Clever by Nature

Renew Australia

2011-10-14T02:58:00.000-07:00

I was at the launch of Renew Australia and it was a really moving, impressive event. The founder, Marcus Westbury, has achieved so much and is so approachable and generous with his time. Marni Jackson and Marcus have been running 'Renew Newcastle' which has delivered 71 creative projects in 42 empty properties around Newcastle. The philosophy and vision that Marcus carries with him is a beautiful thing. Renew Newcastle takes away the red tape, lowers the barrier to entry and embraces risk to galvanize artists and creatives into action. They have created a new type of property usage licence, they have worked incredibly hard to deliver real and lasting change to the social and cultural fabric of Newcastle.Thanks to Anique Vered from the Rocks Pop-up Project and Artist, Lara Torr former project manager of Renew Adelaide I managed to find out about and attend the second Empty Space coordinators forum in Newcastle the day before the Renew Australia launch. The 'This is Not Art' festival was happening at the same time, so it really was a highly creative and vibrant atmosphere.Marni Jackson took us on a tour of the Renew spaces after our conference and it was a really impressive experience for everyone involved. I am so inspired - can't wait to get our Crows Nest project up and running.

The Crows Nest Pop-up Project

2011-08-13T04:53:00.000-07:00

I have to say, I really am quite obsessed with the idea of getting Artists and designers into the empty retail spaces in Crows Nest. Thanks to the all-round genius of Marcus Westbury and his work on Renew Newcastle and the team behind the 'Empty Spaces' site...it's been an excellent start to this project.

It's all at the Culture Map discussion blog and also in this wickedly clever online Prezi.

This is going to be challenging and educational no doubt.

Mortal Engine by Chunky Move

2010-12-30T01:22:00.000-08:00

I spotted this via Pinterest...so random, I just liked the organic looking linework. Once I read the title and sub heading I was really hooked. I watched the clip above and it moved me to tears. This needs some explanation...

About 12 years ago I filled a sketchbook with concepts for interactive staging environments for contemporary dance. This was followed up with a chance to experiment with interaction design for a space (it was the Hoxton Cinema in London, a collaboration with Greyworld which was kindly funded by the Arts Council).

Well, it turns out that Chunky Move have created exactly the kind of thing I had in mind all those years ago! It's magical, ethereal...seemingly liquid reactive space where the dancers are authors of the visual dynamics of the lighting and atmospheric staging. The interactive environment is at one with the performance.

Perfect. And so incredibly frustrating that I had nothing to do with producing it. I want to dig up my sketchbooks and wave it at the guys who produced this...look, look I have twenty more ideas where this came from!!

Dentsu London

2010-10-17T16:41:00.001-07:00

Making Future Magic: iPad light painting from Dentsu London on Vimeo.

Beautiful on so many levels...

IDEO - Future of the book

2010-10-13T17:56:00.001-07:00

The Future of the Book. from IDEO on Vimeo.

A beautifully produced, thoughtfully designed set of three concepts for the future of the book. 'Nelson', which is all about context and verification of knowledge. Coupland which is about knowledge sharing within the context of social groups. And finally, playful 'Alice' which ties in geolocation and collaborative and interactive narratives. Masterful.

The Bandwagon of Uncertainty

2010-10-10T01:24:00.001-07:00

"What has happened to our conviction?" A great poem by Taylor Mali, set as a typographic animation. "It's not enough to question authority, you've got to speak with it too."

Red Bull - Brand as Theatre

2010-10-08T18:51:00.001-07:00

This is an excellent example of experiential branding and reactive graphics on a big scale. I seriously would have loved working on this one! I'll be keeping my roving eye-ball on any other examples of great brand experiences like this one...thanks Digitalbuzz this is food for thought.

The Emotiv Headset

2010-10-04T16:25:00.000-07:00

Tan Le: A headset that reads your brainwaves | Video on TED.com

Okay - this is Science fiction..moving right to Science fact. Tan Le presents Emotiv's headset at TED in the UK last July...

"Tan Le's astonishing new computer interface reads its user's brainwaves, making it possible to control virtual objects, and even physical electronics, with mere thoughts (and a little concentration). She demos the headset, and talks about its far-reaching applications."

History Pin

2010-09-28T20:45:00.001-07:00

Now this is a beautiful thing. I've just been thinking about recording stories from my father's life which ties neatly into this beautiful production by a company in the UK called "We are what we do". I wish I'd worked on this project and brought it to the world...it's a gorgeous thing!

