A Grave Matter

In the spirit of the holiday, I'm sharing these Grave Rubbing quilts recently posted on Apartment Therapy. Maybe morbid, but still strangely beautiful!

Have a Happy Halloween, everyone! ••••

A Journey Across America

I first saw screen shots of Orba Square's website on Grain Edit awhile ago. I had bookmarked the page because I loved everything about this design...color palate, typography, photography. The site was designed by Random Collective to commemorate Orba Square's second album and his journey across the states.





Check out the rest of Orba's website here. ••••

Low Budget, High Design

This month's issue of HOW featured a guerrilla advertising campaign by the Salvation Army that really impressed me with its intelligence. The Salvation Army had a low budget for advertising. No budget, really. According to HOW, "83 cents from every dollar donated to the Salvation Army goes to the people it serves."

Enter the VIA group, who came up with a brilliant concept they could execute without draining the SA's resources. The campaign messages, "This ad cost nothing" or "We cut our advertising budget in whole" (to name just two) appeared everywhere from a dirty car window to underneath the lid of your pizza box. Such a clever way to increase visibility without draining funds! ••••

Frigid Ire?

You can add this one to the long-running list of ill-advised logo redesigns. Frigidaire has axed their recognizable script logo to pave way for something more "modern." As is often the case, here "modern" is code for "generic." We get it, Obama used Gotham to win the election. That doesn't mean it will sell refrigerators. Brand New also points out that the new logo is now broken up into two words: "Frigid" and "Ire." How appealing is that?

Frigidaire seems very concerned with appearing outdated. Aaaand then you read their press release. Ahem: "Frigidaire will unveil a boldfaced new logo and look to celebrate the introduction of 250 new appliances with specific time-saving features engineered to help mothers spend less time doing routine housework... moms will save a minimum of eight hours a month by using a combination of select Frigidaire time-saving appliances."

How is that for modern?

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Exactitudes

Rotterdam based photographer Ari Versluis and profiler Ellie Uyttenbroek have worked together since October 1994 on Exactitudes. Inspired by a shared interest in the striking dress codes of various social groups, the Rotterdam-based photographic team of Ari Versluis & Ellie Uyttenbroek have been systematically hamstringing such permutations of received identity for ten years. They call their series Exactitudes, a contraction of “exact” and “attitudes”.

Click here to see this website and common similarities between peer groups.

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New Soup for You

In 1962, Andy Warhol raised the humble Campbell's soup can to an iconic level. But if you walk into a grocery store this afternoon, you will no longer see the same label. It's true: for better or worse, Campbell's is among the many food brands trying to breathe new life into their old design.

But unlike the Tropicana fiasco, I am not so much bothered by this new look. I appreciate the company's allegiance to their elegant script logo and the recognizable gold typography at the bottom. As much as I may miss the vintage appeal of the old design (fleur-de-lis included) , this new version retains much of what I loved about the old can. And I can totally understand why Campbell's went in this direction. As much as designers and non-designers alike may appreciate the classic look, sometimes you just don't want your food to look "vintage." Vintage can just feel, well, old— and the last thing you want is for your food to feel old. Even canned products need to subtly imply "I'm fresh" as opposed to "I've been sitting on a shelf for years."

So although I can get behind this new look, it still feels like the end of an era. Weigh in and pay your respect to Warhol in the comments. ••••

2010 Olympic Medals

Today, VANOC and Vancouver 2010 Official Supporters unveiled the Olympic and Paralympic medals that will decorate the gold, silver and bronze medallists of the 2010 Winter Games.

Their undulating forms evoke British Columbia’s mountains, ocean and snow. Their faces are drawn from West Coast First Nations artwork depicting the orca and raven. Each is unique. And their substantial size gives them a significant presence.

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Man Shops Globe

If you're anything like me, entering into an Anthropologie could make you weep from want. It's the kind of store that makes you feel justified in spending 20 dollars on a teacup, an indulgent purchase you never would have thought possible when you woke up earlier that same morning. Everything is just so painfully right— making it very hard to resist buying, despite the large price tag.

What causes this consumer phenomenon? Well, one of Anthropologie's trade secrets is its buyer at large, Keith Johnson, who travels the world in search of unique pieces to stock the stores, lending them that certain je ne sais quoi. And luckily for us, the Sundance Channel is giving us a sneak peak into Johnson's travels every Wednesday night at 10 with its new series Man Shops Globe.

It's hard not to envy Johnson, as he travels to remote locations, buying stuff you would kill to own, using a credit card that he won't need to pay off himself. And you need to respect the man, too— he has an eye for design, finding hidden beauty in objects a less perceptive shopper could easily overlook. Although the expensiveness of everything is at times enough to make you cringe (without even taking into account Anthropologie's mark-up, or the shipping fees), overall I was impressed at the authenticity of the store's decor. Many of the items Johnson purchases are one of a kind antiques that have been painstakingly selected, and others are original pieces by working artists. Man Shops World is worth a watch, if only to see for yourself the amount of thought put into shaping your shopping experience. ••••

I guess this is an improvement, Hertz....

