Barbara Kruger

I was in a lecture about Identity last week when I was reminded of the collage artist Barbara Kruger. The recurring motifs in her work are black and white photographs overlaid with red Futura captions, criticising topics such as power and sexism. It is the combination of political commentary and bold graphics that draws me to her work. I would like to give work I do more of a contemporary context.

Films To Watch

Mad Love (1935) Horror film directed by Karl Freund

The Conversation (1974) directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Cooking

Continuing the subject of food, I thought I ought to mention a book I have been wanting for quite some time now. Jake Tilson is an all round creative type and food enthusiast who wrote, photographed and designed 'A Tale of 12 Kitchens' as a personal collection of recipes. Each page is vibrantly different, yet typeset consistently (Tilson is a keen typographer) and often quirkily. It is wonderfully idiosyncratic, really expressing the joy of cooking.



He also has an ongoing project called Salsa di Pomodoro, connected by typography, tomatoes, Italian food and culture.

http://www.jaketilson.com

Posters

This is actually a book cover but I came across it whilst searching for posters on the internet. I really like the juxtaposition of hand-drawn type and illustration.

I also found these retro posters promoting reading! Reading is fun, although the top poster implies it it some kind of compulsory activity!





A whole load of wonderful art deco designs.



Many posters for the film La Fille Sauvage.

And and fair few other niceties.

I suppose, although my taste is varied, what my selections have in common is strong typographical content arranged with vintage illustrations.

I have a vintage poster calendar in my bedroom, which is comprised of advertisements from the early 1900s. Because photography was a rare medium prior to the 20s, it was the rich illustrations that drew in the customer. I have to say my opinion on these posters changes quite regularly, what with my growing distaste for the force of advertising. I wonder if it is possible to admire them in a purely visual way, or whether the impulse to consume plays a part.



Looking at the poster above (from a different calendar), I think perhaps it is just my innate love of food that draws me to them. The colours are so warm and appetising.

Camera and Kitson

Yes I do. For When I go to Barcelona! The only camera I own is a crappy digital, good for research and happy snapping but not a lot else. Because I do not have much experience in photography, I think an second hand film SLR would be best for getting to understand how cameras work. I am having a look on Ebay, but am not sure what for exactly. Would appreciate some advice on this one!



(Not THAT old)

Barry Kitson is coming to LCAD to talk to us about his life in DC and Marvel comics. I don't read many comic books and when I do, they are Indies, but i think the event will be an edifying one anyway.

Stephen Fry

I'm reading his first autobiography at the moment, and have been watching a lot of QI recently (apologies to all those on the receiving end of my incessant fact spouting) so thought it only polite to mention the brainy one. He is also the champion of less-than-perfect noses, for that I am thankful. As for his Vis Com relevance, I am becoming quite interested in English attitudes and behaviours, perhaps for another brief.



Other books in my personal reading list include Virginia Woolf's post-Victorian 'To the Lighthouse', Kate Fox's 'Watching the English' and PG Wodehouse's 'Right Ho Jeeves'. Of course, Fry played Jeeves quite aptly in a television adaptation.

Betty Blue

Bought this film a while ago, just got round to watching it. I love French films, and how I forget about the subtitles after a few minutes if it is really captivating. Despite it's three hours running time, Betty Blue is one of those films. Style-wise, it is shot beautifully, with rich, repetitive colours reminiscent of Amelie, Punch Drunk Love and Buffalo 66.

Thomas Allen

A new find.

Does great 'pop-up' paper cut outs from books. He seems especially inspired by 1950s American detective novels.







I don't think he has his own website, I found him in Frieze magazine and on lightandsie.com.

Type for Matt

Scan in Johnny type.

Lula

I wouldn't usually blog about a magazine for girls but this one has it's own custom-made font! The dreamy photo-shoots remind me a lot of The Virgin Suicides film. Or perhaps that's just because Kirsten Dunst edited the latest edition.
www.lulamag.co.uk

Typography Exhibitions

Exhibitions I wish I could attend.

Typographic Exhibition 'Volume' exploring the Poetry Library at the Southbank Centre in London. Visual artist Sam Winston explores the Poetry Library collection, producing a series of images and sculptures focused on how we use language. The work concentrates on two books: the Oxford English Dictionary and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Finishes 15th Jan. I'm at work :(

Look at the slideshow here, it really is quite beautiful work.





'Signs and Messages from Modern Life' at the Kate McGarry Gallery (London). This was an exhibition of five artists whose work features typography in some form: Tauba Auerbach, Fiona Banner, Alistair Frost, Tobias Rehberger and Stephen Willats. Finished in December. Boo.

Grafik's 2007 Retrospective

This is going to be a completely indulgent blog, just things I love. Most of them I came across in Grafik Magazine's end of year edition, which is a great round up of the best design of the past 12 months.