Wayfinding and Mobile Applications

2010-09-22T23:23:00.001-07:00

I'm spending a bit of time contemplating wayfinding systems and various geolocating mobile applications.

I found this a fascinating read 'Wayfinding through Technology 'by Cennydd Bowles. Well, okay it's over a year old but thought provoking none the less.

We've all been intrigued by Augmented reality but imagine if it gave you realtime data about the world around you. For anyone with an iPhone there is possibly nothing more magical than holding up your phone and sharing the constellations of the night sky with your young children. Consumer software is adding poetry to our daily lives, not just being purely utilitarian.

Personally, I have to confess, I'm holding out for an Android phone...or possibly an Apad (Android pad), or should I say 'iRobot' Droid iPad knockoff looks fairly tempting but still does not support Flash(!)

I haven't tried out Gowalla or Foursquare but I have read up about the Major battles and general geeky jousting about which is better. If this kind of location based consumer behaviour and data was available to marketers, it would send them wild.

However, Layar technology has fired up my imagination. Layar is based in the Netherlands and their geolocation mobile applications run on iPhone and Android phones...check the Layar demo - it's inspiring stuff. Despite the fatuous marketing - 'now you can decide how you want your world to be augmented'. Hmm ...the corny presentation aside, the gist of it is amazing really. The Droid phones with Layar actually integrate with Facebook places...(a fascinating evolution of Facebook, although the big brother/stalker potential isn't very attractive.)

It's all getting very interesting out there...now I'm off to read more about the term 'Spime' (thanks to Bruce Stirling.)

Digital Citizens Social Media Meetup

2010-06-15T23:49:00.000-07:00

I attended the Digital Citizens social media meetup last night and it was a bit of a blast from the past. That past being the one where people were honestly fired up about all things digital and there was an actual sense of passion and enthusiasm in the air from a refreshingly non-suited crowd.

There were some Nathan Barley moments and also some genuinely articulate interesting people too... an interesting mix, all up.

I got on the mike for my 20 seconds of fame...my point, if I remember correctly, was that companies will be necessarily changed by the advent of social media in two ways - altruism and honesty. Altruism due to things like crowdsourced design and code (like joomla) eclipsing CRMs that used to cost a fortune and also by customer 'honesty'. Brands don't belong to companies now, they belong to the world at large, and the results can be seen in places like Brandkarma amongst others.

Interesting times. I should get out more, clearly...!

Introducing Google TV

2010-06-01T23:58:00.000-07:00

I want my, I want my Google TV (to the tune of the famous Police song). Finally, a good reason to actually own something resembling a TV. We've had a home baked media centre for years. Maybe it's time to trade up. I'd love to get my mitts on a trial and have a good look at the interface and functionality. It all looks very tasty.

The Blue Carpet

2010-04-29T22:36:00.000-07:00

One more masterpiece to capture from Heatherwick Studios...the'Blue Carpet' town square in Newcastle. A breathtakingly elegant and sensitive approach to urban planning and the first town square commission for the UK in a century.

"The space was unified with a single surface using tiles, developed for the project over four years, consisting of blue glass from recycled Harvey's Bristol Cream bottles set in white resin. The surface articulates around trees and distorts as it meets buildings, and is perforated around bollards and peeled back to form benches." [quote from the Heatherwick Studio website]

The Seed Cathedral

2010-04-29T22:29:00.001-07:00

I've just been marvelling at the beautiful, inspiring work of Thomas Heatherwick. I would love to visit the British Pavillion or 'Seed Cathedral' at the Shanghai Expo.

"The studio’s concept is an enclosure that throws out from all faces a mass of long, radiating cilia. Their length means they gently sway in response to any wind movement. It rests on its soft forest in an urban field, surrounded by a concrete canopy that resembles unfolded wrapping paper."

Ant Hayes Illustration

2010-04-23T03:31:00.000-07:00

I am loving the work of Ant Hayes I just wish I had a pair of those beautifully embellished custom shoes. The cushions and shoes I've customised are in a similar vein, but Ant's style is wierd and fun.

I found his work at Finders Keepers and it makes a really refreshing change to see an edgy, personal style shine out amongst the onslaught of Nordic Kitsch. I'm hatching a theory that IKEA has infected the culture and all the local indie makers are onto the same vibe. Maybe it could be called the IKEA School or perhaps, Scando Tragic...(if I see another twee owl, wonky felt toy, or cute little birdy...)

