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Experimental animation and pottery may seem like two completely different artistic mediums from two totally different worlds, but when the Crafts Council was looking for an effective method of advertising themselves they turned to animator Jim Le Fevre and decided that fusing animation and pottery would not only be eye catching it would be a juxtaposition no one had ever seen before.

The result is a mighty interesting two minute long short that showcases RAMP Ceramics, a company whose name acronym stands for, appropriately enough,  Roops and Al Johnstone Make Pottery, and features a simple yet effective phonotrope animation created on the side of a ceramic bowl.

Via Booooooom!

There’s a new children’s book out there which is both classically simplistic and totally cutting edge, a book that explains 3d printing to children.

It’s called Leo the Maker Prince by Carla Diana, and kids not only learn how to print out objects in 3d when they read this charming tale of Carla, the accountant who wants to be an artist, and Leo, the 3d printing robot that will make her dreams come true, they can print out models of the main characters- if they have a 3d printer on hand.

If not, then they’ll discover another facet of the 3d printing revolution- buying a printer for yourself is still too darn expensive, and if you go to a printing service they will charge you an arm and a leg!

Via DesignTAXI

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Everyone assumes the Chinese are responsible for Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks ripoffs such as Life's A Jungle, Kiara the Brave and The Little Panda Fighter, but surprisingly these films come from Brazil, India and Canada, not China.

The first fully Chinese CGI film was released in the U.S. as Legend Of A Kung Fu Rabbit, and was clearly glossed over as a Kung Fu Panda knockoff, for good reason. But now Chinese animation studio Fantawild Animation Inc. is about to release their second ever CGI film called Boonie Bears, and it looks like they're really getting the hang of the medium.

Sure it’s got the Yogi Bear/Open Season look about it, but at least they're trying hard to create uniquely Chinese content, which is more than can be said about the studio that released the ripoffs Ratatoing and What's Up.

Via Cartoon Brew

Anybody with a massive collection of books has dealt with a time when a pile of books came tumbling down around their head, perhaps when they were transitioning the volumes between bookshelves or moving in to another house, but artist Alicia Martin has made the crashing waves of written words into an artform with her turbulent book installations.

They really feel like the books are about to crush you to death when you view them in person, but anybody who appreciates a good read will find the power of the written word alive and well in Alicia’s works.

We featured one of Alicia's works here on Neatorama before, but this time around you get to see a bunch of different examples of her amazing installation art, and a detail pic that shows her sitting inside one of the massive works for a sense of scale.

Via Beautiful/Decay

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Don’t you hate it when you’re at a social function and go to open a carbonated beverage only to have the whole thing explode all over you, turning you into a sticky mess? It can be a total buzzkill, and may ruin any chance you have of successfully partying the night away.

Luckily a guy named Grant Thompson, aka The King of Random, made a video that shows you how to avoid getting Sprite all over your face like a totally inept loser. He calls his trick the Soda Ninja Swipe, and learning this technique may save your life one day, or at least make you look like less of an oaf at your next shindig appearance.

Via Lifehacker

Twisting balloons for a living may seem like a cushy job, but believe you me it can drive you right into the arms of a straightjacket, what with all the squeaking and popping and children crying everywhere. It’s enough to drive a clown to drink, but you don’t have to be a bozo, or looking for a quick buck, to be interested in the art of balloon modelling.

In fact, many very sane and financially stable people have twisted a balloon or two, like graphic designer Meghan Coleman. She twisted a balloon sculpture a day for a whole year, and kept her day job and her sanity to boot. No idea how she found the inspiration to make so many awesome balloon sculptures, but it sure is fun to look through all of the pics in her series 365 Days of Balloon.

Via DesignTAXI

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Have you been losing sleep at night wondering where all those big name celebrities got their start? Are you going crazy trying to figure out the first televised appearance of Leonardo DiCaprio, Aaron Paul or Tina Fey?

Well, prepare to sleep easy my friend, because the crazed videophiles at Screen Junkies have put together one heck of a supercut that shows totally famous people before they were totally famous.

Before They Were Famous #2 is guaranteed to change your life, because you’ll get to see how uncool the rich and famous are before they become rich and famous...and cool. Everybody's got to start somewhere, why not start out selling some fried chicken or some Corn Pops?

Via Uproxx

Mannequins are pretty much just glorified clothes hangers, and even the ones that are given creepy faces or realistic hair still don’t actually look like people, yet somehow these headless mannequins from the Gap look just like Vancouver resident Steve Venegas.

Maybe he used to work as a figure model for a mannequin maker, or perhaps he actually had his flesh and blood torso replaced with that of a male mannequin, either way he’s hell bent on showing the Gap stores in his area that they should hire him as their full time display dummy.

