http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE7XkaFFtGE
Wednesday, 9 December 2009
Thursday, 8 October 2009
Rationale
Having kept a blog in North Carolina as a requirement to our course I had a fair idea of what I would be expecting to do. That, however, was purely type based and we had very specific rules about what we were suppossed to write each week, so this more self-learning based structure was at first daunting, but turned out to be a lot more interesting and useful.
I started off blogging anything I found interesting or what I thought might be classed as 'good design' but moved on to sticking to the groups, defining the types of things I would write about which helped me to gain focus in the way I looked at posts and what information I would write in them. Once I began narrowing my search I also began to find that I could sift through my findings and post only things that interested me thoroughly and that I will be able to use in the future, my finest moment was when I caught myself needing to use a website I had viewed earlier in the week and realising there was no need to panic, I had the address on my blog ready to be called upon! It also turned out to be a great resource for remembering lost findings. I am a very forgetful person and often forget to jot down if I see something I think is up my street or will help me in the future, it is only when I get to that point that I realise I need a picture or some information that I realise I have no idea where I found it or how I will even go about finding it again. So the blog often steered me in the right direction, not only helping to job my memory of posts forgotten but also encouraging me to take note of something that may help me in a future project.
Being able to look at other blogs and discuss with fellow students what they were searching for was also a great tool. Seeing what kind of things others were posting about showed a whole other world of things that were out there to be discovered as well as giving an insight into what kind of things other people were interested in. I remember meeting up with a course mate early on in summer and spending the day discussing what other people had posted on their blogs, this kind of discussion not only gets the design-talk ball rolling, but leaves you feeling encouraged to show your own interest in the subject, even if it's just for personal enjoyment. I liked the sharing aspect of this sight because sometimes people are not too forthcoming with their interests but this gave us all the opportunity to share and discover new things.
During the one week brief we were assigned, I found myself looking back through posts and wondering where I could go from there to help inspire myself. It was at this point that I also realised, a lot of the things I mentioned were similar in style or focal point, I clearly have a style I hadn't noticed before and it started to define itself as I looked through posts from the beginning of this summer. One example of how this steered my design was in the one week brief. I have only used video software twice before, very briefly, but I am so interested in videos that I was inspired to have a go myself...I soon found out it was harder than I thought but it just made me more determined to look back at the blogs, particularly the Sin City Commentary by Robert Rodriguez, and go on to find more help on the internet and in books.
Keeping the blog has gradually steered me to define my searches in design, I have always known there were certain aspects I liked more than others but when it came to putting them all into a box I just couldn't do it. If I was handed a graphic Design magazine, I would spend hours pouring over the content, but if you asked me to pick out the top three designs I would have an instant panic attack...it's all good! Although this seems like a positive attitude to have, at the same time, some sort of distinction in taste leads to refinement in personal work. I have often been critacised for being 'all over the place', one minute I want to do photography, next type design all whilst trying to make some sort of animation out of it, I had no idea where to begin and ended up with three different designs that just wouldn't gel. From this blog I can see how I can begin to make my designs interact with each other. I am greatly inspired by illustration, and from blogging about artists such as 'Ben and Julia', 'Kid Acne', 'Silas Munro' and 'Nate Williams' I have been given a clear picture of how, by attaining a certain style, all of these things can be shaken up together to produce a clean and very personal piece of work. This aspect, the personal side of design, seems to be what has struck m the most. Looking back throught the posts, I have a lot of design which is very personal to the creators (the monsters designed by Ben and Julia are a personal favourite of mine as the describe them as 'like children') and this has worked very strongly with my video interest to inspire the idea for my personal project. The '50 People, 1 Question' is a video I LOVED when I first came across it, but, again, an example of something I thought I'd jot down and never did, so when it came to the blog and it cropped up in my memory I had to find it all over again. But it was upon finding it and watching it that my personal project idea was inspired. Without having to keep the blog I would never have remembered the video and most likely not come up with an idea that I am so excited about.
My initial aim from the blog was, honestly, to get it finished, with anything that fit the requirements. As time went on, however, I realsied that this is an invaluable tool, an online log book to steer my work in a more focused direction with the appropriate research and inspiration and I truly appreciate it.
