Phil Dobinson: Words in progress

Ridiculuous...but great TV

2011-02-21T15:02:00.005Z

Every year the great and the good of the American basketball scene collect together over All Star Weekend

It's a full on show-boating extravaganza. Don't expect anything particularly tactical, Do expect SHOWTIME. Ridiculous stats are posted; Kobe Bryant scored 37 points to help the West defeat the East 148-143. Defence isn't what this game is about.

But perhaps the best reflection of what the weekend is all about is the legendary Dunk contest, as immortalized by latter day heroes Dominque Wilkins and Micheal Jordan. This year it was won by Blake Griffin. For one dunk he grabbed the rim with his elbow after have slammed the ball home and for his final play he caught the ball in mid air as it was thrown out of the sun roof of a medium sized family car. I should perhaps mention that this involved jumping over the aforementioned automobile, whilst a choir sang 'I believe I can fly'.

Absolutely ridiculous but completely entertaining and that's what All star weekend is all about. Roll on the regular season.

For the record I preferred this dunk by Serge Ibaka where he 'rescued' a teddy bear from the rim with his teeth before slamming the ball through the rim.

Incredible - as a perpetually grounded small forward who even in his younger years had problems leaving the ground the air modern day players create is astounding. Which is why I now hang around the three point line and drop in bombs from downtown.

A lot of truth here

2011-02-09T17:26:00.000Z

There is an evolving list of thoughts on Bruce Mau Design's website. It's essentially a collection of insights into the studio's culture, its thinking and its beliefs. Here are some that stand out for me:

Keep moving - The market and its operations have a tendency to reinforce success. Resist it. Allow failure and migration to be part of your practice.
Don’t enter awards competitions - Just don’t. It’s not good for you.
Think with your mind - Forget technology. Creativity is not device-dependent.
Laugh - People visiting the studio often comment on how much we laugh. Since I've become aware of this, I use it as a barometer of how comfortably we are expressing ourselves.

Nice site incidentally - using cargo to excellent effect.

Stats don't lie*

2011-02-07T13:24:00.001Z

Everyone makes mistakes and over the course of a season refereeing decisions will even themselves, but…

In the four Arsenal matches Phil Dowd has refereed this season, the Gunners have conceded four penalties and had two players dismissed. An average of one penalty a game and half a dismissal.
In the other 17 top-flight games Dowd has taken charge of this term, three penalties have been awarded and five players dismissed. An average of one penalty every five and a half games, and one dismissal every three and half games.

* Alternative title = The Referee's a wanker

Everyone's an expert these days

2011-01-19T18:16:00.001Z

Don't know where this came from (found it in an old desktop folder) so 'props out' to the creator. Sorry I can't link to the source.

Makes me laugh, I'm starting to playing creative-critic bingo...nearly got a full house!

YouTube not what it used to be

2010-11-09T12:53:00.001Z

Pride, passion, and inspiration rolled up and smothered by a Nickelback melody.
Nice.

(Found on Cesc’s twitter - good enough for him, good enough for me, etc, etc)

Name that Film

2010-08-20T11:33:00.000+01:00

An exercise in graphic simplicity and ingenuity. Less is very definetly more in this short motiongraphics piece where 35 movies have been symbolised in iconic form.

Reminscent of the excellent Nooma Baar who recently completed a lovely set of images for IBM.

David Stern speaks sense

2010-08-19T18:46:00.000+01:00

David Stern is the commissioner of the National Basketball Association, the premier basketball league in the world. Whilst playing in the NBA individual superstar players such as Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James have become international marketing icons and helped expand the leagues presence globally – the NBA is now televised in 212 nations in 42 languages.

Speaking before the London pre-season game betweeen the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz he was asked about the impact of overseas players on what is felt to be one of the USA's national sports. The interviewer asked him did he see it as a negative - a question stimulated by the frequently debated issue of foreign footballers stunting 'home-grown' players development in the premiership.

Stern admirably rebuked the notion and said 'Foreign is not a word in our league - we prefer international'. He pointed out the quality of players in general has improved with the influx of players from outside the USA. Admittedly the USA's international teams are of the highest standard (unlike our own beloved three lions football team) so at first glance it might not appear a major concern.

However this was not always the case; the NBA had lulled itself into a chasm of self-adulation and in doing so ignored the improvments of the global game. The American's slash and dash, run and dunk game became one dimensional and predictable, and countries such as Lithuania, Croatia, and Spain produced players players who could more than mix it up with the Americans. Slowly they caught up with them and dramatically they surpassed them - as seen at the 2004 Olympics where Team USA lost their semi-final to the eventual champions Argentina.

In recognising the impact international players make to a domestic league, Stern acknowledges the need for competition between players to improve individual abilities and skills; something that the backward looking folk in English football would be wise to heed. It's too easy to point the finger at the foreign mercenaries and blame them for the lack of quality within the England team. If young English players are good enough they'll get to play for their clubs - witness Rooney, Walcott, Carroll, Harte, Smalling, etc. Blame for the poor performance of Team Three Lions should be attributed elsewhere. Factors such as over-commercialism of players (leading to inflated egos), too many games in the domestic season (resulting in tiredness and drawn-out injuries) and over-inflated, media hype are more likely culprits and certainly easier problems to solve.

Here we go again

2010-07-19T11:41:00.004+01:00

Hold on tight – here we go again!

Action. File. Delete

2010-03-15T16:23:00.006Z

My friend Chris claims he deals with hundreds of emails every day. He works as a healthcare manager in a large hospital so it's entirely believable.

I get irritated with having to deal when the inbox gets to about fifty emails (as happens on a very busy day) so it was interesting to hear how he deals with a never ending stream of inbox invasions. As is his way he eulogised about the following approach: File.Action.Delete.

Chris was clearly a convert, and even though I'm wary of anything that sounds like it emerged from a self-help business guide, or worse the mouth of a contestant on The Apprentice, I proceeded to apply his methodology.

I began to filter every email as soon as it entered my inbox. I read it quickly and established if it could be actioned within a few minutes. Once actioned it was filed in a relevant folder. I now have lots of folders, but this doesn't matter as it's out of my inbox and this is the most important aim.

If a lengthier span of attention was required the email was filed in my ACTION folder. Not forgotten about, just on pause until the requisite amount of time can be spent on the task.

And if it is - as the vast majority of emails tend to be - a message of no significance it is promptly deleted. Forever, never to return to my vision.

It's all very simple and life at work now has fewer email distractions or inbox avalanches enabling me to get on with the tasks I'm meant to be concentrating upon.

Really it's a process I should have been employing a long time ago but I succumbed to the belief that if it's in my inbox it's easier to find. All that seems to happen is that it get pushed further down the list by the bulk of daily inbox chatter.

Steve Jobs – "stay hungry, stay foolish"

2010-02-11T14:59:00.001Z

China's 60th anniversary celebrations

2009-10-15T12:07:00.005+01:00

This is stunning. Not just from the sheer military might but because it’s shot on a DSLR. In High definition. Technical gizmos aside though, the editing and use of stop motion and slow-mo really work. And really liking the pixelated camouflage bedecking the PRC army vehicles.

Very powerful – but is this photography or film making? (not that it matters). The creator is Dan Chung a photojournalist at The Guardian, who has moved away from static imagery into moving image. A photographer’s eye with an editor’s sense of timing.

Watch the video on vimeo.

Good reading

2009-10-06T17:59:00.003+01:00

This is really, really good.
Ad-man Dave Trott waxes lyrical about all manner of topics.
Insightful, observational and engaging.
Worth a read.

(And written in a tight, concise manner befitting of the author's occupation - plenty of good stuff to muse over).

No. 5 Quote of note

2009-09-15T13:41:00.003+01:00

"There is hope in honest error. None in the icy perfections of the mere stylist." I'm liking this quote by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Courtesy of 1977, thanks Paul!

Makes me think of the philosophy of Inky Finger Prints and the much respected logo of Minale Tattersfield

Beauty in imperfection, ideas over style, 80/20 rule, the human touch etc, etc. Maybe I'm missing the point but all that microscopic overanalysis of mundane details slows things down and delays the arrival of a solution. maximise the time you spend on generating ideas, bosh out the options, be pragmatic and save the crafting for the final chapter.

Got a new route to work!

2009-08-25T12:34:00.002+01:00

Looks like it's going to be shorter, safer and quicker - F*ck yeah!
The pink line was my old route, the light blue line is my new path.

A sunday cycle ride with Em led me along a previously ignored set of Southwark back streets. This morning being up early and enjoying the sunshine cycle ride I explored further. A prime example of why it's good to step out of a routine and try something new. Bad Phil!

People, it's looking positive. My only concern is traffic volume during the school run and feasibility for returning that way in the evening. Ha Ha! - lets find out.

Wired up

2009-08-18T17:26:00.006+01:00

Tonight sees BBC2 show the final episode of series 4 of The Wire.
That means there will only be one more series of the so-called 'greatest show on earth'.

