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The Green Lantern Returns

Jason Tselentis — Fri, 19 Apr 2019 05:48:03 +0000

Comic book fans who grew up with Hal Jordan as the Green Lantern won’t want to miss a single issue of what writer Grant Morrison, artist Liam Sharp, and colorist Steve Oliff have created for DC Comics. This newest incarnation has Earth man Hal Jordan wielding Green Lantern’s light as an Intergalactic Lawman, a space cop for 21st century readers.

Right into the Action

In the latest run, those familiar with Hal Jordan’s and Green Lantern’s history will see throwbacks to the original material. Jordan, who received a powerful ring after meeting an alien who crash-landed on Earth, has been a member of the Justice League, a freewheeling hero, and he’s even partnered with Green Arrow.

Unlike the movie that explains Jordan’s heroic origins—a not very good 2011 movie starring Ryan Reynolds—the latest comic book avoids messy backstory, opting to jump right into battle. Beginning with The Green Lantern #1, debuting in November 2018, writer Grant Morrison puts readers in an immediate and chaotic situation that the Green Lantern Corps must cope with and fight through. Opening pages of issue #1 do not disappoint thanks to Liam Sharp’s rich, layered, textured, engaging art and Steve Oliff’s electrifying, ethereal, exuberant colors. It’s everything I hoped for, especially after some disappointing Green Lantern stories in the early- and mid-nineties.

Pages 1 – 3 of #5 of #TheGreenLantern in their raw… pic.twitter.com/rugTc16Wqb

— Liam ‘Sharpy’ Sharp (@LiamRSharp) March 5, 2019

New and Improved

I went into this newest Green Lantern saga with little to no expectations because of those older, disappointing stories, having lost almost all respect for Hal Jordan—as well as Green Lantern, and maybe even DC Comics in general. The Emerald Twilight storyline from the mid-nineties was a real punch in the gut. And do not even get me started on Parallax. The entire ordeal was a gigantic letdown for this Lantern fan, who became green in the face. And yet, if there’s anything fans like me appreciate about Hal Jordan and Emerald Twilight and (blech!) Parallax, it’s how it helped introduce Kyle Rayner, a graphic designer who became a Green Lantern.

Having grown up reading Silver Age and Bronze Age Green Lantern comic books, including the spectacular Green Lantern / Green Arrow by Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams, I have a lot of fond memories from reading Green Lantern. But what happened in the 1990s was not what I ever thought nor wanted to see. Never again.

Fortunately, issues 1–5 of The Green Lantern are a welcome departure. This is not the Green Lantern that I grew up with and—most importantly—it’s not the Green Lantern that Ryan Reynolds brought to the big screen. Spaceships? Aliens? Aliens who look like bugs? Gigantic cosmic battles? If you want all of that rolled into one, DC’s The Green Lantern has that and more. It’s equal parts Green Lantern plus H.R. Giger plus a little bit of Rick and Morty here and there, with some Men in Black stirred in too. If you need more reasons to grab this title, there’s Morrison’s controversial issue #3, Slave Lords of the Stars. I’d love to say more, but I won’t spoil it.

Green with envy? Eager to read The Green Lantern? Grab some issues at your local comic book store and make sure to get issue #6 that went on sale on April 3rd.

The Green Lantern issues 1–5 photographed by the author.

The post The Green Lantern Returns appeared first on Print Magazine.

War! What’s It Good For?

Steven Heller — Fri, 19 Apr 2019 05:47:52 +0000

“Seymour Chwast: Works of War” is curated by Blažo Kovačević, Associate Professor of Art and Design Undergraduate Director Department of Art and Design SUNY | Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY. The exhibition, which opened with a rare appearance by Chwast in conversation with me, was met with an enthusiastic response to the disturbing yet somehow ironic. When asked “Why are you obsessed with this subject?”, Chwast shrugged and said, “It’s always with us. We don’t learn. We just kill.”

War as Passion

I suppose that an art historian could make the case that Seymour Chwast and his obsession with paintings and prints about war scenes and military materiel have something to do with a latent subconscious yearning for something or other. Or could it just be an interest in Hieronymus Bosch, Jacques Callot or Stan Lee? Seymour’s work is avowedly Seymour’s work, which represents his passion and his alone.

War is one of those passions. When Seymour authored and illustrated his recent book “At War With War: 5000 Years of Conquests, Invasions, and Terrorist Attacks, An Illustrated Timeline” (2017), 100 years after the United States entered the Great War in Europe, he was not attempting to surreptitiously mask some grand philosophical theory about the abuse of power; he was just stating the obvious: horror and carnage have gone on too long with savage regularity. The illustrations in the book are not done in one style, but many befitting the conflicts he depicts.