I started off blogging anything I found interesting or what I thought might be classed as 'good design' but moved on to sticking to the groups, defining the types of things I would write about which helped me to gain focus in the way I looked at posts and what information I would write in them. Once I began narrowing my search I also began to find that I could sift through my findings and post only things that interested me thoroughly and that I will be able to use in the future, my finest moment was when I caught myself needing to use a website I had viewed earlier in the week and realising there was no need to panic, I had the address on my blog ready to be called upon! It also turned out to be a great resource for remembering lost findings. I am a very forgetful person and often forget to jot down if I see something I think is up my street or will help me in the future, it is only when I get to that point that I realise I need a picture or some information that I realise I have no idea where I found it or how I will even go about finding it again. So the blog often steered me in the right direction, not only helping to job my memory of posts forgotten but also encouraging me to take note of something that may help me in a future project.
Being able to look at other blogs and discuss with fellow students what they were searching for was also a great tool. Seeing what kind of things others were posting about showed a whole other world of things that were out there to be discovered as well as giving an insight into what kind of things other people were interested in. I remember meeting up with a course mate early on in summer and spending the day discussing what other people had posted on their blogs, this kind of discussion not only gets the design-talk ball rolling, but leaves you feeling encouraged to show your own interest in the subject, even if it's just for personal enjoyment. I liked the sharing aspect of this sight because sometimes people are not too forthcoming with their interests but this gave us all the opportunity to share and discover new things.
During the one week brief we were assigned, I found myself looking back through posts and wondering where I could go from there to help inspire myself. It was at this point that I also realised, a lot of the things I mentioned were similar in style or focal point, I clearly have a style I hadn't noticed before and it started to define itself as I looked through posts from the beginning of this summer. One example of how this steered my design was in the one week brief. I have only used video software twice before, very briefly, but I am so interested in videos that I was inspired to have a go myself...I soon found out it was harder than I thought but it just made me more determined to look back at the blogs, particularly the Sin City Commentary by Robert Rodriguez, and go on to find more help on the internet and in books.
Keeping the blog has gradually steered me to define my searches in design, I have always known there were certain aspects I liked more than others but when it came to putting them all into a box I just couldn't do it. If I was handed a graphic Design magazine, I would spend hours pouring over the content, but if you asked me to pick out the top three designs I would have an instant panic attack...it's all good! Although this seems like a positive attitude to have, at the same time, some sort of distinction in taste leads to refinement in personal work. I have often been critacised for being 'all over the place', one minute I want to do photography, next type design all whilst trying to make some sort of animation out of it, I had no idea where to begin and ended up with three different designs that just wouldn't gel. From this blog I can see how I can begin to make my designs interact with each other. I am greatly inspired by illustration, and from blogging about artists such as 'Ben and Julia', 'Kid Acne', 'Silas Munro' and 'Nate Williams' I have been given a clear picture of how, by attaining a certain style, all of these things can be shaken up together to produce a clean and very personal piece of work. This aspect, the personal side of design, seems to be what has struck m the most. Looking back throught the posts, I have a lot of design which is very personal to the creators (the monsters designed by Ben and Julia are a personal favourite of mine as the describe them as 'like children') and this has worked very strongly with my video interest to inspire the idea for my personal project. The '50 People, 1 Question' is a video I LOVED when I first came across it, but, again, an example of something I thought I'd jot down and never did, so when it came to the blog and it cropped up in my memory I had to find it all over again. But it was upon finding it and watching it that my personal project idea was inspired. Without having to keep the blog I would never have remembered the video and most likely not come up with an idea that I am so excited about.
My initial aim from the blog was, honestly, to get it finished, with anything that fit the requirements. As time went on, however, I realsied that this is an invaluable tool, an online log book to steer my work in a more focused direction with the appropriate research and inspiration and I truly appreciate it.
Sheffield Millenium Gallery
A while back I went to Sheffield and happened to be passing the 'Millenium Gallery' when I realised there was Vivienne Westwood exhibition on, having some spare time I popped in and really liked the exhibition.