I'm enjoying it, i've managed to keep up with the previous episodes and series but would have to admit that it just hasn't stood up to it's billing. Perhaps it's just been overhyped for too long - it first came to the small screen in 2002 and the last series finaled in March 2008. I wanted to really like it but alas it's all left me feeling a bit cold. I don't think that the marathon viewing schedule that BBC2 has imposed helped matters but I guess they felt it was the best way to maintain momentum.

Cons: Impenetrable, slow, overly reliant on vague details.
Pros: Range of interesting characters, use of local lingo - both in terms of institutions and geography. Nice mixture of stereotyping and surprise.

UPDATE: I've abandoned watching season 5 in real time. I plan to borrow a DVD at some point and get done in one shot. maybe. If i can summon the motivation.

A funny old year

2009-07-21T18:25:00.006+01:00

It’s been a funny year so far. Having written about keeping it simple six months ago I now revist those words with the benefit of six months hindsight.

I can remember rumblings of discontent this time last year but paid little attention to them, for the past ten years I’d been in steady and reliable work since I graduated in 1999 – so why should I worry? I’d worked for myself, as a freelancer with agencies and representing myself and two years ago ended up in a full time job.

And then January arrived and work became painfully slow. Clients stopped calling, projects were put on hold and the directors at my company started to spend more time behind closed doors. What was even more surreal was that in a company of over 100 people only part of our business seemed to be affected. I work on Employee Engagement projects and even though our work load dropped off, the other offers in our company had more work than they could handle. Eg. In previous years I’d seen digital designers suffer, this year saw them travel unscathed through the financial meltdown. An example of learning from past mistakes of over employing and over stretching oneself.

In mid February the thirty or so people who make up my team were called into the board room and told we would now be entering a ‘redundancy consultation process’, ie two weeks to to justify your existence as an employee. It was probably the most stressful period I‘ve had to go through and I regret that it meant my troubles at work spilled over into my home life. Thankfully my partner was good listener, an intelligent adviser and extremely understanding.

The benefits of talking to partners, friends and family I can’t stress enough. Through talking about it I learnt a lot of my friends were or had gone through similar processes – for better or worse. And these aren’t just designers, every industry was/is being affected. It was a thought provoking time.

And when your standing on the edge, not knowing how things will fall one is forced to think hard and think fast about what one wants to do and where one wants to be. I’d long been thinking about pursuing a different direction (photography, printmaking, interactive design, writing, carpentry, cookery, travel, etc) and these interests started to form the basis for my next steps. I was all but convinced that my time at this particular company was over so mentally I was well prepared to move on and by investigating alternative occupations it showed me that there are always solutions to seemingly insurmountable problems. It even made me realise what I liked (and to some extents had taken for granted) about my current job; I valued the interaction with my colleagues, the opportunities to work on large scale projects and the lifestyle presented by the location of the office.

As it turned out I wasn’t made redundant. Several of my friends were though and I can only guess that it must be a terribly shocking and frustrating moment to be asked to leave a job you’d grown used to working in. The theft of financial security in these days of high consumption can only equal fear and trepidation and a destruction of one’s own confidence. And for those of us remaining I detect a conflicting and complex set of emotions. Gratitude from having been spared the axe, resentment at having to be dragged through the process in the first place, caution that the entire episode will be repeated.

So what have I learnt from this? I now know the importance of having a grand plan, a goal or a destination to aim for. Just like a lighthouse, in times of trouble it’s reassuring to have a marker to steer towards. It’s important to be constantly prepared, to have a safety net to fall back upon and a well stocked locker to get you out of trouble should the need arise. So I guess it’s all about being aware of what’s happening around you and recognizing the warning signs when they start to appear. And being in as flexible a state as possible so as to be able to adapt to changing circumstances with as much personal control as possible.

Footnote: this is very much an employee’s viewpoint. I am under no illusions employers undergo as tough if not tougher set of emotions and experiences. If I could offer advice to them it would be this: make the process of redundancy as quick and transparent as possible. Doubtless hard to do under the employment laws but perhaps less damaging in the long run.

No. 4 Quote of note

2009-07-16T13:54:00.002+01:00

Alice came to a fork in the road. "Which road do I take?" she asked.
"Where do you want to go?" responded the Cheshire cat.
"I don't know," Alice answered.
"Then," said the cat, "it doesn't matter."

Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

Jimmy Carr twitters away

2009-03-27T15:17:00.000Z

I’m unconvinced by the whole Twitter thang but at least Jimmy Carr’s manner of delivery seems to suit the medium.

Here are his latest ‘tweets’ from Dundee, pure comedy genius.

i'm still on a train. it would appear someone's put Dundee right up in the north - presumably so they don't bother anyone.
"i think of Dundee as the 'Paris of the north' because its covered in dog shit and nobody washes." Good idea for an opening line tonight?
just been told Dundee is 'the city of discovery'. Presumably because the Discovery Channel made a wildlife documentary about the locals.
just in the interval of the show in dundee. i feel a little guilty cause i've been slagging the place off all day and i'm really enjoying it
what now? according to one twitterer earlier Dundee has only one night club 'Fat Sam's' named after the local beauty queen..i've got to stop

A little bit of street art out east

2009-03-23T14:04:00.003Z

Not an underpass in Shoreditch, London - an underpass in Chaoyang, Beijing. Nice work from the This City Art collective.

A new undertaking by VJ/motion graphics designer Hao Bu Hao and photographer Oak Taylor-Smith – Two Beijing based English expats.

First exhibition featured Hao Bu Hao aka Martin Barnes' Caulfield inspired prints of Chinese icons. Forget about The Great Wall and The Terracotta Army, think instead of cheap packets of cigarettes and bamboo brooms leaning against air-con units. Bold, colourful imagery is now available to the people.

Le Corbusier at The Barbican

2009-03-22T21:24:00.002Z

Le Corbousier at The Barbican
Originally uploaded by Phil Dobinson.

Exhibition signage by Bibliotheque. Nice adaptation of Futura bold italic and great use of colours - strong reds and blues contrasting nicely with dirty aubergine and warm cement hues.

Inky Finger Prints

2009-03-09T01:12:00.002Z

Website revamp v3.0 in time for exhibition!

No. 3 Quote of note

2009-02-04T23:49:00.003Z

"Walking these New Zealand Mountains stimulated my memory. My need for this strange landscape was profound. Travel, which is nearly always seen as an attempt to escape from the ego, is in my opinion the opposite. Nothing induces concentration or inspires memory like an alien landscape or a foreign culture. It is simply not possible (as romantics think) to lose yourself in an exotic place. Much more likely is an experience of intense nostalgia, a harking back to an earlier stage in your life, or seeing clearly a serious mistake But this does not happen to the exclusion of the exotic present. What makes the whole experience vivid, and sometimes thrilling, is the juxtaposition of he present and the past – London seen from the heights of Harris Saddle."
Paul Theroux, The Happy Isles of Oceania

Lights, Camera...Action

2009-01-26T12:54:00.000Z

Good collection of ideas from film director Jim Jarmusch. Several things of note here that seem as applicable in the world of design as that of the silver screen, eg Rule #4: Filmmaking is a collaborative process - “work with others whose minds and ideas may be stronger than your own”. Rule #5 is also relevant but I’m sure I’ve heard that one before….

Here is a link to his golden rules of movie-making

Reminiscent of a good piece of design advice I learnt at college. My tutor - a short, energetic chap called Ed - would relate design to the editing process of a film. He believed the quicker one got to the bare boned, basic structure of a ‘product’, the quicker you’d be able to make key decisions. Ed’s point was that until you’d reached the rough-cut stage students would more often than not get bogged down in the details (the ‘fluff’) and progress at a slower pace than that of someone who could step back and view the project as a whole (the ‘meat’). Basic flaws became exposed whilst strengths and virtues could be amplified and refined.

SE Asia photos

2009-01-20T10:47:00.002Z

Photos available to view from my trip to Vietnam and Cambodia - with a brief glimpse of Hong Kong and Bangkok at either end.

A year to remember

2009-01-14T17:50:00.004Z

For me 2008 became the year of ‘just doing it’. The label came from my Dad who in answer to a query about a moral dilemma, he answered by saying ‘just do it’. His view being don’t worry about the future, worry about the present and stop faffing around. Mind you, this is my interpretation and therefore may not be what the wisdom my Dad intended to pass on.

But it worked. 2008 was a really good year, and among things of note:

I met a fantastic women who at the present moment of writing seems happy to describe herself as my girlfriend (I know – I can’t believe it either!).
A photo of mine was shortlisted by Tate modern for a companion exhibition to the street and studio photography show. This ended up in a lovely book produced by blurb.
Work became more stable and I’ve enjoyed making a load of new friends and feeling part of an organisation that seems to be moving in the right direction. It hasn’t been a walk in the park but it has proved rewarding, and some of the work I've produced I'm pleased with.
I visited Copenhagen for a long weekend, had a great time at Latitude festival and visited several countries in SE Asia over the Christmas period. I saw this last destination as a small victory as it required a degree of negotiation to get the time off. A case of ‘if you don’t ask, you won’t get’ or perhaps even ‘just do it..’
My front room now has a fresh lick of paint, a new floor and a lovely sofa. And how much nicer an environment it is.

