WEEKLY EMAIL: MARCH 01, 2012

FEATURED THIS WEEK : JESSICA HELFAND

The Ezra Winter Project: Chapter Two

In 1911, Ezra Winter marries, wins the Rome Prize, and heads to Europe for three years of study and travel: ridiculously young, instantly celebrated and hungry for adventure, he is also stunningly blind to the explosive shifts in visual expression around him in what were, arguably, among the most fertile years of the new century.
READ MORE

PLACES : ALEXANDRA LANGE

How to Be an Architecture Critic

We’re surrounded by buildings, says Alexandra Lange, but we don’t know how to talk about them. We chat about real estate instead of having a real conversation about the urban environment. As architecture criticism fades in the daily newspapers, it’s time we take matters into our own hands: “We need more citizen critics,” she writes, “equipped with the desire and the vocabulary to remake the city.” So how do we learn how to talk about buildings? Lange suggests starting with “Sometimes We Do It Right,” Ada Louise Huxtable's classic review of the Marine Midland Bank Building in New York.
READ MORE

OBSERVERS ROOM : JOHN THACKARA

Zurich Eco Lab

Zurich has a thriving urban eco culture: tweleve working organic farms, a biodiversity project so large it's called "Seed City", over 1,200 edible plants native to the city, 1,224 water fountains, and numerous businesses and organizations supporting green, renewable food and energy sources. A report on Zurich discovered in planning a "social harvest festival that will reconnect Zurich with its natural ecosystems and grassroots social innovators".
READ MORE

FROM OUR SPONSORS

This spring Sappi is hosting a national road show, in collaboration with 826 National, to launch Special Effects, Volume 5 of The Standard. Issue 5 shows designers how the creative use of special effects can make a printed piece dimensional, tactile, intriguing and sometimes interactive. The next event is on March 7 in Los Angeles.
More about Volume 5 of The Standard >>
View the road show schedule and registration details >>
Find out more about Sappi here >>

Study graphic design and typography this summer in Rome: the birthplace of the Western typographic tradition is a not-to-be-missed experience. A unique way to learn about type, book & lettering design, as well as architecture, art, archeology, epigraphy & even Italian cuisine.
Masters Workshop >>
Study with some of the best designers in Italy >>
SVA Website >>

OBSERVATORY : ADRIAN SHAUGHNESSY

When Less Really Does Mean Less

Lower unemployment numbers and the Dow cracking 13,000 has some of the more starry-eyed pundits claiming the economy's finally getting its legs back. But since the banking crisis of 2008, business has been anything but "as usual" – including the business of design. The economy coupled with the relentless rise of social media outlets has designers worrying about their own economic shutdown. Is less is the new normal?
READ MORE

PLACES : BELMONT FREEMAN

What Is It About the Art Schools?

For years the Cuban National Art Schools in Havana have been attracting the attention and admiration of architects worldwide. Belmont Freeman argues that the dramatic story of this remarkable complex — begun in the heady early days of Castro's revolution, abandoned and left to ruin, and rediscovered decades later — has served unwittingly to obscure the larger and richer narrative of post-revolutionary architecture in Cuba.
READ MORE

OBSERVATORY : JOHN FOSTER

Accidental Mysteries, 02.26.12

Accidental Mysteries, a weekly cabinet of visual curiosities curated by John Foster, highlights images of design, art, architecture and ephemera brought to light by the magic of the digital age. This week's focus is firearms.
READ MORE

OBSERVERS ROOM : RICK POYNOR

John McHale and the Expendable Ikon

A new book collecting Independent Group member John McHale’s writings describes him as artist, graphic designer, information theorist, architectural critic, sociologist and futurist. This should immediately identify him as a forerunner of the kind of super-versatile, shape-shifting maker and thinker that many contemporary figures in art and design aspire to be. It’s time to reassess an innovator who deserves to be much better known.
READ MORE

OBSERVER MEDIA : DEBBIE MILLMAN

Karl Heiselman

In this audio interview with Debbie Millman, Wolff Olins CEO Karl Heiselman discusses the controversial London 2012 logo, designing the culture of Wolff Olins and his views on branding and popularity.
READ MORE

OBSERVERS ROOM : ROB WALKER

Dance About Architecture (Please)

