Cielo Lutino

Writer | Editor | Content Strategist | Producer

Ester Kim, Set Decorator

Featuring tufted velvet seats, white linen tablecloths, and wood paneling throughout, Taylor’s Steak House in Koreatown feels like a movie set, a vestige of old Los Angeles. The dim lighting gives the windowless interior a coziness underscored by its curved, dark brown leather booths. I half expect Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin to walk through its doors, but Ester Kim saunters in and slides into the booth where I’m nursing a dirty martini. The faded glamour of Taylor’s seems like the perfect envi

Do you read me, HAL? When ad-tech comes to life: a robo-conversation

All tech is not created equal. That’s why you need to forget what you think you know about in-image advertising and focus on the tech behind it. Technologists will break your brain with the details, but it really comes down to smarts. Smart tech means smart ads, so we let our tech speak for itself. Meet our boy Henry and so-called competitor Hal — HAL: A new mother. I will put the ad for baby formula on the image. HENRY: Who

Vote, A*t L*ver

If you're an artist, expect a phat check from the City of Portland. Feel free to blow it on expensive art supplies or beachfront property since rent's free until the vacancies on city council are filled. It's not surprising that city council candidates have conjured a Shangri-la-la-Land in recent conversations about the arts. Mayoral hopeful Tom Potter has suggested waiving expensive system-development charges for nonprofit groups, including arts organizations, while Sam Adams has claimed he'd like to "make celebrities out of" artists.

Artist in Focus: Alec Soth

In 2004, visitors to the Whitney were greeted by “Charles,” a large-scale color photograph of a bespectacled man in coveralls standing in the wintry outside beside a house. In each of his gloved hands, he held miniature biplanes, and he did not smile. The image introduced museum-goers to that year’s biennial, but it also heralded the arrival of photographer Alec Soth (pronounced “Sōth”) to a larger public. The art world welcomed him enthusiastically, heaping praise upon Sleeping by the Mississi

Building Innovation: MetroTech Rejuvenates Downtown Brooklyn

On Thursdays during the summer, lunchtime crowds at MetroTech gather for performances by musical acts like George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic at the season-long R&B festival. About four blocks away, shoppers stroll Fulton Mall, where towering metal cranes and neon-orange road barrels attest to the construction characterizing downtown Brooklyn today. Later this year popular burger franchise Shake Shack and retail giant H&M will add even more bustle, while nearby the massive, if controversial,

NY Legislators Support New Disability Icon

Lawmakers in New York are following the lead of the state’s largest city and backing a change to the familiar icon representing the disabled. Instead of a stick figure sitting upright in a wheelchair, which advocates argue portray the disabled as passive, the revamped image shows the figure leaning forward with arms raised as if pushing the wheelchair ahead. The word “handicapped” appears nowhere on the blue square against which the icon is foregrounded. The Republican-led state senate passed t

Hi, I’m Brooklyn, and I’m a Locaholic

Obsessive Brooklyn locavores (locaholics?) have a new prey: small-batch spirits and wines, made right here in the borough. Sure, the small quantities can mean higher price points, so not a lot of bars feature them in their house cocktails (or else can’t yet get their hands on a bottled product)—but that just makes the hunt more exciting. Here then, is our brief guide to the best of local booze in Brooklyn. Happy drinking!

Looking for an Asian-Pacific Voice in Portland? Let 'APA Compass' Be Your Guide

Chihiro Wimbush looked at KBOO's programming last fall and didn't find a single Asian Pacific American (APA) show broadcast in English. He thought he could help change that. Newly hired at the community radio station as its Public Relations & Outreach Coordinator, Wimbush spoke to Robert Jefferson, then head of KBOO's PM News & Public Affairs, and Chris Merrick, its program director about the hole in the station's offerings.