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Start the Year off Right With 2 Months of Skillshare Premium for Free
Looking to start 2019 off on the right foot? Looking for ways to challenge yourself and take your work to another level? Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes related to design, illustration, business and marketing with guidance from the top industry experts. Join Grain Edit faves such as Andrew Fairclough, Tom Froese, Kate Bingaman-Burt and Brad Woodard in classes on handmade textures, storytelling, self-promotion and much more. In addition, delve into curated workshop offerings alongside like-minded students that provide ways to encourage each other and gather feedback. Whether you are looking to launch a fulfilling side project, explore a new career path or further develop your existing talents, Skillshare has you covered.
For a limited time, Grain Edit readers can receive 2 months of Skillshare Premium for free. Don't miss out on this opportunity!
Click here to receive 2 months of Skillshare Premium for free.
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01.29.19 | Dave | sponsors
Try Skillshare Premium for Free
Do you want to hone your craft or discover new techniques? Join Skillshare, an online learning community with over 15,000 classes in design, illustration, photography, and more. Courses guide students through a series of hands-on and immersive lessons, each divided into short modules, allowing you to learn at your own pace. Featured teachers include logo design legend Aaron Draplin, renown hand letterer Jessica Hische and illustration experts Kate Bingaman-Burt and Andrew Fairclough (Kindred Studio). Premium membership starts at $10 a month (if paid annually) for unlimited access to the curriculum.
Click here to get 2 months of Skillshare Premium for free.
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04.03.17 | Sandy | sponsors
Sponsor // 100% Free Assets for Every Designer
1001FreeDownloads is a new site where you can find thousands of images which are not only free, but royalty-free, and can be used for commercial and business purposes.The free downloads available on the site are organized under nine image types and categories: Vectors, Photos, Fonts, Icons, Wallpapers, Brushes, Styles, Patterns and Clipart and can be downloaded immediately without registration. Just pick and download, it's that simple.
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04.27.15 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // The Secret Of Parallax Scrolling Revealed by Webydo's Code-Free Design Platform
Now available in Beta mode – Webydo's Parallax Scrolling Animator feature
Few things can make a website stand out from the masses like creating a Parallax Scrolling website into. But what is Parallax? Parallax allows background, middle ground, and foreground elements on a web page to move at a separate rate from one another, which when done properly, creates a 3D effect as the end user scrolls down the page. Long a tool of animators, it took the web design world by storm when it first gained mass attention with in 2011 Nike's Better World website, and since then has become the go to trending design structure in the arsenal of web designers who need an extra bit of flair to make their sites shine.
Still, despite its evolution from 2D cartoon images and into the mainstream world of web design, Parallax scrolling is something that needs to be used in the proper context in order to really be effective. When utilized as a storytelling device, to engage users interactively, or as a method to enhance the presentation of a product, Parallax Scrolling is a powerful option to create a site and share your brand story.
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05.21.14 | Dave | sponsors | 
Sponsor // 81K Designers Shaping The Website Design Industry With Webydo's Professional Code-Free Design Studio.
Appealing to the professional and savvy designer, Webydo is the leading online design studio that enables designers to create, manage and publish their client's websites completely code-free. The cloud-based, online website design platform is revolutionizing the professional web design industry and putting designers in the driver's seat. Webydo enables web and graphic designers to create fresh, dynamic HTML websites without writing having to manually write code. Saving designer's time and money, Webydo appeals to the professional designer and helps them to create successful and long lasting designer-client relationships. This is apparent through their integrated cloud hosting, efficient content management system (CMS), and the Webydo Dashboard that allows for intuitive management of thousands of client sites. The Dashboard also allows designers to bill their clients directly using the "Bill Your Client" feature, and, with the White Label feature, designers can put their company logo front and center on the login screen.
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04.24.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Afreeka! DJ OM and DJ Makossa Psych Mix and Monthly Show
Flyer design: Mike Schofield Resource Room Productions
Deejay OM is a long time friend of mine. We used to roll around Northern California hitting busted record shacks and dirt malls while bragging about our latest private press lp scores. The man has an insane record collection. He's the guy with the Og PI-R Square 45 you wish you had. Make that 10 copies you wish you had. Every first Wednesday of the month at the Attic in the Mission district of San Francisco OM along with DJ MAKossa lay down some seriously rare grooves. For tonight's show (April 1st 2009) they will be showing the 1978 Brazilian Psychedelic horror flick Hallucinations of a deranged mind to accompany the music.
Today for grain edit readers OM and MAKossa have prepared 2 special live sets. They drop everything from raw American psych to spaced out funky electronics ala Pierre Henry. OM starts off his set with a classic psych cut by Animated Egg and eventually works into a track off his Reheated Naan and Curry lp that is so hard that it will break your face. MAKossa serves up a killer Turkish track, Jamaican chatter and drums thicker then a hippopotamus covered in maple syrup.
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04.01.09 | Dave | mixes |
Legistyles: Free Custom NetNewsWire Themes
I use NetNewsWire to read all my feeds. One of the great things about it is that you can use custom CSS styles. Antonio over Aisle One has put together a wonderful set of NetNewsWire styles that he calls Legistyles. As he mentions on the Legistyles site "Much attention has been paid to the design and typography of the styles to improve legibility and readability, and to enhance the overall reading experience."
Currently there are 4 styles available.
Serif Black 1.0, Serif White 1.0 (Titles and body text are set in Baskerville)
Haaus (Titles are set in Futura and the body text is set in Lucida Grande)
and Brockmann (Titles and body text are set in Helvetica)
Check it out for yourself here.
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02.12.09 | Dave | Found design |
Run Studio Run
Building and sustaining a design firm is a massive endeavor and until recently there has been a lack of material on the subject. In Run Studio Run, a new book published by Extracurricular Press, Eli Altman sheds light on the topic and shares valuable insights that help to shape his naming/branding agency A Hundred Monkeys. With stories and personal commentary, Eli digs into the nitty gritty of running a business and the challenges along the way. Joining him are a diverse cast of studio owners and freelancers including Aaron Draplin, Kate Bingaman-Burt and Brent Couchman that provide advice and tips throughout the book. Run Studio Run is still in fundraising mode, but should be released this coming Spring. To support production costs and secure a copy please visit the Kickstarter campaign. Prints, pins and notebooks designed by the team at Moniker are also available as special rewards for backers.
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12.19.17 | Dave | Found design
Jacob Escobedo
If you've recently walked into a record store or flipped through the TV channels, you've probably seen the art of Jacob Escobedo. In addition to being the VP of creative design at Cartoon Network and Adult Swim, he immerses himself in a number of side projects. He's designed album covers for bands, such as The Shins and Broken Bells, and crafted editorial illustrations for The New Yorker, MIT Technology Review, and other prominent publications. Highly influenced by vintage sci-fi book covers and artists like David Pelham and Jean Giraud (AKA Mœbius), his work is filled with galactic scenery and otherworldly characters. These cosmic compositions radiate with pink, blue, and purple rays of light that beautifully glisten against the darkness of outer space. Similar colors are also present in his series of album covers for Adult Swim Singles, a collection of free songs by contemporary musicians. The artwork's marbled and oozing colors look as though they are dripping before your eyes. This optical illusion is brought to life on the project's website where the illustrations are transformed into interactive animations.
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05.15.17 | Sandy | Found design
Squarespace Circle
Introducing Circle — a community for creative professionals who build three or more websites on Squarespace. Currently free, members gain access to exclusive content, specialized customer care, advanced guides and product release notes. An open forum is also available to connect with others and gather valuable feedback. In addition, users receive six-month trial periods for new projects and 20% off the first year off a website or online store annual plan. Click here to learn more about the benefits of joining.
This post is brought to you by Squarespace – a website publishing platform that makes it easy to create beautiful websites, portfolios, blogs, and online stores without touching a line of code.
Interested in sponsoring Grain Edit? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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05.08.17 | Sandy | sponsors
Nejc Prah
Nejc Prah is a Slovenian graphic designer based in New York City. An up-and-coming designer with an intriguing style, he's earned accolades from the Type Directors Club and was named an ADC Young Gun for 2016. In addition to designing at Bloomberg Businessweek, Prah works on freelance projects and is a member of the artist collaborative,Ansambel.
I am especially drawn to his work for the Fotopub Photography Festival, an event in Novo Mesto, Slovenia that aims to educate, inspire, and connect photographers. For the festival's identity system, Prah used a cracked egg to symbolize the birth of the new ideas and relationships that are formed at the event. This theme became a continuous thread throughout the festival's promotional materials that illustrate the numerous ways an egg can be broken.
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05.01.17 | Sandy | Found design
Andrew Fairclough Interview
I love getting lost in Andrew Fairclough's illustrations. Not only do they hold the drama and charm of vintage comics, but they also possess "true grit" – an expression he uses to describe his love for halftone patterns and grainy visual noise. These elements add a sense of nostalgia and tactility to his art and were prominently featured in his first solo show,Total Control, at China Heights gallery in Australia. In today's interview, we discuss the exhibition, as well as his passion for teaching and his latest side project – an online shop for textured Photoshop brushes and vectors.
This is the second part in a two-part interview series in collaboration with our friends at Skillshare. For a limited time, you can take Andrew's class (as well as many other classes) for free. Click here to learn more and receive 2 months of Skillshare Premium for free.
And now on to the interview…
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04.24.17 | Sandy | Features
Kate Bingaman-Burt Interview
Kate Bingaman-Burt is a prolific illustrator, educator, and beacon of inspiration. Her passion for encouraging and cultivating creativity shines through her work as an associate professor of graphic design at Portland State University. This love for teaching also extends beyond the classroom, as demonstrated through her many lectures and workshops on drawing and zine production. In these discussions, she highlights the importance of artistic discovery and giving oneself time to explore and create. Additionally, she promotes rule-based projects that allow for a clear set of constraints. These values form the foundation for her latest endeavor, Outlet, a retail/workshop space. In today's interview, we discuss Outlet as well as her many contributions to the teaching community.
This is the first part in a two-part interview series in collaboration with our friends at Skillshare. For a limited time you can take Kate's class (as well as many other classes) for free. Click here to learn more and receive 2 months of Skillshare Premium for free.
and now on to the interview..
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04.10.17 | Sandy | Features
Squarespace for Photographers
Want to showcase your photography? Squarespace provides a simple yet elegant way to develop an online presence and present your work. Starting at $12 a month, the all-in-one platform allows you to create a powerful website without coding on the domain name of your choice. With well-designed templates, simply upload your images and customize the pages to your liking. Lightboxes, parallax scrolling, full-screen display modes, and slideshows are also available to further enhance the viewers experience. For the photographer on the go, the Squarespace Portfolio app allows for mobile access and the ability to present work to clients – even without an internet connection.
Start your free trial today. No credit card required. When you're ready to subscribe, enter coupon code GRAINEDIT at checkout to save 10% off the selected plan.
This post is brought to you by Squarespace – a website publishing platform that makes it easy to create beautiful websites, portfolios, blogs, and online stores without touching a line of code.
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03.27.17 | Sandy | sponsors
Artists For Education
America's public schools are underfunded and teachers are often lacking essential tools to effectively do their job. To address this, Brad and Krystal Woodard of the design studio, Brave the Woods, created Artists For Education (AFE). The artist-led initiative aims to produce posters that educate and inspire students. To support these efforts, a fundraising campaign has been launched as well as an open call for designers to submit art. Submissions that are accepted will be available for teachers to download free of charge. In addition, giclée prints of the designs can be purchased, with a portion of profits benefiting educational programs. Participating artists include: Invisible Creature, Eight Hour Day, Mary Kate McDevitt, Justin Pervorse, Tuesday Bassen and many more.
To contribute to AFE, please visit their Indiegogo campaign.
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12.21.16 | Sandy | Found design
Sponsor // A Fresh Face in The Stock Imagery World
Foto Sushi, a new player in the stock photo industry, is breathing life into the mundane world of people imagery. The brainchild of seasoned art directors and designers, Foto Sushi was created to help alleviate some of the pain that goes into finding good people images. Designers can choose from about a dozen expressions per model, and each model is shot under consistent lighting schemes so they can be easily grouped together. Each extra-large, high resolution image has been beautifully retouched to save designers time and models are shot in focus to make them easy to clip out. Lastly, Images are never cropped, so designers wont' be inconvenienced with rebuilding body parts. Licensing agreements are Royalty-free making Foto Sushi hassle-free.
See all the images at Foto Sushi.
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09.20.16 | Dave | sponsors
Michael Spitz
Michael Spitz is a freelance graphic designer based in New York City. From logos to illustrations, he tackles a wide breadth of projects and styles. Having a passion for typeface design, his portfolio is chock-full of innovative lettering and monograms. One exploration that is particularly impressive is a metallic bronze monogram that encases the entire alphabet and blooms from A at its center to Z at its rim. His inventive typographic designs are featured in the books New Graphic Design – The 100 Best Contemporary Graphic DesignersandTypism 1 and2.
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09.14.16 | Sandy | Found design
Tyler Deeb
Tyler Deeb is a self-taught designer, based in Louisville, Kentucky, who specializes in print, identity, and product design. His beautiful typography and detailed illustrations have graced the pages of publications such asEntertainment Weekly and Fast Company. Deeb's successful 2012 Kickstarter campaign to produce a set of playing cards, a side project he designed in between freelance jobs, evolved into Misc. Goods Co., an online shop where he sells his card decks, screen printed posters, and a collection of accessories.
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05.16.16 | Sandy | Found design
Sponsor // The Hungry JPEG
Fetridge & Outfitter
In recent years script fonts have found a renewed interest. Known for their fluid and varied strokes these digital counterparts draw inspiration from sign painting of the past and present. Since they are based on the gestures of the written word, they can add warmth and personality to a design often making it more approachable.
In today's post we highlight a series of scripts from our sponsor The Hungry JPEG. Ranging in a variety of styles and weights the examples below represent just a small fraction of their current catalog.
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02.29.16 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // Fonts.com Desktop Font Subscriptions
Not having the right type for the job can make your design workflow suffer. While licensing a large collection of fonts can mean a major up front investment. We've got you covered, though!
Introducing Fonts.com Desktop Font Subscriptions. Access over 9,000 top fonts for just one low monthly price. Our comprehensive library will help you tackle nearly any design project—be it branding, publication, packaging or more!
You'll unlock the Monotype, Linotype and ITC typeface libraries, which feature signature designs like the Neue Helvetica®, Avenir® Next, and ITC Franklin Gothic™ families—as well popular new releases, including the Metro® Nova and Neue Haas Grotesk™ collections. See how easy and affordable it can be to have complete access to the world's greatest type.
Get your new subscription FREE for 14 days now!
This post is brought to you by Fonts.com – a leading provider of desktop fonts and Web fonts. With an exhaustive inventory of type related products and subscriptions, Fonts.com can help you get your design work done quickly, easily, and more beautifully.
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08.17.15 | Dave | sponsors
Michael Driver
Michael Driver is a freelance illustrator based in the UK with a knack for crafting colorful and often character-driven work. I'm especially fond of the piece above, which was the winning entry in the D&AD Wetransfer brief 'Draw Yourself in Ten Years'. In the illustration Michael envisions his future self with a cushy London pad, a slick Eames chair and a noticeable lack of hair.
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06.22.15 | Dave | Found design
Squarespace Cover Pages
First impressions are everything, and with Squarespace's new Cover Page tool, you can craft a bold, yet elegant standalone landing page in a manner of minutes! The twelve themes to choose from can be used in powerful ways for a variety of applications. Create pages to collect email addresses, promote your brand or even announce upcoming events. In addition, Cover Pages work independently of your core theme, so you can easily add them to an existing website. Combined with Squarespace's robust e-commerce functionally, they can be used in unique and meaningful ways of connecting with your biggest fans and loyal customers.
Included with each Squarespace account are real-time analytics, a free domain, cloud hosting and award-winning 24/7 support.
Save 10%
Squarespace is graciously offering grain edit readers a 10% discount off all plans for a limited time. Type in GRAINEDIT during checkout to activate the discount and launch your Squarespace experience.
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06.02.15 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // CreativeLive
CreativeLive educates and inspires the creative world by providing affordable skill-based education 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Founded with the belief that world-class education can (and should) be available to everyone, CreativeLive is the first online education company to combine high production value, social interaction, and renowned experts with a live, free 24/7 format. The interactive nature of CreativeLive's classes creates an environment that fosters community, creative breakthroughs, and lasting personal change.
CreativeLive launched their Design Channel this January with a roster of amazing instructors including James Victore, Stanley Hainsworth, Brandon Rike, and more.
Don't miss Hand Lettering School this week on CreativeLive where you can catch rebroadcasts of the following classes and purchase them at sale prices:
4/13 – Hand Lettering 101 with Annica Lydenberg
4/14 – Illustrative Stylings: Lettering and More with Chris Piascik
4/15 – Methods for Custom Lettering with Brandon Rike
4/16 – Chalk Lettering with Annica Lydenberg
4/17 – Bold & Fearless Poster Design with James Victore
Check out all of our hand lettering classes right here.
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04.13.15 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // Webydo
Your web design canvas. Made for designers.
Webydo is a professional website design platform that empowers graphic and
web designers to create and manage pixel-perfect responsive websites for
their clients, completely code-free.
Led by a community of over 130K professional designers, design studios and
agencies, Webydo helps creative professionals concentrate on what is most
important to them – the creative element of web building. With advanced
features like a built-in CMS, a full white label solution and the ability to
bill clients directly from the dashboard, designers can truly create their
web design empire.
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03.23.15 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // Digit
Everyone feels like they should be saving more money. However saving money is hard and stressful. That's why we built Digit. Digit automatically saves money for you, so you don't have to think about it. Our hope is, with Digit, we can remove some of the money stress from our lives. So far Digit has saved over $700,000 for our members.
Today we're sharing more invites to Digit.
Anyone who uses this link, not only will be able to sign up for Digit today. But will also get jump started with a free $5 in their Digit savings.
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01.19.15 | Dave | sponsors
Sponsor // LG UltraWide Curved IPS Display
Riding on the heels of the much loved 34UM95 QHD monitor, LG has just released the 34UC97, the world's first 21:9 UltraWide curved display. Similar to the UM95 the 34UC97 features ample screen real estate and IPS technology which allows for sharp imagery at any viewing angle. This will prove to be useful to multi-taskers looking to break free from the distractions of a two monitor set-up in favor of a more unified viewing experience. Designers will be especially interested in its rendering capabilities. With coverage of over 99% of the sRGB spectrum, the 34UC97 serves up a highly accurate color profile consistent with the actual printed output. In addition, it offers multiple Thunderbolt2 ports, so you can easily daisy-chain all your Mac-compatible devices. Check out the video below to learn more about this amazing monitor.
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11.04.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Justin Pervorse Interview
Continuing our series of process related interviews, we chat with illustrator and designer Justin Pervorse. A Bay Area transplant via Atlanta, Justin has been relentlessly perfecting his craft over the last decade.
I first caught wind of Justin's talents during his tenure at Mailchimp, where he injected his infectious personality into a series of slick illustrations and campaigns for the email giant. He has since moved on to Dropbox's internal design department, a position that has allowed him to further expand his creative capabilities. Through the support of his peers, Justin and his team have created a series of self-initiated projects that explore and uplift the spirit of the brand. In today's interview we highlight one of these projects, delve into his workflow and discuss his earliest days as a designer.
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10.14.14 | Dave | Features |
Ty Wilkins Interview
It's rare that I come across a designer whose work has as much personality and charm as Ty Wilkins. Hailing from Austin, Ty's portfolio is filled with character-driven projects that showcase his mastery of color, texture and repetition.
Prior to launching his own studio, Ty worked for Gardner Design, where he developed branding, packaging, signage and redesigned LogoLounge. He also traveled extensively, which had a profound impact on his aesthetic sensibilities. Currently, Ty can be found developing advertising campaigns, editorial illustrations and identity work for a wide range of clients including Target, Monocle and Wired UK. In today's interview, Ty graciously shares his beginnings as a designer and grants us a glimpse into his creative process.
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10.06.14 | Dave | Features |
Josh Brill Interview
I was first introduced to Josh Brill and his work though through his Flora Fauna collection. With nature serving both as a catalyst and a muse, the ongoing series explores and catalogs the identities of plants and animals from around the world. To illustrate these explorations Josh chose to eschew conventional realism in favor of a style that echoes cubist techniques. The end result is vibrant, bold and visually intoxicating.
In addition to sharing the same passion for illustration and design, I was excited to discover that Josh and I shared a similar upbringing. We unknowingly haunted the same swimming holes and drank from the same slush puppy wells while growing up. This served as fodder to fuel our friendship and with this in mind, i'm delighted to present today's interview with him.
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09.29.14 | Dave | Features |
Sponsor // Webydo
Webydo is a cloud-based, online website design platform that enables designers to create, manage and publish their client's websites completely code-free. Led by a global community of 93,000 designers and a recent round of funding ,Webydo has seen rapid growth and now hosts over 1 billion websites. Using Webydo's full B2B solution, designers enjoy complete control – designing, managing, and hosting advanced pixel-perfect websites for their clients with e-commerce, a friendly built-in CMS, SEO management tools, and even a client billing system.
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07.28.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Clark Orr
A former designer for Johnny Cupcakes, Clark Orr now serves as a full-time freelancer focused on branding and packaging jobs. I especially appreciate his identity work for Powershift Labs – a UK-based development studio. In a simple yet elegant solution, Clark pairs a bold two-tone graphic with a custom script font.
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07.14.14 | Dave | Found design |
Brad Woodard Interview
It's hard not to get lost in the vibrant landscapes of Brad Woodard's work. His colorful illustrations beckon a response of thought and feeling and invite us to view the world in a more gentle and naive way. A native of the Pacific Northwest, he migrated south to Austin (via Boston) where along with his wife, he set up shop as Brave the Woods – a small but dynamic creative studio. With a burgeoning product line and an impressive client list that includes Target and Old Navy, the gifted duo have established themselves as an emerging force in design. In today's interview we chat with Brad about the software that drives his workflow, his passions outside of design and more. Enjoy!
