Showing posts with label Graphics. Show all posts
Doing Good Through Design
04 July 2008
War Victims - 'child soldiers' by Pablo Grand Mourcel, France
Water Scarcity by Rémy Le Rumeur, France
Child Mortality by Behrooz Gorgin, Iran
Global Warming by Sadık Sakin, Turkey
Human Rights Violation - 'freedom' by Napin Mandhachitara, Thailand
Hunting - 'stop commercial whaling' by Cédric Quissola, France
STDs - 'aids' by Onur Gökalp, Turkey
Good 'O8 has created a contest for advertisers and graphic designers to allow them to use their craft for good, rather than sales. They created 7 topics and asked designers all over the world to create 50x70 posters based on these topics. Thirty winners were selected from each category (above are a few of my favorites) and could potentially be used by charities across the globe.
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Check the designs out... there are so many fabulous and thought provoking designs...
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Quarts in a Gallon
15 June 2008
We were just talking at work about this problem... none of us can ever remember how many cups to a pint/quart/gallon... And until we go metric, we're going to need to find a way to remember. This graphic is cute and handy!
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Via Swiss Miss
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Global Warming and Global Consumerism
01 June 2008
Amelia Roberts has created a very interesting graphic commentary of the west's consumerism as a direct consequence of global warming..
Via Its Nice That
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Angela Fritsch
05 May 2008
Angela Fritsch Architekten has got some really fabulous designs. Something about the colors and lines of the forms is subtly feminine without being overtly female. I've always like projects with a sharp edge quality... of which I think all three of these apply. While there are many projects with more organic qualities that I like and appreciate, I just really love embracing the man-made qualities of architecture, and I think Angela Fritsch does a great job with that..
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An Interesting Approach to a Website
04 May 2008
I generally don't like websites that are too heavy in Flash... mostly because they can be a pain to navigate, and especially hard to backtrack your steps. Industrial Design firm Boym Partners has an interesting approach with their website... It reads a bit like a child's computer learning game, where the players are trying to find the right clues to lead them to the next step. I think it would be an absolute annoyance if I wanted to find something particular, but its kind of fun if you just want to take a look at their products. So go ahead... check out Boym's website and their wide variety of work...
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A Modern Life
01 April 2008
You've gotta love these '60s Motorola ads... Intended to depict the possibilities of a modern lifestyle. Part fantasy, part kitcsh, and a whole lot of fun, these images by Charles Schriddle don't exactly represent our current modern lives. The screens aren't nearly big enough, and the tvs are more of a background entertainment, rather than the focal point of each room!!! Imagine that, a world where tv is only one of the many forms of entertainment! .
Via Strange Harvest
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Pecha Kucha and Polaroids
16 February 2008
Last week a friend and I attended Seattle's latest Pecha Kucha... We didn't stay the entire time, mainly because it was so hot inside, but also partly because I wasn't completely taken with the material. Still, there was one slideshow that I found particularly interesting, not only for the content... but also because it opened my eyes to the fact that polaroids are disappearing! I'm very sad to say (although most of you probably already know) that Polaroid has stopped making cameras as of 2008 and as of 2010 will stop making film. I personally have very fond memories of childhood polaroids, and it really seemed like polaroid photography was making a comeback, so I'm very sad to see them go! I wonder if there will be a grassroots movement to save polaroids, similar to saving gocco.
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Photos by Gary Payn, Caroline Moore, and Mark Kilson all via Sprayglue
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Extreme Delft Blue
02 January 2008
After my semester in Delft, I brought home a traditional Delftware Christmas ornament as a souvenir. But, it would have been much cooler if I could have gotten one of Hugo Kaagman's Delft Blue ceramics instead. How sweet are these tiles?!?! I love the way he has used a traditional artform in a very new and modern way... Check out his site for even more examples.
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Full of Texture
13 December 2007
Tjep has been getting some well deserved press for their interior design of the fabbrica restaurant... but there are many projects in their collection worth checking out. I'm always a fan of what goes on at the NAI, and this 2005 project is no exception..
The intent behind this design was to put the same attention to detail and craft to a home as you would to a piece of jewelry. Built from steel and glass at a 1:25 scale, the house incorporated the layering of four cut through systems including carpet, graffiti, bricks, wallpaper, and more. Its hard to take in the whole project, but interesting to see the designers attempt to create highly detailed and patterned systems with modern fabrication methods.
