#& the example was is a tree stump on which you can sit a chair?

[weiszklee]

This is a great discussion because I think it really allows us to cut to the core of the disagreement here. I do of course agree that people are different, I just take it to a further conclusion: People are so different in so many different ways that trying to divide them up into categories like "genders" is ultimately trying to reduce an infinite complexity to a finite one. This can have pragmatic advantages, but it can't explain reality to you. You're just drawing lines in the sand, not understanding the beach better. And some people tend to build walls where others have just drawn lines.

As for your tags, I don't deny that people can have a strong internal sense of gender, I think I was pretty clear about that. But that is a flimsy foundation on which to build our understanding of gender. We can't exactly take out our internal experiences and compare them side-by-side, can we? Even if someone says the exact same things about their internal sense of gender as you do, you still can't really be sure that you're both talking about the same thing. Also: Our internal feelings as well as our rational understanding of those feelings as well as the language with which we express this understanding, all developed within this society which is extremely sexist. It is to be expected that this has an influence at each of the three steps, feeling, understanding, expression.

With @canadianwheatpirates I want to start at the most abstract point as well:

The fact that genders differ in some way from each other doesn’t mean those differences are inherently oppressive. The only way we can comprehend anything is because things are different to each other. It’s where the whole “define a chair”/”has 4 legs, a back, you sit on it”/”[photo of a horse] this is a chair” thing comes from. We only know what a chair is because despite the fact that it shares properties with horses and tables and trees, it has a final difference that makes it not any of those things.

I strongly, decidedly disagree. "Chair" is a useful word to carry in your brain for the purpose of navigating everyday life, but there is no final essence to what is or isn't a chair. That's why people disagree in the margins: Is a throne carved into a mountain a chair? Is a one-legged milking stool which you strap to your ass a chair? If a tree stump is left in the ground and is just the right height to sit on and you put a table in front of it, is it a chair?

The same is true of pretty much all concepts as we use them in our everyday life. People can get into the stupidest arguments: Is watching TV a hobby? If the air outside doesn't move around much, is there no wind or is the wind just still? Does listening to an audiobook count as reading? Sooner or later, you have to just let this stuff rest and content yourself with the insight that outside of science, words don't have exact definitions and that's fine, they're still useful.

I think the same is true of the words "man" and "woman". Everyone means something slightly different when saying these words, but for the most part it's fine, we can still communicate. But we should not make the mistake to convince ourselves that "man" and "woman" are categories dictated by the real world. The difference between them is still just a line drawn in the sand.

If someone is, for example, a man who goes completely against male gender roles and yet still identifies as a man -- I don’t think that abolishing those gender roles would also get rid of the part of them that says they’re a man? Since it obviously arises from something other than just the influence of gender roles.

This is a more complicated scenario than you make it out to be. After all, the man still has to navigate our sexist society, so can we trust his self-identification to be truly free from its influences? Beyond that, do we even know, precisely, what he means when he says he identifies as a man? Does he mean he puts a small x in the box next to the M in official documents (I do that too) or something more? If more, how do we know what that is? Maybe he just heard other people talking about gender identity and assumed to know what they meant, and now he goes around calling a completely different feeling inside himself his internal sense of manhood. We don't know. And we can never know.

What I find more important and, frankly, more interesting to talk about is that society will also still view this man as a man. A failed man maybe, but not a woman. And this I think gets us closer to the real juicy stuff about what gender actually is and how it works.

We could say, for example, that he does still tick the box next to the big M. That is certainly an expectation society has of him as a man, and he passes with flying colours. He refers to himself as a man, he goes to the toilet where the little stick figure doesn't wear a skirt, even if he himself might actually wear a skirt. So really, as far as society is concerned, he does not go completely against male gender roles. He just plays a role called "fag" or something, but we do consider those who play that role to be men.

If he were raised in a different society, things might be very different! Maybe in early modern times, his behaviour would not actually be considered all that unusual for men. Many of our ideas about how men dress and act were invented in the 19th century Europe and America, so that's when he might start to run into problems, and even back then an interest in language and fashion and the arts was not seen as unmanly. Maybe in a completely different society with little contact to European culture, he actually might be considered a woman, or a third gender, or any number of things. This all is assuming, of course, that growing up in a different society, he would still have developed the same interests and preferences and behaviours. There's a good chance this assumption does not actually hold, so we have even less of an idea of what he would be like.