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06.30.14 | Dave | Features |
Sponsor // PrestaShop
For designers looking to expand their web presence with the addition of an online store, PrestaShop is worth considering. With over 600,000 active community members, PrestaShop is a free and open-source ecommerce solution. The robust platform includes over 300 features in the core download including the ability to sell downloadable goods, product quick view, powerful analytics and customer accounts. In addition, the themes are fully customizable, so you can easily modify the code to achieve the style you desire. For features not included in the core download, PrestaShop has an official marketplace where additional modules are made available.
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06.23.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Sponsor // LG UltraWide QHD Monitor
For designers looking for a large monitor with the screen real estate to match, LG has the solution. Their recently released UltraWide monitor is the world's first 34-inch 21:9 UltraWide QHD monitor. With a pixel area that is 1.8 times larger than an UltraWide Full HD, the QHD is a joy to work with and a real time saver. The extra space translates into a more efficient workflow allowing for less down time due to scrolling and switching between windows. In addition, Mac users will be delighted to know that the monitor incorporates Thunderbolt 2 technology and a sleek design. See all the details here.
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05.27.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Ed Nacional Interview
I first discovered Ed Nacional at the end of 2009 as he was completing his studies at Parsons. He had recently taken on a design internship for the New York Times and was beginning to explore his capabilities as an illustrator. I was instantly attracted to his his bold no-nonsense use of type and stylish yet minimal use of color. Since then, I have enjoyed watching Ed grow as a designer and seeing the projects that have resulted from his efforts. Others have taken notice as well, as popular brands and platforms like Skillshare and Wanelo have sought Ed's expertise and artistic sensibilities in developing their identities. In today's installment of the Design in Process series we chat with Ed about his workflow, his passions outside of the office and more!
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05.05.14 | Dave | Features |
Sponsor // Wallpapered Maps
Over the last couple of years we've seen an increased interest in cartography. More and more books are being produced on the subject and there has been a rise in the amount of designers and illustrators choosing to focus in this area of work. London-based Wallpapered.com has captured some of this excitement around map related imagery in their latest round of product offerings. Recognizing that large scale map graphics lend itself well to the modern home/office aesthetic they have created a series of wallpapers that can be easily applied to any room. There is a diverse collection to choose from, but of special iinterest is the black and white relief map and the full color world map. See the complete collection here.
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04.14.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Exquisite Corpse
Remember playing the game Telephone as a child? The game that consisted of people passing around a phrase and then laughing at how the phrase gets distorted from one person to the other? Illustration project Exquisite Corpse is like the visual version of Telephone. The collaborative project invites illustrators to participate in a "never-ending" abstract illustration. Each illustrator adds to the piece in sequence while only being allowed to see a small part of what the previous illustrator contributed. The effect is a single, unifying illustration that seamlessly morphs into different ideas and interpretations.
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04.11.14 | Dave | Found design |
Brent Couchman Interview
Born and bred in the Lone-Star state, Brent Couchman is a designer and illustrator that now calls San Francisco his home. Noted for his generous use of color, he employs vibrant yet sophisticated palettes that elevate and accentuate the playfulness and meticulous nature of his work. He has received awards and accolades from distinguished publications including Graphis and Print and has established himself as an accomplished designer with a distinct visual voice. After stints at Fossil and Hatch Design he recently decided to venture out on his own with the launching of Moniker – a design and branding studio focused on timeless work and strong client relationships. In our latest addition to the Design in Process series we chat with Brent on his creative process and the challenges of managing a studio.
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04.09.14 | Dave | Features |
Font Men
Font Men is a short film about the work of Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones, who collectively ran the most successful and well respected type design studio in the world. Produced before their recent and very public split, the film provides a rare glimpse into the forces that brought them together and the successful empire they built together.
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04.01.14 | Dave | Found design |
Sponsor // Marigny Typeface
Type Supply is thrilled to introduce Marigny, a casual typeface drawn with serious typography in mind. The family combines the warmth of handwriting, the confidence of lettering and the functionality of typography into one package. It is distinctively legible at small sizes and lovingly distinctive at large sizes. Marigny is an excellent choice for any text that you want to feel warm, welcoming and alive.
Marigny has five weights, each with expressive italics, plus all styles have a variety of OpenType features that enable truly sophisticated typography. It looks as great on screen as it does in print. Want to see more? Head on over to typesupply.com.
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03.31.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Josh Emrich
Josh Emrich is an illustrator and designer based out of Colorado. A former principal at Tenfold, in 2013 he broke off to form his own studio focused on branding and packaging design for craft brewers and artisanal entrepreneurs. His portfolio is filled with outstanding work, but i'm especially fond of his packaging design for Grimm Brothers Brewhouse. Through a series of labels he seamlessly merges slick illustrations, compelling typography and strong visual storytelling. Think Mary Blair with a twist of German macabre.
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03.13.14 | Dave | Found design |
Javier Garcia Interview
I was first introduced to Javier Garcia through his intoxicating blog, No Barcode, where he posts his latest vintage finds. It was here that I discovered that he is an accomplished illustrator and designer in addition to having an amazing collection of design related ephemera. A resident of the Bay Area via Mexico he has developed an audience for his highly expressive and colorful illustrations. In today's interview, the 4th part of our ongoing design in process series, Javier speaks on his passions outside of design, his workflow and more. Enjoy!
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03.11.14 | Dave | Features |
Hugo Barros
Enter the world of Hugo Barros, an artist from Lisbon, Portugal working with collage. Manipulating elements by hand, he creates dense compositions without the use of post processing tools like Photoshop. Although the subject matter varies from piece to piece, there are reoccurring themes in his work. Serene landscapes are often juxtaposed against cosmic imagery in a surreal explosion of color that feels apocalyptic in nature. The end result is mesmerizing and always worth a second look.
Hugo's creations are available at Saatchi and similar work can be found in their collage section.
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02.19.14 | Dave | Found design |
Sponsor // Signazon
Signazon.com is the first design-friendly, design-file ready online print company. Transform your designs from computer creations to real life pieces of art with ease. The company allows you to upload your files in multiple formats from vector-based files to raster files. The technology used by Signazon is able to work with .PS, .EPS. PDF, .AI, .PNG, .JPG, .TIF, .GIF, .BMP, .DOCX/.DOC (Word), .PUB, and .XPS files. Customers have the choice to upload a finished design file, upload and design using the online design tool, or choose from thousands of templates. As an added bonus, all file upload and editing services are free of charge.
Signazon.com's industry leading, full-color print quality can capture your artwork off the screen like no other printer has before. Use the exclusive "grain edit" readers' discount code GRAINEDIT15 at checkout for 15% off of your first purchase.
Still a student? Design and compete in Signazon's 4th Annual "Design-A-Sign" Scholarship Contest for your chance to win $1,000 toward your education.
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02.18.14 | Dave | sponsors |
Japan – Nippon
Japanese graphic design is characterized by a unique aesthetic, oscillating between its own pictorial tradition and Western visual culture. In Lars Muller's lastest release, Japan-Nippon they explore the Japanese poster and how it functions most notably as a highly aesthetic image advertisement, presupposing the designer as an artist.
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02.13.14 | Dave | Found design |
Ty Mattson Interview
Browsing through the portfolio of Mattson Creative, an award-winning design studio based in Southern California, can prove to be a daunting task. It's easy to be overwhelmed by the quantity and consistent quality of work. I've long admired their expressive illustrative style and am especially smitten with their self-initiated projects for popular TV shows including Dexter, Lost and more recently Breaking Bad. We've profiled the studio in the past, but in today's interview we talk with Ty Mattson, the studio's founder and creative director.
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01.29.14 | Dave | Features |
Annik Troxler
The daughter of the highly influential designer Niklaus Troxler, Annik has created a strong body of work that has a unique voice of its own. Her posters have won many awards including the coveted International Poster Festival in Chaumont, France and the Swiss Federal Competition for Design. This has allowed for some unique opportunities including the chance to collaborate with Mevis & Van Deursen in Amsterdam. In 2011, she returned to her native Switzerland to open an independent studio and began a teaching position at the renowned Basel School of Design.
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01.07.14 | Dave | Found design |
Design Faves
This post is brought to you by Design Faves. The image above is by Tycho AKA ISO50
As designers, we are constantly seeking new sources of inspiration and often that means looking beyond our discipline. For some of us, this might mean a glance at the latest items in our Pinterest feed, while others will find inspiration in travels or an enlightening book. To add to that list, our friends recently launched Design Faves – a curated collection of art and design work. With frequent updates, the site features posts on architecture, photography, fashion, furniture as well as illustration and graphic design. Included below is a small sampling of what the site has to offer.
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12.13.13 | Dave | sponsors |
Eight Hour Day Interview
Eight Hour day is the online home and moniker of Katie Kirk and Nathan Strandberg, a husband and wife design duo based out of Minneapolis. Their client list includes The New York Times, Chronicle Books, Williams Sonoma, Random House, among others. Driven by their belief that process and collaboration should be as exciting and fun as the end result, they create work that is honest, smart and succinct. In today's interview, the 2nd part of our ongoing design in process series, Katie shares some of the challenges of working with a significant other, her workflow for a recent project and much more.
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12.10.13 | Dave | Features |
Willem Sandberg: Portrait of An Artist
I'm looking forward to the upcoming US release of Willem Sandberg: portrait of An Artist – a new new book from the Dutch publisher Valiz.
From the Publisher:
"After the Second World War, Willem Sandberg (NL, 1897–1984) transformed the Amsterdam Stedelijk museum into a dynamic centre for modern and innovative art and culture. He did this with exceptional creativity and in close collaboration with artists and architects. Sandberg had distinct ideas about heading up a museum for modern and contemporary art, about the importance of art, about dealing with artists and about his work as typographic designer, but also about social responsibility and community.
This book is based on interviews with Sandberg (from 1971 and 1981) and offers first-hand insight into questions such as: what does the task of museum director entail; how does art criticism work; what is the essence of being an artist; what does the ideal museum architecture look like; and what is the role of art and the museum in society?"
Pre-order a copy at Amazon.
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12.09.13 | Dave | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Fotor
Launched in 2012, Fotor is an online suite of photo editing tools that are both powerful and easy to use. Taking advantage of the latest in cloud technology, Fotor's clean and intuitive interface can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection. Tools can be easily integrated into a users' workflow and include basic cropping, HDR (High Dynamic Range) processing and a photo card maker. They even have a Christmas card maker for those looking to create something special for the holidays.
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11.25.13 | Dave | sponsors |
Mike Cina Interview
Today we're excited to announce a new series of process related interviews with our favorite artists and designers. In the first installment we head to to Minneapolis, MN, the home of Michael Cina who is an award-winning creative director and skilled artist. Bridging the gap between music, photography, art and design, he creates work that is innovative and often unconventional in its approach. Here Mike discusses the role of intuition in design, his workflow for a recent Ghostly International project, his passions outside of the studio and much more. Enjoy!
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11.21.13 | Dave | Features |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
What do you want people to see when they find you online?
Whether you're growing a business, starting a blog, or are ready to sell online, you need to make a great impression. Squarespace is the best way to create a modern and professional website, with all the features you need integrated into one platform. Every Squarespace website is mobile-ready, includes e-commerce, and is backed up by award-winning 24/7 customer service.
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A Huge thanks to Squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed! Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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09.17.13 | Dave | sponsors
You Can Now Magazine
Creative member network YCN has launched a brand new Members' Magazine. The inaugural issue of You Can Now Magazine is Designed & Art Directed by Matt Willey and Edited by YCN Founder Nick Defty. It fittingly takes the theme 'Begin' as its editorial starting point and follows on with a visually loaded series of ideas, essays and inspirations.
The publication's opening section presents a 'celebration of getting started' and includes an extended feature on the business of launching a new magazine with input from a spread of magazine maestros including Jeremy Leslie (MagCulture), Dan Crowe (Port), Robert Bound (Monocle) and Charlotte Rey (ACNE Paper), among others. All are illustrated by rising French star Tiffany Beucher.
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08.16.13 | Dave | Found design
Recently Received
Tiny Pencil: Issue One – The Forest Issue
64 pages /21cm x 27.5cm
Filled with lush, monochromatic landscapes, the Tiny Pencil is a new artzine that celebrates graphite-based illustration in all its glory. Founded by Amber Hsu and Katriona Chapman, the inaugural issue explores the theme of "Forests" and features sketches of fantastical funghi, wizards and eerie woodland creatures. Included are contributions by Raymond Lemstra, Kristyna Baczynski, Nick Sheehy, Luke Pearson, Lizzie Stewart. Ward Zwart, Liam Stevens and many others.
Pick up a copy here. Also Tiny Pencil issue 2 is now available for pre-order.
More book picks after the jump.
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08.14.13 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves
Mattson Creative is Hiring
We were first introduced to Mattson Creative through their brilliant series of tribute posters for Showtime's Dexter and have become big fans ever since. In addition to the studio's inspiring side projects, they've created award-winning work for an impressive client list including Apple, CBS, Cartoon Network, Hasbro, DreamWorks and Target. We just received word that they currently have a position open for a Senior Graphic Designer in their Southern California office. This could be an amazing opportunity for one lucky designer!
For more details and to apply for the position, please visit their website.
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08.07.13 | Dave | Jobs
Dave Foster
Foster Type is the online home of Dave Foster, an independent designer based in Sydney, Australia. Specializing in custom lettering, Dave has built an impressive portfolio of type work and the awards to match. His latest project is Blanco, a serif typeface with 8 styles and 4 weights.Completed while attending the Type and Media Masters program at the Royal Academy of Art in Den Haag, The Netherlands, it's slated for release in 2014.
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07.29.13 | Dave | Found design
MADE Quarterly Edition Two
MADE Quarterly is a publication that documents the workings of the modern maker, including but not limited to industrial design, architecture, fashion, interior design, photography and the culinary world. MADE aims to get inside the heads of those individuals to find out how they do what they do, and what inspires them to create. Each issue will take a peek behind the scenes and offer the reader a rare opportunity to glimpse inside the minds of these inspiring individuals.
The second edition of MADE Quarterly features: Mast Brothers (USA), Best Made Co (USA), Huet Brothers (NLD), Stevie Gee (GBR), Earth Tu Face (USA), March Studio (AUS), Uniform Wares (GBR), Henry Wilson (AUS), Ben Huff (USA) and Minimalux (GBR). MADE Edition Two also features four individual covers, each displaying chosen works from our esteemed contributors. Please note covers are distributed randomly.
Pick up a copy here.
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07.25.13 | Dave | Found design |
Adrian Shaughnessy: Scratching the Surface
Continuing with Unit Editions thoughtfully curated collection of design related titles comes, Scratching the Surface, a selection of writings by Adrian Shaughnessy. Over the past 18 years, Adrian has contributed significantly to the ongoing discourse centered around graphic design. His highly successfulHow to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing your Soul has sold over 80,000 copies worldwide and has become a staple for young designers seeking practical advice. With this latest volume, we are presented with a sampling of essays and reviews that helped establish Adrian as an authoritative and critical voice within the design community.
Featured are musings and meditations on music and art with ample space dedicated to Adrian's writings on graphic design. Designed by Spin, the layout is sparse, but complete with liberal amounts of pink adding a much-needed visual punch.
Pick up a copy here.
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07.16.13 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
It's never been more important to make a great impression online.
Squarespace puts world-class design in your hands and provides everything you need to create your own website in minutes. Squarespace websites are different. They're designed to be simple, modern, and to look great on every device. With Squarespace, your personality, products, or content is always the focus.
Try Squarespace today for free at squarespace.com.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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06.24.13 | Dave | sponsors
A Handbook of California Design, 1930-1965
A Handbook of California Design, 1930-1965 is the latest title from LACMA curator Bobbye Tigerman and profiles 140 of the most significant design figures from the mid-twentieth-century. As a companion to the catalog California Design: Living in a Modern Way and the exhibition of the same name, the book features Grain Edit faves such as Saul Bass and Alvin Lustig, as well as many lesser known but influential practitioners. Also included is an extended reading list, images of the exhibition installation and sources for further research.
Designed by the award winning designer Irma Boom, the book is a beautifully crafted object in its own right. The layout is restrained in its approach, but shines within the subtle details. I especially appreciate her "Connections and Collaborations" diagram which takes on a pattern-like quality that possibly emulates some of the textile work of the era.
You can pick up a copy at the LACMA shop as well as Amazon. The exhibition, which recently wrapped up in Tokyo, makes its next stop at theAuckland Art Gallery, New Zealand on July 7th of this year.
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06.04.13 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Kern and Burn: Conversations With Design Entrepreneurs
From the same team that brought you The People's Pennant comes a thought provoking and informative book on design entrepreneurship. Kern and Burn: Conversations With Design Entrepreneurs features candid conversations with 30 leading designers who have founded startups, channeled personal passions into self-made careers and taken risks to do what they love. Through insightful stories, quotes and quips they share their failures, successes, and perspectives.
The distinguished group of guests include: Armin Vit, Keenan Cummings, Ben Pieratt, Riley Cran, Don Clark, Kate Bingaman-Burt, Jessica Hische, Kyle Sollenberger, Tad Carpenter, Duane King, Joe Gebbia, Aaron Draplin, Mikey Burton, Katie Kirk and many more. Pick up a copy here.
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05.16.13 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
/Sponsor/ UncommonGoods
A Huge thanks to UncommonGoods for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed! Artists, designers, and photographers!
UncommonGoods has just launched theiriPhone Design Challenge, a call for entries of 2D digital captures including original watercolors, acrylics, pastels, colored pencils, collages, photography, digital art, etc. The winner will receive $500, a vendor contract, and national exposure by being presented their catalog circulation of 1.75 Million. Until May 31, 2013 at 11:59 EST, entries are welcome free of charge! Click here for more details.
Find artwork for sale from dozens of talented artists in the UncommonGoods Art Gallery here.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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05.13.13 | Dave | sponsors |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Squarespace provides everything you need to create an exceptional website for you or your business, all within a single platform. Start with beautifully designed templates, an easy-to-use interface, and a free domain name – all backed up with award-winning 24/7 customer support.
Add your own content, customize the style, and you'll have a website that looks great on any device.
Try Squarespace for free at squarespace.com .
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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05.07.13 | Dave | sponsors
Grace Danico
Today I'm excited to present our very own Grace Danico. Over the last couple of years, I've gotten to know Grace as someone who is very fun-loving, warm and personable. These same qualities are reflected in her illustrations. With colored pencils and crayons as her guide, her work flourishes within the constraints of the deceptively simple lines and charming doodles.
I especially appreciate her illustrations of food. Her portfolio is adorned with lemons with mustaches, blushing oranges, pizza slides and other characters laced with Grace's contagious sense of humor. All of these await your perusal here.
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04.26.13 | Dave | Found design |
Face
Face. is an international design agency with a global perspective and a focus on branding. Founded in 2006, Face. has already created some impressive designs that showcase their modernist flair. Although many of their pieces are done in a straightforward style, they keep it fresh with fun color palettes and intriguing typography. Having already created multiple offices across North America in their short life span, keep an eye on Face. for their next move.
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04.23.13 | Dave | Found design |
The Beauty of Letterpress
Neenah Paper recently launched The Beauty of Letterpress, an impressive online resource and showcase. The site features valuable links, educational videos, a printers directory, as well as a gallery which is curated by a different letterpress aficionado each month. In addition, limited edition prints are available by donation with proceeds funding The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum relocation process. To help reach the goal of $30,000, Neenah is generously offered to match all contributions up to $15,000. You can show your support here.
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04.22.13 | Dave | Found design |
Old & New
Gadite Warriors by Andrew Lyons
Old & New provides a platform for contemporary graphic artists to exhibit works themed on Biblical stories and passages. It also aims to introduce a new online audience to Biblical art, attempting to replace popular, yet sometimes low-quality, contemporary Biblical artwork with the kind of accessible and honorable work that has historically been associated with the Bible. The project involves artists from different faith backgrounds and sells prints of the designs with proceeds going to help fight the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa.
On Monday, April 22 the latest round of designs will be released with contributions by Mikey Burton, Chris Rushing, Shed Labs, Matt Stevens and others.
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04.08.13 | Dave | Found design |
Nick Brue
Nick Brue is a graphic designer out of Minneapolis. In addition to his impressive work for Cue, an established branding firm in Minnesota, he has produced several intriguing designs on his own time. This includes his own wedding save-the-dates and invitations, and multiple identity projects. Though his designs are to the point, he does a great job of utilizing interesting color and texture to keep it fresh.
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04.02.13 | Dave | Found design |
Flying Eye Books
Flying Eye Books is the latest branch in Nobrow's budding empire. The imprint will strictly focus on Children's titles while retaining the same quality and curation that you would come to expect from Nobrow.
For their first release, they worked with award-winning UK-based illustrator Viviane Schwarz to create an awesome robot book – literally. The aptly titled Welcome to Your Awesome Robot provides you with everything you need to design, build and test a robot from cardboard. With instructional comics and Vivienne's charming sense of humor as your guide, the book is fun to read and makes for an excellent family activity.
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04.01.13 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Irving Harper: Works in Paper
Irving Harper: Works In Paper is a recent monograph from Skira Rizzoli celebrating the multi-faceted designer, Irving Harper, with a focus on his incredible collection of paperboard sculptures.
As the director of design at George Nelson Associates in the 1960s, Harper contributed to numerous mid-century creations, namely the Marshmallow Sofa for Herman Miller furniture and the Ball and Sunburst clocks for Howard Miller, and also leading the design of the Chrysler pavilion for the 1964 New York World Fair. According to Julie Lasky who penned an essay for the book, the pressure of work 'almost drove him to knit', yet with his skills in building client presentation models in cardboard, he soon eased his way into sculpting with paper. Inspired by Picasso, African Art, Surrealism and de Stijl, Harper constructed whimsical characters and breathtaking abstracts mostly out of paper in addition to straws, wood, toothpicks, twigs, spare materials from his office and discarded doll parts from his daughter. His collection numbered close to 300 when he ran out of display space in 2000. He completed his stunning final piece which appropriately graced the book cover – an owl with glass eyeballs and draped in folded brown paper feathers.
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03.18.13 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Area 22
Area 22 is composed of the work of Sonia Chan, a UK transplant now making her living in San Francisco. Chan's designs are a mix of identity and interactive projects, each one with its own unique character. Chan distinguishes herself by producing designs that are rustic but relevant.
