“Ascenders, arms, crossbars, counters, spines, shoulders, tails, stems and spurs, altogether there are over 20 components in the anatomy of type. There remains a gap in the vocabularly of this most respected of crafts, however.
In the designing or cutting of stencil letterforms, one is invariably brought to a point wherein the supporting canvas is joined to counter of the letter. Up until now, these supporting areas have gone without definition or label. A gross oversight by the standards of any industry, let alone one with as rich and respected a history as typography.
The purpose of this initiative is to remedy this oversight by introducing a new term and definition into the common vernacular of designers and typographers.” (Thanks Grant!)
“Most of us need to make the time to go out on walks, swim, collect little bits of things, take photos, get drunk (or not), talk to friends, etc. So, you have to wonder, who wouldn’t want to spend 5 nights on an island while talking about and working with type? British Columbia in the summertime is heaven on earth—a place where most people would be happy to kick back and relax for a week, but if you’re into typography you can relax your body and exercise your brain at the same time. Three typographers, Marian Bantjes, Shelley Gruendler and Ross Mills will offer differing and convergent approaches to type in a relaxed but structured program over five days. [Note: This session is over but more are planned, like the one below.]
Type Camp—INFO DESIGN: 10-15 August 2008 | We’ll bring a bit of the Bauhaus to Canada with the head Info Design instructor, Jay Rutherford. Jay is a Professor of Visual Communications at the Faculty of Art and Design at the Bauhaus University in Weimar, Germany.” (Thanks Chris Glass!)
“A while back we had a roundabout discussion about the term illustration and its limitations. Bob Flynn and Jaleen Grove both pushed back a little against my impatience with the term, and the supposed tyranny of the word which I decried… Frustrated by the lack of a larger narrative in which to locate genres, careers, and achievements, I have been working on visualizations of the development of commerical images. This week I have blundered into print with one such attempt: Commercial Images: An Evolutionary Scheme, a two-page infographic that occupies a central spread in the new Modern Graphic History Library catalogue, out this week. It posits two basic strands in commercial image history: illustration and cartooning, increasingly intermingled but distinct.”
“A little over a year ago, I wrote on the short-sightedness of the visual style which had been named after the technology it had been associated with – Web 2.0. As predicted, the masses have begun to tire of the current trend. Additionally, designers are beginning to write about their dissatisfaction towards the Web 2.0 visual trend and are proposing alternatives to it. As the visual style attributed Web 2.0 wains, we are inevitably going to see the rise of another all but arbitrary visual style take its place which will be adopted by the design masses without a second thought.
A recent article suggests by using elements which are the exact opposite of the stereotypical Web 2.0 style, we will ensure that our designs remain fresh. While I appreciate the author’s intent, it is the equivalent of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.”
“The latest addition to the 100% portfolio is a lamp in shape of – you guessed it – a lamp. A wonderful idea that causes irritated looks followed by broad grinning. Born out of the fact that light bulbs have become a commodity product, that lead a pretty neglected life, only in our focus when it breaks and when we usually don’t have the correct replacement on hand. We are much more intrigued by the surrounding of the lightbulb, the shape of the shade or the way it is held, or the size… All of that casual usage of the common bulb will now change, and it will be displayed for what it is.”
“You don’t have to be in a position of authority to be a leader. Conversely, just because you have authority doesn’t mean that people will follow you. You must be a leader to get others to follow you.
There are many books on leadership. They can have lots of great examples and in-depth explanations, but sometimes you just need something simple to help you focus on the essentials. This article intends to do just that. These are the habits that will help you and your team achieve great things if you focus on them.”
“I’ve got this theory about what it’s like to be a manager and what it’s like to be a developer and which role suits a particular individual best, and I think it explains pretty well why I deeply, profoundly hate the former and dearly, truly love the latter.”
“Use a Nikon?
Or at least that appears to be the message.
I opened my copy of Outside Magazine’s companion piece of fluff, Go, this morning and was greeted by an ad for Sony’s A700 DSLR with the tagline ‘In Photography, Timing is Everything.’ The accompanying photograph was spectacular and showed a leopard about to dispatch a baboon. Dust is flying and, clearly, timing has a lot to do with the impact of this photo.
It was also very familiar.
In fact, it’s a 1965 photograph taken by John Dominis for the late, lamented Life Magazine.”
“Some things were just never meant to be, but that doesn’t mean that investors won’t pile millions of dollars upon a bad idea — or even a good idea gone bad. Whether they crashed and burned or sucked investors dry, these ventures just didn’t work out. Check out our graveyard of dreams and money to get a look at VC (venture-capital) investments that just weren’t wise.”