So what about this year - what will 2009 be the year of? I’ve been musing about this whilst slumming it around the cheap hotels of Vietnam and Cambodia and I think in line with the cheery outlook predicted by the media – ha ha ha – this year is going to be the year of ‘keeping it simple’.

But what does this mean? In short it’s about concentrating on the important things and cutting out the extraneous guff that gets in the way, costs too much, never gets used, complicates, clutters....you get the picture. I realised whilst living out of a bag for four weeks that we in the west live very complicated lives and often the a little bit of room to think and breathe can make a world of difference.

Practically I see 2009 as being a chance to exercise the following processes:

Cycle to work four times a week (minimum)
Eat smaller meals, waste less food, cook more from scratch, consume less chocolate.
Spend quality time with those people who matter, cooking meals at home as opposed to patronising restaurants and pubs.
Think a bit more about where my money is spent - £4 a pint? Get real, I’ll take my business elsewhere. Bye bye snappy snaps, I’m going to get my photos developed via post in Hampshire where for less money I get a CD of scans and a free film in addition to a quality set of developed and printed photos.
Appreciate what I have in the immediacy – England has lots of great locations to visit and at long last this must be the year that the sun returns to our shores.
Get more sleep and get to bed earlier. Last year I seemed to be rising late and therefore losing precious day time hours, this will change.
Spring clean. Spring clean. Spring clean.
Simple entertainment - read more books, watch less TV and stimulating conversation.

Vietnam and cambodia sketches

2009-01-10T13:56:00.002Z

Having arrived back in London I am now hibernating from the cold. Drawings from my trip are on my Flickr site. Take a look...

No. 2 quote of note

2009-01-09T15:21:00.002Z

"I came to Tibet hoping to find answers to all my unasked questions, but I have discovered that even when the questions are clear, there are no clear answers. I am sick of traveling. I need to hold onto something familiar, even if it is just a tea cup. I cannot survive in the wilds - nature is infinite but my life has bounds. I need to live in big cities that have hospitals, bookshops and women. I left Beijing because I wanted to be alone and to forge my own path but I now know that no path is solitary, we all tread across each others beginnings and ends."
Ma Jian, Red Dust

No. 1 quote of note

2009-01-05T04:14:00.004Z

"There are still many white mountains to cross but I am on my way home. I am leaving the wilds and returning to the dirty crowds of the city. But I am not afriad of them any more. They cannot hurt me now. I have changed."
Ma Jian, Red Dust

Robert Capa at the barbican

2008-11-29T17:52:00.002Z

How very true.

Positive thinking

2008-11-06T14:44:00.003Z

Congratulations Barack Obama! Interesting to see how people are a lot more optimistic about the future. Great things to come one hopes, big respect to Mr. Rascal.

Further evidence here

Hard work

2008-10-25T10:18:00.007+01:00

I always remember one of the leading lights on my foundation course, Rob Mills, saying that the only way to feel confident going in to a presentation/a crit/a meeting was to have done lots of work.

Great ideas don't just happen - you have to have worked through the process, to have put pen to paper and hand to head (scratch-scratch).

On a similar, and more interestingly expressed, note are these anecdotes from big cheeses in Ad-land:

“…If you produce a lot of ideas, you’re going to find good ones in there. It’s about amount. It’s about quality. Quality comes from quantity. In the creative process you have to see the ad. Make, make, make, make, make, make, make, make it. In the end you look and see one good one, ah this is average, and you pick up the best ones.”
Marcello Serpa, CEO, Creative Director, ALMAP/BBDO.

Particularly like Dave's tip about generating ideas. Another thing I was told on my foundation course was to present work in boxes - helps to order ideas and I find it stops one dwelling on one part of the page. Also everything designed seems to ultimately end up being in a 'box' of some form or another.

“…I would work as long as it took. I forced myself to write as many ideas as I possibly could. So I would do stupid things like, I'd get layout pads and fill it with a hundred squares. Like post-it notes. And I couldn't leave until I filled each box with an idea, even if I loved the first idea."
Dave Droga, Founder/Creative Chairman, droga5.

Via: diaryofacreativedirector.com

Elbow at Roundhouse, Camden

2008-10-12T22:40:00.002+01:00

A great gig, a great night. Why? In no particular order...

1. Music - 4 albums of diverse, intelligent and powerful songs, 2008 mercury Prize winners. Enough said.
2. Venue - Modern without being soul-less, History without being overbearing, technology without the gizmos, intimate without lacking presence. I think the Roundhouse is the best venue in London not least because you can get very, very close to the stage without having to push through the throngs.
3. Personality - Guy Garvey is a very charming man. Charming in a good bloke way as opposed to charming in a smarmy, lawyer/car salesman way. Engaged the audience in equal part with witty and touching deliveries between numbers, he is very much the spokesman for the band.
4. Anticipation - I brought these tickets five months ago. I didn't know what i'd be doing in October and I didn't know who i'd be going with. I just knew that it wouldn't be a problem on either count. I was correct.

A great gig, a great night.

Amazing news!

2008-08-20T13:31:00.005+01:00

I really enjoyed visiting the latest Tate Modern photography exhibition Great photos and a really interesting theme, well organised and interestingly arranged. Street photography (of people) isn't something I'm particularly good at or explore so it was lovely to get some stimulation and inspiration.

When I got home I looked at the exhibition's microsite and noticed they were running a competition in conjunction with Flickr. I had a few photos that fitted the criteria so entered the best one.

Didn't think too much about it after that. Fast forward a month or so and I noticed my flickr site was getting a lot of hits. Odd, thought I. Why is this happening? Eventually the penny dropped and I had a look back at the Tate's site which is where the screen shot above was taken.

Wow! I'm very pleased and very, very flattered to be included in the 100 photos the judges selected. Apparently these are now going to be collated into a book and will be shown within the gallery as a slideshow. How cool is that!

Connected post here

Photos that might make you cry

2008-08-17T14:33:00.010+01:00

Days with my father is a stunning website put together by Philip Toledano.

Stylistically I love the subtle focusing and soft palette of colours but what moves me more is the obvious affection between son and father. He writes how the death of his mother and his father's inability to record short-term memories compelled him to begin a record of their time together. I admire them both for their honesty, the words and pictures expose a relationship to strangers and invites viewers into an intimate arena. Not sure about the navigation, it's very 'slick' but it's a bit idiosyncratic for my puritan tastes.

Mr Toledano also takes great photos of, among other things, bankrupt business and phone-sex operators. Worth spending a lot of time looking at these. (The photographs, not necessarily the phone-sex operators).

In his biography Philip writes about how a photograph should be "like an unfinished sentence...there should be space for questions", sentiments I'd agree with. Pictures can paint a thousand words but they don't have to tell the whole story. I like the idea that they can stimulate a train of thought and create a connection with the viewer.

Related post: photos and memories

Gone baby gone

2008-08-04T12:14:00.004+01:00

A tense, crime thriller directed by Ben Affleck shows that his talents are equally noteworthy for behind the camera efforts. Showed his writing promise and acting talent in 'Good Will Hunting', yet this time around allows his younger Brother Casey to play the lead in 'Gone baby gone'.

Nice use of language and dialogue between strong cast memebers, nicely paced so that as the intrigue increases you are drawn in. What let's the story down though is the ending, it's just a bit unbelievable and far fetched. Good to see a movie set somewhere other than LA or New York, the rough Boston Neighbourhood Dorchester is shown warts and all. And maybe cinema sound systems are getting better but the gunshots in this film were fantastic, very loud and sharp.

scores on the board? 7.5 out of 10

Batman - The Dark Knight

2008-08-01T10:24:00.003+01:00

Not bad, not bad at all. In fact very, very good. I really enjoyed the latest installment in the Batman story for several reasons:

Pace. This movie doesn’t stop. It pumps up the adrenalin from the very beginning and rarely slows for the next two hours. At first I didn’t appreciate this but quickly adapted. It felt like a trailer at times, ie high octane, energy fueled scenes full of soundbites.

Darkness. Have yet to see the first Batman movie Christopher Nolan made but I’m assured that it is just as dark. And by darkness I mean tone as much as lighting. Compared to Burton and Schumacer’s earlier batman films this latest offering avoids any campness or cabaretesque moments. And this feels right, much more believable. Very few scenes are shown in the daylight hours but when they are, blinding white sunlight bleaches out colours and offers an environment just as stark as the nocturnal stage.

Locations. Chicago, New York, Battersea Power Station stood in for Gotham city. It shows you’re a big budget movie when you can afford to take over a couple of Staten Island ferries, have a cast of hundreds of extras in major US cities and then start blowing up Battersea Power Station.