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02.28.13 | Dave | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Introducing Squarespace Commerce
Squarespace is a modern publishing platform that includes everything you need to create a professional website in minutes. This past week Squarespace introduced a truly integrated e-commerce solution that makes it dead simple to start selling products – digital or physical – directly from a Squarespace website.
With more than 20 new features, Squarespace Commerce lets you easily add products, process customer orders, and start accepting payments instantly – all from a single platform.
Try it for free today at Squarespace.com.
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02.25.13 | Dave | sponsors
Founded
Founded is a Newcastle-based studio specializing in branding, packaging and environmental projects among other things. To me, their strong suit are their branding and identity projects. They do a great job of making subtle references and effectively using restrained typography while still managing to be witty — all within a very clean, minimal style.
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02.20.13 | Ethan | Found design |
Greg Hubacek
Greg Hubacek is a freelance designer and art director out of Los Angeles. His redesign of The Chronicle of Higher Education, a publication that delivers academic news in both physical and digital form, is straightforward and elegant while maintaining a sense of playfulness. By using grayscale images, Hubacek is able to use geometric shapes and bits of color for strategically placed emphasis.
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02.19.13 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Pagan and Sharp
One of the newest and most interesting typographic duos that has emerged lately, Pagan and Sharp—run by Carlos Pagan and Lucas Sharp—has released a new typeface called Sharp Sans. Based on the wonderfully simple vision of geometric styling, and a touch of humanism type theory, Sharp Sans does well in so many modern treatment situations that call for a bit of fun.
Along with Sharp Sans, they have produced Malleable Grotesque and the beautiful serif face, Hera Big. Pagan & Sharp are the creatives behind such notable work as the the latest Print 20 under 30 branding, Pinterest Logo, and recent New York Lottery campaign (Carlos' work at DDB). With such lovely projects, they are well on their way to making a big splash in the typeface design world. Keep up with their latest news by following their twitter and keep an eye out for hopefully many more typefaces to come!
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02.08.13 | Liz Meyer | Found design, USA |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
Squarespace is a beautiful and intuitive website publishing platform that allows anyone to easily create professional web pages, blogs, and galleries all in one place.
Simply start with one of Squarespace's award-winning designs, add images and content, connect your social accounts, and you'll have a website that looks great on every device.
All Squarespace accounts come with award-winning 24/7 support, as well as cloud hosting, real-time analytics, and a free domain.
Whether you're a creative professional, business owner, or blogger, Squarespace makes it easy to bring your ideas to life.
Start your website for free today at Squarespace.com.
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02.04.13 | Dave | sponsors
Cory Say
Cory Say is a typography designer, currently working out of Dallas, Texas as an art director for TracyLocke, a national design and marketing agency.
Cory's most recent project for the Cattle Baron's Ball showcases his gift for both branding and hand lettering, with his passion for typography coming across clearly in his work. His unique ability to create an intricate, multi-faceted design while not going over the top is also noteworthy.
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02.04.13 | Dave | Found design |
From the Job Board
Graphic Designer – Ceci New York (NY, NY)
You will be working with a small group of talented designers, coordinating with the Project Manager to ensure the project stays within its budget and timelines, and presenting solutions to clients in a beautiful, open, dynamic studio. This is a fast paced and highly creative environment. A deep passion for paper and design as well as a willingness to learn new trends and techniques is essential.
You can subscribe to our job listings via RSS, Email or follow at Twitterand Facebook.
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01.30.13 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Zalando Logo
Zalando is an online retailer that was founded in Germany. The company initially specialized in footwear, but has since expanded into clothing and accessories. Recently their design team put together an animated video on how their logo came into being. Inspired by an imprint of a stiletto heel, the orange triangle found in the Zalando logo goes on a brief, but magical journey in this charming story. Along the way, the triangle gets caught in a tree, lost in the wind and even hitches a ride on the beak of a passing bird. You can see the complete video at their website.
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01.25.13 | Dave | items |
Italian Motorcycles from the 1950s and 1960s
50cc Astor Super Sport 1969 /Itom (1948–73), Turin, Italy / Courtesy of Stewart Ingram
During the Second World War many of Italy's motorcycle and automobile manufacturing facilities were destroyed by allied bombing. To aid in the post-war economic recovery of these industries, the Italian government revised a highway code which reduced the minimum driving age to fourteen. With this, motorcycle manufacturers could create a new class of vehicles aimed at the younger generation. What these bikes lacked in power, they easily made up in style.
In 2012, SFO curated a small collection of these motorcycles for an installation in their international terminal. Included in the display were pieces by Itom, Benelli and MV August – all of which are scarcely seen on the roadways of Europe let alone the U.S. Although these vehicles have long ceased production, their legacy lives on through their iconic design.
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01.25.13 | Dave | Found design |
Chris Rushing
Mr. Chris Rushing is a designer/illustrator/art director working in NYC, at Time Warner. He has a great number of interesting projects and a nice site with which to neatly house them. It looks as though while working at TW Chris has had the chance to create some great web and interactive experiences — these projects are interesting, and well worth a look. What really attracted me to his work, though, was his skill in lettering and illustration. I love the pinache and wit throughout his portfolio. In general, I'd say his work is smart and succinct; interesting and engaging without being overstated.
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01.16.13 | Ethan | Found design |
Yellow Subversion: The Artwork of Yellow Submarine
To celebrate the Beatles' 50th anniversary 50by70 has published the first ever set of fine art prints of the stunning artwork from the classic 1968 animated filmYellow Submarine.
Yellow Subversion — The Artwork of Yellow Submarine is a strictly limited edition boxed set of five full colour screen prints accompanied by a book featuring an essay by the legendarySimpsonswriter, showrunner and producer Josh Weinstein who describes how the film inspired his career in animation.
Available at 50by70
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11.29.12 | Dave | Found design |
Bluerock Design Co.
I like the scope and style of this branding project from Boston-based Bluerock Design Co. With the honorable aim of introducing kids to cycling and nutrition, the cleanliness, simplicity and boldness of this campaign are spot on. It feels like the overall aim of this project is inform and inspire, and the bright, crisp graphics really help in that cause. They've obviously had some fun in applying the concept to jerseys, bottles, shirts and tickets. A lot of times it feels like branding projects cover a familiar gamut of surfaces: letterheads, cards and websites. It's nice to see this work on something a little more unique.
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11.14.12 | Ethan | Found design |
Paul Windle
As the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas. This is true for native Texan Paul Windle's illustrations. Now based in New York, Paul manages to create clever and often times hilarious illustrations. I thoroughly enjoy his portraits of mid '70s baseball dudes, especially this one of New York Yankees catcher Thurman Munson. This is the first from a series titled "Baseball Dudes Around the House," where we get a glimpse into what Mr. Munson possibly does with his spare time.
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11.08.12 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Bigfoot Art Show Benefitting 826 Chapters
This Thursday the folks at Office will launch a Bigfoot-inspired art show featuring works by talented local artists such as Dave Eggers, Lisa Congdon, Jessica Hische, Erik Marinovich, Ben Barry, Brian Flynn, Dora Drimalas, Richard Perez and others. Proceeds from the art sales will benefit the 826 Valencia (home of the Pirate Supply Store) and 826 Boston (home of the Bigfoot Research Center) tutoring centers for kids.
The collection includes several re-imagined Northern California tree rounds, dozens of vintage postcards with a hand-screened design, and more than 35 framed paintings. The event is sold out, but some of the pieces may be available here after the show.
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11.06.12 | Dave | Events |
/Sponsor/ Chronicle Books
A Huge thanks to Chronicle Books for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Jim Henson's iconic puppet characters, fantastic worlds, and warm humor have delighted millions of people of all ages. His incredibly diverse body of work, from the Muppets to the world of The Dark Crystal, reveals his charm and genius to fans old and new.
Now, fans can journey through Henson's life with Imagination Illustrated, The Jim Henson Journal. The book, a visual experience compiled directly from the private notes that Jim faithfully kept throughout his career, features hand-written entries and a trove of little-seen visual material from The Jim Henson Company archives, including rare sketches, personal and production photographs, storyboards, doodles, and much more. Read an excerpt here!
Save 25% and get free US Ground shipping on Imagination Illustrated when you use promo code JIMHENSON at chroniclebooks.com.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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11.05.12 | Dave | sponsors
Rob Hodgson
Cultural anthropology fascinates me, so it's no surprise that I would also be fascinated by the illustrations of Bristol based illustrator Rob Hodgson. His style is unique as he utilizes rough pencil line work and textures with earthy color palettes. These illustrations provide snapshots into an imaginary world of primitive peoples, and the collection of his work on his site further explores themes of botany, astronomy, and human behavior in a symbolic and exciting way. I'm looking forward to seeing what else this gent comes up with.
To keep up to date on Rob's work, be sure to also visit his blog and follow him on Twitter. Also, pick up a few prints from his shop (save one for me).
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11.02.12 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
The Everywhere Project
The Everywhere Project is a collaborative design project that pays tribute to the classic folk song "I've Been Everywhere".
The song was written in 1959 by Australian songwriter Geoff Mack using Australian place names. It was later adapted to North American (and a few South American) locations by Hank Snow in 1962 and it hit number one on the country music charts. It has since been recorded by many artists including Johnny Cash and Willy Nelson.
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10.15.12 | Dave | Found design |
Davison Spencerian
More type goodness from the guys & gals at House.
As one of the most distinguished lettering artists of the 20th century, Meyer "Dave" Davison's greatest contribution to the American visual landscape is arguably Davison Spencerian. The alphabet made its first appearance in Photo-Lettering's 1946 catalog and remains a benchmark of the ornamental script genre. Thanks to the skillful hands of Mitja Miklavčič and the tireless eyes of House Industries designers Ken Barber and Ben Kiel, we have preserved the poise and precision of Davison's masterwork in this faithfully-rendered digital incarnation. From automotive exhaust accessories and pirate-themed wedding invites to New Orleans sissy bounce hip-hop CD covers and upmarket bivalve ambrosia packaging, Davison Spencerian offers sober sophistication and unparalleled flexibility. Also available at Photo-Lettering as asingle layer and with a drop shadow.
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10.07.12 | Dave | Uncategorized |
/Sponsor/ Depositphotos
A Huge thanks to Depositphotos for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Depositphotos, headquartered in Florida, the US, is the most rapidly growing stock agency in the world. It currently offers more than 9 mln stock photographs and vector images sold under royalty free license. In addition to that, Depositphotos accepts videos for sale. All the files submitted for sale are carefully checked and selected by the agency's moderators. With its user friendly interface, a generous promotion programme, flexible payments options and efficient client services, Depositphotos is one the most attractive market places both for those in need of high-quality files for their projects and those, who would like to sell their images and video.
You can find out the latest updates of the agency in Depositphotos' official blog.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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10.07.12 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Raymond Biesinger
Raymond Biesinger, who was one of the first editorial illustrators that I learned about when I got out of college, has some lovely new work on his freshly updated website. One of my personal favorites, Raymond seems to take the most simple of concepts to an entirely new level by creating intricate, complex worlds by using minimal color palettes and impressive line work. You can see Raymond's influence on many current editorial illustrators, which makes him an important part of the industry's foundation. He also has several great side projects, including his band, The Famines, & a book which comes out in November called Black & White Illustrations.
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10.05.12 | Liz Meyer | Designers, Found design, graphic-design, Illustration |
2012 Print Set Giveaway
Our good friends at the Poster Cabaret recently launched a new set of prints and to celebrate we're having a giveaway.
The 20 piece collection includes work from Dirk Fowler, Sonnenzimmer, Diana Sudyka, Blanca Gomez, Jason Munn, Evan B Harris, Methane Studios, Matte Stephens, Amanda Blake, Andy Kehoe, Dan McCarthy, Jennifer Davis, Scott C, Camilla Engman, Hollie Chastain, Leah Giberson, Jess Seamans, Dan Black, Jeremy MIranda and Jay Ryan. Nine of the prints are up for grabs today.
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09.24.12 | Dave | Contests and giveaways |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Design a visually rich website with magazine-quality layouts that scales to any screen size – all without touching a line of code. Squarespace 6 is a revolutionary new website creation platform with over 50 new features. Squarespace's breakthrough LayoutEngine technology allows anyone to create visually-rich pages with any configuration of text, images, or blocks by dragging items exactly where you want them.
The platform comes equipped with 20 new, fully customizable templates and offers sophisticated media management, a robust blogging engine, deep social network integration, real-time statistics, multiple author support, and more.
Try Squarespace 6 today – free 14-day trial.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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09.24.12 | Dave | sponsors |
Wee Society
Introducing Wee Society, a new kids brand created by the folks behind the design firm Office.
The first line of products introduces the Wee Alphas – a quirky crew of 26 illustrated animals with a letter of the alphabet hidden in each one. The Wee Alphas appear in a series of art prints – including a limited edition 13-color screen print and a personalized print that you can customize with your child's name and a silly (or slightly more serious) statement. See them all here.
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09.20.12 | Dave | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Design a visually rich website with magazine-quality layouts that scales to any screen size – all without touching a line of code. Squarespace 6 is a revolutionary new website creation platform with over 50 new features. Squarespace's breakthrough LayoutEngine technology allows anyone to create visually-rich pages with any configuration of text, images, or blocks by dragging items exactly where you want them.
The platform comes equipped with 20 new, fully customizable templates and offers sophisticated media management, a robust blogging engine, deep social network integration, real-time statistics, multiple author support, and more.
Try Squarespace 6 today – free 14-day trial.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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09.17.12 | Dave | sponsors
Why Design
At Herman Miller design is the language they use to ask questions and seek answers to the problems their customers face. The design process is a journey into the unknown—or as George Nelson once quipped, "I have never met a designer who was retained to keep things the same as they were." Before we decide what we do and how we do it, we like to begin by asking the question "Why?" In Why Design, a new film series, Herman Miller explores the world through the eyes of their designers, and shares something of why we value their point of view.
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09.13.12 | Dave | Found design |
Anagrama
Anagrama is Mexico-based design studio/agency doing a lot of very slick branding projects. I love how full and considered these campaigns are—from the initial mark to the collateral, their thoughtfulness and attention to detail is obvious. They do a great job photographing and presenting their work, as well.
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09.10.12 | Ethan | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Design a visually rich website with magazine-quality layouts that scales to any screen size – all without touching a line of code. Squarespace 6 is a revolutionary new website creation platform with over 50 new features. Squarespace's breakthrough LayoutEngine technology allows anyone to create visually-rich pages with any configuration of text, images, or blocks by dragging items exactly where you want them.
The platform comes equipped with 20 new, fully customizable templates and offers sophisticated media management, a robust blogging engine, deep social network integration, real-time statistics, multiple author support, and more.
Try Squarespace 6 today – free 14-day trial.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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09.10.12 | Dave | sponsors
The Typewriter: A Graphic History of the Beloved Machine
The Typewriter: A Graphic History of the Beloved Machine is the latest project from UPPERCASE magazine founder and editor Janine Vangool. This richly illustrated book will feature never-before published typewriter memorabilia, intriguing historical documents and entertaining anecdotes. To help raise the $25,000 needed for printing costs, freight and transaction fees Janine is currently holding a kickstarter-style funding campaign. If you would like to contribute either monetarily or by donating ephemera to be used in the book, please check out the UPPERCASE website for more info.
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09.07.12 | Dave | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Mighty Deals
A Huge thanks to the Mighty Deals for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Massive Discounts on Stock Photos from Mighty Deals – 89% off!
Depositphotos has become the fastest-growing microstock agency with a collection of more than 8 million images. They work with the best contributors, including Yuri Arcurs, Andres Rodrigues and many others, who regularly offer new masterpieces.
But good stock images are expensive, aren't they? Paying $9 or more per image can add up quick and break the budget for a lot of projects, especially if you need larger sizes. That's why Mighty Deals has a special deal for you: download up to 100 high-quality royalty-free images of any size for just $99 (normally $900 for the XXL size!) from Depositphotos.
If you need more than 100 images you can get the super duper deal of 200 high-quality images for just $160(regular price up to $1800 for XXL) – that brings the price down to just $0.80 per image! These are huge discounts!
Grab this deal now!
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08.27.12 | Dave | sponsors
aMAZEme
Created by Marcos Saboya and Gualter Pupo, aMAZEme immerses the audience in a labyrinth of books.
By participating in the installation, the audience discovers new textures, images and emotions. They become surrounded- hypnotized – by words and thoughts, designs and patterns. There appear to be secrets hidden in the installation's walls; walls of up to 2.5 metres high, built from thousands of books, forming a large Maze of more than 500 square metres
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08.06.12 | Dave | Found design |
Elena Giavaldi
Talented designer and illustrator Elena Giavaldi really knows how to make judging a book by its cover easy. As a book cover designer, she creates very cool, contemporary compositions for some of the best publishing houses in the business. She also manages to put very personal touches on each project, and add a bit of extra interest with unique type choices and very modern, experimental lettering. Other than her expansive covers archive, her portfolio runs the gamut of graphic design, making her an incredibly versatile designer. To keep up with Elena, look for her work in a bookstore near you!
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08.03.12 | Liz Meyer | Designers, Found design, graphic-design, Illustration, Typography, USA |
Type and Media 2012
Allonghata by Christine Gertsch
Type and Media is an intensive one-year masters course in type design held at The Royal Academy of Art in Den Haag, The Netherlands. The course teaches a wide range of skills in the area of type design such as calligraphy, stone carving, non-latin scripts, typeface revivals, Python programming, modern font editing software as well as the creation of new letters. All of the final project typefaces created in the last four months of the 2011/2012 course are available to view here.
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07.30.12 | Dave | Found design |
Laura Cattaneo AKA Halfpastwelve
Halfpastwelve is the online home of Milan-based designer Laura Cattaneo. Currently she works as a journalist forIl Sole 24 Ore, art-directs forla vita nòva and collaborates with IL — Intelligence in Lifestyle magazine.
After browsing her portfolio, I was impressed with the range and quality of her work. She easily transitions from editorial design and illustration to information graphics all while consistently creating work that is visually stunning. I'm especially drawn to her redesign of La Domenica, a cultural supplement of Il Sole 24. Along with team members Adraino Attus, Francesco Narracci and Luca Pitoni, she has created a layout that is minimal yet bold and beckons the reader to explore it's contents.
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07.24.12 | Dave | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Design a visually rich website with magazine-quality layouts that scales to any screen size – all without touching a line of code. Squarespace 6 is a revolutionary new website creation platform with over 50 new features. Squarespace's breakthrough LayoutEngine technology allows anyone to create magazine-quality layouts within the browser that responsively scale to any screen size, from mobile devices to desktops. The platform comes equipped with 20 new, fully customizable templates and offers sophisticated media management, robust blogging engine, deep social network integration, real-time statistics, multiple author support, and more. For a free trial, visit www.squarespace.com.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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07.23.12 | Dave | sponsors
Forma&Co
Forma&Co is a collaborative Barcelona-based studio. What really caught my eye with this studio were their large-scale programs promoting various happenings in Barcelona. The scope of the programs themselves are interesting: neurobiology and dusk-'til-dawn free museum accessibility. The visual design of the work is great; F&Co have a bold, fun, boisterous style that attracts attention and translates well to bus signs, banners, and city-specific substrates.
They do a lot of fun illustration work as well; check their site for more.
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07.18.12 | Ethan | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Squarespace
A Huge thanks to squarespace for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Design a visually rich website with magazine-quality layouts that scales to any screen size – all without touching a line of code. Squarespace 6 is a revolutionary new website creation platform with over 50 new features. Squarespace's breakthrough LayoutEngine technology allows anyone to create magazine-quality layouts within the browser that responsively scale to any screen size, from mobile devices to desktops. The platform comes equipped with 20 new, fully customizable templates and offers sophisticated media management, robust blogging engine, deep social network integration, real-time statistics, multiple author support, and more. For a free trial, visit www.squarespace.com.
Interested in sponsoring the Grain Edit Feed? Visit our sponsorship page for more info.
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07.17.12 | Dave | sponsors
WTHR App Inspired by Dieter Rams
David Elenga has created a simple yet elegant weather app called WTHR which is inspired by Dieter Rams' Ten Principles of Design. At the top of the screen the current weather condition is displayed along with the temperature for your area. Just below is a 7-day forecast and a nifty switch which allows you to select between Fahrenheit or Celsius. Unfortunately version 1.0 has some bugs and usability issues which should hopefully be resolved soon. I would hold off on downloading the app until the release of version 1.1 which is slated for sometime next week.
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07.09.12 | Dave | Found design |
Atipus
We've posted a number of great Barcelona-based designers and illustrators in the past, and the work from Atipus is no exception. Atipus is a studio doing really sharp branding, art direction and general design for print and web. What really struck me was the distinctiveness and personality throughout their portfolio. The work is clean and accessible as well as smart and well thought out.
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07.05.12 | Ethan | Found design |
Save Prentice
Designed by famed architect Bertrand Goldberg, Prentice Women's Hospital has added drama and interest to the Chicago skyline for nearly four decades. Unfortunately, like Marina City Towers and many of Goldberg's other architectural wonders, the hospital has no formal protection.
Today, the vacant building is threatened with demolition by Northwestern University, which sees the land on which Prentice sits as expansion space for a new research tower.
The same structural daring that once inspired the world to take a different look at Modernism can again capture its imagination – this time though preservation and innovative reuse. You can support the comeback story of this cloverleaf-shaped icon by signing this petition. Your voice, and the voices of others who care about the past because of what it means for the future, will send a clear message – Prentice is a masterpiece worth saving.
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07.01.12 | Dave | Found design |
Jesse Ragan
Type designer extraordinaire, Jesse Ragan, released the latest iteration of his website this past week. Chock full of new and meticulously designed work, Jesse's type design gets more interesting with each project. His projects range from the current typeface of V Magazine, to the logotype for Glade, to working closely with Hoefler-Frere Jones on major typefaces like Gotham and Archer. Jesse, a self proclaimed designer of serious typefaces, is sure to continue to awe and inspire aspiring (and current!) type designers.