Can you actually remain convinced that his sense of his own gender would be unchanged throughout all of this? Surely not. Yet all that changed was the society around him. So yes, I do think that abolishing gender roles and hierarchies is synonymous with abolishing gender entirely. In this regard, gender is similar to other identity categories like nationality, as I said I an earlier addition to this post.

People who do have a strong sense of their gender are going to continue to use systems of gender signification in order to communicate it, which reinforces the signification system. And I mean, we could say “well, people should stop doing that”, but at that point you’re basically saying that individual gender expression is unrevolutionary or whatever. We know that individual people’s gender can’t be suppressed or changed -- that’s conversion therapy -- and while you can e.g. encourage men to express their gender in non-toxic ways, I think it’s fair to claim that you can’t stop people who already have a gender from trying to express it somehow.

Now this is a more interesting point. I am not advocating for trying to police people's self-conception or self-expression of course. But what I think we can demand is that people stop treating others differently based on gender, and stop demanding different treatment based on gender. Until that is achieved, I don't think we can claim to actually have abolished gender roles even, because such intersubjective expectations and differences in treatment are a big part of how gender roles are enforced nowadays. Still, it is probably true that there is quite a bit of inertia in the system of gender just as a result of people's authentic expressions and interactions. Authentic expressions and interactions are also a carrier of change though, so I think we'll be alright.

In the same way, expanding the gender system to include a whole plethora of nonbinary and genderqueer and indigenous genders is beneficial to the breaking down of sexism, because it means that men and women simply become single points in a constellation rather than being defined in strict opposition to each other. When you have men and women in a strict opposition with no overlap, that creates the situation where one of them is considered to be better than the other -- because if they were equally good, that would give them something in common, and they aren’t allowed to have anything in common.

Oh I actually agree with that, I don't think I have said anything to the contrary here. I just think it won't stop at many points in a big constellation. I think the obvious and in the long run unavoidable next step will be to stop caring about gender at all, even if that might take a few generations. Maybe there will be a few holdouts of people convinced that being a man means something, just as nowadays there are people who think being a Virgo means something. But it's quite easy to ignore those, so I'm not too bothered by the possibility of such convictions sticking around after they have become obsolete.

I never really understood the call for non-toxic masculinity. Shouldn't the goal be to build a world in which people are just not judged along the axis of masculinity at all? And to help men navigate such a world by constructing a sense of self which rests on things other than masculinity? How is a new and different masculinity gonna help with that?

Also, when people list traits of non-toxic masculinity, they're usually just traits of like ... a good person. Why even keep calling it masculinity when it's so far removed from traditional masculinity that you would advice women to adopt 100% the same traits? Teenagers aren't stupid, they'll see right through it. Might as well be honest.

Emulating traditional masculinity as Tate does is ridiculous and pathetic, and that's about all teenage boys need to understand about it.

On the one hand I think 'masculinity doesn't need to be defined around misogyny and you are not less of a man if you're less misogynistic and violent' is often a first stepping stone towards 'masculinity doesn't need to be defined at all' and an easier step to take for people still figuring out who they are and how that relates to their gender and the social expectations around their gender.

On the other hand, I think neither idea is going to be remotely appealing to most teenage boys because they exist within a group context that violently polices adherence to hegemonic masculinity and most of them would rather die than face social rejection.

Unless you can change the social context teenage boys exist in, you're going to be fighting an uphill struggle against guys like Tate who confirm hegemonic masculinity.

So, changing society as a whole is mostly where it's at.

[evpandasi06]

Concrete in the garden - a modern garden design

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Concrete in the garden - a modern garden design

The material concrete as an interesting solution for modern garden design. Concrete is a versatile construction material with special properties that allows you to create all the shapes and volumes you can imagine. Due to its formability, water impermeability, different design options in surface formation and its resistance to high temperature and chemical attack, the concrete is the perfect solution for a modern outdoor design. Any kind of furniture, floor coverings, as well as creative DIY objects for decoration are made of concrete. In our article: Crafting ideas with concrete, you will find many cool ideas for DIY artworks and today we want to introduce some interesting designer concrete pieces of furniture for outdoor use.