Cast. Heath Ledger left this life with a fitting epitaph presumably ensuring he achieves James Dean status. His Joker is a scheming, Machiavellian evil lunatic and the manner in which he lisps and sucks his lines achieves a suitable amount of distaste from the audience. Christian Bale is also a lot more believable as Batman than previous incumbents – a driven, ruthless man teetering on the edge between good and evil. Great supporting actors as well: Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Maggie Gylenhall.

Latitude Festival 2008

2008-07-23T00:51:00.012+01:00

Back in the land of hot running water and bed linen after a long weekend in the Suffolk countryside. The Henham Estate was host to Latitude Festival 2008 and much fun was had by all. Latitude is a great festival - the right size both in terms of people and area and full to bursting of great acts to see.

More than a music festival, Latitude caters for a whole range of tastes with comedy, cabaret, movie and poetry tents packing out alongside the various music stages. This doesn't mean the music gets neglected; far from it with each night's lineups providing wholesome entertainment. Lots of highlights but here are some I was able to capture on film.

Seasick Steve played the main stage on Saturday afternoon. He blew the crowd away with his Mississippi blues played on homemade or customised guitars and his engagement with the crowd was fantastic, he certainly knew how to work the crowd. Not bad for an bearded old timer in dungarees.

Elbow followed Steve and were the band that I wanted to see the most having totally overplayed all of their albums and fallen head over heels for the latest offering 'seldom seen kid'. Again crowd engagement was particularly strong - headline acts please take note! Mostly their newest material but a few oldies slipped in. Stunning, definetly lived up to anticipation.

The Breeders were a cult band at art college and I remember borrowing a tape from a friend and becoming hypnotised by the haunting bassline of 'cannonball'. To hear it played/wailed live only reinforced the strength of those memories. Good to see the band themselves, none of whom are spring chickens, belting out the songs and full of American chutzpah and conversational banter particularly between the Deal sisters. Couldn't figure out what Cheryl was meant to be doing there though....

Don't know who this bloke was but he was the last act in the poetry tent on the Sunday. A very funny man.

In between stages and dotted in and around the woods were various art projects. Not sure about the pink sheep myself but thought this light projection was mesmerizing. Once darkness had descended a fine mist of water was fountained from the lake, upon which an animated light was projected. Far out.

Lykke Li could well be my new calender girl. This pint sized Sweedish songstress bounced around the stage and wowed the small crowd in the sunrise arena. Here she is covering the classic Tribe Called Quest song 'Can I kick it?'. One to listen out for, she does great videos as well. And speaking of pin-ups, my university heart throb Beth Orton was on stage on friday. Very good to see her back after a long absence.

Everything we need to know, we can learn from Batman

2008-07-22T12:33:00.003+01:00

"The greatest enemy you face is yourself – Stare into the abyss long enough, and the abyss stares right back. The Joker? The Penguin? Two-Face? Catwoman? The horrors of the outside world can never hurt you as much as you can hurt yourself; a pain that can lead to self-destruction if you let it. Cultivate an inner-strength."

Read more bat-osophies here

The search for inner peace

2008-07-09T13:53:00.002+01:00

Thanks to Phil C for this approach to better karma:

I am passing this on to you because it definitely worked for me, and we all could probably use more calm in our lives. Some doctor on tele this morning said that the way to achieve inner peace is to finish all the things you have started.

So I looked Around my house to see things I'd started and hadn't finished and, before leaving the house this morning, I finished off a bottle of Merlot, a bottle of shhhardonay, a bodle of Baileys, a butle of vocka, a pockage of Prunglies, tha mainder of bot Prozic and Valum scriptins, the res Of the Chesescke an a box a chocolets.

Yu haf no idr who fkin gud I fel.

In Search of a Midnight Kiss

2008-07-07T00:01:00.003+01:00

An endearing film about two lost souls looking for companionship on the loneliest night of the year - New Years Eve. Lots of sharp, witty dialogue between the two main characters as they push and probe each other and slowly draw closer together. Nicely paced story which although set over one afternnon and evening feels neither rushed or drawn out. Lovely, slightly poignant ending that perhaps could have been a bit more ambiguous and less rounded off.

Obvious connections to other great American Indie films such as Clerks, Before Sunset/Sunrise and Swingers, ISOAMK injects a bit of 21st century zeitgeist into the Rom-Com genre - this is the first film I can think of that name checks facebook, myspace and the movie's main prop - Craig's List.

Shot in downtown LA on what I imagine was a miniscule budget, the film looks stunning. The west coast sunlight and shadows emphasised in the stark black and white cinematography, a distinct contrast to the warm pastel hues of Micheal Mann's LA based films.

Gangsta philosophy

2008-06-29T14:24:00.003+01:00

50 Cent's ex-girlfriend is pursuing a claim that he promised her half of his earnings for life. The rapper is philosophical about the dispute. 'It'll work itself out,' he said. 'It's just a pain in the ass.'

Things that bug the hell out of me

2008-06-21T12:39:00.001+01:00

1. The phone list at work - fair enough it needs to be updated but can it not be in a format that doesn't involve MS Excel? And FFS could it not be set up at a size that fits the telephone list holders?
2. Microsoft Office. I need say no more.
3. Inane reply-alls to emails, particularly when it ends up being a long dull conversation between two people
4. Gherkins in Mcdonald's burgers. What does this hideous green thing add to my burger? nothing. Does it end up in the bin? yes.
5. Drivers who enter the green advanced stop box at traffic lights. Piss off, that box is for cyclists. That includes you Mr Wanker on a moped.
6. Leaving links on desktop (Guilty of this myself)
7. Putting one's ipod on repeat so that you have to listen to the same album again. and again. and again. Enough!

To be continued...

8. Lane rage. Come on people, why can't we all just get along? How difficult is it to have an appreciation of other swimmer's location and give everyone enough space to swim without fear of being cutup/drowned/slapped? And if i'm going too slow for you, have a break and put some space between us. Or go in the faster lane.
9. Ineffective bar staff. If the only way you can get served is to barge over the bar, wave a grubby twenty in the face of the bar maid, then it gets one's evening off to a bad start. What's worse is when a bar has four/five people working behind it and no one gets served. What a waste of resources, it's not a difficult job. Please sort it out.

How to live a better life

2008-06-20T15:36:00.000+01:00

It's a bit of a grandiose title but in fairness it describes what i'm trying to encapsulate here.

Our journeys through life don't have a predetermined course and it's what we put in as much as what happens around us that dictates the quality of our time on Planet Earth. Life is very precious so before we all rapidly become food for worms I wanted to try and document a few ideas that I think make a positive difference.

1. Be interesting
Well researched, well read and no doubt often referenced piece by the articulate Mr Davies. A whole host of good practical approaches to being more interesting. As RD points out being creative is linked to how inquisitive one is, and this thirst for information might as a by-product add an 'interestingness' to one's personality.

So have I followed of RD's advice? Well, I've always kept a scrapbook in one form or another (although recently through convenience this scrapbook has become digital) and I try and write on my website regularly. I hate the word blog so deliberately haven't used it. I like to WRITE because i find WRITING interesting and inspiring and challenging. And I'm really, really trying to take a photo a day - my camera phone produces surprisingly good results. Note that by using the word 'trying' i'm actually failing this task. Must try harder.

But why is being interesting important? Because interesting people understand that giving/sharing is more rewarding than taking, that we aren't closed boxes in a warehouse but are free-spirited, complex, fascinating teachers. They understand that everyone has something to give and everyone in turn can have their lives enriched by a chance encounter. Which is why people need to smile more, talk to strangers and spend a little more time doing something different. And no one likes to be stuck in the corner of the kitchen with Mr Boring, whereas conversely great parties are defined by the fantastic conversation one had with the funny looking bloke from Sunderland. At moments like these I'm reminded of the lady in Bristol who kept me amused and fascinated all night long. She was very interesting.

2. Travel
This need for new experiences and chance encounters might result in a bit of wanderlust. This fellow has travelled well and here are his tips doing it the 'right' way. Maybe this approach is why his photos are so good?
travel tips from the road
how to travel well

I don't take an ipod away with me because I don't like shut myself from those around, no point traveling thousands of miles only to cocoon oneself in a musical bubble. Let serendipity happen. Just because the lonely planet place-X is a must-see location doesn't mean that you have to flock there like a flock of sheep. Take your time and see where you end up, avoid jumping from bus to bus in a rush to get to someone else's Nirvana. Stop and sit once in a while and watch the world go by and maybe you'll find your own little utopia.

3. Be inspired
People all around the world have done and are doing incredible things. This bloke swam the atlantic whilst Cookie and Paul are walking the length of the United States of America.

The key thing here is not about emulating these dedicted acts, seeking to compete with these ideas (which are very personal things in themselves) but to use them as a bit of motivation to do something for one's self, ie to be inspired to act. Little actions are just as important as big efforts, and therefore the important thing is that something is achieved. One step further down the road or one step higher up the mountain.

to be continued

Loving this song at the moment

2008-06-16T01:16:00.003+01:00

Fake Empire by The National

New prints completed

2008-06-16T00:40:00.006+01:00

Another illustration of one of my favourite buildings, as with previous did two versions - hot/cold, winter/summer, evening, morning. However you want to distinguish the two is up to you.

