Design: Nameless Paints

Nameless Paints by Ima Moteki

The nameless paint set is just what it says - a collection of tubes of paint without their colors labeled.  Instead, each tube of paint is identified only by colors.  “By not assigning names to the colors we want to expand the definition of what a color can be, and the various shades they can create by mixing them,” explains Yusuke Imai. Together with Ayami Moteki they form the design duo Ima Moteki.

The set of “Nameless Paints” were originally part of the 2012 Kokuyo Design Awards, one of the most interesting design awards in Japan that’s helped commercialize simple yet groundbreaking products like the kadokeshi eraser or the infinite canvas roll table.  Kokuyo’s stationary brand Campus spent the last 3 years working with the designer duo to refine their concept and eventually bring it to market. The set of “Nameless Paints” will go on sale in Japan in October of 2015 and will retail for 1800 yen.

Design: Helvetica Strikes Back

"Helvetica Strikes Back" by Fernando de Carabassa

Prints available for purchase from RedBubble.

Design: Dagobah Snake Soup

Dagobah Snake Soup Can Design by PAL Graphics

Ever wondered what soup labels might look like in the Star Wars universe?  Yeah, me neither, but someone did.  I guess it takes all types.  Even

Design: GoT Soccer Jerseys

Game of Thrones Soccer Jerseys by Nerea Palacios

Fashion designer Nerea Palacios has combined her love of football and HBO’s Game of Thrones to give us a taste of what the great houses might wear if they competed in the World Cup of Westeros. Can you imagine how the rivalries between houses would be if sports were added into the mix?

Design: Parking Sign Redesign

Parking Sign Redesign by Nikki Sylianteng

Via Marvel App

Okay, a parking sign doesn't really qualify as art, but I love finding examples of graphic design making life a little better.

Parking signs aren't all that important in the grand scheme of things, but a poorly designed sign can really ruin your day, especially when you live in a city where they’re literally a joke.

Brooklyn graphic design enthusiast Nikki Sylianteng took the New York's labyrinthine parking sign, which on a typical street could stretch to several pages, and re-imagined them as user-friendly, visually-based infographic. Now instead of text, Sylvianteng’s signs show a Google Calendar-esque layout of when it’s permissible to park on a given street.  It’s not perfect, but the signs speak for themselves. Which, in parking lingo, is saying something.

Design: Star Wars Soccer Jerseys

Star Wars Soccer Jerseys by Nerea Palacios

As a follow up to her Game of Thrones Soccer Jerseys, Nerea Palacios has created this line of Star Wars themed soccer jerseys.  I seriously doubt that anyone wearing a Stormtrooper jersey would be about to shoot a ball worth a damn, though.

Design: Comic Book Drunk Hangout

"The Comic Book Super Drunk Hangout" by Curitiba, Brazil-based Butcher Billy

Brazilian artist Butcher Billy envisions beer brands featuring comic-book heroes and antiheroes who enjoy a good brew.

"This collection of design concepts gather a distinctive line of heroes, antiheroes – or not heroes at all – that have in common a certain way of not being exactly the role model for your kids. Yet they’re in the pages of comics in your local book shop. These characters are the ones that enjoy a pint or two at the local pub before saving the world or – very often – making an even bigger mess. Like it or not, they are the interesting ones, not to mention the most fun."

Design: Zombie Survival Vehicles

"Zombie Survival Vehicles" by Donal O’Keeffe

Here's a series of realistic cross-sections of vehicles to survive the on-coming zombie apocalypse envisioned by UK-based motion designer Donal O’Keeffe.  Created with Cinema 4D’s Physical Renderer, the series features highly detailed designs feature everyday vehicles turned into zombie killing machines, equipped with all the supplies you’d need to survive an apocalypse.

The tiny contents inside the vehicles were modeled and textured by the designer, aside from a few of the more complex items (i.e. guns), which he purchased. Most of the actual cars were also modeled by O'Keeffe.

Most of them look more cush than the dorm I lived in at college.  The double decker might be an upgrade on my current accommodation, if O'Keeffe would only add in a shower.  However, I find the lack of gun turrets disturbing.

"I wanted to create a narrative for each vehicle, to create a character or characters that live, drive and survive. So I placed objects that I thought first would be necessary for survival (water, petrol, food, weapons) and then I started to populate the interiors with personal objects that I felt would be important to the characters in a life or death situation —photographs, books, rosary beads etc. I also wanted to put some small detailed textures somewhere on the vehicles—blood stains, scrawled writings, pop culture designs, etc"

Lecture: Typographic Design

"Typographic Design in the Digital Domain with Erik Spiekermann & Elliot Jay Stocks"

"A conversation with Erik Spiekermann and Elliot Jay Stocks

Metro, the design paradigm behind Windows Phone is in part, a celebration of typography. In this short film, godfather of modern type, Erik Spiekermann talks with Elliot Jay Stocks about how typography is used in the digital domain and what digital designers can learn from traditional print techniques."