Hypnotic Chaos

This exhibition is devoted to his conscientious objection to War. Conflagration has become an obsessive theme throughout Seymour’s latest work, perhaps because his century (and ours) is filled with such precise destruction and demonic methods of eliminating one’s enemy (and friends). He grew up during one big war, lived through others actions and continues to protest. The paintings and sculptures in this exhibition – much of it recent – are not the typical antiwar revulsion as vividly depicted by Francisco Goya, Frans Masereel or Otto Dix. But Seymour feels deeply despite a curious – indeed paradoxical and discomfiting – whimsy to these massive canvases covered with jolly patterns of planes, tanks, soldiers and other lethal weaponry.

Reminiscent of the way a child might draw playful battle scenes – they have a certain overt innocence and covert anxiety – Seymour’s paintings evoke the perception that war is at once frighteningly chaotic and disconcertingly hypnotic. The chaos is obvious with men and machines engaged in acts of destruction – and even in such a colorful and comic depiction, it is apparent that these are pictures of unthinkable cruelty. The hypnotic is more subversive. Seymour’s patterns are pleasantly eye-catching in color and form. They slyly lull the eye into fixating on a certain joy of process before coming to the realization that the imagery is about death. Seymour’s war pictures are meant to trick the viewer, sending a message that is as deceiving as it is cryptic. Seymour is a master of cryptocity.

Exhibition Photographs by Marc Newton

The post War! What’s It Good For? appeared first on Print Magazine.

3D Print Project: Print Your Own Printing Press

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 18:19:51 +0000

“Using an iterative process, I built 10 prototypes, printed more than 100 proofs, and used more than a kilometer of filament,” explains Schneider. “The final result is a portable printing press that costs only 5€ of material and can be printed by everyone with access to a 3D-printer.” ... (read more)

Colourful rebrand catches attention of new markets

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 15:53:37 +0000

A three-year rebrand project has caught the attention of new customers with the most recent launch of Colourful Language - a book of print concepts that brings the new branding together for NB Colour Print.

Mailing firm opens demonstration room

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 14:50:24 +0000

Following 26 years of successful business, AMS Mailing Systems has relocated to a new, larger premises in Harlow, Essex.

Circle files for bankruptcy for Dutch companies

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 09:23:10 +0000

Circle Media Group has filed for bankruptcy or its three Dutch printing companies, following the move to file for suspension of payments citing “very challenging market circumstances.”

Loop Print enters administration

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 09:23:10 +0000

A total of 22 jobs have been lost at Loop Print in Sheffield, following “difficult trading conditions.”

Romance Sign Language Of Romania

Steven Heller — Thu, 18 Apr 2019 05:37:23 +0000

On May 2, 2011 wrote this Daily Heller (and text below) about the 50s and 60s history of Romanian graphic design. Now a new volume of Graphics Without Computers is published that focuses on “Letters. Hand-Drawn, Embossed and Volumetric.” In other words, lots of signs – electric, metallic and spectacular. The similarities with other parts of post-war Europe during the Communist period are clear. Illuminated spectaculars were employed to give cities like Bucharest a sense of excitement and bounty. Often the we bandages over the drabness familiar in Communist Cold War urban areas. But there is also a typographic sensibility that seems to have re-emerged as a form of retro.

Romania is no longer a design backwater. Every year in May Romanian Design Week is held for ten days. But this is its root that remains from not too long ago.

When I think of Romania (Rumania), alas I think of this song in Yiddish by Aaron Lebedeff (you’ll need to click to play). I also think of Saul Steinberg, who left Romania in the 30s and brought with him to America a native sense of the absurd. Now, thanks to the typographer Ovidiu Hrin from Timisoara, I’m thinking of Romania in terms of its Cold War design. He writes:

A couple of Romanian designers (living & working in Bucharest) have launched a brilliant book about Romanian graphic design (1930’s – 1990’s), I bought a copy instantly for you and want to send you one asap as the information I saw there was flabbergasting even for me.

Graphics Without Computer: 50 Years of Modest Achievements by Atelierul De Grafica, with essays by Vivana Iacob, Calin Torsan and Mihai Tudoroiu, is a fascinating collection of commercial, government, and industrial posters and other graphics. Some of it recalls the Socialist Realism of the Iron Curtain, others suggest the influence of Polish and Czech design that through wit and abstraction bypassed the censors.

Much of the material came from “frequently exploring the sites of various important Romanian factories,” say the authors, “today fabulous ruins and wastelands. . . Coming from stifling Bucharest, visually speaking, the fragments of letters and posters we found there seemed so well made. We tried to find out more about the idea of their being ‘well made.” And that’s where the idea came from to rummage through Romanian graphics in all its variety. We discovered how the profession of graphic design also existed in the workshops of factories and other institutions, not just those of the Union of Fine Artists. . .”

To order the bilingual book, you might try here (remember Romanian is a romance language).

The post Romance Sign Language Of Romania appeared first on Print Magazine.

Romance Sign Language Of Romania

Steven Heller — Thu, 18 Apr 2019 05:37:23 +0000

On May 2, 2011, I wrote this Daily Heller (and text below) about the 50s and 60s history of Romanian graphic design. Now a new volume of Graphics Without Computer is published that focuses on “Letters. Hand-Drawn, Embossed and Volumetric.”

