some kinda magic dragon...

It's true that the technology and concept behind Seadragon is absolutely phenomenal--it's hard to imagine the ability to access that much information, that quickly, and all in one place. Ben's also brought up a good point in that the Seadragon and Photosynth technology could definitely be used for things like facial recognition. Talk about design that has the potential to do something really good!

Potential is a big word, though, and there's something about Seadragon that kind of worries my tech-wary side. How many other potentially Orwellian uses does Seadragon have? Anyone who's able to be photographed--really, anyone at all, considering the power of our satellites--has to deal with the possibility of being tracked in a hyper-linked, super quick, high-res database, for whatever reason the user deems acceptable. Kind of scary.

With the possibility for completely virtual walk-throughs and tours of thousands upon thousands of cities, tourist attractions, and the like, what becomes of our non-virtual world? Will Seadragon become an incredible catalyst for physically getting to know the world and actually traveling, or will it allow us to cocoon ourselves even further into our huge HD monitors and custom-made comfy reclining leather desk chairs? Does this kind of technology put us on the path to a world where social networking is the only real socializing we do?

Wait and see.

rubix cubes are delicious...

Stop-action animator PES has put together a number of fantastic and twisted short films, and has done commercials for such big-shots as Nike, Barcardi, and Sprint. But the one I stumbled upon today, Western Spaghetti, blew my mind. I don't think you'd really ever mistake Pick-up Stix or dice for anything edible, but the way PES puts all of his "ingredients" together for this is really stunning. And totally inspiring. I want to do this, too!

Also, check out his Roof Sex. Absolutely hilarious and very, very well done.

[image source: http://www.veryshortlist.com/video/?email_key=31cbb084-dfde-4bef-af6d-4eb12692d3f9]

silly question...

To be a successful communication designer, do you need to know what is happening in the world around you?

Well, um...yes! As the world becomes even more interconnected, it becomes increasingly important to be aware not only of world news and events, but also of the different cultures that are part of our global economy. As Bruce Mau puts it, design is invisible, and has become second-nature to us. Everything is designed. As communication designers, our reach in the world is boundless. Having a firm grasp on global news, economics, and cultures doesn't only enrich our designs, it provides us with the opportunity to do a whole lot of good for our global community.

a little late, but...

I cannot nap. Every time I try to get some sleep during the day when my brain's shutting down sporadically and I'm utterly exhausted, I become so guilt-stricken that I have to get up and do something school-related. It's kind of disgusting. And if I do somehow manage to fall asleep, I wake up completely groggy and sleep-stoned and can't manage to become coherent for at least an hour. Some of us, however, have mastered the art of napping and can successfully sneak in a few solid hours during the day—I'm jealous of you guys! And so, in my sleep-deprived, drowsy, braindead state, I've been doing some research on getting proper day-sleep (which may be pointless, considering I'll be getting copious amounts of sleep after next week), and came across an article with some great tips and even greater info graphics. Check it out.

[image source: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/naps/]

creative contents...

I don't know about any of you, but I don't generally get super-excited about tables of contents (anyone actually know what the plural of that is?). This post completely changed my mind about the possibility for creativity in something as mundane as a table of contents.

It's certainly true that the simple and expected form of a table of contents doesn't usually spark a huge outpour of creativity in most of us, and maybe that's a good thing--an over-designed table of contents might completely take away from the entire purpose of the thing: legibility and ease of use. But that shouldn't deter us from doing something usable and interesting--after all, the table of contents is one of the first pages we flip to in a new book. Why not do something that'll generate even more interest in the book, right off the bat?

[image source: http://flickr.com/photos/hypowren/412742697/]

no, how do YOU communicate?

Okay, okay, I don't really use a tin can phone (although my neighbour Yvonne and I did try to set up a line between our bedroom windows when we were kiddies). Ironically, I've never been much of a phone person. That's changed a bit since my acquisition of a mobile, but not much--it's just made it possible to text, my speed at which has (sadly) been noted as a talent. I definitely prefer communicating physically (nothing touchy-feely, I mean face-to-face) or somewhat visually (as in email/text messaging). It's not that I try to avoid human contact on the phone; I just find that when communicating something specific, a written message is far more efficient and effective. For more social/general communication, sure, a phone call is okay, but as mentioned earlier, I'd much rather just meet up and have a real, live, in-person chat.

[image souce: http://flickr.com/photos/kitcowan/2103850699/]

poor george w...I mean, PC...

While watching a few recent Apple ads tonight, I was struck by the amount of coded meaning present. I'd noticed some of the more obvious symbolism watching Sad Song in class, but hadn't really realized just how funny and striking some of the deeper stuff was. Right off the bat, at the beginning of Sad Song, there's some pretty funny visual imagery going on--PC guy seems to be representing a hardcore Republican (check out his cowboy hat, beige suit/burgundy tie combo, tinted glasses; not to mention the fact that he's "playing" a bluesy country tune), and Mac guy's putting out a very Democratic vibe (in comparison) with his preppy blue button-down, trendy skinny jeans, and hip long-ish hair.