I admire the whole hand made movement (still want to watch Handmade Nation) and had a crack at it myself with Ponoko. On the flipside, there's a heap of junk out there which Regretsy hilariously showcases.

Vooky Wook

2010-03-29T15:56:00.000-07:00

Ah yes this little innovation brings back memories. A retro futuristic moment...I can just hear Peter Kindersley saying, the book is dead, long live CDROMs. That dates me, but I am old school!

Now, post Kindle, we have yet another stab at slaying the book as we know it. The 'Vook' evidently championed by Seth Godin, allows you to read, watch awe inspiring video and and also connect with your friends. It's just like multimedia with a bit of social media chucked in.

Sometimes I just think I'm being April fooled.

Doo Gooders

2010-03-29T15:17:00.001-07:00

I'm really enjoying the Brandkarma site. Cute promotional video too. Now we can all compare different corporations and watch their 'karmic stocks and shares' rise and fall. Beautiful concept and a great execution too.

Delicious. Buuut...yet more jargon is born...now we have 'doos' to contend with, (a bit too cute me thinkst.) Doo or doo not, there is no try according to Yoda.

Interactive Lobby Installation

2010-03-28T22:17:00.001-07:00

I wish I could have designed this! I've got a square tonne of concepts mapped out for applications that do just this kind of thing: demonstrate a company's brand and global presence using a dynamic interactive display located in their lobby.

I want in! I want to design the next one to be installed soonest...

I wonder if Envis Precisely is planning on a move to Sydney?

Sixth Sense an MIT Project

2010-02-26T21:19:00.001-08:00

MIT's Pranav Mistry is a genius. This short video demonstrates his way of thinking and outlines the uses for Sixth Sense technology. The most inspiring thing is that his invention is so cheap and accessible - this really will be one to watch. His work combines the best of natural interaction, gestural navigation ...it's poetry in motion.

Joshua Allen Harris' Inflatable Bag Monsters

2010-02-25T03:09:00.000-08:00

This is so inspiring and so beautiful on many levels. Love the fact that social media / video web posting of one of his works got him some well deserved publicity.

When will we see this in Sydney?

Google Shopper for Android

2010-02-19T13:59:00.000-08:00

If only Google would stop doing such smart, interesting things, I could post about something else in my blog! Just watched this demo of Google Shopper and would love to try it out. Many years ago Justin Moodie from Agency.com labs came up with an impressive concept using SMS for shared shopping lists etc - this is the natural and full-blown extension of that. I can't get over the smarts of the book cover being recognized...next the handset will be able to take a photo of a person and all their personal details, taste in music, last blog post and photos will flick up on your screen.

Hmmm...Google will hopefully learn from the law suits about Buzz and it won't herald a difficult era for Google where they'll have to struggle with lawyers every time they try and innovate.

Liquid Galaxy

2010-02-13T15:35:00.000-08:00

My blog's turning into a list of 'look what Google's come up with now' moments. I love this example of 20% time where 8 Linux machines have been networked to run an enhanced version of Google Earth and Mars...displayed in an immersive kiosk across multiple screens. It's called Liquid Galaxy...I had no idea you could travel through the ocean and look at the topography of the sea bed. The demo video shows voice activated control - it's all getting very Star Trek out there!

Animal Heaven

2009-11-24T23:13:00.001-08:00

This is my perfect nightmare. The video was posted over two years ago, shame it's taken such a long time for me to come across it(!) I find this scary and fascinating...an experiment that illustrates the power of subliminal persuasion. Extraordinary, I'll be keeping my eyes shut on the way to work from now on in order to stay 100% original in my creativity...oh well. Better find out what else Derren Brown has been up to recently.

Share Everything You Can

2009-11-22T19:44:00.001-08:00

A note about Google culture that helps them innovate their products. A flat organisation with staff who are empowered and have a sense of independence. Tom Kelly's book "The Art of Innovation" is quoted - it warns against chasing after credit for ideas instead of focusing on producing new ideas: "Marissa Mayer, Vice President of Search Products & User Experience at Google, believes that if you fill a room with smart people and give them access to information, brilliant ideas will flourish, and the need for a strict management hierarchy dissolves."

