THIS building

Every time I walk into Leeds these days, I am confronted with a perplexing thought: do I like this building or not?

Each time I see it, I seem to have a different opinion. I can't work it out. From some angles, on sunny days, I love it. From the same angles, on a grey day, I loathe it. It's an eyesore, but when seen against blue skies there is something quite beautiful about its rusty shell.

It rises up from the motorway on one side, and overshadows the old Broadcasting House building on the other, like a tree that has managed to grow through the cracks of some old crazy paving. Like an enormous Transformer toy, from one side its five levels look as if (in some lights) they might start rotating at any moment.

This building is most certainly divisive - everyone I've talked to about it has strong opinions on the matter. Which, I guess, is what the architect intended - for the building to get people talking. And perhaps that's not such a bad thing at all.

Ugly Betty's transitions

I am a fan of Ugly Betty not for its quirky storylines and cutesy charm (not to say that isn't a factor), but for the interesting camera transitions the show uses throughout each episode. They never fail to be creative, amusing or downright zany. Some are so elaborate that someone has clearly spent a lot of time thinking exactly how they are going to work from scene to scene. This shows very clever planning, and adds a fun and unique dimension to the show.

Hertz is brought into the 21st century

(thanks to Brand New blog for the image)

Car Hire company Hertz has brought in Landor brand consultancy to revamp its image, and with that comes a new logo. The Hertz logo has always stood out to me, and it's one which brings back memories of family holidays from years ago. I think it was the bold, wasp colouring and the heavy drop shadow which made it stick in my head. It has something about it which looks quite unique, to me. It might not be that pretty, but it is Hertz.

The new logo does away with the dated shadow, but sensibly keeps the yellow and black (or dark grey) colour pallete. The new typeface slots together nicely, as the old one did, but in a more modern and less mechanical way. Cleverly, they've also kept the italic slant of the lettering, which makes it much more "Hertzy" in feel.

Part of me is going to miss the old logo, but this rebrand has been done sensitively and I feel is probably not before time!

Kafka On The Shore

This is one of celebrated Japanese author Haruki Murakami's best sellers. The story centres around a young boy from downtown Tokyo who decides to run away after a strange experience. The other central character is an old man who can talk to cats. We follow both their lives seperately for while, and then gradually the relation between the two becomes more and more apparent, though not for the reasons you might expect.

I think one of the reasons the story is so gripping is that the characters seem so real, despite the strange and outlandish situations they find themselves in. There are so many twists and turns and you don't really know where any of it is going until the very end. The locations are beautifully described and create a fantastic and intriguing world.

I would highly recommend this book - it may sound like a bizarre plot but it's a rewarding read.

BBC Homepage Beta

The BBC are planning another revamp to their homepage - though this time it's more of an evolution than a revolution.

You can see the beta version at http://beta.bbc.co.uk/

At first glance it's obvious there are many things still to finish (hence why it's in beta stage), but it looks to me like they are making some improvements. Features such as a bigger "media zone" (the box at the top right of the current set up) which can be minimized to a compact version and a new navigation header are welcome additions. At present it can be a bit of an effort to navigate from one section of the mammoth site to another. This new setup puts the most common links, such as News and Sport at the top, next to the BBC logo.

Some of the not so great additions are the garish gradients - hopefully these will be phased out before the beta goes official. Another annoyance is that the news and sport headlines appear to have been reduced to only 1 "top story". Again, I imagine this might be rectified after beta testing, since this would be a backwards step.

All in all, though, a nice upgrade to what is already a much admired (and copied!) homepage design!

Doctor Who Logo

Shockingly (at least, for me), the BBC have just revealed that cult favourite Doctor Who is to get a new logo from 2010.

Before:


After:


Now I'm not a crazy Doctor Who fanatic, but I have watched much of the show since its return in 2005, and I have always been fond of the current, warm, organic looking logo. Although it has been criticised for looking slightly too delicate, I think it looks like a modern sci-fi logo should. Though it has always reminded me slightly of the Farscape one -



I'm not so keen on the new logo for a few reasons...

1. It lacks depth. The old logo looked as if it could have housed millions of galaxies within it, or as if it was alive, or on fire! The new one looks cold, bleak and metallic in comparison.

