magazine reports. Y Water competes with fitness and health drinks like Gatorade, but boasts high-brow design.

Famed designer Yves Behar designed the bottles to be used after their contents have been consumed. Shaped like chem-class composition models, the forked bottles can be assembled after consumption to build geometric shapes.

The drinks, with names like Muscle Water and Brain Water market to design nerds and their children.

It’s like Lego you can drink.

Artists seek refuge in crumbling ruins

Artists are squatting in dilapidated buildings, again. This time, in Hamburg, Germany, artists have set up studios in a city district scheduled for demolition, according to ArtInfo.com.

The website that reports artist Daniel Richter is spearheading the activist movement, which hopes to preserve the architectural history of one of the oldest districts in Hamburg.

The artists aren’t in it for strictly aesthetic reasons, though. The artists are also lobbying for funding and living spaces for artists in Hamburg.

The neighbourhood, known as the Gängeviertel (which roughly means the “alley quarter”) is known for its decrepit state and high crime rates.

Alice Cooper wants to rock out, sing in a musical

Alice Cooper is going back on tour, and this time he dies four times (yawn). Apparently disappointed with the “lack of balls” in American music, Cooper is trying to bring the “cock” back to “rock.”

NoiseCreep.com, an online music blog, has posted an interview with Cooper about his upcoming tour, where Cooper weighs in on who’s got guts when it comes to American rock ‘n’ roll. Cooper lists Foo Fighters and Green Day as the hard rocking groups he favours.

Cooper also discusses the inevitability of an Alice Cooper Broadway show, which gets him pretty excited.

His current tour features artistic direction from the director of Broadway’s Beauty and the Beast.

Published in Volume 64, Number 2 of The Uniter (September 10, 2009)