Last week, TED announced JR as the 2011 TED Prize winner and recipient of $100,000. JR is an innovative artist who uses the world’s streets as his inspiration and canvas. Creating what some may call “pervasive art”, he is known for mounting enormous black-and-white photo canvases onto buildings of slums around Paris, walls in the Middle-East, broken bridges in Africa and even the favelas in Brazil.  Although he remains anonymous, he has certainly made his mark on society and a new flare to the TED Prize. Check out JR’s work here.

Revolutionize concrete? Who would’ve thought? Concrete Canvas is a UK-based manufacturer of rapidly deployable hardened materials. They have recently created a Concrete Canvas Shelter that requires the most basic elements for construction, water and air. The heavy-duty structure can be molded into any shape before it hardens, which makes installation simple and convenient. Utilizing and combining the basic needs of life to create an innovative product is truly impressive. Check it out here.