Aside from the more political symbolism, PC and Mac are both representing very different cultural stereotypes with their visual semiotic images. Let's start with PC guy. His ensemble, in combination with the five-o'clock shadow, receding hairline, and tendency to ignore Mac guy's (very polite) protests, put out very strong middle-management/corporate signs. These are not pleasant connotations for the typical Mac user, and viewers of Sad Song will definitely learn to associate PCs with this uncool corporate image, and everything that goes along with it.

Mac guy, on the other hand, puts out a cooler and more casual image: the above-mentioned outfit, the fact that he's at least a decade younger than PC guy, and the fact that he's got his hands casually in his pockets at the start of every Mac ad all connote a decidedly friendly, smart, and trendy personality. And the attitude Mac guy has when chatting with PC guy is a huge part of these ads: slightly condescending but always politely friendly, Mac guy takes on the oft-wanted personality of a huge number of Gen Y/Gen Next-ers. All of this combined gives Mac (the brand, not the guy) a number of coded messages that subliminally affect the viewer's perception of both Macs and PCs.

speaking of media control...

I've come across an artist by the name of Scott Blake, who creates art using barcodes--a funny coincidence that we've been talking about the media's control lately, and this guy turns an element of that into something strangely neat. You can create a barcode for yourself on his site, too (the one above is mine). But if you head over there, be sure to check out his art--my favourite is his hilariously ironic 10' x 10' Bar Code Jesus.

[image source: http://www.barcodeart.com/art/yourself/yourself_frames.html]

my analysis of Ben...

Visual: Ben generally looks very clean and healthy; lean (could be a sprinter), well-dressed

Tactile: Holds things carefully and usually with a sense of purpose. Usually careful not to disturb his immediate environment

Auditory: Ben's got a smooth alto, definitely not a smoker, and quite a range when it comes to humming and whistling in and out of class. He's full of other percussion-sounds, and generally gives off quite a strong auditory presence; trails of sounds that are almost always musical seem to follow him

Olfactory: While Ben's scent is certainly not unpleasant, he does not give off much discernible odor except for the occasional morning coffee on his breath

Gustatory: Data unavailable. If Ben were a type of food, he's be a whole wheat organic chicken and veggie wrap--contained, with a whole bunch of colourful and exciting ingredients just below the surface

Ben through different types of media:

Natural: Ben leaves a very strong impression through natural media. Quite impactful transmission through auditory modes, though slightly less effective through visual means--mainly facial expressions

Artifactual: Communicates well through visual artifactual media--Ben has many design forms and expressions by which he may communicate strongly and effectively

Mechanical: Ben also boasts strong mechanical communication--specifically in terms of musical/auditory mechanical means. Buy his album. His mechanical presence is not overly strong in other ways; for instance, he does not use social networking tools

10 things...

10 The strange/awful/wonderful people I meet when I bartend
9 The feeling I get when I make something amazing
8 Coffee
7 Reading a great book that makes me think or feel
6 The first part of spring when everything starts popping out of the ground and turning green
5 The hugs I get from people I actually care about--not those people who feel it's their duty to hug every single person they say hello to
4 Bach's cello concertos
3 Really long drives with really good music
2 Doing yoga until I feel like my face is going to melt right off
1 Lying in the field behind my house at 3am, completely exhausted after a really productive day, feeling like I'm melting into the ground

And my five favourite items...

5 The very first hat I knit
4 My copy of The Fountainhead
3 My glasses
2 My collection of Beatles cds
1 The star earring in my right ear

are you being brainwashed right now?

Are the media moguls controlling us?

Oh god yes. In the sense that they are the ones who control what we get to read about and watch on the news everyday, of course they control some aspect of us in choosing which tidbits of information we're allowed to gain access to, and how they'd like us to react to them. I'd like to say that this information manipulation only controls us to the extent that we allow it, but how can we avoid being controlled by it when we're only allowed to have knowledge of the tip of the iceberg? This forced submissiveness is already a huge step in the direction of the media's control.

Are they controlling our minds and souls?

Trickier. This question begs a multitude of other (somewhat depressing and existential) questions: do we have control over our own minds in the first place? Have we ever had control over them? Is the way we react to media based on opinions that have already been placed in our minds subconsciously by these media moguls?