Signs of the Times

In other words, lots of signs – electric, metallic and spectacular. The similarities with other parts of post-war Europe during the Communist period are clear. Illuminated spectaculars were employed to give cities like Bucharest a sense of excitement and bounty. Often they were just bandages or false facades over the drabness familiar in Communist Cold War urban areas. But there is also a typographic sensibility that seems to have re-emerged as a form of retro.

Romania is no longer a design backwater. Every year in May, Romanian Design Week is held for ten days. But this is its root that remains from not too long ago.

Left Behind Signs

A couple of Romanian designers (living & working in Bucharest) have launched a brilliant book about Romanian graphic design (1930’s – 1990’s), I bought a copy instantly for you and want to send you one asap as the information I saw there was flabbergasting even for me.

To order the bilingual book, you might try here (remember Romanian is a romance language).

The post Romance Sign Language Of Romania appeared first on Print Magazine.

Fujifilm announces firmware updates for “FUJIFILM X-T30”

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 05:00:00 +0000

53 Thoughts from HOW Design Live

Print Contributor — Thu, 18 Apr 2019 04:43:21 +0000

HOW Design Live gets better and better every year. The incredible energy, the incredible speakers, the nearly-overwhelming sense of inspiration and camaraderie—all of it makes for an experience that’s transformative, singular, and irreplaceable. That’s why we decided to pull our notes (and the notes of other attendees on social media) together to create this list of excellent takeaways from HOW conferences past that we had the pleasure to hear and record.

It can be hard to stay inspired, but these overhearings will keep you feeling the urge to create and engage.

Invaluable design quotes from HOW Design Live, appearing in no particular order:

“Creativity is not an answer. It’s a process.” – Stefan Mumaw

“We control the machine. At one point the machine controlled us.” – Karim Rashid

“If you’re laughing at yourself, you’re not worrying about yourself.” – Megan Mead

“Our methodology needs to respond to the needs of each project and environment.” – Maya Bruck

“If you created it, you own the copyright.” – Von Glitschka

“How we identify ourselves actually matters.” – Jonathon Colman

“We are neurobiologically hardwired for story.” – Brene Brown

“We can be in reactivity mode or creativity mode.” – Stefan Mumaw

“What we have here is a 3500 year old problem.” – Cheryl Heller on gender inequality

“We are not our business cards. We are not our resumes.” – Jeff Greenspan

“If you think there might be a book one day devoted to your work, keep everything.” – Adrian Shaughnessy

“Don’t write over you designs. Let them evolve.” – Aaron Draplin

“Time is short. Use what you have.” – Sonja Rasula

“There is so much we can do to make the world a better place by using creativity and imagination.” – Robin Landa

“If you’ve done well it’s your obligation to spend a good portion of your time sending the elevator back down.” – one of Tina Roth Eisenberg’s aphorisms but not her original words

“Creativity is the world’s greatest weapon. It always wins.” – Mimi Valdés

“Be the leader you wish you had.” – Simon Sinek

“Work hard and love this shit.” – Aaron Draplin

“Do good work for good people.” – Aaron Draplin

“There is no room for arrogance in design.” – Mary Zalla

“Follow your dreams.” – Matteo Bologna

“Do your research.” – Matteo Bologna (and conversely: “Screw research. It works if it looks right.”)

“Building community is building something bigger than all of us.” – Ted Vadakan & Angie Myung

“Exceeding expectations is a minimum requirement.” – Dan Formosa, Ph.D

“Fear of failure will cage your creativity ” – Evelio Mattos

“Time management is at the core of every design.” – Matteo Bologna

“Stop banking on experience. Start betting on potential.” – James Sommerville

“Develop a design so distinctive it can be recognized by touch” – James Sommerville

“There are no boundaries or borders in the digital age.” – Karim Rashid

“Why are we here on earth? To create. It’s in our nature.” – Karim Rashid

“Every paper has his own personality. You have to choose the right personality for your project.” Ken Lo

“Don’t mistake fearless design for reckless design.” – Ron Burrage

“Say yes to the ideas in your head, free fall in to the unknown and create your own parachute.” – Ted Vadakan & Angie Myung

“Innovation is found in the extremes. Defy designing for the average. Averages are useless.” – Dan Formosa

“Implicit rules are the biggest barrier to creativity. Make rules simple, know what rules are being broken, and don’t let dumb rules stick around.” – Noah Brier

“The area of awesome is at the finest line between awesome and nonfunctional.” – Faris Yakoub

“Originality is the art of concealing your sources.” – Faris Yakoub

“Complex ideas are compounds of simple ideas.” – a quote from John Locke, referenced by Faris Yakoub

“Design is for people, not products.” – Alex Center

“Be a thought leader, not a craftsman.” – Alex Center

“Courage isn’t inside; it’s external. It comes from someone else telling you they believe in you.” – Simon Sinek