"Dancing about architecture" is supposed to be a dismissive swipe at a certain kind of writing. The problem, to me, has always been that “dancing about architecture” sounds perfectly awesome. What a great thing to do! If the dancing, or the writing, results in genuinely fresh expression, that’s not pointless or invalid — it’s creativity.
READ MORE

PLACES : DAVID SCHALLIOL

A Method of Living

For several years sociologist David Schalliol has been documenting the dramatic transformation of public housing in Chicago — the demolitions of the city's infamous projects and their replacement with mixed-income communities. Following Lawrence Vale's account of the troubled saga of public housing development in Chicago from earlier this week, we're pleased to present a slideshow of Schalliol's photographs.
READ MORE

BECOME A FAN ON FACEBOOK | FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

MFA in Interaction Design at the School of Visual Arts
Apply today >>

Sappi and 826 National debuts The Standard 5: Special Effects and you're invited.
Get New York tickets >>

An Annual Celebration of Excellence, Enterprise and Intent
Visit Core77 >>

Design Indaba and COMMON present "A party to fix the world".
Learn More >>

AUDIO: DESIGN MATTERS ARCHIVE

Jan Wilker & Hjalti Karlsson

Jan Wilker & Hjalti Karlsson of karlssonwilker are designers and authors of Tell Me Why.
Listen >>
More Design Matters Archive >>

CHANGE OBSERVER: PROJECT ARCHIVE

One World Futbol

Report on One World Futbol produced by Hope Is a Game-Changer.
READ MORE

OBSERVATORY ARCHIVE

Ray & Charles

On ITC Garamond

Design in the Way

PLACES ARCHIVE: WINTER 2005

Campus Design as Critical Practice

How to turn a lackluster midwestern campus into an international cultural destination.
READ MORE

CHANGE OBSERVER: RESOURCES

Academic Programs >>
Competitions >>
Conferences & Events >>
Fellowships & Prizes >>
Organizations >>
Programs & Initiatives >>
Publications & Websites >>
Social Networks >>

RECENT BOOKS RECEIVED

Design with the Other 90%: Cities
Cynthia E. Smith

The Electric Information Age Book: Mcluhan/Agel/Fiore and the Experimental Paperback
Jeffrey Schnapp, Adam Michaels