Cool terrace design with concrete garden furniture from the Drillium collection by opiary

The concrete is in principle perceived as a cold material. The things you can tinker with it create a visual illusion of softness through a textured surface. As an example, we have selected the garden bench “Buenos Aires” and the “Chesterfield” sofa. Each fold and every detail of the typical upholstered furniture is absorbed by the concrete and embodied in every detail. The concrete furniture looks like a stone textile made and still give the feeling of a soft and comfortable seat. Another example of “busy” concrete pieces are the wooden stools “Knotty” by Hard Goods. The cast concrete design pieces are hollow cast and imitation of tree stumps painted in white or gray, which can be used as a side table, stool, or footrest. A fantastic idea for design of the garden or the terrace with garden furniture made of concrete in wood look.

Garden Furniture Inspiration – Garden Bench “Buenos Aires” by grupo bondi

Creative garden design with concrete – concrete cushions and concrete stools by grupo bondi

Interesting idea for garden design with DIY garden furniture, offer the shaped slabs of cinderblock. Thanks to the holes, you can use the concrete blocks not only as a plant bed, but also for simple DIY garden benches and sitting areas. All you need is a few wooden slats and your garden sofa is ready. Another concrete idea for garden design with concrete are the concrete tiles from Ivanka Store. The concrete slabs are provided with small, orthographic gaps to the surface where moss can grow to form a spectacular, playful floor design.

Fantastic idea for DIY garden table with concrete garden benches

Creative Idea for DIY Furniture made of Concrete and Wood – Craft Idea for DIY Dining Table

Interesting device for the garden with the concrete sofa Chesterfield of grayconcrete

Creative idea for garden decoration with DIY garden bench made of concrete by solso

Another idea for design with concrete – concrete flowerpots from 66 pottery bali

DIY sofa made of shaped stones for the garden

Idea for concrete in the garden with DIY open fire from concrete in round shape

Beautiful garden idea for cool garden furniture with the concrete stool KNOTTY STOOL

The concrete rocking chair – SWING from paulsberg

Intreressante solution for garden design with garden furniture made of concrete – mobilier a jardiner

Round garden furniture made of concrete for modern decor in the garden

Innovative concrete tiles for outdoor use – ORTO LIVING COVERING by Ivanka Studio

Fantastic garden design with puzzle concrete tiles by Ivanka Studio

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[lefafta]

Where You Can Find The Best Furniture Stores

By Janet Howard

A house would not be a home without some nifty filling in. It needs to have household equipment suited for the various purposes in the home. To see the choicest creations of some of the best manufacturers in your area, look at this catalog of furniture stores in sacramento. Etymologically, furniture comes from a root word that means movable. Therefore, these are movable accouterments that aid in various human activities, like sitting, sleeping, eating, storing, and holding objects. These furnishings thoroughly and snugly outfit our houses to make them as functional as they are wont to be. The use of some furniture types are quite intuitive. Like chairs, example, which have been around since time immemorial. This may have started naturally enough, with our hairy forefather using a tree stump, for starters, as a resting place for their tired humps. This fixture goes on to become among the most quintessential and indelible appurtenance in the house. Thus stems the competition in this enterprise. Although furniture is not particularly difficult to make and source, getting a high quality one is another league of challenge by itself. For instance, you have a roughly carved, stick back pine tables, and on the other hand an elaborately gilded marquetry escritoire. Each is useful to each his own, and they even have their individual whimsical charm, but it should not come as a surprise which one is more valued or highly prized. The decorative elements are great game changers in this enterprise. In these cases, they may be as much furniture as works of art. For instance, you may get sculpted and inlaid pieces in antique shops, if not in museums. Because of the inherent difference in which they are made, some take on a social standing all on their own. With our above example chair, for example, there are some that are specially designed for use among people of high social importance. However, function and decoration are not the mere nub of the matter here. In fact, aside from those, additional caveats should be kept in mind with regards to health and safety. That is just the point with relatively newly coined terms like ergonomics and ecodesign. The first is all about the arraignment and design of products as a whole, or systems, in workplaces most especially, so that people may function in it most efficiently and healthfully. That comes with considerations like the height of chairs and tables, the accessibility of desktops, and the sufficiency of available space. You can just imagine furnitures relevance to the whole enterprise. Safe furniture goes on to contribute to occupational health, safety, and productivity. What with the great progress we have made, it is only natural to vamp up everything with greater speed and efficiency. Therefore, most furniture out in the market today are actually mechanically made. That means that they are manufactured, and not made per se. The best creations are usually those that are handmade. Nothing beats the detail and intricacy of a handmade craft. It is also made with assurance and surety, sure to last for more generations. Of course, there are also the considerations for standards in functionality and safety. This touches on considerations on user safety. For example, a particular trapping may be tested for reliability or safety, or else for durability, strength, and stability. They are made to undergo test methods and pass safety requirements, such as assessments for ignitability, before being recognized with a stamp of excellence. It goes without saying that no matter their shape and configuration, they stand for a vital function inside the home, granting utility, comfort, and style. There is truth in the aphorism that the furniture in a particular house says quite a lot about the people living in it.