“Leadership is like exercise…. Do it everyday, the results take time but you will see them. It’s the little things.” – Simon Sinek

“You are an artist when you make someone feel something deep and unexpected.” – Amanda Palmer

“Quit the bitching on your blog and do not say that art is hard… play your ukulele.” – Amanda Palmer, from her “Ukulele Anthem”

“It would nice to live in a world where art can just be art!” – Amanda Palmer

“When we deny our stories, They define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending.” – Brene Brown

“Knowledge is only rumor until it lives in the bones.” – Brene Brown

“When you choose a managerial path, you are choosing to devote your life to people. Period.” – Tom Peters

“Think about the market, think about the design, and think about who is going to design for that market. Hit the mark.” – Tom Peters

“Every little job counts. Design counts.” – Michael Bierut

“If you’re digging a hole in the wrong place, making it deeper doesn’t help. – Seymour Chwast via Michael Bierut’s keynote

How to save the world with design: “Do a little something here or there that helps improve someone’s life.” – Michael Bierut

“A loose identity system has enabled us to literally and metaphorically build on the ideas of one another.” – Michael Hendrix

The post 53 Thoughts from HOW Design Live appeared first on Print Magazine.

Printing firm bought out of administration

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:35:06 +0000

A pre-pack administration has been arranged for Lynhurst Press. The family-run printing business in Basildon entered administration on April 2nd, 2019.

Colour management in wide-format Experts’ Day to be held at Durst HQ

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:09:31 +0000

On 24 May the ICC is holding an Experts' Day on colour management in printing on non-paper substrates using wide-format printing. The meeting will be hosted by Barbieri Electronic at Durst’s headquarters in Brixen/Bressanone, Italy.

Xtreme orders another Jetrix LXiR320

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:08:41 +0000

Dublin-based Xtreme Signs and Graphics has bought another Jetrix LXiR320. The company confirmed the order with InkTec at Sign and Digital UK.

Signs Express Birmingham does it by the book

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:07:57 +0000

Signs Express Birmingham made a key contribution to supply and installation of supersized book that sat in front of Birmingham’s Council House in March.

AXYZ brings out Infinite CNC router

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:05:41 +0000

The recently constituted AXYZ Automation Group has announced the Infinite CNC router, the first of a planned series of new products.

Nyala takes top spot

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:02:54 +0000

swissQprint’s Nyala has taken first place in the European popularity stakes for the fourth year in a row according to Infosource.

Vine Lodge to install VG2-540 at end of April

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:02:06 +0000

The Roland VG2-540 ordered by Vine Lodge at Sign and Digital UK will be installed by printMax at the end of this month.

Sign and UK attendee figures published

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 15:01:11 +0000

Sign and Digital UK, which ran from 2 to 4 April at the NEC, attracted 5,095 unique visitors according to its organiser. 340 attended for more than one day.

Harnessing the sustainable power of latex

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 13:52:23 +0000

HP reseller Papergraphics has delivered the first HP R2000 in the UK following the hybrid’s initial unveiling at FESPA in 2018.

New ‘offset-like quality’ press from Canon

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 11:20:40 +0000

Canon has introduced a new printer series designed to meet light production needs of commercial printers and large corporate print departments.

Funding available for BPIF Masters

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 11:20:40 +0000

The Stationers’ Foundation and The Printing Charity have partnered to provide funding to individuals looking to complete the BPIF (British Printing Industries Federation) MSc in Management.

What’s My Line?

Steven Heller — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 05:09:57 +0000

For those of you who do not relate to the title of this post, “What’s My Line?” was a a panel game show that originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, the goal of which was to guess from short clues the contestant’s line of work. The following “review” of two recently received books of linear cartoons was a good excuse to dredge up this childhood reference.

Other than that random thought, what links these two books, Hungarian artist Tibor Kárpáti‘s NYC America and Pablo Amargo‘s Cats Are Paradoxes together is their wit and linear virtuosity. The former plays with an etch-a-sketch aesthetic to create portraits of New York; the latter uses optical illusion to amplify the role of the cat in urban life. The rest is up to your own imagination.

From CATS ARE PARADOXES
by Pablo Amargo

Pablo Amargo is an illustrator who lives in Northern Spain. There he creates books and posters, and is a frequent contributor to numerous editorial publications using a mix of Freehand and Photoshop.

From NYC AMERICA
by Tibor Kárpáti

An illustrator based in Budapest, Tibor Kárpáti contributes to publications including The New Yorker, MIT Technology Review, and Golf Digest as well as working with children’s book publishers.

The post What’s My Line? appeared first on Print Magazine.

What’s My Line?

Steven Heller — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 05:09:57 +0000

Other than that random thought, what links these two books, Hungarian artist Tibor Kárpáti‘s NYC America and Spanish artist Pablo Amargo‘s Cats Are Paradoxes together is their wit and linear virtuosity. The former plays with an etch-a-sketch aesthetic to create portraits of New York; the latter uses optical illusion to amplify the role of the cat in urban life. The rest is up to your own imagination.

