Died Young, Stayed Pretty

Died Young, Stayed Pretty is a candid look at the underground poster culture in North America. This unique documentary examines the creative spirit that drives these indie graphic artists.The film gives us intimate look at some of the giants of this modern subculture. Outside of their own circle, they're virtually unknown. But within their ranks they make up an army of bareknuckle brawlers, publicly arguing the aesthetic merits of octopus imagery and hairy 70s porn stars. Along the way, they manage to create posters that are strikingly obscene, unflinchingly blasphemous and often quite beautiful.
With personal appearance and introduction by the director, Iranian-born Canadian filmmaker Eileen Yaghoobian. This project is the pinnacle of her 12-year career in film and premiered at the 2008 Montreal World Film Festival.
Posters from the film will be on exhibit at the screening.

Location: Plaza Theater
Date: Wed, Mar 3
Time: 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Members: $10 online, 15$ door
Student Members: $5 online, 10$ door
Non-Members: $16 online, 20$ door

Kill your babies

Michael Bierut had a problem. He had been working on a design issue and he could not make his solution work. He had tried all kinds of variations. Turning it this was and that, Michael still couldn’t make it fit. After starring at it for what seemed like an eternity, he asked a colleague to take a look. He told her all about the problem and about his great idea that he couldn’t make work.
After looking at his what he had for a while, she said, “Maybe this is a bad idea.”
Kill your babies. I learned this lesson when I took 2-D design at Armstrong Atlantic State University. Don’t be afraid to let go of an idea.

It was refreshing to hear that someone of Bierut’s caliber struggles with the same things that I do.

Michael Bierut’s questions to ask yourself:
What is the story behind what you are working on? What have you learned today? What typeface should you use? What are you trying to communicate? Is it just a bad idea?

Friday Syposium Roots and More: African and African American Artistic Legacies

Many notable speakers, including former History of Graphic Design student Shane Thomas who wrote her paper for this class. download full program

Kyle Cooper Wednesday night: price reduced

register at aiga-atl.org

Art vs. Design

An interesting article that explores the difference between art and design. I was thinking about this subject when we mentioned the "prostitution" of art.
Follow the link.

Errol Morris on Hyperbole

Here's a great Errol Morris article from the NY Times that discusses the faking of photographs:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/18/the-case-of-the-inappropriate-alarm-clock-part-1/

Article for Worsheet #1

The link is broken to download the article titled "Modernism" by Malcolm Barnard. Will you repost it in the blog? Ulearn?

Further notice: We are settling in at Sparks 422

Thanks for showing up Tuesday. We'll be up there for the rest of the semester, Lord willing and the creek don't rise.

A poor, under used font....

This is an open letter to James Cameron from the font Papyrus.

http://prttyshttydesign.blogspot.com/search?q=james+cameron

'Mad Men' Haven't Changed Much Since The 1960s
[5 min 52 sec] January 14, 2010 by Lisa Chow



at npr.org

Kyle Cooper to appear at The Plaza Wed., Feb 3!

call for proposals: GSU student symposium

This is an excellent oppty to share your insights. Let me know if you need help getting a proposal together - Liz

The Welch School of Art and Design’s Gallery is organizing a symposium on Friday February 12, 2010 in celebration of Black History Month. Graduate and undergraduate students from all GSU departments are invited to present papers that address any of the following areas as they pertain to the African and African American artistic experience:
Journey, Representation, Autobiography, Spirituality, Identity, Critical Perspectives, Race, and Visual Culture. By assembling a diverse set of papers without temporal or geographical guidelines, the symposium strives to highlight the variability and complexity of African and Diasporic cultural and artistic legacies.

Paper presentation time should not exceed 20 minutes. The symposium space will be equipped to project digital images. Support will be available for students who wish to receive assistance in polishing their presentations prior to the symposium.

Please email Waduda Muhammad or Dr. Kimberly Cleveland with paper topics by 5:00pm Friday December 18, 2009 if you are interested in participating.

