You may or may not have noticed that we updated our portfolio with a new website. You can view our work by clicking the ‘work’ button above our blog or go directly to Cttcreative.com. We officially launched our studio 6-8 weeks back and have been working very hard on several new projects. We have assembled a very talented team of people here in Denver who are hungry for new project work. Changethethought studio now has capabilities in graphic design, illustration, motion graphics, editing, web design and development. I guess you could call us full service. We’ve recently worked on projects for Nike, Airwalk, IBM and Sony.
Currently we are working locally on some projects here in Denver, Colorado but are hoping to expand with some international project work. If you have a project you feel we would be right for or would just like to talk ideas with us, you can reach us at hire(at)changethethought.com. We would love the opportunity to create for your agency or brand.
Well next week will somewhat unofficially mark our first week as a fully functioning design studio. I am being joined by some very amazing people whom I did not expect to be embarking on this journey with so early on. We will be capable in graphic design, motion graphics, illustration, branding, art direction, package design and web design. We are all really excited for what the future may bring.
We finally finished painting this week and had some really great lighting installed. The cabinets, countertops and baseboard molding are being installed next week. After that we are officially finished with the studio renovations. I will upload some pictures when all is complete.
I snapped a quick little iPhone pic of my desk for now. And yes, that is my original Castle Grayskull from childhood sitting next to my teen bodybuilding trophy. If you are interested in hiring us for a project, I’d be happy to open up Castle Greyskull so we can get in a nice He Man playtime session while I tell you all about my brief foray into bodybuilding. That should be enough to make you interested in commissioning us right off.
If you pick up the current May issue of Computer Arts (a thumbnail of the May 2010 cover can be seen in the upper right corner of the above image) you will find an article I wrote about how to launch a ‘Blogfolio’. The article details how I went about designing the current (now admittedly outdated) version of Changethethought. Although I am working on updating the site before the summer is out, the essentials of how to launch and stylize your own blog and portfolio website are pretty much the same as how I did it 2 years ago. You can read and download a PDF of the article here at the Computer Arts website.
You can expect to see and hear much more from us this summer as we are now beginning the process of assembling our portfolio, addressing the redesign and relaunch of our new site and searching for new project work. Regardless of all the new plans in the works, it is still nice to get some press for what has been done so far and we thank Computer Arts for the coverage.
I am presently speaking with LRG and they are doing the right thing so far. They have extended a hand and we are working on something that spins this in a positive light for both parties involved. I can’t and won’t get into any details at this point, but when I am ready to share the entire story I will make sure you hear about it first. The great thing is that LRG has expressed real concern over this and want to collaborate to show that an unfortunate situation like this can be turned into something positive. In order to be true to the message and story of Changethethought, I would much rather there be a positive story that comes from this to serve as an example that we are a new generation capable of shaping a new creative landscape where we can work together and spread positive messages rather than fight and spread hate. That is really the true power of what the internet can help bring to our profession.
It has been an interesting week receiving emails from some very intelligent and wonderful people who read this blog. It has meant a lot to me and has strengthened my resolve to grow this site and push it to become something bigger than myself. Thank you for spreading the word this week and for the support. It’s given me new motivation and I can’t express how much I appreciate it.
I will let you know when this lands, how and where things end up.
Well, I have been candid in the past about how my work sometimes is overly-influenced by other designers (the irony of the image I chose for that post and this incident was not lost on me). In an ever-increasingly globally digital creative environment it is something that I think happens to a lot of us. Sometimes you have to push away from the machine and pick up the pencil.
However, I was a little personally outraged when I saw this particular LRG shirt for sale at Karmaloop. I personally don’t really know very much about LRG, although I did buy a t-shirt of theirs a few years back at a boutique. Apparently their logo is a circular arrow pointing down, almost the inverse of my logo except that mine is a 3 quarter circle turned upward and the arrow is split down the middle. It’s not exactly a new or highly original logo treatment, but when I designed mine (over 5 years ago now), it was meant to symbolize the constancy of change. Again, ironically there is just so happens to be an article in the upcoming issue of Computer Arts describing what my logo stands for.
Regardless, I am not so sure that really gives LRG the right to just flat out lift a poster design I did to promote myself close to two years ago now. Here is the original post to Changethethought when I released my first poster series for sale. Being influenced by someone or bearing a similarity in styles to another designer or artist is one thing, straight taking an existing design, barely altering it and then calling it your own is another thing entirely. And I am positive after comparing my now 2-year-old, copyrighted and globally distributed poster design with this LRG t-shirt that is exactly what LRG did to me. Even the way I pulled all of the colors used in my original poster and placed them in circles at the bottom was handled the same on the LRG t-shirt. I was just kind of shocked when I stumbled upon it while shopping at Karmaloop. I really would like an explanation from LRG. I would also like to know if there is anything I can do legally to resolve the matter. I am guessing not, since I am the little guy but at least I have this blog where I can tell you about it. If I were you, I’d think twice about buying anything from LRG for a while, if not forever.
