closed

I’ve decided to close this blog for the time being. Most of my blogging time is dedicated to the online design magazine Notes on Design, leaving little time to organise my own blog. All current content and links will remain but I will no longer be updating it.

I have some interesting projects for the start of 2011, which will keep me busy and as time goes on I’m intending to re-design my current website, which will include an integrated blog so I won’t be gone for long. In the mean time you can find me at the following; E-mail / Twitter / Linkedin / Flickr / Tumblr / Portolio

Farewell and thanks for reading.

Filed under: Closed

Simply Sublime, Simply Blanka

(Unix Timestamp – New Year 2009 by Arrival)

Many Graphic Designers will undoubtedly be aware of Blanka – the library of original, vintage and limited editions prints from exclusive artists, designers and photographers. For me, Blanka is more than just a place to buy a beautiful print, it’s an evolving collection of classic design and visual communication that not only inspires but adds to the curiosity I have for art and design.

Filed under: Graphic Design, Blanka, Communication, Graphic Design, Posters, Print, Typography

DAYTUM data capture at it’s most beautiful

As part of my plan to keep myself organised, I’ve decided to evaluate how I spend my time, whether it’s productive or not and what I spend most of my time doing. Hopefully this will help me to re-organise and re-prioritise certain activities so that I can become more efficient and more productive. To help me along with this I’ve called for some assistance from the guys at DAYTUM.

DAYTUM conceived by Nicholas Felton and Ryan Case is a data collection site, that allows you to find out exactly how you use your time. Not only does it enable you to capture data simply and quickly, it allows you to communicate that information in a range of graphic displays.

I discovered DAYTUM over a year ago, but at that time didn’t have a specific use for it. However, with the advent of an app for your iphone and an application for twitter it’s even easier and quicker to update, allowing you to live stream what you’re doing instantly.

DAYTUM gives you the ability to create an account where you can store your data online and allows you to browse through member profiles this means that you can interact with users and see exactly how they’re spending their time too.

There are many data capture sites online, but as a graphic designer it’s the first one I’ve found that is both simple and beautiful to use. You can follow my time at daytum.com/davecuvelot

Filed under: Design, Observations, Social Networking, data collection, Daytum, information graphics

HEY HO

Paris based HEY HO Studio was created in 2007 by French graphic designers Julien Hourcade and Thomas Petitjean. Over the past three years they have built an incredible portfolio of work including editorial publications, book and poster design, photography and installation.

Their website offers a great showcase of that work and demonstrates a seemingly natural ability to develop beautifully composed and produced graphic design. Their love for Helvetica is hard not to notice, but when you consider the range of work they have produced its admirable. Their ability to use one typeface in such a variety of ways may reinforce the belief for some, and echo sentiments raised in Gary Hustwitt “Helvetica – The Film”, that all you need is one typeface.

Regardless of your belief in Helvetica (or not), a visit to HEY HO Studio will surely leave you with a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

Oh, and if you have a copy of Grafik no:159 handy, they’re in there too!

Filed under: Graphic Design, Observations, Graphic Design, Hey Ho, Hey Ho Studio, Paris

We Are The People – Film Screening

On Tuesday 9^th February, communications and creative intelligence advocate Kate Andrews will be hosting a free screening of the recent feature film “We Are The People We’ve Been Waiting For”. Inspired and guided by Lord David Puttnam, the film takes an in-depth look at the state of the British Education system and demands that the system requires fundamental change in order to keep up with the rapidly changing world we live in.

The event has been organised by Dr Morgan Phillps and Limina and the screening will be held at the Arcola Theatre in North London from 16:30-18:30. Places are open to anyone who is interested in seeing the film and joining the discussion but capacity is limited so you better RSVP quickly to secure your seat.

If the trailer isn’t enough to grab you, I’ve also been informed that free tea and cakes will be served during the event!

To book a place, please email rsvp@limina.org.uk

Filed under: Design Events, Graduates, Students, Creativity, Education, Kate Andrews, Lord Puttnam, Morgan Phillips, Screening, We Are the People

The Future’s Creative

Happy New Year to you all! I hope the New Year has brought you happiness and promise. After a month or two of inactivity the New Year is upon me, offering a chance to reflect on my achievements and an opportunity to look ahead at the possibilities and challenges to come.

The past two months have been pretty hectic. As a graduate of 2009 who didn’t fall into work within the creative sector straight after university I have needed to find some form of employment in order to survive (without which, I surely would have succumbed to starvation).

Filed under: Graduates, Graphic Design, Observations, Dave Cuvelot, Graduate Experience, Graphic Designer

Signs of Revolt: Festival of Radical Communication

Excitingly, I am making my way back to London tomorrow. My initial purpose for the said visit will be to attend the opening night of “Signs of Revolt”, an exhibition organised by Noel Douglas and Tony Credland, intended to show how graphic design has connected with social movements over the past 50 years.

Filed under: Design Events, Graphic Design, Jonathan Barnbrook, Noel Douglas, Signs of Revolt, Tony Credland

The Bigger Picture for a Brighter Tomorrow

As promised, here’s the story of my return to London and The Bigger Picture: Festival of Interdependence.

Arriving in London on a damp but fresh autumn morning I crossed over the murky waters of the Thames from Embankment on the Hungerford footbridge and made my way towards the Oxo Tower, confident and excited about the possibilities the day would offer.

As I passed through the Oxo Tower, I found myself in front of an iconic figure of the industrial age. The Barge House is a magnificent structure; the embodiment of history, and on Saturday was set to host some of the greatest minds examining the current social, economic, political and environmental challenges that face us today. The location couldn’t have been better, a relic of the industrial revolution that was to stand as a relic of a new revolution, a revolution for good, a part of ‘The Great Transition’.

Filed under: Design Conferences, Design Events, Social Design, Bigger Picture Festival, Great Transition, Interdependence, nef, New Economics, New Economics Foundation, The Bigger Picture

The Price of D&AD New Blood

I’ve been to a few design exhibitions and lectures in my time, not many, but enough to have an idea of what goes on at these types of events, as a spectator. To date, my only taste as a contributor came from exhibiting at D&AD New Blood at London’s Old Billingsgate Market earlier this year.

As a design graduate, New Blood certainly appears to be a great way to extend yourself into the design world, pitching to offer opportunities to not only meet other design students, but more importantly to meet Designers (with a capital D) – the intent being that those all-important connections will land you, the graduate, ‘a job’.

Filed under: Design Conferences, Design Graduates, Design Students, Graphic Design, D&AD, Dave Cuvelot, Design, Design and Art Direction, Design Career, Designer, Graduates, Graphic Design, New Blood

Jumping into The Bigger Picture

On Saturday 24th October, this month’s Bigger Picture Festival (organised by the New Economics Foundation) draws to a close with the main attraction of the programme – The Bigger Picture: Festival of Interdependence. Within the confines of the Bargehouse, on London’s South Bank, the Bigger Picture are hosting a series of events, workshops and talks, designed to open discussions surrounding the current social, economic, political and environmental challenges that face us today.

Filed under: Design, Design Events, Social Design, Social Networking, Bigger Picture Festival, London, New Economics Foundation, The Bigger Picture