Idee Labs

Filtering your search by color is becoming quite popular. Google just released this functionality about a month ago. But, Idée is doing some fantastic research on image association. Check out their labs where you can filter Flickr images by compounding color, find similar images based on composition, and even upload your own photo for a content-aware search.....amazing.

Swiss graphic design comes to America

Thursday, May 14, 2009
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Irving Auditorium
Graphic Design student awards ceremony to follow!

call for KCAI aiga student group officer nominations

Interested in getting more involved with aiga? Email me this week.

> programming: Coordinates and plans events and activities
> communications: Coordinates and creates promotional materials for events
> membership: Promotes new membership and coordinate volunteers
> treasurer: Directs fund raising activities and coordinates money distribution
> board representative: acts as liaison between and advocate for kc board and kcai student group

What two CCA students did after graduation...

"ok, so you’ve graduated from design school. Now what? For 24-year-old Andre Andreev and 27-year-old G. Dan Covert, the answer was to start up a studio, dress code, and write a book about the experience of transitioning from school to work." Read the rest of the article here.

GD 2009 SENIOR SHOW

OPENING RECEPTION / FRIDAY MAY 1, 6–9 PM SENIOR EXHIBITION / MAY 1–17

FOUR YEARS AGO is a culmination of work created by senior graphic design students from the Kansas City Art Institute. It is an opportunity to celebrate four years of academic accomplishment. The show features a range of self-defined projects illuminating new visual and conceptual strategies for communication. Student projects demonstrate the critical role of design in educating, entertaining, and persuading a range of audiences in diverse contexts. Location: Kansas City Design Center 1018 Baltimore Ave. Kansas City, MO 64105

www.fouryearsago.com

advertising internship

BURN Advertising, has an opening for a part-time internship. This is a non-paid position, expected 15-20 hour a week dedication.

www.wowthatburns.com. Their website does not show any work so I'm unsure of the type of or quality of projects produced there, however, they state in their job announcement that your learning experiences include:

• graphic design (identity development, brochures, event materials, websites)
• creative concepting
• project management
• client presentations
• art production
• branding

To apply, please contact:
Sarah Kelsey
Brand Evangelist / Creative Director
BURN Advertising
913.481.6630

Bruce Mau Lecture Highlights

I know many of you did not get the chance to make the 45 minute trek to Lawrence for the Bruce Mau lecture, but I took notes on some things that he said which I thought were particularly interesting.

"We don't say this is how we do it, we say these are the tools."
He was talking about design not being as solution that you come up with somewhere else in an office and then give to people, but something that you co-create with them in order for it to have more meaning for them.

"Imagine, we can make the world a teaching experience."

"Current education deadens our sense of wonder fro the creative world."
Once you learn how the trick is done, not only are you no longer impressed by that trick, but skeptical of all subsequent tricks.

"If everyone lived like Americans we would need 4 additional earths to accommodate the resources we consume."

"Most inventions fail because the context isn't ready."

"Design is matter and energy combined with intelligence, creating delight and leaving matter behind. what we have to do is create something out of what is left behind."
I thought that was a interesting definition for design, but entirely true. It is a lack of doing things with what is left behind that is one of the reasons Americans would need four additional Earths.

"Words fall down."

Lunch Lecture :: Joe Cavallero :: Wed 4/22

Bring yourselves and your lunches to Futura this Wednesday when
Joe Cavallaro comes from Payless for this weeks Lunch Lecture. If I'm not mistaken, he will also pitch the Payless Summer Internship after his lecture. So, don't miss it!

Comic Sans has made it to the Wall Street Journal

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123992364819927171.html?mod=yhoofront

Thanks to Bryan Jones for the link.

Type Nesting

Do birds have a favorite font?

On critiques

Khoi Vinh talks about critiques (& lack there of). Thoughts?

DESIGN THE 4th BIN competition

www.4thbin.org

What if there were an easy way for Businesses and individuals in New York City to dispose of all of their E waste? What if there was a 4th Bin?

Prizes:
Logo Design
1st Place: $1,500.00
2nd Place: $500.00

BIN Design
1st Place: $3,000.00
2nd Prize: $1,000.00

Online Submissions Accepted: May 1, 2009
Registration Deadline: June 19, 2009

Webby Awards

Check out this year's nominees for the Webby Awards.

"The Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet. Established in 1996 during the Web's infancy, the Webbys are presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 550-member body of leading Web experts, business figures, luminaries, visionaries and creative celebrities."

Where your tax dollars go info graphic

Your tax dollars

Inspirational online conferences

You all know and love the TED conference videocasts (and if you don't know about them, you should!). Also, another great set of videocasts that relate to design (specifically focused on future science & technology) are available from the Pop!Tech conference. Check them out. There's also videocasts of the Walker Art Center lectures.

AIGA National Conference

I highly encourage AIGA student members to consider attending the AIGA Make/Think conference next October in Memphis. It's something worth experiencing.

Of note: our very own Meredith Adams is going to be a behind-the-scenes volunteer. Congrats Meredith!

Register before May 20th (1- month) to get the best rate! Get more info here.

GAP SCHOLARSHIP COMPETITION/INTERNSHIP PROGRAM SUMMER 2009

"The Gap Inc. NY Product Development Summer Internship Program is a 10 week, paid, robust internship experience for students who have completed their junior year (degree expected 2010). The program provides selected students a unique and engaging learning opportunity and it allows our designers to share their knowledge and experience with the design industry's future leaders. The program fosters exploration, creativity, development, and teamwork for all those involved. Lastly, and very importantly, the program is a pipeline for entry-level creative talent at Gap."