From CATS ARE PARADOXES
by Pablo Amargo

Pablo Amargo is an illustrator who lives in Northern Spain. There he creates books and posters, and is a frequent contributor to numerous editorial publications using a mix of Freehand and Photoshop.

From NYC AMERICA
by Tibor Kárpáti

The post What’s My Line? appeared first on Print Magazine.

Fujifilm wins patent legal battle

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 11:02:19 +0000

Fujifilm has successfully won a legal battle over patent infringements of its Speciality Ink Systems.

EFI to be acquired

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 11:02:19 +0000

Electronics for Imaging (EFI) has announced it is to be acquired by an affiliate of private equity firm, Siris Capital Group.

EFI acquisition on the cards

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:38:01 +0000

EFI has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of private equity company Siris Capital Group in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.7bn.

Fespa Global to see new Aleph LaForte printers

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:37:41 +0000

Aleph will show two new LaForte printers at Fespa Global in May. The LaForte 400 is equipped with pigment inks for blue-back paper, and LaForte 100 is a dye-sublimation entry level machine.

Fuji issues inks infringement statement

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:37:03 +0000

Fujifilm Speciality Ink Systems (FSIS) says a successful legal suit filed against Nazdar and its German distributor Zaro shows it takes the protection of its intellectual property extremely seriously.

Durst opens new customer experience centre

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:36:18 +0000

Durst has opened its new headquarters and customer experience centre in Brixen, northern Italy.

Onyx to demo its next software release

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:34:59 +0000

Onyx Graphics will demonstrate its next major release at the International Sign Expo in Las Vegas on 24-26 April.

Gerber MCT Cutter to make European debut at Fespa Global

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 10:34:19 +0000

Six months from acquiring MCT Digital, Gerber is expanding its MCT digital cutting system offering. I will use Fespa Global for the European debut of the Gerber MCT Cutter.

FESPA cancels China edition

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 09:05:22 +0000

Following the recent launch of the China show in January 2019, FESPA has made the decision to cancel this year’s event.

SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures

Steven Heller — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 05:49:47 +0000

I am proud to announce that tomorrow April 17, 2019, The School of Visual Arts NYC’s MFA Design / Design as Entrepreneur program will present its annual Venture pitch and presentation evening. Join me and co-founder Lita Talarico at the SVA Theatre 333 West 23rd St from 5 – 9 pm (sign up here) for a unique array of ambitious and inspiring products and projects or watch live stream here. And download the Venture 19 catalog. Incidentally, this is our 20th anniversary too.

Written by prolific designer and educator Steven Heller, The Daily Heller is a five-days-a-week peek into the best, boldest, and weirdest in the world of visual design and culture. Sign up for the weekly newsletter right here.

The post SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures appeared first on Print Magazine.

SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures

Steven Heller — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 05:49:47 +0000

The post SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures appeared first on Print Magazine.

Celebrating the world of comics with 3D print

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 13:43:55 +0000

Commuters and festival-goers were joined by five life-size characters on their journeys as part of the International Cartoon Festival of Angoulême.

Plastic to be removed from Guinness packs

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 13:17:37 +0000

Packaging of beer multipacks is set to have a revamp, as part of a £16m initiative by spirits and beer producer Diageo.

Dubai in world-first for robot-operated printing

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 12:29:26 +0000

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai has inaugurated the first factory in the world to use robots in the printing and manufacturing of vehicle number plates.

Mid West Displays slashes its solvent ink use

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 07:53:13 +0000

Mid West Displays will stop using solvent inks in the manufacturer of its core product ranges after 30 April 2019. The move requires major changes to the way the Shrewsbury-based company makes its bestselling LED lightpocket range, up to now screenprinted but as of the end of the month to be digitally printed using water-based inks. The change will reduce the company’s solvent-ink use by 95%.

Papergraphics’ CPD module gets RIBA approval

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 06:29:53 +0000

Papergraphics’ first continuing professional development (CPD) module has gained approval from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career

Jessica Kuhn — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 05:47:02 +0000

For some, the career path to a professional designer is like a sketch for a logo that readily comes to life with little hiccups (aka client interruptions) or minimum alterations. Before you know it, what started as a plan denoted by pencil marks on a piece of paper is emblazoned on everything from soft cotton T-shirts to letterhead and banner ads. For others, even some of the greats—like two of PRINT’s Regional Design Awards’ judges—that journey to a career as a designer is wrought with a eraser smudge parks and crumpled pieces of paper that make way for something new, something better.

A non-linear career path to becoming a graphic designer is something encountered by many. For these two PRINT RDA judges, their studies started in different disciplines but were eventually drawn to their careers as designers. Although their stories are different, they are united by a found passion.

A Sudden Awakening and a New Career Path

You can see traces of Antonio Alcalá’s background when studying certain pieces of his work. Before owning his own studio, Studio A, he first graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in history. His work comes together like genetic material—his education in history and his own experiences combine to display deep understanding and appreciation in all of his projects.