Lecture: Typography and Design

"Graphic Design Tutorial: Typography and Design" by Shawn Barry

"In this video, I talk about the interplay of design and typography, and a few ways to think about how they work together. Intermediate to advanced."

Lecture: Typography

"Typography | Off Book" by PBS

"Type is everywhere. Every print publication, website, movie, advertisement and public message involves the creation or selection of a fitting typeface. Online, a rich and artistic typographical culture exists, where typefaces are created and graphic design seeps in to every image.

In episode 2 of Off Book, typeface designers Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones outline the importance of selecting the right font to convey a particular feeling. Graphic designer Paula Scher talks about building identity in messaging, while Eddie Opara uses texture to create reaction. Infographic designers Julia Vakser and Deroy Peraza map complicated data sets into digestible imagery, mixing color, graphics and type."

Lecture: History of Typography

"The History of Typography" by Ben Barrett-Forrest

Are you looking for a typeface for your book? Perhaps you’d like it to tie into the era that your novel is set in?

DesignMantic has created a video which illustrates the history of typography, tracing the history of type development through the ages. It is a great resource for those that want to learn the background on the various typefaces that have been popular throughout the ages.

Design: Condom Wraper Mock-Ups

"Safety First!" by Melbourne-based Kode Logic

Humorous condom ad mock-ups from Kode Logic.

Design: NASA Spacesuit

If you ever wanted to participate in spacesuit design, even in a small way, here’s your big chance. NASA is asking the public to choose which design of the futuristic Z-2 "planetary mobility" suit prototype will be used by astronauts while evaluating how well the spacesuit works. No, this isn't an April Fool's prank.

NASA’s making a new space suit prototype and wants the public to help choose the design. I’m really enjoying the Sci-Fi feel of these designs and the creative yet pragmatic use of colored lights. While not suitable for spacewalks, these could be the type of suits used for planetary excursions. And more importantly help drive innovation for not only the future of space exploration, but other more terrestrial applications.

Design: Starfleet Machine

"Starfleet Machine" by Swiss watch designer L’Epée
with microengineering from the lab  MB&F

As a sym­bol of their 175th anniver­sary, Switzer­land’s last remain­ing spe­cial­ized high-end clock man­u­fac­tur­er, L’Epée, has released anoth­er vision­ary clock design by con­cep­tu­al micro-engineering lab MB&F.  It’s a sculpture of Star Trek's Deep Space Nine.  It's wildly impractical and probably obscenely expensive but beautiful.

Video: American Letterpress

"American Letterpress: The Art of Hatch Show Print" by sitesExhibitions

Yes, it's more printing press porn, because as much as I love planting my ass in front of a cutting edge laptop all day every day, there's just something about old school technology that sets my nostalgic heart aflutter.  I could watch old school printing presses run all day.

"From the Smithsonian traveling exhibition American Letterpress: The Art of Hatch Show Print, this video shows you the art of letterpress printing as practiced by a 125-year-old Nashville, TN, print shop. Learn why only a handful of letterpress shops still exist in American and why this one is so influential in the music and entertainment industry. A great look at the craft."

Design: Prototypes

"Prototypes" by L.A. photographer Patrick Strattner

Inspired by the in-flight publication SkyMall, well known for its unusual and absurd products, the series “Prototypes” explores the idea of consumerism through the invention, design and full-scale construction of a series of devices and gadgets. Like SkyMall products, the “Prototypes” series encourage the audience to fantasize about a better life, a life made easier, and thus more enjoyable, through the possession of one or more of these inventions.

• Automatic upper and lower full mouth tooth brush
• Portable sweaqty armpit t-shirt dryer
• Nightime shades with automatic dimming headlights
• Hovering grocery shopping assistant with leather hand lead
• Battery operated back hair 2in1 shaving and grooming system
• Three weheeled foot propelled bristle sweeper
• Zippered outer apparel with attachable velcro accessories

Design: Popcorn Piñata

Popcorn Piñata is a fun concept by Nicolas Ménard in which the packaging for a single serving of microwave popcorn inflates into various cute characters.  They would make great party favors, but I'd need about forty of these to make it through a two hour movie.

Lecture: The Philosophy of UX

"Design Principles: The Philosophy of UX" by IgniteNYC

Whitney Hess, user experience designer, explores the principals of good user design through real world examples including: bathrooms, the birth control aisle at the drug store, doorbells, sandwich shops, and bookstores.

Lecture: Fundamentals of UI Design

"Fundamentals of Good UI Design" by DiceOutLoud

Uday Gajendar, Principal Product Designer for Citrix, discusses good UI design. "As you go into any screen design project, remember, every button, icon, text, tab, menu item is just yet another visual and cognitive signal that a user must process and learn, thus increasing the choices to be evaluated even if it's just for a split second." says Gajendar.