Sheffield is not far at all, and probably only around six pounds on the bus or 12 on the train, the gallery is a ten minute walk from the station and usually cost under ten pounds for students so if you fancy a nice day out then here is the link to their website so you can check if there is anything good on!
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/coresite/html/millennium.asp
Sheffield is not far at all, and probably only around six pounds on the bus or 12 on the train, the gallery is a ten minute walk from the station and usually cost under ten pounds for students so if you fancy a nice day out then here is the link to their website so you can check if there is anything good on!
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/coresite/html/millennium.asp
Hand drawn A-Z
I was looking for some interesting type for some inspiration for the personal project and I came across this website:
http://www.n8w.com/gallery/color/l/
This is an artist called 'Nate Williams' who produces hand drawn type. I love the personal touch, along with the fact it can not be reproduced and it can be molded to fit with whatever you want it to.
I want to include this kind of thing in my personal project as it is all about personal stories and reaching people on a person level so I will take inspiration from this chap and his work.
http://www.n8w.com/gallery/color/l/
This is an artist called 'Nate Williams' who produces hand drawn type. I love the personal touch, along with the fact it can not be reproduced and it can be molded to fit with whatever you want it to.
I want to include this kind of thing in my personal project as it is all about personal stories and reaching people on a person level so I will take inspiration from this chap and his work.
BANG! I shot the serif.
Whilst in North Carolina we had a project to produce a book entirely using an old letter press machine. We were given a sentence and asked to come up with the words and images using only the typefaces that were available to us for use on the letter press.
This is the outcome which i thought was pretty interesting:
It was good to be able to use the technology and see what constrains there were but also the positive outcomes from this experience. It also pushed us to think about type in a more interesting way.
This isn't that exact projcet but this is a picture of the letter press machine we used:
This is the outcome which i thought was pretty interesting:
It was good to be able to use the technology and see what constrains there were but also the positive outcomes from this experience. It also pushed us to think about type in a more interesting way.
This isn't that exact projcet but this is a picture of the letter press machine we used:
Another interesting website
I'm always looking for new websites to inspire me and send me to the right places, so this one ticks the boxes with stories of design, architecture, art, fashion and graphics so it's a good one to check out if you have a spare 15 minutes going...saves you doing the searching for interesting things!
http://www.yatzer.com/
http://www.yatzer.com/
Google go computer geek
I don't know if anyone witnessed this, I did not, I don't know how I missed it but apparently I did! But I'm glad I've come across it because it really is an amazing example of a company feeling VERY confident about their logo (and so they should) and mixing it with something equally iconic...and (in my opinion) it actually working.
Apparently it was heavily criticised but I just think Google pushed the boundaries and I like it. Adding a bit of a challenge to design is a good thing!
Apparently it was heavily criticised but I just think Google pushed the boundaries and I like it. Adding a bit of a challenge to design is a good thing!
Waiting for the bus just got fun!
I found these images celebrating bus stop advertising!
I like this idea of including the viewing in the design - Interactive design!
Not only do they involve the viewer but like the last one states, it does save energy, an advert actually displaying what it is they do is impressive!
I like this idea of including the viewing in the design - Interactive design!
Not only do they involve the viewer but like the last one states, it does save energy, an advert actually displaying what it is they do is impressive!
flat light bulbs
Their shape is designed to lower cost on materials such as glass and packaging and allowing them to be less easy to break, but still work as well as a normal round bulb.
I came across these Light bulbs recently, designed by a Japanese product designer, Joonhuyn Kim.
I like this idea because you wonder why no one thought of it before...perhaps they did btu it just wouldn't work...We shall see!
I came across these Light bulbs recently, designed by a Japanese product designer, Joonhuyn Kim.
I like this idea because you wonder why no one thought of it before...perhaps they did btu it just wouldn't work...We shall see!
Buddah Pears
I found this image a while ago in the news and have been trying to find it since;
This is an example of how you can make design work to your benefit. The farmer who grows these pears discovered that if they were blocked in some way they would just find a way to grow around that...thus, inventing the plastic cases to grow them in this unusual shape.