Driven by a yearning to communicate with meaning, Alcalá understands the importance of research when bringing a project to life, especially for clients like the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institute, National Geographic Society, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “My experience studying history influences my work all the time, but not in ways that are necessarily detectable in the final project,” Alcalá says.

There’s a thirst for knowledge that comes with each new project that fuels him. “I am never bored. I am constantly learning new things. And I enjoy helping to create work that adds to our cultural heritage,” Alcalá says. One of those projects, Harlem Heroes, is a book designed for the Smithsonian American Art Museum. By researching the topic on his own, Alcalá took a deep dive into the cultural life of African Americans in Harlem, which in turn influenced everything from typographic choices to photography. “These small additions, a result of reading and research skills, help enhance the content,” Alcalá says.

But why did this Yale graduate with a history degree choose to pursue a career path in design? “Design is enjoyable,” Alcalá answers very matter of factly. After graduating from college with that degree in history, he had no clear vision for what his future looked like. Many with a history degree either pursued graduate or law school, neither of which he found appealing.

Little did he know that a gift from his grandparents in high school—a calligraphy pen kit—would continue to draw out further interests leading to design. For some time, he set aside such artistic interests in pursuit of academics of a different stripe, but an off-campus calligraphy course his junior year of college beckoned him. Then, the instructor of a course in drawing and printmaking took note of Alcalá’s enthusiasm and work ethic, noting that he was definitely not destined to a career in fine art…but he did ask if Alcalá had heard of graphic design.

“By the end of the summer, I began to see the possibilities of other options besides history,” Alcalá says. He went on to Yale School of Art to earn an M.F.A. in graphic design and later opened Studio A in 1988. It’s safe to say that the rest is history.

Your Path is Your Story

Sam Eckersley, founding partner of RED Partners, first finished his undergrad in advertising and, at the time, imagined himself climbing the ladder at a large agency like Leo Burnett or Landor. He spent about four years working for a marketing firm on campaigns for corporate clients. “I wasn’t content, but felt stuck,” Eckersley recalls. Soon, through a friend, he started to attend different events that connected him to new worlds in the industry, like a talk by Spanish-American artist Victor Moscoso about psychedelic music posters of the 1960s. “His talk put a face behind work I’d always obsessed over but didn’t realize was a career option,” Eckersley says.

He knew where he wanted to be, but he didn’t quite know how to get there. “I remember coming across the book ‘Made You Look’ by Stefan Sagmeister. It had a huge impact on me. Eckersley then applied at the School of Visual Arts in New York City where Sagmeister taught. “I now had a clear direction, and it was simply about working hard to get there,” he says.

Looking back, Eckersley doesn’t see that time spent pursuing a different career path as wasted and doesn’t think others contemplating a change should either. Instead, embrace it and use it to your advantage to stand out in a crowded field. “I often find designers that come from other industries can offer unique perspectives. My advice to non-designers making the switch is to embrace aspects of what you’ve already learned and let it shape your approach and thought process,” Eckersley says.

The post The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career appeared first on Print Magazine.

The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career

Jessica Kuhn — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 05:47:02 +0000

A Sudden Awakening and a New Career Path

Your Path is Your Story

The post The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career appeared first on Print Magazine.

The Electoral Primary Season 1792

Steven Heller — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 05:11:53 +0000

To be perfectly clear, there was no Democratic party in 1792 (it was not founded until around 1828), so the Democratic donkey and Republican (party founded in 1854) elephant designed by cartoonist Thomas Nast in 1870 and 1874, respectively, were not yet conceived. But even in those nascent days of American democracy, there were conventions, the primary election season, and, therefore, political asses. This political cartoon by an unknown satiric commentator seems to have predicted the current field. Hopefully, at least one of them will kick their common opponent in his heralded small hand.

Francisco Goya’s “Capricho nº 39: Hasta su abuelo” (1796) also suggest a crowded primary election season today.

The post The Electoral Primary Season 1792 appeared first on Print Magazine.

Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition

Steven Heller — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 05:45:32 +0000

Infinite Expressions in Alla Faccia

In his book Alla faccia, the futurist, progressive, children’s and adult illustrator and designer Bruno Munari (1907–1998) created countless faces through different types of signs. Each is different, yet they are all recognizable, demonstrating how a single concept can be infinitely expressed. Munari always paid special attention to the world of children. Never separating content from form and materials, what he designed were at once books, book-objects and games that would make us think. Now, for the first time, Corraini Editions presents a series of 16 fine art prints taken from Alla faccia.

The post Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition appeared first on Print Magazine.

Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition

Steven Heller — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 05:45:32 +0000

Infinite Expressions in Alla Faccia

The post Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition appeared first on Print Magazine.

