Unreliable information since 1972
Tell me about examples of good design that you’ve seen recently.
I don’t just mean functional, or informative – in fact, I don’t give much of damn about what the thing does or is. I want you to show me examples of something that you thing is really cool, visually cutting edge, and still clear and comprehensible.
Adverts, websites, t-shits, whatever. I just want a wash of fresh design stuff that I haven’t seen.
(I really really must sort out that subscription to Creative Review.)
Reading an article this morning, The Design Disease, reminded me of something I’ve long held to be true – that while you or I might create Art now and again, it’s not the same thing as the urge to be an Artist. (Or in this case Designer.)
Everyone I know who has become a successful (by which I mean: makes their living doing it, and receives at least modest acclaim from their peers in the field) creative type has one thing in common – brain damage. They’re obsessed with their field. I swear to god, I could go round my friends with creative aspirations, and point fingers saying “will make it”, “Will do a few bits and bobs, might make a modest living”, “no chance”, purely on the basis of the level of their obsession. I’d be right about 95% of the time.
It’s a long documented thing, the thin line between Artist’s gift and madness. But the thing I find most interesting is the idea that it can be taught. You can make yourself an obsessive, with a brain that is optimised to do certain things, and you will do better than your contemporaries. All you need to do is be willing to sacrifice a bit of your normal human function in exchange. For some people, this is no contest at all. Others, they hold a bit of themselves back, in fear.
Were I to attempt a videoblog, this is where I feel the bar currently is.
The first appearance of cross-processing on this blog. This is a technique where normal colour film is processed with the chemicals that are supposed to be used on slide film, or vice versa. Obviously, I do it with a photoshop filter, but the effect is the same – slightly unreal colours, and a sort of dirty sharpness that plays into the effect I’m after here.
That’s probably all I’ve got from Exit – there are a couple more shots I’m still playing with, but I’m not sure I’m going to be able to make anything of them.
It’s because someone has unfortunately afflicted the electric internet pixies in our phone line with a case of the black death. We’ve dumped their little digital carcasses in a plague pit, and we’ve got a fresh batch on order but apparently there’s a quarantine period, and BT won’t let us have a fresh lot in until Monday.
(I’ll stop torturing the metaphor now.)
I won’t be on-line outside of office hours. If you want to get hold of me, use the mobile. Or your hands.
It’s because someone has unfortunately afflicted the electric internet pixies in our phone line with a case of the black death. We’ve dumped their little digital carcasses in a plague pit, and we’ve got a fresh batch on order but apparently there’s a quarantine period, and BT won’t let us have a fresh lot in until Monday.
(I’ll stop torturing the metaphor now.)
I won’t be on-line outside of office hours. If you want to get hold of me, use the mobile. Or your hands.
Just trying to organise my thoughts about what I want to do with my on-line presence this year.
Secondary thought: I’m moving away from LJ as a place to write anything over a couple hundred words, because I don’t feel it’s the right kind of context for anything other than personal life and conversations with friends. I find I censor myself, thinking “no bastard on my friends list is going to give a toss” or even just worrying about seeming pretentious. But, saying that, I also know that it’s trivial these days to post anything I produce in WordPress to LJ. Should I set up another journal for the purpose of dumping the contents of alasdair.biz, Dead Air and whatever I wind up doing with Black Ink to? Should I just dump it here anyway?
Getting these in early this week.
This Week’s Book: The Penguin of Death
Things you need to know about The Penguin of Death:
Someone (and I apologise for forgetting exactly who) gave me a birthday card with this on it a year or two back. It’s one of the few birthday cards I have kept, because really, what’s not to love about a card with an enigmatic penguin of death on it?
And then the other day while risking life and wallet in a bookstore in January (Fatal. Fatal, I tell you.), I ran across this book, which is an illustrated short poem about said Antarctic bird, beauty and death.
I’m not really sure how to describe it, except to say that I loved it.
(I feel a bit like I’m cheating talking about a short book like this. I’m also reading “Still Life” by Joe Donnelly, but since I just got a jbo lot of his books second hand the other day, I think the odds are reasonable that I’ll be talking about one of them next week, hence the penguin this week.)
This Week’s Album: Gutters and Pews
I can feel this one growing on me. I picked this up via Emusic’s recommendations engine, where it drew comparisons to Tom Waits and Louis Armstrong. And on first listen, it’s perfectly acceptable middle-of-the-road blues rock, that I wouldn’t be sorry to hear when it comes up on the random shuffle, but I didn’t see myself seeking it out a lot, either. But I’ve listened to it a couple more times, and I find it a little more appealing now – while the musical arrangements are, like I say, a bit straightforward, there’s a bit more to the lyrics. On the strength of this, I might give one of his more recent albums a try.
This is a detail from one of Sheone’s larger works, and honestly, I don’t remember how reflective of the larger piece it is – possibly not very, as I was conscious of being very selective with the viewfinder. I honestly have nothing else I can possibly say about this that isn’t going to sound like utter pretension, so I’ll leave it at noting that I’m quite happy with how this turned out.
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