MS Natal

2009-11-22T18:36:00.000-08:00

It's great to see this development from MS - Natal is a console-free Xbox interface which looks very cool. Natural interaction or gesture driven devices are the way forward. We're freeing ourselves from clunky consoles which is great. If you think of these types of innovations alongside the things going on in the Googlesphere ...with any luck, technology may become empowering in the right ways some day soon. (Not that I'm hedging my bets, or anything!)

Chrome OS

2009-11-22T18:12:00.000-08:00

Yet another facet of Google's bid for world domination...the Chrome OS beautifully explained by another Epipheo animation...

Google Navigation

2009-11-22T18:09:00.001-08:00

Product manager from the Google product team explains the Beta launch of GPS voice driven navigation for Android enabled phones...this will connect your phone to Google maps in your car. Hmm...interesting development.

Evan Roth and Eyewriter

2009-11-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

It is a rare moment when technology and poetry intersect so beautifully. This technology is magical and empowering. Eyewriter was developed to allow paralysed people to use a computer...they can drive the cursor by moving their eyes. This short movie tells the story of graffiti artist 'Tempt' using the technology from his hospital bed to create artworks in the urban LA environment. Very moving.

Google Wave Promotion

2009-11-15T16:31:00.001-08:00

A piece of branding and promotion Google style. A brief promo about the powers of Google wave and about the antiquated nature of our existing email universe.

Loose, easy relaxed candid marketing. "Just kick it, grab a Margarita and watch your communication-ness soar..."

Windows 7 vs Mac Rich Media

2009-11-15T16:21:00.000-08:00

This is a sweet extension of the tried and tested brand campaign for Apple. This particular execution using the interaction between different traditional ad banner spaces on the NY Times...is a great brand statement and a fine use of rich media advertising formats.

Flikr Colour Tool

2009-09-28T20:43:00.001-07:00

This is a beautiful, cool tool connection RGB colour polling with the Flikr database of photography...ahh, a little wow on a Tuesday.

A Dose of Loveliness and Goodness

2009-09-14T17:18:00.001-07:00

The National Grid Gallery in looks like a great hub of creativity and inspires a little hope on a Tuesday morning...

They're currently running an open art project: "the Clothespeg Project Volume 3". Feelin' creative just thinking about it now.

Thoughts on Ebon Heath / Char Davies

2009-06-01T19:33:00.001-07:00

June, July and nearly all of August has vanished and now I'm finally finishing up this post about Ebon's gorgeous typography.

Had a strange vision that Ebon and Char Davies should do a collaboration...so you could fly through the 3D typography in virtual space.

I'll never forget experiencing Char Davies' Osmose in VR. Amazing.

How Cool are Kickers?

2009-05-13T00:24:00.001-07:00

Since when did Kickers become such an edgy brand? I remember my lovely red Kickers from the 80s with a lot of nostalgia and warmth...hmm not sure what I think about this cranky set of animations for an old favourite. They're clever and almost funny but...at odds with the brand of kids shoes I used to love. I guess the brief was to make the brand relevant to today's market, be cool or die - forcing the shoes to seem trendy when they clearly aren't (well, they certainly weren't when I wore them). I think a campaign more like the 'Unworry' message would work better. These shoes are from a time when simple things like comfort and quality really meant something. (URGH..now I'm sounding my age not my shoe size!!)

Paper Motion

2009-05-11T17:41:00.001-07:00

Where's Sydney's version of this Augmented Reality poster? This one is advertising the movie 'Night at the Museum II'. Hold up the paper and a dinosaur skeleton lumbers to life. Check out the video on YouTube. There's a fair amount of screen glare which doesn't show the onscreen graphics to best advantage...I wonder how it works at night...

LastGraph Data Visualisation

2009-04-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

I really had a great deal of fun with this online data visualisation application that sucks data from LastFM - and then displays it in a range of beautiful ways. Still haven't managed to print or download my poster of time based music enjoyment buuut .... it was inspired by the work of Lee Byron.

Razorfish 2008 Consumer Experience Report

2009-04-27T17:57:00.001-07:00

Wow - this is a thing of beauty. I love the tender loving design and production care that went into this! Also, makes very interesting reading. Especially liked the article "Putting Jakob back on the shelf"...(Better late than never...)

Nokia Point and Find

2009-04-27T16:48:00.001-07:00

Really interesting find via Oliver Weidlich from the TAT mobile user interface blog... dodgy demo but great potential functionality.