I'd like to say that my reaction is based on a sense of indignation to the initial question, but could it not also be a defensive reaction to the knowledge that in some way, my mind has been controlled by these media moguls? Consider this: I'm currently typing away on my very old, very slow PC laptop, cursing the fact that I'm not sitting in front of my beloved Mac. Why is that? I'm not doing anything that requires the use of design software, I'm posting a blog. This crappy PC is as good as anything for that purpose. The moguls of Apple media have put this idea into my head that I'm slumming, in a way, by working away on a PC. I can't say that I feel that strongly about being away from my Mac, but that thought it still in my head. Which means, in some sense, that I have indeed been conditioned and controlled by these media moguls.

The thought of delving into the full extent of the media's grasp on me (or anyone, for that matter)
is just a little too much. You win, John.

shoestring modern...

Brad Green, my surrogate uncle, has got to be one of the coolest guys I know--into modern art, Ayn Rand, Miles Davis--and a brilliant architect. The above image is a shot of his cottage on Sunny Lake, appropriately named The Roc, as it's built on a cliff. Not only is it extremely interesting and absolutely gorgeous in its De Stijl-inspired way, its form somehow emulates its surroundings perfectly. Yes, it's colourful and geometric, but it still manages to feel like it's meant to be a part of that cliff, that it's the only thing that could have possibly been built there.

This theme, that architecture and external design should be created to compliment and flow with surrounding elements, has clearly played a huge part in the creation of The Roc, and it's been the central theme of one of my favourite designers, the prolific Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright was a major figure in the movement of organic architecture, this idea that the design should be completely harmonious with its natural surroundings. Perhaps the most well-known example of this is Fallingwater, a residence Wright designed for a family in Pennsylvania.

Its stone balconies echo the stone outcroppings of the waterfall and its surrounding area, and the building's placement creates a sense of some kind of dialog with the waterfall and the steepness of the land.

Theorist David Pearson created a set of rules for designing to organic architecture, and I think they're certainly relevant to everything we're doing as graphic designers, organic or not.

"Let the design
-be inspired by nature and be sustainable, healthy, conserving, and diverse.
-unfold, like an organism, from the seed within.
-exist in the "continuous present" and "begin again and again".
-follow the flows and be flexible and adaptable.
-satisfy social, physical, and spiritual needs.
-"grow out of the site" and be unique.
-celebrate the spirit of youth, play and surprise.
-express the rhythm of music and the power of dance."

Essentially, every element should relate to the others, reflecting the relationships present in nature. Sound familiar?

[image source: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3675&id=1048985333#pid=3675
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Lloyd_Wright]

on cutlery...

When I was just a little girl, I asked my mother why we had forks and knives when mostly we just used the side of our fork to cut soft things...I mean, why get a knife dirty if you're eating something like meatloaf? And so I thought I came up with a great invention when I thought up the combined fork-knife (I called it a fife). Logistics ruined the whole thing for me, though, when I realized that people would probably cut the sides of their mouth open due to the Fife's sharp cutting edges. I scrapped the idea.

Fastforward to now: I've stumbled upon a website on Australian nostalgia, and the Fife has already been invented! It goes by the name Splayd, and was invented by William McArthur in the forties. In the sixties, the general public caught on to their innovative and oh-so-convenient design, and over five million sold worldwide. Which begs the question--what happened to them? I'd like my own Splayd collection! Maybe people got tired of having all that extra cutlery--forks, knives, tablespoons, teaspoons, and Splayds...I mean, I guess you don't really need a Splayd when you've got your fork and your knife, and the fork/knife combo is imperative for things like steak. Still, an interesting piece of very neat design.

[image source: http://www.legendfeelco.com.au/whatever.htm]

pirates and beer...

I'm sure you're all aware of Molson Ex's redesign since I've been bringing it up at every possible opportunity, but I figured I'd post a before/after sort of thing since it seems nobody's actually seen it. Above is the redesign, and below is the old logo.


I love the redesign. The red's richer, the sail looks less like an armadillo, and the type and white tattoo-y stuff around the sail is just so hip. Strangely enough, the redesign actually seems cleaner than the old version, even with the starburst, banners, and swashes. Maybe nasty Ex will actually draw in a younger, cooler market! Their site's been revamped, too--unfortunately, it seems they've only got the Quebec version up, and it's all in French.

What do you think? (I'd still never touch the stuff, but I'm not in their target market)

[image source: before: http://www.timinganddelivery.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/me.gif
after: http://www.molsonexport.com/index.aspx]

lace 'nades and umbrella guns...

Brooklyn-based designer/artist Dan Funderburgh has crafted a wonderful collection of what look to be vintage wallpaper/arts and crafts-inspired "tools"--he's done grenades, a gunbrella, saws, wrenches, a chainsaw, and more (there are 40 in total). All are done with incredible patience and attention to detail, and they're all an ironic juxtaposition of delicate femininity and hard-edged weapon (of sorts).

See all the tools in his kit here.

