This is old. I didn’t really know about it until a friend shared it with me last night and it just kind of blew my mind. It’s completely hilarious. The short was produced by animator Don Hertzfeldt and was nominated for an Academy Award. Hertzfeldt has a massive fan base and his work is lauded over and often quoted in popular culture. The music and comedic timing of ‘Rejected’ is insane. Seriously funny and absolutely genius.
Alright, I know I posted Melbourne based graphic designer/illustrator Leif Podhajsky’s work not very long ago and have posted him at least twice now. I posted the last time he updated, but as far as I can tell he has done one more small update. Regardless, it has to be shared here because the work is just beautiful. I am really becoming a fan. At first when he was collaging imagery and experimenting, I thought his work had a spiritual angle that made it interesting but his newer work has matured a great deal. His use of color in some of his recent pieces is beautiful. Great stuff.
Photographer Tim Simmons lives and works in London and Norfolk. His landscapes can only be described as ‘haunting’. It’s a descriptor that is probably to often used when it comes to something like photographer but it genuinely is the proper word to use when attempting to describe Simmons beautiful imagery.
Eric Hu is a very young designer with a degree from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. He has also attended the Art Center College of Design. He’s recently done some work at Buck and was also awarded Gold from Graphis New Talent in 2010. Considering he’s just getting started, I would keep an eye on him.
Spanish illustrator Martin Sati has been busy creating some very attractive primarily vector illustrations. His work carries over what could almost be called the Barcelona or Spanish digital illustration style and once again it’s terribly fun to look at and hard to ignore.
It’s been a very long time since my last post about Australian design agency War and they have recently updated with some stellar graphic design work. New additions to their portfolio include the beautiful packaging design for Construction Technologies Australia.
Whoah, Gluko and Lennon might bring on an acid flashback for the delicate-minded but it is beautifully animated and just kind of super strange awesome. I’d imagine the kids would love it.
I returned yesterday from a week-long holiday to New York. I am sure you noticed the lack of updates to the blog which I have to apologize for as I didn’t really tell anyone I was leaving. I had an absolutely fantastic time there and got to hang with some really wonderful people. I attended the opening of Hyper Island’s New York school and met some nice people there including the founder of Hyper Island. It was a fun event but boy I have to say it had to be 200 degrees inside. It was hot as hell that night and made for a sweaty affair. That same night I ended up going out with a really talented Senior Art Director from Big Spaceship for some drinks and a slice of pizza.
I also attended a Yankee’s game at the new Yankee stadium which was really enjoyable even though I am not a huge sports fan (except for World Cup). It was hotter than the mind could imagine at the game but the new stadium is really impressive. I went to a wedding in Bryant Park which is somewhere you should stop by next time you are in the city. It’s a beautiful park. I finally got to visit the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) which did not disappoint. I got to see some of my favorite Francis Bacon paintings up close and personal and that was really inspiring. I also attended the American Museum of Natural History which I really enjoyed, more so than I thought I would to be honest. I absolutely love anything and everything to do with dinosaurs and the collection there is absolutely fantastic. Rarely does the word apply but it is the only adjective that comes close to describing the collection there. I also visited the Solomon Guggenheim Museum and enjoyed their current photography exhibit entitled ‘Haunted’. Walking up through Frank Lloyd Wright’s classic architectural masterpiece is a very memorable way to experience art. If you ever visit New York, don’t skip a chance to visit the Guggenheim. I walked back and forth across Central Park 2 or 3 times since the train doesn’t really cross it. Central Park in the summer is always an interesting place to visit. I tried to hit up the New Museum since it was only two blocks from my hotel but it was closed Monday and Tuesday. I was sad I didn’t get to see it. I stayed at the Sohotel in Soho close to Little Italy and Little China. The hotel was very affordable and it was also very nice. I recommend it if you are looking for somewhere to stay in NY close to the action but don’t want to spend 3 or 400 dollars a night on a hotel. I hit up some bars in Soho near Houston and Ludlow and also ate dinner in Little Italy. All experiences included were wonderful. I went to the top of the Empire State Building. You have to stand in line forever to get up there and I was a little salty by the time I arrived but when you look out on Ellis Island and the rest of the city from above, it is totally worth the wait. I visited Times Square and took in the movie Inception as well as a cheesey but super fun 80’s rock musical called Rock of Ages on Broadway. I wanted to see the new Mamet play starting Eddie Izzard titled ‘Race‘ but it was sold out. Rock of Ages was a really great time though and I highly recommend it. I walked by the new interactive Forever 21 billboard directed by my close friend Jasper Gray at Futuristic Films. The billboard points a camera back at the crowd and a lot of people were gathered to stop and take photos. It was exciting to see something from a local Denver shop in the heart of Times Square drawing a crowd, especially something directed by one of my best friends. I also partied a night or two in Brooklyn near Bed-Stuy. I got to see a Banksy piece in the neighborhood and also hit up some really cool bars. That neighborhood is really an exciting place and just spilling over with art. I stayed with my good friend Josh Pipic who works at Agency Net and lives in an absolutely beautiful apartment in Williamsburg. He was really a great host and I can’t say enough about how talented he is and how much of just a great all-around person he is. I had drinks with the fine people of Agency Net one night as well and still keep them high on my Rolodex of people to work with. They are just good souls and have the talent to match. I was stood up by Mario Hugo for drinks since he said they landed a big account and had been pulling back to back all nighters. I accepted a rain check but was bummed I didn’t get to check in with him in his local habitat. Next time I guess.
