May 2008 Archives
If you're a student, or a young designer building a client list and a career, you've probably given more than a little thought to how to position yourself and your work in terms of the increasing emphasis the world of design is placing on social responsibility. Perhaps you already take on pro bono work for worthy local social, environmental or political organizations and causes. While engaging at the local level is very important, also worth considering are the many cause-driven design contests that operate at a national or international level, notable among which is the annual Good 50×70 poster project.
Compendiums of recent design work typically begin with carefully-written introductions that labor, often too hard, to stitch together the work that is to follow into some kind of a coherent whole. Lemon Poppy Seed: Multitasking Creativity, a recent title from the never-boring German publisher Gestalten Verlag, doesn't fall into this trap.
There's something intriguing about a daily, self-imposed task that imposes formal constraints but which is flexible enough that creative exploration is possible. More than possible—the work is actually stimulated by the rigors of the premise. Luc Grateau's paintings of commuters rendered on Paris subway tickets are a perfect example. And closer to home is Stefan G. Bucher's playful series of Daily Monsters, which recently concluded with number 200.
