J'aime Collage!

I'm loving the collage task - my plan so far has been to collect any images which jump out at me and then have a mammoth arranging/sticking session at some point in the near future. I'm thinking the collages will be most interesting if the images come from a range of sources, so I've been procuring images from; the free papers and magazines on the tube; some second-hand books, which cost me the princely sum of £2.30, including Diana for Girls - 1965 and Understanding Antiques; and some questionable magazines/flyers from bars in and around Soho... Unfortunately I now can't look through any printed material without first scanning the page for interesting images or text...

One of the reasons I'm really enjoying the task is because I applied for the FdA was because I knew there were probably ways to unlock creativity but didn't know how to go about it...Cue collage - by creating the collages almost automatically it opens up a whole load of possibilities and avenues which I know I would never have gone down had I approached the whole thing 'intellectually', overthinking each decision.

Here's my kitchen table is it stands at the moment......now I just need to source some A6 cards...

Typographica at Kemistry Gallery

This afternoon I headed over to Kemistry Gallery in Shoreditch to check out the Typographica exhibition. Typographica was a journal first published in 1949 and was revolutionary at the time for the ways in which it experimented with groundbreaking methods of combining type and image to create new relationships and meanings for the viewer. It featured examples of type and photo-experimentation from such artists as Rodchenko and a new discovery for me Henryk Berlewi, another Constructivist artist (featured on the top row below).
The exhibition was informative enough and held my attention, although perhaps because many of the things Typographica was so revolutionary for are now relatively commonplace in print and publishing today, it didn't bowl me over. Nonetheless, definitely worth a visit.

[Typographica runs until October 31st 2009].

MIND THE GAP

How awesome is this postcard for London I spied in Paperchase yesterday? I'm loving the vibrant Union Flag colours, the archetypal 'East End' phrases and the cheeky Black Cab nestling in the heart of the design - a perfect nod towards London wit. In addition the raw, weathered Letterpress look does a really good job at capturing a sense of London's history. For me each part of this design is successfully working together to create an overall impression of what
London is all about. Love it!

You & Me

So me and my man celebrated 2 years together on Tuesday and while on the hunt for a card I stumbled across this gem of a print in Magma (a great little design shop in Covent Garden [8 Earlham Street]) - a wonderfully simple antidote to the usual anniversary/valentine cards replete with pink glittery hearts, butterflies and/or lovebirds. It was hand-printed by San-Franciso based company Yellow Owl Workshop, who produce limited edition paper goods using recycled paper and non-toxic inks (They have a blog that's worth a look). I love the raw imperfect quality of the print, as well as the audacious simplicity of the use of colour; for me a much more honest and touching representation of love than a glossy pink heart...

Ron Petrie says

The above jumped out at me from an August edition of Design Week (Apologies for the retrospective nature of the past few posts, but I had an inspirational summer!), so it made it into my clippings folder. It came from an article by independent coach Ron Petrie entitled 'Stepping up to the next level; Just doing a good job isn't good enough any more. If you want to make a difference now, you have to be brilliant at what you do' [Design Week 13.08.09]. The article itself was pretty informative, and was basically highlighting the need to take control of and responsibility for your career, by being 'action-oriented'. As a burgeoning graphic designer on the cusp of a new course and a new career the above points really inspired me to jump into my studies with both feet, to ensure I come out the other end 'brilliant at what I do'...

When You're a Boy...

A couple of weeks ago I popped along to the Photographers' Gallery to catch When You're a Boy an exhibition showcasing some of the work of British menswear stylist Simon Foxton. Foxton's work as a stylist anticipated and defined key changes in fashion and style photography since the 1980s.

I was struck by how Foxton legitimised fashion photography and the role of the stylist, and how he used his work to ask important questions about the notion of masculinity in Britain, for example;


I love the conflicts at work in this piece (published in i-D magazine July 1991) - the apparent incongruity between a young black man in fairly banal surroundings, and his chic highly-tailored "Country Gent" look for me raises some really pertinent questions about ethnicity and national identity in Britiain, and, indeed what constitutes "Britishness"...

WELCOME

This card caught my eye a couple of days ago - it's publicising the newly live website for Balham pub The Clarence. The interior design of the pub itself offers a modern twist on quintessential Britishness - think an array of lampshades, clocks and chairs...I love the simplicity of the doormat graphic; it perfectly compliments the pub's sense of British charm and wit, and cleverly transforms the rather abstract concept of the website into a space that is not only concrete in the viewer's mind, but which is also warm and inviting.

I'm not crazy about the back of the card, I think largely due to the type which to me looks a little clunky and unrefined, but it is relatively similar to that used on the website so at least it's consistent...

U. S. A GO GO!

As my inaugural blog post I thought I'd share a flyer leftover from the summer, publicising a US-themed night at the All Star Lanes on Brick Lane for last Fourth of July.


I love how saturated this design is with American cultural references, from the pulling apart and reconfiguring the Stars and Stripes, through to reimagining the Lady Liberty as a busty Bettie Page fifties pinup. I'm also a massive fan of the baseball-style typeface and the 'New Deal Poster' look...

For me, a really successful conflation of all things "American" and a great piece of communication about the essence of All Star Lanes (check out http://www.allstarlanes.co.uk).