France on the Right

Steven Heller — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 05:28:06 +0000

The terms Right and Left were coined during the French Revolution (1789–99). They referred to where lawmakers sat inside the French parliament–on the right of the chair of the parliamentary president were supportive of the monarchist Ancien Régime. Today the right–or rather the ultra right–is not necessarily in parliament but on the streets fighting for nationalism, racism and empire, against liberalism, freedom and rationality.

The Organisation de l’armée secrète (1954-62)

A fascinating book, Tricolores: A Visual History of the Right and the Ultra Right by Zvonimir Novak (Editions L’Echappée, Montreuil, France) (only in French) surveys the graphics (posters, flyers, buttons and more) of the organized Right from the late 19th century to the present. Some of the work is indistinguishable from its Left counterparts, and others are decidedly fascistic and ominously hardcore.

Right leaning politics has long played a role in French politics. During World War II, the government in Vichy was allied with the Nazi occupiers. During the end of French colonialism, Right wingers also played a disruptive–and what today would be a terrorist–role.

The posters here represent various groups that share Right wing methods and motives.

Front National, protectionist, socially conservative, nationalist anti-immigration party founded in 1972

Rassemblement pour la République (RPR) founded by Jacques Chirac in 1976.

Ordre Nouveau, a far-right movement created on December 15, 1969 that joined Front National.

The post France on the Right appeared first on Print Magazine.

Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge

Bryn Mooth — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 04:08:19 +0000

The size and scope of this year’s HOW Design Live offers a lot of benefits: With an array of separate programs, each with a broad array of sessions and a lineup of expert speakers, you can design an agenda that’s perfectly suited to your needs and interests.

Spread over four days, however, and with several thousand people attending, the event might seem overwhelming to some. Wondering how to get your head around it all? We’ve gathered tips from longtime HOW Design Live attendees for making the most out of your conference experience.

Maximize Your HOW Design Live 2019

Start with a game plan.

Be strategic about the sessions you choose when you register. Are you an in-house designer looking to start freelancing? A print designer who wants to learn web design? Choose sessions that will expand your skills and inspire your best work—not just those that look like “fun.” And remember: If you’re sitting in a session and it’s not doing it for you, you can quietly duck out and head for another.

Plan to record your experience.

However you like to take notes and capture ideas, plan to do that in spades at HOW Design Live. Bring a notebook, a sketchbook, your phone with charger and backup charger so you don’t run out of juice at any time. “I take notes like a writer would take notes. If the session is highly visual, I also pull out my camera and constantly shoot the screen,” says veteran HOW Design Conference attendee Karen Larson. “I want to walk away with a notebook full so that I can remember almost everything about every session I attend.”

Be in the moment.

Yes, four days is a long time to be away from the office. To the extent you can, leave work at work and simply immerse yourself in the HOW atmosphere. Use technology to record and communicate your experience (share via the #HOWLive hashtag on Twitter), but don’t let it interrupt your conversations or get in the way of your experience.

Put yourself out there.

Perhaps the biggest benefit to attending HOW Design Live is connecting with other creatives. To do that, you have to get out of your shell. Longtime HOW Design Conference speaker Stefan Mumaw says, “In any extended experience like HOW, it takes a few days to take off that mask. My advice: Take off the mask as soon as you arrive. We are all uncool—just accept it and get whatever you need from the experience, whether that is information, affirmation, encouragement, empathy, commiseration or inspiration. Approach a speaker and strike up a conversation. Ask for lunch dates. Make quick friends. Leave anonymous notes around the hotel bar.”

Bring a big stack of business cards—and plan to give them all away.

Brad Dressler, a HOW Design Conference regular, observes that not everyone is great at networking. “But I speak from years of experience that you’ll make both lifelong friends and tons of business contacts,” he says.

Manage your energy.

Conference days are full of information and inspiration; you’ll feel like you’re drinking from a fire hose. Pay attention to your energy level, and take short breaks to decompress as needed. Pack along energy bars to keep you going between meals. Connect with a small group to head out for lunch or dinner.

Be a sponge.

“A lot of us are the ‘experts’ in our companies, agencies, even our circles of friends. We spend a lot of time educating, coaching and mentoring others,” says Keith Smith, another regular on the HOW circuit. “HOW Design Live is an opportunity to take a break from being the ‘smartest kid in class.’ I relish the chances to ask questions of speakers, attendees, vendors and creatives from non-related industries.”

Keep an ear out for great advice.

Given the lineup at this year’s event, particularly among the HOW Leadership Conference and the keynote presentations, you’ll be hearing from some razor-sharp people. Even speakers from outside your particular discipline can teach you well. In-House Management Conference speaker Justin Knecht recalls a session he attended several years ago presented by DJ Stout from Pentagram. “Someone asked a question about, ‘How do you choose the projects you work on?’ He said there was a magic triad of ‘good people, good work and good money’ and at least two needed to be present to take on the work. Great advice.”

Here’s what to do: Choose your sessions. Clear your calendar. Pack your bags. Open your mind.

The post Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge appeared first on Print Magazine.

Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge

Bryn Mooth — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 04:08:19 +0000

Maximize Your HOW Design Live 2019

Start with a game plan.