Information Goes Out to Play

Drive-By Press Friday 6-9pm at Youngblood

register now for PREPARING DESIGNERS

Location: SCAD-Atlanta, Room 4C
Date: Sat, Nov 7
Time: 9:30 AM - 1:00 PM (come early to sign in or register)
FREE
A must attend event for all graphic design students!

This program is tailored for all Atlanta area graphic design students to learn about the current conditions of the graphic design market place and what they can do as students to prepare for their future careers.

Reminder: turn in Tuesday

~ a CD with your multi-page PDF, titled "myname.pdf"
~ a paper copy of your short conclusion and list of sources. Reference page three of the assignment sheet for an example.
We will schedule presentations in class on Tuesday

New advertising database - check it out.

Retro Press
For the web, these are large, clear reproductions.

A Life of Light and Shadow: Lazlo Maholy-Nagy

Article in New York Times mentions MOMA show that opens November 8.

Review for Thursday Oct 15

download PDF of required Slide IDs

Thanks, Sarah Kim, for this helpful resource!

Canadian website on media stereotypes

Revised revision deadline

Those of you revising your Paper #1 should get final versions printed out and turned in to me by Thursday October 22 - despite earlier deadline listed in the syllabus. - Liz

Consequential Matters at CDC opens June 15

SMOG IS DEMOCRATIC
Jonathan Lukens and Carl DiSalvo
Smog is Democratic explores particulate matter through the medium of visualization. As we inhabit and wear away at the city, we produce dust and debris. As plants attempt to reproduce, they release pollen. These and other processes create particulate matter, a residue of life. An investigation of particulate matter touches multiple concerns: pollution, the relationship between urban living and hygiene, the tension between scientific and artistic representations of information, and the desire to produce measurement techniques that gauge the threat of the unseen. This installation is interpretive and expressive, with the goal of considering how the sources and measurements of particulate matter might be rendered in order to generate reflection, discussion, and debate.

Films from GSU Community-based Media Class

These annual screenings have been very inspiring. They are also a chance for you to see what you could participate in as part of this yearly class.

May 1st @ 8pm
Com-Based Media EYEDRUM Benefit/Screening Event
The GSU Department of Communication in collaboration with vibrant Atlanta community voices present...
"Crosswalk Collective," a benefit screening at EYEDRUM on May 1st.
GSU Community Based Media Production students will screen six short documentaries produced in collaboration with Unidos Elementary School, the Boys and Girls Club, Atlanta Day Shelter for Women and Children, Fourth Ward residents, Katrina survivors and Atlanta graffiti artists.
eyedrum calendar
- Doors open at 7:30 pm and screenings will begin at 8:00 pm.
- Suggested donation: $3 w/ raffle at the door.
**All proceeds go to benefit the Atlanta Day Shelter for Women & Children and the Boys and Girls Club of Atlanta.**
Contact: Niklas Vollmer / niklas@gsu.edu / 404.413.5640
Directions: http://www.eyedrum.org
290 MLK Jr. Drive SE, Atlanta, GA 30312

Project Descriptions:
- A Place of Hope: The Atlanta Day Shelter serves women and children by helping them renew hope, gain stability, and empower themselves to leave shelter life behind and prosper in the community.
- Displaced in Atlanta: a glimpse into the memories of a family that experienced Katrina together. You will hear their stories of displacement and resettlement, horror and loss. This film gives a voice to one family that is a part of a much larger community. The community of Katrina victims displaced by Katrina into the Atlanta community.
- A peak into the life of Atlanta's Old Fourth Ward. It is a collection of old memories and new hopes for the neighborhood.
- A creative collaboration with the Boys and Girls Club of Atlanta, emphasizing the unique and often powerful voice of our youth through visual and written expression.
- Unidos Elementary students are learning in a very unique way. Taught in both Engish and Spanish, the kids are learning what it means to become truly Unidos.
- An exploration of Atlanta-based graffiti artists and their practice, which ranges from the harrowing fringe to more the mainstream and in-between.
Hope you can make it!
Niklas Vollmer
Associate Professor of Film & Video

