Posts Tagged ‘graphic design’
- In: culture | graphic design | philosophy | psychology | science
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I love this image.
Spied on WIRED by Josh McHugh. By the Swiss graphic designer Martin Woodtli. The image accompanies a story on Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson’s forth-coming book, The Superorganism. Given the color and intensity of the image, my first thought was that this WIRED story was specifically about art, a new technology, or music (something visually or tangibly creative). So I was a bit intrigued to read that it was about evolution and the idea of ‘superorganisms’, which, until five minutes ago, I’d never heard of. In a previous book also by Wilson and also Bert Hölldobler, The Ants, it is explored whether “large groups of animals [could] function together as a single entity with distributed intelligence? Did evolution work through such groups, selecting at the group level rather than the individual?”
Aside from sparking controversy and conversation in the biological world, it got web geeks and thinkers talking.
“Cybervisionaries saw in the superorganism an ideal way of describing the networked global brain that they were just beginning to imagine…Wired‘s Kevin Kelly drew on Wilson’s theories for the conceptual framework of the Hive Mind, humanity’s emerging cognitive interconnectedness. Even today, Kelly is writing about the One Machine and the Technium, a neologism he defines as “a superorganism of technology.”
This brings to mind the communication ‘processes’ and power of social networking communities when working as an entity across and outside of the web. Thoughts? I need to read up more on this idea…
Oh yeah. And now maybe I see relevancy of this colorful image. It sort-of symbolizes many (different) strands merging (converging?) into a single mass.
Nubby Twiglet!
Posted on: October 1, 2008
- In: art | branding | design | graphic design
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What’s a Nubby Twiglet you say? It’s not a ‘what’, but ‘who’. This artist/graphic designer’s name made me giggle, so I want to share with you her blog, found here on Nubbytwiglet.com. I like her bold, clean, and slightly sexy work. Some is available for purchase, but she also gives away free stuff, like wallpaper.
From Black and White Graphic Insight: 2007:
Logo work for Lola London Photography:
and free wallpaper by Star St.Germain:
all via Free Design Goodies
- In: advertising | art | branding | cars | design
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Toyota is doing something that is a great example of a brand listening to their audience. At Scionspeak.com, you can create your own car logos, which you can save to the gallery, print, our (for $) have applied to your car. Sounds pretty cool. I played around with the designs today and I don’t even own a Scion. (Toyota is focusing on building brand affinity with current Scion drivers, but if non-drivers start thinking about the Scion differently from this new user-designed oriented experience, I’m sure Toyota would welcome this.) Also see a full article from the New York Times.
My logo/crest “Lady Poet The Explorer”
Also, Jinal at Constant Beta reminds brands of the importance of listening. While she calls out the value of the web, her point hits upon the general relevancy of brands being good listeners.
My Alex Bec ‘Smile’ Stickers
Posted on: March 16, 2008
- In: art | design | humour | photography
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A few weeks ago (yes, it’s been a while since the last post) I promised I would take pictures of my Alex Bec sticker art placement…so here are a few things I’ve slapped and snapped.
1) on my stove dials
2) dessert @ Stella’s Fisc Cafe in Uptown, Minneapolis
3) my drink @ Tucci Benucch – it made my smile so why not?
4) s&p shakers need some smiles
Dunn Bros., Alex Bec, etc.
Posted on: March 1, 2008
@ Dunn Bros. I ended up here partly because I have 2 gift cards for Dunn Bros. and 1 for Caribou. I thought about going to a neighborhood coffee joint, such as French Meadow or Common Roots, but decided I felt more ‘chain’ today. Dunn Bros. is a happy medium between cookie-cutter shop and neighborhood ambiance; no two are exactly alike. This particular DB features a charming loft with cozy fireplace, hardwood floors, brick walls, and exposed ducts. (Yes, I am in the Warehouse District, for those of you familiar with downtown Minneapolis.) Saturdays are always relaxing because I can sleep in and be completely lazy if I feel like it. This morning I decided I wanted to have coffee, do some reading, maybe people watch. Since I decided to go with a chain, I thought I should go to a location I had never visited.