Plan to record your experience.

Be in the moment.

Put yourself out there.

Bring a big stack of business cards—and plan to give them all away.

Manage your energy.

Be a sponge.

Keep an ear out for great advice.

Here’s what to do: Choose your sessions. Clear your calendar. Pack your bags. Open your mind.

The post Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge appeared first on Print Magazine.

The Sublimity Of Illiteracy

Steven Heller — Tue, 09 Apr 2019 05:09:56 +0000

Western designers, like me, are so besotted by the Latin Alphabet born of the Trajan inscription, we have long been myopic when it comes to seeing the non-exclusivity of other-than-Latin letter forms, alphabets and typefaces. To the Western eye, characters that do not conform to our familiar writing and printing styles are alien patterns and abstract designs.

Type was not even invented in the West and non-Latin characters comprise the majority of the world’s alphabets. In large part, owing to the computer font-making programs, non-Latin letter forms are currently enjoying a renaissance throughout the world.

I found that out recently through the patient wisdom of a Japanese ephemera dealer who sold me the material shown here. I’ve collected “foreign” documents before, but his enthusiasm for this otherwise ephemeral commercial typography triggered my own excitement and embraced my own illiteracy. This a pretentious, long-winded, pseudo-intellectual way of saying that these Japanese characters on paper, lovingly collected sometime in the postwar 40s in this sublime scrapbook of mid-twentieth century labels, while foreign to me, are nonetheless sensual and poetic in and out of any translatable context. It is humbling to see them. It’s frustrating not to be equipped with language to understand them. I won’t even try. Instead, I simply present them here free from Google translation for your visual enjoyment and mine too.

The post The Sublimity Of Illiteracy appeared first on Print Magazine.

Fujifilm and Kyoto University jointly developed AI-based diagnostic support technology for interstitial pneumonia.

Tue, 09 Apr 2019 04:00:00 +0000

Print News Feed for Blog

The Green Lantern Returns

Right into the Action

New and Improved

War! What’s It Good For?

War as Passion

Hypnotic Chaos

3D Print Project: Print Your Own Printing Press

Colourful rebrand catches attention of new markets

Mailing firm opens demonstration room

Circle files for bankruptcy for Dutch companies

Loop Print enters administration

Romance Sign Language Of Romania

Romance Sign Language Of Romania

Signs of the Times

Left Behind Signs

Fujifilm announces firmware updates for “FUJIFILM X-T30”

53 Thoughts from HOW Design Live

Invaluable design quotes from HOW Design Live, appearing in no particular order:

Printing firm bought out of administration

Colour management in wide-format Experts’ Day to be held at Durst HQ

Xtreme orders another Jetrix LXiR320

Signs Express Birmingham does it by the book

AXYZ brings out Infinite CNC router

Nyala takes top spot

Vine Lodge to install VG2-540 at end of April

Sign and UK attendee figures published

Harnessing the sustainable power of latex

New ‘offset-like quality’ press from Canon

Funding available for BPIF Masters

What’s My Line?

From CATS ARE PARADOXES by Pablo Amargo

From NYC AMERICA by Tibor Kárpáti

What’s My Line?

From CATS ARE PARADOXES by Pablo Amargo

From NYC AMERICA by Tibor Kárpáti

Fujifilm wins patent legal battle

EFI to be acquired

EFI acquisition on the cards

Fespa Global to see new Aleph LaForte printers

Fuji issues inks infringement statement

Durst opens new customer experience centre

Onyx to demo its next software release

Gerber MCT Cutter to make European debut at Fespa Global

FESPA cancels China edition

SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures

SVA MFA Design’s Latest Ventures

Celebrating the world of comics with 3D print

Plastic to be removed from Guinness packs

Dubai in world-first for robot-operated printing

Mid West Displays slashes its solvent ink use

Papergraphics’ CPD module gets RIBA approval

The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career

A Sudden Awakening and a New Career Path

Your Path is Your Story

The Non-Linear Path to Designing Your Career

A Sudden Awakening and a New Career Path

Your Path is Your Story

The Electoral Primary Season 1792

Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition

Infinite Expressions in Alla Faccia

Bruno Munari’s Facial Recognition

Infinite Expressions in Alla Faccia

France on the Right

Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge

Maximize Your HOW Design Live 2019

Start with a game plan.

Plan to record your experience.

Be in the moment.

Put yourself out there.

Bring a big stack of business cards—and plan to give them all away.

Manage your energy.

Be a sponge.

Keep an ear out for great advice.

Best Advice? At HOW Design Live, Be a Sponge

Maximize Your HOW Design Live 2019

Start with a game plan.

Plan to record your experience.

Be in the moment.

Put yourself out there.

From CATS ARE PARADOXES
by Pablo Amargo

From NYC AMERICA
by Tibor Kárpáti

From CATS ARE PARADOXES
by Pablo Amargo

From NYC AMERICA
by Tibor Kárpáti