Online addiction #4 - Paper Magic

This time it's love! The Graceful Taylor has found her match: the most exquisite paper objects, to adore and to use, that you will ever see in the whole wide world. A joyous lesson in the possibilities of that most basic of materials, paper. A new Australian online concept store that will woo you with its grace and beauty and simplicity. Sigh.

www.uponafold.com.au

www.uponafold.com.au/blog

The pure joy of creating

Remed.
badass graff artist
doing his own thing
exploding colour on any available surface
no deep message - no way!
just clever use of style, typography and...
did I mention colour?
aka Guilo, dude who paints bearded men, Moroccan-style
the artist and the grafitti-ist
the pure joy of creating
http://remed.es

"Take life as seriously as a game." A design Legend Bruno Munari

So said Bruno Munari, the brilliant, groundbreaking enfant terrible of Italian art and design.

Picasso called him 'the new Leonardo"; we call him a genius.

Why is he such an influence on us? Because he understands that less is more. The simplicity of a square, a triangle and a circle in primary colours becomes exquisite poetry in his hands through his choice of placement in space, or through the lilt he gives to a curved line.

And because anyone who makes Useless Machines which wag the tail of lazy dogs or which predict dawn is someone whose creative imagination must be explored!

To be uplifted and inspired, to learn from a master, click here

For more info on Bruno Munari, including books about and by him, click here

Images above with thanks from here

A picture tells a thousand words - photo shoot behind the scenes

Yeah, yeah, we've all heard that before. But do you know how?

We've been working with Molmic Furniture for a while now. This family company makes GREAT lounges, the sort that make you want to bring back the siesta (after breakfast...after lunch...arvo tea...you get the idea). And as much as a lounge is about comfort, it's also an expression of its owner's personality. My leather chesterfield is not your velvet-cushioned day-bed. Buying a couch is an emotional decision!

So when we designed Molmic's latest photo shoot (for magazine ads and product brochures) we wanted to express the personality of each lounge. With careful attention to composition, each photo guides the viewer's gaze to the lounge, while the styling around and on the lounge suggests its personality. And there's something for everyone.

Now, after you've checked out the images below, why don't you go and have a little lie down...

Shoot team: Creative concept & Art Direction: Grace Camobreco, Styling Clair Wayman, Photographer Lisa Cohen

Above: Pre-shoot planing, composition and styling mood boards. There is much more to shooting product than just taking pretty pics, the styling needs to enhance & compliment, but not overpower - shot compositions are carefully crafted to lead the eye to the product. Styling needs to be carefully considered to suit the target market - not one's own personal taste.

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Below: the final shots

Is crowd-sourced branding the way of the future?

Coming up with a brand to represent a whole city is no easy task. Not only is city branding a complex and involved process, it is a PR minefield - just look at the controversy that surrounded the recent launch of the City of Melbourne's new visual identity. Critics lambasted the logo as not being representative or reflective of the city.

When London invited pitches for the development of a city brand, to be used globally in the lead up to the Olympics, one agency sought to side step this possible resistance. In developing their pitch, Moving Brands took the unlikely step of inviting the public into the creative process.

The agency established a blog and a Twitter account and called not only for submissions from the public, but for comment as they progressed through the design process.

This type of two-way engagement is common in the social media world and is reflective of an overall shift in public expectations.

While Moving Brands did not ultimately win the tender (that honour went to Saffron Brand Consultants) they did attract quite a lot of attention and support for their approach. This is a trend we're likely to see more of, and one we can all learn something from.

Read the Moving Brands presentation here.

Below: Submissions from the ‘Submit your design‘ section of the "A brand for London" blog.

Concept above by Stephen Walker

Concept above by Paul

Concept above by Mark Allardice.

Below: Moving Brands shared their conceptual exploration real time on the blog & invited feedback from Londoners.

David Downton - A master craftsman

"In order to leave something out, first you have to put it in..."

You know those images that tell you everything, even though the artist has used the smallest amount of ink to convey it? An almost nonchalant line that suggests a face, a hip, a smile, a frown.

This man is a master: David Downton, UK fashion illustrator. If you've ever wanted to understand the concept of negative space, look at his breathtaking work in fashion and portraiture.

Ah, beauty is a wonderful thing!

Click here to view his website & full portfolio

3 DONTs For Mobile Site Development

Top tips from our resident guru Teresa Sperti of Digital Marketing Lab:

According to Morgan Stanley, the mobile internet is expected to be twice the size of the desktop internet within the next 5 years and all because of 5 major forces including 3G + social networking + video + VoIP + impressive mobile devices._In the local market mobile internet usage is growing fast. In fact according to the AIMIA general web browsing via a mobile is on the rise, with 21 per cent of respondents visiting websites from their mobile phones at least once a day._The level of usage has meant in many respects, that Australian companies are behind the times. Organisations are waiting for the year of the mobile, however with 1 in 5 users browsing daily the time has come to get serious about mobile strategy.

As the site is core to any mobile strategy, this article explores the 6 DONT's to help you to deliver a successful and usable mobile site.

1. Don't just mirror your existing site: Building a mobile site is not just about replicating your mobile presence to be suitable for a mobile device. Users will of course be looking to perform core functions that they can do on your site via a desktop however planning a mobile site should begin with defining a user's needs on the move. By doing so organisations are more likely to provide consumers with a useful mobile experience that meets their audience's needs.

2. Don't just build for iPhone: Many marketers make the mistake of assuming that building a mobile site fit for iPhone is enough. Whilst mobile internet penetration is high on the iPhone, it is not the only device that your audience is potentially using.

3. Don't engage a traditional web development company: There are so many challenges with mobile; lots of different handsets, many operating systems, and numerous browser types, which makes the process of site development vary different to web design for PCs. Many web development companies are looking to expand into the mobile space, however they do not have enough knowledge of the complexities to be able to build an effective mobile site.

For more on tips on mobile site development & online marketing visit Digital Marketing Lab

Image above Mark Jenkins street installation "Meaning is overrated"