Need to Know Basis #3
Spanish design and style magazine, Neo2 has just launched a blog [neo2.es/blog] and it’s pretty darn ace. Be sure to stop by the typography section where you can download some adventurous experiments with various letterforms. ¶ Punchdrunk [punchdrunk.org.uk] make amazing, immersive theatrical experiences. Their shows are guaranteed sell-outs and once experienced you’ll agree that there is nothing else like them. For their last sell-out event, which used the Edgar Allen Poe story ‘The Masque of the Red Death’ as a starting point, saw them taken over most of the Battersea Arts Centre [bac.org.uk]. Inside you were free to roam the many themed and dressed rooms, watching impromptu performances and seeking out hidden treasures. To get the jump on their next extravaganza you can now become a friend of Punchdrunk and help support this unique outfit. ¶ Mike Perry’s ‘Over & Over’ [papress.com] is only slightly disappointing because it follows on the heals of the excellent ‘Hand Job’ [papress.com]. The problem is a lot of the hand drawn stuff just starts to look a bit ’samey’. Still worth checking out. The spread above features the work of Stefan Marx [livincompany.de] ¶ Neon Addict [rampub.com], on the other hand, is deliriously ‘active’ stuff. The theme: nothing Pantone Florescent inks. The contributors: Bright sparks from the Japanese (and International) creative scene such as Adapter [adapter.jp], Alexander Gelman [designmachine.net/gelman], collect.apply [collectapply.jp] and Namaiki [namaiki.com]. This bright little package is then wrapped tight by the design team behind the Japanese edition of Dazed & Confused [nmca], ASYL [asyl.co.jp] and Bluemark [bluemark.co.jp]. ¶ It’s the Graniph annual tshirt design awards again. Check out the winners and grinners at [graniph.com/award]. ¶ Magazine as ‘finely crafted artifact’. That’s how the creators of Popular Noise describe their ace, new(ish) publication [popularnoise.net]. I dare you to find a more elaborate periodic format than this. 3 x 7″ vinyl records are slotted into a concertina’d and letter pressed poster. Editions are understandably limited to 300 per edition. ¶ Cecilia Lindgren [cecilialindgren.com] is Art Editor, and the woman behind, last year’s refresh of the Architects’ Journal [architectsjournal.co.uk]. She dropped us a line to let us know about a musical compilation called Cortical Songs on Non-Classical records [nonclassical.co.uk] which she has lent her design talents to. Cracking line-up too.
BTW Note to indie (and major) publishers everywhere. Keep sending in any announcements you may have and we’ll keep try to post em but if you want images of yer projects up on Boicozine either send us a copy for us the photograph (we love free stuff) or some unique imagery we can use. Cheers!
— with love from The Management
100 Things: #004
Hakkusan Pottery Cat
For the Hakusan pottery company visit [www1.ocn.ne.jp/~hakusan].
This Post is Untitled… ish
Just a quick plug to a new gallery in Melbourne with some cool, graphic designer-ish work called the Untitled Gallery. Currently showing the graphic juxtapositions of Danny Guinsberg, up coming shows include the embroidered infographics of Michelle Hamer. Visit [untitledgallery.com.au] to feed your head.
Melbourne Festival City
Melbourne, like London, has the cool sweat of festival fever right now (even though it’s winter). For people who haven’t heard what’s up down under, here’s the skinny…
The Melbourne International Design Festival is on again, and getting bigger and better every year. There’s loads of things to do and see and make. We like the idea of Patrick Blanc’s Vertical Garden thing [nationaldesigncentre.com] (see the image below) and an exhibition that tells the story of, arguably the best course of it’s kind in the country, the National School of Design at Swinburne University’s Graphic Design degree [nationaldesigncentre.com]. Over at the festival’s ’satellite’ series of shows entitled State of Design [stateofdesign.com.au] there is another truck load of interesting events. the ones we really like are mostly in Design for Everyone [stateofdesign.com.au].
If your feeling a little jaded by this design overload, how about spending some time alone in the dark? The programme for The Melbourne International Film Festival [melbournefilmfestival.com.au] is looking as strong as ever, we especially like the idea of Ozploitation [melbournefilmfestival.com.au].