Check out his ongoing photo series called The Gap Mannequin Project and you’ll see how much better it is to have a man hanging around the store rather than a headless mannequin.

Via 22 Words

If you’re tired of putting up calendars featuring cute animals, last year’s big trends or the same old classic works of art and photography then we have good news for you- the Mighty Marvel Calendar for 1975 syncs with 2014!

So dust off your old box of calendars and search for those dated 1975 and they will magically work for 2014, and the best looking one of the bunch is, of course, the Mighty Marvel Calendar featuring illustrations by Barry Smith, John Romita Sr. and many other Marvel alum.

Each page has been carefully scanned by Chicago-based cartoonist Mark Anderson, who realized the calendars synced just when he was about to throw out this 1975 edition he had hanging on his wall all these years. I guess if you wait 28 years to change your calendar you’ll never have to buy a new one!

Via Dangerous Minds

Surely some mad scientist has been hard at work trying to splice animal and human genes in order to create an army of ravenous rabbit men, or lazy three toed sloth people, but nothing currently known to science looks as far out as these images from the 1930s that imagine what human-animal hybrids might look like.

Mantis man is a very efficient farmer, and one heck of a climber, while firefly man is able to picnic in the middle of the night, which may be a dream come true for a nocturnal lover of outdoor dining. These fantastic images come to us courtesy of artist Lucian Rudaux, who would have been so disappointed to find out the future is devoid of the insect men and flying cars he so loved to draw for various publications in the early 20th century.

This series in particular was envisioned by his good friend Professor Rene Thevenin, who really believed scientific advancement would have made these monstrosities a possibility by the 21^st century. Lucky us they're still well outside the realm of possibility!

Poor President Francois Hollande, he’s beloved by the citizens of France and yet can’t seem to get a handshake from anyone else he meets!

He’s always left hanging when he reaches out to take the hand of an esteemed leader or high profile figure, and his handshaking skills are so bad they’re going to name a form of solitary greeting after him, called the Hollande Handshake, which will consist of people waiting awkwardly for a few minutes before shaking their own hand.

It’s unclear whether it’s simply a matter of timing that makes Francois look the fool whenever he goes to shake someone’s hand, or if his hands are so clammy that nobody wants to touch them, but one thing’s for certain-his handshake failures make for hilarious photo ops!

Via 22 Words

They're cute, in a flesh eating, mouth full of fangs kind of way, and they're the answer to all those who are totally over the whole Bronie trend.

The My Little Raptor series by artist Cherry Garcia shows us that just because a cartoon character has more of an edge, and likes to eat cute little ponies for lunch, doesn't mean they can't be adorable. Just don't try to give them a hug, or brush their hair, and you'll survive the encounter with your limbs intact.

I wonder what our resident My Little Pony fan John Farrier would do if his massive collection of MLP memorabilia was suddenly replaced by products featuring these carnivorous cuties?

Via Geeks Are Sexy

Nobody ever thinks about what cute cartoon characters do in their off time, when they’re not running around chasing each other with mallets or serving as mascots for fast food restaurants, but if you believe artist Richard Ankrom then they’re all into some pretty naughty stuff!

Richard’s sculptures are full of juxtapositions between cute and kinky, innocent and sadomasochistic, and his works somehow manage to look adorable even though most of the figures are sporting zipper mouthed gimp masks.

Looking through a collection of Richard’s works will make you wonder why the two totally contrasting themes have never been mashed up before, since his tongue-in-cheek works are playful without straying too far over to the dark side and somehow seem visually quite compatible.

Via Beautiful/Decay

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Martin Scorsese is the undisputed master of the gangster flick, responsible for such greats as Casino, Goodfellas and The Departed just to name a few, but his career seems to have brought him full circle with his latest release The Wolf of Wall Street. To illustrate his return to his good old days of student filmmaking we present It’s Not Just You, Murray!, a film he made as a student attending NYU.

The story bears certain similarities to The Wolf of Wall Street- the main character breaks the fourth wall and speaks to the audience about how he made all of his money, and the two characters seem to be a similar breed of smarmy narcissist. Enjoy this slice of New York cinema history!

Via Geek Tyrant

It’s a number that has vexed and troubled people for generations, a triple dose of the digit between five and seven thought to bring bad luck, and possibly the devil himself, when it appears.

That number is the dreaded 666, and up until six years ago there was an area code 666 that was sent straight to numerical hell by the mostly Christian residents of Reeves, Louisiana.

But did the Reeves townies actually defeat that most evil of numbers, or will 666 forever pop up wherever three digit numbers are used? Here are eleven curious facts about the source of all evil mathematics, the number 666.