I design apparel graphics for all kinds of big brands and have been working almost exclusively on apparel graphics the last two months. I would have been happy to discuss designing some graphics for LRG and even consider altering some of my graphics if the price were right and it made sense for both my brand and theirs. Instead of contacting me, I guess LRG felt like it was fine to just go ahead and take without asking. Do me a favor if you feel so inclined, and send LRG an email telling them what you think. And if any of you know how to get in touch with their creative department, please email me and let me know how to get in touch with them. I’d very much like to speak to them myself.
UPDATE:
Just out of curiosity, I decided to recreate the LRG design using the design taken from my poster. You can see this depicted in the last image at the top of this post. The top left corner shows the original treatment from my poster. To the right you can see LRG’s design. In the bottom left my poster graphic has been flipped horizontally and then slightly warped by ‘squeezing’ the image and pulling in the edges. In the bottom right the warped image of my poster has been multiplied over LRG’s t-shirt graphic. Can you even tell which is which?
We are currently ready for the next phase of Changethethought and are seeking to partner with a developer for relaunch of our website. We have a reasonable budget for the project but want to put a new and different kind of blog on the web as well as extending the look and reach of our creative portfolio. We will be contacting potential developers to work with privately as well. However, we feel there is a unique opportunity here to ask our audience, who are comprised of some of the brightest minds in the creative industry if they would like to work with us on the new site. We can guarantee a high level of exposure as well as the promise of producing something that will be noticed for years to come. We intend to continue running the website on the WordPress platform but are seeking to work with someone who can integrate key commands and jQuery into our new design. We will help drive the design but see this relationship as a creative partnership. You will have insight into the creative process and design as well as developing the final site. This is a chance to try something new that you haven’t had the chance to do for your corporate clients. Our website is the single most important aspect of our growth and is of the utmost importance to us. If you or someone you know might be right for this project please email us through our contact section. Please note, we are not asking for free work here. This is a paying project.
I have been working on an ongoing project featuring some of my favorite type faces using random platitudes to give the type a message to communicate thereby helping bring out the personality that is unique to each face. The series is titled ‘Random Platitude 2010 Type Specimen Posters’. I haven’t printed them as of yet and borrowed the technique of over laying the designs onto a template folded-poster background in order to create the illusion of physicality. It’s something I borrowed from Stefan Lucut and a technique I employ on all my designs since I rarely have any time to photograph them nor do I have access as of yet to decent photography equipment. I will most likely be making more of these and am planning to print some in the near future. I have recently completed some big projects for some big brands and I will be posting those soon as well. Big plans in the works for Changethethought in 2010.
You can view the rest of the posters in the PRINT section of the site.
I have officially resigned my position as Art Director at Cactus Communications in Denver. My Creative Director and I decided it was time for me to do what has needed to be done and amicably part ways to allow me to begin focusing all of my attention on Changethethought. The nearly 4 years I spent at Cactus has been one of the best times I have ever had in the creative industry. I leave behind some very close friends and people I respect very highly. I will miss them every day as I start out on this new venture. They have been amazingly supportive of my efforts to launch Changethethought as a design studio and I will continue to seek their advice as I start out on my own.
I will begin working on remodeling my studio next week where I will now be running Changethethought. I have a few small creative client projects planned already for 2010. We will also be launching a new website this spring. The new website will be much more robust than the current version offering much more in terms of content and usability. We will also now be able to focus much more quality time on delivering better content. Soon we will be seeking more authors for the blog.
We have full capabilities as a design studio and are currently seeking project work. If you are interested in hiring us for your next project please send an email to hire(at)changethethought.com. We will be focusing our efforts on 3 branches, creative inspiration, creative merchandising and creative services. We will also be focused on enriching the creative community in Denver and are already involved in working toward planning and hosting events in 2010.
We are also currently seeking sponsorship for the next version of the site. Please contact us if you would like to see our current analytics and are interested in supporting us. Cheers to 2010.
I just wanted to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all of my friends and readers in the U.S. and across the globe. Thank you so very much for your support this year. It has meant so much. I hope to give you all much much more this next year and it has been a real pleasure and blessing receiving all of the emails from so many amazing and creative people from all over the world. Enjoy some time with your family and give your mind a break so you are ready to make new and wonderful things after the holiday season. You deserve it.
