ART, AFFORDED
Jen Bekman has always been a champion of the emerging art world. When she founded her eponymous NYC art gallery in 2003, Bekman realized there was an ever-widening gap in the price points between what the typical gallerygoer would pay and what her friends could shell out for original artwork. She devoted her attention to not only nurturing up-and-coming talents, but also making pieces from established artists accessible to a wider audience. Her seasonal photography competition “Hey Hot Shot” is like an American Idol for photographers, with a stellar rotating panel of judges and some pretty incredible exposure: The winners receive a gallery showcase and an opportunity to be represented by Bekman. Her newest project, 20x200, will feature pieces for sale in a tiered pricing model that starts as low as $20— even for famous folk like Michael Bierut and Todd St. John. www.jenbekman.com, www.20x20.com

CAPITAL LETTERS
Type will be anything but typecast at the ninth annual Society of Typographic Aficionados conference. TypeCon2007: Letter Space features topics as diverse as experimental letterpress, animated type, custom fonts for publication design, and sessions that explore Czech typography and lettering in Mexico. More than 70 type innovators will chime in, including Marian Bantjes (who also designed the conference’s identity, named “The Thing”), David Berlow, Robert Bringhurst, Leslie Cabarga, Matthew Carter, Art Chantry, Karen Cheng, Tim Girvin, Bruce Hale, Akira Kobayashi, Kevin Larson, Liz Resnick and Ilene Strizver. Special events include a type and design education forum, the Typophile Film Festival, an international exhibition of type and design and, of course, the Seattle premiere of Gary Hustwit’s documentary Helvetica. Registration prices start at $120, making TypeCon one of the most inexpensive conferences around. Aren’t those typophiles resourceful? August 1–5; Seattle, Wash. www.typecon.com

IDEO’S FAVORITE IDEAS
It’s intriguing to see which pieces of design IDEO, designers of so many objects we encounter every day, chose from the Cooper-Hewitt for the exhibition IDEO Selects: Works From the Permanent Collection. According to IDEO, the selected works were picked for a variety of reasons, from the use of unlikely or puzzling materials to sheer historical significance. Examples: A series of flashlights from the past 50 years shows the evolution of a simple technology; a 1940s Corning Glass Works iron shows the challenge of designing during wartime rationing of metals. “We saw in each of these objects the designer’s personal and popular motivations, which spoke volumes about the way design thinkers process the world around them,” says IDEO’s Brenda Natoli, who was also a member of the team that created the exhibit. “Even for people who aren’t designers by discipline, this processing of the world will seem familiar in its evaluation of what exists.” A series of questions and texts allows the audience to consider the exhibition through the design thinking process. June 22, 2007, through Jan. 20, 2008. www.cooperhewitt.org

ARCHITECTURE TOUR
As part of the American Institute of Architects’ 150th anniversary, 150 structures were picked by a nationwide poll as America’s Favorite Buildings. But to truly open up the selection process to all America, C&G Partners created a website where users can continue to refine the rankings by voting for their top five favorites. While the experience was primarily imagined as a tool for generating dialogue and debate about architecture’s public perception, by reading some of the user comments it’s clear that relationships to the built environment go far beyond “favorites”—people are getting extremely emotional about what building should be crowned “best.” Another opportunity for discovering architecture can be found on Google Earth, where, should someone encounter the location of, say, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, an America’s Favorite Architecture-branded pop-up bubble will bring the curious back to site for more information. C&G Partners designed an exhibition on the project for AIA headquarters in New York; the show will travel to additional locations throughout the year. www.favoritearchitecture.org

POWER IN NUMBERS
You can forget about being a lone furniture design superstar. This year at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York, it was all about the supergroup. Collectives made up of some of the biggest names in design joined forces—often united behind a common cause—to premiere new collections at the trade show. Global Edition, for example, is the name of Bernhardt Design’s new high-end line, featuring a wide range of pieces meant to be both timeless and contemporary from designers like Arik Levy, Christian Biecher, Shin Azumi and Yves Béhar. Los Angelesbased Artecnica continued its socially responsible Design With Conscience line with pieces from the Campana Brothers, Hella Jongerius and Stephen Burks that use reclaimed materials and the work of artisans from around the world. One collective has even launched as an official company: Council Design unites Derek Chen, Khodi Feiz, Arik Levy, Mike and Maaike, One & Co and Space for its first collection called Optimism. With consumers more educated than ever about good design, a company like Council can ride the current wave of awareness with confidence, says Derek Chen, Council’s founder. “The Council consumer is savvy about design, values craft and authenticity, and isn’t afraid to invest in quality pieces. We take care to create furniture with character and substance and are hoping to reach consumers who will appreciate that.” www.bernhardtdesign.com, www.artecnicainc.com, www.councildesign.com