Monday 29 June 2009

Peepshow: In Between




Recently I went to an exhibition of the artists and illustrators of Peepshow Collective It is a showcase of their personal work and is held at a small gallery near Barbican. An interview with the artists about the show can be found in this Its Nice That Article.

The three images shows above show amazing collages by Miles Donovan, the second of which is my favourite. The depth and colour in this series is immense. The first is entitles Creation No.1, the second Creation No.2 and the third is Arctic. Creative Review also features and article on the show and has some great shots of the work.


One of my favourite things at the show is Adrian Johnson's, Odin Thor and Freyr. These are three prints taken from a series of six inspired by Greek mythology and entitled 'The Pillage People' (photographed below).

Wednesday 24 June 2009

Designerd


I want this poster for my bedroom wall. So fitting! :)

The Power of Advertising



'Funny how 30 seconds can last a lifetime'

I just saw this new ad on the TV, from Thinkbox.It commands attention and really has you taking a trip down memory lane with all the great ad references. The strapline, 'Television: Where brands get their breaks', seems to be appealing to companies to advertise more on commercial television. This could come as a direct reaction to falling viewers due to the introduction of TiVo and other systems that allow the viewer to skip through commercials.

"Thinkbox is the television marketing body for the main UK commercial broadcasters - Channel 4, Five, GMTV, ITV, Sky Media, Turner Media Innovations and Viacom Brand Solutions. It works with the UK marketing community with a single ambition: to help customers get the best out of television."

Source: Thinkbox Website

Monday 22 June 2009

Harmonie Intérieure




The Harmonie Intérieure workshop designs and sells stickers and posters to decorate your home. I found these images through Graphic Exchange, blog site of designer Fabien Barral. The posters are based on the catalog cover design for the harmonie catalogue, they are available in 2 sizes, and are limited to 100 editions.



Harmonie Intérieure

Thursday 11 June 2009

Brainforest





Gerda Steiner & Jorg Lenzlinger created this sculptural piece called Brainforest at San Staë Church on the Canale Grande during the 50th Biennial of Venice in 2003. The piece is called Falling Garden and according to the translation on the artists website, it was created for The Doge.

"The Doge (Mocenigo) needed a church so as to be able to have a monumental tomb built for himself, the church (San Staë) needed a saint so as to be able to be built, the saint (San Eustachio) needed a miracle so as to be pronounced a saint, the miracle needed a stag in order to be seen, and we built the garden for the reindeer.
The visitors lie on the bed above the doge’s gravestone, and the garden thinks for them."

The translation is a little awkward, but you get the gist!

For more on the artists work, visit Gerda Steiner & Jörge Lenzlinger

Thursday 4 June 2009

Website Redesign

My old, tired website is getting a redesign. Well ok, it's not that old, but I am redesigning it anyway, because I can! The new site will have a more focussed approach to my work as well as featuring the sources of much of my inspiration.

This blog has also been reshuffled in order for it to appear on the site, along with an extensive portfolio of work. The site aims to be the first port of call for anyone interested in my design work, especially London based employers, which is where I hope to get a job (very soon)!

Below is a preview of the homepage which is in the initial stages of the design process. It should be up and running in a few months, but I will write another post for the launch of it.



For now though, my portfolio of work can be found at riannawilliams.com

Wednesday 3 June 2009

Keep Calm and Carry On


Something that has had somewhat of a revival since it was originally produced in 1939 is the Keep Calm and Carry On poster. It was initially created by the British Ministry of Information during the outbreak of the war. The posters were never officially released at this time, although some originals were leaked and so a few did appear in the public domain.

"The original poster was issued as a means of allaying public fear. The poster was held in reserve for use only in times of extreme crisis. Although thousands were produced, only a handful ever saw the light of day." -Keep Calm Gallery

Even today 'Keep Calm and Carry On' is a phrase which perfectly encapsulates the traditional British 'stiff upper lip!Now that we find ourselves in economic uncertainty, this phrase seems to have become fashionable again, with sales of the original style poster soaring. A lot of the merchandise can be found at the Keep Calm and Carry On website.


Above is a variation that I discovered through Fffound A good one for junior designers at this time I think. I might pin that one to my bedroom wall to keep me going! As with every fad or trend, it has sparked an offshoot of parodies, which can be viewed on this Keep Calm Flickr Pool.

The one below is great. I'm not entirely sure which shop it is for, but I love how the colours pop with the seasons collection and the tongue in cheek statement. Similarly the carrier bag below aims to do the same thing, by making light of spending money in an economic downturn.



Some of my favourites are "Keep Calm and Put the Kettle On", "Keep Calm and Carrion", and "If in Doubt, Dangerously Overreact". Could look through these for a while!

For more on this subject, check out the Keep Calm Gallery