Heads in the Clouds.

Cloud Face is a collection of cloud images that a computer algorithm mistakenly identified as human faces. The series was compiled by Korean artists Shinseungback Kimyonghun, who note that the mishap "is a result of the computer's vision error, but [clouds] often look like faces to human eyes, too." 

And if that wasn't fascinating enough, these photographs are from another project called Cat or Human, in which human faces were mistaken for those belonging to cats, and vice versa. You couldn't make this stuff up. Visit Shinseungback Kimyonghun's website, here, for more.

Happy cloud (and cat) gazing.

Recommended Reading / 02.

Every Monday, words to start the week.

This week: Designer Timothy Goodman's handwritten Instagram series #memoriesofagirlineverknew is funny, heart-wrenching, and —judging from the reactions of many enthusiastic commenters — very true to twenty-or-thirty-something life. My favorites are 6A and B, above. See parts one through 11 on Instagram, here.

Three more links, just because:
-Meet Prof. Dumpster, who lives happily - and stylishly! - in 36 square-feet. (Thanks, Kathy.)
-Shelley Jackson's story Skin is being published in tattoo form on 2,095 volunteer participants — one word per person. Jackson calls it a mortal work of art and will "make every effort to attend the funerals of her words."
-From Andrew Wyeth, in celebration of the coming cold: "I prefer winter and fall, when you can feel the bone structure in the landscape...Something waits beneath it — the whole story doesn't show."

More recommended reading, here.

Weekend Note / 01.

Weekend notes are short-form POVs.

Over a child-sized cup of hot chocolate at a coffee shop this week, I told a former boss that I wasn't sure what my next move would be, that my ideas these days were vague, and that it was a challenge, sometimes, to see beyond the very narrow bubble we inhabit in New York. "I think these things are on my mind," I said, lowering my voice, "because I just turned twenty-nine." His eyes widened. He feigned shock. "If I had my twenties to do over again," he said a moment later, "I'd do the things that aren't possible for me to do now. Work in an ashram," he told me. "Live on a farm. Meditate. Remember what's good in life. That you and I can meet for coffee. That plants grow. That the sun rises."

Have a wonderful weekend.

Photo via my Instagram.

Friends & Neighbors / Species By the Thousands.

In Friends & Neighbors, I'll introduce you to some of my favorite creative businesses in Williamsburg. With a new expensive store or chain restaurant opening seemingly every week, there's been much talk these days about how Williamsburg is "over." This series showcases shops, restaurants, and studios that make the neighborhood special, and prove that integrity, creativity, and an artistic spirit are still alive and well. They're places that make me proud to live here, and to call the faces behind their counters neighbors. Photographs by Jacquelyne Pierson.

"People tell me that they want to live here," says jewelry designer Erica Bradbury, whose shop opened on South 4th Street in 2012. Originally called A Thousand Picnics, the store had its beginnings in a collaboration with designers Phoebe Sung and Peter Buer; today, it goes by Species by the Thousands and stocks handmade jewelry, soy candles, crystals, and ceramic clay masks in a cozy, warmly-lit brick room.

"In the beginning, I didn't really know that I wanted to open a shop," Erica says. "I needed a studio, and figured that for a little more money, I could also have a storefront. It allows me to display the things that I make in the context I want to show them in. Instead of being in a studio and showing twice a year at market, I get immediate feedback from customers — my work evolves in public."

"Before the shop, I was in the dark about the things that inspire me," she continues. "But having the store, I've found my interests have gotten more specific. My jewelry has changed because of that — it's less about fashion, and more about imagery and symbolism, things that are meaningful to me and that I'm interested in exploring. It's a little more informed."

Species by the Thousands, 171 South 4th Street, (718) 599-0049
Mon-Sat 12pm - 7pm; Sun 12pm - 6pm

Five Minutes with Erica:

What's surprised you about running your own shop? I've learned so much — about the stones I stock and their properties, the spells, the magic. People come in and ask questions; I'm giving them advice. I really have to know what I'm talking about.

Among the many treasures here, what are some of your personal favorites? The Leah Ball pottery. The stained glass eyes. The Maison Monade ceramic masks.

Where in Brooklyn are you a regular? The shipping center on Grand Street. I'm there constantly. Otherwise, The Daily Press.

Thanks so much, Erica. Shop Species by the Thousands online, here.

Sign of the Times.

This circular, gardenlike curiosity is, believe it or not, a clock — constructed by Japanese design firm Bril, it's made to reflect the passage of a year with cedar leaves that turn from green to brown over the course of 52 weeks. It has no numbers, no battery, no ticking heartbeat. As designer Fumiaki Goto tells Dezeen, "We could feel the seasons in our homes as if we were in forests."

 Visit Bril's website, here. Thanks, Co.Design.