Questioning Reality

Entries categorized as ‘design’

Back from a month-long break fueled by coffee

September 30, 2009 · Leave a Comment

So lots has happened in this past month, causing this blog to unfortunately fall to the wayside. In a whirlwind turn of events, I somehow found myself in retail management (ironically - and dangerously – in footwear), and simultaneously short-staffed and without an assistant, resulting in roughly 80-hour weeks (I wish I was exaggerating). Today is my first day I haven’t had to work 11 hours in nearly a month. Assuming all goes well, I hope to resume the stream-of-conscious aggregation of thoughts that this blog had become.

And to kick things back off on a solid graphic-design foot, here’s a classic that never gets old, and pretty much describes my life for the past month or so: Lokesh Dhakar’s “Coffee Drinks Illustrated:”

coffeedrinks

Hopefully this won’t be the last post for another month…

Categories: art · coffee · creativity · design · graphic design · idea · inspiration · shoes

This blog still has a pulse? and: When animation meets time-lapse tilt-shift

August 23, 2009 · 2 Comments

Thanks to some faulty internet hardware and 70+ hour work weeks, I still haven’t gotten back into the swing of this blog thing yet. I’m working on it though… i assure you. Soon, hopefully, all will return to normal. But until then, here’s one more video clip for you to enjoy:

The music is Chad Kuchula, and the amazing video, combining tilt-shift, time lapse, and animation in a beautiful yet not overly nauseating way is done by Nat Dart. On top of being awesome, the video makes me realize just a bit how much I miss the trees and the water. The southwest desert ain’t bad, but I definitely miss me some evergreens.

Categories: Photography · animation · art · clip-o-the-weekend · creativity · design · film · idea · inspiration · music

Hey! Read this! (and why regular posting has been temporarily suspended)

July 28, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Sometimes you have to be direct to get your message across. Like this beautiful bit of package design courtesy of the Hain Celestial Group:

Hey! Read my label!

Apparently organic foods and subtlety don’t go hand in hand. Although I suppose it is somewhat attention grabbing and effective, in an annoying sort of way. I’m fine with my rice crisps not having any attitude, thank you. Anyway…

Once again, I’m in the process of moving again, although just a few miles away this time – not half way across the country. So at the moment, I have no internet and no substantial time. Add to it the duties involved with showing a visiting friend around the area, and unfortunately the blog has fallen by the wayside. Dare I say it, I’m on a non-blogging staycation! (imagine regurgitation sounds here).

Anyway, a photo for all you photo lovers from my recent trip to White Sands National Monument.

clouds at white sands

Most likely, assuming all goes according to a loose plan, semi-regular posting should theoretically resume in a few days.

Categories: Photography · advertising · art · bizarre · branding · crazy · creativity · design · food · graphic design · language · packaging

Stop motion + furniture + molotov cocktails = impressive promo

July 16, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Have some furniture you need to promote? Have some spare time? Maybe try doing something along these lines:

Product testing in stop motion is pretty impressive, especially for something as mundane as a coffee table (no offense to furniture designers!). The product is the Armadillo coffee table from Doublebutter out of Denver, CO. Cool stuff. It makes me want a coffee table that needs a bit of “product testing.”

Categories: advertising · art · creativity · design · film · product design

Package and Graphic Design at it’s best: Brooklyn Fare

July 14, 2009 · Leave a Comment

As many know, I hold a special place in my mind for restaurants and markets. That’s part of the reason that good design for food establishments makes me so happy.

brooklyn-fare-coffee-cups

All designed by Mucca Design for Brooklyn Fare, it’s simple, direct, and an absolutely perfect blend of crisp and ballsy copy with exceptionaly clean, almost modernist design (that kind of reminds me of the W+K work for The Guardian).

Eat Me Daily has an awesome write up with great info and an awesome video.

Categories: advertising · branding · coffee · creativity · design · graphic design · language · packaging · product design

The Social Media Venn Diagram analyzes your social habits

July 7, 2009 · Leave a Comment

I’ve been meaning to post this up for a while now… I keep looking at and keep laughing, but somehow forget to post it. I myself am on the fence with most social media outlets (as most who try to keep in touch with me probably know). I understand them, but at the same time, I don’t. They make sense, and the advertising/social networking possibilities are huge. But this beautiful diagram kind of sums up the other side of my feelings.

social_media_venn

Available as a t-shirt from Despair.  And I have to say, there’s some beautiful irony in a social networking diagram on a t-shirt.

Categories: advertising · art · branding · creativity · design · graphic design · idea · information · inspiration · language · social networking · technology · visualization · web

HP printers + stop motion = an incredible spot

July 3, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Pretty amazing. and speaks volumes to the power of HP printers… much more than the average printer spot:

I’m diggin’ it. More info at the D&AD student award page.

Categories: Photography · advertising · animation · commercials · creativity · design · visualization

Nike Sportswear Stories: Stop-motion meets clothing catalog

June 19, 2009 · Leave a Comment

nswstories

Nike Sportswear Stories showcases Nikesportswear (NSW) Italy’s new line-up an in incredibly complex and equally creative fashion. Clothing lookbooks have gotten more and more complex, often at the expenese of actually highlighting the clothes. These stop-motion exposees tell stories while still showcasing the clothes themselves. Impressive and definitely worth a look.

Categories: advertising · art · branding · creativity · design · graphic design · visualization

The Changing Face of Everyday Design

June 18, 2009 · Leave a Comment

guardiaprogression

I just stumbled across this piece from The Guardian showing what they call “The Changing Face of Everyday Design.” Pretty simple, but pretty effective and interesting. If you click through, you can view all of the images at a larger scale. Somewhat ironically, they printed a few corrections noting that several of the police cars pictured were from the incorrect era. It shouldn’t be that difficult… and The Guardian is usually on top of stuff. I guess it just goes to show that some design is ahead (or behind, as the case may be) of its time.

Categories: Photography · art · creativity · design · graphic design · idea · knowledge · newspaper · product design · social change

Visual Information Overload: GOOD Magazine on Flickr

June 17, 2009 · Leave a Comment

goodflickr

It looks like this has been around for a while, but somehow I’ve missed it until now. GOOD magazine has uploaded all of their Transparencies into a set on Flickr… pretty impressive collection of mind-blowing info-graphics. Kind of a shame they restrict the flickr images to small size, forcing you to click through to the GOOD website. But I’ve seen worse. Plus, their infographics are so amazing, I’ll let it slide.

Categories: art · crazy · creativity · design · graphic design · idea · information · knowledge · language · science · social change · visualization