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06.22.12 | Liz Meyer | Designers, Found design, Typography, USA |
Gary Taxali Interview
Today's Grain Edit interview is brought to you by guest contributor Deva Mirel, and features the words and works of illustrator/fine artist Gary Taxali. We catch up with Gary after he returned in early May from his first solo show abroad at The Outsiders in London. Gary lives and works in Toronto but is originally from India. Here he discusses his most recent show, locating the desi in his work, why kids love him, and some straightforward tips on being in the business of making art.
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06.20.12 | Dave | Features |
Tomi Um
I love the portfolio of Tomi Um. Her work is clever and thoughtful—just so perfectly editorial—and yet retains such an artful feeling, that she takes the idea of conceptual/op-ed illustration to a different level. I'm consistently impressed at her ability to bring a vibrant visual life to news articles, and makes me hope that I can bring the same sort of excitement to my own work. Tomi has rightly won several awards and accolades over the past few years (such as ADC Young Guns & Print Magazine's NVA), and here's to many more for this great young illustrator.
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06.08.12 | Liz Meyer | Found design, Illustration, USA |
Dragon Brush App
Grain edit fave John Solimine recently teamed up with Andy Hullinger and NY-based app development team Small Planet to create a new interactive storybook called Dragon Brush.
Based on a traditional Chinese folktale, Dragon Brush is the story of Bing-Wen, a young boy who loves to paint. When given a magical brush that makes drawings come to life, Bing-Wen must use his art and his wits to outsmart the greedy Emperor.
Dragon Brush Features narration byMatt Berninger and music byAaron Dessner andBryce Dessner, from the acclaimed band,The National. Check out the site for more info.
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05.29.12 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Graphic Design: History in the Writing
Graphic Design: History in the Writing (1983–2011) comprises some of the most influential published texts about graphic design history. The book documents the development of the relatively young field of graphic design history from 1983 to today, underscoring the aesthetic, theoretical, political and social tensions that have underpinned it from the beginning. Included in the anthology are texts by Ellen Lupton, Robin Kinross, Massimo Vignelli, Steven Heller, Victor Margolin and many others.
Visit occasionalpapers.org for more info and to pick up a copy.
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05.25.12 | Dave | Found design |
Page 1: Great Expectations
Page 1: Great Expectations is a typographic experiment designed to explore the relationship between graphic design, typography and the reading of a page. The book features contributions from 70 leading designers and typographers, all of whom have reinterpreted the first page of Charles Dickens' novel. The text was chosen in part because it directly references lettering as Pip searches for clues about his family from the letterforms inscribed on their tombstone. The brief encouraged the contributors to explore, challenge or celebrate the conventions of book typography. Each layout is accompanied by a short rationale explaining the designer's decision-making process.
Contributors include: William Drenttel and Jessica Helfand, Robin Kinross, Experimental Jetset, Erik Spiekermann, Sam Winston, Phil Baines, A Practice for Everyday life, Tony Chambers, Morag Myerscough and more.
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05.14.12 | Dave | Found design |
James Edmondson
Amazingly talented letterer, James Edmondson has a portfolio to get completely jealous over. With a keen eye for beautiful forms, he creates type that is reminiscent of the old masters. He keeps his collection of typography modern by adding some interesting and original decorative elements in places like swashes and terminals. With such an exciting portfolio, I'm really interested to see what he does when he graduates from college—I see a very successful typographic career ahead!
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04.20.12 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
/Sponsor/ Mag+
A Huge thanks to Mag+ for sponsoring this week's RSS Feed!
Designers! If you know InDesign, you can publish to the iPad or Android tablet…without a programmer. Mag+ is the brains behind the InDesign plug-in that lets you design and publish your app with no coding. From now until June 1, 2012, Mag+ is hostingMagnify Your World – a contest to show off your tablet app with the chance to win up to $6,000USD. There are six categories judged by design leaders and a People's Choice Award. Did I mention it's free to enter? Go here for more details.
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04.16.12 | Dave | sponsors
The People's Pennant
Designers Jessica Karle Heltzel, Tim Hoover and Eric R. Mortensen have joined forces to produce a series of limited-edition felt pennants that "commemorate the everyday." With a new pennant releasing each month the series already includes solid contributions from The Heads of State, Richard Perez and Ken Barber of House Industries fame. All the pennants are hand-printed and hand-sewn in the good ole' U.S.A by folks who've helped shape the tradition since the early 1900s. Check out the collection at The People's Pennant.
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04.02.12 | Dave | Found design |
Rigamaru
Good things are happening over at Rigamaru, the online shop of Pixar artist Chris Sasaki and visual artist Meghan Jean. The creative duo whose name is derived from the childish, nonsensical word "rigamarole" are currently developing a fun new line of shirts, prints and knicks knacks.
Also, If you find yourself in the LA area over the weekend, I recommend checking out the opening of the Darwin show at the Q Pop Shop. Chris is teaming up with Disney artist Joey Chou for a series of pieces that explore the themes of British naturalist Charles Darwin.
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03.09.12 | Dave | Events |
Ted Parker
Ted Parker is an international man of mystery, whose work exhibits extreme joy in the most strange and comical of situations. This illustration, titled Jungle Coffee, was created to promote The Village Coffee and Music in Utrecht, Netherlands. Regardless of the subject matter, whether it be dogs smoking, lions dancing, or people and animals engaging in pure rowdiness together, one thing is for sure – Ted's work is sure to put a big smile on your face.
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01.26.12 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Hannah K. Lee
San Francisco based illustrator Hannah K. Lee offers some sage advice through beautiful hand-drawn type, taken from her zine Issues #1: Lessons of Adulthood. Not only does her portfolio boast wonderful lettering, but it also features an impressive collection of portraits done in a loose gestural style with bold line work and intricate mark making that's hard to ignore.
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01.13.12 | Grace Danico | Found design |
McBess
The work of McBess has been a source of illustrated inspiration for many new artists over the course of his half-decade-long career. A signature part of style that sets him apart with his natural ability to bring out shadows and highlights predominantly using thin tipped felt pens, a very big feat when working monochromatically. I love the use of lettering to give his illustrations more context, and the flowing, style gives another layer to already unique and intricate pieces.
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01.09.12 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
2011 Grain Edit Holiday Giveaway Bash
–The Giveaway is Now Closed —
The holidays are here so, it's time to celebrate! Our annual giveaway bash is just one way for us to thank all of our awesome readers for another amazing year. For our 2011 Holiday Bash we've put together incredible lineup including gifts from Chronicle Books, Laurence King Publishing, Lars Muller Publishers, Katie Kirk, Alberto Cerriteno, Tad Carpenter, Christoper Simmons/Mine, Albert + Marie, Liam Devowski / Teenagers in Love, Owen Gatley, Jesse Lefkowitz, and Paper Punk.
A special thank you goes out to HP. In addition to donating a HP ENVY 14 to the giveaway they supplied us with laptops to use with our blogging and manage the shipping of items from our store.
Now on to the giveaway!
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12.19.11 | Dave | Contests and giveaways |
Alexander Girard by Todd Oldham & Kiera Coffee
Todd Oldham who put together an excellent monograph on Charles Harper and Kiera Coffee recently released an exciting new book chronicling the work of the late Alexander Girard. This 672-page beast published by Ammo covers virtually every aspect of Girard's distinctive career. As one of the most prolific and versatile mid-20th century designers, Girard's work spanned many disciplines, including textile design, graphic design, typography, illustration, furniture design, interior design, product design, exhibit design, and architecture. Exhaustively researched and lovingly assembled by Oldham, this tome is a must-have book on Girard's oeuvre.
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12.12.11 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Tony Dispigna
Tony Dispigna may be a very influential craftsman to today's "throwback" design connoisseurs without many realizing. In 1969, shortly after graduating from Pratt, Tony joined forces at the legendary Lubalin Smith & Carnase. He has worked to produce notable classic typefaces like Lubalin Graph and Serif Gothic. Tony is currently a professor at Pratt and the New York Institute of Technology, and has also taught at SVA. Although much of Tony's work is based on type, he also has a really good sense for creating wonderful logos, as you will see below.
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12.06.11 | Dave | Found design |
Saul Bass: A Life in Film & Design
Saul Bass: A Life in Film & Design is the first book to be published on one of the greatest American designers of the 20th century, who was as famous for his work in film as for his corporate identity and graphic work. Saul created some of the most compelling images of American postwar visual culture. Having extended the remit of graphic design to include film titles, he went on to transform the genre. His best-known works include a series of unforgettable posters and title sequences for films such as Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo and Otto Preminger's The Man with the Golden Arm and Anatomy of a Murder. He also created some of the most famous logos and corporate identity campaigns of the century, including those for major companies such as AT&T, Quaker Oats, United Airlines and Minolta.
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11.21.11 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Château Vacant
Château Vacant isYannick Calvez, Lémuel Malicoutis and Baptiste Alchourroun, a group of French creatives who have hopped the Atlantic and set up their collective in Montréal, QC. As it states on their website, "We create images and videos thinking with objects and spaces." Their work is eclectic, cutting edge, and slick, with media ranging from graphics and video to photography, illustration, and installation.
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11.15.11 | Dave | Found design |
Pharma Exhibition
The establishment of the pharmaceutical industry, especially in the mid-20th century, played a significant role in the evolution of graphic design and advertising. Herb Lubalin created some of his most influential work while working for Sudler & Hennessey, an advertising agency which specialized in pharmaceutical marketing. PHARMA features a diverse array of original ephemera, rarely seen publicly, by many pioneering graphic designers including Lester Beall, Will Burtin, Paul Rand, Franco Grignani, staff of Geigy and Herb Lubalin, as well as contributions by Carl Fischer and Andy Warhol.
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11.07.11 | Dave | Events |
Familytree Design
I recently stumbled upon a poster series by a group of four friends who run an illustration studio, Familytree Design. Besides these posters being extremely cute, I really like the way they use lettering as a story-telling device alternate to the actual illustrations. Each of the posters in the series are illustrated and lettered by a different studio mates, which makes for really great variations in style while maintaining the same color palette to keep the look consistent.
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10.28.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Chris DeLorenzo
Chris DeLorenzo is a graphic designer based out of Andover, Massachusetts, whose modern design style demonstrates what I think of as extremely current and fresh. His work has a sort of comic book inspired feel, while bringing a perfect-fitting hand lettering style to the table. In his own words, Chris notes his influences range from, "pop art, to 1940's cinema, to graffiti and folk art" which really makes his work unique.
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10.14.11 | Liz Meyer | Designers, Found design, Illustration, Typography, USA |
Jon Han
Autumn is in full swing, and Brooklyn based illustrator Jon Han nicely illustrates the unfolding of my favorite season in this illustration for the New York Sun. Bringing together a melange of lively colors and textures in a unique painterly style, Jon's work thoughtfully displays a community of people engaging in some of the activities ubiquitous with the season. Jon has a captivating ability to draw his viewers into his illustrations, making them feel like active participants rather than mere observers of scenes like this that transcend into everyday life.
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10.10.11 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Eli No! Giveaway
— The Giveaway is now closed. The winners will be announced this coming Monday —
Eli No! is a fun tale about a loveable dog with a knack for getting into trouble. The story was inspired by the author's (Katie Kirk of Eight Hour Day) dog, Eli, as well as a phrase often said by her nephew. Whenever Katie would say "Eli no!" her nephew, Parker, would say it too. Between Parker's joyous exclamations and Katie's desire to write and illustrate a children's book a new project was born.
Two years ago Katie gave us an exclusive sneak peak at the original mockups for the book. Soon after that, the title was picked up by a major publisher and has been in development ever since. We're excited to announce that the book is now available. To celebrate, we've teamed up with Katie to give away three signed copies!
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10.06.11 | Dave | Contests and giveaways |
Andrew Vastagh
Andrew Vastagh is a Nashville based designer who is quite active in the gig poster scene. Over the last five years he's created work for many well-known bands including the likes of She & Him, Vampire Weekend, Social Distortion and Band of Horses.
For this week's poster pick we've selected Andrew's design for the 2010 Menomena show at the Mercy Lounge. It features a two colored ribbon spiraling downward to form a cyclinder-esque shape. The combination of the ribbon's wave-like movement and the transparency seen in the color overlay creates for a mesmerizing and memorable pattern. If you're a fan of Menomena, ribbons, Andrew Vastagh or all of the above you can pick this piece up at the Poster Cabaret.
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09.30.11 | Dave | Poster Picks |
Burton Kramer Identities
Burton Kramer Identities is an important and comprehensive book on the work of a leading Canadian designer, educator and painter, who practiced for over 50 years.
Kramer began his design career in the New York office of Will Burtin and went on to work at Geigy under Gottfried Honegger. In 1961, he moved to Zurich, Switzerland, as Chief Designer at the E. Halpern Agency, where he created award-winning work. In 1965, Kramer moved to Toronto to work on graphics and signage for Expo 67. In 1967, he founded Kramer Design Associates, creating identity programs for the Royal Ontario Museum, Ontario Educational Television and in 1974, his well-known logo and identity program for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
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09.26.11 | Dave | Found design |
Carson Ellis
You've probably seen the work of Carson Ellis on street posts and at record stores everywhere, as she has been the artist representing The Decemberists for the past several years. Her illustration has that magical quality of making you want to pick up a pencil and draw something beautiful, even if you have no drawing ability whatsoever. Her charming work interestingly seems to capture the greys and faded quality of her surroundings in Portland, giving everything a calm and quiet tone. Carson has just recently released a book called "Wildwood Chronicles" with Colin Meloy (of the Decemberists), so be sure to pick that up!
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09.23.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Studio 8
I stumbled across the fantastic work of Studio 8 earlier today, and after looking through their portfolio I was a little surprised that I hadn't heard of them before. The quality and consistency of their work is quite good, and they've notched projects for clients large and small. (The above C is part of a typeface designed for Wired Magazine.)
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09.21.11 | Ethan | Found design |
Niessen & de Vries
Niessen & de Vries, the Dutch graphic design duo of Richard Niessen & Esther de Vries, have put together a portfolio that captures a strange but wonderful sense of composition using type. Their style focuses on the art of print and the techniques that draw the attention of graphic designers the world over, like overprinting, patterns, off-registration, large scale posters and (of course) amazing typography. While Niessen & de Vries have a very fresh feel to their work, there's also a great sense of post-modernism by exploring the page purely for arts' sake.
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09.16.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Hans Hartmann: Ein Leben fur die Grafik
I was excited to receive a package from Hans Harthman's daughter, Fanny Hartmann last week. Contained within was a copy of Hans Hartmann: Ein Lebenfur die Grafik, a 1991 monograph compiled by Fanny with contributions from Joseph Marti and Fred Zaugg. The book is filled with full-color illustrations and photos from Hans's prolific career as a designer and artist that spanned over 5 decades. Hans Hartmann's name is often absent from design history books, so most of the pieces are new to me. I'm surprised by the breadth and depth of is work. I've seen examples of his posters and logos in the past, but I was unaware that he had ventured into sculpture, stained glass windows and exhibition design.
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09.12.11 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Radio
I'm a sucker for maps and all things travel related, so it's no wonder that these postcards by Cape Town's Radio are so appealing. Each postcard features a map of one of the nine provinces in South Africa, and is chock full of buildings, landmarks, animals, and agriculture representative of each region. Currently a work in progress, the completion of this postcard series will provide a most excellent pictorial view of the entire country.
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09.08.11 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Alex Trochut
If you're someone who is excited about type, the name Alex Trochut should be a name often on the tip of your tongue. But if you haven't seen that name before today: Alex is an amazing young letterer out of Barcelona. With an extensive heritage in the type world (his grandfather was a printmaker and typographic designer), Alex shows his talent through endless experimentations that push the limits of type to the extreme. A couple of months ago Alex published his first book, More is More, which looks to be a great compilation of his work, so be sure to check that out if you what to experience more of this lettering master.
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09.02.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Outliers, Vol. I: Iceland
Chicago based film collective Scenic has launched a new film project on Kickstarter.com featuring photographers Tim Navis (LA), Kim Holtermand (Denmark), and electronic composer Deru. The group will create a series of short films at various locations throughout Iceland, inspired by moments of discovery and chance occurrence. Tim's sun-drenched SoCal landscapes and Kim's cold, architectural abstractions provide the visual foundation, and fans of their work can imagine how exciting a collaboration between the two will be. The end result, a beautifully packaged box set of the film and companion soundtrack, will be released to backers of the project as a physical artifact of the unique and awe-inspiring experience.
To learn more about this project, please visit the Kickstarter page.
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08.29.11 | Dave | Found design |
George McCalman Interview
As a young design student at California College of the Arts I had the wonderful opportunity of interning for ReadyMade magazine — way back in its hip Berkeley headquarters heyday.
It was a fantastically unique experience and my first in a bustling design office. Under the guidance of art director George McCalman, the office's art department was a lively, collaborative, ambitious and (extremely) entertaining place to work — and home to the best design office music jams I have had the pleasure to groove to (courtesy of Mr. McCalman himself).
George is a magazine veteran, having art-directed Mother Jones, ReadyMade and Afar to name a few. He is responsible for relevant, thoughtful editorial design as well as some very compelling branding, packaging and identity work. Recently, I was able to catch up with George and find out about his past, present and future. And of course, his opinions regarding his favorite magazines.
George, take it away:
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08.24.11 | Ethan | Features, Interviews |
Josh Cochran
Josh Cochran's work continually blows my mind. His concepts are thoughtfully executed, as he constructs images with filled with intricate details and pleasing color palettes. This particular piece, created with Cactus Communication for Charter Media, is filled to the brim with all sorts of characters. Some of my favorites include the cake head, dignified bird man, and the dude mowing the sidewalk. Can you spot them? It's all the fun of "Where's Waldo" without having to find Waldo.
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08.05.11 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Justin Gabbard
Justin Gabbard is an illustrator operating out of the East Village in NYC. He has a great sense of self in his work, and it seems that everything he does is entirely natural. Justin has been fortunate enough to work on major advertising campaigns (for companies like Kiehl's & Microsoft) and is featured in some of the nations top magazines (such as Wired, The New Yorker & Businessweek). And while his lettering is impressive in itself, he also has an amazing illustration portfolio which compliments his personal style perfectly. Read the rest of this entry »
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07.29.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Ana Albero
Ana Albero has an incredible illustration style that I can't get enough of. Working primarily in graphite and colored pencil, Ana creates vibrant textured images of fine ladies and gents from a distantly familiar era often intermingling in an unknown time setting. This particular illustration for the German publication LE MONDE Diplomatique perfectly displays this style, with a dapper man stepping into an eerie office setting where women are steadfastly working with strange stamps. Ana carefully weaves many details in this piece, and successfully does so throughout her portfolio of work, creating memorable and often times humorous images.
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07.25.11 | Grace Danico | Found design, Illustration |
Kevin Dart's Looks that Kill
Looks that Kill is the latest installment in the Yuki 7 book series created by one of our contemporary illustration favorites, Kevin Dart. In this new adventure book written by story artist Elizabeth Ito, we get the opportunity to tag along with Yuki 7 and the Gadget Girls, her special task force of ladies, on one of their missions, immersing us in their thrilling world of seduction, espionage, and glamour. Accompanying the fantastic story are new and energetic illustrations by Kevin and 14 other talented artists, such as Meg Hunt and Matthew Lyons. This book is definitely one worth adding to your collection!
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07.15.11 | Grace Danico | Product Reviews |
Lufthansa + Graphic Design
The beginning of the 1960s saw one of the most important steps in the development of corporate communication. Lufthansa employed the designer Otl Aicher and his Gruppe E5 student group to develop a visual identity for for the airline. It was substantially realized in 1963 and up until the present day counts as one of the most groundbreaking corporate design solutions of the 20th century. With a focus on the famous brand identity, the design and advertising history of Deutsche Lufthansa from the 1920s to today is comprehensively documented here for the first time. This volume contains numerous illustrations from the corporate archive and background articles and interviews.
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07.11.11 | Dave | Found design |
Grady McFerrin
The name Grady McFerrin should be easily recognizable if you're a reader of The New Yorker or New York Times, where his illustration work shows up frequently. But, what I like to (of course) focus on is his lovely lettering style. The thing that makes Grady's work unique is the un-rendered, folk quality of his text; paired with his minimal color palette, he manages to create pieces that could have come straight out of early Americana. What Grady does is highlight the old and oft-forgotten, and sends the viewer a beautifully nostalgic feeling of the past.
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07.01.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design, Illustration, Typography, USA |
This Is Forest — Joel Speasmaker
Joel Speasmaker, also known by his studio moniker Forest, just updated his website with a big pile of great design. You may know of Joel's pursuits through the early 00s magazine The Drama, or through more recent work as Editor of Swindle, Art-Director of Anthem, or on a more personal level through his series of zine editions: Forest Small Books. Joel continues to work hard and is always keeping it moving, so pay his new site a visit! Read the rest of this entry »
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06.28.11 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere |
Takenobu Igarashi: Early Design Work
Contemporary Sculptor Takenobu Igarashi started his career in the early 1970s as an extremely talented Graphic Designer, quickly attaining international acclaim for his axonometric style of form and typography. Takenobu Igarashi has created identity systems, signage, products, packaging and graphics for notable instituions such as GRAPHIS Magazine and MoMa, and has work now rests in the permanent collections of museums all over the world. In 1994 he put his design talents to rest and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career as a Sculptor. He is currently the President of Tama Art University, where he had originally helped to set up the first program for "computerized design" education in Japan.
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06.23.11 | Dave | Found design |
Paper Punk
Paper Punk is a startup company that's equal part hands-on toy, art piece and educational tool. Founded by Grace Hawthorne (ReadyMade magazine co-founder), Paper Punk is the result of her many years engaging people with design and encouraging them to create with their hands.
Punks are constructed out of foldable, brightly colored die-cut paper blocks — each kit comes with stickers and instructions for building and customizing your robot, dog, or car. I love the built-in ability to remix and customize your own creations. The systems uses simple shapes and a variety of patterns allowing you to build a wholly unique creation.