2. It looks too retro. I can't see kids (the show's main audience) taking to the new logo as much as its predecessor.

3. It looks messy. The tardis "DW" is not so bad on its own, but when put next to the Doctor Who slab serif text AND the BBC logo (which seems to have crept its way into the show's official logo), it's just too much. Hopefully the titles won't feature all of these elements together on the same screen.

4. Lens flares.

Perhaps it will grow on me, but on first impressions I'm not that impressed!

Amazing Spider Silk

I'll admit, I do have a slight vested interest in this artwork, since it was my uncle who created it!

That aside, it is quite an extraordinary piece. Created entirely from spider silk, collected and spun from Golden Orb spiders in Madagascar over five years and woven into a textile unlike any other. Having touched the silk myself I can say it is completely unique to the touch, and to the eye - it shimmers with a vibrant golden sheen and feels almost like touching a cloud! (excuse the flowery language, but I honestly can't think of any other way to describe it).

The textile was designed in a traditional Malagasy style, which is beautiful in its own right. The tassels which top and tail the textile are all of different lengths, which adds to the intrigue and unique feel of the piece.

The textile has gone on public display in the American Museum of Natural History in New York.


Nicholas Godley and my uncle, Simon Peers


A close up of the textile



Sunday Times article
New York Times article
Daily Mail article

Incidentally, I designed my uncle's website over the summer - which you can see at www.peersandcompany.com and includes many pictures of other textiles he has created.

Electric Revolution

BBC Four have been running a new season of programmes celebrating the "Electric Revolution", which explores the way technology has changed the way we live over the years.

As part of this season, the channel has brought in some special idents. All of the idents begin with the regular BBC Four idents, before zooming out to reveal that they are playing on a piece of retro technology.











(thanks to TV Forum for the images - visit for videos)

I'm already an admirer of BBC Four's idents and presentation - I think they present a classy and understated feel for the channel, but these special versions are really nicely done. What a great way of promoting this special season of programmes, by incorporating the existing into some brilliantly set up scenes.

A Supermarket Love Song

A short film by Director Dan Outram - http://www.danoutram.com/Short_Film/watch.html

This is a nicely shot short movie, with a realistic and touching (if slightly uncomfortable, at points) narrative. It's a modern story and shows an interesting dynamic between the old and young generations - how they differ, but also where they share similarities.

The cinematography blends a nice balance between static and moving shots. I'm not sure about the subtle old cine effect in use - I'm not really sure what it's supposed to add. However overall the film creates the desired "daytime" atmosphere well, and the locations are well suited to the narrative.

Google Wave

From a design point of view, I'm not a massive fan of Google's logo. I think the font is ugly, and the drop shadow is so very 90's. But it's iconic - they simply couldn't change it now (perhaps losing the shadow could work, though!). However they are now starting to make up for whatever design faux-pas they may have committed in the past.

Google Wave (apart from looking like what's going to be an incredibly useful and timely update to what we know as 'email') has a lovely logo - still very Google, but thankfully not inheriting any of the bad things about Google's branding.

The shape has a pleasing flow to it, whilst also being utterly organised and regular. It looks like Google Wave is something you can trust. It's not going to let your electronic thoughts and belongings get swept away in a freak current.

The colours are of course, so Google, but they work well, and there is still a shadow, but it's a more modern floor-based variant which makes the shape look almost like a floating piece of sculpture.

A nice logo which represents the product really well.

Wembley Stadium

I've always loved the idea of the new Wembley Stadium's iconic arch, and since its completion I had often admired it from afar. However I hadn't visited the stadium up close until going to the Coldplay concert there in September.

The sheer enormity of the arch is incredible - it looks massive from far away, but is absolutely gargantuan when you come up close to one of its skeletal feet planting itself to the ground. It really is a stunning design. It also looks absolutely amazing from inside, as illustrated in the above image.

One of the best stadium designs, in my opinion. Giant in its scale, but simple and elegant at the same time. It's not fussy and it doesn't try too hard - it's just cool. Great architecture.

Brand loyalty = deadly habit

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8282579.stm

A very interesting article regarding the idea of stripping cigarette packets of their branding in order to reduce the amount of smokers.

