You are currently browsing the monthly archive for October 2007.
I have a very special place in my heart for poster design. Especially poster design that incorporates type in an interesting, fresh way. I mean, how do they do that? It looks too easy! Andrio Abero, the man behind the poster and design studio 33rpm, is a master at “type and image integration.” This is one of the first firms that kick started my obsession with the poster, way back in the early 2000’s.
10.31.07 | Ethan | Found design | 
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“A work of art is realized when form and content are indistinguishable. When form predominates, meaning is blunted; but when content predominates, interest flags. But the genius comes in when both of these things fuse.†– Paul Rand
Wise words from a design genius. The Paul Rand video above is filled with nice little quotes like this. The video also brings to life some of his well known logos and illustrations. Who wouldn’t want to see Sparkle and Spin animated? nuff said
10.30.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | 2 comments
When grainedit asked us to show our book collection for their blog, we were pretty excited. Getting it done, however, was half the battle. Not that we were lazy, okay, we were a little lazy, but the hard part was figuring out what stuff we liked the most.
It’s not that easy, here’s how it went:
Sean: [Looking though first shelf] “Oh, I like this one, this one too, we should put this one in”
Nicole: [sighs] How many do you plan on doing? That’s too many.
So here you go, a look at our bookshelf and here are some of our favorites.
Read the rest of this entry »
10.28.07 | Dave | Designers Bookshelf | 12 comments
This is hot! Make your own paper bird. Theres several designs currently available on the site but my favorite is the one with the wood grain belly and the mid century modern tattoo. The website includes tips and tricks for putting your bird together plus you can design your own! Thanks to Mckibillo for putting this together.
10.26.07 | Dave | How to / DIY | 2 comments
This is the recipe for the 5th (1961) San Francisco International Film Festival poster. This poster is reminiscent of Saul’s design for the Alfred Hitchcock film Vertigo. The cosmograph used in the Vertigo poster is replaced with a ball of film in this poster to create a central focal point with a circular motion. There is an original copy on Ebay right now. These posters rarely surface so this might be your only chance to own one. Click on the link above to preview the auction.
10.25.07 | Dave | Thrift Hawks | 1 comment
Today is Bruno Munari’s birthday. If he was still alive, he would of been 100 years old. What better way to celebrate then to browse through the Bruno Munari image archive put together by the Collezione Bruno Munari. The collection includes information on most of his projects created during his highly prolific career as a designer.
10.24.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | 2 comments
Non-Format are a twin-continent based award winning design firm. They also happen to be the kings of super thick and chunky left justified type. They posses the unique ability to seamlessly integrate their big type with organic illustrative elements, with very nice results. In addition to running their studio, they also design Varoom, a journal of illustration and made images, art directed by Adrian Shaughnessy. In addition, they just released a book.
10.24.07 | Ethan | Found design | Comments closed
I stumbled across WSDIA (We Should Do It All) Design Studio from the winners list of ADC’s 2006 Young Guns Award. This firm has a great eye for type, detail, and apparently skittles! Check out WSDIA’s website as well as an episode of The Creative Backstory: ADC Young Guns, Big/Small, featuring WSDIA. This short series explores the question about a design firm’s size: does size matter?
10.23.07 | Dave | Found design | 1 comment
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Charles Harper’s work looks just as fresh and exciting today as it must of looked 40 years ago. Its been great to see a renewed interest in his illustrations mostly due to the recent release of Todd Oldham’s book Charley Harper: An Illustrated Life. Heres a small sample of Charles’ work for Ford Times. The issues featured above are from the mid to late 60s. In addition be sure to check out the Charles Harper Flickr group. Enjoy!
10.22.07 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves | 2 comments
Joel at Blue Ant Studio has designed a wonderful alphabet for kids using iconic mid century modern furniture. The design was originally limited to wooden building blocks, but now theres plans for a poster as well. Why didn’t I have something like this when I was a kid? Learning the alphabet would of been a piece of cake. I can see all the spelling bee trophies I would of won thanks to Eva Zeisel and Hans Wegner.
10.19.07 | Dave | Found design | 1 comment
Joel at Blue Ant Studio has designed a wonderful alphabet for kids using iconic mid century modern furniture. The design was originally limited to wooden building blocks, but now theres plans for a poster as well. Why didn’t I have something like this when I was a kid? Learning the alphabet would of been a piece of cake. I can see all the spelling bee trophies I would of won thanks to Eva Zeisel and Hans Wegner.