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06.22.11 | Ethan | Designers, Found design |
Owen Gatley
Traveling is one of my favorite past times, and it's always exciting for me to see illustrated maps like these created by UK based illustrator Owen Gatley. He's created a handful of city maps for Ling magazine, Vueling Airlines' inflight magazine, depicting some of their many destinations. Each map is colorful and thoughtfully composed with its collection of intricate and sometimes humorous imagery, capturing some of my favorite things about traveling, including food and drink, cultural landmarks, and activities. It makes me want to hop on a plane somewhere and discover these little treasures on my own.
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05.26.11 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Sam Chirnside
Hailing from Melbourne, Australian designer Sam Chirnside creates some fresh graphical work. Sam's visual themes tend to weigh on the cryptic side with his use of darker imagery and glyphic geometries to create stunning type. I really enjoy his use of grainy textures to add dramatic tone and give the work the perception of being rendered in pencil. Sam's client list includes Volcom, 55dsl, and Handsome Clothing. On his website he also holds down a great inspirational blog with his own work sprinkled in.
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05.24.11 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Ryan Todd
London-based illustrator & designer Ryan Todd creates refreshing work; Taking a great understanding of how to use bright colors best, combined with a wonderful retention towards simplicity, his work leaves you with pleasant thoughts and emotion. Ryan states that his focus is on "producing ideas-led images which exercise forms of creative thinking and wit." He also holds his desk at East London image factory: OPEN
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05.17.11 | Dave | Found design |
Dana Tanamachi
I (like many other typophiles) first heard of Dana Tanamachi a couple of months ago and was really impressed by her amazing chalk lettering projects. The other day, I saw a couple of time-lapse videos of the projects being created, and was completely blown away by how quickly and well it all comes together. Since she doesn't use stencils or a projector to aid her drawings, it maintains an almost-perfect notion that this is a one of a kind, fleeting moment in the life of a word, which will probably be soon erased (how poetic!). She is also a part of Louise Fili Ltd., the amazingly prolific lettering studio, where she helps to create some of the world's most lovely type work.
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05.13.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Made By Sawdust
Sawdust is the amalgomation of London designers Rob Gonzalez and Jonathan Quainton. They create sleek, intelligent, and award-winning work, focusing mostly on bespoke typographics, which seem to commonly combine bold geometrics with fragile vector strokes. Sawdust has gained a client list which includes BMW, Nike, Ogilvy & Partners, Saatchi, Virgin, Orange, and many many more.
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05.10.11 | Dave | Found design |
Eric Ellis
Chicago, Illinois based designer Eric Ellis produces clean and colorful graphics via a mixup of classic and contemporary influences. A recent graduate of Columbia College, and now an employee of Ogilvy & Mather, Eric is steadily continuing to create a plethora of awe-inducing imagery for us. For more of Ellis' work, dig around through his site a bit, and be sure to also check out his great collection of #2 pencil sketches, Noon Studio.
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04.26.11 | Dave | Found design |
Heath Killen
Australian designer Heath Killen creates "visual communication with purpose & poetry." You may be familiar with some of his work from his multitude of experimental redesigns of movie posters. Heath creates stunning and vibrant compilations of color, shape, and emotion, to give expressive imagery to works of jazz, theater, film, and more. Heath appears to be one of those designers who never stops experimenting, which seems to have resulted in a rather unrecognizable lack of separation between personal and client work.
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04.19.11 | Dave | Found design |
2011: Living in the Future
2011: Living in the Future was originally published in 1972, but has now been brought back to print upon realization of the book's accuracy, inaccuracy, and irony. Geoffrey Hoyle, a science fiction author, future visionary, and product of his astronomer father, wrote the original text, predicting such glorious technologies as "vision desks," "vision phones," and personal automated breakfast factories. There is also talk of people only working 3 days a week, with a traffic-free commute. Playfully illustrated with wonderful projections of our modern-day utopia by Alasdair Anderson, this quick read would be great for both the coffee table and story time with the kids, so they can think about what those crazy people in the 70s were like.
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03.29.11 | Dave | Product Reviews |
Introducing Liz Meyer
As you may have noticed, a new name has been covering all things typography related on Grain Edit. The name's Liz Meyer, and it should ring a bell. Liz is a talented designer and illustrator based in Brooklyn, one half of Script & Seal, and the newest addition to our Grain Edit crew.
There's more to Liz than just her love for Thanksgiving, as evidenced by the photo above. To give you a better feel for our East Coast correspondent, we've conducted a little interview with her that you're sure to enjoy! Without further a do, please welcome Liz…
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03.25.11 | Grace Danico | Grain Edit News |
Network Osaka
Network Osaka is a wittingly self-proclaimed "artist pretending to be a designer" (I'm too used to seeing it backwards). With the presentation, style, and workload of a full-on design studio, he creates strikingly bold and intimidatingly intelligent, yet beautifully simplistic imagery. What I really love most about Derek's work, however, is that he has a great sense of when and how to use heavy, solid bodies of color. Some of my favorite graphics are from 26 piece alphabet card set with Artist As Citizen; "Extinct". Derek Kim, as he also is known as, is a Parsons graduate with a BFA in communication, carrying a respectable client list which holds such names as Wieden+Kennedy, Nike, Esquire, and YWFT.
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03.18.11 | Dave | Designers, Found design |
I Love Dust
I recently re-stumbled upon the the work of I Love Dust, and thought I'd share some of their newer work with the Grain Edit family. This interdisciplinary studio creates a wonderful mix of design and illustration, & they have a knack for creating dynamic environments by filling a page with striking colors and texture. I really enjoy their diverse use of type, which is always really tailored to the purpose of the project. On top of their amazingly extensive portfolio, their client roster is just as impressive. Be sure to check out the rest of their portfolio for some serious illustration & design inspiration!
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03.11.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Dan Mountford
Brighton University Graphic Design student Dan Mountford has an incredible series of portraits titled The Worlds Inside of Us. Dan describes this series as "a visual journey through our minds by calm and tidy means which the reality of everyday life does not show." He explores the use of double exposure in his photographs, successfully isolating parts of an image in camera with no help from our friend Photoshop. His images are captivating with their thoughtful execution and composition, and there's no doubt that we will be seeing more exciting work from him in the future.
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03.03.11 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Cody Haltom
Cody Haltom is a designer working in warm Austin, Texas. He has a nice handle on things large and small and in between. The above logo has a simple yet fun whimsical execution to it. These characteristics, I feel, carry over nicely to his other, more complex pieces. The stationery systems and and Public School identity are good examples of this — all the details seem to simultaneously sing together in design harmony.
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03.02.11 | Ethan | Found design |
Micah Lidberg
Micah Lidberg is an amazing young illustrator with an incredible portfolio. What really caught my attention is the fact that he also manages to seamlessly incorporate type into his intensely detailed compositions, and does so with the skill of a seasoned letterer. Since Micah has already been named a Young Gun by the ADC and featured in many prestigious magazines, he is definitely one to watch. I predict great things from him in the future!
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02.25.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Ryohei Kojima
I am excited by my recent discovery of award-winning Japanese designer, Ryohei Kojima. Ryohei worked at Light Publicity Ltd, Japan's first creative agency, for many years before opening his own studio in 1975. Like Charles Harper, he was a master at crafting beautiful imagery by deconstructing his subjects down to their simplest forms.
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02.15.11 | Dave | Found design |
Sue Doeksen
Hailing from the Netherlands, illustrator Sue Doeksen creates wonderful worlds that are overpopulated with bright colors and friendly shapes, with mediums ranging from physical, digital, pencil-drawn, paper-cut, and animated. Judging from the massive amounts of blissfully exciting work on her blog, Sue is clearly one of those artists that doesn't give up: most likely because she can't stop creating.
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02.08.11 | Dave | Found design |
Yehteh
Zurich, Switzerland based Philipp Dornbierer, a.k.a. Yehteh, is a digital illustrator and designer. Philipp has a great way of basing his work around rather doomy symbolism, such as swords and hooded executioners, but juxtaposes them with bright colors, pleasing patterns, and some friendlier icons to create joyfully accessible imagery. Some of my favorites include his collaborations with stateside's Andy J. Miller. With a client list including Carhartt, IBM, and 55DSL, I think we can expect to see a lot more great things from this guy in the near future.
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02.04.11 | Dave | Found design |
Hvass & Hannibal
Hvass & Hannibal is a Copenhagen based multi-disciplinary arts and design studio founded by Nan Na Hvass and Sofie Hannibal. Their work is highly imaginative as it creates alternate environments featuring multitudes of patterns paired with geometric shapes, colorful forms and enchanting creatures. Not only does the dynamic duo create illustrations and graphics, but they also immerse themselves in a spectrum of mediums ranging from three-dimensional work ranging from interior and set design to intricate artworks made up of various materials such as painted wood.
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02.03.11 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Jon Jackson / Adios LA
Wonderfully unique concept, execution and typography from L.A. (now NYC) based designer Jon Jackson.
Description from Jon's site: "Adios LA is a visual goodbye to the city Jon Jackson has called home for years as the artist heads east making New York his new home. Not wanting to string LA along, he has decided to firmly break it off through a graphic billboard series posted on the famous streets of his first love.Jon Jackson has spent nearly his entire life wearing shorts living in LA. He is now zipping the pant legs back on and moving east. Jon is leaving Los Angeles to work for HUGE as a Creative DIrector in Brooklyn"
Best of luck in NYC, Jon!
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01.26.11 | Ethan | Found design |
Karel Martens: Printed Matter
It's here! The third edition of Karel Martens: Printed Matter is now available in the U.S.
Upon publication in 1996, printed matter was labeled an instant classic in the world of design publishing. This beautifully designed visual survey of the career of Dutch graphic designer Karel Martens is a tactile distillation of Martens's unique and personal approach to design. Projects—ranging from postage stamps to books to signs on buildings—are arranged in layouts that fully explore the print process. The first edition of printed matter rapidly sold out along with a second edition published in 2001. This third and final edition includes a new interview with Martens and brings the survey of his work to 2010, marking fifty years of practice.
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01.24.11 | Dave | Found design |
Meet Sozi & Her Idea
I'm a big fan of Rilla Alexander's work, so I was super excited to hear about her new book, Her Idea. Through beautiful illustrations and fun rhymes Rilla chronicles the journey of a little girl named Sozi who struggles to put her concepts into reality. Although the story is presented in a picture book format, I'm hesitant to call this a "children's book" as I believe the message resonates with all of us. This tale is especially timely as many of us are seeking to change our procrastinating ways as part of our new year's resolutions.
In this interview, Rilla shares the inspiration for the book and some of the challenges she faced along the way. Here we go!
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01.17.11 | Dave | Interviews |
Ray Fenwick
Witty and clever are two words that describe one of my favorite artists/typographic people, Ray Fenwick. A native of Winnipeg, Canada, Ray is far from the main hubs of the creative population, which in a strange way makes his extreme creativity even more interesting. His inventive style of hand-drawn and often calligraphic style is paired with subtle hilarity, and his work is always sure to make you smile.
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01.14.11 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Keating & Keating
Taking another look back into San Francisco design studios as they stood in the late '70s, I bring you the second in a series of posts from the book Graphic Design San Francisco. Today, we'll take a look at Keating & Keating, who in present day is known as Kate Keating Associates, Inc., a heavy hitting SF corporate design firm.
"Keating & Keating have an attitude toward their work that can be stated in a definition of graphic design as 'the architecture of visual communication.' They believe that a project should entail not just applied cosmetics, but rather must be approached from a thorough problem-solving process in order to be successful." Read the rest of this entry »
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01.12.11 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Bossa Nova And The Rise Of Brazilian Music In The 1960s
Bossa Nova music arrived in Brazil at the end of the 1950s with an optimism and modernism that paralleled the arrival of the new Brazilian president, Juscelino Kubitschek, who promised 'fifty years of progress in five' in his election campaign and announced the building of a new capital city, Brasilia, deep in the heartland of Brazil. The city was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, a man who had just designed a new musical theatre production in Rio of a play written by Vinicius de Moraes and with music written by Antonio Carlos Jobim. These two, along with the singer João Gilberto were about to make Bossa Nova, the first modernist Brazilian art form, the most succesful Brazilian export since coffee.
Bossa Nova And The Rise Of Brazilian Music In The 1960s is a unique collection of the cover art of Brazilian Bossa Nova music, containing hundreds of record covers complete with a history of Bossa Nova, biographies and essays on many of the artists involved in the movement.
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01.03.11 | Dave | Found design |
Mimmo Castellano: Posters and Packaging
Mimmo Castellano is an award-winning graphic designer and photographer who got his start in the port city of Bari located in the South-East corner of Italy. It was here that he landed a position with Laterza, a prominent publishing house, where he designed many of the book covers. This collaboration would last for over twenty years. In the late 60s he moved to Milan to further his career as a designer and taught at the European Institute of Design. In more recent years he has been researching digital imaging connected with photography and photomechanics.
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12.20.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves, Uncategorized |
Esteve Padilla
I was recently introduced to Esteve Padilla's work and am really impressed with his ability to create interesting grids, while maintaining readable and clear type. Usually, I gravitate towards some crazy and/or experimental typography, but I have a very soft spot in my heart for a designer who knows how to use traditional typography to create beautiful layouts and publications. While Esteve seems to have conquered the difficult task of forming grids, his newest work (a font called "Nowadays") has a touch of a old-style sign painting aesthetic.
I'm really interested to see where Esteve takes his work, he definitely seems to be a designer to watch for in the future. Read the rest of this entry »
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12.17.10 | Liz Meyer | Found design, Typography |
Mattson Creative
What if all all TV series' posters looked like this? I can't imagine a world like that, but what a wonderful world it would be! Ty Mattson, the man behind Mattson Creative, has created posters for both Dexter and Lost.
The composition of these Dexter posters is great — I love the variety of stylized details, all relevant to the show. I've seen a few episodes of the first season of Dexter, but these prints pique my interest. There very well may be some more Dexter in my future.
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12.15.10 | Ethan | Found design |
Harry Murphy + Friends
"The Gap Records and Tapes, San Francisco."
Graphic Design San Francisco is a book that was published in the late '70s by the Institute for Graphic Design (which would later become AIGA SF) and Chronicle Books. For the first in a series of posts about the works of San Francisco Bay Area designers and firms, as their portfolios stood on the brink of the '80s, I present to you Harry Murphy + Friends.
"The Philosophy of Harry Murphy + Friends is to maintain design work of consistently high quality, while producing a large volume of projects involving an exceptionally wide range of related disciplines, frequently with rigorous deadlines.
Since locating in the San Francisco area in 1966, Harry Murphy + Friends has won over 700 national and international design awards for architectural graphics, space design, environmental art, corporate identity, print graphics, and packaging."
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12.14.10 | Dave | 1970s, Off Our Bookshelves |
House Industries at Heath Los Angeles
Letters, numbers, ceramics and craftsmanship collide in a month-long House Industries exhibition at the Heath Los Angeles studio and store. House will transform the legendary tile and tableware maker's airy Beverly Boulevard space into an unprecedented emulsion of clay, metal, ink, cotton, wood, lacquer, lithography and letterforms.
The exhibition will feature several new objects including custom-fired House-Heath tiles, reclaimed wood end-grain tiles, hand-printed folding plywood divider screens, tree ornaments, letterpressed greeting cards and much more. Heath also stocks hard-to-find House classics such as the Eames House blocks and the Alexander Girard Nativity.
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12.11.10 | Dave | Events |
2010 Holiday Wish Lists
Dear Holiday Spirit(s):
We're approaching the end of 2010, a year filled with work, work…and did we mention, more work? Seeing as we've all been on our best behavior, please take a look at the wish list we've compiled with some of our favorite artists and friends. It's much BIGGER than last year's list and excited to share it with you. Please say you'll bring some of these goodies our way!
Yours Truly,
Grain Edit + Friends
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12.10.10 | Grace Danico | Guides |
American Trademark Designs
For my first post here at Grain Edit, I'm going to share one of my favorite design books from my bookshelf: American Trademark Designs. Published in 1976 by Dover Books and written and compiled by Barbara Baer Capitman, this book is chock full of 732 delicious black, bold, and inky vintage logos. My favorite aspect of this book is that it showcases extremely recognizable logos that have been stamped into the back of our eyelids (IBM, Mr. Peanut, Pepsi-Cola, Playboy) right alongside rarely seen identities created by tiny firms for tiny companies. Some marks are also showcased next to their former, replaced versions, displaying the brand's evolution.
I've scanned some of my favorite graphics to share with you. A portion of this book is also available for view in Google Books, but it's much more interesting on paper.
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12.09.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
GVA Studio
The above music cover inspired series is one of many self-initiated projects by the Switzerland based GVA Studio. I really love this series, and I can't help but think that some jazz record was playing while these prints were in the works. Their simplistic, whimsical nature seems to express the feeling of certain kinds of music so well. Looking at this set of prints also reminds me of a number of classical jazz record covers.
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12.01.10 | Ethan | Found design |
Roger Excoffon and the Olive foundry
Roger Excoffon and the Olive foundry by Sandra Chamaret, Julien Gineste and Sébastien Morlighem
Roger Excoffon (1910-1983) was a significant figure in French typography, the graphic arts and visual communication. To mark the centenary of his birth, Paris based Ypsilon Editeur has just released the first book dedicated to his work. Included are little-known or previously unpublished photographs, drawings and type specimens. The book also presents the history of the Olive Foundry where Roger served as the design director for many years.
To get all the gritty details, visit Ypsilon Editeur.
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11.30.10 | Dave | Found design |
Mike Perry Pop-up Shop / Studio Sale!
Prepare yourselves: Grain Edit pal Mike Perry is transforming his Brooklyn studio into a pop-up shop and open gallery from November 27 through December 1. This year's sale will be overflowing with amazing prints, zines, books, tee shirts, original drawings, and so much more from good folks like Jim Datz, Josh Cochran, Jim Stoten, Hugo & Marie, and others.
If you happen to be in the New York area around this time, this is one event you cannot miss!
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11.23.10 | Grace Danico | Events |
Travis Stearns
Travis Stearns is a force to be reckoned with. I really mean that. He's been a source of inspiration for myself and other young type hopefuls since he entered the 'internet scene' in 2006 & subsequently began working at You Work For Them, designing typefaces. Since then he has worked with the likes of Dwell, Nylon, Ghostly International and Wired, among others, and won the Print Magazine New Visual Artist award for his amazing work.
Some of my favorite fonts that he has produced are YWFT Isanti, YWFT Hannah & YWFT Motown, all of which are unique and completely contemporary, but have strong roots in historical typefaces (calligraphic, handwriting & roman). Travis's fonts have become somewhat prolific, spanning almost every inch of the internet and have made their way into major catalogs and publications.
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11.19.10 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Jonathan Zawada
Jonathan Zawada is a graphic designer who lives & works in Australia. I first discovered Jonathan on flickr, and was completely taken by his collection of amazingly rendered pencil drawings. Over the years he has made his way into the world of hand-drawn typography, implementing his style into branding, editorial illustrations and major campaigns for incredible clients. His very polished but still whimsical style really stands out, and I'm excited to see how his art evolves in years to come.
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11.12.10 | Liz Meyer | Found design, Typography |
Ill Studio
Ill Studio is a Parisian design studio with an incredibly experimental edge. They have just released a massive update featuring some beautiful typography-based projects. I've been a fan of theirs for years, and love their effortless propensity for creating an inspiring and very new set of work. With each new iteration of their portfolio they get better & better at honing their craft, while maintaining a very specific nod to the past with classic styling and type choices.
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11.05.10 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Kelli Anderson
In the era of the slick, white, one-dimensional portfolio site, one quickly glazes over after clicking through multiple nearly identical sites. The flip side being that tedious, overly constructed sites become more frustrating and conceptual than actually useful for seeing a designer's portfolio.
Kelli Anderson has a great site on her hands. It's unique, fun and easy to use, and it doesn't get fussy. Her work is exceptional as well. I noticed a nice balance of smart thinking and great hand skills. Kelli has a letterpress in her apartment, so much of her work has a very hands-on, tactile, cared-for feel.
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11.03.10 | Ethan | Found design |
Nate Duval
Massachusetts-based illustrator and designer Nate Duval is a busy man. Over the past year he has created concert posters for Phish, Spoon, Wilco, Tortoise and the Black Keys as well as a collaborated with Jen Skelley and Mother NYC on an re-branding campaign for Sweet 'N Low. Nate's work often pairs playful imagery with hand-drawn type as seen in this city skyline poster for M. Ward. I love how he's able to present a potentially chaotic situation in a way that looks innocent and fun. This poster as well as others designed by Nate are available for purchase at the Poster Cabaret.
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11.02.10 | Dave | Poster Picks |
Jon Contino
For my first post I am honored to bring to you Jon Contino. He is a designer, illustrator and a self-proclaimed 'Alphastructuaesthetitologist' (which sounds wonderful & incredibly hard to say) living in Brooklyn. His completely unique hand lettering style uses a rich mix of nostalgia and vaguely modern touches, making his particular brand of typography stand out. I particularly love his use of old sailor songs, sea life and of course the New York whaling-era ephemera. Along with his freelance career, Jon lives a crazy life as a partner at OneTwentySix design studio and owner of a men's clothing line, CXXVI.
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10.29.10 | Liz Meyer | Found design |
Postmammal
Robert Murdock is Postmammal. As the pseudonym suggests, Robert's work is sophisticated and evolved — illustrating the efforts of years of experience. Within the portfolio is variety, depth and style. There are large campaigns, small personal projects, identity systems, illustration, custom typography, and more.
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10.27.10 | Dave | Found design |
Jim Flora Prints
Untitled painting casually referred to as White Block Quadrupeds
Jim Flora was a fine artist/illustrator best known for his album cover art for RCA Victor and Columbia Records, as well as his illustrations for children's books. In this uncirculated and untitled early 1940s painting, he presents us with a (literally) twisted cast of characters. As mentioned on the Jim Flora website, the work "depicts an inscrutable panorama of disconnected facial features, headless quadrupeds, and someone's nightmare of a fanged horse". This piece along with select paintings from the Jim Flora collection are now available as limited edition prints for purchase over at the Poster Cabaret.
