Welcome to another edition of Artisan's Fast Five! It's good to be back here at our favourite little nook of the web, sharing some of our golden internet finds with our best pal i.e. YOU. This week's edition features a tribute to weird American laws, a pretty funny Facebook page dedicated to Australia's entry into space exploration, naming things correctly, examples of why it is important to use quotation marks properly, and some DIY variety television. Brace yourself, it's about to get real...
PICTURING AMERICA’S WEIRDEST LAWS BY BREAKING THEM
Here’s a smart art idea that’s been turned into a photography book - artist Olivia Locher has taken fifty images representing weird American laws (some real, a few fake, some outdated or misconstrued - you’ll have to be the judge!) and published them in a sweet little volume published by Chronicle Books. The pictures are great, and trying to figure out if the laws are legit is half the fun of flipping through the book! Is it illegal to paint sparrows with the intention of selling them as parakeets in Michigan? Is it illegal to put an American flag on a bar of soap? You’ll just have to do some investigating....
AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH & SPACE EXPLORATION - SPACE AUSTRALIA
National excitement levels went through the roof in September with the announcement that Australia is finally getting into the space exploration business, a move that the government says will create thousands of job opportunities. Yes, job opportunities for those actually working in aeronautical industries, and also opportunities for smart larrikins.
Shortly after the announcement was made, some prankster created a Facebook page devoted to what they believe the new space agency should be called: Australian Research & Space Exploration - Space Australia. Or, if you shorten it to an acronym, A.R.S.E - Space Australia.
The page went viral, they’re selling celebratory t-shirts by the truckload, and it looks like the citizens of Oz have already begun successfully taking the mickey out of their space agency before it’s even really begun, which is pretty much the most Australian thing possible to do, right?
13 SIGNS MADE SEXUAL BY UNNECESSARY QUOTATION MARKS
While generally it’s fair to say that incorrect use of punctuation would normally make a pedant like me cringe in pain, the exception to this rule is when sentences contain unnecessary quotation marks - which all of a sudden makes the whole statement sound like euphemism and results in much hilarity. Exhibit A, your honour: Funny or Die’s collection of incredible signs that have suddenly taken a turn for the entendre thanks to poor use of quotation marks.
CORRECT NAMES
Whether it's referring to a waterfall as "hill tears" or the adjustable bar that increases or decreases the brightness of your iPhone screen as "eye volume", this is a Twitter account that has come up with a new and improved name for hundreds of every day objects, and they're worth a follow for that alone.
AMATEUR HOUR
So, you're a bit bummed out by the fact Australian television doesn't really have any kind of shows where young comedy/musical/art/performing talent can get featured. What do you do? 99.999% of the population would normally just have a quiet sook about it and then do nothing in particular to improve the situation.
Melbourne musician Laura Imbruglia, on the other hand, gathered her mates in the arts community and decided to make a half hour web series called Amateur Hour so she could feature all the weird and wonderful artistic types she knows who would never ever get a run on Oz TVs limited variety programs.
You may have seen a couple of the clips go viral over the last two years (a particular highlight was the reverse-sexism-in-a-music-shop sketch) but it's really worth exploring the whole YouTube channel and get inspired - it's incredible what can be created with a little determination and a solid community of creatives around you!
So there you have it, another Fast Five done and dusted! If you're keen for us to keep you in the regular loop with other great website finds, you could always connect with Artisan Recruitment on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram where we share amazing links on the regular.
And don't forget, whether you're actively looking for work or just curious as to what's out there, let Artisan do the hard yards in finding your perfect job - just click here and sign up as a candidate with us, and we'll be in touch.