10.19.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
Its funny, I actually counted all the posters just so I could have a number for the headline. I most likely miscounted, but oh well on to the post. Nago has put together an amazing Dutch poster gallery for you to see. Includes works from Total Design (Wim Crouwel), Otto Treumann, Pieter Brattinga, Otto Treumann, Willem Sanberg, Ben Bos, Jan van Keulen and others. The website is based in the Netherlands so if you can’t read Dutch just click on the pretty pictures.
10.18.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | 6 comments
This is part 2 of an interview with Wim Crouwel at Galerie Anatome in Paris, 2/2007
10.17.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
This is part 1 of an interview with Wim Crouwel at Galerie Anatome in Paris, 2/2007
10.17.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
Found this issue of Idea magazine featuring Wim Crouwel on Ebay. I am currently accepting gifts so if anyone wants to buy this for me, you will be my new best friend!
10.17.07 | Dave | Thrift Hawks | Comments closed
Now in its 4th year, Personal Views is a unique series of conferences that brings together an unparalleled group of designers, writers and educators from the world of graphic design. Coordinated by Andrew Howard, and taking place at the Escola Superior de Artes e Design in Matosinhos, Portugal, the series aims to examine contemporary definitions of graphic design by asking these professionals to talk about the values and objectives that have value for them. It is an attempt to explore where the boundaries of contemporary practice lie, to discuss what we might expect of ourselves, and to examine what social and cultural objectives we seek to fulfill.
Available online are lectures by Experimental Jetset, Ellen Lupton, Erik Spiekermann, Wim Crouwel, Steven Heller and Neville Brody among others.
10.16.07 | Ethan | Found design | Comments closed
We’re really diggin the online portfolio of Bo Lundberg. He draws influence from modern antiques, objects and patterns that he stumbles across in everyday life.
10.16.07 | Ethan | Found design | Comments closed
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Olivier – L’ours Savant – Illustrations by Bernice Myers – c1956
10.15.07 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves | 1 comment
Marian Bantjes considers herself “independently pursuing a combination of illustration and design.” She really understands how to capture a spirit in typography. Ironically, she designed the Design Matters Live poster, an event we featured earlier this week. Take a look at Marian Bantjes’ website to gain a better understanding of where her organic typography stems from.
10.15.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
Marian Bantjes considers herself “independently pursuing a combination of illustration and design.” She really understands how to capture a spirit in typography. Ironically, she designed the Design Matters Live poster, an event we featured earlier this week. Take a look at Marian Bantjes’ website to gain a better understanding of where her organic typography stems from.
10.15.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
If you like experimental typography, art, Moby Dick, and the letter ‘E’ this is the exhibit for you. Hailing from the midwest, Justin Quinn makes fascinating typographic compositions based on Herman Melville’s epic. Using only the letter ‘E’ and graphite, Quinn recounts entire chapters from Moby Dick. For example, the above piece is entitled “Moby Dick Chapter 55 or 9200 times E.” That’s a lot of E’s. If you’re in the mood for more typography a la concrete poetry, please see Justin’s work at MM Galeries.
10.12.07 | Ethan | Found design | Comments closed
Self described as “Wayne and Garth meets Chermayeff & Geismar,” Post Typography, from Baltimore MD, was originally conceived and founded in 2001 as an avant garde anti-design movement by Nolen Strals and Bruce Willen. They specialize in graphic design, conceptual typography, and custom lettering/illustration with additional forays into art, apparel, music, curatorial work, design theory, and vandalism.
10.12.07 | Ethan | 1960s, graphic-design, records, Seen Elsewhere, Singapore | Comments closed
Self described as “Wayne and Garth meets Chermayeff & Geismar,” Post Typography, from Baltimore MD, was originally conceived and founded in 2001 as an avant garde anti-design movement by Nolen Strals and Bruce Willen. They specialize in graphic design, conceptual typography, and custom lettering/illustration with additional forays into art, apparel, music, curatorial work, design theory, and vandalism.
10.12.07 | Ethan | Found design | Comments closed
Drool! Drool! ( As my wife would say) I’m just drooling over Sanna Annukka’s online portfolio. She has a great sense of color and composititon. I definitely see a link between her work and traditional Finnish Folk art, which would make sense because she is from Finland. Do yourself a favor and goto her website now! No, scratch that, do me a favor… Please goto her site.