My letterpressed holographic foil stamped on black Plike card stock business cards are now up for viewing in the print section. I apologize, I am not a photographer but you have to trust me when I say they look much better in person. So far everyone I have handed one too has been excited to receive it. They were printed by local Denver vintage letterpress studio Foils and Dies. Thank you to Rob for helping me achieve the colors from the Changethethought website in physical reality. The holographic foil has a long wavelength so when held up to a light source you can really see an amazing array of color.
2010 is going to bring some serious changes to Changethethought. I am currently concepting new ideas and strategies for the next phase of the website. Currently I have decided there will be 3 major sections of the website. The sections will be the blog, the studio and the store. Each section will be a site within a site. The store will most likely be very simple and mirror the current Merchline website. There will be sponsored advertising on the new site as well but I am going to filter the advertising to keep it relevant for the audience. I want to avoid having anything on the site that isn’t something useful for the readers. I have tried to avoid advertising in the past but the site has grown too much and I need extra support to keep developing Changethethought further and offering more to the readers.
The studio site will include the collective portfolio of both myself and other Changethethought creative members. You will also be able to view minimized portfolios of Changethethought authors and contributors.
The store (in time) will also offer up goods from Changethethought authors and contributors, so hopefully everyone involved can benefit if they so choose.
It is really not terribly difficult arranging boxes and selecting fonts when designing a website, but what really counts is content. The reason the content counts is because that is the value offered back to the readers.
With that in mind I would very much like to ask all of you what you would like to see on the next version of Changethethought. Some of the current ideas involve the main curated blog feed, an image only feed, a user generated feed, a section for interviews with other artists and designers, a non art/design side blog news feed, a link list, a featured artist/designer banner section, a recommended product/fashion section and potentially a forum. Larger images will remain but there will most likely be an expanded option that allows for longer posts and more in depth reads. The links will remain on the main page though, so you won’t have to expand the post to inject the inspiration vein quickly and directly.
Please leave a comment and tell me what you would like to see on the new version of the site. I want this to be something different that helps everyone. I want to make this a community. I want it to be a first of it’s kind where inspiration, a creative service cloud network and products are all provided in one spot. I am looking for ideas from people who matter most. You. And I thank you so much for the support that has brought Changethethought this far.
I am a huge fan of Stanley Kubrick. I am also a huge fan of his landmark achievement in film that in my opinion has never been matched, 2001: A Space Odyssey. I am also a fan of Kubrick’s favorite font, Futura. Tonight while watching that movie with my computer in my lap (like any good multitasking American) I thought it might be fun to knock out some posters celebrating 3 of my great loves with 3 different posters. I realized in the process just how remarkable the movie really is that it can be represented through such minimal symbology. Anyway, it was a fun little exercise and you can see the other 2 posters in the print section of the site. I am not sure I could print a run of these without getting in trouble but I will probably print some just to hang around my home.
Well, it’s time for my first vacation in something like two years. I will be traveling to Sunderland on Friday evening to attend the Think Tank show at the Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art. I will be in Newcastle for a couple days after that and then on to Barcelona for 5 days, then Berlin for a few days and maybe Hamburg or provincial Northern Germany. I will be traveling with my wife. I hope to rekindle some romantic fires and find some new inspiration. I have some big plans upon my return. I will be redesigning then hiring someone to redevelop and then relaunch the blog. I have an account now with Media Temple as well, who will be sponsoring the hosting for Changethethought now. I will be moving over to their servers when I return from my Holiday.
I want to say thank you for all of the sincerely amazing submissions that have been rolling in lately. I have seen some amazing things and beg you to keep them coming. Many more of the posts now are coming from user submissions and I hope that number continues to rise. I also wanted to apologize for any unanswered emails or forgotten posts. I have been overwhelmingly busy this year between my work for Cactus, my new house and Changethethought. I am doing things I love right now though and that is all that matters. I work with some really wonderful people who make me laugh everyday, and I have been surrounded by and speaking with some truely talented and inspiring people this year. All of this is a real blessing.
I have added some new Editors to the site in the last few days and hopefully there will be a few posts while I am away. It is a full time job posting as many things to this site as I do, so I don’t expect that from my Editors. That is my job. Expect that job to resume full throttle upon my return and thank you so much for your support. Keep those submissions coming and stay tuned for more.
You can download a wallpaper for your iPhone of the above logo treatment (minus the type at the bottom) right here. Just click and hold on your iPhone and save the image. See and speak with you again in two weeks.
I will be in Sunderland, England (north country) for an exhibition at the Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art this Friday. The show is part of North East England’s annual design festival. I am really excited to be a part of the show this year and just had to be there in person. If you are in or around Newcastle or Manchester, hop on a train or bus and try to make it out to say hello. I will be flying into Newcastle this Friday at 5pm and hauling ass to make it to the gallery around 6:30 or 7. I hope to see and meet you there.