It just goes to show nature isn't always perfect and a little human aided design can push a good thing a long way.
This is an example of how you can make design work to your benefit. The farmer who grows these pears discovered that if they were blocked in some way they would just find a way to grow around that...thus, inventing the plastic cases to grow them in this unusual shape.
It just goes to show nature isn't always perfect and a little human aided design can push a good thing a long way.
Practices of Looking
As the dissertation and the personal projects become all too real I find myself looking for texts which are not only relevant but also, that I can actually understand!
This is a book given to us to read in NCSU which is really interesting and helped to get my head around some topics that I hadn't even realised were a blur to me!
"Practices Of Looking. An introduction to Visual Culture"
This is a book given to us to read in NCSU which is really interesting and helped to get my head around some topics that I hadn't even realised were a blur to me!
"Practices Of Looking. An introduction to Visual Culture"
Silas Munroe
This is another inspirational person I met in America, this time it is a tutor. Silas was our tutor for an imaging class and really picked up the mood in the class so I thought I'd post his website too as it is quite different and has a lot of type made to look like image which was something I enjoyed doing in America
http://www.silasmunro.com/
http://www.silasmunro.com/
Fellow Blogger - USA side
Over in America I met some interesting characters, but someone who stood out from the crowd was a guy named 'Logan Sayles'. With a keen passion for design and the attitude that life should be lived to the full, he is always inspirational to those around him. So I found out the group we studied with last year are all starting blogs and I thought it would be nice for people to see the thing he talks about as he always inspires me to try new things and think about design in a different (positive) light.
Here is his blog:
http://pseudotect.blogspot.com/
Here is his blog:
http://pseudotect.blogspot.com/
Thursday, 1 October 2009
COOL HUNTER
Following my last post I was back on the website I discovered the stadium on.
It is called 'the cool hunter' and has loads of aspects of design, it is an easy to follow layout and updated regularly. Check it out at:
http://www.thecoolhunter.co.uk/
Mebourne Rectangular Stadium
I was on one of my favourite wesites which has a section about architectre...I'm not normally too interested in that side of design, but since it was part of this project I thought I'd ave a look.
I came across this building, The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
Reading about it further I was intrigued to find out some of the unique features of the building, such as the LED lights on the top, which will be programmed to change colour and on match days represent the mood of the crowd...it will be interesting to see how that turns out. I think it's due to be finished this year so watch out for it.
If you want more information on the building you can find it at the following places:
http://www.thecoolhunter.co.uk/architecture/
http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=279
I came across this building, The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
Reading about it further I was intrigued to find out some of the unique features of the building, such as the LED lights on the top, which will be programmed to change colour and on match days represent the mood of the crowd...it will be interesting to see how that turns out. I think it's due to be finished this year so watch out for it.
If you want more information on the building you can find it at the following places:
http://www.thecoolhunter.co.uk/architecture/
http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=279
Inspired Architecture
It's always great when you come across a piece of quirky art, but when that art is transformed into a bigger scale such as architechture the mind boggles how someone had the balls to a) suggest it and then b) go ahead and make it.
Personally I love to see things like this, I think it livens up a city and what's better than stating the obvious of a company by making the entire building literally speak the words of 'it does what it says on the tin'.
The Basket Building, Ohio, USA.
The official HQ of the Longaberger Basket Company.
Kansas City Public Library, USA
The general public were asked to help pick the books that would go on the front of this building, based on not only content but appearance and more technical aspects such as binding.
Personally I love to see things like this, I think it livens up a city and what's better than stating the obvious of a company by making the entire building literally speak the words of 'it does what it says on the tin'.
The Basket Building, Ohio, USA.
The official HQ of the Longaberger Basket Company.
Kansas City Public Library, USA
The general public were asked to help pick the books that would go on the front of this building, based on not only content but appearance and more technical aspects such as binding.
Castle of deams.
I found some pictures of a bizarre looking castle and investigated further.
This castle, known as 'Palais Idéal' is the work of a very dedicate French man, Ferdinand Cheval; mailman by day, architect by night.
He began this hge feat by simple collecting rocks and then proceeded to carve into stone for 34 years to create this masterpiece.