Not sure how I feel about the new Hertz logo. Modern? check. Recognizable Hertz yellow? check. No more drop drop shadow? check. Still, pretty underwhelming. Thoughts? ••••

Grad School or Bust

Although I loved studying graphic design as an undergrad and truly value my BFA degree, I have never had much desire to go to grad school for my MFA. Personally, I feel that post undergraduate learning (especially as a designer) is best formed in a professional work environment. Bottom line there are just too many practical things about being a designer that cannot be taught in a classroom. However, I do long to have the freedom that school projects allow...no restrictions on color, font, print costs, copyright infringement...but I digress. If I were to go back to school for anything, I would likely want to get an MBA as I feel that many designers disregard the business side of design in an effort to remain true to their creativity. Hey, I'm all for free-spirited artistic endeavors, but at the end of the day a good graphic designer needs to have both qualities. Especially if the end goal is to own his or her own firm one day (which I know every Crew member hopes to achieve). I recently came across a unique MBA program offered at CCA (California College of the Arts), a very well-known art school in San Francisco. The MBA in Design Strategy is the only one of its kind that focuses on "uniting the studies of design, finance, strategy, entrepreneurship, meaning, and sustainability" as they "provide the tools to manage in today's interconnected markets with a vision of business as sustainable, meaningful, ethical, profitable, and truly innovative." OK, so I'm not running to sign up (btw -- school ain't cheap) but I think it's worth looking into and I definitely appreciate a program that incorporates business and design. Read more about it here. ••••

The Big Giant and the Little Giantess

Earlier this week, 1.5 million people filled the streets of Berlin, Germany to watch a several-day performance by France's Royal de Luxe street theatre company titled "The Berlin Reunion". Part of the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Reunion show featured two massive marionettes, the Big Giant, a deep-sea diver, and his niece, the Little Giantess. The storyline of the performance has the two separated by a wall, thrown up by "land and sea monsters". The Big Giant has just returned from a long and difficult - but successful - expedition to destroy the wall, and now the two are walking the streets of Berlin, seeking each other after many years apart.

These pictures are amazing and tell an incredible story. Click here to scroll through all the photos. ••••

Cheese or Font

Looking to procrastinate for a few minutes? Well, you've come to the right place. Enjoy a round of Cheese or Font. Considering I'm a designer and I LOVE cheese it's sad how many I got wrong. How did you do? ••••

MTV Video Music Awards -- Design by Prologue

Although the MTV Video Music Awards this year were overshadowed by Kanye's a**holeness (poor T. Swift) I was paying more attention to the stellar graphics being displayed with every award presentation. The images of New York City were both ominous and beautiful and set the perfect "edgy" backdrop to the award show. Watch them here. The live action and graphic design firm Prologue was responsible for creating the logo and graphics. I think they did a great job on the logo; the energetic graphics complement the rest of the imagery creating a unique brand experience to this year's show. Now if only MTV would show some actual music videos anymore... ••••

Warning: People in Magazine Less Perfect Than They Seem

British and French lawmakers are debating a new kind of health warning— one that could affect Photoshop practices. Concerned that retouched photographs of celebrities and models set unrealistic standards for beauty, these lawmakers are proposing that advertisers be required to include disclaimers on all altered photographs, acknowledging any tweaking that transpired.

Cigarette warnings are aimed at preventing cancer. Likewise, Photoshop disclaimers could help curb eating disorders, specifically within the most vulnerable teen demographic. Although retouching is common practice for fashion magazines, many forget that celebrities (even with the help of hair, make-up, and personal trainers) still are not as perfect as they appear on the cover of Glamour.

Under the proposed system, photos would be rated on a scale of 1 to 4, depending on the level of retouching. The NYT details: “A ‘1’ might involve only altered lighting, for example, while a ‘4’ might warn of cosmetic changes via Photoshop… the label would have to include an explanation of the changes.” Champion of the law, British Parliament member Jo Swinson notes, “If people knew they had to describe what they altered, it might make them less likely to do it.”

I’ll admit—I’m torn on the issue. I think lines should be drawn, but does “altered lighting” really warrant any disclaimer at all? Or Photoshopping out a blemish or fly-away? However, egregious examples DO bother me— like giving celebrities unrealistic abdominals instead of showing a more relatable reality. My concern is that It becomes increasingly difficult to set limits when even the most innocuous photograph is usually cropped and color corrected. Our magazines could be littered with the disclaimers, which would be an aesthetic nightmare. But if it changes the questionable techniques used in fashion mags, is it worth it? ••••

500 Colors

Yep, I would absolutly like to have a colored pencil wall shelf. Not only I am obsessed with the display, but I am in love with the name of all the colors: mild curry, tea with milk, drizzly afternoon, frog pond...Crayola for adults. ••••