08 September 2009
Michael Jordan is being inducted into the Hall of Fame in a couple weeks and all parties involved (the NBA, ESPN, Nike, etc.) are, true to form when it comes to TGOAT, milking it for all they can. While I’ve enjoyed the endless highlights and stories shared on the two former sites, Nike takes the cake for the most creative: an interactive, digital pop up book. Check it out:
Now, go play around, enjoy the site, marvel at the raw beauty of the shoes (void of color or distractions), and learn a few fun tid-bits of Jordan trivia while you’re at it.
And, a note on design… There’s a studio that I saw a few weeks back that I imagine may have been either the inspiration or the hands behind this site, but I cannot for the life of me remember their name. They do madly lush, 3 dimensional digital compositions, not too unlike the above screen shots. Does anybody know who I’m talking about? I’ll snoop around some more and re-post if I find them.
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.
27 December 2008
Rarely do my two passions—design and basketball—come together in such a perfect union: The Macrophenomenal Pro Basketball Almanac is the probably the most exciting, well-done, and fun example I’ve seen in years. The illustrations are great, the writing is both quirkily dramatic and smartly insightful, and the information design, charts, and diagrams are amazing. AND… it’s not very much money—13 bucks on Amazon. Check out these examples and buy it for your basketball-loving designer in your life… a little post-Christmas gift.