I think it is beautiful and admire the fact that Cheval gave his life to do this work.
This castle, known as 'Palais Idéal' is the work of a very dedicate French man, Ferdinand Cheval; mailman by day, architect by night.
He began this hge feat by simple collecting rocks and then proceeded to carve into stone for 34 years to create this masterpiece.
I think it is beautiful and admire the fact that Cheval gave his life to do this work.
Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Awareness Test
Maybe some of you will have been shown this before, it's the kind of thing, that once you've seen you want to show other people...just to make sure you're normal.
I just thought it was pretty clever.
I just thought it was pretty clever.
Colourful Music
I came across this interior design which obviously grabbed my attention first off due to colour.
These are pictures of a music institute in Japan that has recently been redesigned, and shows that they truly believe in a creative space to make creative minds.
It was designed by Terada Design, A Japnese architect firm who I'd LOVE to tell you more about but their website is in Japanese.
These are pictures of a music institute in Japan that has recently been redesigned, and shows that they truly believe in a creative space to make creative minds.
It was designed by Terada Design, A Japnese architect firm who I'd LOVE to tell you more about but their website is in Japanese.
"Big Type Says More"
At the moment I'm really interested in the hands on kind of feel of design. I'm always asking how can I get away from a poster, 2D is not good enough any more, I want tactile, I want hands on...i want texture!
So I've been keeping myself busy making various different styles of books (with my esteemed Graphical partner K. Ijola) and the odd sock monkey here and there, sequins have played a huge part in my summer and I have developed an unhealthy obsession with wax.
But this piece of design has grounded me a little more. I came across this in the same magazine I found the people from my last entry (Ben&Julia), and before I could even begin to understand what was going on in the pictures I was excited that they were using such simple materials as wood and cardboard-very organic.
This particular project focuses on type and the two founders of "Strange Attractors" talk about setting up their exhibition in the article:
"All the work was done standing up, in a verticle position and live in front of visitors to the museum.
Our objective was to merge contemporary technology with traditional craftsmanship while representing the diverse multicultural and architectural city of Rotterdam".
I like their enthusiasm, and obviously making the entire piece in front of the public's very eyes is hands on enough for me!
http://www.strangeattractors.com/site/index.html
So I've been keeping myself busy making various different styles of books (with my esteemed Graphical partner K. Ijola) and the odd sock monkey here and there, sequins have played a huge part in my summer and I have developed an unhealthy obsession with wax.
But this piece of design has grounded me a little more. I came across this in the same magazine I found the people from my last entry (Ben&Julia), and before I could even begin to understand what was going on in the pictures I was excited that they were using such simple materials as wood and cardboard-very organic.
This particular project focuses on type and the two founders of "Strange Attractors" talk about setting up their exhibition in the article:
"All the work was done standing up, in a verticle position and live in front of visitors to the museum.
Our objective was to merge contemporary technology with traditional craftsmanship while representing the diverse multicultural and architectural city of Rotterdam".
I like their enthusiasm, and obviously making the entire piece in front of the public's very eyes is hands on enough for me!
http://www.strangeattractors.com/site/index.html
Character Building...
I was reading a magazine and came across these two artists, Ben and Julia, a French-Swiss duo who spend their time coming up with different characters which they then inject into graphic design, art and animation.
Reading about how they work was fascinating and really inspiring...as a bit of a head in the clouds kind of girl the concept of creating characters to represent other things is grin-inducing anyway, but when they talk about playing with puppets and listening to music to try and manipulate their dreams I was so enthrawled I instantly wanted nothign more than to be adopted into their surreal, dream like partnership of joy.
these are a couple of their drawings that I am fond of but I suggest you check out their website because that is where all the best stuff is!
http://www.benandjulia.com/home.html
Reading about how they work was fascinating and really inspiring...as a bit of a head in the clouds kind of girl the concept of creating characters to represent other things is grin-inducing anyway, but when they talk about playing with puppets and listening to music to try and manipulate their dreams I was so enthrawled I instantly wanted nothign more than to be adopted into their surreal, dream like partnership of joy.
these are a couple of their drawings that I am fond of but I suggest you check out their website because that is where all the best stuff is!
http://www.benandjulia.com/home.html
our kid
Compared to some places Sheffield is not the cultural capital of England; hats off to Liverpool, The Human League and Joe Scarborough apparently don't compete with The Beatles and L.S. Lowry, but watch this space as Sheffield sees more and more talented young artist emerging from the dust of the recently demolished (yet desperately missed) cooling towers.
