Kindness&Humility

May 2009

4

Brooklyn Streets Work Table
Studio Progression: Part V

Furniture / Interiors / Parliament / Studio / Typography

I read once that no office could ever enjoy success without a work table constructed from a pizza oven and street signs, so I felt obligated to buy one. I turns out that they are very difficult to find. Luckily, I know a guy who knows this other guy who said that he could make one. This is how it went down…

Finished Brooklyn Streets table

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STEP ONE: Find a pizza oven and take the base. We found ours in the basement of Rose’s Equipment and Supply down on SE Clay. If you haven’t had a scary-back-alley-illegal-bloodsport-tournament type of experience then head down to Rose’s basement. Keep your eyes peeled, bring a friend, and expect to find some crazy stuff.

2

But Mars Started It

History / Illustration / Interest / Mid-Century

The Invasion Begins
Topps really went for it when they put together their 1962 Mars Attacks series. Illustrated by Norman Saunders and Bob Powell, they leave little to the imagination.

After attacking Earth, the aliens took an early lead, due at least in part to their giant, exposed brains, which enabled them to devise dozens of clever ways of killing men, women, children and animals. Methods included, but were not limited to, lighting dogs on fire, crushing folks in compactors, wielding flesh-eating rayguns and controlling giant robots.

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8 Simple Ways to Improve Typography

Typography / Web Design

Don’t miss Antonio Carusone’s article about improving your web typography. Very well done.

8ways2

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A Sketchbook’s View of The Cycle

Illustration / Parliament / Show / Work / XL

One of my favorites parts of any project is all of the planning, ideas, brainstorming sessions, and behind-the-scenes pieces that lead to the end result. These parts of the process usually remain hidden, but I love the sketches that led to all of the machinery that we animated for The Cycle. Here are a few of my favorites (from the sketchbook of Jono Stark, the lead designer on the project).

rb-sketches

1

The Webby’s are Smug and Arrogant Elitists and We are Poor Losers

Awards / Parliament

In a bizarre and inexplicable turn of events, www.explorethecycle.com managed to NOT win a Webby. We emphasize, it did not win.

When asked how he felt about such an obvious upset, Chris Erickson was quoted as saying, “I want pizza.” He then allegedly turned and stomped away before punching the dejected website in the face and weeping on a SXSW trophy.

The clear favorite from the start, sources say that the website had been looking a little under the weather lately, which may or may not have contributed to what many are now calling, “The Upset of the Week.”

www.explorethecycle.com

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Airbag Fail

Fail / Interest

Perhaps it is just me, but stuffing a surplus camping mattress under a car hood and advertising that it protects pedestrians seems just a bit outside of accurate. I’d liken it to making binkie-tipped bullets and claiming that make guns safe for kids.

Perhaps a few more dollars should have gone into the fit and finish of this "pedestrian saving" airbag system.

Perhaps a few more dollars should have gone into the fit and finish of this "pedestrian saving" airbag system.

I Might Have Said This

Quotes
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We’ve Launched the Gabriel Boone Blog with Sad Hearts

Design / Parliament / Work

gb-screen

They said it couldn’t be done, but we’ve clearly shown that a project can indeed be extended almost indefinitely. By taking an already drawn out schedule and then breaking it down into smaller phases, we’ve successfully added months to an already impressively long timeline. But, the fun can’t last forever. Like a sparrow that we’ve lovely nursed to health, we are reluctantly releasing the new blog for Gabriel Boone Photography into the wild. Luckily, we are still working on a pretty sick Flash gallery with some rad functionality, so they haven’t gotten rid of us just yet. I’ll keep you posted…

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You Can’t Win Them All

Apparel / Shoes
I'm superbummed that these don't come in men's sizes.

I'm superbummed that these don't come in men's sizes.