"This future is inevitable. Start preparing now!

Today: Not having a website for your business is unthinkable.
Future: Not having your posters and other graphic promotional material registered so that they can be auto-recognized will be unthinkable."

Here's a better demo video on You Tube from a British trade show - a clear outline of the Nokia Point and Find technology and its potential.

iPhone Apps - Facing Facts:

2009-04-26T23:01:00.000-07:00

Quotes from an interesting AdWeek article: Inside the iPhone App Goldrush.

"Lighter company Zippo came out last October with a branded iPhone application that features a simple lighter on the screen. Since its introduction, the Virtual Zippo Lighter has been downloaded 3 million times, making it the most popular brand application on the iPhone platform."

"Brands tend to gravitate, often with poor results, to "shiny objects," said Wayne Arnold, CEO, North America, Profero, an independent digital agency. "Creating an iPhone app is jumping to implementation before you have a strategy," he said."

"...less than 5 percent of downloaded iPhone applications are kept longer than a month."

iBanter for Cobra Beer

2009-04-20T00:21:00.000-07:00

"Feel the back of my hand...no, really, feel the back of my hand."

Another quirky digital moment from Poke London, this time it's iBanter for Cobra Beer. For all the times I wish I had something dodgy, edgy or nearly funny to say - you can now download your own smart-mouth, if you're an iPod owner of course.

Digital Gurus - Job Board

2009-04-19T16:58:00.001-07:00

Nice use of Flash sliders in this job board from Digital Gurus in London. You can enter your postcode and then use two sets of controls (distance from home and salary) to update the jobs listed within the page. The style is so...1997 but hey, all my work was urban, gritty and black with photography of the inner city back then. Nice to see something so closely resembling my own graphic style from college days...getting quoted back a decade later.

Virgin Mobile Careers Site

2009-04-19T16:41:00.001-07:00

Well, this explains a lot. Employment branding Virgin Mobile style. It's refreshing to see a company illustrate their ideal employee with quirky or cheeky descriptors like...'*Sparkling demeanour (*Note the reassuring yet assertive voice)' and 'nice bum' ...we at HRX will all keep an eye out from now on and check to see how Virgin's staff live up to their company's expectations. (Well, while we all share a lift every day that is.)

EB for UK Government

2009-04-15T00:22:00.000-07:00

A great example of EB spotted by Zoe here at HRX for the National Graduate Development Programme for Local Government in the UK. The two video stories featured on the home page of this site are excellent examples of great EB in action. The video elements are really well produced and give the viewer a compelling experience online. I love the gentle illustration and animation style, the audio is well integrated too...full marks.

Yummy Mummy Careers

2009-04-15T00:08:00.000-07:00

Another Springwise recruitment case study: "Women make up roughly half of the workforce, and a large portion of them are of child-bearing age. Although it's no secret that employers need to become more family-friendly if they want to attract top talent, many are slow to take action.
Which is why Vancouver-based Sarah Fowles and James Sadler created a classified ad site specifically for moms seeking jobs. Instead of avoiding them, employers who post jobs on Yummy Mummy Careers actively recruit women with children, and (one would hope), are willing to accommodate their needs."

Figuring Out

2009-04-15T00:04:00.000-07:00

More on recruitment concepts from Springwise: "When it comes to choosing a career path, it's one thing to think about the job from the outside, but quite another to experience it day to day. Back in 2006 we wrote about Vocation Vacations, which helps career-changers test out different waters, and now UK-based Figuring Out offers a combination of career coaching and trial work experience to achieve a similar end."

Fresh Recruitment Concepts

2009-04-14T23:58:00.000-07:00

Just did another trawl through Springwise...searching for innovation in the recruitment field. Discovered a few interesting moments, an ERP portal Zubka.

Then there's this great little item titled: Job Interview Reinvented: "From Monsterboard to Craigslist to YorZ, advertising jobs online has become a standard part of the recruitment process.
The part of recruiting that has been lagging in its uptake of online technology, is the job interview. By conducting automated, online video Q&A sessions, HireVue, aims to revolutionize how recruiters view and select candidates. Instead of sifting through resumes, they can watch candidates answer a set of specific questions, allowing in-depth screening before inviting people for face-to-face interviews." Hmm, interesting.

iPhone App for 'Now Hiring'

2009-04-14T23:39:00.001-07:00

This just spotted by Zoe here at HRX. It's a recruitment application listed on the iPhone app site..."Don’t miss out on that job because you are away from your computer. Now Hiring is the perfect companion for anyone looking for a new job or career change. Search 1000’s of US & International job sites with the press of a button. In today’s competitive job market any advantage can make the difference. With Now Hiring you can stay one step ahead of the competition; it’s like having a recruiter in the palm of your hand."