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10.19.10 | Dave | Poster Picks |
Gottschalk + Ash
Poster for the Theatre Company at the St. Lawrence Centre
Gottschalk + Ash was founded in Montreal in 1966 by Swiss-born Fritz Gottschalk and Canadian native Stuart Ash. Independently and collaboratively, the two have racked up numerous design awards and honors over the last 40 years, with highlights that include identity work for Ciba and a re-design of the Swiss passport. Their work shown above is a great example of Swiss precision and a playful, more humanized take on design.
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10.06.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Lisa Congdon: A Collection a Day Book
San Francisco based artist and illustrator Lisa Congdon has always been fascinated with with collecting, arranging, and organizing her collections. On January 1, 2010, Lisa took it upon herself to photograph, draw, and occasionally paint these collections for the entire year, and thus, theCollection a Day 2010 project was born.
Documenting objects ranging from vintage books and matchbox labels to colorful bits and bobbles, each collection is well curated and carefully composed. Recently, Uppercase announced that these incredible collections will be made into a book, available Spring 2011.
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09.23.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Les Choux de Creteil by Gerard Grandval
Cité des Choux / Photo by Kristo
Browsing the web earlier today I stumbled upon these stunning structures designed by Gerard Grandval. Les Choux de Creteil (aka the cabbages) is a residential development located in Creteil, a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. The complex which consists of ten towers (each fifteen stories high) was built in the early 70s as an experimental approach to public housing needs. The petal shaped balconies, which give the buildings their unique appearance, were designed to allow privacy for the occupants. The architect originally envisioned plants to suspend from the balconies. However the idea was shut down by the developers concerned with keeping the buildings insect-free.
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09.21.10 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Lou Dorfsman Exhibition at Kemistry Gallery
Kemistry Gallery is celebrating the work of legendary designer Lou Dorfsman, art director for the CBS network.
The exhibition centres on his most notable creation, the 11-metre wide handmade wooden typographic wall that he named Gastrotypographicalassemblage. Created during an era when designers were both artisans and well-trained communicators, the wall is the largest modern typographic artefact in existence, described by Michael Bierut as 'an irreplaceable piece of design history.' With custom type created by Herb Lubalin and Tom Carnase, the wall contains almost 1500 individual characters.
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09.20.10 | Dave | Events |
Ayao Yamana's Graphic Design
Tomingekijo Music Circle concert pamphlets from 1963
In a prolific career that spanned over 5 decades, Japanese designer Ayao Yamana left behind a rich body of work that few could duplicate. He is mainly known for his elegant and delicate illustrations of women which graced the packaging and printed advertisements for Shiseido cosmetics. These concert pamphlet covers for the Tomingekijo Music Circle represent a side of Yamana that is less familiar, but equally as impressive.
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09.08.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Curtis Jinkins
"This is my website. There are many like it. But this one is mine."
So goes the headline at Curtis Jinkins's website. Curtis's website is fairly standard: links to work on the left-hand side, and a lot of white space. What's unique and nice to see is the repeating logo and background images; they make you look twice at what you're viewing. It's a small but subtle touch that adds a bit of dimension to the site.
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07.30.10 | Ethan | Found design |
Impressive: Printmaking, Letterpress & Graphic Design
Impressive / 240 Pages / Published by Gestalten
Finally got my hands on a copy of Impressive. The book explores the interplay between current trends in graphic design and traditional handiwork such as letterpress printing, hand-cut linotype, chiselled woodblocks, and embossing. In addition to a rich selection of invitations, business cards, stationery, posters, and other material printed by hand, it offers personal insights from designers who are using old-fashioned techniques to create cutting-edge work.
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07.28.10 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Iv Orlov
Summer is here, and tis' the season for road trips! This illustration, created by Russian illustrator Iv Orlov, depicts some folks out for an evening drive along a line of colorful trees. Entitled "Night Rio," this piece uses combines cool blues and greens with bright corals and yellows for a nice tropical feeling. Orlov uses some great shapes throughout this piece, evident in the various cars and leaves of the trees.
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07.13.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Power Styling: Futuristic Power Structure Concept Book
In 1964 United States Steel called upon the nation's electric utility companies to reconsider the current look of our power stations and transmission towers to be both functional and beautiful. Two years later, Henry Dreyfuss and Associates were commissioned to investigate possible design alternatives, and I believe they were documented in a book entitled "Power Styling" which was produced by United States Steel in the mid-to-late 1960s. I discovered a copy not long ago, and the inside illustrations are absolutely amazing. Unfortunately, there is very little information listed, so I can't say for sure if the concepts belong to Henry Dreyfuss and his team. I contacted the office of Syd Mead, who did several illustration projects for US Steel, to confirm the artwork, and sadly he was unfamiliar with this piece. If anyone has information on the Power Stylings project or the mysterious illustrator, please drop a note in the comments.
More images after the jump. Don't miss this one!
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06.28.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Davone Ray Speakers
If you have $6000 just laying around you can pick yourself up a pair of these Davone Ray speakers. While your at it, pick me up a pair too (Hey, with $6000 on hand, you're probably not worried about your cash flow). I have to admit, i'm a sucker for anything with a walnut veneer and this thing looks like an Eames chair with a woofer stuffed inside. I don't know much about the high end audio market, but I hope for $6000 you're getting more than something pretty to look at.
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06.18.10 | Dave | Found design |
Matt Stevens: Nike Air-Max-A-Day Illustrations
TRIBUTE SERIES: NICHOLAS FELTON (FELTRON) /
Charlotte based designer Matt Stevens recently started a personal project to reinterpret the classic Nike Air Max once a day for a whole month. Along the way he created a series that pays tribute to his favorite illustrators and designers including: Frank Chimero, Mikey Burton, Invisible Creature, Jessica Hische, Michael Schwab, Aaron Draplin and others. Matt absolutely nails it. Without looking at the title of the piece you can easily guess who's design/ illustration style he's attempting to capture. It's Sole good Y'all! (sorry) See the the complete Air Max Gallery here.
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06.04.10 | Dave | Found design |
Expo 70 Japan
Takara Beautilion Pavilion designed by Kisho Kurokawa
40 years ago, Osaka hosted the first world exposition to be held in Asia. Representing 76 countries and an array of international and domestic organizations, Osaka Expo '70 was an exemplary platform of engineering and architectural finesse through its vast showcase of pavilions.
Expo '70 boasted numerous temporary complexes designed by notables such as Canada's Arthur Erickson and Renzo Piano. The event was also a fitting platform for these Japanese Metabolist architects, Kenzo Tange, Kisho Kurokawa and Kiyonori Kikutake to pursue their concepts characterized by large scale, flexible, highly-engineered structures that evoke the processes of organic growth.
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05.27.10 | Dave | Found design |
Yulia Brodskaya
Long time Grain Edit friends and all-around swell studio, MINE™, has a sweet gig going. Each year, the city of San Francisco puts on a free music festival in Stern Grove — and MINE™ is given creative and curatorial license over the promotional poster. Over the years a visual language has been established; the poster contains repeating themes and elements (a tree, a grassy hill, etc). The catch is that each year a different artist or designer is hired to create the main image.
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05.14.10 | Ethan | Found design |
Sasha Barr Interview
The latest installment to the Grain Edit interview series takes us to Seattle, birthplace of grunge music and home to illustrator and designer, Sasha Barr. I was first introduced to Sasha's work a few years ago when I stumbled upon his website, positively titled "This is the New Year." His work often employs rough textures, intricately drawn patterns featuring elements from nature and little creatures, and cool color palettes.
In this interview, Sasha discusses how he made the trek from Tennessee to Seattle, his influences and creative process, how he landed an awesome gig working at Sub Pop Records, and also shares incredible views of his awesome home.
Let's dive on in!
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05.04.10 | Grace Danico | Features |
Jan Feliks Kallwejt
Wonderful illustration from Barcelona and Warsaw based designer Jan Feliks Kallwejt. The piece was created for a Polish daily newspaper that is devoted to business and economic issues. The white buildings form a jumping gazelle. I'm not sure how the newspaper used the illustration. Could some of our Polish readers fill us in? Can't say I would want to live near the rear end, it would bring new meaning to living in the "ass end " of town.
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04.29.10 | Dave | Found design |
Mark Shaw Photography
Photo for Chevrolet/"New Yorker" magazine c1960
Svenska Mobler has a beautiful collection of photos from famed photographer Mark Shaw. Mark is best known for his photographs of Jacqueline and John F. Kennedy and his work in capturing couture fashion from the middle of the century. During the 1950s and early 1960s Mark shot the European fashion collections for LIFE magazine. It's interesting to note that he was one of the first photographers to shoot fashion on the runways and backstage at shows.
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04.21.10 | Dave | Found design |
Partisan Memorials in Former Yugoslavia
Makedonium monument in Krusevo
I recently stumbled upon a slideshow of modern memorials in former Yugoslavia over at Robert Burghardt's FZZ Fanzine. The memorials date back to the early 1960s following Yugoslavia's emancipation from the Soviet Union. In the preface to the slide show Robert mentions, "These monuments belong to the most important witnesses of Yugoslav memorial culture and stem from the most active period of Yugoslav modern art which has been described as socialist modernism or socialist aestheticism. As War-monuments they are unique: They do not express the fighting and death, but life, resistance and the energy by which they were carried. They are directed forward while they mark the starting point for a new society, whose products they are."
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04.19.10 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere |
Mike Perry Interview
This Grain Edit interview takes us to New York's largest burough—Brooklyn—and to the office of Mike Perry! I'm sure most here are quite familiar with his work. The style is very specific; you definitely know it when you see it. With the help of the fancy-shmancy Internet, Mike's work seems often imitated, but never duplicated. There is only one Mike Perry, folks.
I became most familiar with Mike's work with the publication of his first book, Hand Job: A Catalog of Type. While still in school I preordered it, as did many of my classmates. But I had my first real hands-on looks at it over at the studio where I was interning — they had an advance copy. I remember the smell, especially, as well as the general office ogling.
One of the things that strikes me the most about Mike's work is that he can be making a zine or an object, putting on a show, or designing a typeface, or just doodling—all of his work feels consistent. With whatever he's doing, you're always entering the world of Mike Perry.
After the jump, Mike talks about various aspects of his work, his work history, and his favorite Brooklyn restaurant. Let's get into it!
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04.13.10 | Ethan | Features |
Karl Oskar Blase
Deutsche Bundespost: Internationales Jahr Des Kindes stamp c1979 Karl Oskar Blase's son is the boy in the image.
Karl Oskar Blase was born in the German city of Cologne (Koln) in 1925. At the age of 25 he attended the Wuppertal School of Industrial Art to study painting and graphic design. Around the same time he formed a design studio with Felix Muller. One of the studio's more significant projects was to develop the layout for form magazine. Karl would go on to design almost all the covers through 1968. Karl also taught at the Kassel school of Industrial Art and designed many stamps for the Deutsche Bundespost.
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04.12.10 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Nate Williams Illustration
Buenos Aires based illustrator and artist, Nate Williams, is a force to be reckoned with! This illustration, entitled Lion and Molecules, uses an earthy palette reminiscent of A&W root beer; the chocolate brown layered over the orange and cream is a real treat! It's choc full of organic shapes and patterns, including really lovely star bursts and variations in line texture and weights. Nate's hand drawn type is also very fun and unique as it juxtaposes thick and thin, masculine and feminine.
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04.07.10 | Grace Danico | Uncategorized |
Wim Crouwel Archive
Architectuur werk van leden poster c1959
Wim Crouwel fans rejoice!
The Het Geheugen van Nederland (The Memory of the Netherlands) is a dutch website that contains an extensive collection of illustrations, photographs, texts, film and audio fragments, all of Dutch making. They have an impressive archive of work by Wim Crouwel. Over 500 original designs by Wim and his partners at Total Design lay in wait for your perusing pleasure. Enjoy!
Huge thanks to Antonio at Aisleone for sharing this gem.
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03.31.10 | Dave | Found design |
6th Biennale of Graphic Design Brno 1974
While I was in Maine I discovered this book put together after the 1974 Biennale of Graphic Design in Brno, Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic and Slovakia). The book contains notes and essays from a symposium centered around corporate identity.
Wim Crouwel contributes an essay on the problems with house-style. In the essay he discusses the role of a designer in the creation of a corporate identity program and describes the difference between what he calls "information designers" and "advertising designers. He ends the essay off with a few thoughts on trademarks (abstract symbols vs type driven solutions).
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03.29.10 | Dave | Events, Uncategorized |
Robert Sessler
Design work for Hagar -1969
Robert Sessler was born in the Swiss city of Bern in 1914. Robert first began experimenting with design during his late 20s at the Zurich School of Arts where he was trained under the Bauhaus instructor, Johannes Itten. In 1942 he left school to open his own studio and become a member of the Swiss Werkbund. He maintained his studio until 1953 when he was offered a position as the head of the graphic design department at the Saarbrucken School of Art in Germany. He continued to teach at Saarbrucken and later at the University of Saarland until his retirement in 1979.
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03.22.10 | Dave | Found design |
Noma Bar Interview
Noma Bar is a man of few strokes. But don't let the simplicity fool you. His talent lies in his efficiency in depicting characters and social issues. With bold colors, shapes and one or two icons he captures the spirit of a person. Other times he communicates a message on a social issue with amazing clarity while adding a bit of humor to everything. Whether the message is about violence or equality, his straight-forward visual approach is refreshing.
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03.17.10 | Dave | Features |
Emily Forgot
London designer and illustrator Emily Alston, better known by her moniker Emily Forgot, takes us on quite the journey in this illustration for Design Week.
She features a cascade of chairs, lamps, and other household accessories layered upon each other to create a surreal environment. The colors in this piece play with light, with its soft tints of cyan and salmon juxtaposed against a dark chocolate background. The really sparse patterns hidden intermittently within the shapes are a real treat too!
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03.16.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Ronald Clyne at Folkways
Being an avid collector of records, I'm looking forward to getting my hands on Unit Editions most recent release.
From the website:" Ronald Clyne at Folkways is a 64 page 'newspaper' devoted to designer Ronald Clyne's record covers for the Folkways label. Ronald Clyne (1925 – 2006) designed over 500 album covers for Folkways and is largely responsible for the famous label's striking visual appearance. His distinctive use of two-color printing on matte paper and his deft use of modernist design strategies, created a body of work that gave the Folkways label its distinctive aroma of integrity and purity."
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03.15.10 | Dave | Found design |
La Boca Design
La Boca is a London based design firm specializing in transporting its viewers to places of the future by means of the past. This record sleeve, created for Arcadion, has a nice composition with the symmetry of the two magnetic looking objects on the edge of what seems like a portal into space. The warm gradient behind the bold text nicely juxtaposes the cool waves of the galactic landscape. This is where I'd like to be today.
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03.09.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
The Books Concert Poster by Sonnenzimmer
The Books Concert Poster by Sonnenzimmer. Measures 18″ x 24″
Our poster pick for the week was created by Sonnenzimmer. Sonnenzimmer is an art and screen print studio based in Chicago. The studio is owned and operated by artist's Nadine Nakanishi and Nick Butcher. We're certain you'll find their work as appealing as we do.
The poster pictured above really puts the negative space to good use. The simple, colorful shapes balance the overall composition while the broken up landscape forms a a dynamic window to the world. You can purchase this poster here.
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03.03.10 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Sanjay Patel Interview
Chronicle Books has just released Ramayana: Divine Loophole the latest book from Pixar animator and illustrator Sanjay Patel. As one of the core legends of Hindu mythology, Ramayana recounts a tale of Rama, a god-turned-prince, and his quest to rescue his wife Sita after she was kidnapped by a demon king. Sanjay is able to breath new life into this 2500-year-old epic tale with over 150 pages of lush, detailed illustrations.
In this interview, he gives us a glimpse into the making of the book and some of the challenges he faced along the way.
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02.26.10 | Dave | Features |
Tom Eckersley
Pakistani International Airlines poster (1960)
English artist and designer, Tom Eckersley (1914-1997), created numerous posters from the 1940s to the 1980s. Eckersley's work communicates strong messages by employing bold overlaid colors, simplified forms, and informative text.
This poster, created for Pakistan International Airlines, depicts a dapper looking gentleman in Swiss garb. His playful image is simple, clean, bright and colorful; a stark contrast from the dark turquoise background. The composition is pleasing to the eye; as the figure gazes at the distant aircraft, we too are gazing at his cheerful image. Let's all go to Geneva!
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02.23.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Naive: Modernism and Folklore in Graphic Design
If you're interested in the artists featured on grain edit, I think you will appreciate today's book. Naive: Modernism and Folklore in Contemporary Graphic Design documents the recent wave of design work inspired by Classic Modernism. I received a copy in the mail not too long ago and was impressed by the roster of artists featured in the book. We've covered many of the artists including Matte Stephens, Helen Dardik, Scotty Reifsnyder, Spike Press, Tes One, Adrian Johnson, Doublenaut, Darling Clementine, Andrio Abero, Methane Studios and Tad Carpenter on grain edit over the last couple of years, but there were still many I was unfamiliar with. My only complaint is the lack of a proper introduction as it would be nice to know more about the selection process. There are several artists in the book that seem out of place. I had a hard time seeing a connection between their work and modern design from the 1940- 1960s. But overall it is a solid addition to any designer's library. More info + pictures available at the publisher's website.
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02.22.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Josh Brill Studio Visit
In the fall, we featured Portland, Maine based artist and designer Josh Brill's Flora Fauna series. The series included a colorful collection of bird illustrations, and was well received on grain edit as well other sites across the blogosphere. So, what's Josh been up to lately? I traveled to Portland over the Christmas break and had the chance to catch up with Josh. We talked about living in Portland, his awesome collection of records from the Blue Note label as well as projects he's currently working on.
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02.17.10 | Dave | Features |
Michael Johansson
Strolls through time and space – Michael Johansson 2009
Really cool found object installations by Swedish artist Michael Johansson.
Michael has this to say about his work, "I am fascinated walking around flea markets finding doubles of seemingly unique, though often useless objects I have already purchased at another flea market. Despite the fact that I did not have any use for them even the first time, the desire to own two of these objects becomes too strong to resist. The unique and unknown origin of the object increases my desire to want the double – the unlikelihood of this sensation repeating itself produces an attraction that is too strong to resist."
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02.09.10 | Dave | Found design |
Paul Rudolph Drawings
Callahan Residence, Birmingham, Alabama 1965 – Rendering by Paul Rudolph
Architect Paul Rudolph (1918-1997) was known for his much-loved (and loathed) Brutalist yet spatially complex buildings. As one of the pioneering figures of the 'Sarasota School of Architecture' in the late 1940s, Rudolph gained a worldwide audience with his innovative design for the modern American home. His best known architectural masterpieces are the Yale School of Architecture, the Government Service Center and the Crawford Manor. By the late 70's and into the 90's, Rudolph who was unmoved by the Post-modern dominance in architecture, steadfastly continued to design powerful Modernist structures now gracing the urban skylines of the Far East.
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02.03.10 | Dave | Found design |
Remed Paintings
Feeling indecisive? Not sure what's going on? Baffled?
This painting by French artist Remed, entitled Clair Confus (Clearly Confused), uses alternating patterns and bright punchy color to achieve a potentially unstable mind state. Remed's eye popping collection of paintings employ interesting geometric patterns and forms often exploring inner workings of the mind and explorations of the body. Read the rest of this entry »
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02.02.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Europe by Car
I love the cover of this Europe by Car brochure. The roads make for a nice grid structure and give the piece a Mondrian-esque quality. The business model for the company was pretty interesting as well. Europe by Car offered services for Americans interested in traveling around Europe for extended periods of time. Using their services you could purchase a European car to use on your travels. At the end of your vacation, Europe by Car would also help ship your new car back to the U.S.
The brochure includes prices for cars from Porsche, Austin Healy, Citroen, Jaguar etc. I just wish their price sheet was still valid. A Porsche for $3700? sign me up!
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01.19.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Jay Ryan
Andrew Bird @9:30 Club poster – Designed and Illustrated by Jay Ryan
The work of Jay Ryan was one of my first introductions to graphic design and gig posters — way back in the olden days. I spent many quality hours checking out his website and taking in his work at Flatstock. Screenprinted squirrels, eccentric characters, and hand lettered typography? It's so interesting that these diverse objects can come together and say something so compelling about a band like Shellac, or Built to Spill, or Sebadoh.
Jay Ryan is this week's poster pick — and you can purchase his work through Poster Cabaret.
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01.14.10 | Ethan | Poster Picks |
Map of Lucerne, Switzerland
The Swiss are known for their well designed watches. Franck Muller, Rolex and Omega are just a few of the manufacturers with established roots in Switzerland. I'm sure more then a couple people visit this country each year just to check out luxury timepieces. Can't say I fall into that crowd, but I'd be more then willing to go if someone wants to front the bill! For those that can afford a watch buying trip and happen to have a time machine laying around, this map could prove very useful. The map, which dates back to the late 1940s(?) helped guide tourists visiting the Lucerne area in search of well respected watch merchants. It includes recommendations from the Swiss Watchmakers Guild, so you know its golden. I think.
I love the teal, and the orange accents, but the pale yellow is a little too much for me. I have a feeling whoever designed this map has a hankering for crusty mustard, word up.
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01.11.10 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Esther Aarts Illustration
It's out with the old, in with the new. Goodbye 2009, hello 2010!
Netherlands based illustrator, Esther Aarts, created this holiday greeting card for van Ditzhuijzen accountants. Its charm lies in its personified objects, such as the gleeful teabags and toothy stapler, set against coarsely textured backgrounds. I really like the color scheme with its varied pink hues in stark contrast to the grainy black, and the hand drawn type is also an added plus…making way for a fresh new year.
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01.06.10 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Identity Programs by Noel Martin
Identity for Ohio Arts Council designed by Noel Martin
Noel Martin was a self taught graphic designer who taught at the Art Academy of Cincinnati and served as the in-house designer for the Cincinnati Art Museum for many years. He was one of the first to modernize art museum exhibition catalogs. In an article at the New York times Steven Heller also notes, "With the ubiquitous branding and expert merchandizing of museums today, it is easy to forget that graphic design was once a low priority for them. In 1947, when Mr. Martin became the Cincinnati Art Museum's first graphic designer, most museum publications were staid and musty."
The Container list has a nice post on a self-promotional piece titled, Identity Programs, that presents some of Noel's iconic minimalist logos.