It seems there is a lot of evidence to suggest that giving all cigarette packets a uniform, bland and standardised look would help people to stop smoking, due to the fact that many smokers have become so attached to their brand and its associated image that part of their addiction, is in fact, an addiction to "brand"!

Shows the power that branding can have...

Inglourious Basterds

I'm not Tarantino's biggest fan, but I did enjoy the cinematography in his latest foray into Nazi Germany, Inglourious Basterds.

The shots were all set up incredibly well and brought just the right atmosphere to every scene, from the green and pleasant rolling hills of the French dairy farms to the wartorn but strangely, almost cosy, surroundings of a charming cinema in wartime Paris.

My favourite scene in the film has to be the big fiery climax (without giving too much away, for those who have yet to see it). The scene is so atmospheric and creates a moving and unforgettable image.

The film is also notable for its use of colour, and as always with Tarantino's films, it's filled with small and symbolic details which most of us won't pick up on (at least not on the first viewing).

Beautiful dust

This beautiful, ethereal music video by director Esteban Diácono creates a stunning atmospheric visual.



Although it starts off fairly slowly, as the music builds up the animation also fires up and creates some stunning displays, not unlike some kind of organic firework. I also like the way the camera appears to be rotating around the action at certain points - either that or there is some sort of a whirlwind manipulating the particles.

Organic furniture

Ad agency RSA and Post Production house Golden Sq created this interesting and different commercial for furniture company Otobi.

http://www.goldensq.com/news/stories/2009/Aug/otobi?portfolio=page1

The cinematic feel of the film portrays the lush feel of the rainforest well, and the furniture growing out of the foliage is an interesting image, but I'm not sure if it does the job of selling the furniture that successfully. The furniture "grows" fairly effectively, but after it has done it just ends up looking like it's been "plonked" there rather unnaturally. Unfortunately I don't think the rather ordinary-looking furniture looks that great in the beautiful rainforest surroundings! In fact the rainforest seems to steal the limelight somewhat. I think it's a nice idea in theory, and I guess the company want to tout their products' links with nature, but I don't like the final resolve. Perhaps it would have been better for the background to fade away after the furniture had grown? Or grow the forest into a white studio setting?

For Print Only

Just to point out a very interesting blog - For Print Only.

Great resource for inspiration regarding print projects, showcasing some fantastic examples from designers around the world.

In its own words...

"FPO is a blog dedicated to both the visual stimulus and the detailing of the development and production of printed matter: Annual reports, books, business cards, stationery suites, collateral materials, posters, packaging and anything else where ink meets substrate. A subject matter we know, love and understand. A process that, despite numerous eulogies, is still alive. Perhaps even more lively than ever as designers are tasked with producing their designs under tighter budgets and pressing concerns about the environment. By focusing on print work, we know that we will have an endless array of work to showcase as it rolls of the presses and by creating very detailed project overviews and sharing the production details of each project we can actually establish a source of both inspiration and education."

Cheeky Dixons

This new advertising campaign from online electricals retailer Dixons.co.uk caught my eye on the tube the other day.

At first glance, the poster looks a lot like an advert for John Lewis, emulating the department store's very recognisable typeface, colours and style. By the time you have read to the end of the poster, Dixons.co.uk has taken over.

It's a cleverly written poster, because this is the way many people end up purchasing electricals these days - checking out the product first in a store and then buying it for a much cheaper price online. It also never mentions any other brand name, but most people will be left in no doubt of the stores which it refers to. Though ironically the campaign demonstrates the power of the John Lewis branding - the Dixons branding in comparison looks weak!

The only downside of the campaign for Dixons is that some people might not realise that the store is now online only - Currys Digital was the brand which replaced all of Dixons' high street stores in 2007 (my Mum being one example of such a person!). In which case the advert seems to say that Dixons' staff are untrained and not "well brought up"!

Perhaps if more care was taken to build Dixons.co.uk as an online only brand when the rebranding took place, this new campaign would be more successful.

Retail Week article on the campaign

Ever stay for the closing credits?

There have been some fantastic and amazing closing credit sequences featured on various films for the past few years, but on TV the credits have generally remained pretty boring and staid. Not any more...

Specialists in TV title sequences Kiss My Pixel were clearly allowed to go crazy with TV chef - no - cook (he's a cook, not a chef!!), Nigel Slater's new BBC series.

