Thursday 13 December 2007

Designing Design

Simplicity, sophistication, and clarity might come to mind when one thinks of the MUJI brand, and Kenya Hara has been an essential figure in the brand’s development. A gracious and humble Kenya provoked the minds of many as he walked through his thoughts, teachings, and objects Thursday 29 November 2007 at Bumble and bumble. His…

Thursday 6 December 2007

Get Your Holiday On.

DJ drew2, dancing, drinks and dapper auctioneer Hodgman rock the spot at this year’s holiday fundraiser. If you’re like me you’ve been training at home, practicing speedy arm-raising in front of an inkjet print of Mr. PC‘s face. Alright, so you probably don’t need to get that crazy about it, but this Sunday at 7:30PM…

Tuesday 13 November 2007

Jason and Tamara Show and Tell

How to work with the person you love. (A very practical device included!)

Tuesday 30 October 2007

Speak To Their Hearts: A Brief Interview With Allan Chochinov

When I think of Kelly Dobson and Tobias Wong, humor (of course) comes to mind. Dobson’s and Wong’s recontextualized objets d’design have earned them reputations as witty producers that blur the lines between design, engineering, criticism, and art. I find their work fascinating. Tobias Wong’s Silver Pills, filled with real silver It’s surprising, though it…

Friday 26 October 2007

Modernism on Two Planes: A conversation with Wim Crouwel and Massimo Vignelli.

The grandfathers of modernism, Wim Crouwel and Massimo Vignelli graced the AIGA/NY chapter last night, Thursday 25 October, with anecdotes of their personal lives their careers as designers—for them, one in the same. Each spoke about several projects selected by Alice Twemlow, chair of the MFA Design Criticism program at SVA, who moderated this historical…

Sunday 14 October 2007

NEXT: Learning To Be Good Human Beings

Ryan Feerer‘s “God invented evolution…” 20/20 animation featuring an over-evolved human with an extra penis and octopus tenticle arms was an apt foreshadowing of biologist Janine Benyus‘s presentation on the astounding utility of biomimicry—that is, modeling designed solutions on those that nature has been designing with “3.8 billion years of R&D.” Feerer’s piece humorously suggests…

Friday 12 October 2007

NEXT: The Crowd Favorites

Two opening-night events stole the hearts and won the favor of most attendees—both with their inventiveness, youth, and accessibility. Command X, the graphic design reality show, proved to be as or more entertaining than everyone expected. Michael Bierut played the self-declared role of Heidi Klum (with dapper threads a la Tim Gunn). Seven pre-selected student…

NEXT: The Beginning

Introductions, provocations, promotions, and explications abounded in NEXT’s opening session. Ric Grefé Ric Grefé, executive director of AIGA, welcomed and addressed the audience, connecting the dots between the national organizations and the conference’s ever-contortable theme: NEXT. Of note in their sustainability initiatives, the organization has purchased carbon offsets not only for their entire operations, but…

Thursday 11 October 2007

DESIGNY at NEXT

NEXT: AIGA National Design Conference 2007 is kicking off today in Denver, Colorado. We’ll be sharing the mile-high conference experience here at DESIGNY; blogging semi-live through the closing party on Saturday. In the meantime, what better way to prepare than a quick read of

Tuesday 9 October 2007

He Kicked A Girl In Class Once

Yolanda Cuomo and Neil Selkirk presents a collective of memories of Marvin Israel by his friends and colleagues.