Creative Holiday Spirit...

Illustration by Jamie - an aspiring cartoonist !

Holiday presents come in all forms and varieties. Thanks for the colorful and captivating illustration Jamie! Merry Xmas to all :)

'Creativity is a natural extension of our enthusiasm.' ~Earl Nightingale

Reason To Smile :)

Very proud of Shruti (incredible talented woman) for commencing her new innings with EMC & Shivam (a globe trotting cousin)-this remarkable week has been full of pleasant surprises :D

'Creativity is a natural extension of our enthusiasm' ~ Earl Nightingale

Next Gen Toothpaste Tube :)

Prototype Designers - Sang Min Yu and Wong Sang Lee

Came across this amazing toothpaste packaging prototye this morning. It not only reinvents toothpaste's hard-to-squeeze tube but eliminates it altogether. Some immediate differentiators:

+ Significant packing space & cost savings.

+ Minimized toothpaste residue.

+ Encourages Recycling.

Check this link to learn more :)

Image Courtesy - Yankodesign

  

Arts + Cultu​re

What's skyrocketing this summer? Outdoor trips, shopping sprees, visits to pool or water-parks to name a few :)  But if you go outdoors, take a trip to say a Sculture park, an Art gallery or a museum and you'll be pleasantly surprised at seeing how amazed you or your loved ones (do take them along :)) can be!

Some FREE (or discounted) museums passes can be accessed here or here.

'Give me a museum and I'll fill it.'~Pablo Picasso

[Photo Courtesy - Target]

Principles of Design...

Ever wondered whether your artistic creation - a handicraft, an origami masterpiece or a consumer product is a cut above the rest or not? Consider yourself lucky if you manage to extract candid feedback for your creations from friends, strangers & fellow art admirers!  Alternatively, you may check whether these great pointers apply to your creation :)

'Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.' ~Steve Jobs

[Image Courtesy - Labnol]

Amar Chitra Katha - Revisited

While going through nice design tips during morning reading routine, I stumbled upon BUSRIDE's work for ACK (Amar Chitra Katha) Media. Here are some of the elements of their work with ACK Media that amazed me to the core:

Forward Focus: The inventive retail delivery stands seem to bring focus of the viewer on media (books, comic digests) as against the stand or space around.

Efficient Packing: Newly designed smaller shelves seem to pack comic books quite efficiently. Restocking these stands is also quite an easy task.

Visual Thinking: In addition to displaying a strong visual language (easily identifiable by young adults), the vivid colored posters and in-store advertising serve to stimulate store visitors and enhance impulse sales.

Critical Thinking: The innovative add-ons (games on website, Tinkle comic digests, Audiobooks etc.) foster critical thinking in young adults and promote enquiry, reasoning and debate.

In short, BUSRIDE's products provide a unique mechanism to display, sell and restock the book stands in ACK stores and make shopping a memorable experience both for buyer as well as seller. So when you stop by ACK store to grab your fav comic (Akbar-Birbal, Jataka Tales, Chanakya, Rana Pratap etc.), spend a few moments and record your impressions about your store visit. Do check out BUSRIDE's other awe-inspiring projects here & some invaluable design tips here.

'Everything is designed. Few things are designed well'~Brian Reed

[Image Courtesy - ACK-Media]

Which is better - Tea or Coffee ?

Infographic says it all :)

[Image Courtesy Policy Expert]

Hot Wheels :)

 Read about the remarkable new ad for Hot Wheels this morning. This vertical loop placed strategically in a free way in Bogota, Colombia is certainly engaging to the eye of onlookers. Try answering questions such as

• Have you seen this before?
• Would I mention this to my friends?
• How much time was spent thinking about it? and ultimately,
• What is the key message or goal here?

and you'll understand what makes this ad (by O&M) & brand Hotwheels so unique!

To create something exceptional, your mindset must be relentlessly focused on the smallest detail.~Giorgio Armani

[Image Courtesy Ads of World]

Data Visualization :)

Came across this remarkable graphic while browsing this morning. 

Following are the attributes that make Visual Communication  an extremely effective tool:

• Simplicity: Information is conveyed with easy-to-decipher simple images instead of pages of written or typed text.
• Relationships: Correlation & Trends are easily evident in visuals.
• New Insights: When one looks at compressed & reorganized information, new connections & insights pop-up every now & then.
• Decision Making: Spectacular images (magnified maps, engineering drawings, Venn Diagrams) helps the viewer comprehend data & make decisions real quick.

Check out this excellent interactive on printmaking (thanks Julia!) by MoMA - http://tinyurl.com/lqxaox. And if printmaking sparks your curiosity, do stop by Danforth Museum of Art this weekend - we've an ongoing (and much talked about) exhibit on Boston Printmakers :)

'Graphics is the visual means of resolving logical problems.'~Bertin

[Image Courtesy - iA Inc]

Squiggles & Wiggles

Some illustrations from 'Squiggles & Wiggles' workshop @ Danforth Museum of Art. The idea was to draw lines that are organic, fluid, smooth and continuous (~rivers, clouds, plants shoots etc).

"Painting is just another way of keeping a diary."~Pablo Picasso

[Image Courtesy - CG & SG]

Resolutions...

CG & SG

   >>  Create More (Draw, Sketch & Design) & Consume Less.

   >>  Read - A, B & C regularly.

   >>  Visit even more museums :)

   >>  Hope that both CG & SG stay symbiotically :D

          Good design is a lot like clear thinking made visual.~Edward Tufte