Though unusually they seem to have gone more town on the closing credits than the opening titles (which aren't exactly anything special).



Check it out here (this link will take you straight to the closing sequence)

http://bbc.co.uk/i/mq461/?t=28m12s

They are credits which certainly make you sit up and take notice! They have even managed to sneakily get the Kiss My Pixel logo in there, masquerading as a type of herb!!

It's a nice idea, but I'm not keen on the way they have implemented it. The way the camera jolts suddenly from one jar to the next and blurs in between seems stilted and strange, as if we're looking through the eyes of a bleary-eyed student who's just got in from a night out, stumbling around the kitchen to rustle up a pre-bed omelette. It just doesn't seem right. I would have preferred a simple line of jars/cans/whatever on a shelf, with the camera slowly moving from one end to the other.

That said, it's certainly different and kudos to them for that.

http://www.kissmypixel.com/

BBC HD

I'm a big fan of the new BBC HD idents. They are shot beautifully and capture the essence of the BBC's high-def output brilliantly - bringing the viewer something spectacular.

The cover all the bases, too... Wildlife shows...



...Strictly Come Dancing...



...Crufts!



...Music (This one's a bit cheesy and I think the weakest of the set)



And fishing/wildlife/kids!



I'm especially fond of the way the idents resolve in a very neat and gentle way after the initial surprise and excitement.

Interestingly there's something rather European about the idents as well, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

Very nice. And a vast improvement on their previous CGI 1980's style effort! (which seems to have vanished from YouTube!)

Dollar Rede$ign

An aspect of design which has always fascinated me is when a situation requires you to take something which already exists and totally revamp it - creating something that looks fresh and new, but still using the basic raw materials and purpose of the original.

I stumbled across this project being run on Flickr which challenges designers to revamp the iconic US Dollar bank notes.

The entries are fascinating to look at. It's interesting to imagine what kind of impact a drastic change to the oldest remaining physical representation of money might have on peoples' relationship with it.

Some designs are obviously more extreme than others. Lisa Tse's effort (actually it's her personal business card - I think) is seductive and sexy - http://richardsmith.posterous.com/delicious-dollars-could-currency-design-get-a

Some are ultra minimalistic:



I think among my favourites are the ones which use the classic green but add a splash of colour (this was a runner up in the competition):



Have a look at all of the submitted designs at http://www.flickr.com/photos/thinkcreatebelieve/ and the accompanying blog http://richardsmith.posterous.com/

See the overall winners of the competition at http://richardsmith.posterous.com/july-4th-special-announcement-dollar-redeign

"How it would be, if a house was dreaming"

This has to be one of the most interesting bits of video design I've seen in a while.



You'll have to watch to understand! Here's the explanation the creator gives (I can't hope to explain it half as well):

"The conception of this project consistently derives from its underlying architecture - the theoretic conception and visual pattern of the Hamburg Kunsthalle. The Basic idea of narration was to dissolve and break through the strict architecture of O. M. Ungers "Galerie der Gegenwart". Resultant permeabilty of the solid facade uncovers different interpretations of conception, geometry and aesthetics expressed through graphics and movement. A situation of reflexivity evolves - describing the constitution and spacious perception of this location by means of the building itself."

Fantastically executed and different work. Another interesting thing about it is how the audio really adds depth to the whole experience, which is surprisingly palpable when watching on a screen.

Watch on Flickr

Another fantastic Design blog...

Two great blogs in one day!! Design and Branding News is a brilliantly polished site which, basically does what it says on the tin, or as it says on its About page, "idsgn is a new blog about the things we see and enjoy (or sometimes hate) as designers."

Brand New

I've been following a great blog over the past few weeks, which gives news on rebranding exercises which companies and organisations around the world have undertaken. Each entry typically shows an image of the old company logo next to the new one for comparison.

I've always loved comparing old and new, so naturally this site really appeals to me. If you're anything like me, I warn you, you could spend hours on here!

The quality of rebrands ranges from fantastic to the downright wrong (see the Pizza Hut post), and the authors always give a fair and well-informed critique, which more often than not I agree with.



One of the most innovative rebrands featured on the site has been that of German web development and information technology company, Namics.

The new identity is ever-changing, preceding the company name with a series of words input by company employees via Twitter or SMS, and has been labeled “the world’s first ‘Real Time Corporate Identity".