More about the show:
Britain’s leading think tanks collaborate with leading designers to imagine how we might create a better nation.
‘Think Tank’ is part of the Design Event 09 (DE09), the North East’s annual design festival, www.design-event.co.uk.
The preview evening is part of the DE09 Sunderland Launch Night. A bus will be available to take people to the different venues. To book a place on on the bus or find out more visit www.design-event.co.uk.
I just put 2 new posters in the print section of the site. They were both created by recycling some old graphics. I am trying to get back to my schooling a little bit and simplify my approach to my graphic design work. I am still working on some new illustrations as well. I also just had some really nice business cards printed last week that were letterpressed with holographic foil. The design of the cards is very simple but the the subtle combination of the black rubberized paper and foil really turned out much nicer than I had even expected. I will post some pictures next week. Stay tuned for more. There are a lot of plans in the works yet this year and Changethethought will most likely look much different next year. I also wanted to thank all of the people who have been sending in emails of their work. There has been some really amazing people emailing in lately and that has been really exciting. Thank you.
Insound has teamed up with renowned hand-style typographer and illustrator Mike Perry to create 10 designs for classic indie, punk and post-punk bands spanning the last few decades. The end result is 10 tee shirts, matching posters and tote bags.
Insound contacted Changethethought and has offered to give away a t-shirt to one of our readers. The shirt, which you can see above, is for the classic lo-fi indie rock pioneers ‘Beat Happening – Olympia Zine Sunshine’. All you have to do is visit this page at Insound and enter to win. The winner will be announced next Thursday September 24th.
I am still trying to work out some new ideas for illustration. I have been drawing up a storm lately and finishing the coloring of the graphite drawings in Photoshop. I have gotten some interesting results lately and you can check them out in the illustration section.
Next week on Wednesday June 24th, the official Bike to Work day here in Colorado, Denver-based advertising agency Cactus (for whom I work as an Art Director) is throwing its inaugural Bike From Work Bash . I can personally guarantee a seriously kick ass throwdown the likes of which will be stuff of legend forever recorded in the mythical annals of Denver lore. You have to seize any available opportunity to use the word ‘annals’.
There will be Illegal Pete’s burritos, Breckenridge beer, Amp energy drinks (and Amp Energy girls), a live DJ (my good friend Tom Metz), bike stunts by Yellow Designs, bike valet service from Bike Denver along with security provided by the Denver Roller Dolls. I also designed the materials for the event, although it was a collective effort with my Creative Director Norm Shearer, Art Director Matt Chiabotti and Copywriter Lee Perlman (he’s the crazy guy in the helmet in the video above). Consequently, Indyink will have have larger 2-color screenprinted Bike from Work posters available at the event as well. As far of the event overall is involved, it was a big team of us at Cactus who put our heads together to pull this off and we poured the love in all the way to the top.
There will be also be a ‘Revenge of the Nerds-style’ tricycle relay race. The race is being hosted by Ad2 Denver and will benefit Wish for Wheels, a non-profit organization dedicated to supplying bikes for kindergarten students. Relay teams will consist of 5 members and the cost per entry is $100. There will be prizes given to teams with the most creative uniforms and tricycles. Maybe a team of luchadores?
You really can’t miss. There is going to be stunts, food, drinks, pretty people, money going to charity and you can rub elbows with the local creative and advertising people. I will be there for the duration of the party helping set up and break down (I am in it to win it). So, if we have yet to meet, stop by and say hello. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
The mayor said he wasn’t coming but that’s just an added reason to turn the volume all the way up to 11. Especially after turning down the best invitation ever.
04/12 ZIMMERMAN FACES MURDER In a case we’ve been following closely there is finally what we think is some good news to report. George ZImmerman, the man accused of killing the innocent teenager Trayvon Martin has been taken into custody and charged with second degree murder. At last there is some justice.
12/16 HITCHENS DIES Outspoken author and pundit Christopher Hitchens passed away yesterday at the age of 62 after succombing to a long battle with cancer. His honest and bravado opinion that rarely favored one side versus the other but was instead often a cry for ‘reason’ will be missed.
11/23 BURZYNKSI CLINIC Is there an alternative, non-toxic treatment for cancer? Dr. Stanislaw R. Burzynski seems to think so and has been experiencing higher rate of success than the current accepted practice of treating cancer.
11/23 TALKING TO MACHINES “What can machines tell us about being human? This hour of Radiolab, Jad and Robert meet humans and robots who are trying to connect, and blur the line.” Listen, read and learn here.