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01.04.10 | Dave | Found design |
Simon Page interview
2009 International Year of Astronomy Poster designed by Simon C Page
Simon Page is a self-taught graphic design whiz with a mathematics background. He takes shapes and morphs them into cerebral abstractions. His style shifts around futuristic digital designs and 1960s minimalism, trotting the delicate line between simplicity and detail. His International Year of Astronomy 2009 poster designs caught the eyes of discerning design writers, including the New York Times and Creative Review. It may be the year for Astronomy but its equally a big year for Page, his posters got a boost in sales from all the acknowledgment he's been getting in print and on the web.
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01.03.10 | Dave | Features |
The Jazz Loft Project
From 1957-1965 W. Eugene Smith, a prolific American photographer, documented New York jazz musicians in his small loft and ended up with 4,000 hours of audio and 40,000 photographs. His dilapidated loft in the wholesale flower district was the place for late-night jam sessions for Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Steve Reich, Zoot Sims, Roland Kirk, and Alice Coltrane. He also recorded drug addicts, neighborhood cops, radio programs about aliens, MLK and JFK on the radio, James Baldwin and Frank Lloyd Wright in interviews. When Smith died, he accumulated 1,740 reels of tape. Below are some of his photos and tape boxes from his collection.
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12.24.09 | Dave | Found design |
Denmark Christmas Seals 1962
1962 Denmark Christmas Seals designed by Erik Petersen
Glædelig Jul! In the early 1900s, a Danish postal clerk came up with the idea of selling Christmas seals to raise money for children with tuberculosis. Over 100 years later, these "cinderella" (unofficial postage) stamps have become a worldwide holiday tradition. In 1962, Erik Petersen designed this sheet of Christmas seals, depicting the gamle håndværk ("old trades") of Denmark. I want to live inside this illustration; I'd stop by the pipe maker's shop on my way to pick up some candles and clogs.
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12.22.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves, Uncategorized |
Sanna Annukka Shop – Soul Birds
Sanna Annukka Limited Edition Wooden Soul Birds
Sanna Annukka recently launched a new portfolio and online store. I love these solid brown oak Soul Birds which are now available for pre-orders in her shop. I'll have to add these to my Christmas list!
On her website, Sanna shares this bit about the the Soul Bird which stems from Finnish mythology. "In Karelia there was an ancient belief in the Sielulintu or Soul bird. The Sielulintu was thought to deliver the soul to newborn babies and also to transport the soul to the afterlife at the moment of death. It was believed the Sielulintu protected a persons soul at it's most vulnerable; when dreaming, and it was tradition to keep a carved wooden bird by the bedside to keep the soul safe during sleep."
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12.17.09 | Dave | Found design |
2009 Holiday Wish Lists (UPDATED)
Dear Santa, Hanukkah Harry, and Kwanzaa Ken:
Searching high and low across the vast realm of the interwebs, we've collectively compiled probably one of the hugest lists imaginable with some of our favorite artists! We've all been on our best behavior, assisting elderly ladies and gents across the street and working our fannies off. Please take a moment to give this list a good read, and say you'll bring some of these things our way!
Sincerely,
Grain Edit & Friends
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12.16.09 | Grace Danico | Uncategorized |
ISO50 Interview
For this exciting addition to the Grain Edit interview series, we kept it local — seeking out one of San Francisco's finest, Scott Hansen, aka ISO50. My first acquaintance with Scott came in the spring of 2005. The pre-Grain Edit crew had headed up to a lecture in Sacramento featuring Scott discussing his work and process.
I love the work of ISO50 just as much now as I did way back in '05. It has a great historical reference, while still remaining contemporary. Scott does a nice job of combining clean, graphic forms alongside texture and pattern.
In this interview Scott talks about his entrance into graphic design, his creative process, his interest and involvement in music and photography, and, among many other things, his top 5 favorite albums.
So, pull up a chair in one of your favorite Dolores Park cafes (or imagine yourself there), and take look:
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12.14.09 | Ethan | Features |
Criterion Collection DVD Covers
Cover for The Bad Sleep Well (1960) – Directed by Akira Kurosawa
The Criterion Collection is well-known for restoring rare, unique and cult classic films from famed directors like Akira Kurosawa, Jean-Luc Godard, Luis Buñuel, and Wes Anderson. Equally respected is their cover art and supplements to their DVDs. For 25 years, Criterion Collection has been pairing art house films with strong design. From typography to photography, they elevate box art to poster art with work that never cease to impress.
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12.08.09 | Dave | Found design |
Birds of a Feather 2
J'adore by Heather Amuny-Dey
If your in the San Francisco area this Saturday (11/21/09), this looks like it's going to be a good show.
Details:
Super7 is proud to present the follow up to 2007's blockbuster show "Birds of a Feather" with the new aptly titled show "Birds of a Feather 2" featuring artwork by Dora Drimalas, Heather Amuny-Dey and Shay Ashley-Ometz. This show features three original new prints from each artist (nine in total) as well as a sampling of older, out-of-print and rare prints from each artist's personal archive to create a whimsical and wonderful reflection on their lives.
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11.19.09 | Dave | Events |
Lisez, Jouez et Decouvrez La Scandinavie avec Andersen
lisez, jouez et decouvrez La Scandinavie avec Andersen -by Paul de Roujoux, Pamela Labonnelie and Mireille Ballero. Illustrations by Martine Bourre c1975 editions des deux coqs d'or
La Scandinavie avec Andersen is a beautiful children's book about Scandinavian culture. The book is filled with stories, games and activities. Just think, your child could be making his/her very own Nils Holgersson costume right now! For the budding young history buff, there's a section on the Drakkars and Vikings. If your child is too scared to look at tough guys with helmets, head straight to the fuzzy Nordic animals in chapter one. Have a four year old that's into logging? No problem, this book has you covered. There's a section on the Scandinavian timber industry in the middle of the book. Soon your young one will be able to turn raw material into fine Danish furniture!
More pictures after the jump.
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11.16.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Mark Weaver
I've always been impressed with Mark Weaver's continuously fantastic collage series Make Something Cool Every Day. Firstly, making something like this every day is a great project — I love when designers make their personal work public. Secondly, these collages are an interesting mishmash of styles and images. Mark has a keen sense of knowing what types of images work well together.
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11.12.09 | Ethan | Found design |
Visual Acoustics Film – The Modernism of Julius Shulman
I had a chance to check out Visual Acoustics this weekend and I highly recommend it. The documentary is about the life and work of Julius Shulman, a brilliant architectural photographer whose photos captured the history of modernist architecture in Southern California. During his prolific career he worked with nearly every modern architect since the 1930s including John Lautner, Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, PIerre Koenig, Charles and Ray Eames, Craig Ellwood, Raphael Soriano and Gregory Ain.
The release of this film seems especially timely, given that Julius recently passed away. If you are unfamiliar with his work, you are in for a real treat.
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11.10.09 | Dave | Found design |
Graphic Design Referenced
Graphic Design Referenced by Bryony Gomez-Palacio and Armin Vit
I recently got my hands on a copy of Graphic Design Referenced. This is the latest project from the dynamic design duo of Bryony Gomez-Palacio and Armin Vit, who also happen to be the brilliant minds behind the UnderConsideration network of sites. As the official press release states, "Graphic Design, Referenced is a visual and informational guide to the most commonly referenced terms, historical moments, landmark projects, and influential practitioners in the field of graphic design. This is a very ambitious project to say the least, but I'm quite impressed with the final result. I'm amazed at the amount of information they were able to cram into this 400 page book.
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10.29.09 | Dave | Uncategorized |
70s Portuguese Brochure
Beautiful brochure for a chain of hotels in Portugal.
From the inside of the brochure: "From the oldest times, "pousada" in Portuguese has meant "resting place""inn". Quiet isolated situations by the sea shore, in the mountains or on the plains. Lovely views, wealth of history, traditional culture.
The Pousadas make up a network of hotel establishments built by the state, housed in historic buildings, castles, palaces, and monasteries or specially built."
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10.27.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Modern SeeSaw
The girl on the end is seriously hating on the little dude. Ride on bro!
I came across this ad in an old Italian design magazine a few years back. I scanned in the image and quickly forgot about it. In my haste I forgot to write down any relevant information. Now I'm stuck without a clue as to who made this super cool kids toy.
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10.26.09 | Dave | Found design |
Lubalin Now
Lubalin Now: The inaugural exhibition in the newly re-located Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography.
On view in Cooper Union's new gallery, the installation includes recent posters, publications, and motion graphics by internationally recognized graphic designers that spotlight an emerging trend toward expressive lettering and typography. Original sketches, magazines, logotypes, and posters selected from the Lubalin Center Archive will illuminate Lubalin's influence on contemporary graphic design.
Featured artists include Herb Lubalin, Justin Thomas Kay, Non-Format, Marian Bantjes, Markus Eriksson, Brett MacFadden and many more.
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10.19.09 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Katie Kirk Illustration & Design
wedding invites designed by Katie Kirk
I love these wedding/reception invites designed by Katie Kirk of Eight Hour Day. The invites are for Katie's sister who plans to get married in Mexico and then have a giant pig roast in Wisconsin. I hope the pig on the front of the invite enjoys his last days of freedom! He's on his way to being ham nugglets.
Last time we checked in with Katie she was wrapping up work on her first children's book. The book, which is titled Eli No!, tells the story of a mischievous dog and his journeys. At the time, the book was lacking a publisher. Since then, the book has secured a deal with Abrams. Looking forward to the release!
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10.13.09 | Dave | Found design |
'Cutie Bear' by Delicious Design League
Cutie Bear by Delicious Design League. 18″ x 24″
The best part about bringing you the poster pick series is reading your responses to our selections. This week can't disappoint because it is virtually impossible to see the work of the designers at Delicious Design League and not be smitten.
Delicious Design League is based in Chicago and commandeered by Billy Baumann and Jason Teegarden-Downs. The firm focuses on designing for the music industry but leaves room for all things design. 'Cutie Bear' feels right at home here at Grain Edit. Clean lines and smart color combos never go out of style. The trick is to make it look effortless, but it's obvious a great deal of thought goes into something so, well, cute.
Cutie Bear is available for purchase here.
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10.08.09 | Dave | Poster Picks |
Neither Fish Nor Fowl interview
(Photo by Anna Wolf)
Let's travel to the boogie down borough of Brooklyn, New York — home to the colossal rides and hot dogs at Coney Island, the beautiful Central Library, and one of my favorite illustrators Jim Datz.
For those who are in the know, Jim goes by the moniker Neither Fish Nor Fowl. His work is reminiscent of olden times, with images of sailors, explorers, keystone cops, and mustached men in bowler caps.
In this interview, he discusses his transition from architecture to illustration, dapper gents and hippies, his creative process, and reveals something that most folks don't know about him.
Let's dive right in, shall we?
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10.06.09 | Grace Danico | Features, Interviews |
Celestino Piatti + dtv Book: The Unity of the Program
Celestino Piatti + dtv: The Unity of the program – Edited by Jens Muller
Two weeks ago we featured the Philips-Twen book from Lars Muller's new A5 series. Celestino Piatti + dtv is the third title to be released in the series and my favorite of the bunch.
Celestino Piatti was born in the little Swiss village of Dietlikon on January 5,1922. Early on his parents recognized his talent and secured him training at the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Applied Arts) in Zurich and later a graphic design internship with fellow Swiss designer Fritz Buhler. After four years with Buhler he left to start his own studio and eventually landed the job of a lifetime. In 1961 Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag (dtv) hired Piatti to design their bookjackets. A comission that lasted up to his death in 2007. For over thirty years, he endowed the books published by dtv with a singular and unique look. He became the most productive book designer of all times, producing covers for over 6300 books that sold in a total print run of over 200 million copies.
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10.01.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Ken Leung interview
Being a fan of Monocle magazine, I'm excited about our next guest. Ken Leung is a London based freelance designer who helped launch Monocle magazine and until recently served as it's art director. In today's interview, Ken shares his love for Textas (marker pens), some of his influences and a few of his favorite books.
Ok, here we go..
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09.22.09 | Dave | Features |
Toru Fukuda Illustration
C'mon ride the train & ride it! Toot! Toot!
This cheerful train track is created by Tokyo based illustrator and character designer, Toru Fukuda. He runs a delightful website titled Drawing Wonder, where he illustrates whimsical cartoons inspired from the 1960s and 1970s.
This particular illustration depicts unhitched trains, alternate tunnels, a nice water tower, even a free wheelin' mustached conductor! Using multiple hand drawn layers, bright primary colors and thick lines, Toru successfully channels his inner Ed Emberley. Who's up for a ride to Happyville?
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09.09.09 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Little Friends of Printmaking interview
(Photo credit: C. Taylor)
The latest installment to the Grain Edit interviews takes us to Milwaukee, Wisconsin: home to big name breweries, delicious Gouda, and husband-wife design duo…The Little Friends of Printmaking!
Melissa and JW Buchanan are the brains behind the Little Friends, and they are best known for their often outrageously intricate prints that explore everything from the complexities of the mind, fun-loving animals, to leisure time activities.
In this interview, they discuss the perks about working with their significant other, the highs and lows of attending art school, and their creative process.
And now, let the fun commence!
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09.03.09 | Grace Danico | Features |
Lars Muller's New A5 Book Series
Celestino Piatti and dtv: The Unity of the Program – Edited by Jens Muller
I can't wait to get my hands on these books.
Lars Muller has just launched the A5 series of books. The series is intended as a growing archive on graphic design. Each volume introduces outstanding personalities and important themes from the history of international graphic design, with numerous illustrations, essays and interviews. The series kicks off with books focused on Celestino Piatti, Philips-Twen and Hans Hillmann.
I'm really excited about the Celestino Piatti book. For more than 30 years, he endowed the covers of books published by dtv with a singular look. With more than 6300 covers to his credit, amounting collectively to a total of 200 million volumes, Piatti was one of the most productive designers of all time.
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09.01.09 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Doom Flower Print by Aesthetic Apparatus
Doom Flower Mini Print by Aesthetic Apparatus – 6″ x 6″.
Many of you are familiar with the distinctive works of Aesthetic Apparatus and this week we're happy to add their 'Doom Flower' to our growing list of poster picks. This design studio continues to please us with their creative choices and prints like this. The colors used here stay true to their Doom series which is well worth browsing. The flow relies heavily on color and shape in the creation of the energetic flower pattern. The skull in the center adds an interesting balance and helps break things up a bit. I think this demonstrates great use of color and pattern. Those guys make it look so easy!
This print is available at www.postercabaret.com
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08.20.09 | Dave | Poster Picks |
S.britt Illustration
Ah, the joy and merriment of the carousel! This record cover by Portland based illustrator, S.britt, depicts all the fun adults can have riding on whirling whimsical animals.
Created for Canadian based bands The Low Tones and The Redstripes, this illustration juxtaposes cheery animals and people with the morbid title of "Spin Till You Die." The assortment of colors remind me of my mom's Tupperware from the '70s, and the textures add a familiar worn-in touch. The pink and white of the carousel top are also like Mother's Circus Animal cookies. Yum!
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08.12.09 | Grace Danico | Found design |
David Klein: Vintage TWA Posters
If only travel posters still looked this good!
American illustrator, David Klein (1918-2005), created numerous travel posters for Howard Hughes' Trans World Airlines (TWA) in the 1950s and 1960s. His posters use eye-popping colors, iconic landmarks, and scenic images to advertise global travel.
The composition of this particular poster is fantastic, as Klein sets the St. Louis Gateway Arch against a festively patterned background, emphasizing its momentous size. The analogous colors of the type, airplane, and old courthouse are a warm treat too!
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08.05.09 | Grace Danico | Found design |
The Whimsical Works of David Weidman
The Whimsical Works of David Weidman – Published by Gingko Press.
David Weidman's name may not be familiar, but his work certainly is. Weidman began his career as an animator in 1950s Los Angeles, painting backgrounds for Hannah Barbara and setting the standard for the look of cartoons of that era. However, like a true entrepreneur he soon began to work for himself, and went on to establish a style that is today instantly recognizable and iconic. A printmaker, ceramicist, font designer, painter, cartoonist, and silk screener, Weidman never stopped experimenting as an artist. Today at age 87 Weidman's staggering body of work is just as modern and visually stunning as it was forty years ago. His graphic sensibility and expert use of saturated color palettes evoke the vintage modern look while remaining completely relevant to contemporary designers.
If you don't have a copy of this book yet, it's seriously worth picking up. You can can pick up a copy here.
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07.28.09 | Dave | Product Reviews |
Mig Reyes – Blog Wars Poster
People are dying for blogs y'all
Blog Wars? What the heck is going on in Chicago? People killing each other over raw RSS product? Naw, turns out Blog Wars is a gathering of Chicago's top dance music DJs—who all happen to run successful blogs.
The poster was created by talented designer and all around rad guy Mig Reyes. I love how Mig breaks up the rigid grid with streams of folkadelic type which parallel the flow and feel of vinyl records. It slightly reminds me of Lance Wyman's identity work for the 1968 Mexico Olympics which played off traditional Huichol Indian art. I hope Mr. Reyes printed up extra copies of this poster, because I know some people will want to get their hands on this war-torn gem!
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07.28.09 | Dave | Found design |
Edward McGowan Illustration
Illustration for Cottage Life Magazine
Edward McGowan is an Edinburgh based illustrator with a keen eye for bright colors and rough textures.
This particular illustration, created for Cottage Life Magazine, features a white house surrounded by tall cone shaped clusters of trees and various patches of green. The composition draws one's eye to the tiny house and skinny path, which connects the earth to the sea. The textures within this piece are coarse, and the illustration itself is reminiscent of those found in my old Social Studies books from elementary school.
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07.22.09 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Swiss Graphic Design Book Now Available
Corporate Diversity: Swiss Graphic Design and Advertising by Geigy 1940-1970
A few months ago we featured the book Corporate Diversity: Swiss Graphic Design and Advertising by Geigy 1940-1970 on grain edit. At the time the book was only available in Europe. We're excited to announce that it is now available for purchase in the U.S. I highly recommend this book. Don't sleep on this one! Lars Muller and the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich did an excellent job presenting the material.
You can purchase the Book here. Get it before it sells out!
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07.07.09 | Dave | Uncategorized |
Abner Graboff
Mr. Angelo by Marjory Schwalje – Illustrations by Abner Graboff c1960
Ward Jenkins has an excellent interview with Jon Graboff over at the Ward-O-Matic. Jon is the son of the uber talented Abner Graboff, an American artist who illustrated a slew of amazing children's books during the 1950s and 60s. In one part of the interview Jon mentions that his brother informed him that their dad had designed the CBS "eye" logo but didn't receive credit for it. The credit went instead to the chief art director at the network. That art director would be William Golden. Is it possible that Abner Graboff designed the CBS eye logo?
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07.02.09 | Dave | Found design |
Mike Cina mix
Mike Cina – Spirit Edit Jazz Mix
In this 4th installment of grain edit mixtapes, we caught up with design nut and all-around awesome guy Mike Cina. When Mike isn't manning the helm at YouWorkForThem he's digging through your grand pa's record collection. Today we're excited to present an exclusive jazz mix he created for grain edit readers.
Before we get to the mix, I had a chance to pick Mike's brain on record collecting, typography and album cover art.
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06.29.09 | Dave | Features |
Kevin Dart interview
Original Soundtrack from Yuki 7 film, Roman Rendezvous
The latest addition to our Grain Edit interview series takes us to the sunny, pigeon littered streets of Los Angeles: home to Hollywood – movie capital of the world, and artist Kevin Dart. Heavily inspired by films and artwork from the '60s, Kevin beautifully creates the dazzling, glamorous, exciting world of Yuki 7: a gorgeous feisty international globe-trotting spy.
In today's interview, Kevin transports us to the year 30,000, discusses his adventurous background, and of course his inspiration for creating the Yuki 7 character. Before we get started, here are a few examples of Kevin's work…
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06.03.09 | Grace Danico | Features |
Photo Lettering – Alphabet Thesaurus Vol.2
Photo Lettering website
Photo-Lettering was a mainstay of the advertising and design industry in New York City from 1936 to 1997. PLINC, as it was affectionately known to art directors, was one of the earliest and most successful type houses to utilize photo technology in the production of commercial typography and lettering. It employed such design luminaries as Ed Benguiat and sold type drawn by the likes of Herb Lubalin, Milton Glaser and Seymour Chwast as well as countless other unsung lettering greats. The company is best known by most of today's graphic designers for its ubiquitous type catalogs.
House Industries purchased the entire physical assets of Photo-Lettering and is carefully digitizing select alphabets from the collection and plans to offer them through the new Photo Lettering website.
To celebrate, I thought it would be nice to dig up one of my Photo Lettering catalogs. Here for your viewing pleasure is Alphabet Thesaurus Vol.2
Alphabet Thesaurus Vol 2 – A Treasury of Letter Design
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06.01.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Mid Century Modern Home Plans
Vacation home designed by Bay Area architect Henrik Bull – illustration by Bob Wandesforde
The image above is from a promotional booklet entitled Second homes for leisure living. The booklet was produced by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association and features floor plans and dimensions for 18 vacation homes built with fir plywood. Included are plans for homes designed by modern architects such as George Matsumoto, Frederick Liebhardt, David George and Henrik Bull.
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05.25.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Natsko Seki: Illustration
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! Check out this lovely poster created by London based illustrator Natsko Seki!
In this piece, Seki combines hand drawn elements with intricate details of collage. I love that the bright primary colors are platforms for the bevy of performers, including busy cyclists and trumpet tooting trained seals. She really captures the magic and enthusiasm of the circus with the layered composition, all of which remind me of Boniface's Holiday by Russian animator Fyodor Khitruk. Did you happen to see the bear on the bicycle?
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05.20.09 | Grace Danico | Found design |
Human Empire / Andreas Samuelsson T shirt Giveaway
Human Empire – Vinyl is Forever T shirt
Soundscreen Design is a product design company inspired by music. They are curating, manufacturing and distributing a line of t-shirts, hoodies and tote bags featuring artists' iconic interpretations of the phrase "Vinyl is Forever". Inspired by iconic visual slogans such as "I (heart) NY" and "Virginia is for Lovers", and referencing music obsessives' everlasting love of vinyl records, the series will appeal to music, art and fashion fans alike. For avid music fans, vinyl has become both the format of preference as well as a badge of honor. The wearables are designed to be a badge they can wear proudly.
