WEEKLY EMAIL: JUNE 08, 2012

FEATURED THIS WEEK : MICHAEL BIERUT

I Love the 80s

On Sunday, September 16, 1984, everything changed. There had been stylish productions before, but none exhibited the obsession with surface gloss that characterised the cop show that debuted that evening: Miami Vice. It was common knowledge that the show's production designers had been issued a blanket edict: "No earth tones," and every aesthetic decision had to conform — or else. As much as any design artifact, the show defined an era.
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OBSERVATORY : RICK POYNOR

On My Shelf: A History of the Machine

Erik Nitsche’s A History of the Machine is one of the most beautifully measured and visually lucid books I own. It belongs to a highly collectable series of 24 volumes titled The New Illustrated Library of Science and Invention, launched in 1962 in Geneva by his company, Erik Nitsche International. The books are landmarks of modern, low-cost, mass-market, educational publication design that have rarely been surpassed.
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PLACES : LANCE HOSEY

The Shape of Green: Aesthetic Imperatives

Will new technology — cleaner energy, advanced materials, etc. — help us to live more lightly on the planet? Or merely enable us to pursue unsustainable lifestyles ever more efficiently? Lance Hosey argues that we've been focusing too much on the promise of technology and not enough on the reshaping of our aesthetic desires. "We have yet to face the underlying social and cultural circumstances that caused the environmental crisis," he writes. "How do we align what we crave with what we have?"
READ MORE

NEWS FROM DESIGN OBSERVER GROUP SPONSORS

Enter the Sappi Ideas that Matter competition - an annual, innovative grant program that provides monetary support to produce the creative ideas of designers working for social good. Sappi established the Ideas that Matter grant program to recognize and support designers who donate their time and talent to create communications materials for a wide range of charitable activities.
More about Ideas that Matter >>
Watch Doug Hebert an inspiration junkie >>
Find out more about Sappi here >>

Learn to be a design critic through SVA's D-Crit program. Design as subject matter, criticism as a literary genre and the range of tools with which to practice design criticism.
Watch videos of presentations by the Class of 2011 >>
The D-Crit Program >>
SVA Website >>

OBSERVATORY : JOHN THACKARA

Why White Is Wicked

What's wrong with a plain white t-shirt? Well, for starters it took 700 gallons of fresh water to make. And the process that whitened it is toxic. And the fibers it's made from account for a quarter of all the insecticides in the world.
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OBSERVATORY : MARK LAMSTER

The Occupy Movement's Accidental Monument

The ArcelorMittal Orbit — the name just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? — may just be my favorite new building, though not because it's a particularly rational work of architecture, or even good. It's fairly ridiculous and easily parodied. An eyesore? "That's what they said about the Eiffel Tower," claim its defenders, on cue. There is something slighly charming in its deranged, roller-coaster ugliness, but let's not kid ourselves.
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PLACES : DAVID HEYMANN

An Un-flushable Urinal: Thoughts on the Aesthetic Potential of Sustainability

What is the "radical aesthetic potential" of sustainable design? "For architects, this might not seem the central focus of sustainability," writes David Heymann, "but it is indirectly, and perhaps should be explicitly." Drawing on examples from Leonardo to Duchamp to Peter Zumthor, Heymann explores the still unmet challenge of developing a new aesthetic ideal inspired by the evolving technologies of sustainability.
READ MORE

OBSERVATORY : JOHN FOSTER

Bumbos, Swirlys and a Chinese Birdcage: A Snapshot of Marbles

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 marbles.
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OBSERVATORY : ROB WALKER

The Infrastructure of the Cloud

The digital delights we access from computer and smartphone and tablet screens certainly look and feel like obliterators of all things physical. They free us from the smudgy daily paper and bulky boxes of albums and the sprawly local mall. But there's plenty of materiality behind this thing we call "the cloud."
READ MORE

BECOME A FAN ON FACEBOOK | FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

Meaningful work is creating impact. A positive future is taking shape.
Submit your proposal >>

D-Crit: Design as subject matter. Criticism as literary genre.
Learn at SVA >>

A quarterly magazine of art and culture
Read more >>

Designers and leaders talk innovation in healthcare.
Join us >>

AUDIO: DESIGN MATTERS ARCHIVE

Dave Eggers

Founder of McSweeny's and author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, You Shall Know Our Velocity! and What Is The What.
Listen >>
More Design Matters Archive >>

CHANGE OBSERVER: PROJECT ARCHIVE

Peepoobag

Report on Peepoobag, a new self-sanitizing, single-use, biodegradable container for human waste.
READ MORE

OBSERVATORY ARCHIVE

Gail's Collection

High Priority

Design Thinking?

