A long time coming

Ive been working on my project 'iliketext.com' in every spare moment I've gotten, so I've not managed to add any posts here for a while. Above is a experiment I did with outputting stats collected from the service I'm building, and while I was trying to look at ways of displaying data and statistics such that they are easily accessible and interesting, I quite like the above beyond-basic result, I find it quite interesting in a very minimalist abstract sense, though its not helpful at all. It quite reminds me of a train departure board.

On a more productive note, Ive been working on the User Interface of Iliketext.com and think I'm almost there, heres a preview of the work in progress:
Things are going along well.

working-title('TXTface');

Ok, so I'm quite motivated about this new project I'm working on, as I've mentioned in my last post. Here's a snippet of what the post on the website would look like (so far).
I am still looking for people to collaborate with me though, as I'm pretty sure my server-side/programming skills are seriously lacking.
The Empire Collective > TXTface

Bullshit!

Only recently read yet another great piece of design criticism over at Design Observer, called: On (design) Bullshit, its well worth a read. The following are just snippets:

"In discussing design work with their clients, designers are direct about the functional parts of their solutions and obfuscate like mad about the intuitive parts, having learned early on that telling the simple truth — "I don't know, I just like it that way" — simply won't do."

"... it's beside the point whether bullshit is true or false: 'It is impossible for someone to lie unless he thinks he knows the truth. Producing bullshit requires no such conviction.' There must only be the desire to conceal one's private intentions in the service of a larger goal: getting your client it to do it the way you like it."

"Calling bullshit on a designer, then, stings all the more because it contains an element of accuracy." - Michael Bierut

"I believe he used the term finesse to mean bullshit." - Niti Bhan

I've been working on some stuff for a local magazine here in Edinburgh, called Muckle Sandwich, with another designer that stays at the same hostel, I'll post some of it soon.

The Remnant

Well, I tried to organise an exhibition... It was due to be called "Share & Share Alike" but due to participation issues, the name has had to be changed, I think it's quite apt.

Title: The Remnant
Time: 6pm (The Evening) 17th Oct
Place: The Corner Cafe (Durban)

I'll take pics of my work once it's all up, I was quite chuffed with my contribution in the end, It's just a pity so many of the original participants pulled out at the last moment.

Graphic Finger-wear

I'm by no means a jewelery designer, but I'm busy with this at the moment a quick project before a leave RSA to try my luck in London-town. I'm doing it more as a gift idea than anything else, I have yet to source the right kind of resin to seal them with though, but I should get my hands on that pretty soon.
Its quite funny actually I was at movies with a friend of mine and my girlfriend and we saw something similar at a shop for R300 (only way uglier), and I declared then that it was a total ripoff and than I could do that myself anyday. So here I am proving a point (If only to myself).

Chokolate Mmm

I've been getting very weary of those "lists" that seem to be flying around the internet, especially those that claim such extravagances as "top 50 business card ideas". For me that roughly translates into "How to get out of doing anything even remotely creative for your 1st year Corporate ID project", or "Idiots guide to copying and plagiarism."
This on the other had I found over at Graphics-Exchange. And I have to say I think its awesome, not in the sense that makes one think "Oh gee wiz, I gotta try that", rather in the sense that it makes ones heart race and thoughts fly through your head like "Fucking hell! I wish I'd done something that cool. Ever!" ... I think you get the idea.
The comprehensive identity entitled "Chokolate Mmm" was done by Bunch Design, for dance studio and agency Chokolate.
[via Graphic-Exchange]

Data Representation, US Tax Cut (proposal)

I have recently found, or come to the realization that, my interest in design is constantly shifting it's preferred specialization and of late I've been rather taken by Information-Design, it could be due to my rather geeky background, or just my programming background mixed with design. Either way I really liked the above graph/chart redrawn by Viveka Weiley of Chartjunk.

The beauty of it is more evident when its viewed with the chart it would be replacing, or improving upon but, I figured for both the reason that it disagreed with my aesthetic predispositions (and so didn't want it on my blog), and that viewing both together in the context of the article written by Viveka Weiley is probably a better idea,

The Flow of Communication

Thanks to my following the happenings at The Diagram, who have just published version 8.4. I've started experimenting with diagrams to communicate poems, prose, and found text. I'm still in the process of developing the execution, but I'm rather pleased with it so far.
Like the one above, that's still in sketch form, based on the children's rhyme "Georgie Porgie Pudding And Pie".