Available to buy from Inky Finger Prints

word power

2008-06-16T00:20:00.007+01:00

JK Rowling delivers graduate commencement address at Harvard.

I have asked myself what I wish I had known at my own graduation, and what important lessons I have learned in the 21 years that has expired between that day and this I have come up with two answers. On this wonderful day when we are gathered together to celebrate your academic success, I have decided to talk to you about the benefits of failure. And as you stand on the threshold of what is sometimes called ‘real life’, I want to extol the crucial importance of imagination.

Interesting speech, i like the following points:

(On failure) You might never fail on the scale I did, but some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case, you fail by default.

Ultimately, we all have to decide for ourselves what constitutes failure, but the world is quite eager to give you a set of criteria if you let it.

(On imagination) One of the many things I learned at the end of that Classics corridor down which I ventured at the age of 18, in search of something I could not then define, was this, written by the Greek author Plutarch: What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.
That is an astonishing statement and yet proven a thousand times every day of our lives. It expresses, in part, our inescapable connection with the outside world, the fact that we touch other people’s lives simply by existing.

In my year Sunscreen was a popular song, (appropriatley subtitled class of '99) which all sounds a bit sentimental now but guess there is still a lot of truth in those words. Words like these:

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 pm on some idel Tuesday.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Reminds me of a really good last summer in Newcastle. Feeling of being on the cusp of a wave, very energised and excited by the next footfall in life. Sad to be saying goodbye to a way of living that would never repeated, to bid farewell to friends one would see all too randomly. Suddenly realising we were adults. More accountable, more vulnerable and yet also more independent and more intelligent. I miss Rothbury Terrace, I miss the time available to think about things. Don't miss the car crash in the kitchen though.

It will be ten years since those heady times this time next year. So much has changed, so little is different.

Experimental jetset

2008-06-14T09:49:00.001+01:00

Final D&AD lecture of the season centred upon Dutch designers Experimental Jetset. The trio gave an entertaining 'typically Dutch' presentation of their work. I liked how the structured events by picking a theme (french clients) and then talking through three in depth case studies. Whilst it was still a show-and-tell at least they stamped their own mark on the night.

What came through was how they operate under a strong sense of disciplined logical thinking, resulting in clear and appropriate solutions. i'd imagine they walk in to presentations with a limited number of routes and effectively say 'this idea is the solution to your problem'. Not in an arrogant fashion, more with an air of quiet, dignified confidence.

Somehow they've acquired a Helvetica-phile label but none of the work they showed
used this typeface, each project logically choosing it's own individual language. I'm a big believer in systems, ie create a strong idea at the start of a project that works in a structured fashion to homogenise a range of items/products. So very interesting to see how each piece of work they created had a core structure unifying the graphic work.

A very good evening - except for the journey home. My beloved steed of nine year was absent from the railings outside. No more riding through the moonlit streets with the wind in my hair. I hope he's gone to a good home, I certainly feel i got sterling service from my machine. But like so many things it was time for a new bicycle so in the spirit of good follows bad I'm consoling myself with the idea that the time was right to go our separate ways. Frustrating nevertheless, for if nothing else one would like to say when and how a farewell takes place, and not leave it to the thieving tendencies of some hoody-scally-chaaver.

Copenhagen

2008-06-12T23:15:00.003+01:00

Back from my hols, pics upoaded here

Fuller write up to follow but in short:
pros: beer quality, sunny sunlight, beautiful people, appreciation of design, proximity to sea, love of outdoor life (cat naps in the sun).
cons: beer prices, open sandwiches.

Good things to do in London - part 1

2008-06-10T22:31:00.011+01:00

1. Walk from hampsted heath to primrose hill. take in the view, then go for sunday lunch here. Drink Adnams or Deuchars if they have it on draught. Alternatively walk along the south bank, the bar beside the Hayward Gallery is quirky and does a wide selection of pickles if you like this type of thing.

2. Watch obscure films. The curzon soho is an obvious choice but it's sibling the curzon mayfair is quieter and it's less hassle to get a ticket, but admittedly less choice than it's bigger brasher relation. For a touch of glamour go to the Electric on portobello road, which isn't so expensive but does have exceptional seating to sink into. And a good local cinema? I'm a fan of the ritzy in Brixton, it has a decent bar and avoids the mega-chain feel of it's West end rivals. I saw 'Happy go Lucky' here which incidentally is a very good (london) film.

3. eat Asian food - Cheng's at the bottom of Wardour street does a mighty fine selection of dim sum, Green Papaya in Hackney does melt in the mouth belly pork and half way along brick lane is a yellow fronted Bangladeshi restaurant. This has proved to be a superb place to soak up beer, unfortunately I can't seem to remember the name. The best I can do is approximate that it's between Hanbury and Princelet street. Screw your eyes up, stagger around a bit and you should find it. For a decent and authentic and surprisingly cheap Thai meal try Charlie Wright's International Bar in old street. A bit intimidating and sometimes has a few characters in but that is part of it's charm.

4. drink beer. lots of it.
Here are some good locations
Clerkenwell: The 3 Kings*, Sekforde Arms
Islington: The Crown, Island Queen, The kings head

For cocktails go to Freuds which considering is in the west end is actually quite nice generally because of the euro-boho-arty crowd that congregate there (thanks i think because of the proximity to Central St Martins?)

* The 3 kings demonstrates why London is rocking in the summer - that glorious friday evening sight of throngs of people spilling out on to the pavement drinking away as dusk descends in the balmy air.

5. After beer comes a kebab and the best kebab in london comes from here. Bodrum wins because of the quality of it's bread, the turkish bread is thick enough to soak up meat juice and chilli sauce before it dribbles down one's front. I eat a lot kebabs and am disapointed by the number of establishments that insist on sticking to flaky pita bread - shameful.

Enjoy!

Sunday night is BBC2 night

2008-06-01T22:25:00.004+01:00

If sunday morning's are all about the radio, the melancholy moods of sunday evening are dispelled thanks to a bit of escapism on the goggle-box.

BBC2 is surpassing itself at the moment. Following a slap up feed and few beers of fruity charm (tonight = salmon, roast pots and greens with Green King IPA) I relax on my bean bag and enjoy a visual feast.

Ray Mears starts preceedings, and although he can be a bit preachy and a bit of a hippy I do admire his holistic approach and envy the places he tramps to. He can keep the grub canapes and ant medicines though. Tonight he wandered through Northern Queensland with the Bush Tucker Man.

Wild China follows directly afterwards and the sumptuous landscapes bring back my happy travels through that amazing country. It's a good mix of ideas - ecology, anthropology, and nature are effectvley bundled together.

The night is rounded off by Jonathan Dimbleby travelling through Russia. One of the better moments tonight? Chucking back Vodka as he orders trout in the dining car of a siberian express train. The man is pure class, if only there were more broadcasters of his calibre on our airwaves, his silken vowels and twinkley-eyed engagement with hairy russians is as intoxicating as the booze.

Bob Greenberg

2008-06-01T09:57:00.000+01:00

Good skills from Bob Greenberg, a man who seemingly forecast the way the wind would blow through the creative industries. Jumping from movie titles, into special effects, into web-design with apparent ease. Very humbly he spent a lot of time talking about the staff in his offices, no disrespect to them but Bob was so fascinating i'd rather he talked more about himself and his work. A very clever man, he said to Kodak ten or so years ago people would one day stop using film in cameras to which he was laughed. Wonder who is laughing now?

Projects worth looking at:
nikeid
nikeplus
nokia nseries

Impressive TV advert

2008-05-30T15:32:00.003+01:00

That's entertainment – The first UK live television ad played out last night on Channel 4. It was a three-minute advert for Honda, featuring a team of sky jumpers spelling out the brand’s name to promote the ‘difficult is worth doing’ philosophy.

I am the music maker

2008-05-15T23:53:00.004+01:00

What a great idea this is - make your own online version of a mixtape. Sweet!

I grew up making my own compilation tapes by recording favourite songs off the radio, late night under the bed clothes activity resulted in A-ha, Fleetwood mac and Genesis rubbing shoulders with Guns n' Roses, Pearl Jam and Nirvana. The local library's cassette section was also plundered mercilessly, choice musical morsels being devoured on sight.

With the arrival of the digital age came MP3s and i-tunes. A once laborious process now entered light speed and I entered a new era of compilation creation. Bespoke CDs soon flooded the market, which in turn led to one-off Album cover artwork. Girlfriends seemed to appreciate them which was nice but in truth the geeky archivist inside of me was the foremost person whose passion was being sated.