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[bookshelfdreams]

this is a really interesting example of a phenomenon I have observed which is that English speakers generally seem to find it acceptable to refer to things by the umbrella term under which they belong

which isn't really something we do in german. for us, most things have their specific name.

another example of this is sandwich discourse.which is completely nonsensical to me. for me, a sandwich is two slices of toast bread, filled with cheese/cold cuts/condiments/some veggies. that's it. everything else is called something else. a burger? not a sandwich. the things you get at subway? not a sandwich.

while to engl speakers, "sandwich" seems to mean "baked good that has other foodstuff in it". so of course THEY would find it completely bonkers when I say that a burger is nor a sandwich :)

my toxic trait is that I refuse to refer to this as bread because I'm german

[connorrenwick]

Where I Work: Aaron Edwards of The Charles

Aaron Edwards is one half of the award-winning digital agency, The Charles, which he co-founded with his sister, Samantha Edwards. The New York City based firm, which also has offices in Chicago and London, are the brains behind the advertisements of some the most notable brands in the business, like Cartier, MINI, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Media, as well as fashion related brands, such as Misha Nonoo, Ellen Tracy, and Armando Cabral. They also won the digital design award for Cocainenomics via the Wall Street Journal for Netflix’s show, Narcos. Wanting all of their employees to have a voice on some of today’s most controversial subjects, the duo encouraged each of them to write an article for their recently launched online magazine, Charlie, including topics like race, censorship, and fear culture. For this month’s Where I Work, Aaron takes us through his work days, creative processes, and the design behind The Charles’ NYC offices.

What is your typical work style?

I’d say my work schedule is pretty regimented but my best work is usually done at 7.00am when I am in the shower. I like to set one large overarching task for the week and on my walk to work, break those larger objectives into more bite-sized goals per day. My hours aren’t set but I’m usually in the office at 8.30am and out the door by 7pm but this can change especially if I have client engagements.

What’s your studio/work environment like?

Music is a staple here at The Charles. We spent months tinkering with sound levels, playlists for office mood / vibes and in every nook and corner lies a Sonos speaker gently massaging our creative juices. In general it’s a friendly welcoming environment with lots of natural sunlight, light textures and greenery. We love plants and believe in “nurturing our nature” so whether its one of our half a dozen fig trees or table top terrariums there’s not a space you won’t find some sort of living breathing organism.

How is your office organized/arranged?

I sit in a glass fish tank surrounded by piles of papers, pens and scribbles on notepads. I call it organized chaos, some people call it a mess but it works for me and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I do miss being in the action and previously I always sat with the team as I felt it was important for them to know how invested and involved I was in the day to day. As the agency has grown it’s no longer possible but I do try to float around the office as much as I can being “that” guy looking over colleagues’ shoulders and throwing in my two cents.

The remainder of the space is divided into 4 areas, creative team area, technology workspace, client entertainment / waiting area and last but least our new content studio, Jane. For furnishing we turned to a Red Hook-based friend and designer, Kevin Burns to build sustainable modular desks made from recycled bowling alley stock. These desks were built to age, add a sense of warmth and character to the stark white walls, gradient Pantone books and tchotchkes collected over years of travels.

We’ve got 2 closed off areas, one serves as the formal conference room for client meetings and the other as a telephone booth for private calls.

Finally and most importantly, we designed a custom 12 foot solid maple wood bar with rotating wheels, which allows us to create a multipurpose area for entertaining.

How long have you been in this space? Where did you work before that?

We started off in an 800 square foot space on Broadway one block up from Canal St, it was a decried textile building with a not so friendly elevator guy. There were no windows and during summer time it was pretty unbearable.

We then moved to our current building and took up a photography studio which was larger than our needs, we really made it ours but with the exponential growth of the team and our client base we quickly outgrew the space.

