Everybody is stoked on these Spoon posters by Casey Burns. Include me in that group. I love the colors, the hand-rendered type and the menacing undertones. I think Casey brings a fresh take on the gig-poster scene.

Caleb Owen Everitt has a nice name and is good at making the graphic designs. I quite like his giant barrage of work format for his portfolio site.

I’m digging this series of leftovers by Triboro Design. I always thinking about the various design scraps that accumulate on any project. What to do with these remnants? Something… maybe this?

Professional Skateboarder / Artist Ed Templeton has a huge show up in Belgium right now. It looks like an impressive amount of work. Hear him talk in awkward ways about the show.

A nice little video of Barry McGee talking about art and stuff.

I dig these insights into project management by Rachael Hunt from Hi-Res. Via Surfstation.

Posters from The Heads of State

Speaking of America… those outstanding designers at The Heads of State have released this wonderful series of travel posters highlighting some of America’s greatest cities. Only thing its missing is a Nebraskan representative. I nominate Weston.

Via.

Wieden + Kennedy has a new episode of their D.I.Y. America series online. This one is about skateboarding and selling out.

I’ve been a fan of Kelsey Brookes for awhile now and this video is a great peek into his story. He’s an inspiring artist, not only in his work, but also in his attitude.

…because making is part of things.

Years ago, when Justin and I started putting together the first version of The Match Factory, we had this phrase that we used as an answer to why we are doing this. “…because making is part of things.” This awkward phrase really stuck with me. It captures the spirit of open-ended discovery without heavy-handed goals or judgments.  Why do we make stuff? Because making is part of things.

We both recognized early on that a workaday lifestyle could leave you feeling too focused on measurable goals and results. For the most part, design is about solving a specific problem. Art, on the other hand, can be more about personal expression. In an effort to walk the line between the two, I try to make time in my schedule for random acts of making. The images in this post are examples of time spent messing about. I think of them as design debris, lingering residue from thoughts and projects. Doodles and leftovers or something like that. Nothing really “good,” but then again, making something good isn’t really the point.

(more…)