Interactive Logograph for BP

2009-04-14T20:45:00.000-07:00

Okay, finally found this beautiful, old example of a reactive logotype created years ago by Golan Levin. I am seriously on the hunt for more great examples of reactive or interactive logos. I'll also be keeping an eye out for innovative brand toolkits or online brand guidelines.

Iridium Group Site

2009-04-14T20:21:00.000-07:00

The gentle sound of an acoustic guitar and a photograph of weathered wood...if you hit refresh you get a range of natural images updating the homepage. The work promotes an emotional response immediately. The music combines powerfully with image and typography. This site immediately creates a warm, welcoming, reassuring impression. I want to meet them, find out all about their philosophy. Beautiful.

The Vivo Brand Guide

2009-04-13T19:23:00.001-07:00

Okay, finally, I've started to find some good examples of interactive/online brand guidelines. After trawling through a range of blogs and worthy but traditional brand guide websites...I stumbled upon the Vivo brand guide designed in Brazil. There must be more. I'll be keeping my eyes peeled because there is plenty of innovation we need to tap into on this one to push our brand guidelines to the next level.

SellSumers Hollrr SNADvertising

2009-04-13T18:01:00.001-07:00

Mashing our terms as we go...here is an interesting moment. Converting people from being brand savvy to being fanatical brand advocates has now taken a new turn. Get paid. Become a 'sellSumer'. The unofficial media space of the individual can now be a business proposition in its own right.

... from Springwise: "Consumers frustrated by products with problems already have RedesignMe to share—and get paid for—their ideas on improving them. Now, on the flip side of the coin, there's Hollrr, a site that lets users help promote the products they love."

The brand marketing machine keeps evolving through our social networking activities...SNADvertising . We can interact with our online community and be tracked with efficient analytical tools to further inform marketers of our brand allegiances...

EB Examples from Springwise

2009-04-13T17:54:00.001-07:00

"Whereas the Best Job in the World was designed to focus attention on the Great Barrier Reef Islands, AirAsia's program is more of a fresh twist on the traditional recruitment process. And if that twist can work for hiring new pilots, what's to say it couldn't be used—with varying degrees of modification—to find your next blogger, marketing manager or sysadmin? Be inspired!"

Flutter Mockumentary

2009-04-13T16:16:00.000-07:00

...This one really tickled me, especially because I didn't know it was a mocko at first.

heh heh. Also wondering if 'twit' is now becoming a verb.

Contagious Magazine

2009-04-06T19:19:00.001-07:00

This is a great online resource and also a very good example of what media publications should evolve into online...

"Contagious is a quarterly intelligence briefing in magazine, DVD and online format. It identifies the ideas, trends and innovations behind the world’s most revolutionary marketing strategies."

Flash Mob Branding for T Mobile

2009-04-06T18:27:00.000-07:00

Love this from Adverblog:

"Looks like we've got a new trend here. Following the success of the New York based prank collective Improv Everywhere, brands now start to do their own branded flash mobs. In January, T-Mobile had a huge hit with it's Liverpool Street Station dance. Last week, both Amsterdam and Antwerp had it's turn. Who's next?"

Recruitment Advertising Window

2009-04-06T16:57:00.000-07:00

I had another look at Melbourne's "Interactivity.com.au" to see how their product range is evolving. It's interesting to read which brands and businesses they feel would be suited to their interactive window product:

"High street recruitment agents - Fill that vacancy now no longer restricted by the size of your window display you can promote all your job opportunities. Add a simple search facility and your customers can select their ideal job using the interactive touch screen..."

Microsoft Surface in New York AT&T Store

2009-04-06T16:50:00.001-07:00

OK - this use of Microsoft Surface is officially amazing. Looking forward to some serious interaction at POS in Sydney some time soon. It's the sort of immersive brand experience that Apple ought to have in their stores...

iPhone Application for Kraft

2009-04-06T00:32:00.000-07:00

Wow - I totally agree with Operand's assessment on this excellent example of branded application design. Having created similar pitch concepts for LG and being aware of similar prototype concepts such as Justin Moodie's (now head of Sega Europe I see...woohoo!) mobile phone app from ACOM's lab all those years ago...this iPhone app series the "ifood assistant" is a great culmination of features and functionality. Lucky old Kraft, they really got it right on this one.

