May 14th, 2011 Comments Off
Wim Crouwel is one of those hardy souls seemingly immune to self-doubt. That’s easy enough now, with Crouwel’s place as one of graphic design’s most influential practitioners secure. But his groundbreaking work has not always been universally admired, and in the 1970s it elicited strong criticism for being “too modern.” Instead of faltering, however, Crouwel’s belief in his ideas and aesthetics only grew stronger. His highly structured approach to design and typography captured the essence of the emerging computer age, bringing a new modernity to catalogs, posters, stamps, and even the phone book. This spring, the grid-loving Dutch legend is being celebrated with a major retrospective at the Design Museum, in London.
Read my full interview in METROPOLIS MAGAZINE. (and check out the print version below!)
April 21st, 2011 Comments Off
From the time we’re born until the day we die, the twenty-six letters of the alphabet are completely and totally unavoidable. Thus, one has to wonder—will there ever come a day when seeing our own language drives us all completely batty? Will people in the not-too-distant future be running and screaming down the streets from the frighteningly uninspired, overused curves of an “S” or the descender of a “p”?
From May 15th through September 4th a new show at the Pasadena Museum of California Art, Getting Upper, explores what happens when twenty-six graphic designers are charged with creating twenty-six brand spankin’ newly designed letters of the alphabet.
Read my full article on Print Magazine’s awesome design blog, IMPRINT.
"S" by Jon Sueda
April 10th, 2011 Comments Off
Downing tequlia shots, ogling over Mila Kunis, and wanting to be the next Mark Zukerberg – just a few of the things on the mind of a twenty-something guy. But the bygone days of the industrial revolution? Probably not on his top-ten list. Yet, for twenty-somethings Paul Wilkes and Scott Hill, the über talented founders of Oklahoma City-based design firm Foundry Collective, both their philosophy and design style are uniquely rooted in the memory of their forefathers – Midwest hardworking Americans who earned their keep toiling in oil fields, farms, and factories during the industrial revolution.
Read my full article on HOW MAGAZINE.
Image Courtesy FOUNDRY COLLECTIVE
Image Courtesy FOUNDRY COLLECTIVE
April 1st, 2011 Comments Off
In today’s Too-Much-Information Age, we want answers and we want them fast. Whether it’s web searches, e-mail, Tweeting, updating Facebook, or downloading an app, we’ll do whatever is necessary (and, don’t forget, convenient) to find information now. In the Contemporary Jewish Museum’s media installation opening on March 31st, “Are We There Yet?”, Bay Area artists Ken Goldberg and Gil Gershoni challenge us to do the opposite — slow down, ask questions, and embrace contemplation. For they believe that it’s questions – not answers – that help us understand the past and propel us forward in society and in our lives.
Read my full article on SF Weekly.
Image courtesy Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco
March 31st, 2011 Comments Off
Sometimes art speaks for itself and other times it needs explanation and context. The latter is the case for the work of the late artist-designer Tobias Wong, who takes the banally familiar and repurposes it into irony-laden statements about the things we buy and consume.
Now on view through June 19th at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Wong’s first-ever solo show of his irreverent and highly conceptual work, which includes objects, furniture, jewelry, lighting, and installation, is on display. But take note, unless you’re pre-acquainted with Wong’s designs and the materials he used to create them, the exhibit will leave you nothing but perplexed.
Read my full article on SF STATION.
Image Courtesy SFMOMA
March 26th, 2011 Comments Off
With a name like CMYBacon how can you not be intrigued? Although Designer Martin Refsal has to “suppress my inner-geek from time to time to ensure that I don’t post too many things about Star Wars and Legos” he is the witty mastermind behind one of newest (and cleverest) design blogs on the webosphere. Launched in April 2010, CMYBacon is chock full of refreshingly unconventional, well-made, and quite often, humorous designs. And a lot of the funny stuff is specifically identifiable to designers too, like the tongue-in-cheek “I Went to School for Graphic Design – Would You Like Whipped Cream on That?” coffee poster or the “gif peanut butter” image
Read my full article on Print Magazine’s awesome design blog, IMPRINT.
by Tymn Armstrong
March 16th, 2011 Comments Off
What is it about hand-made letters that utterly rocks our world? Are we just so bored with reading and seeing everything digitally nowadays? Or is it because working with type is such a huge component to our jobs as designers that our fascination with typography never ceases? Or maybe it’s just so dang refreshing to see a unique interpretation of the banally familiar. For whatever reason, spicing up the alphabet sure makes looking at letters way more exciting than it ever was in kindergarten!
Jillian Mackintosh curator of the recently launched San Francisco-based art exhibition, The Letter Collector, at Gallery Hijinks adds, “I think hand-made letters have always been popular for artists and letter enthusiasts since the invention of the press…”
Read my full article on Print Magazine’s awesome design blog, IMPRINT.
Bo-Heimlich-Andrew-Johnson-P-pen-ink-on-paper-8-x-10