Obviously most people know the Arctic Monkeys, but until recently I was unaware that their video to 'When the Sun Goes Down' was produced by Warp Films, an offshoot of Warp Records (originally started in Sheffield) who have been involved in films for such people as Aphex Twin and Maximo Park.
These are the things that make me proud to say I'm from Sheffield, we can breed talent, and usually their roots are firmly grounded in their home city and they're not afraid to show it, as can be seen in the Arctic Monkey's video I mentioned above.
So one of my favourite artists that anyone from Sheffield will have no doubtedly witnessed, knowingly or unknowingly is a graffiti artist known as 'Kidd Acne'.
Since being a youngster I have seen his work crop up around Sheffield and even before I knew anything about art or design I could tell there was something different about this street art. His graffiti has a very distinct style and his work is instantly recognisable, which gives you a warm feeling when you catch a glimpse of a piece of his work as you glide on past it on a bus, reminding you that you are at home.
his work became so popular in Sheffield that local businesses searched him out to put his art work in their shops and clubs.
Stumbling into Plug night club in Sheffield in the early hours of one Friday morning I was overjoyed to see his work plastering the walls between the rooms.
I like the personal touch, and I think this pride in local artists is a great thing for a city to have.
His popularity has clearly started to boom though, taking a break one evening I was watching channel 4's 'Secret Millionaire' and was amazed to see the secret millionaire himself wearing a T-shirt designed by Kid Acne, I wasn't even aware he made t-shirts at this point but the style was unmissable!
Here is some of his work and I'll leave his web address at the bottom if you want to check it out.
/>
http://www.kidacne.com/blog/?page_id=4
Obviously most people know the Arctic Monkeys, but until recently I was unaware that their video to 'When the Sun Goes Down' was produced by Warp Films, an offshoot of Warp Records (originally started in Sheffield) who have been involved in films for such people as Aphex Twin and Maximo Park.
These are the things that make me proud to say I'm from Sheffield, we can breed talent, and usually their roots are firmly grounded in their home city and they're not afraid to show it, as can be seen in the Arctic Monkey's video I mentioned above.
So one of my favourite artists that anyone from Sheffield will have no doubtedly witnessed, knowingly or unknowingly is a graffiti artist known as 'Kidd Acne'.
Since being a youngster I have seen his work crop up around Sheffield and even before I knew anything about art or design I could tell there was something different about this street art. His graffiti has a very distinct style and his work is instantly recognisable, which gives you a warm feeling when you catch a glimpse of a piece of his work as you glide on past it on a bus, reminding you that you are at home.
his work became so popular in Sheffield that local businesses searched him out to put his art work in their shops and clubs.
Stumbling into Plug night club in Sheffield in the early hours of one Friday morning I was overjoyed to see his work plastering the walls between the rooms.
I like the personal touch, and I think this pride in local artists is a great thing for a city to have.
His popularity has clearly started to boom though, taking a break one evening I was watching channel 4's 'Secret Millionaire' and was amazed to see the secret millionaire himself wearing a T-shirt designed by Kid Acne, I wasn't even aware he made t-shirts at this point but the style was unmissable!
Here is some of his work and I'll leave his web address at the bottom if you want to check it out.
/>
http://www.kidacne.com/blog/?page_id=4
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Fish House
I went to Miami last December, and one one of my few trips away from the beach I came across this amazing building. A cylinder painted blue with fish protruding from it...I just had to investigate. Everything about it was curious, from the furtniture outside to the wrought iron spiral staircase inside to the fish themed door knockers. I took pictures of the mail box and name of the building and when I got home I researched it. It turned out to be a photographers apartment and studio.