And so now we have muxtape. Interesting to see how they have linked each uploaded track to a 'buy' button (via amazon). It's a great little setup, very simple and very user friendly. Only accepts MP3s so my latterly ripped more obscure MP4s wil have to remain in limited circulation - which might not be a bad thing.

Here is my initial offering, more an exercise in beginning the process than a considered collection of music. I have assembled this from my playlists that one might best describe as 'Angry and up for it' indie disco music.

Laugh? i nearly pissed myself

2008-05-14T23:19:00.001+01:00

Phil on Bus

2008-05-08T00:14:00.005+01:00

Photo by FuryBoy.

I love this photo. I hate looking at myself in photos so it was a nice surprise to see this on Chris' flickr site. Really like the blurry, energetic hand!

I remember the day but i don't remember this being taken. Too much booze once again?

Spartan photography

2008-05-01T22:36:00.002+01:00

Disciplined images from Rasmus Norlander
I really like images with white backgrounds

Presentation approaches

2008-05-01T16:21:00.004+01:00

Intelligent analysis of what makes a good/bad presentation.

Like so many things in life it could all perhaps be boiled down to chemistry, and by this I mean the rapport the presenter has with their audience. Sounds simple but very difficult to do time and time again. Preparation is obviously key as is confidence but i'd suggest enthusiasm and engagement also play their part.

Long time reader of bad language because if nothing else the writer gives a non-designer PoV. Refreshing to hear a viewpoint from someone who doesn't use a Mac and isn't working out of a trendy studio in the cooler parts of London.

I first started reading this blog when I was working from home and the range of tips of how self-employed, domestically based individuals could function better was illuminating.

love it? hate it?

2008-05-01T15:48:00.004+01:00

This approach is an interesting one. Not sure if I'm for or against the confidence and disregard for the accepted norm, ie. lavishly 'designed' and strongly branded portfolio sites. I love the use of existing applications (flickr and wikipedia, etc) but think that there should still be some form of identity/presence/personality presented by creative companies.

Clever nonetheless, will be interesting to see how long this incarnation of Modernista.com lasts. I suspect until the next chapter of the web comes along.

Blue Jake from Brooklyn

2008-05-01T11:00:00.003+01:00

Recent discovery on the photoblogging circuit. Great photos not so much because of the style, more because of the subject matter - the down at heel side of New York. Warehouses, abandoned lots, and light industrial units are all captured by this Brooklyn native.

The well captioned photos suggest a man prepared to get off the beaten path to find the places other photographers just don't reach. And seems to possess a belief in the power of serendipity, always a delightful and rewarding trait.

Is it this easy?

2008-04-27T22:55:00.002+01:00

Love music, hate racism

2008-04-27T20:25:00.002+01:00

Love Music, Hate Racism.
Fuck the BNP.

Militant atmosphere in Victoria Park for the Rock Against Racism concert. Inspiring to hear passionate and committed people stand up and be counted. And good tunes too from mix of newbies and oldies. Standouts for me were Jimmy Pursey (Sham 69) covering The Clash's White Riot' and 'Dancing in the dark' performed by the all-stars who stepped in to replace Baby Shambles. It could have gone horribly wrong but it was so bad it was good. Long live the guilty pleasures in life.

Evening wrapped up by The Good, The Bad and The Queen. Never paid tehm too much attention before but realised that yet again Damon Albarn is a VERY clever man. Stunning ensemble rendition of 'Ghost town' closed the event.

Happy Go Lucky

2008-04-26T22:22:00.004+01:00

Endearing feel-good film (with a subtle dark undercurrent) that effectively avoids being TOO 'happy go lucky'. I really enjoyed this film, it had all the qualities that good Brit films posess - intelligent script, underplayed acting and realistic, sensitive settings. And being set in London it was fun to play the 'I know that place' game. Walked out of cinema feeling lifted and energised and fleet of foot with a spring in my step. But maybe that was the impact of the incense stall by Brixton tube?

Sterling performance from Sally Hawkins as the main protagonist and a delicously dark piece of acting by Eddie Marsan as an unhinged driving instructor.

Dutch Uncle

2008-04-25T20:27:00.001+01:00

Yet another entertaining night hosted by teh good folk at Dutch Uncle.
This month's opening was for Petra Bonner who produces lovely work like this:

Specifically for the night, Petra had painstakingly drawn here trademark lines and swirls in chalk on the freshly paint black walls. It looked great and showed how a little imagination can transform a space. Continuing the black-and-white theme, the well stocked bar provided the packed room with white russians and guinness all night long.

Rocking, can't wait for the next one. Good work Petra, Dan, Helen, Mickey and Jo!

Great idea, shame about the play

2008-04-20T22:58:00.003+01:00

I sat on a balcony last night and looked through the evening gloom of Hammersmith into the windows of people's lives. Not my regular saturday night pastime nor one I would repeat for this occured at the Lyric Theatre during a performance of 'Contains Violence', a play that promised much but delivered not a great deal.

Armed with binoculars and headphones we sat outside and watched and listened to the actors performing in the building opposite. It was a good begining, all very intriguing. But it quickly became apparent that the story was so garbled and fragmented that it verged dangerously close to artistic indulgence and misadventure. The cause was not helped by the weather - it was a freezing night, and by the end of the show the audience were wishing it to end.

Not a wasted night because if nothing else it was something different but just a shame that such an innovative peice of theatre was let down by an impenetrable script.

Shanghai shots

2008-04-09T11:28:00.002+01:00

Mega city five? no, Shanghai.
Epic photographs by Horst and Daniel Zielske

The Arsenal

2008-04-09T10:00:00.002+01:00

Ian Wright illustration at Arsenal Museum © Miles Donovan

I wanted to write about the many and varied websites/blogs that cover all things Arsenal. I wanted to write about how match opinions are shared, transfer rumors spread and football banter exchanged. And so, following another eventful night of football I'm going to attempt to showcase a selection of sites that show the folklore, the history, the pride that Gooners have in their team.

Redaction - Interesting arrival on the scene, I like it's militant stance. Useful away game PDFs to download.

Arseblog - Highly entertaining, engaging, the number 1 Arsenal blog. And quite often the number 1 sports blog at the bloggies. Lots of banter, not afraid to cuse the C-word where appropriate, eg Ashley Cole, John Terry. Often for great comedy effect. Seems to have a thing about Gingers but hey-ho no one is perfect. Many a smile created on the religously updated daily Arseblog and a weekly chortle thanks to the imaginatively titled 'Arsecast'

Goodplaya - intelligent, balanced analysis from a seemingly intelligent, balanced gooner.

Arsenal-land - slick site, not as insightful as it used to be. Good forum, this was my introduction to the online Arsenal world.

We are the herd - Passion, commitment, community. Found this whilst reading up on the legendary Dainton Connell, king of the North Bank. Forum dealing with Arsenal's Firm, tales of battles of yesteryear.

All examples of a spirit best summed up in the final paragraphs of this post by Arseblogger: "Let’s stand behind our team. We are the Arsenal."

Sketchbooks

2008-04-06T23:37:00.004+01:00

Begun to archive my old sketchbooks. Started with my New Zealand book; Australia, Berlin, New England, Pacific Coast, Israel, Barelona, Dublin to follow. Got me thinking about getting away from the UK and drawing/painting again, or at least getting back to those happy days of relaxation, freedom, and anonymity.

Brendan Austin

2008-03-06T10:24:00.003Z

I've started to recognise the type of photograph I like – landscapes devoid of human existence, dreamlike environments with saturated colours. And those where the photographer has made a real effort to get to a different viewpoint. I guess this collection ticks those boxes.

Brendan says this about his photographs:

"Shot as a series in new zealand. i used a large generator and floodlights to light the scene. all the images are shot at 48 second exposures with reference to my late father. i travelled all around north island new zealand alone, including into deep forest for days at a time, deserts and coastal areas, with a wheel-barrow that my equipment filled. these are edited examples from a large series. they also have not been altered in any way by form of cropping or computer."

Paper sculptures

2008-03-01T21:36:00.003Z

Intricate hand cut paper sculptures by Jen Stark

Kate Gibb – master image maker

2008-02-27T16:37:00.005Z

interesting observation about screen printing, point no. 3

Seen this at T5? Awesome...

2008-02-22T14:16:00.001Z

Watch the video to see the cloud in action
Created by troika

Small space living

2008-02-22T14:12:00.004Z

Simple. Small. Dee Williams lives in a dream house tinier than a parking spot. "A simpler life, time, more money. I don't have a mortgage. I don't have a big utility bill,"

I really like the way of living she's adopted, and I know it's not practical for everybody and I suspect you've actually got to get to a privileged, well-off point before you can choose to give it all up but her attitude is perhaps something others could learn a little from. Notice she has an affiliation to Tumbleweed houses, more about her here on youtube.

Saw this article recently on the BBC and noted the similar themes, ie stuff doesn't make you happy.

