April 2008 Archives

Un.titled

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 28, 2008 1:53 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
Un.titled

If you haven't already, check out Un.titled from the UK. They have a particularly fresh portfolio and have just recently finished their new book (available upon request, via their website).

Their website behaves differently than what might be expected, but it's extremely clean and well built.

Screensavers for Designers

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 24, 2008 8:56 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
dropclock.jpgIf you're like me and feeling somewhat tired of the Ken Burns-esque screensavers that ship with OS X you'll be more than glad to have a look at either of these two beautifully designed alternatives.  I've never been much fan of screensavers, as you never really get the chance to enjoy them per their nature, but I've caught myself (and others) gazing at my screen in appreciation for both of the following:

Word Clock, By Simon Heys. (OS X only)

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Drop Clock (OS X, Windows)

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Enjoy.

(Desk) Size Matters!

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 23, 2008 11:46 AM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)
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Unique as the design itself, a designers workspace is always a glimpse into the inner personality of the creative mind.  Through the years I've shared my time with a myriad of different desks, cubicles, and open workspaces.  I've decided to take my interest to the next level by starting a Flickr photoset dedicated to the countless different workspaces we create within.

Share your photos with the project by emailing your space to tonydev (at) gmail.com.

The Grass is Greener, for Now.

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 22, 2008 11:07 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
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Coming into work this morning I was greeted by a barrage of Earth Day treats put on by Hornall Anderson's Green Team.  The lobby was filled with individually potted plants, which are now adding some much needed nature to my green deprived desk.  Custom printed tees and a some-what-hilarious e-card (see above) were also waiting for each and every employee.

To a lot of people, Earth Day is another excuse for hippies and transients to get half naked, dance, and smoke pot in the park.  For the rest of us, it's a day to remember how lucky we are live on such a beautiful planet, and how it's our responsibility to make sure it stays that way for our children and their children to come.

As designers we make choices every day that have impact on the environment.  Whether we're printing posters, installing high energy interactive exhibits, or mass producing packaging, it's our responsibility to stay conscientious about how our decisions affect the environment.

Take a moment to appreciate what's around us, get yourself learned on why you should care, and do something about it.  Don't just say you will, do it.


Design You Wish Was Yours: Dante's Divine Comedy

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 18, 2008 9:18 AM | | Comments (323) | TrackBacks (0)
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Creative Review has featured the work of recent Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston graduate, Nicole Peterson.  The specific work refers to a unique design for each of the three canticas (individual stories) for The Divine Comedy.  In a sea of unwanted design-trend-porn, such relief is found when we find work that is both conceptually sound and visually stunning.  The relevance of form to concept in these particular designs is rand-esque in it's purity -  A delightful execution.

via Creative Review blog

The Pentagram Black Book

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 18, 2008 8:51 AM | | Comments (1052) | TrackBacks (0)
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A few short days after I finished reading through 'The Pentagram Papers', Pentagram announced the publication of their newest work compilation showcase, 'The Black Book'.    Boasting in-depth looks at over 400 projects over recent years, It's sure to be packed full of interesting and provocative perspective by the Pentagram partners.  For those of you who have had the chance to read their past publications (Papers, et al), I'm sure you're as excited as I am to have even more insight into their creative process.

Via the Pentagram Blog
Above image ©Pentagram

Go Go Prosumer

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 7, 2008 3:21 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
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It comes at no surprise that mere days after launching Thought Spoken I realized it was time to make an investment in a decent camera to help with photo documentation.  As it turns out, many of the folks I work with at Seattle based Hornall Anderson are well versed in the language of photography, especially within the realm of digital SLRs and were more than helpful in setting me in the proper direction  

Photography is something that I have always been naturally interested in, though slightly apprehensive to embracing as I was afraid of insulting the profession with the all-too-common "I have an SLR, therefore I must be a professional".  With respect to that, I've come into ownership of a used (albeit well taken care of) Canon Rebel XT with the fancy shmancy stock lens.

It's no David Lachapelle setup, but it's a good start to a great thing; better photos.  Stay tuned for decent photos where applicable.  In the meantime, enjoy my newly found Flickr profile.



TED.com - Inspired learning.

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 3, 2008 11:21 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

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"TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader."

During the years I have spent designing, I've come to find that the best form of inspiration comes as a result of conversations I've held with talented designers, intellects, and esoteric thinkers.  While it's important to understand the use of design galleries boasting sales-pitch-titles like "30 ways to improve your ____", the real content lies in the dialog held with minds who have spent their lives dedicated to the academic approach of their subject; which brings me to TED.

Over the last 6 months I've been spending approximately 18 minutes a night indulging myself in some of the most intellectually stimulating content at TED.com.  There is a perfect blend of conversations ranging from graphic design to neuroanatomy.

Spend a few hours and get learned.  A few of my personal favorites:

Jill Bolte Taylor My stroke of insight
Stefan Sagmeister Yes, design can make you happy


Spotted in the wild: Sagmeister Inc. business cards

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 3, 2008 6:11 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
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Just a few short days after a very inspiration lecture given by Stefan Sagmeister at the University of Washington I was lucky enough to stumble across a crisp little business card straight form his hot hot hands.  It was cleverly constructed with two separate pieces, one regular stock and the other a sort of printed velum which created a particularly unique lenticular effect. Higher res shots available via the AIGA design archive sans the beef skewers.

Some things just take way too long.

By
Tony DeVincenzi
on April 3, 2008 12:28 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)
Something new, something old, something - finally!

It's with much pleasure, and infinitely more relief, that we're finally able to present a new design forum, Thought Spoken.

The aforementioned 'we', refers mostly to I, Tony DeVincenzi, but also to a tight network of friends and designers who through a process of growth together and apart have decided it's time to share our experiences regarding design.

More coming soon.  Rejoice (I am).

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