The Graphic Design Internship focuses on Kids/Toddlers Graphic Ts. More info here.

Thanks Kristy, for sharing the info.

Upcoming graphic design student exhibitions

In addition to KCAI, other local area schools will be having their own senior graphic design shows at the end of the year.

Here is a listing of the show locations and dates (plus from here you can view each school's promotional website, as well as links to some of the student's personal portfolio sites).

Hey dude, cool infograph

Edward Tufte, a leading authority on the display of quantitative information, is very explicit in stating that any graphic elements not in support of content are superfluous. "chart junk" is the term used to describe excessive attention to aesthetics over clearly representing meaningful visual associations between data.

That doesn't leave much room for distinct personal flair. Do you believe, as Tufte does, that "best practice" should be strictly adhered to when it comes to displaying information, or is there some room for more expressive form?

little pieces of yourself all over the world

the recent lecture blog culture + technology integration at KCAI by Jamie and Michael brings up some interesting questions about transparency. the faculty's contention is that a social media component to design education is a healthy and community building development, but I frequently wonder what the implications of too much transparency might be.

I think that there is the potential for great psychological vulnerability that comes with this constant assumption of an audience. Everytime I publish any information about myself, I have to consider that it's accessible to my peers, educators, family, potential employers...


...and anybody with an internet connection really, like this individual from Vietnam who recently visited my website. It's daunting enough that I have to worry about the way people perceive me in my everyday dealings, much less strangers in South East Asia. The development of a personal "online presence" really brings a whole new meaning to self-consciousness.

does anyone feel the least bit timid at the prospect of being exposed to anonymous scrutiny?

should greater public exposure really be a priority in the formative stages of a design education?

archie scott gobber

archie is an adjunct professor here at kcai who makes sweet sweet typographic paintings. he occasionally teaches electives related to painting and type, although i have not seen the results of said electives. regardless, he currently has a huge painting at the kemper, and some work in the "review" studio, and much of his work involves clever word-play.

check out his website here. quite cool.

words words words

This past month Jessica Bayer has had the privilege of being the teaching assistant of Steve Whitacre's workshop entitled Words, Words, Words. Tomorrow, Wednesday, will be the exhibition opening from 6-9 at night and Jessica wanted to extend an invitation to all of you to attend and see the visual projection pieces that were created. It will be in the Irving building. The exhibit will be up all week.

Graphic Design Seniors Launch Site

Check out the seniors' self-initiated, collective site for their degree projects. You can even download their custom typeface!

http://www.fouryearsago.com

self-analysis

Daytum, co-developed by Nicholas Felton of FELTRON fame, is a web application for collecting and communicating personal statistical data.

I've recently begun interacting with this application in hopes to make good on my claims to quality as a creative professional. Quantitative evidence is a compelling way to verify just how dedicated you are to developing skills, although it's easier to apply that principal to something like time spent with adobe CS software as opposed to time spent thinking critically. Self-documentation can be pretty tedious too, and I sometimes wonder if the time spent keeping track of how much I'm working isn't actually inhibiting me from working.

How much can you really tell about a person by their time investments? Is this quantitative method of presenting yourself overly reductive? Can you really put too much stock in numbers?

Obi Wan never told you what really happened to the alphabet.

(via swissmiss via H&FJ)

Lunch Lecture: "Why do they do the things they do?"

Michael and I will present and Q&A on "Technology Integration and Blog Culture". This is the presentation we gave at the conference: "Future History 3: 21st century curriculum, Chicago".

April 8th, 10:40-11:30

Also featuring: video by Ian and Gerg

When it comes to finding a job (lecture)

Sam Shelton: It’s All About the PR // Thursday, April 23 at the University of Kansas // JRP 150, 6:30 p.m.

press release:
"It’s all about the PR. When it comes to finding a job, no matter where you are in the arc of your career, it all comes down to having good PR. PR, in this case, is professional relationships. After all, the classic PR, or public relations is really about relationship building. It’s not just about what you send out, but about how you present the whole package: your work, your creative process, your inspiration, and your personality. Be ready—you’re beginning a process that continues throughout your entire career. The main message is that designers need to become master storytellers. Design is about storytelling—and selling yourself is an extension of that. Sam shares stories from designers from around the country that have to do with creating a communications strategy for yourself.

Sam Shelton is a founding partner of KINETIK, a Washington,DC-based graphic design firm. His passion for the power of design shows in each project he directs and through his volunteer efforts both locally and nationally with AIGA. Sam is a past AIGA National Board member, as well as a past president and past board member of AIGA’s DC Chapter and currently serves on the AIGA DC advisory board. Recently, Sam received the AIGA Fellow award for his significant contributions to raising the standards of excellence in practice and conduct within the design community. Sam is an adjunct faculty member at the Corcoran Museum College of Art + Design in Washington and a member of the design curriculum advisory committee for Communication Design at Northern Virginia Community College. He earned a BFA in Communication Arts and Design from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond."

Selected for Made In Space Internship

Big congrats to Josh Eithun,
who will be in
Los Angeles this summer
working for
alumnus, April Greiman.

http://www.madeinspace.la/MadeInSpace.html

bruce mau speaking at KU wed, april 8

BRUCE MAU
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8
7:30 P.M.
WOODRUFF AUDITORIUM IN THE KANSAS UNION / UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Excerpts from KU Press Release:
Mau authored the groundbreaking 2004 book "Massive Change" (Phaidon Press), which has become nothing short of a design cult movement. For many, "Massive Change" effectively defines the progressive ethos that has infiltrated 21st century creativity.