Also check out his personal site for more of the same flavour--he's done a ton of work for Ecko, including print ads, identity pieces, and hang tags; and his wallpaper designs are absolutely incredible, with more of the same irony featured in his tool exhibition.

sidenote:

While emptying my dryer tonight, a dishtowel flew out at me and landed on my shirt. I don't think I can remember the last time I was consciously inspired by an event like this; the colours just popped right out at me and I fell in love. For those of you who are interested, I've posted the numbers below.

red: c0 m80 y75 k0
green: c34 m15 y87 k1
blue: c88 m44 y15 k1


[image source: http://kitsunenoir.com/blog/2008/05/13/dan-funderburghs-work-at-fellow-traveller/]

media usage tally: one week

My media consumption this past week:

Reading
Newspaper- 30 min
Magazines- 4h
Books- 9h

Music
Radio- 30 min
CDs (at home)- 36h
ipod- 9h

Electronic Media
TV- 0
Movies- 8.5h

Interactive/Web
Video Games- 0
Sent Emails- 28
Surfing- 16h
Facebook- 5h

Mobile Device
Talking- 119 min
Messages Sent- 26

boys! treat your rifle like a lady...

In my travels as an active procrastinator, I came across this rifle maintenance manual from the 1960s. Now, I know, as a member of the female species, that I should be pissed about the insane amount of objectification of women in this manual. BUT, aside from making reference to the female body as the various parts of a rifle, the manual does have some good tips for its users:

-respect her and treat her right, and she'll be ready when you need her
-get to know her needs and whims, know what makes her tick
-be gentle, and know that your life depends on her

Yep. That's right. From the US Army's M-16 Rifle Manual, Treat Your Rifle Like a Lady, circa 1969. Who knew they were so sensitive?

And since this is a design blog...

The manual's art was done by Will Eisner, a prolific giant in the world of sequential art (he was the first to coin the term "sequential art" in reference to comics and graphic novels, actually). Eisner was also one of the first artists to start moving comics away from "the funnies" and did some of the first adult-oriented graphic novels in the 1970s.

The real beauty of this manual, however, is its incredibly simple hierarchy and instructional graphics. The manual is easy to read (I feel like I'd be comfortable stripping my M-16) and the graphics are clear without any chartjunk (keeping in mind that this is a comic)--and this was before Tufte! And, of course, the genius of the medium. Creating this manual in the form of a comic was an incredibly smart move when considering the target audience, a slew of boys and men, probably 18-25, in 1960s US.

See the whole manual here.

[image source: http://www.ep.tc/problems/25/02.html]

make more GIF files...

...and other advice for first-years at University College Falmouth in England. Professor John Stanbury founded a project in 2006 called Advice to Sink in Slowly: a brief was sent out to 19 recent and working graduates of UCF asking for a poster to pass on advice and inspiration to first-year students, and the resulting 25 posters were randomly given to 300 freshmen as a welcome gift. The project was so well-liked, it was repeated again in 2007, and is now expanding to include different types of media including video, audio, and written content.

What a great idea! Being able to see what graduates are capable of upon finishing the program is definitely inspiring, and generates a good sense of faith/respect for the school and program. But the best part of this project is the personal aspect--this is certainly the coolest move I've seen to get rid of University's cold and impersonal stigma. And how great would it be to get a realistically inspiring, well-designed poster made specifically for your year? I'd love to see something like this at Humber.

Check out the project's site here.

[image source: http://flickr.com/photos/adviceposters/1311322424/in/set-72157602720078403/]

type design as lego

Designer/engineer Rob Meek has created a new free font-building program called FontStruct, which lets users create fonts constructed from geometric shapes—you arrange the shapes ("tiles") on a grid by dragging and dropping, and you're pretty well good to go.

What's especially interesting about this is that since FontStruct's been released to the public a little over a month ago, over 20 000 users have registered. 20 000! Are these users typographers, designers, 12-year-old video game addicts? It's amazing how accessible font creation (albeit very amateur font creation) has become.

Check out the introductory video here.

[image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stewf/2386500152/in/pool-fontstruct/]

call me a keener...

...but the ridiculous amount of caffeine coursing through my veins has successfully prevented me from going to sleep at a reasonable hour (I know, shocking) and I'm disturbingly excited about sharing design-related stuff with everyone/reading what everyone else posts. So I'm starting now.

Since this morning's class and that shocking moment where I discovered that I couldn't actually name any of the designers I like, I've been searching and bookmarking design sites like a monkey on speed. My web travels led me to Eric Kass, a designer from Indiana who's so well-established, I'm absolutely shocked I haven't heard of him.

His style is clean and fresh, while at the same time edgy, organic, and kind of grungy. I love how everything he does has a very hand-made and tactile quality. Check him out for some inspiration!

[image source: http://funnel-eric-kass.blogspot.com/]