Hustwit's OBJECTIFIED May 13th

Wednesday, May 13th, 7pm
The Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) invites you to a special screening of Objectified--Part of the MA "Design is Human" Event and Home Tour.
Plaza Theatre 1049 Ponce De Leon Ave. Atlanta GA 30306
Post-screening Q&A with director Gary Hustwit and special guests. Presented by the Museum of Design Atlanta, AIGA Atlanta, and IDSA Atlanta. Tickets $20 general public, $15 for AIGA, IDSA, and Museum of Design members.
MA (Modern Atlanta) 09 Design is Human will feature:
* Modern Home Tours May 16-17
* MA Launch Party, Architect Models and Renderings, and Modern Design Exhibit featuring local designers and student work from GA Tech at White Provision
* MA ology Italian Design Event, Fashion Show & Fundraiser for CARE at White Provision featuring the paintings of Marco Grassi, fashion by Jeffrey and a exhibit of the iconic Sacco Chair by Zanotta
* MA Talks at The High Museum featuring the Metropolitan Home Magazine panel discussion on CRAFTdesign‚ with their Creative Director Linda O’Keeffe, and a presentation by Architect Anthony Ames
* Objectified documentary screening sponsored by MODA, AIGA Atlanta, ASID Atlanta and MA
* MA Film Series at The High Museum featuring Koolhaas/Houselife by Rem Koolhaas and City of Dreams
* An evening and book signing with renown designer Clodagh at DEX Studios
* Modern art show and reception in the modern flat designed by architect Robert Trestch at The Mansion on Peachtree
* Open House at Portfolio Center featuring a talk by Dragon Rouge founder Marcus Hewitt
* New product launches, inspiring talks and receptions at SieMatic, bulthaup and Poggenpohl
* And much more‚ ¨¶

The Failure of Comic Sans

A friend shared this article with me about the failure of Comic Sans. I found it very amusing and wanted to share it: Typeface Inspired by Comic Book Has Become a Font of Ill Will

"Vincent Connare designed the ubiquitous, bubbly Comic Sans typeface, but he sympathizes with the world-wide movement to ban it.

Mr. Connare has looked on, alternately amused and mortified, as Comic Sans has spread from a software project at Microsoft Corp. 15 years ago to grade-school fliers and holiday newsletters, Disney ads and Beanie Baby tags, business emails, street signs, Bibles, porn sites, gravestones and hospital posters about bowel cancer."

Typecon 2009 July 15 through 19 in Atlanta

Website still under construction
Consider getting involved now and let me know if you would like to volunteer

Ellen Lupton at Portfolio Center Thursday April 30

DETAILS, DETAILS
AIGA Members: $10 adv. / $15 at door
AIGA Student Members: $5
Non-Members: $15 adv. / $20 at door

Doors 6PM, Lecture 7PM
Ellen Lupton's Design Rant! Learn what�??s wrong with dumb quotes, hotel rooms, roller bags, the food pyramid, and more, much more. Ellen Lupton is obsessed with promoting design thinking and design practices to general audiences: writers, artists, kids, working fathers, and radical housewives. The D.I.Y. movement is part of the future of design; it is affecting every intellectual industry, from politics and journalism to music and rocket science. How is it affecting you? Designers are becoming evangelists of their own expertise, as well as breaking into countless new fields themselves that once were protected by barriers of professional knowledge. Today, anyone can be a designer (if they try)�??or a publisher, pundit, rock star, or filmmaker.

See Paper, Get Credit

If you go to the opening Thursday evening (described below) and write a one-page description of what you saw there, you may get up to five points extra credit added to your worksheet scores. You have turned in two worksheets for 10 points each. To get five points your paper has to be well written and insightful.