I loved the building though so I thought I'd post the pictures here:
I loved the building though so I thought I'd post the pictures here:
I dream in stop motion
A friend of mine showed me this music video knowing that I love anything to do with surrealism and dreaming. I love the way it is filmed. It is so simple and yet so effective...one of those things that makes you kick yourself and wonder why you never thought of doing something similar.
WindHover - student work book
The University I attended in America, North Carolina State University, is very big on community and bringing the school of design together as one. So along with regular design council meetings and socials, towards the end of the year interviews are held to create a team to produce a book with a compilation of work submitted by deisgn students over the year.
I loved this idea, it gives everyone in the school of design something positive to take away, somethign to remind you that all the hard work you do isn't in vain and someone somewhere is probably flickign through the book and thinking 'wow, this person's work is pretty good!' and who knows, it could lead to a job, a collaboration or even just some inspiration.
I really liked this way of bringing people together and sharing work so I thought I' post an example of the kind of outcome achieved:
I loved this idea, it gives everyone in the school of design something positive to take away, somethign to remind you that all the hard work you do isn't in vain and someone somewhere is probably flickign through the book and thinking 'wow, this person's work is pretty good!' and who knows, it could lead to a job, a collaboration or even just some inspiration.
I really liked this way of bringing people together and sharing work so I thought I' post an example of the kind of outcome achieved:
The first time I watched this film I didn't really pay any attention to the storyline. I was busy watching for all the stylized effects and wondering what the next one would be.
I absolutely love the way this film was produced and think that there was a risk of the stylistic editing choices making it cheesy but it works extremely well and actually has the opposite effect.
Upon watching the film a second time (and a third and a fourth....) I really appreciated how the effects built up emphasis and drama within the film and made it the powerful movie that it is.
I recommend it to EVERYONE.
I absolutely love the way this film was produced and think that there was a risk of the stylistic editing choices making it cheesy but it works extremely well and actually has the opposite effect.
Upon watching the film a second time (and a third and a fourth....) I really appreciated how the effects built up emphasis and drama within the film and made it the powerful movie that it is.
I recommend it to EVERYONE.
Sin City - DIY, all you need is a green screen!
I have always liked Sin City but never really realised why I did until recently when I watched the extras on the DVD.
Robert Rodriguez gives an excellent commentary on his design and production which gives an amazing insight into his amazing skills as a director. The way he demonstrates how he overcomes difficulties when trying to mimic the stylistic qualities used in the graphic novels makes it all sound so simple! Rodriguez is clearly a very passionate director and designer and these two short films show you how much can be achieved with the little resources available to us as students. Obviously a feature length film based on an acclaimed graphic novel with an all star cast may be a little out of our reach, but the programmes, green screen and scripts are all available to be twisted and moulded by our very creative minds.
I found these films very interesting and think that anyone interested in film making or Sim City would enjoy watching
Robert Rodriguez gives an excellent commentary on his design and production which gives an amazing insight into his amazing skills as a director. The way he demonstrates how he overcomes difficulties when trying to mimic the stylistic qualities used in the graphic novels makes it all sound so simple! Rodriguez is clearly a very passionate director and designer and these two short films show you how much can be achieved with the little resources available to us as students. Obviously a feature length film based on an acclaimed graphic novel with an all star cast may be a little out of our reach, but the programmes, green screen and scripts are all available to be twisted and moulded by our very creative minds.
I found these films very interesting and think that anyone interested in film making or Sim City would enjoy watching
If you could wake up anywhere....
So I've been thinking about what I can possibly pull out of the bag for Fridays meeting where we will present our ideas for the Independent project.
After standing at work and daydreaming about the enless (yet thoroughly boring) possibilities I came up with what I think could b the begging of an idea. I wont write about it here because it is not thought through properly yet but it reminded me of this video which I found about a year ago and wanted to share with peopel but didn't have the right forum to do so, and here we are.
I hope you find it interesting,
After standing at work and daydreaming about the enless (yet thoroughly boring) possibilities I came up with what I think could b the begging of an idea. I wont write about it here because it is not thought through properly yet but it reminded me of this video which I found about a year ago and wanted to share with peopel but didn't have the right forum to do so, and here we are.