Why the Law Is So Perverse
Leo Katz


WEEKLY EMAIL: MARCH 01, 2012
FEATURED THIS WEEK : JESSICA HELFAND The Ezra Winter Project: Chapter Two In 1911, Ezra Winter marries, wins the Rome Prize, and heads to Europe for three years of study and travel: ridiculously young, instantly celebrated and hungry for adventure, he is also stunningly blind to the explosive shifts in visual expression around him in what were, arguably, among the most fertile years of the new century. READ MORE
PLACES : ALEXANDRA LANGE How to Be an Architecture Critic We’re surrounded by buildings, says Alexandra Lange, but we don’t know how to talk about them. We chat about real estate instead of having a real conversation about the urban environment. As architecture criticism fades in the daily newspapers, it’s time we take matters into our own hands: “We need more citizen critics,” she writes, “equipped with the desire and the vocabulary to remake the city.” So how do we learn how to talk about buildings? Lange suggests starting with “Sometimes We Do It Right,” Ada Louise Huxtable's classic review of the Marine Midland Bank Building in New York. READ MORE OBSERVERS ROOM : JOHN THACKARA Zurich Eco Lab Zurich has a thriving urban eco culture: tweleve working organic farms, a biodiversity project so large it's called "Seed City", over 1,200 edible plants native to the city, 1,224 water fountains, and numerous businesses and organizations supporting green, renewable food and energy sources. A report on Zurich discovered in planning a "social harvest festival that will reconnect Zurich with its natural ecosystems and grassroots social innovators". READ MORE FROM OUR SPONSORS This spring Sappi is hosting a national road show, in collaboration with 826 National, to launch Special Effects, Volume 5 of The Standard. Issue 5 shows designers how the creative use of special effects can make a printed piece dimensional, tactile, intriguing and sometimes interactive. The next event is on March 7 in Los Angeles. More about Volume 5 of The Standard >> View the road show schedule and registration details >> Find out more about Sappi here >> Study graphic design and typography this summer in Rome: the birthplace of the Western typographic tradition is a not-to-be-missed experience. A unique way to learn about type, book & lettering design, as well as architecture, art, archeology, epigraphy & even Italian cuisine. Masters Workshop >> Study with some of the best designers in Italy >> SVA Website >> OBSERVATORY : ADRIAN SHAUGHNESSY When Less Really Does Mean Less Lower unemployment numbers and the Dow cracking 13,000 has some of the more starry-eyed pundits claiming the economy's finally getting its legs back. But since the banking crisis of 2008, business has been anything but "as usual" – including the business of design. The economy coupled with the relentless rise of social media outlets has designers worrying about their own economic shutdown. Is less is the new normal? READ MORE PLACES : BELMONT FREEMAN What Is It About the Art Schools? For years the Cuban National Art Schools in Havana have been attracting the attention and admiration of architects worldwide. Belmont Freeman argues that the dramatic story of this remarkable complex — begun in the heady early days of Castro's revolution, abandoned and left to ruin, and rediscovered decades later — has served unwittingly to obscure the larger and richer narrative of post-revolutionary architecture in Cuba. READ MORE OBSERVATORY : JOHN FOSTER Accidental Mysteries, 02.26.12 Accidental Mysteries, a weekly cabinet of visual curiosities curated by John Foster, highlights images of design, art, architecture and ephemera brought to light by the magic of the digital age. This week's focus is firearms. READ MORE OBSERVERS ROOM : RICK POYNOR John McHale and the Expendable Ikon A new book collecting Independent Group member John McHale’s writings describes him as artist, graphic designer, information theorist, architectural critic, sociologist and futurist. This should immediately identify him as a forerunner of the kind of super-versatile, shape-shifting maker and thinker that many contemporary figures in art and design aspire to be. It’s time to reassess an innovator who deserves to be much better known. READ MORE OBSERVER MEDIA : DEBBIE MILLMAN Karl Heiselman In this audio interview with Debbie Millman, Wolff Olins CEO Karl Heiselman discusses the controversial London 2012 logo, designing the culture of Wolff Olins and his views on branding and popularity. READ MORE OBSERVERS ROOM : ROB WALKER Dance About Architecture (Please) "Dancing about architecture" is supposed to be a dismissive swipe at a certain kind of writing. The problem, to me, has always been that “dancing about architecture” sounds perfectly awesome. What a great thing to do! If the dancing, or the writing, results in genuinely fresh expression, that’s not pointless or invalid — it’s creativity. READ MORE PLACES : DAVID SCHALLIOL A Method of Living For several years sociologist David Schalliol has been documenting the dramatic transformation of public housing in Chicago — the demolitions of the city's infamous projects and their replacement with mixed-income communities. Following Lawrence Vale's account of the troubled saga of public housing development in Chicago from earlier this week, we're pleased to present a slideshow of Schalliol's photographs. READ MORE		BECOME A FAN ON FACEBOOK \| FOLLOW US ON TWITTER MFA in Interaction Design at the School of Visual Arts Apply today >> Sappi and 826 National debuts The Standard 5: Special Effects and you're invited. Get New York tickets >> An Annual Celebration of Excellence, Enterprise and Intent Visit Core77 >> Design Indaba and COMMON present "A party to fix the world". Learn More >> AUDIO: DESIGN MATTERS ARCHIVE Jan Wilker & Hjalti Karlsson Jan Wilker & Hjalti Karlsson of karlssonwilker are designers and authors of Tell Me Why. Listen >> More Design Matters Archive >> CHANGE OBSERVER: PROJECT ARCHIVE One World Futbol Report on One World Futbol produced by Hope Is a Game-Changer. READ MORE OBSERVATORY ARCHIVE Ray & Charles On ITC Garamond Design in the Way PLACES ARCHIVE: WINTER 2005 Campus Design as Critical Practice How to turn a lackluster midwestern campus into an international cultural destination. READ MORE CHANGE OBSERVER: RESOURCES Academic Programs >> Competitions >> Conferences & Events >> Fellowships & Prizes >> Organizations >> Programs & Initiatives >> Publications & Websites >> Social Networks >> RECENT BOOKS RECEIVED Design with the Other 90%: Cities Cynthia E. Smith The Electric Information Age Book: Mcluhan/Agel/Fiore and the Experimental Paperback Jeffrey Schnapp, Adam Michaels Why the Law Is So Perverse Leo Katz
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