I hope to produce a series of limited run screen prints, for my up coming collaborative exhibition "Share & share alike", so any criticism (good or bad) would be much appreciated.
[Inspiration via The Diagram]

Mr Moustache Tote Bag

Possibly because I've been cultivating my own crop of stache, but I really liked this tote bag I found over at Monster Munch. Very much like the Mr Mr series that I also happened to really enjoy.
[via Monster Munch]

I came across this quote on ffffound, and although (due to it being on ffffound) everyone has probably seen it, it struck such a chord with me, that I just had to re-post it. And along with this one, I found another great quote, via WikiQuote.

"Is graffiti art or vandalism? That word has a lot of negative connotations and it alienates people, so no, I don't like to use the word 'art' at all" Banksy

Milk gone bad

Though I think the milk carton with with that particular stye of illustration isnt quite my cup of tea, the presentation, and technique for showing artwork and illustration is beyond awesome, thats what I find most intregueing about this work by Anatomic Factory.

"The Milk Gone Bad table lamp by AnAtomic Factory with illustrations by Bombo is a follow-up to the earlier Long Life Light. When the Milk Gone Bad light is off, it resembles a simple white milk carton. When switched on, the light reveals the mold that grows unseen inside. The imaginary cartoon-like mold happens to be a lot more pleasant than the real life version and is available in 8 colourways, each with a different personality. The lamp comes flat and is constructed much the way a milk carton would be." moco loco

I'm going to be looking into doing light box like displays for my own work, but most likely will be wall mounted rectangles as apposed to table top objects.

[via mocoloco ]

White Winter Hymnal, Grandchildren

I can't really remember how I found the work of Grandchildren (Sean Pecknold), but I was asstonished at what I found. This stop motion music video, for the song 'White Winter Hymnal' by Fleet Foxes is utterly brilliant.
What I find so unbelievable and what only adds to the brilliance of the video is the fact that it took only 2 months to produce. Amazing.
Based on the music video, I went and got the albumn Fleet Foxes - Ragged Wood, now if thats not the point of a good video, then I dont know what is. I've posted some stills from the video, but you can click on the images, or here; to view the video.

It's easy to see how Grandchildren produced such a brilliant video, when you look at his portfolio, awesome photography and good design. Well worth a perusing.

Public Art

Following my own progress into critically considering the roll of graphic design, be it commercial or expressive, individual or collaborative, I found the above work entitled "Public Art", by designer Chris Clarke, his own words describe it best;

"The notion of ‘public art’ is an awkward idea to resolve. By definition, it encompasses any artwork which is publicly accessible, typically situated in outdoor spaces. It is expected that ‘public art’ somehow exists for the public, but typically does not involve them in its making. Its record suggests that the majority of ‘public art’ is not so different from the ‘art’ which occupies the gallery spaces of the ‘art world’, and is often taken by artists as a chance simply to try out bigger and more adventurous, weather tolerant projects. This canvas, entitled ‘Public Art’, is a proposed reality check on the term from which it derives. The piece comprises a collection of marks made in, and extracted from, the public domain. Sampling from a collection of pen tester sheets found in stationers and art shops around the city of Bristol over a four month period, the composition bears true public authorship in its form, capturing directly the voices of a random cross-section of Bristolians.

The result of this incidental public collaboration is a pseudo abstract-expressionist composition, essentially concerned with colour, mark and vocalisation. Both as a display of public identity and a record of the visual musings of the public unconscious, ‘Public Art’ brings value to the overlooked output of the Bristolian public, in documentation of the assumed banality of everyday public history." Chris Clarke

Design Education Criticism

My father recently bought me a book, Looking Closer Five: Critical writings on graphic design, to help with my critical thining on design, especially since I've decided I want to do my MA in graphic design.

