Finding the brand soul of Chihuly
Digging in, the brand archaeology of art, the person, the persona. When you work on a brand, people are involved. Sometimes, companies forget -- they think: logistics, operations, planning, transportation, targets, quotients and quotas. For us -- and we're sure -- for...
The Pink that is: "indescribably pink."
Color, Brands, and the Layering of Experience, Memory and Recognizability Some say -- "stop calling the FT pink!" According to the color standards at the Times, the real color is a "so-called" Salmon Pink. But being an inveterate traveler, and persistent worker in...
Imagine that it’s raining, but you’re not getting wet.
rAndom International at MOMA. Reinterpretations of cold digital design It's been suggested by Random that their work isn't about typical programmable environmental installations that are inherently "unfeeling" and cold, but rather interactively human[e]. In years of...
James Turrell
James Turrell, Designer in Light The Guggenheim | NYC We have a lot of history with the legacy of Turrell -- and real history, in terms of what we've done for Seattle in introducing Seattle to his work. Only about 28 years ago. Deanna and I were taking a break,...
The Book of Signs, the Book of Symbols, the Sign of the Book, the Signal of the Sigil
Designed Magic, Magic Designed. It's been said that illustration, the real meaning of the word is a shining -- to illustrate is "making bright." But also -- to purify. In a manner, thinking about illustration as a craft of communication suggests change, a new, evolved...
Crafted by Hand
Designing a World: Bears, Children, Wonderment and Michele Clise Ophelia's World [Ophelia, showing above] Now and then, you get a chance to work on a project, or a succession of them, that might be reaching out to the edge of "what's that, you're looking for what?"...
The BrandQuest® That is a Journey
When You Get Out There. For the Curious, More Can Be Found. Doors opened, entries walked, the pilgrimage taken. When you get out there, closer to the heart of the story, the feeling of it: the place, the brand, the people, the story, can be found. For nearly 20 years,...
WHAT ABOUT STEVE JOBS, NOW GONE, AND APPLE?
PRODUCT DESIGN, CAPTIVATION AND THE APPLE SIGNATURE I was talking to a young engineer about the principled ideation of Apple industrial design; that certain details are not only innovative not only in terms of product design creation -- they didn't exist before; or...
NORDSTROM + GIRVIN | A HISTORY OF 35 YEARS
THE HAND CRAFT OF RETAIL DESIGN IN THE BEGINNING, RETAIL DESIGN GOES BACK TO ONE SIMPLE PROPOSITION. "WHY SHOULD I BUY FROM YOU?" The implications of retail speaks to retelling -- that is, there is a story, and another story, in a story -- and you either buy it, or...
Posting posters
Billboarding, postering the story in the story in the story. [Imagery from PSFK] We've designed dozens of posters, an earlier legacy of work. But we love this Black Sabbath promotion, pointed out by Daniela Walker and "DaBitch." As Daniela notes, "the advertisement,...