10.12.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
This is the last of the four part lecture series featuring Alan Dye, Creative Director with Apple’s graphic design team. Alan’s work has been recognized by a number of design shows and publications, he recently spoke at the AIGA’s “Fresh Dialogue†event, and was also selected by Print Magazine as one of their New Visual Artists in the annual 20 under 30 issue in 2003. Event will be held at Adobe Systems Incorporated, 601 Townsend Street San Francisco.
Thursday, Nov. 8th from 6-9pm, AIGA Members: $15, Non-Members:$20
For more information please visit the official Design Matters Live website.
10.10.07 | Dave | Design Events | 1 comment
I think I found the inspiration for the yellow jumpsuits in Wes Anderson’s classic bottle rocket film. Its right here in Tofu magazine’s online gallery of 1960’s Asian record covers. The gallery features records from Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau between 1964-1969. There are some killer examples of Asian pop psych and beat, although mostly covers of American songs from that time period. Be sure to check the audio clips, because who wouldn’t want to hear Rita Chao’s “Yummy Yummy Yummy“?
10.10.07 | Dave | Uncategorized | Comments closed
I think I found the inspiration for the yellow jumpsuits in Wes Anderson’s classic bottle rocket film. Its right here in Tofu magazine’s online gallery of 1960’s Asian record covers. The gallery features records from Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau between 1964-1969. There are some killer examples of Asian pop psych and beat, although mostly covers of American songs from that time period. Be sure to check the audio clips, because who wouldn’t want to hear Rita Chao’s “Yummy Yummy Yummy“?
10.10.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | Comments closed
Endangered animals always look so cool in teal. Now you can get all your favorites in Present&Correct’s alphabet of endangered species in the british isles chart. I’m loving the spatula tailed dinosaur and the iron my laundry fish.
10.09.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
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Erik Nitsche – Design and paper #34 195?. Part of a series put out by Marquardt and Company. After you’ve absorbed the photos above check out this killer collection of Erik Nitsche designs put together by the people at Bustbright.
10.09.07 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves | Comments closed
Ahhh I love this. The sweet voice of Nina Simone blaring through my cheap Labtec computer speakers and the sight of black n white serifs turing into dragonflys. This definitely made me smile…or I should I say “feel good”.
If you haven’t seen this already its worth a watch.
Nina Simone – Feeling good
10.06.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | 2 comments
Check out the Grayspace poster gallery for a look at some killer 50s + 60s polish posters.
10.06.07 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere | 3 comments
Esono is the design studio of Professor Boris Müller. His design is expressive, experimental, and down right inspiring. Boris also teaches at the Interface Design programme of the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam. He is currently organizing a conference on interaction design, the Innovationsforum Interaktionsdesign. Check him out!
10.05.07 | Dave | Found design | Comments closed
Cosponsored by Chronicle Books, the San Francisco Center for the Book, and the San Francisco chapter of the American Institute for Graphic Arts, this year’s annual 50 Books/50 Covers show, which has been held at the SFCB for the past several years, moves over to the new Chronicle Books headquarters at 680 Second Street. The above sample gives you a glimpse of the talent you will be reviewing. ‘Arboretum’ cover designed by McSweeney’s Publishing.
Opening reception: 680 Second Street, San Francisco
Friday, Oct 26 from 6-8pm and is free to the public.
Please visit the ‘San Francisco AIGA’ website for more details.
10.05.07 | Dave | Design Events | Comments closed
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10.04.07 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves | 3 comments
I was flipping through the latest (and last) issue of Business 2.0 and I noticed this add for Mastercard. The illustration of the man in the background holding the box looks very samiliar to the work of Ryohei Yanagihara. If anyone knows who created this ad, please contact us. In the meantime check out a small gallery of Ryohei Yanagihara’s works.
Ryohei is an illustrator and animator who along with Yoji Kuri and Hiroshi Manabe is considered a pioneer of the independent animation scene in Japan.
10.04.07 | Dave | Found design | 7 comments
Herb Lubalin b.1918 -d.1981. If you haven’t bit his work, or butchered his typefaces, you’ve at least seen his iconic typographic logo for Avant Garde magazine. The logo spawned a type face of the same name in 1970 which was later condensed by Ed Benguiat. Many people are unfamiliar with his work beyond this typeface so, please take a moment to check him out. Thanks to Peter Gabor of the excellent Design & Typo site for providing the Herb Lubalin tribute gallery.
10.01.07 | Dave | Found design | 2 comments
