I used to start each of these posts with a quote. Or did I end with a quote? I can’t recall. It really doesn’t matter in the slightest. Instead, I’ll leave you with this lovely Kurt Vonnegut story from an interview, or maybe from Timequake.
“I work at home, and if I wanted to, I could have a computer right by my bed, and I’d never have to leave it. But I use a typewriter, and afterward I mark up the pages with a pencil. Then I call up this woman named Carol out in Woodstock and say, “Are you still doing typing?” Sure she is, and her husband is trying to track bluebirds out there and not having much luck, and so we chitchat back and forth, and I say, “Okay, I’ll send you the pages.”
Then I go down the steps and my wife calls, “Where are you going?” “Well,” I say, “I’m going to buy an envelope.” And she says, “You’re not a poor man. Why don’t you buy a thousand envelopes? They’ll deliver them, and you can put them in the closet.” And I say, “Hush.”
So I go to this newsstand across the street where they sell magazines and lottery tickets and stationery. I have to get in line because there are people buying candy and all that sort of thing, and I talk to them. The woman behind the counter has a jewel between her eyes, and when it’s my turn, I ask her if there have been any big winners lately.
I get my envelope and seal it up and go to the postal convenience center down the block at the corner of Forty-seventh Street and Second Avenue, where I’m secretly in love with the woman behind the counter. I keep absolutely poker-faced; I never let her know how I feel about her. One time I had my pocket picked in there and got to meet a cop and tell him about it.
Anyway, I address the envelope to Carol in Woodstock. I stamp the envelope and mail it in a mailbox in front of the post office, and I go home.
And I’ve had a hell of a good time. I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don’t let anybody tell you any different.”
–Kurt Vonnegut
Photography
Jay Lichter Illuminates Stunning Colors and Textures in Macro Photos of Elusive Slime Molds
Lichter began taking photos three years ago using an iPhone with a broken screen, but it wasn’t long before he leveled up to a macro camera setup that enables him to capture the microscopic phenomena close-up and in incredible detail
Architecture
Snøhetta designs sweeping holiday home for foothills of Mount Yōtei
Proposed for a site within Rusutsu Resort on the foothills of Mount Yōtei, Not A Hotel Rusutsu will have a “clean, minimal form” that draws on the surrounding topography
Schmidt Hammer Lassen transforms cement factory into West Bund Dome Art Center
“Maintaining the dome structure as a historic relic that symbolised the memory of the site, sitting amongst a new part of the city, was an exciting proposition for us,” said principal design director Chris Hardie
Harudot: An Undulating, Beachside Café in Chonburi, Thailand
The design incorporates three simple, black gable forms that exude a humble yet sophisticated aesthetic, influenced by Japanese culture. In contrast, the interior features warm pine wood walls, creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere.
Graphic Design/Branding
Persério’s Isometric Branding and Visual Identity
Persério’s branding and visual identity blend engineering precision with innovative design
Inspira Vi i Cultura
This is the story of a label that becomes six. The same label idea that responds to six variations – and which allows for many more, always different and always recognizable.
Web Design/UX/UI
Playbook from CVS Health® Inclusive Design
The CVS Health® Inclusive Design team’s Inclusive UX Research program aims to collaboratively shape thinking with teams across the enterprise by helping our colleagues understand the experiences and needs of our disabled customers
A plea for the lost practice of information architecture
How a mystery house attraction shows the perils of designing without an overall plan
Nike’s $25B blunder shows us the limits of “data-driven”
The illusion of data as “objective” conceals that it rarely shows you the whole picture. Making decisions based on the easiest data to gather is a recipe for disaster.
Tools
Public Work
a search engine for public domain content. Explore 100,000+ copyright-free images from The MET, New York Public Library, and other sources
Books
Modern Architecture in Blackheath & Greenwich Editorial Design
Explore the modernist marvels of Blackheath & Greenwich in this new book by Ana Francisco Sutherland, featuring stunning editorial design by Studio Blackburn