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I need a new dentist
30 November 2007
One of the things that I often find distinguishes European and Asian design from design in the United States, is the respect for the mundane. Almost, if not just as much attention is paid to the design of a refrigerator, phone booth, or in this case a dentist's office, as more glamorous projects. Although, the credit can not be given to the designers alone, as clearly the cultures devote more time and energy to design as an ideal and necessity. Without willing clients, well designed (and often expensive) projects would never be completed.This project (a dentist' office - KU64) by graft lab really amazes me. I can't imagine this kind of progressive design being implemented at my local (or any other US) dentist. While I realize that I'm generalizing... and that not all Berlin dentist offices look like this one, and there very well could be a well designed American dentistry... I'm just always surprised and impressed by other cultures' willingness to create something lovely out of the mundane.
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I'm not saying that this is a perfect project... I don't really find the color very soothing, and let's face it, who needs anxiety at the dentist. Also, I think that the amorphous forms are a bit overdone... But overall, I think its an interesting design for a seemingly uninteresting program. I'm particularly drawn to the entry hall, and the seating around the fireplace, which provides a very warm environment for a office that would typically be cold and sterile. The graphics also add an interesting touch... I wonder if you can look up at them from your chair?
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If I lived in Berlin, I'm pretty sure I'd be changing my dentist. Who cares if they might charge a bit more for a cleaning?! They've managed to create a space that I wouldn't dread visiting, which is quite a feat for a dentist (and their architect!).
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Via Pimp Your Life
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Italy on the Brain
13 November 2007
C & I have recently begun to plan a trip to Italy, and now that's all I can think about! Some of the things that I've been getting into are (in no particular order):
Fashion
History
A return to my catholic roots
Museums
Art
Architecture
And Food!
All images via Eternally Cool.
The Two Loves of My Life - Sorry C!
07 November 2007
I've always thought that chocolate and peanut butter was the best combination... but I think I could be convinced of this chocolate architecture!!! By Matteo Ragni Design Studio
Embracing the Diagram
06 November 2007
One of the things that I always associate with Dutch architecture, is the clear use (and often direct extrusion) of the diagram. This project, Velserduinweg Ijmuiden by Ronald Janssen Architecten is no different... The diagram is developed early in the conceptual stages and clearly relates to the resulting organization of space and circulation. While sometimes I think that diagrams can be too simplistically translated into plans, this type of solution definitely helps you understand the thought process and intent behind the design!Up for a drink or a laugh?
24 October 2007
I was checking out Marcio Kogan's website to try and find more information about a project featured in Wallpaper and stumbled across these images. I really like Kogan's site... the imagery is as playful and energetic as the architecture. In fact, I even thought I saw a bong while the page was loading! Anyway... these two images really cracked me up; created for two different projects, that guy with a drink must be a particular favorite of the office!Retro Italian
20 October 2007
I'm really loving these retro Italian graphics from Futurismo in Italia that I found via wrong distance.
Visual Complexity
29 September 2007
Visualization of Blogspace
Email Map
Segoland
Hierarchical Structure of the Internet
Holtzbrinck Web Map
Internet MapVisual Complexity is the brainchild of Manual Lima, an interaction designer (among other talents). These diagrams of complex relationships are just as beautiful graphically as they are for the information they communicate.
Via Its Nice That
Via Its Nice That
Whitcher Matyear Architects
25 September 2007
Camden House
Cafe Concept
Burrawang HouseI often dream about the beginning of my own firm and creating a website to represent that firm. I find blogging to be fun, but I'd really like to find a way to incorporate some of my own work and somehow parlay that into a full time career. Marcus Trimble has done an impressive job of integrating his blog into his firm (and vice versa)... but the thing that I always struggle with is how to illustrate a body of work (and gain clients) when you've got very little actual built work. When I checked out Whitcher Matyear's website, it occurred to me that they had done a great job in presenting their work, even with limited built structures. Their graphics are simple and clean and show a wide variety of phases and designs. Its just the kind of thing that I'd like to create...
2A + P
15 September 2007
Sistema Abierto (Open System)
Africa CenterI discovered this Italian design firm through Eternally Cool... 2a+p's work covers a wide range of disciplines (most notably architecture and urban planning), but they give the same kinds of treatment to all types of design projects, large or small. They seem to be of what I would call the Rem school of thought, where many of their projects take their form from the extrusion of the diagram (but I won't hold it against them!). In fact, I'm quite drawn to some of their graphic and diagrammatic work...