I hope you find it interesting,
Fifty People, One Question: London from Fifty People, One Question on Vimeo.
Monday, 28 September 2009
Fish Chair
I was reading a copy of ShortList magazine, when I came across an article about a Dutch Firm (Ontwerpers) who have taken inspiration from nature to create a new product.
As you can see from this picture, this seems like an amazing idea, why has no one thought of this brilliant solution to a comfy read at night before?!
Well these designers have taken to looking at nature, in this case, specifically the 'angler fish' which most people will be most familiar with from Finding Nemo.
This fish uses a light attached to a growth protruding from their head to lure unsuspecting fish in the dark...although the light from the chair is for something quite different it is still interesting how we can take inspiration from nature to influence our design, after all, it has worked for them for millions of years, why not learn from that to improve our world!
As you can see from this picture, this seems like an amazing idea, why has no one thought of this brilliant solution to a comfy read at night before?!
Well these designers have taken to looking at nature, in this case, specifically the 'angler fish' which most people will be most familiar with from Finding Nemo.
This fish uses a light attached to a growth protruding from their head to lure unsuspecting fish in the dark...although the light from the chair is for something quite different it is still interesting how we can take inspiration from nature to influence our design, after all, it has worked for them for millions of years, why not learn from that to improve our world!
Creatve Review Feat. Leeds Graduates
I recently picked up a copy of Creative Review as it was the 'graduate special' and I was intrigued to see what type of work caught the eyes of the Creative Review team from the millions of pieces of work they would have seen from graduate shows all across the country.
So I was extremely happy when I came across the first pair of graduates who happened to be from Leeds University!
I personally didn't know the pair, Joe Keirs and James Callahan, but after reading the article I became a lot more enthusiastic about returning to the course this year. They showed that with determination and a passion for what you want to do you can get what you want, illustrated by the fact that they were able to persuade tutors that they should be allowed to collaborate on projetcs where, as we all know, our final year is concentrated on our own individual work.
I also enjoyed reading about how they did a lot of their own work in their spare time as I have often done illustrations or made books but not thought they were of any importance simply because they were not givent o me in a brief format...now my perspective has changed and I am realising that work done out of the university guidelines can often be of great help to expand your work for briefs.
The favourite thing i came across was this, just because I liked the personal touch;
You can see more of their work at: http://jamesandjoe.co.uk/
Other than our ouwn home grown talent there were some other really interesting designers in this issue.
One graduate that I thought stood out was Eilin Bergum who does a lot of hand made things which I believe is the reason her work stood out to be picked for this issue of creative review if you have time to look at her blog it is quite interesting to read about some of her projects: http://eilinbergum.com/
Lastly, two graduates from 'Communication Design' In Kingston caught my eye with a simple but genius project. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves but I thought it was a clever way to show something that designers might not always think about.
So I was extremely happy when I came across the first pair of graduates who happened to be from Leeds University!
I personally didn't know the pair, Joe Keirs and James Callahan, but after reading the article I became a lot more enthusiastic about returning to the course this year. They showed that with determination and a passion for what you want to do you can get what you want, illustrated by the fact that they were able to persuade tutors that they should be allowed to collaborate on projetcs where, as we all know, our final year is concentrated on our own individual work.
I also enjoyed reading about how they did a lot of their own work in their spare time as I have often done illustrations or made books but not thought they were of any importance simply because they were not givent o me in a brief format...now my perspective has changed and I am realising that work done out of the university guidelines can often be of great help to expand your work for briefs.
The favourite thing i came across was this, just because I liked the personal touch;
You can see more of their work at: http://jamesandjoe.co.uk/
Other than our ouwn home grown talent there were some other really interesting designers in this issue.
One graduate that I thought stood out was Eilin Bergum who does a lot of hand made things which I believe is the reason her work stood out to be picked for this issue of creative review if you have time to look at her blog it is quite interesting to read about some of her projects: http://eilinbergum.com/
Lastly, two graduates from 'Communication Design' In Kingston caught my eye with a simple but genius project. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves but I thought it was a clever way to show something that designers might not always think about.
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