New photos uploaded to flickr

2008-02-17T22:05:00.004Z

Assorted photos added to my flickr account.
Nothing recent, just a few nice ones that perhaps should have been included in the original selection. Locations include China, Australia and California.
Noticed a theme developing so have established this set of images with white background

20 X 20 = pecha kucha

2008-02-15T17:54:00.002Z

Went to a sweet event at the Japanese Embassy last night. Sake, sushi and plenty of Asahi kept a large audience well lubricated whilst they were entertained by the latest Pecha Kucha evening, a quickfire series of presentations from Japanese influenced guest speakers – including typographer Jonathon Barnbrook, Archeologoist Simon Kaner and product designer Emiko Oki.

Each presenter was allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This kept presentations concise and the interest level up.

Refreshing to watch ten speakers with completely different backgrounds and interests speak about their work, influences and relationship with Japan, and surprisingly the disciplined structure of the night actually seemed to loosen things up and keep the pace ticking along.

Naturally some speakers were more assured in their delivery but even the less confident, less eloquent were able to deliver an informative snapshot of their thinking. Interestingly businesses have explored how this approach might keep meetings short and relevant.

Some more nights are planned for the summer, and D&AD are borrowing the format for one of their lectures. Well worth keeping an eye out for them.

Talk is cheap

2008-02-11T10:23:00.000Z

And words are wasteful.

But they can be rewarding; In the 1920s, Ernest Hemingway bet ten dollars that he could write a complete story in just six words. He wrote: "For Sale: baby shoes, never worn." He won the bet.

Now Smith magazine is asking its readers to sum up their own lives in just six words. Great stuff. As a man of few words, one who prefers silence to vulgar, casual banter* this concept makes perfect sense.

Thanks to my Mother and the Today programme for bringing this to my attention.

*ie small talk. Deep and meaningfuls can be short and sweet or long and lasting – quality will always slay quantity.

Stefan Sagmeister's has realised the following:

2008-02-05T17:46:00.000Z

1. Helping other people helps me.
2. Having guts always works out for me.
3. Thinking that life will be better in the future is stupid. I have to live now.
4. Organising a charity group is surprisingly easy.
5. Being not truthful always works against me.
6. Everything I do always comes back to me.
7. Assuming is stifling.
8. Drugs feel great in the beginning and become a drag later on.
9. Over time I get used to everything and start taking for granted.
10. Money does not make me happy.
11. My dreams have no meaning.
12. Keeping a diary supports personal development.
13. Trying to look good limits my life.
14. Material luxuries are best enjoyed in small doses.
15. Worrying solves nothing.
16. Complaining is silly. Either act or forget.
17. Everybody thinks they are right.
18. If I want to explore a new direction professionally, it is helpful to try it out for myself first.
19. Low expectations are a good strategy.
20. Everybody who is honest is interesting.

Stefan Sagmeister is a designer living and working New York. In 2000 he decided to abstain from commercial work for a year and concentrate on personal projects.

The Darjeeling Limited

2008-01-25T14:22:00.000Z

After bidding farewell to a fond friend soon to embark on epic journey of worldwide travel I sped across town to the glitz and unglamour of Leicester Square to watch three brother's journey of discovery in The Darjeeling Limited

I've long admired Wes Anderson's films – Rushmoor, Life Aquatic, Royal Tenambaums – so I was keen to see it before it disappeared on to DVD. Yet another quirky collection of individuals doing random and slightly odd activities played by the familiar Andersonite actors, ie Own Wilson, Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray.

Full of zany gags, sharp language and stirring music I'm tempted to go out on a limb and say that this is Mr Anderson's best effort yet. I couldn't possible categorise the film, is it a road movie, a rites of passage film. I know not. But this doesn't matter, the charm of the film is the absurdity of the tale mixed with touching examinations of the human spirit all the while shot with a vibrant colourful lens. India is a perfect set for the players to operate against and for Anderson to view life through his lens, the rich warm colours that emerged in Life Aquatic were taken to a new level in the kaleidoscope of Asia.

A beautiful touching journey of discovery.

Good things to do on a sunday

2008-01-21T11:59:00.000Z

1. Have a lie-in. Don't worry about waking up early and when you do wake up, go back to sleep again.
2. Take time over breakfast. Slowly let the coffee brew and take care slicing mushrooms, tomatoes and slices of bread. This weekend I used a rather tasty loaf from Borough Market's Flour power Bakery, a sourdough bloomer, which toasts up well and makes a particularly good piece of fried bread. Bacon should be crispy round the edges yet juicy in the middle and this weekend I had my eggs scrambled. I would have liked to attempt to poach them but apparently you need fresh eggs and there is little fresh about my kitchen cupboard.
3. Listen to Radio 4. At home I generally listen to 6 music except for a sunday when I enjoy 'Desert Island Discs', 'Gardener's Question Time' and 'Just a minute'. This weekend's castaway was Rory Stewart who walked 6,000 miles across Asia. hHe claimed not unsurprisingly that this was a life changing experience. A thoroughly likeable chap.
4. Fall asleep on the sofa for a quick nap. nice.

Sad and moving

2008-01-16T16:24:00.000Z

This photo and this writing by Duane Michals is pretty awesome (it's the combination of the two together that make the piece, the sum is the greater than the whole). I love the bitter-sweetness of it.

The caption reads: This photograph is my proof. There was that afternoon, when things were still good between us, and she embraced me, and we were so happy. It did happen, she did love me. Look see for yourself!

Fascinating how viewing photographs from yesteryear brings memories flooding back, and the emotions felt at that point in time are suddenly as vivid as they once were. Facebook has brought to light photos of me in my student days – ten years ago, but like only yesterday. My travel photos bring sensations flooding back and awaken experiences from teh back of my mind.

My father and mother separated last year and it's been a painful process for everyone, but as Duane rightly points out the good times will always be there and whether or not there is a photo to document it the important thing is that the good time happened in the first place.

Seeen originally on shanelavalette.com

Where are you Miss Muse?

2008-01-04T15:53:00.000Z

Found this on Ffffound.com

Probably part of a commercial exercise by I do like the heartfelt nature of the writing. Reminds me of this piece of street poetry in Glenelg, Adelaide.

Have a happy hand-made Christmas

2008-01-02T11:18:00.000Z

This year I decided to buy handmade gifts direct from their makers as much as possible. Whereas in previous years I'd abstained from giftbuying and donated the equivalent amount of money to charity, i felt this was an appropriate alternative tack.

My inspiration came from this post on cookie's blog. And a quick search around reveals that there is burgeoning handmade/crafted movement simmering away. I think the gifts that you can give a far more interesting and by their nature completely unique.

So with this in mind I journeyed to the Sunday Spitalfields Market where I brought the following:

A tweed purse with funky lining

A scarf

Some bags

This lovely bag made from vintage kimono's is problably my favourite buy. My mum, the bag's recipient is a talented textile artist who has always been interested in bags and vintage fabric and cultures - perfect!

And this leather purse was brought from the lovely Jill Green.
Her stall in the Art Market off Brick Lane is a treasure trove of printed delights – and she lovingly gift wraps everything. A double bonus.

Happy Christmas! - a retrospective

2007-12-22T20:07:00.000Z

I generally don't get too carried away by the christmas spirit but the one thing I have always put a lot of effort in to is making my christmas cards. I don't like the cheesey, consumerist aspect to christmas but I do really enjoy getting in touch with people I care about.

It's also a great opportunity to do something for me – no brand messages to reflect, no identity guidelines to follow. Just something visual and something fun. This year I decided to examine a long running fascination with trees and created a woody scene for Rudolph to frolick in from a series of Chinese clip art images. The texture within the shapes came from the lo-grade nature of the original artwork which became further distressed once scanned and photoshopped.

I liked the end result but in hindsight I think one less layer of trees would have meant Rudolph might stand out a bit more and produced a calmer winter scene. Nevermind, something to think about for next year.

Here are previous year's efforts, interesting to see how my own changing interests have dictated the style and approach of each card. My stencil art period followed the ideasy period which in turn developed into the screenprint approach.

Amazing movie

2007-11-30T11:18:00.000Z

I was excited by this as soon as I saw the trailer. I was positively exploding when i started to read the synopsis and the reviews but when I went to the cinema and saw the movie itself I was completely blown away. Definetley lived up to my build up and was a full two and a bit hours of stunning immersion – and this was after knowing the ending prior to viewing.

Just a great, great movie. Well acted, beautifully shot and full of little brain darts that made me stop and think. And the soundtrack is Eddie Vedder's (of Pearl Jam fame) first foray into film scores. It is more than equal to the task.

One of the most resonant scenes for me was towards the end of the film when the main character has achieved his goal, reached the final destination on the journey he had been destined to make, and lay alone in the wilderness with a huge grin on his face and slowly wrote in his diary something along the lines of "we only know true happiness when it is shared". It made a lot of sense and having purposefully traveled alone for so long it really did make me pause to think.

I'm Impressed with this

2007-11-30T11:14:00.000Z

Put things into perspective - try this out

Out and about #1

2007-11-13T13:17:00.000Z

Seen on the pavement outside Wieden and Kennedy's London office near Brick Lane. An enraged environmentalist or an aware advertising artisan? Don't know but looks good.