As always, I love riding the subway in New York. With all of it’s decay and sweltering summer heat it has to be one of the strangest places on Earth. I saw magicians, choirs, crazy people and musicians on the train and riding it is a cultural experience that is unique to NY. I was asked a lot of questions by tourists so I must have looked local which made me feel good.
All in all, it couldn’t have been a more eventful trip for only 1 week’s time. Go to NYC when you get the chance, it’s one of the most amazing cities on this planet. You can live harder, denser and faster there than anywhere else in the world.
Australian illustrator Ben Brown shreds the gnar with his pen producing old school 80’s skate punk style illustrations that often incorporate kick ass skulls and zombies. How can you not love him for keeping it genuinely old school?
Recent Nottingham Trent University graduate Luke Elliott has some nice print and branding work already in his book. If someone hasn’t staffed him yet, I would recommend looking into picking up his talent if you have an opening in your agency or studio. He’s only going to get better with experience.
Warren Fu directed the video for ‘Bang Bang Bang’ by Mark Ronson & The Business INTL and it is picking up some press at Rolling Stone and Mtv.
Credits:
Mark Ronson & The Business INTL “Bang Bang Bang” (Allido/Columbia)
Warren Fu, director | Paul Weston, producer (UK) | Ross Levine, producer (US) | Partizan, production co | Doomsday Ent., rep | Brandon Cox, DP | Mark Williams, additional camera | Justin Krook, editor | Warren Fu, designer | Bonnie Brae Studios + Warren Fu, post/fx | Benji Bamps, art director | Madeline Weeks, stylist | Lucy Halpernin, make-up/hair | Sasha Nixon, executive producer
This awesome little diddy was directed by Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys for Hermanos Inglesos (featuring MeMe) single ‘Wanderland’.
Credits:
Directed by Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys.
Design: Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys
Art Direction: Kristof Luyckx
Editing: Stijn Deconinck & Kristof Luyckx
Animation: Michèle Vanparys, Michélé De Feudis, Dries Bastiaensen & Kristof Luyckx .
Artist and illustrator Raul Urias hails from Chihuahua, Mexico. He experiments with a wide range of styles and is adept at all of them. His work is colorful, bright and fun. You can check it out in his Behance-Folio.
I think you could just say that St. Louis born artist Jason Hackenwerth makes gigantic aquatic balloon animals and that would be enough to entice a lot of people just to at least take a look at his work. But after saying that, you also have to at least follow up with the fact that they really are beautiful pieces of art that invoke a real sense of wonder and inhabit a space in a surreal way that must be very engaging in person. It’s a fascinating little niche he has carved out for himself and I would love to see some of his work in person.
Christopher Gray is a UK based designer currently represented by Studio AKA for Film & Animation. He works under the name ‘We Shall See’ and I do believe I have posted his work before in the past. He has recently updated his site and portfolio now in a blog-style format with some new and really exceptional design work. Watch his space for more updates now that he is publishing his portfolio updates in a blog format.
The Clayton Brothers have thrown some new and as always colorful and inspiring work up at their blog. I am becoming a very big fan of their work and I think they are really transcending that lowbrow scene into genuinely influential contemporary artists. It will be interesting to see how their exhibition schedule evolves in the coming years and if that notion is reflected in where they are asked to show.
Paris-born designer Alexandre Nacache received a diploma from Créapole with honors, and has since become an Art Director at Euro RSCG. He has some nice design work in his book and still freelances from time to time.
Brooklyn-based designer Paul Isabella is very talented. He is one of those rare creative talents that possesses the unique ability to move seamlessly from something like graphic design into furniture design and fabrication without losing any of his craft. His work in both veins is equally inspiring and I would gladly hang a patterned print from him in my studio while sitting comfortably in one of his beautiful chairs.
I just returned from a trip to Brooklyn and walked through some of the areas where a lot of young designers and artists are taking up residence. It’s an exciting place to be and there is definitely a universal creative hive mind happening there that is causing some amazing work to come out of that area.