Hello All! Helpful Graphic Designer Apps for iPhone

Hello everyone. I found this link that has some helpful apps for graphic designers who own the iPhone. Well I do, so i thought it was pretty neat.

http://www.designtalkboard.com/design-hardware/iphoneapps.php

Design for the Other 90% Wednesday, April 8 at CDC

Design for the Other 90%: Health and Wealth Generation for $1-a-Day Consumers
By Dr. Paul Polak
Wednesday, April 8, 12:30 - 1:30 PM
Center for Disease Control
Auditorium A, Harkin Center, Building 19
1600 Clifton Road, NE at CDC Parkway
Atlanta, Georgia 30333
Government-issued photo ID is required for entry.
In conjunction with the Global Health Odyssey Museum’s current exhibit, Design for the Other 90%, Dr. Paul Polak will describe practical solutions for generating both income and health for the world’s $1-a-day people. He will address the challenges in alleviating poverty and achieving health equity.
Dr. Paul Polak isn't your everyday global poverty fighter. He is the founder of International Development Enterprises, a development organization that has moved over 17 million people out of poverty. By talking directly to people earning less than $1/day, he's learned that they are viable entrepreneurs and consumers. The practical solutions to their poverty, outlined in his book, Out of Poverty: What Works When Traditional Approaches Fail, rest upon this revolutionary ideal. Dr. Polak, therefore, is fomenting two revolutions to end poverty; one in design and one in big business. The first, executed by his non-profit organization, D-REV: Design for the Other 90%, aims to reverse the fact that the world's best designers spend 90% of their time serving the interests of the richest 10% of customers. The second, led by his new for-profit venture, Windhorse International, aims to demonstrate how big businesses can profitably design and market their products and services to $1-$2/day customers. He might be 75, but this trouble-making psychiatrist, writer, and entrepreneur won't rest until poverty is a thing of the past.

RSVP required by Thursday, April 2, 2009 to Louise E. Shaw at lshaw@cdc.gov or call (404) 639- 3657. To comply with CDC security requirements, please provide your full legal name and country of citizenship with your reply. Vehicle inspection required, so please allow time to enter the building.

There's no Escaping GRD...

Since we've been talking about information design in this class, and just finished a project on it in Laura's class, I thought this may be interesting to some.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_design

To me, it's interesting how wikipedia sometimes explains things. If you go to the link above, wikipedia describes information design when dealing with graphic design, history, statistics, technology, etc. I feel like there is a disconnect between them. I understand that information design does have a role in history, statistics, etc., but when it comes down to it, it is always graphic design. And they fail to mention that. Maybe I'm nitpicking, but it is a common theme, I've noticed, that people do not realize graphic design is really everywhere.

I <3 Blogging Design Contest

Hello, everyone. So I recently entered a design contest where I designed a skin for the iPhone or the iPod touch. My concept for the contest is based on the dandelion which can spread its seeds (or information in reference to blogging) very quickly and efficiently. For this design, I turned the seeds into keyboards on the Mac. If anyone would like to see it and vote for my design, please click here. If you voted for me, I really appreciated it. There's 4 more days for my design to be voted on, so vote now before it's too late!

I originally had everything with just a fill and no stroke (no outline), but when I saw it like that nothing was standing out. I then thought about the ukiyo-e prints I saw in class and thought, "Okay, how about some outlines?" I think it look a lot better with outlines. I varied the stroke width to add some dynamics to the lines.

GOOD magazine graphs

Good magazine has a ton of fun icon driven graphs.

The Trilogy Meter

Design which rates purely on Danmeth.com's enjoyment level on each film.
It reminded me of the informational design discussed in class this morning.
The design is simple and to the point!

Artist Sues The A.P. Over Obama Image

Marinetti's Zang Tumb Tumb on Google Books

Marie Osmond reading Hugo Ball's KARAWANE

Kurt Schwitters' URSONATE

Your winning U-STORE-IT ad by April 24th

Create print and Internet Yellow Pages advertising for a Yellow Pages advertiser.

$10K in prizes

Check out the winners from previous years - you can do better! Let me know if you want to participate - I am happy to be Faculty Sponsor, and will donate any prize money to the GSU Graphic Design program. - Liz