Skip to our current space which was an old lawyers’ office untouched since 1970, we gutted the space and kept some items for memorabilia, most notably the rotary phone now hung on our monolith and an executive leather chair.

If you could change something about your workspace, what would it be?

Privacy areas. We lack multiple areas to lounge and do work in private. We use our secondary conference room as a haven but it would be great to have dedicated areas for collaboration that were in a more open environment. A basketball court and a winding staircase leading to a second floor full of games and activities… that’s for Charles 5.0 – we are currently on 3.0.

Is there an office pet?

Sadly our office dog left and headed to Chicago with her owner when she relocated. She was a border terrier and named after my favorite drink, Stella.

Do you require music in the background? If so, who are some favorites?

If you do not like music you will simply not fit in here. We have a full spectrum of tunes that are played throughout the week from instrumentals / jazz vibes in the morning to the afternoon being more focused around indie / minimal tech / house and on a rare occasion garage. Solange, Sampha, badbadnotgood, Joy Orbison, King Krule are a few to mention.

How do you record ideas?

We have Charles Moleskines and I’m notorious for filling them in days with chicken scratch. Writing things down has always worked for me and it’s the only way I can keep on top of my tasks.

Do you have an inspiration board? What’s on it right now?

Pinterest and Instagram are my hourly sources for visual inspiration and the television in my office playing everything from Billions to Hitchcock on gloomy uninspiring days.

What is your creative process and/or creative workflow like? Does it change every project or do you keep it the same?

Talking and writing my way through a creative idea is relatively standard practice. It’s almost like therapy and allows me to escape the perpetual churn of P&L, forecasting and business planning / client strategy which is my day to day.

I’m a believer in collaboration and some of the best ideas come when you can bounce them off other people. You find weaknesses, strengths and promise in telling people your ideas and that feedback is invaluable.

I have a very diverse group of peers and collaborators whose unique cultural / business experiences provide tremendous value.

What kind of art/design/objects might you have scattered about the space?

I like small objects that have quirks for example lead paper weights in the shape of classic brogues, or my gold organic tree stump coffee table. I also have a piece created by a friend and client of mine, Austyn Weiner, that lives in our client entertaining space.

Are there tools and/or machinery in your space?

There are plenty of computers and cameras.

What tool(s) do you most enjoy using in the design process?

Pencil and Paper. It’s so important to sketch out and write down concepts. There are tools that can assist greatly in the efficiency of the work but they can’t influence the effect great design work can have on any environment. Pencil and paper are the second to the greatest tool on earth, the human mind.

Let’s talk about how you’re wired. Tell us about your tech arsenal/devices.

Hardware – iPhone, MacBook Pro, iWatch Software – Photoshop, Excel, Dashlane mint.com – I manage my personal finances through this app stashinvest.com – I manage all my investments through this app

What design software do you use, if any, and for what?

Excel. Its great for designing creative businesses!

Is there a favorite project you’ve worked on?

Charlie, the internal culture-based publication we released was one of my favorite things we’ve recently worked on. I think enabling your team to have a healthy balance of discussion, debate and opinion shows that you trust them to make the right decisions. Furthermore, encouraging them to communicate these issues in a way that makes sense – not just for shock value – reinforces that point. It enables them to think critically.

Do you feel like you’ve “made it”? What has made you feel like you’ve become successful? At what moment/circumstances? Or what will it take to get there?

This is just the beginning. I’ve always been a dreamer, I’m wildly ambitious and so I’ll never be satisfied. Most people think financial gain is the barometer to success and whilst it is still a goal for me and the agency I really believe in the idea of personal growth, knowledge sharing and a desire to not stop learning.

Tell us about a current project you’re working on. What was the inspiration behind it?

We are now working with a hotel group Sixty Hotels. It’s an exciting project because it’s not a traditional design and build project. We are involved in a much bigger strategic capacity where we can flex our content strategy and content production legs whilst providing aligning KPI’s within data and analytics to the creative process. Plus the hotel sector has been an area I’ve been very interested in for a long time. I have a dream to eventually start and run a hotel group but as they say, one step at a time.

What’s on your desk right now?

Airpods iPhone Checkbook Cereal, Man about town, Laphams Quarterly

Do you have anything in your home that you’ve designed/created?

Does my 2 year old count? My proudest achievement yet by far.

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