To celebrate the release of the Vinyl is Forever product line we've teamed up with Soundscreen Design for a special giveaway.
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05.18.09 | Dave | Contests and giveaways |
The Architecture of Gomorrah – La Vele di Scampia
I recently saw Gomorrah, which took the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes, and was definitely intrigued and curious as to the origins of the beastly, monolithic sail-like housing complexes where the movie was shot. La Vele di Scampia, or the Sails of Scampia was an offshoot of the post-war modernist social housing explosion gripping the world, including Naples, Italy where it was located. Each complex, shaped like a sail, consists of apartment units with stairs leading to central walkways on each floor. The result is a spectacularly open public space in which people can see and be seen.
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04.30.09 | Dave | Seen Elsewhere |
Ladislav Sutnar: Catalog Design Progress
Catalog Design Progress: Advancing Standards in Visual Communication by K. Lonberg-Holm and Ladislav Sutnar – published by Sweet's Catalog Service © 1950
Really excited to present today's book. It's a classic by the highly underrated designer Ladislav Sutnar.
Ladislav Sutnar was born in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia on november 9, 1897. He was educated in Prague. In 1939 he traveled to New York as an exhibition designer for the Czech Pavilion at the World's Fair. Due to the war he ended up staying in New York and was later hired by Sweet's Catalog Service. It was here along with Sweet's research director K Lonberg Holm that Sutnar would produce a body of work that would help to lay the foundation of information design as we know it today. One of the books to spawn from that partnership was Catalog Design Progress. The book chronicles the pair's thoughts and experimentations with the layout and organization of information.
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04.28.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Till Wiedeck: Graphic Design
German based designer, Till Wiedeck, really melts my heart with his fabulous collection of type. This particular typeface, titled "HM Melt," was inspired by a simple letter "a" found in a mid-'70s edition of The World of Logotypes by Al Cooper. It's terrifically impressive that he was able to create such a fresh typeface solely based around the shape of one letter. I really love his experimentation with geometry and the positioning of various drops, simulating that the type is really melting!
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04.23.09 | Grace Danico | Uncategorized |
Richard Perez / Skinny Ships
I'm really impressed by this work from Richard Perez. His typographic and illustration work is super fancy. He seems to have no problem navigating styles as well as tackling a variety of design projects — his work ranges from hand drawn type and illustration, to identity and traditional design. All of his work is direct, and compelling with great execution and color palettes.
It's really refreshing to see the enthusiasm and personality in all of Richard's work. It's also nice to see that we share a few things in common, including VHS tapes, Lincoln, and kittens.
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04.22.09 | Ethan | Found design |
Dress Code interview
Welcome to the latest addition to the Grain Edit interview series. But wait, there's a twist! We sneaked a book review into the mix as well. I know, very tricky.
Our latest interviewees are Andre Andreev and Dan Covert. They're from New York City, and they're known as Dress Code. They recently published a book entitled Never Sleep, which details their experience and transition from design students to design professionals. Never Sleep is a practical and vital guide for design graduates wondering what to do after school.
At the combined age of (roughly) 50 Andre and Dan's work has been recognized by I.D., CommArts, Print, Graphis, Metropolis, The Type Directors Club, The Art Directors Club, CMYK, HOW, Adobe, Steps Field Guide to Emerging Talent and Young Guns. They met while studying graphic design at California College of the Arts and worked at MTV before starting Dress Code.
OK, so get your game on already:
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04.20.09 | Ethan | Designers, Features |
Tim Gough interview
(Photo credit: Adam Wallacavage)
The next addition to the Grain Edit interview series takes us to Philadelphia: City of Brotherly Love, home of founding father Ben Franklin and the Liberty Bell, and double agent Tim Gough. A man of mystery, by day, Tim works as the Art Director for the Philadelphia Weekly. By night, he emerges from the cheese steak littered streets of Philly to do one thing: rid the world of dull illustrations.
Tim successfully melds images of spies and monstrous creatures with bursts of color, densely clustered patterns and rough textures, creating dynamically rich works. In this interview, he discusses his hometown and background, perplexing experiences after college, influences, and his creative process.
And now to reveal the enigma…
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04.08.09 | Grace Danico | Features |
Corporate Diversity: Swiss Graphic Design by Geigy 1940-1970
Corporate Diversity- Swiss Graphic Design and Advertising by Geigy 1940-1970. Published by Lars Muller +Museum fur Gestaltung Zurich – Back cover image of Acaralate canister designed by Markus Low in 1967
The fine folks at Lars Muller have just published an excellent book titled Corporate Diversity: Swiss Graphic Design and Advertising by Geigy. I know alot of designers (myself included) that are extremely excited over the release of this book. It chronicles the work of the design studio J.R Geigy AG which was a launching pad for one of the great periods of Swiss graphic design, in the 1950s and 1960s. It's amazing to see the quantity and quality of the designers associated with Geigy. Under the leadership of Max Schmid for many years, the studio employed Roland Aeschlimann, Karl Gerstner, Jörg Hamburger, Steff Geissbuhler, Andreas His, Toshihiro Katayama, and Nelly Rudin, among others. Freelance designers such as Michael Engelmann, Gottfried Honegger, Armin Hofmann, Herbert Leupin, Warja Lavater, Numa Rick, and Niklaus Stoecklin were also used. In the 1960s, the Basel office, most especially George Giusti and Fred Troller, was involved in developing the studios of the subsidiaries in the United States and the United Kingdom, placing more emphasis on advertising. This is the first comprehensive presentation of Geigy design, an important Swiss contribution to the international history of design.
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04.06.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Ward Jenkins: A Very Busy Man
One of our favorite illustrators from the Pacific Northwest is Ward Jenkins. He has to be one of the busiest guys in the biz. He creates amazing illustrations, chats it up on twitter, contributes to Drawn!, maintains several flickr groups (here and here), runs a fantastic blog (his blog is one of the first blogs I started reading) and on top of all this he just completed his first children's book, which will be published by Simon & Schuster in June 2009. I'm starting to think that Ward is not one person, but rather a small organization with one heck of a cool name.
Ward just released 7 new prints in his Ward-O -Matic Etsy Shop (I know, he has a shop too, where does get the time?) To celebrate he's holding a giveaway. To enter you have to leave a comment on this post by 11:59 midnight PST on Wednesday, April 1st, 2009. The winners will be announced on Friday, April 3rd.
Visit Ward's blog to enter the giveaway.
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04.01.09 | Dave | Found design |
House Industries interview
House Industries is not your typical type foundry. Unlike most foundries that strictly focus on type design, House take things one step further. Their fonts become springboards to new ideas and products that are often integrated into themed experiences complete with lush packaging and slick catalogs. A great example of this is their work on the 2004 release of Neutraface. They created a reproduction of Richard Neutra's Boomerang chair and pillows to coincide with the release of the font collection. In addition, they created limited edition packaging (with die cuts and metallic inks) to accompany the hard copy of the fonts. In an age when people more and more seek cheap and immediate goods, I cherish these premium experiences.
House Industries most recent project pays tribute to the modernist designer Alexander Girard. In my opinion it is their most impressive collection to date. It includes a Type Family, a Nativity Set, t shirts, alphabet blocks, lettering, Marilyn Neuhart designed Casa dolls and more. We spoke with Andy Cruz (Co-owner and art director) about the research and development of the products.
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03.31.09 | Dave | Features |
Upcoming & Ongoing events
CHARLES HARPER EXHIBITION
Charley Harper fans rejoice! The Public Trust is currently running an exhibition of Mr. Harper's works throughout April. That massive Charley Harper book is amazing, but man, wouldn't it be great to see the actual paintings in person? If you're in the Dallas, TX area and happen to go, let us know how it is!
Thanks to James for passing this along!
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THE PRACTICE SESSIONS APRIL 2 – 4 2009
The Practice Sessions is a workshop and panel discussion by Antonio Carusone, Frank Chimero, Duane King and Matt Owens taking place at the National Student Show & Conference in Dallas, Texas. The Practice Sessions was created by Thinking for a Living, an ever-growing platform dedicated to the concept of open source design education. Through a network of topic specific design sites with a focus on education and resources, we share our thoughts, inspirations, critical analysis, design histories and individual experiences relating to a career in design.
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03.27.09 | Ethan | Events |
A must have for a designer
It's becoming more and more important to have an online presence if you are a designer. Clients and potential employers have come to expect immediate access to your work and offering a strictly paper based portfolio is no longer an option. In addition to being a place to display your latest projects, having a website will allow you to easily share your resume, collect payments and notify users of the various associations and social media channels you participate in. In the past setting up a website was intimidating and often limited to designers with coding experience. With the wealth of tools now available it is no longer necessary to have coding experience to create a well-designed portfolio. Below are just a few of the options.
For those looking for a simple and clean platform that is free or low-cost, Carbonmade or Cargo Collective should fit the bill. Both options include hosting and allow you to easily modify the look. In addition, you can embed audio and video files and add slideshows.
If you are looking for a solution that includes ecommerce capabilities, Squarespace, Shopify, and Goodsie are worth looking into. In addition, 1and1 offers lots of tools to create a robust website. All of these options will allow you to sell products and manage your orders.
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03.26.09 | Dave | items |
Jacques Auriac Posters
So, I'm hanging out my with friend and fellow book nerd Sean Flores a while ago and he's breaks out these incredible posters designed for Bally in the 1980s. My jaw drops! He tells me they were created by French designer Jacques Auriac. Who the heck is Jacques Auriac? I'm thinking. Then Sean mentions that a Paris based publisher produced a catalog of his work. Ahh crap!! just what I need, another expensive import book to track down. A year later and a trip to Tokyo I finally got my hands on this thing.
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03.23.09 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Frank Chimero interview
I'm very excited about our next addition to the Grain Edit interview series. When the gigantic Grain Edit interview arrow landed on Springfield, MO we knew just who to call: Frank Chimero.
You've likely seen Frank's designs and illustrations making the rounds on the design blog circuit lately. And with good reason; Frank's work effortlessly combines humor, wit, and style with a fresh and honest point of view.
Frank opens up and shares some of his thoughts and insights regarding his design background, his influences and teaching experiences, and of course his famed process. If you're a fan of the States' series, then there's also a super surprise waiting for you further down in the interview.
OK, enough. Here we go:
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03.12.09 | Ethan | Designers, Features |
Holy Giveaway! The Grain Edit Stimulus Package
The US Economy is falling apart and people are down. We came up with the "Grain Edit Design Stimulus Package Giveaway" as a way to cheer people up during these rough times and to thank our amazing readers for their continued support. For the giveaway, we contacted some of our favorite illustrators and designers that we're featured on Grain Edit within the last 6 months and asked if they would be willing to participate. Thanks to all our sponsors for helping to make this happen!
Sounds Great, but how do I enter?
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03.09.09 | Dave | Contests and giveaways |
Swink Direct Mail Promo Piece
Many thanks to the good people at Madison, Wisconsin based design firm Swink for sending me this awesome promotional piece. Swink put this together as a way to invite people to reconsider the way they've been marketing themselves and to believe in the power of a good story — their story. It comes with two plaid lawn chairs (so you can invite a friend), a fire and your very own dinosaur. To top it off, the whole thing comes packaged in a mailer with a giant smiling hot dog! That's what I'm talking about!
The piece was letterpressed by the always top notch studio on fire.
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02.19.09 | Dave | Found design |
Toykyo
My first reaction upon being greeted by the above images was to smile. These are two pieces from Toykyo, the rad Belgian-based firm. They seem to wear many design-hats, and have work on an interesting variety of projects. Their personality definitely remains visible throughout their work. I love the the stylized shapes, simplicity, and bold use of color. Plus, major points for working in a Pacman ghost next to an elephant!
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02.13.09 | Ethan | Found design |
The New YouWorkForThem Site
YouWorkForThem just launched a brand new site this week. If you are unfamiliar with YWFT, it's an online store that carries books, t-shirts, posters, stock images and more.
We love books at Grain Edit so, we took some time to browse through the book section and select some of our top picks.
We've included links below each description, so you can get more info/purchase the book if you want to.
Dave's picks
Charley Harper – An Illustrated Life
This mammoth 420 page book put together by Top Designer Todd Oldham is a wonderful tribute to Charley Harper. The book is filled with full color examples of Charley's stunning work.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
Steven Harrington: Our Mountain
I love Steven Harrington's illustration style and this book serves as a wonderful overview of his work. This copy is signed and drawn on by Steven Harrington himself!
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
Pino Tovaglia: The Rule That Corrects Emotion
We received a copy of this book from the publisher a few months back and loved it. You can see our review of the book here. YWFT got in some copies and now you can own a copy of this hard to find Italian import too.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
Grid Systems in Graphic Design
Josef Muller Brockmann's magnum dopest. The definitive book on grid systems. Every designer should be required to own this.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
Wim Crouwel Alphabets
I really want a copy of the Wim Crouwel monograph: Mode En Module, but this book will have to due for now. Mode en Module has been out of print for a while and now goes for crazy cash. Wim Crouwel Alphabets (as seen above) is now of out of print as well and I'm sure it won't be long before it increases in value. YWFT them still has a few copies, get your hands on one while you still can.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
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Ethan's Picks
How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul
As a design student, I am constantly looking for that juicy "tell-all" graphic design book. The one where you learn everything about being a real designer before actually getting a job. I love hearing different tips and tricks from seasoned designers. But my quest is over, because that book is here.
Adrian Shaughnessy breaks the process down into the necessary steps: how to find a job, being freelance, setting up a studio, running a studio, the creative process, etc. All of my burning questions answered in one book! Adrian also includes interviews with Neville Brody, Rudy VanderLans, Andy Cruz, and Natalie Hunter, among others, plus a forward by Stefan Sagmeister.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
Beautiful Losers
One summer I spent a month attempting to learn how to skateboard. In the three years since then I've probably only landed two tricks successfully. I either got hurt or was too intimidated. Beautiful Losers is a way for me to vicariously live out my 1990s street and skate culture fascinations, without having to get on a skateboard.
Beautiful Losers tells the story of how artists and designers like Shepard Fairey, Spike Jonze, Mike Mills, Barry McGee, and others built their own art community independent of the mainstream art institution.
Click here for more for more info/ purchase a copy.
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10.08.08 | Dave | Found design |
Odopod Design Studio Visit
Thanks to Tim Barber and the rest of the gang at Odopod for inviting me to their studio last Friday. They regularly meet to discuss design and Tim asked if I would like to join them and bring in some of the things that inspire me.
While I was there I was able to take a few photos of the studio. It's a beautiful space filled with exposed brick, concrete floors and Eames Chairs. When I walked in the main entrance on the first floor, the first thing I noticed was an Odopod sign that looked like it was ripped straight off a Motel 6. It was hot in San Francisco on Friday so, I was lucky that Odopod came with AC, Free WIFI and HBO (I gotta get one of these signs). The rest of the first floor includes meeting rooms and the company parking lot (What is a design studio without atleast one vintage fixie?). The second floor houses the designers, the book collection and a big letter "O".
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09.10.08 | Dave | studio visits |
Lettered: Typefaces and Alphabets by Clotilde Olyff
Lettered: Clotilde Olyff by Jan Middendorp – published by Druk Editions 2000
Clotilde Olyff is a Belgian designer and typographer who teaches at the National Visual Art School of La Cambre and Art School'75' in Brussels. In this book by Jan Middendorp, Clotilde shares her investigations into the essence of the letter. The book is filled with typographical games and experiments.
The Pebble Alphabets: I'm amazed by her collection of letter shaped pebbles. Next time your at the beach look under your feet, you might be standing on the letter "M".
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08.18.08 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Charles Goslin – graphic designer and illustrator
Bedside Nurse magazine design from 1968, 1969 and 1970
Charles Goslin (1932-2007) began his career at Lester Beall's studio in 1954 and left to pursue work at corporate identity firm Lippincott & Margulies in 1958. Three years later he parted ways again, but this time to begin what would be a lengthy career as a freelance designer and illustrator. During this time he started teaching at Pratt Institute as well, where he became known for unique assignments.
For those interested in learning more about Charles Goslin, former student Scott Santoro has written a lovely piece about him here.
Also of interest:
Graphic designer Clarence Lee – He worked at Lester Beall's studio in 1958, possibly at the same time as Charles Goslin.
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06.25.08 | Dave | Found design, Uncategorized |
Invisible Creature interview
Invisible creature is the three-time Grammy-nominated Seattle based design duo of Don and Ryan Clark. Including their work while part of Asterik Studio and current work for Tooth & Nail Records, the two have created hundreds of CD packages and limited edition silk-screened posters. A small sample of their Client list includes: Foo Fighters, Chris Cornell, and Billboard magazine.
Their work is inspiring and fun to look at and they have no problem with experimentation. I'm amazed by their ability to consistently create quality work in a broad range of media.
In this interview, Don Clark shares with us some of the history of Invisible Creature and an exclusive look at the process behind "family portrait", a piece in their recent gallery exhibition titled Haven.
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06.05.08 | Dave | Features |
Richard Erdoes – Childrens book illustration
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Richard Erdoes – Policemen around the world c1967
Richard Erdoes was an author and illustrator. He was born in Vienna, Austria in 1912 and later immigrated to the United States. The book above is one of a 3 part "around the world" series. The other two books were Musicians of the world and Peddlers and Vendors of the world. Both of which, were produced around the same time in the late 1960s.
It looks like Erdoes' used a combination of Pen/ Ink and gouache to achieve the finished look found in the images above. This reminds me of the work of Miroslav Sasek who I believe used gouache as well.
Many thanks to grain edit reader Thorsten Schmidt for sending the following Richard Erdoes link in:
Richard Erdoes magazine illustration
You can pick up a copy of Policemen around the world at Amazon.
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Also available for your viewing pleasure: Ryohei Yanagihara
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04.28.08 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Alvin Lustig – The Collected writings
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The images above are from the introduction to The collected writings of graphic designer Alvin Lustig (c1958). When I first found out about this book, I was going nuts trying to find a copy. I wasn't able to find one, so I had to settle for a photocopy of the one presently in the RISD library. A couple of years ago, I finally tracked one down. It was worth the wait. It's a short book (only 95 pages), but it has some real nuggets. It contains interviews and articles on Alvin from Interiors magazine, AIGA Journal, Design Quarterly, Type Talks and a few other sources. Wonderful insight into his design thinking and process.
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03.19.08 | Dave | Off Our Bookshelves |
Win a Raymond Savignac Poster !
Congratulations to Jessica Taylor of the UK! On Dec. 14th, 2007 we randomly pulled her name out of an orange trash can. She is now the new owner of the Raymond Savignac poster seen above.
Thanks to everyone that signed up. We received a ton of emails.
Stay tuned for our next giveaway!
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Win this Raymond Savignac poster!
On Friday Dec 14th, 2007 we will be giving away 1 Raymond Savignac poster (seen above). This is not an original but rather a reissue of the original poster Savignac created for Olivetti in 1953. We just brought in brand new copies from the Olivetti Society and we decided to give one away. This is your chance to have a little Savignac for the holidays!
Sounds great, but how do I enter to win?
Fill in the Contact form below with your name, email address and the words "Let me win the poster" in the subject line and we will add your name to the drawing. On Dec.14th we will randomly select one name from a trash can and the results will be posted on the site.
Your email address and our 100% spam free Guarantee:
We promise we will not sell, share, trade or publicize your email address in any shape or form. In addition, we will not "spam" your inbox.
so go for it! enter now!
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11.28.07 | Dave | |
Designers bookshelf: Sean + Nicole Flores
When grainedit asked us to show our book collection for their blog, we were pretty excited. Getting it done, however, was half the battle. Not that we were lazy, okay, we were a little lazy, but the hard part was figuring out what stuff we liked the most.
It's not that easy, here's how it went:
Sean: [Looking though first shelf] "Oh, I like this one, this one too, we should put this one in"
Nicole: [sighs] How many do you plan on doing? That's too many.
So here you go, a look at our bookshelf and here are some of our favorites.
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10.28.07 | Dave | Designers Bookshelf |
Win graphic designers of the world
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Update 11.02.07
Congratulations to Anne from Oakland!
Last night we randomly pulled her name from a bright orange trash can. Thanks to everyone who entered the drawing.
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Update:
You have until 10pm PST on Nov 1st to enter
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Win this book!
On November 1st, 2007 we will be giving away 1 copy of Book Design of Graphic Designers in Japan . This is the second part of a series that compiles hundreds of examples of book design from the biggest designers of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. This is a japanese import book and has yet to be officially released in the United States. If you were able to find a copy of the 1st installation of this series ( they sold out very quickly), you know your in for a treat. These books are excellent resources. It is printed in a limited run, so once their gone.. their gone.
Designers featured:
Paul Rand, Saul Bass, Wim Crouwel, Push Pin Studios, Olle Eksell, Leo Lionni, Herb Lubalin, Alexey brodovitch, William Wondriska, Antonio Frasconi, Ivan Chermayeff, Herbert Bayer, Lou Dorfsman, Enzo Mari, Tomi Ungerer, Eugenio Carmi, Giovanni Pintori, Alan Fletcher, Stig Lindberg, Karl Gerstner and more.
Details:
213 pages – Full Color – Text is in Japanese ( but there is very little text) and descriptions ( titles, publishers, designers) are in English.
Sounds great, but how do I enter to win?
Fill in the Contact form below with your name, email address and the words "Let me win the book" in the subject line and we will add your name to the drawing. On Nov. 1st we will randomly select one name from a hat and the results will be posted on the site. This person could be then on his/her way to internet stardom with their brand new book!
Your email address and our 100% spam free Guarantee:
We promise we will not sell, share, trade or publicize your email address in any shape or form. In addition, we will not "spam" your inbox.
so go for it! enter now!
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10.03.07 | Dave | |
Http Aiga Org Video 2015 Design Conference Keetra Dean Dixon
Source: https://grainedit.com/?s=Free&x=0&y=0
Posted by: reidgropen.blogspot.com
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