And I Quote...

“The only important thing about design is how it relates to people.”

~ Victor Papanek

And I Quote...

“Bad design is smoke, while good design is a mirror.”

~ Juan-Carlos Fernàndez

Article - Architect I Love: California’s Brilliant Juancarlos Fernandez
For more on Juan-Carlos Fernàndez, check out the wonderful post by Diane Dorrans Saeks.

Article - 9 Ways To Improve the SEO of Every Website You Design

sixrevisions.com

I just discovered a great article that every web designer should read.  It's by Alex Cleanthous, the Head Strategist & Co-Founder of Web Profits.  He discusses nine excellent techniques for improving the SEO on that site you're working on.

1. Add a blog
2. Add Google Analytics to each page
3. Reduce code bloat
4. Make each page unique
5. Use meta description tags
6. Remove repetitive wording from the website layout
7. Add footer links to every page
8. Create a separate web page for each keyword or keyword phrase
9. Use keyword rich title tags on each page

It's likely that if you are a web designer you've  already known a few of the tips that Alex gives. The article acts as a reminder by detailing why each step is important.

Enjoy!

And I Quote...

“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”

~ John F. Kennedy

Julian Beever - 3D Illusion

© Julian Beever

© Julian Beever

© Julian Beever

Better known as the "chalk man", Julian Beever creates anamorphic* illusions that look like amazing 3 dimensional passages. He's been working with chalk for over 20 years in all different corners of the world. I have only one question...how does he keep them from smearing?

© Julian Beever

© Julian Beever

* Anamorphic: Optics . having or producing unequal magnifications along two axes perpendicular to each other. - http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Anamorphic

And I Quote...

“Design is where science and art break even.”

~ Robin Mathew

And I Quote...

“A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.”

~ John F. Kennedy

Interact Seattle - Immersive Experiences Party

For those of you in web design/UI or development, I recommend checking out the opportunities to network. Interact Seattle is a group of industry professionals that host events that are meant to inspire and connect people. This month they're having an "Immersive Experiences Party". If you can get past the cheesy pictures on their site, the actual event looks like it'll be a great learning experience. They're going to have all sorts of tech from tablets to tables that folks will be able to get hands on with.

WHEN
Date: Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
Time: 7:00pm – 8:30pm

WHERE
[wire] stone seattle eXperience center
100 South King Street
Suite 320
Seattle, WA, 98104
USA 206.653.5143

Half Cybernetic

Concept
© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

And I Quote...

“Design must surprise and inform.”

~ Jennifer Morla

Mattias Adolfsson - From The Sketchbooks

© Mattias Adolfsson 2011.
Image reproduced with the expressed written consent of Mattias Adolfsson.

The Swedish freelance illustrator Mattias Adolfsson thrives within the limitations of his Moleskine sketchbooks. He makes the small space seem like a window into his own playful world of robotic wizards and boot wearing pigs. His subtle use of watercolor furthers the illusion and brings the world to life.

Open publication Images reproduced with the expressed written consent of Mattias Adolfsson.

Mattias Adolfsson's robots are incredibly detailed. A careful viewer will be rewarded with little hidden characters hiding in the plates and wires.

© Mattias Adolfsson 2011.
Image reproduced with the expressed written consent of Mattias Adolfsson.

Random Knife

Object
© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

And I Quote...

“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”

~ Steve Jobs

Jina Bolton and Meagan Fisher - Art in My Coffee

Art and food have a long history together. Now coffee can claim to a be part of that relationship. Jina Bolton and Meagan Fisher are web designers that started this sweet blog that, in their words, is "a collection of foamy awesomeness".

Some design/dev/art observations:

- A sprite was used in a clever way for the header. This is beneficial because it takes less time to load the content on their homepage.
- My first action when I arrived was to try and click on the images to get more information. The problem I ran into was that text appears when I rolled over them which prevented me from clicking. The designers solved this issue by putting a "link" image over the text.
- The colors are warm and friendly and allow the pics to pop.
- Beautiful use of serif fonts!
- I appreciate the FAQ on the site. It seems like they are very open to answering questions from fellow bloggers.
- I can't believe people can make portraits in coffee!

© 2011 Marie Dionne

And now I'm going to grab a cup at the local coffeehouse. Hopefully the barista will be feeling creative!

And I Quote...

“I reject your reality, and substitute my own!”

~ Adam Savage

Sight

© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

And I Quote...

“Highlight the beauty in the ordinary.”

~ Tina Roth Eisenberg

Dreaming

Cat Study
© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

Len Peralta - Geek a Week

©2010-11 LEN PERALTA

Len Peralta's art style has been embraced by the geek community. He has a genius for capturing the character of celebrities in his portraits. He found a way to use that talent and market to the audience that seemingly appreciates him the most by creating trading cards of well-known geeks. One of the best features of these cards are the inventive titles that Len gives his geek heros.

Tina Roth Eisenberg - Tattly™ Tattoos

© 2011 swissmiss shop.

Finally, somebody is filling the need for well designed temporary tattoos. That somebody being Tina Roth Eisenberg, a Swiss designer and the creative director of her very own swissmiss studio in NYC. The tattoos vary from a robot to a pipe smoking rabbit and come straight from the minds of some of the best creatives, including James Victore and the artist Marc Johns.

© 2011 swissmiss shop.

Tina herself gives back to the art world with her well known blog which she started as a way to "highlight the beauty in the ordinary". Her practice of carefully studying the under appreciated objects in our everyday life can lead to inspiration and an enlightened outlook. Try it by actually taking the time to truly see the things that you touch each day or use habitually.

And I Quote...

“A good designer is a great storyteller.”

~ Jennifer Morla

Galaxy Dust

© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

The "Black Eye Galaxy" which is officially known as M64, inspired the creation of this one.

Daft Punk - Interstella 5555

Still love this video. It really reminds me that what I love about the sci-fi genre isn't just the actual science. It's the sense of adventure and the excitement of discovery. The truest of inspiration.

Slightly Mangled

Feather Study
© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

Frozen Planet

© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

I discovered a fun little tutorial that can get you started on creating a planet.

The artist, Greg Martin wrote the guide and seems to have a healthy fascination with space. Be sure to check out the "Experience the Planets Project" on his site. Greg explains it as "our solar system through the eyes of artists".

Lex

© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas

Suspicion

Cat Study
© 2011 A. Nicole Dolas