Interesting stuff. Not speaking German I'm not sure what they all mean!

Check it out here and have a browse around the rest of the Brand New blog as well.

I <3 Bovril

I love Bovril. And every since the unsightly Lidl store building in Redhill was demolished, a lovely old painted Bovril logo has been uncovered on the side of the adjacent building. Great reminder of the past. I love it when things like this are unearthed, having been lurking there all the time behind or underneath layers of other things.

Eighteen Long Years

Interesting looking independent film, and interesting looking website for the film. I really like the shooting style from the trailer. Shot in an incredibly short space of time, too!

http://www.eighteenlongyears.co.uk/

New look MTV

MTV has a fresh new look this week, courtesy of MTV creative directors and UK-based studio Universal Everything - which, incidentally has some great work on its fab site at universaleverything.com - well worth checking out.

I'm not so fond of the screen furniture which has been cooked up - as per usual there is far too much information on-screen at any one time. However I love the idents which have been lovingly created by Universal Everything. They really do show innovation and an engaging and unusual style of animation. It really does look shiny and brand new, which is what MTV were going for.



This one is my favourite, I think.

Take a look at the rest, on the Creative Review blog.

Glastonbury

Found some of the best pictures of Glastonbury I've seen. Some brilliant shots amongst these - and surprisingly they come from an American paper, the Boston Globe.

Take a look at the whole set - despite having never been I reckon these breathtaking shots really capture the essence of the festival.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/06/glastonbury_2009.html

Take Five

Interesting Flickr set showing how the creative agency dixonbaxi's work for channel Five developed. Lots of "mood" boards. Very nicely done branding exercise - I really admire the outcome of the logo, especially the lovely animations which go with it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dixonbaxi/sets/72157607831049425/

Scottish Parliament building

It may be a controversial building and I'm not particularly keen on the outside, but the inside of this building is certainly interesting and quite beautiful in its own way. To me it looks like some kind of cathedral. Though part of me thinks it may date rather quickly.

Handmade font

Very cool selection of "handmade" fonts developed by this Estonian design company. Some look more realistic than others, but there are some really original and exciting fonts amongst them.

www.handmadefont.com

Incidentally, I've found a great blog highlighting branding and design news from around the world, which is well worth checking out (it's where I came across Handmade Font).

www.idsgn.org

MacPlug Air

Ingenious redesign for the bulky, oversized British plug.



Amazing that no one has thought of something like this yet! Can only be a matter of time before we start seeing these in walls everywhere.

Art vs. Vandalism

Attack of the post-it notes

I absolutely love this stop motion video by Bang-yao Liu, a student at Savannah College of Art and Design. Extremely painstaking work and makes for a captivating animation (apparently it's had the Ashton Kutcher Twitter treatment, which gives it something in common with Susan Boyle).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpWM0FNPZSs

Attention to detail is brilliant - he even appears to be watching the YouTube video on his laptop at the same time as us!

Also worth watching the "making of" video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArJYvaCCB3c

BBC Two's identity crisis

Disappointed that the BBC have gone and ruined what was a perfectly good channel branding package for BBC Two.

Today they went from this...


To this...


Why tilt the "2" at a strange angle? Why mix up the typography and colours horribly? And why on earth have they made the BBC logo black, whilst the TWO is teal?

Just...wrong.

Plus, they've done something very strange with the idents themselves.



Now instead of the logo fading in as the "2" comes into view, it is present from the very beginning and fades out as the "2" arrives. Why? Because the idents were designed and shot to have the logo at the bottom left (hence the "2" being off-centre). This results in looking very shoddy...



I think this shows that change for change's sake is hardly ever a good thing! If they wanted to refresh BBC Two's look, they should have gone for a complete overhaul, not tinker with what they already had. As it is, it looks like it's having an identity crisis.

As a final note, I think this screencap says it all...

Parklife Website

Hi everyone....welcome to my blog! Might take me a bit of time to get used to everything here...

This Aussie music festival website caught my attention for its sheer cool factor. It really is a joy to use. Loving the moving constellation background, and the lovely clean layout. Takes a bit of time to load the high bandwidth version but it's worth the wait!

Music's not bad either.

Click to check it out! Parklife Festival 2009