While I'm nowhere near finished the book, I came across an article by Jessica Helfand entitled "Method Designing: The paradox of modern design education", and it really stuck home, especially since I've just completed my B.tech Degree and have been looking at my contemporaries and I, and analysing how we each dealt with our "design education" at DUT (Durban). The Article draws lines of similarity between the technique of acting introduced by Stanislavsky called "Method Acting" and graphic design. The quotes below particualarly stuck home.

"The good news is that in an effort to produce designers who can think for themselves, we ask our students to identify a method which becomes evident through the work that they produce. Such an emphasis on authorship is, by and large, a way to train young designers as thinkers — and not merely as service providers. (So far, so good.) At the same time, we encourage them to seek references beyond the obvious: the richness of their sources testifies to an ability to engage a larger universe, and their work benefits from locating itself along a trajectory they've chosen and defined for themselves.

The bad news is that as a consequence of seeking validation elsewhere, there is an unusual bias toward false identity: so the design student, after looking at so much art, believes that s/he is making art. The design student, after considering so deeply the intangible forces framing the interpretation of visual form, comes to believe that the very act of interpretation is itself the form. This is where the method backfires so paradoxically: in being true to ourselves, we distance ourselves from a more universal truth, the kind that designers, in making messages clear, are so naturally predisposed to understand."

Though I'm not really affiliated with the university that I studied at, beyond being a student, I wish I could pin this article up on the notice boards, but I know (havning only too recently been a student) that most of the people that would most bennifit from it, will mostly likely not read past the first paragraph. Its a Shame,really.

The article, although from the book Looking Closer Five, can also be found in it's entirety at DesignObserver where the author is an Editor. The site is in my opinion one of the leading Critical Design blogs, and well worth being read often.
I'm hoping (counting on the fact) that I'll find more articles like the one above that with influence me, no end, and hopefully help me flesh out my Masters proposal.

Melting Words by Kotama Bouabane

Melting Words, by Kotama Bouabane. As simple as they are, I love them. You can see Bouabane's portfolio at the link above.
[via Pan-Dan, Omami]

Im busy working on an upcoming exhibition I'm organizing with fellow members of The Empire Collective, called "Share and share alike", I'll post work in progress (as soon as I've progressed, hehe)

A one lady fashion catalogue

Ok. I'm not sure where to start, when I started my blog I had intended (or at least imagined) it to be full of graphic design (of the print variety), but as I sit here and contemplate my previous post trends, it would seem I'm far more interested in fashion that what I had thought. Thankfully not to the point of excluding all other disciplines of graphic/visual design. It's rather enlightening to see the things I've found visually appealing through the time I've been posting here. I blame Gary of SprayGlue for my subtle shift towards fashion.
Anyway. This post is actually about a miss Liebemarlene Vintage. I came across her Flickr page whilst browsing the net for fashion reference for work, and OMF is her sense style good. The pictures are awesome too. So far as i can gather (I'm not one for research), she buys her clothes at thrift/antique stores, then sells them on via Ebay.

[Coincidentally the sunglasses she's wearing remind me of my beautiful girlfriend]

Papercraft Trabant 601

This is what i got up to during my lunch-break on Friday last week. I found Perpenduum.com thanks to ffffound, and on his blog found his template for the above Trabant 601. Its surprising how realistic the photgraphic texturing make the very simply folded paper. but i suppose thats the theory/practice behind most 3D/CGI modeling and texturing. I quite liked it, so I took a pic to share. If you want the template, you can get it from Perpenduum.com

LLLLOST & Post-it Birdy

Firstly, this is a most sincere request to anyone to happens to cross paths with my blog, and is in possession of a ffffound account, from which they can invite me. I love ffffound and am llllost without an account. Please ... please find it in your graphically orientated hearts to invite me.

Anyway... The above image is a mild excursion into urban/street pixel art that I found myself doing to pass the time during a power outage at work. The idea is that I will create roughly 8x8 images with Post-Its then varnish/wheat-paste them in place. So far all I've done is the above experiment on a piece of found wood. But, urban canvas here I come. Inspired by boredom and space-invaders.
[image from my flickr]

UPADTE:


After making the above half of the post, I was browsing ffffound, and came across the red pixel image above. Its a silk screened poster available at Hybrid-Home. I thought it was cool, and relevant, so added it to my post.
[via ffffound: Apartment Therapy : Hybrid-Home]