28 January 2009
Several blogs have written about the London College of Communication’s exhibit, The Changing Face of Letterpress. And typically I would be content to let the other bloggers handle it, but after checking it out I couldn’t resist pointing out a couple samples that are just so cool to me.
First, I’ve said on here before how into the idea of printing “pixels” I am… A couple times, actually, and here’s another: These alias/anti-alias woodblock prints of the letter “a” are incredible.
cool, right? maybe a little expected? check this…
man! so awesome!! (yes, I know I just used an exclamation mark three times in two sentences… it was on purpose and deserved.)
And in a conceptual continuation of previous work I’ve shown on here, Christian Zuzunga delivers again. I think he’s becoming one of my favorite young designers out there.
And this, just because this is how I’ve felt the past couple days and it made me laugh.
So, if you haven’t yet visited the online gallery of The Changing Face of Letterpress, check it out.
27 January 2009
Coto has some incredible ties and cufflinks. Almost too-cool-for-school, but I’m totally smitten. Too bad I’m not a billionaire fashionista that can afford $85 buttons… If you happen to be, though, it’s your lucky day: They’re having a sale: 1/2 off everything. To make matters even more tempting, check out this super-sweet packaging. So. Awesome.
Thanks to Josh Spear for the heads-up.
24 January 2009
There’s a lot of buzz surrounding next-next week’s release of Coraline. And, from what I’ve seen so far, it seems to be totally justified. The website is incredible and there’s a ton really interesting making-of-type videos on there—like this one:
And, another random cool thing about new Coraline Dunks, limited to 1000 pairs that can only be won with a secret message after the premiere showing on Feb 6th. Phil Knight, the co-founder and chairman of Nike, is also the owner of Laika— the production studio behind Coraline—so that’s gotta be where the connection lies… pretty cool, though.
22 January 2009
Here are a couple projects from Jihad Lahham that make me want to die.
20 January 2009
While not everyone is 100% thrilled for this day, most people, I think, are. And a lots been said about Obama’s near-flawless campaign and his beautiful integration of great graphic design and the exceptional way that he sparked grass-roots effort by new, young voters of all walks and race across the nation, and there’s not a ton I can add to all of that. But in commemoration of this historic day, I’ll point your way to a few Obama-related stories that I found interesting.
First, going back to where it all began for me about three and a half years ago: Dreams From My Father. A couple weeks ago, Pentagram revealed its redesign of the book. It’s simple and elegant… As my copy of the book was actually a Father’s Day gift to my dad (the title had “Father” in it and the cover images were intriguing, so I bought it… I think it impacted me more than him, however), I would love to purchase this edition. Unfortunately, it’s only sold in the UK.
Obama definitely struck a chord with the artistic community in America and that was something that really excited me. Not in my recollection has there been a President that, as a nation, we could respect and look up to. And I was a little sick of all the BUSH*IT flags in dog crap and the “Design of Dissent” that flooded the market. So it was both refreshing and inspiring to see artists create positive work promoting a candidate. And this shirt above—one I just saw today—may not be the most humble, respectful, or whatever T-shirt, but it’s funny. And I like it.
And what more can be said about Gotham and the Obama brand? I’m not even going to try. Just this, though: Hoefler & Frere-Jones released new weights of Gotham today. Coincidence? I would guess “no.”
I know there’s a million more things worth commenting on today, but I’ll rest at that and with this picture of Barack Obama’s sans-typography cover on Rolling Stone that totally blew me away (the articles with words inside the magazine are great, too, if you can get your hands on one…)
Good Luck, Mr President. ~
17 January 2009
My brother, Chris, is nothing like me. And yet, the more I grow up, the more I realize we’re really pretty similar. He builds—and rebuilds—cars. Porsches, specifically. And he does it with a perfectionist eye and a uncompromising hand. Recently, his hobby of restoring old 911s in a way that is both historically accurate and yet adds something to the modern discussion has had him published in a couple big-name Porsche magazines—like this article here, in Excellence.
I grew up with him working constantly in our garage—doors open—and walking back from elementary school, all the kids would gawk at the fancy cars inside. They would say that my family must be so rich because we had numerous Porsches (in various states of disrepair) in the driveway. “They’re just old cars,” I would reply disdainfully. I hated the attention and so I grew up thinking I hated the cars.
Fast-forward… A couple years ago, I’m walking through a mall in Provo and I saw the Air Jordan XX1s. A lost love for basketball shoes rekindled immediately on the spot. It has sense grown into some sort of obsession that, strangely enough, has brought me a greater understanding of my brother’s “art” of choice—something I would have never considered it as a kid.
This is not a Porsche. It’s a Bently. But as I’ve matured a bit, I’ve realized that living next to my brother, I unknowingly developed an eye for automobile aesthetic. And this, I think, is a nice looking car.
Now check this out:
This is the Air Jordan XX1. And it is gorgeous! When D’Wayne Edwards designed the XX1s, he leaned on the Bently Continental GT for inspiration—as MJ’s post-basketball hobbies have him riding fast in the racing world. I love the cross-inspiration of the desing. Bringing the agressive beauty of a sports car to the feet of the greatest basketball player of all time… Genius. I’ve always thought my brother would appreciate these kicks.
09 January 2009
With accessibility of inexpensive/digital recording equipment and home (or even laptop) studios, the rise of iTunes and the fall of major labels, indie bands have saturated the market in the past few years. I think, like in the design world, there are those bands who fight to keep atop the latest trend and may have a several thousand hits of their myspace page (or blog) for a few weeks, but die out quickly because they lack real substance. And then there are some real gems that cause me to praise the restructuring of the music business. Andrew Bird, for me, is one of those artists. He’s “Indie” in the sense that he’s on an indie label—Fat Possum—he records from a barn filled with egg-laying chickens in Illinois, and is generally difficult to classify into a specific genre, but I don’t think he’s the typical, trendy 2008–2009 indie group: there are no neon colors on his albums, few digital dance beats, and, although his jeans appear to be fairly fitted, I don’t know that I would go so far as to call them “skinny jeans.”
At any rate, he’s got an new album coming out in a couple weeks that NPR is previewing right now that is really, really good. I listened to it about three straight times yesterday and know that I’ve barely scratched the surface. Andrew Bird is a true musician and a gifted song-writer. He may not always be on top of my play list, but for the past 3 years or so—starting with a album redesign I did in school—he has been constantly in my play list.
Here’s a shot of the album cover (and inside flap):
This was for a letterpress class and I had a lot of fun doing it. I played a lot with heavy collage (obviously), altered appropriation, and various kinds of half-tone patterns. It may be a little intense and unfocused, but there’s still some things I quite like about it. Everything in the design does have specific relavance to the lyrics of the album, The Mysterious Production of Eggs, and I feel the general tone and method of design and production fits the album—which, by the way, I listened to multiple times a day during the whole course of the project and never grew tired of… great album.
top photo by Cameron Wittig.