Atlanta 2.0
posted in influence by Eric on 8.23.08
i'm assuming that you know that atlanta, georgia was torched to the ground in november of 1864 by general william t. sherman + company right at the end of the civil war. the city seems to have done fairly well for itself since then, growing to a "combined statistical area population" of 5.6 million. the problem is that only about half a million of those actually live in its boundaries, which is bad on so many different levels: educational, social, environmental, etc.
however, as the unofficial capital of the "new south", atlanta seems to be doing it's best to attract young residents to the city's center by reclaiming degenerating industrial quarters near midtown and downtown and turning them into mixed-use residential and commercial neighborhoods like atlantic station (though some may argue whether or not developers are just bringing the suburbs into the city). regardless, it will be interesting to see if developments like these can begin to address atlanta's ridiculous (and seemingly unstoppable) urban sprawl. i say that you have to give them something for trying.
Boredom is impossible here.
posted in influence by David on 8.18.08
Just got back from a week long hiatus in Charleston, South Carolina. If you've never been to Charles Town, you're missing out. It's a city rich in history, diversity, and color. It's one of those places that you wish you could bring all the people you care about to, just so they can experience it too.
What I love most about the city is the way you just get lost in its streets -- the old houses, the narrow alley ways, the hidden gardens, the ancient cemeteries covered in overgrowth and spanish moss -- it's all quite enchanting. Then, at the same time, you take a short stroll up King Street, northwest of historic Battery park, and you stumble into a who's-who-of-hip shopping row that boasts everything from Louis Vuitton to Quicksilver to Apple to Urban Outfitters. My wife and I walked for miles the evening I took these pictures. It was about 68 degrees outside. It was perfect.
Sharks? Sure. But go for the design.
posted in influence by David on 8.16.08
My lovely bride was kind enough to let me focus her point n' shoot on anything but animals at the South Carolina Aquarium in Charleston a couple days ago. I don't want to take anything away from the fine marine biologists there, but honestly, I was a bit underwhelmed by the aquatic offerings of the joint. The design, however, was a more than ample distraction. The exterior was a beautifully clean mix of industrial steel beams and ultra-modern plate glass windows and walls. Inside they had these great metal plaques everywhere that made good use of the serif font that serves as the site's main typeface. Each exhibit had a steel booklet that visitors flip through to get an overview of the different animals, plants, and regions. Me being the texture fiend that I am, my favorite part was the stained concrete exterior walls. They were rich, vivid, and varied, and made a great backdrop for the stainless steel lettering that identifies the building. The location was great too -- a nice view of the Cooper River Bridge served as a great backdrop. Cool to see the juxtaposition of such a modern structure in the midst of historic downtown Charleston.
Big score for Eskew+Dumez+Ripple, the New Orleans firm responsible for the site.
John Mark McMillan: The Medicine
posted in design by Eric on 8.13.08
just finished with a rather large album release campaign for my good friend, john mark mcmillan. collaborating with photographer andy mcmillan, i designed the album artwork and subsequent marketing campaign, including his website, myspace, posters and cd release flyers. here is a pre-release postcard that went out to john mark's mailing list. it's a bad photo, i realize. what're you gonna do? i'll post more stuff later, i promise.
i was really happy with the way the packaging and overall design turned out. after doing the cover art on john mark's last cd (a very whimsical-styled painting that worked for a sophomore release) i wanted to go somewhere very minimal and serious, a look worthy of an artist who was coming into his own, having matured through 2 fairly indie-style releases. the album is a heavy album...not necessarily dark...just heavy. weighty, i guess. anyway, i felt that what we ended up with was a perfect representation of the music inside while maintaining some sense of distance and mystery. and it didn't hurt that andy took some great photos for me to work with...
Tight Kerning
posted in influence by Eric on 8.1.08
ah yes, the subtle pleasures of making the space between letters less. there are pitfalls to the act of kerning (see example), however, used wisely the look can be really nice, as exemplified by this ad for a 1968 camaro. nothing like a west coast sunset, a muscle car, tightly-kerned type and your best girl at your side, eh?
A Designer Rarely Sleeps
posted in design by Eric on 7.29.08
late nights, early mornings. all a part of the design lifestyle. and why is it that the best work comes at 3am?
Photo Shoots
posted in design by Eric on 7.26.08
dave and i went out and did a photo shoot today for local charlotte band flagship brigade. we traipsed across the breadth of mecklenburg county, through southern jungles, concrete and otherwise. david stanfield took the one of lead singer drake margolnik up there at the top. i personally love the composition...the lines, the contrast. i, eric hurtgen took the one on the bottom of the boys in a miry swamp of a pond near the county line.
Early 90's Shoegaze
posted in influence by Eric on 7.25.08
this minimal cover of my bloody valentine's loveless was my first introduction to shoegaze. definitely one of the top ten albums of the 90's, and i loved the minimalist package design. ride's seminal album nowhere had great album art as well, with the blue swell of a wave dominating the cover.
Seventies-era New York City
posted in influence by Eric on 7.21.08
graffiti, hip-hop, new wave and the east coast punk scene all shared an epicenter: crime-ridden, dirty nyc in the 70's. also marvel comics and the helvetica-redesign of the subway system too(check this short clip about massimo vignelli's subway map deisgn). i think it's safe to say that this period is still affecting design+art; it definitely has affected mine.
i went to nyc for the first time as a kid with my parents in the 80's. i was hooked even then. graffiti was everywhere at that point and i couldn't resist writing my name a million different ways from then on. honestly, i probably got into graphic design through all the graf zines that popped up in the early 90s. especially twelve ounce prophet...i always loved the layout and the european coverage was nice. anyway, if you haven't seen it you should check out the style wars website. nice flash work and a good (though not entirely accurate) primer on the birth of modern graffiti. and then of course, you can check out what i was doing in the 90's here
also, you should check out the emmy-nominated documentary NY77: The Coolest Year in Hell. Well, at least check out the trailer...i'm still trying to find out how to get a copy of the V-H1-sponsored piece. It's not on amazon yet or anything.
Instant Hip
posted in influence by Eric on 7.16.08
let me be honest. i absolutely love the Avant Garde typeface. it's geometry is amazing. but i never really use it. not sure why exactly. maybe it's because for a while there the font was the delay pedal of graphic design. throw a little Avant Garde in there and it's immediately hip. probably the same could be said of Helvetica. {cough} ahem. but, whatever. it's a classic...
anyway, i probably won't start using a lot of Avant Garde in my work anytime soon (though i have been eyeing Suprb's Wyld and Myld font's for the last little bit), but here's an article by Duane King about the history of the hip, geometric typeface. very interesting, short little read for the font geeks among us.