What I'm reading; It's Nice That Annual 2013

(above images from companyofparrots)

It's probably pretty obvious since my last post that I've become hooked to the work of publication company; it's nice that, but as this 2013 annual clarifies, it's all for a very good reason. Lovingly crafted, the annual brings together some choice work from the websites pages of artists, designers, photographers and other creative people. Cut up into sections, which I still haven't figured out (although one is graduates), the annual so far has provided me with brilliant culture fodder to inspire and warm up my little design heart for the rest of the year. With this in mind I feel it's fitting for 2014 that I post this. 

-Ah! Also important to note is the illustrated cardboard box received upon delivery (see above). Nice, right?

What I'm reading; Brownbook

Brownbook

WE LIVED book

Beautiful book by Rona Binay part of which documents tea stains oh so lovingly - yes tea stains.

(i love this girl's portoflio ronabinay.com)

Grpahics; Atlas of Remote Islands

Sketch Book

 

Learning from Las Vegas and Postmodernism

fr
"Learning from Las Vegas created a healthy controversy on its appearance in 1972, calling for architects to be more receptive to the tastes and values of "common" people and less immodest in their erections of "heroic," self-aggrandizing monuments. "

"The strip, they argued, with its riot of billboards and neon, was (literally) a place of signs rather than things, where the buildings were only a minor part of an environment of semiotic seductions, designed to be legible to a person travelling by at 35mph.

The world of signs is fast, liquid, delirious, disposable. Clever people approach it with scepticism. Sincerity is out. Irony is in. And style. If modernism was about substance, about serious design solving serious problems, postmodernism was all manner and swagger and stance."

upper strip 1968

from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2011/sep/15/postmodernism-cutting-edge-to-museum
images: http://mcculleydesign.posterous.com/?tag=lasvegas

stardust hotel

101 things every architecture student buys into

So I've finally succumbed and bought into the '101 things every Architecture student should know' book. When I first encountered this pocket sized oracle I imagined it would just be full of nonsensical and generic architectural nonsense made to overcomplicate simple subjects and fool naive students such as myself into buying into a whole list (101 to be precise) of architectural tips. Now though, after about 6 months into this overcomplicated subject it seems that such a book is actually quite fitting. How was I supposed to know 6 months from now that I would be reading a subject that actually required you to learn how to think, to learn how to see and finally to learn how to glue things in an orderly and precise fashion. Yes, sometimes I do find myself wondering what I've got myself into, but then I just sit back, envisage London or Mozambique or even Portugal, juxtaposed with images of people wearing ties in a Barclays somewhere and think...this seems alright.

Meh, from what I can see it seems like a nice investment (especially for only £3.65 on amazon). Not to mention the numerous positive reviews. I just hope that my suspicions aren't entirely right and I don't just end up like this guy (below)

pictures via (http://www.habitables.co.uk)

ballet shoes

the birthday vow :
"We three Fossils vow to try and put our names in history books because it's our very own and nobody can say it's because of our grandfathers"

"In the book all of the characters, one way or the other, go towards making a family for the children, convincingly opening up so many different horizons and options that as a kid you longed to live in such a mad-cap house yourself"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2008/jan/02/thebbcshouldtakeitsballet