But before coffee, I checked mail (real mail, not email). A non-descript white envelope peeked out at me from my too-small mailbox. I didn’t open it until I got here, and to my delight, I saw it was my much-awaited Alex Bec Smile stickers. Immediate thought: Must slap somewhere and document for Alex (and you) to see. And I brought my camera today, just in case I felt like stopping by the river, near the Guthrie or Mill City Museum. A while back, I saw these stickers and they brought a smile to face…basically, they’re the artist’s attempt to “spread a bit of happiness. By placing ‘smile’ stickers in certain places ordinary, mundane objects take on a completely different outlook.” True, too often the every-day objects or places give us no point for reflection, no inspiration, no reason to smile. See his work here.
A few months ago when I had emailed Alex and he agreed to send stickers, upon the condition that I document their whereabouts. I’ll start slapping and snapping soon…
Maybe my first sticker-placement should be on the man here who has been loudly talking on his cell for the last hour!? Do you think he’d hold still long enough for me to get his picture?
- In: art | Barbara Kruger | culture | design | PSFK | Shepard Fairey
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I attended PSFK’s Conference last Tues. 9/18 (my first) and enjoyed soaking up all of the new (and not so new) ideas, thoughts, and questions that came up in the discussion.
Artist Shepard Fairey spoke about his journey from t-shirt and sticker-making to creating art for consumers/clients. This was one of my top favorite speakers by far. Here’re my notes and thoughts, along with a picture. (We were prohibited from taking our own, so I’m borrowing from PSFK.)
I’d never heard of Shepard before, so I was really jazzed to hear him speak about his cool art and his thoughts on ‘selling out’ (my words, not his) as he began producing art for brands and the consumerist world. Some background on Shepard: Rhode Island School of Design grad, inspired by propaganda, born to parents who were the high school footballer and cheerleader.
He started off by showing us slides of his work, I noticed hints of Barbara Kruger (whom I admire), and lo behold, he included an image of one of her pieces. Shepard started making t-shirts for friends and one day saw an ad with Andre the Giant (wrestler and actor in “The Princess Bride” no less). He made this into a sticker, which he then began slapping around town (I believe he’s from North Carolina). This got Shepard thinking about “the power of communication through art and in the public space.”
He believes in “awakening wonderment” (in reference to the philosopher Heidegger). This resonated with me. Awakening wonderment should be something all artists and creative people strive to do. Or, maybe it’s something everyone should be thinking about. If thought is dull and immobile, the potential for growth and discovery is low.
On his art:
Eventually, it started to attract teens and the skateboard crowd, but then also companies began calling. They wanted to connect with the followers/fans of Fairey’s work, and believed he could help them achieve this. His artistic journey and way of thinking came across as very authentic and grassroots. He was very honest about his upbringing, inspirations, and motivations. He said art + commerce need eachother (despite what naysayers may say), and also believes in entertainment mixing with the two. For instance, he enjoys music, so he djs. He likes to go out and be politically critical. (He’s been arrested 13 times.) He also believes in empowerment, something that has been a strong base for his messages (see bold propaganda influenced work). His take is that art can be and is everywhere.
On making art for commerce:
His motivation to try commercial was because he wanted to resonate with his audience. Art needs to to “accrue cultural currency” in order to gain commercial success. Someone in the audience asked if he’s felt a backlash after he went commercial, and Fairey said despite this, he’s still driven to do what he does. It’s not as if he doesn’t make art for his own ‘selfish’ reasons (the root of all art?), he just does what drives him.
On living the ‘artist’ life:
I found it amusing that he used to scam Kinkos when he made art in the beginning. He had figured out a way to rig the machines so he wouldn’t get charged (artists need to be strategic thinkers) and would restrict his color printing to red and black.
So art needn’t be draining on your budget. I also like the fact that his work is accessible. I looked at his site Obey Giant, and was pleased to find posters that don’t set you back $1,000. In fact, he encourages people to download his designs for free stuff like stickers, posters, stencils and desktop wallpaper. Art for all.
I didn’t know this…:
Hawaii has no outdoor advertising. Fairey mentioned that you’ll see no big logo on the pop machines, or ads on telephone boxes. Instead you’ll see flowers (promote tourism through beauty and images of Hawaii).
Digestion 