PLACES ARCHIVE: WINTER 2006

Seattle Central Library: Civic Architecture in the Age of Media

In the Seattle Public Library, Rem Koolhaas and OMA work to transform architecture into media interface.
READ MORE

RECENT BOOKS RECEIVED

Clog: Apple
Kyle May, editor

You Can

You Can't Change China, China Changes You
John Van De Water

Giancarlo De Carlo: Inspiration & Process in Architecture
Francesca Serrazanetti & Matteo Schubert, editors


WEEKLY EMAIL: JUNE 08, 2012
FEATURED THIS WEEK : MICHAEL BIERUT I Love the 80s On Sunday, September 16, 1984, everything changed. There had been stylish productions before, but none exhibited the obsession with surface gloss that characterised the cop show that debuted that evening: Miami Vice. It was common knowledge that the show's production designers had been issued a blanket edict: "No earth tones," and every aesthetic decision had to conform — or else. As much as any design artifact, the show defined an era. READ MORE
OBSERVATORY : RICK POYNOR On My Shelf: A History of the Machine Erik Nitsche’s A History of the Machine is one of the most beautifully measured and visually lucid books I own. It belongs to a highly collectable series of 24 volumes titled The New Illustrated Library of Science and Invention, launched in 1962 in Geneva by his company, Erik Nitsche International. The books are landmarks of modern, low-cost, mass-market, educational publication design that have rarely been surpassed. READ MORE PLACES : LANCE HOSEY The Shape of Green: Aesthetic Imperatives Will new technology — cleaner energy, advanced materials, etc. — help us to live more lightly on the planet? Or merely enable us to pursue unsustainable lifestyles ever more efficiently? Lance Hosey argues that we've been focusing too much on the promise of technology and not enough on the reshaping of our aesthetic desires. "We have yet to face the underlying social and cultural circumstances that caused the environmental crisis," he writes. "How do we align what we crave with what we have?" READ MORE NEWS FROM DESIGN OBSERVER GROUP SPONSORS Enter the Sappi Ideas that Matter competition - an annual, innovative grant program that provides monetary support to produce the creative ideas of designers working for social good. Sappi established the Ideas that Matter grant program to recognize and support designers who donate their time and talent to create communications materials for a wide range of charitable activities. More about Ideas that Matter >> Watch Doug Hebert an inspiration junkie >> Find out more about Sappi here >> Learn to be a design critic through SVA's D-Crit program. Design as subject matter, criticism as a literary genre and the range of tools with which to practice design criticism. Watch videos of presentations by the Class of 2011 >> The D-Crit Program >> SVA Website >> OBSERVATORY : JOHN THACKARA Why White Is Wicked What's wrong with a plain white t-shirt? Well, for starters it took 700 gallons of fresh water to make. And the process that whitened it is toxic. And the fibers it's made from account for a quarter of all the insecticides in the world. READ MORE OBSERVATORY : MARK LAMSTER The Occupy Movement's Accidental Monument The ArcelorMittal Orbit — the name just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? — may just be my favorite new building, though not because it's a particularly rational work of architecture, or even good. It's fairly ridiculous and easily parodied. An eyesore? "That's what they said about the Eiffel Tower," claim its defenders, on cue. There is something slighly charming in its deranged, roller-coaster ugliness, but let's not kid ourselves. READ MORE PLACES : DAVID HEYMANN An Un-flushable Urinal: Thoughts on the Aesthetic Potential of Sustainability What is the "radical aesthetic potential" of sustainable design? "For architects, this might not seem the central focus of sustainability," writes David Heymann, "but it is indirectly, and perhaps should be explicitly." Drawing on examples from Leonardo to Duchamp to Peter Zumthor, Heymann explores the still unmet challenge of developing a new aesthetic ideal inspired by the evolving technologies of sustainability. READ MORE OBSERVATORY : JOHN FOSTER Bumbos, Swirlys and a Chinese Birdcage: A Snapshot of Marbles 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 marbles. READ MORE OBSERVATORY : ROB WALKER The Infrastructure of the Cloud The digital delights we access from computer and smartphone and tablet screens certainly look and feel like obliterators of all things physical. They free us from the smudgy daily paper and bulky boxes of albums and the sprawly local mall. But there's plenty of materiality behind this thing we call "the cloud." READ MORE		BECOME A FAN ON FACEBOOK \| FOLLOW US ON TWITTER Meaningful work is creating impact. A positive future is taking shape. Submit your proposal >> D-Crit: Design as subject matter. Criticism as literary genre. Learn at SVA >> A quarterly magazine of art and culture Read more >> Designers and leaders talk innovation in healthcare. Join us >> AUDIO: DESIGN MATTERS ARCHIVE Dave Eggers Founder of McSweeny's and author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, You Shall Know Our Velocity! and What Is The What. Listen >> More Design Matters Archive >> CHANGE OBSERVER: PROJECT ARCHIVE Peepoobag Report on Peepoobag, a new self-sanitizing, single-use, biodegradable container for human waste. READ MORE OBSERVATORY ARCHIVE Gail's Collection High Priority Design Thinking? PLACES ARCHIVE: WINTER 2006 Seattle Central Library: Civic Architecture in the Age of Media In the Seattle Public Library, Rem Koolhaas and OMA work to transform architecture into media interface. READ MORE RECENT BOOKS RECEIVED Clog: Apple Kyle May, editor You Can't Change China, China Changes You John Van De Water Giancarlo De Carlo: Inspiration & Process in Architecture Francesca Serrazanetti & Matteo Schubert, editors
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