Friday Finds 11.13.2009

Sarah: Atocha Record Cabinet

The November 2009 issue of Dwell features a report on media storage, which includes a number of product ideas for keeping your entertainment accoutrements organized. If I'd spotted this record cabinet from Atocha sooner, I might have added it to the mix. It's modern and elegant, and customized for vinyl. DJs and collectors, take note: You might have to save up for this one. (via Unplggd)

Aaron: Savile Rogue Soccer Scarves

I'm an American, so my favorite sport is baseball. But when overseas or even just wandering past an English pub, I'll happily sit down for a pint and soccer match. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those pretentious types who goes abroad for a semester and comes back popping off about FC Eindhoven's midfield and how great "football" is, but nonetheless, I like it. It takes a long time, they play it outdoors and the scores are low. Like European baseball. What's more, I like scarves. And though there is really no way I'd walk around in a garish Bayern Munich muffler, I would sport one of these decidedly smart soccer scarves from Savile Rogue. Made of 100% cashmere, they eschew gaudy logos and prominently placed European mobile phone ads, for the subtle fandom of good old team colors. Though these scarves are much more strongly geared toward English teams, those who truly love Sporting Portugal can still get in on the action. Wear them to the match or wear them round town—you're bound to look sharp either way, even if you're no more than a rowdy hooligan.

Jordan: RCA Secret 2009

London's Royal College of Art just today revealed the original postcard-size pieces of art up for sale in their annual RCA Secret. The exhibition is a collection of tiny art from famous names, professional artists, illustrators and designers, and RCA students; Each piece sells for £40, and the intrigue comes in because they're all signed on the back so buyers won't know who made what until they've bought the piece. You could walk away with a tiny piece of art from Yoko Ono, Nick Park (of Wallace & Grommit fame), Tracey Emin or American artist Alex Katz, but the anonymity guarantees you're choosing based on taste, not rep. View all the postcards here and imagine which one you'd like to have in your own collection.

Amanda: The American Image—The Photographs of John Collier, Jr. 

This week I've been enjoying the collected black-and-white photographs of American photographer John Collier Jr., who traveled the country in the 1940s, documenting life for the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information (FSA/OWI). As a young boy, Collier apprenticed with painter Maynard Dixon and photographer Dorothea Lange, and his father, John Collier Sr., was a social activist and an American Indian advocate. More than 300 images, all collected on Flickr, are offered as part of The American Image, an online exhibition organized by the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Each shot depicts a bygone chapter of American history, and reveals Collier's quiet respect for his subjects.