Recording the mundane and the ugly

2007-10-03T13:46:00.000+01:00

I like how Louie Palu has made drab concrete boxes become soaring cathedrals of industry, outwardly presenting the power and energy achieved within. His work focuses on "The Golden Triangle...a geographic area located in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Historically, this region has contained some of the richest deposits of gold, silver, uranium, nickel, copper and zinc. A significant number of mines have closed." (via polareintertia)

A more emotional approach to the type of industrial buildings captured by the Becher's – Photographer's who I also like. They obsessively recorded fast disappearing industrial architecture in the Rhur in a consistent clinical manner, travelling around the region in a VW camper van. Less about telling stories, more about taking notes.

Valencia photographs

2007-09-16T18:42:00.000+01:00

New photos added to my flickr site.

Taken on a work-away-weekend in Valencia. Great place, great weekend.

Never in the field of debauchery has so much been drunk by so many in so short a space of time.

Good things in little packages

2007-09-10T09:56:00.000+01:00

Found this article about using 50mm lens.

Interesting for me because I've recently decided to go back to basics and get to grips with using a 50mm lens. Ever since i began to use SLRs i've only used standard 28-80mm zoom lens, so when I brought my Nikon FM2 from ebay I was intrigued with the additional lenses it came with.

The 50mm lens was, for me, at first an intimidating item. To frame the shot you have to physically move closer or away from the subject. Yet once this characteristic was understood I quickly grew to enjoy the benefits of using this lens.

Low light environments were captured with ease and the depth of field was dramatically different to a zoom lens. A distinctly different aesthetic.

Photographs of people have always been an area i've avoided but this type of lens is ideal for portraits, and as it makes the camera smaller and light it means i have been able to take it down the pub and out and about to capture people in action.

Some examples here. More will be added as shots are developed, nothing wonderful but good to be exploring a different direction.

Gang culture in London

2007-09-05T16:59:00.000+01:00

A complete list of London gang names can be seen here.
Via Coudal, Originally from Blogdial, Initally from a DPS in the Evening Standard. Phew!

If you go down to the shops today, You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the shops today, You'd better go in disguise.

For ev'ry hoodie that ever there was, Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the Hoodies gonna get whack up.

Ev'ry chav who's been bad, Is sure of a beating today.
There's lots of small kids to beat, And innocent people to slap.

Beneath the arches where nobody sees, They'll hide and scrap as long as they please.
'Cause that's the way the ASBOs have their rumbles.

If you go down to the shops today, You'd better not go alone.
It's chaos down in the shops today, far safer to stay at home.

For ev'ry hoodie that ever there was, Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the hoodies have a f*ckin' great big rumble.

West Country photos

2007-09-03T18:52:00.000+01:00

Fresh from the country, a dose of late summer fun in wales and somerset.

Thanks to Rob and Marty for the organisation. See you soon fellas.

Goodbye, hello

2007-08-30T22:11:00.000+01:00

After five happy years i've decided to move on.
Out with the old, in with the new.

Lovely engaging idea

2007-08-02T12:05:00.000+01:00

Makes me smile and good to see people are compelled to add their own memos to the post-its. Get involved. I like it. More photos here

Via smiss miss blog

Update: this is a project by illegalart.org

It's all about the numbers

2007-07-30T13:41:00.000+01:00

Stunning images by photographer Chris Jordan

In his own words: "As an American consumer myself, I am in no position to finger wag; but I do know that when we reflect on a difficult question in the absence of an answer, our attention can turn inward, and in that space may exist the possibility of some evolution of thought or action. So my hope is that these photographs can serve as portals to a kind of cultural self-inquiry. It may not be the most comfortable terrain, but I have heard it said that in risking self-awareness, at least we know that we are awake. "

I like not only the complex and thought provoking photographs but that last line in his statement also. Feeling something is better than feeling nothing,

My memory is blank

2007-06-22T11:11:00.000+01:00

A good quote from perhaps the greatest movie of all time:

"Some people say forgive and forget. Nah, I don't know. I say forget about forgiving and just accept. And... get the hell out of town."
Debi Mayberry, Gross Point Blank. 1997.

My thoughts: People have a tendency to shit on one another, unfortunately it seems to be human nature. We can be very greedy selfish animals. And whilst it is never pleasent to be let down my own personal view is that to allow an unhappy past episode to continue to haunt and sour one's present, and possibly one's future, is a bad, bad way to live. Get over it, move on. Life is far too short and why miss out on the good stuff hear and now if you're still stuck in yesteryear's rut?

And so acceptance of one another weaknesses is perhaps the best approach. It worked for Debbie and Martin.

Alternativly there is the 'bide your time' tactic as demonstrated by Terrance Stamp in Sonderbergh's excellect film The Limey - "Bide your time and everything becomes clear, and you can act accordingly." Find the one who wronged, tell him your feckin' coming and then do him. Or such like.

Making the message count

2007-06-16T13:01:00.000+01:00

This is what it's all about. A well placed, thoughtful gesture beats the one-size-fits-all approach every time.

There are some gems on the rest of Marian's site, I think she writes well with humour and intelligence. Stunningingly intricate imagery.

The description she gives of herself is warm, honest and inspiring - a refreshing read. Reminds me of the Howies and Threadless ethos which for me breaks down as this: Work hard at what you enjoy and concentrate on the things that make you happy, everything else will fall into place behind you as long as you've got the courage to 'hold firm'.

Good quote

2007-06-13T13:23:00.001+01:00

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams".
Eleanor Roosevelt

More thoughts on a life in design

2007-06-13T12:05:00.000+01:00

Good points made and useful links to more comments on a subject I wrote about previously. Read what Khoi Vinh of subtraction.com writes here

Big fan of his blog, both in terms of appearence, and more importantly, content.

You want to be a designer?!

2007-06-11T18:06:00.000+01:00

I was recently asked by a family friend how one becomes a graphic designer. She is presently an occupational therapist but is considering a career change.
This is what i wrote:

How did you become a designer?
The common route into graphic design as a designer is this:

- One year foundation course. A practical introduction to all the different art and design specialties, eg. fashion, sculpture, illustration, product, interior, etc. It's a good way to ensure that everyone starting a degree course has the same basic set of skills.

- Three year degree course. In my case i chose a graphic design BA hons at University of Northumbria. It was one of the more general/varied courses, had good facilities, very good links to Industry and was a brilliant place to live. On your degree course you develop your own visual language. Some concentrate on letters (typography) some on pictures (photography or illustration) others like me tried a little bit of everything because the art of communicating ideas and messages was more important than the process that they are delivered in.

Plus...(and this is only my view)
- Your first year in Industry is essentially an apprenticeship, you learn what is really required to get the job done. Pay will be low and hours long. Before you are offered a job most graduates are expected to do placement work to see if everyone gets on with one another, very, very low pay (if any) and even longer hours.

What makes a good designer?
Good designers are good problem solvers. They must be able to analyse abstract information and come back with a solution. From a graphics point of view this means listening to what a client wants, researching the project, the client, the competitors and presenting back to the client a logiocal progression of thoughts that should answer the problem at hand.

For example "I want to expand my law firm but people think i am a one man band stuck in the provinces and consequently the clients I want, won't work with me". The design solution here might be to update the law firm's visual identity - starting with the logo and then working outwards across different media, eg stationery, literature, website, office environments. This shows the broad nature of graphics and why it is important that flexible thinking and the ability to work with specialists in different fields is critical.

Good Communication skills (written, verbal, visual) is of course vital and it has by default got to be better than the client's. Beautiful design does not sell itself.

What do you think of it as a job?
I think it is a good career but as with anything creative it is very hard work and you can't switch off from it. You also have to be very thick skinned because every one has an opinion about what you've produced. Some comments are constructive, some are not. Look at the Olympic logo saga as an example. But you need to be able to deal with whatever flies your way.

However I like the fact it is thought of as a 'cool' job and that there are different ways to work and places to work in. To take advantage of this you need to be very proactive.

Of course there are not only designers working in the design world. Project managers liaise between clients and designers to ensure everything runs smoothly. Marketeers have been known to start the ball rolling and then hand over to designers to add some visual styling...whether this is the right or wrong approach is another topic entirely.

A fair assessment?

2012 London Olympics Identity

2007-06-10T12:32:00.000+01:00

I like it. Well done to Seb Coe and Wolff Olins for daring to be different.
I think the approach is spot on and i'm pleased that the London Olympics have so far avoided the cutesey character approach.

The good people at Coudal do a good job of summing up why it's a good thing

A few insightful comments at Speak Up as well

Give it time and I think more people will come round to the idea. And they'll start to see it in use and not as a mark in isolation.

The only thing i'd change is the crafting of the individual letters so that 2012 was more distinctive/recognisable. And perhaps 'London' could do with a less tricksy typeface.

Can we stop the logo bashing and put the knives away now?
And move on.