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mystery of iceland by tim gasperak yesterday, we featured arkitema and arkthing’s new design for iceland’s national opera house. today we continue the icelandic theme by featuring photographer tim gasperak’s series ‘mystery of iceland’. the series captures the landscapes of the country in vivid detail. gasperak is a san francisco based photographer specializing in landscapes and portraits. the ‘mystery of iceland’ series was shot in 2006. via coudal A Cathedral Made from 55,000 LED Lights The Luminarie De Cagna is an imposing cathedral-like structure that was recently on display at the 2012 Light Festival in Ghent, Belgium. The festival was host to almost 30 exhibitions including plenty of 3D projection mapping, fields of luminous flowers, and a glowing phone booth aquarium, however with 55,000 LEDs and towering 28 meters high the Luminarie De Cagna seems to have stolen the show. ( via stijn coppens, sacha vanhecke, sector271)

Well Timed Photographs Photography Photographs taken at exactly the right moment. Lifestyle We will never tire of the positive effects of nature. Its calming, soothing and inspiring influence will never go out of style. The more we rush, the more time we spend indoors staring at our screens and devices, the more urban our lifestyles become, the more we crave and need time away from it all. It has been amazing to follow the newest solutions to the old dilemmas: How to bring more green space to cities; how to reclaim underused urban land for recreational and other "green" uses; how to provide more and more people the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of spending time in nature. Lately, we have seen fantastic examples of how designers and architects, urban planners and citizens' organizations have accomplished both large and small-scale projects, from bringing a bit of greenery, and open space to otherwise bleak surroundings, to large-scale neighborhood-changing undertakings. Getting back to nature is not a new phenomenon.

20 design landmarks everyone should see before they die When looking for design inspiration, it’s common to look at other people’s websites, illustrations, or photography. But sometimes it’s good to mix things up a bit. Have you ever been hit with a bolt of creative inspiration just by walking down the street? Photographer Captures An Underwater Dance Of Colors The shapes displayed in Luka Klikovac’s work look like colored smoke, or maybe strange deep-sea creatures, but they’re actually mixtures of colored and black liquids immersed in water. The Serbian photographer’s photo series is called Demersal and was based on the unique motions resulting from the combination of fluids. To create this psychedelic effect, the photographer used nothing but his camera and lights capable of showing the dance of fluid shapes captured by his lenses. No digital editing resources were used afterwards, so what you see in the images are actually the precise moments when the two elements were combined.

10 Best Places to Live for Escaping World Conflict Where would you be the safest if World War 3 broke out tomorrow? Perhaps it’s a grim subject, but safety and distance from world conflict can be a motivating factor in your choice to expatriate. At the very least, conflict around the world can weigh heavy on the soul, and it’s nice to know there are some places still left in the world where you might be left in peace. Before and After: Garage Turned Minimal Mini House Sometimes a garage is just a garage and other times a garage is a miniature modern house just waiting to happen. In this case, it's the latter, which means I probably need to pack my bags, move back to Seattle and into this (now) house. It's not actually available, but I'm just crossing my fingers that designer Michelle de la Vega needs a few roommates (my husband, my dog, and I) in her fully functional 250 square foot space. We can all fit in there, right?

- StumbleUpon Amazing Places To Experience Around The Globe (Part 1) - StumbleUpon Preachers Rock, Preikestolen, Norway Blue Caves - Zakynthos Island, Greece Skaftafeli - Iceland 9 hours (9h) Designer Capsule Hotel Review - Kyoto, Japan I’ve been lucky enough to stay at some very nice hotels over the past couple of years but in Japan I was on a tight budget and determined to try something a little different. Originally created for businessmen who worked too late to catch the last train home, capsule hotels (カプセルホテル) have developed as an economical alternative to normal hotels in a country where space comes at a premium. Consisting of a large number of extremely small coffin-like “rooms” big enough for a single person to sleep in, Japan’s first capsule hotel made its appearance in Osaka in 1979. They have a bit of a grim reputation for their chicken-coop approach to habitation but in 2009 Tokyo-based Cubic Corp decided to take a fresh approach to this uniquely Japanese mode of accommodation. Upon arrival the first thing you do is place your shoes in a numbered locker and give the key to reception while checking-in; I doubt they get many people running off without paying the bill! Map Data