Archive for the ‘Design’ Category

From the Treadmill to the Toaster Oven?!? OK Go’s New Video

Tuesday, November 9th, 2010


Last Leaf

OK Go | Myspace Music Videos

Like their music or not (which I find it hard not to), OK Go, comes up with some really cool music videos! This one is no exception…

Using 2,430 pieces of toast, and shot with a Samsung NX100 camera, this stop-motion video is very elegantly done. Featuring their song “Last Leaf”, the naive animation is gripping and fun, just like the group. Sure it does not have the most complex story line or the coolest graphics, but the simplicity combine with the killer animation (and preparation/thought that must have gone into this) makes this video totally worth the 2:42 minutes. Have a look!

Now Those Are Pancakes!

Tuesday, October 19th, 2010

Pancake Toilet

I came across this Blog the other day and just had to share: Jim’s Pancakes. While these may not be the Mona Lisa (though if suggested I am sure he would give the mysterious woman a go), Jim does a wonderful job making weekend pancakes magical for his little daughter. Many of the images on his blog are whimsical and fun. I found myself smiling on more then one occasion. The only concern that I have is that some of these work of culinary art are rater erect and as such must be rather crispy…Crisp pancakes? I always think of fluffy soft pancakes, but then again mine are not pretty or creative like these. Never the less, makes me hungry :-D

The New Gap?!?

Sunday, October 10th, 2010

Always all but too eager to gloat the fact that they were founded in 1969 (though often leaving off the “19”), Gap some how thought that it would be a good idea to change their logo… Now this is not always a bad idea, but Gap is very well know for it’s visual identity. This 180 flop is NOT for the better. You can see where they were headed and I get the idea, modern, more sleek and contemporary, but this is a huge swing and a miss. What is that smudge behind the P? Is that the former gap blue square running away from the hideous new logo, and the fade is supposed to be a streak of color since it is running so fast? Absolutely terrible. My students make better stuff then this their first week of Illustrator. Not only is Gap pulling away from an identity that was so strong that just a bark blue square invokes the Gap name, but they moved to complete garbage. The closest comparison that I can think of is the the Tropicana switch back in February 2009. Tropicana on the other hand at least made a new sleek and aesthetically pleasing layout, the only folly there was the move from the visual identity that apparently everyone loved (seen by the steep sales drop). Someone is going to get fired over at Gap…

What Do Designers Know?

Monday, September 20th, 2010

So I’m sure that you have thought to yourself before, “self why does this ‘designer’ get paid to do this design work when in fact he doesn’t know what he is doing? I mean seriously, a website with white space? Or what about the fact that my logo is not so large that it hits you in the face?” Well no worries. Not only are you not the first person to have though of this, but this awesome company has come up with a solution, check out the above YouTube clip to hear about the exclusive offer.

One of my students showed me this, priceless. Enjoy :-)

What Does That Symbol Mean Anyway

Wednesday, August 18th, 2010

I don’t know about you, but there are a whole ton of icons and visual cues out there, especially in the tech world, that I haven’t the slightest idea what they are or why they look the way they do. Sure I know what they refer to and when they are used, but what is the back story, why that icon? Take that good old apple key symbol, which for those of you who did not know and are too young to remember, used to be a picture of an apple (hum, well that would have made more sense, seeing as it IS called the “apple” key). So, what is that strange design which replaced the logical one for which the “apple” key was labeled? Well this cool article written by Bryan Gardiner over at Gizmodo, goes into the history of some of these icons which we see every day. Pretty cool. Check it out: http://gizmodo.com/5612630/the-secret-histories-of-those-ing-computer-symbols