Saucy Treasure
Whilst on assignment at Nick Bell Design [nickbelldesign.co.uk], Nick very kindly let me have a rummage around the studio for things to post and I came across an issue of Avant Garde magazine, published in November 1968. Designed by Herb Lubalin [typogabor.com/herb-lubalin] and featuring artwork by Tom Wesselman [artnet.com]. So there’s now a bunch of saucy 60s stylee pics over on our [flickr] page for your perusal. Enjoy.
A Tale of Two Cities
Okay,so this is only really going to be of interest if you live or have lived in either Sydney or Melbourne. But if you thought the Melbourne/Sydney rivalry was a myth, here’s proof that it’s very much alive and well and as spikey as it’s ever been [melbournesucks.com.au]. Apparently Melbourne is “a rip off drug infested hole” where “everything costs money” and “in Melbourne we do like to spell correctly” (grammar seems to be less important though), whereas Sydney has “nice weather”… a lot. I read somewhere (sorry, being lazy) that Melbourne’s population was set to outrun Sydney’s by 2020 so here’s hoping this one runs and runs. (Where’s our London Sucks website, surely that’s a site that would be immensely popular).
I couldn’t find any images of the ‘Melbourne Sucks’ posters that have provoked this recent furore (furore-ish) — if you have pics of said posters please let us know — so here’s an ace piece of artwork for one of Melbourne’s many hip shopfronts dotted around town [forepaw.org] instead. Oh, yeah and guess which city I’m from?
100 Things: #003
Go-Ped Know-Ped
I love my Go-Ped [goped.co.uk]. There, I’ve said it. Sure I look like a some wierdo 30-nothing super geek wizzing about olde London town on my sooped-up LA-stylee ride-on scooter. In a compact city where cyclists take their life into their hands every time they hit the road, becoming part pedestrian seems much more appealing. Proper Californian Go-Peds come with wooden decks and an ‘aircraft grade’ chassis so they take a lot more punishment than your tin-foil, fold-up variety. Only gripe is the occasional grumpy-arsed shop keeper who kicks you out the store if you bring it in with you… oh and that tacky silver logo. The old logo is so much better, just needs a bit of a redraw.
Boicozine Goes to Market
Tomorrow were setting up shop for a limited time only (like 4 or 5 hours) on the Golden Lane Estate [Google Map] next to London’s Barbican as part of their Market Day come Jumble Rumble. We’ll be selling all sorts of a Nik-n-Nak and Bric-a-Brac like second-hand tshirts, books and mags plus some shiny new bits-n-bobs. You’ll be able to pick our brains about stuff from the boicoshop too (we’ll have a couple of samples for you to pick up and fondle too) [shop.boico.net]. The nearest tube is Barbican but you get get there via St Pauls or Old Street or just jump on the 55. So pop along, it’ll be dead fun and nice to see you (faces to names etc). Laters! — The Management
Newly Bicephalous
YCN Live [ycnonline.com/live] is the first collaboration between YCN and brand spanking new design agency, HudsonBec [hudsonbec.com] formed by Will Hudson and Alex Bec (natch). The event itself is pretty expansive, with creatives popping up in New York, Stockholm and London in various design studios as well as a carefully selected group of public spaces such as the excellent Swedish store, Weekday [weekday.se] (home to Cheap Monday and Sunday Sun) in Stockholm. No doubt there will be should some ace new visuals to go with the whole real soon.
What’s Up #34: Ludovic Balland
Ludovic Balland’s foliosite [ludovic-balland.ch] is almost, completely monochrome which highlights how bold his studio’s typographic vision is. To achieve this they’re not only manipulating existing typefaces in new and exciting ways but also creating new typefaces from old (or from scratch). If you are looking for a sample of his studio’s more exciting work, seek out the compendium they produced for the 5th Berlin Biennial for Contemporary Art [bb5.berlinbiennial.de] entitled ‘When Things Cast No Shadow’ [jrp-ringier.com], where a crazy cast of typefaces that should be jostling for attention are roped into order with surprising results.
As a sidenote jrp | ringer are also the publishing house behind Ezra Petronio and Suzanne Koller’s forthcoming (and rather expensive) monograph [jrp-ringier.com]. You may know them better as Work In Progress [petronioassociatesblog.com].
in Graphic Design / Publications / Typography / What's Up
No Comments