Click here to explore 'Materia Obscura' galore on this award winning blog. Specialising in botanic wallcharts, anatomic diagrams and ancient engravings.



Maybe everybody is jumping on the bandwagon, but if it means less carrier bags then this is one trend I'm following. You don't have to tote a 'granny bag', there are some great canvas designs for the most image conscious. See more at Blanka.



Sang-bleu is a well designed tattoo journal. Something of an anomaly.

Friends

I should really be in bed but I had an ill-timed creativity burst so submitted something to friends.neonspice.net. I like how you can be absolutely terrible at drawing and still get your work next to other (more talented) people. I think this will look best when montaged, so hopefully they'll put it in.

Helvetica

I rented the Helvetica documentary today!



It isn't all just Helvetica either, the film is a much larger conversation about typography in practise. At 80 minutes long, however, and with 95 minutes of bonus features, it is the true typophiles who will enjoy this the most.

Upon googling the ubiquitous typeface, I came across this poster. Apparently the designer was making a statement about the sluttish nature of Helvetica, but I want tights like this!



He does other stuff too. http://www.lennynaar.com/

Lynch

No, not the felony. The director. Or should that read 'artist'? Through my research for the Culture Show, I came across a feature about a David Lynch exhibition. Apparently he has been creating across the board, and 'The Air is on Fire' is a collation of his paintings, photographs, drawings, experimental films and soundtracks.  It's bound to be a deliciously dark affair. What a shame (on two accounts) it ends on the 13th of this month and it's in Milan. Maybe that fifty quid the college is giving us will get me a last minute flight.



Better than anything Lawrence Llewelyn Bowen could come up with.



I can always buy the book online!



http://www.triennale.it/index.php?lang=_eng&id=1&tbl=0&idq=593

Live Project Blog

I have started a new blog for the live brief. This will make handing in my research a lot easier.

http://laurastubbs.blogspot.com

Manchester

My housemates and I took a spontaneous trip to Manchester today. We ate and drank in quirky bars, wandered around galleries and did a spot of shopping. Manchester is full of great vintage shops, vinyl exchanges, independent traders and cool junk in general: I came back with a bag full of goodies!  

The best shop for design related books is Magma. I'm visiting Barcelona in March so invested in a quirky little guide.

www.magmabooks.com

I also got a copy of Nylon, which is a fashion magazine from New York with an indie bent.

A Bauhaus poster (what a goth) from the menagerie of independent shops that is Afflecks Palace:



This a poster I stole from Night & Day Bar. My side salad was a bit bare so I figured this was ok.

There is a great little second hand bookstall in the centre, where I found bought some Evelyn Waugh books and a few typographic treasures. Inexplicably, Blogger has saturated these images, hence the weird blueness. I will try to re-load the pictures tomorrow.





Note to self: research poster designer Abram Games.

A manual on how to build an electric clock (parts not included).

We went to Manchester Art gallery and looked at the 'Art Treasures' exhibition they are holding currently. This collection of traditional fine art wasn't particularly relevant to my practice but I am open to anything. I also learnt a lot about the importance of the crowd scene in Victorian painting, which was quite interesting. I am becoming quite interested in this era of British history, and a number of books in my 'to-read' pile are set in the period.

Elsewhere in the gallery, an artist called Jo Roberts had an exhibition of minutiae journey maps. The subject (football) wasn't to my taste, but I liked the fine details so much I was prompted to go and buy some 0.1 fineliners.

www.jorobertsjourney.com

One of her pieces centred around the journey of Celia Fiennes, a woman who travelled across England alone on horseback in the 1600s. Not sure of the link with football but interesting nonetheless.

Her maps remind me of another book I stopped myself from buying in Magma, a book containing obscure maps. So obscure I cannot even find it on the internet.

Attached to the Art Gallery is the craft centre. They had a wonderful display entitled 'Collections', which would have been very appropriate for the last brief. Through an extensive array of spoons, it was revealed to me that tables were not set with cutlery until the 1600s, so that every man had to carry his own silverware from meal to meal. It really is these nuggets of information that inspire me.

In the contemporary scene, the Richard Goodall Gallery was an inspirational visit. The collection of rock&roll posters is amazing! I particularly like the ones for the White Stripes:

www.richardgoodallgallery.com

The last gallery we visited was Cornerhouse, but there was nothing there that took my fancy. I quite wanted to watch the Black Narcissus though.

I also wished we'd made a visit to the Whitworth gallery to see some 20s/30s decor but we ran out of time. There was a Walter Crane illustration exhibition on that I missed aswell.

At the end of the day we went for drinks in Trof Bar, where we were certain we spotted street artist Matt Sewell. Manchester has quite a big graf scene, and Sewell's work can be seen around the city.