Design and Wonder in the Everyday

Tron pron

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010




It’s good to be a geek. For proof, I submit to you the Tron Legacy trailer. New desktop wallpaper anyone?

Secret rings: “I’m up to something, but I have no idea what”

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Thanks to Boing Boing for adding another item to our crave list. AJS, a jewelry-maker in Poland, sells secret society rings. These rings represent the Masons, the Knights Templar, and yes, the Boy Scouts. Now I need one of these before I can start on Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol.


Credit where credits are due

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

Some of the most amazing motion graphics out there are being viewed by millions of people worldwide through Hollywood movies. We’re talking about title sequences and end credits. As you can see from some of our favorites below, creative motion graphics don’t always come from animated movies.

Thanks to The Art of the Title Sequence for having the best quality legal versions of the clips anywhere online. For quick viewing, I’ve also embedded lower quality video from other sites. UPDATE (2/22/2010): It didn’t take long for the videos to be taken down from Vimeo. I’ll leave the remaining survivors.

For best quality viewing, I recommend clicking on the “480p” or “720p” links next to each title. Clicking on the title itself will take you to The Art of the Title Sequence which may also have credits and extras available.

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
by Jamie Caliri (480p720p)


Sherlock Holmes
by Prologue Films (480p | 720p)


Casino Royale
by Daniel Kleinman (480p | 720p)


Stranger Than Fiction
by MK12 (480p | 720p)


Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
by DUCK Studios (480p | 720p)


300
by yU+co (480p | 720p)


Iron Man
by Prologue Films (480p | 720p)


The Incredibles
by Pixar (480p)

Jules Verne book cover art redesigned

Saturday, February 20th, 2010





We had no intention of posting two book cover posts nearly back to back, but upon viewing designer Jim Tierney’s work, there was no avoiding it. These redesigns of Jules Verne book covers were part of Tierney’s thesis project for the University of the Arts. Visit Tierney’s walkthrough of his process on Faceout Books for more images and insights. View the video for the glory of the books’ transparency, die cuts, and pull-tab goodness.

My shelf awaits

Sunday, February 14th, 2010

Coraline Bickford-Smith is the senior cover designer at Penguin Books, where she has gained notoriety for her clothbound covers. In a year starting off with a fervor over e-book readers, Bickford-Smith is making a strong case for the aesthetic and tactile benefits of ink on paper. Truly, these books are individual art pieces made to adorn the shelves of book lovers and anyone who appreciates good design.

Thanks to The 99 Percent for their interview with Bickford-Smith and for introducing me to her work.

Designing with the Force

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Graphic designer and illustrator Justin Van Genderen’s Star Wars posters have been making the rounds lately and they are certainly Agogo worthy. Be sure to check out his Tatooine and Bespin posters too!

Influencing this post is the fact that the wife and I attended a prom last night as chaperones and got our prom photo taken — Star Wars style! (No Storm Troopers were hurt in the taking of the photo.)

Finger gear

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010

For a time, gadgets were marketed as having “No moving parts.” Well I for one, like moving parts. That is, when they work and look as slick as the Kinekt Gear Ring. Granted, the ring is made to do nothing but look fabulous. Still, the simple fact is I need one. Grab one before the Steampunks do.

Data is our prison

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

The Visionaire Group’s work for the ELSE Mobile promotional campaign is motion graphic goodness.

Stranded on the toilet? Make a diorama

Friday, January 15th, 2010

Artist Anastassia Elias builds miniature dioramae inside of toilet-paper tubes (via BoingBoing via Neatorama).

Lamborghini Ankonian makes Batmobile look lame

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

lamborghini-ankonian-concept

Here’s something on my Christmas list. It’s the Lamborghini Ankonian. Why oh why are the coolest cars just concept cars? Well, to answer my own question, because they’d be too expensive for me to buy. Sure you can pump out one or two for the crime fighting billionaires out there, but until we have a caped crusader, there just isn’t the demand. Rev your engines and view the full gallery.