GEs Smart Grid - Augmented Reality

2009-04-05T23:38:00.001-07:00

This GE branded execution using AR really is pretty mind blowing stuff. I'll be watching this technology and will try and collect examples of who's implementing it for which brand. This example for GE goes one better than the vorsprung durch technik style execution from various car manufacturers. I spotted in Wiki that Nissan, Volvo and Toyota have all used it for branded promotions. The GE Smart grid uses the input of the microphone to drive the 3D wind turbines. Beautiful...there's a great crit of this work at the Operand blog which is worth a read too.

The Megas

2009-03-31T15:59:00.000-07:00

Quite a few of the award winners at this year's Media Guardian competition caught my eye:

The ACDC viral using Excel was particularly interesting...great way to get branded comms past a firewall. Hmmm..the potential is endless for this sort of thing.

Shoot the summer looks really interesting - "a film about festivals shot entirely on mobile phones. It was an experiment in crowdsourcing and mobile movie making..."

I tried to check out Poke/Nic Roope's(?) 'Balloonacy' site for Orange..but missed the balloon race...it looks like it was hugely popular. I'll have to search around and have a go at playing the game.

I really love Demotix and can see why the Media Guardian is behind it...

"Demotix was founded with two principles at its heart - the freedom of speech and the freedom to know. Its objective is nothing if not ambitious - to rescue journalism by connecting independent journalists with the traditional media."

And of course...you'd spend a while checking out the signs in Heineken's branded interactive piece:

Know the Signs website ..."Red Brick Road / Ruby and Heineken wanted this campaign to have real impact. This was no box-ticking CSR exercise. To do this, it needed to resonate with a trendy, media-savvy, youthful audience." Work out whether you or your mates have ever been one of the five architypal disaster drinkers...

Interactive Branding

2009-03-31T15:47:00.001-07:00

Great little moment from Dutch agency N=5 for Fitness First. This has inspired me to start a collection of innovative branding moments...

"No more living in denial about the size of your waist line, thanks to this fantastic albeit terrifying guerrilla marketing initiative[...]Unsuspecting commuters in the Netherlands are faced with viewing their body weight in bright lights - quite literally - when they take a seat at this Rotterdam bus stop."

Crowdsourcing

2008-09-18T16:06:00.001-07:00

Jeff Howe promotional video for his interesting book:
Crowdsourcing: Why the Power of the Crowd is Driving the Future of Business

C02 Consuming Desert Flowers

2007-02-20T20:04:00.000-08:00

At four am the other day I lay awake (again) thinking about C02 reduction...as you do. I thought about Branson's latest self-promotional scheme and how it actually has some merit. It would contribute to easing his business man's conscience of course...but imagine if a scientist cracks it in our lifetime.

The winning technology would have to have no ecological footprint of its own. So I thought of a set of giant solar and hydrogen cell powered turbines in the Australian outback. These giant 'desert flowers' would have huge fans inside them engineered to cleverly circulate the atmosphere through spiral filters coated with C02 consuming bacteria.

The spiral filters would have panels that could be replaced or recycled. Each panel would contain a vast array of high surface area material. The only example I could think of was tungsten spirals used in light filaments. Some durable equivalent would work well. I thought too that the bacteria might have a lifespan and could need protecting from the elements so the giant flower could close (with the retractable petals) in times of inclement weather or sand storms.

So, seeing as I've just read Biomimicry I felt the structure should follow a biological example...and the Rafflesia came to mind.

Carbon Sequestration Prize

2007-02-20T18:50:00.000-08:00

Richard Branson offers $25M Carbon Sequestration Prize
February 9, 2007 - From the AP:

LONDON -- British tycoon Sir Richard Branson on Friday announced a $25 million prize for the scientist who comes up with a way of extracting greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

The Virgin Group chairman was joined by former Vice President Al Gore and other leading environmentalists, as he announced the challenge to find the world's first viable design to capture and remove carbon dioxide from the air.

Guerrilla Gardens and Urban Recreations

2007-02-05T21:26:00.000-08:00

Amongst today's beautiful discoveries are...an urban guerrilla gardener operating here in Sydney...and a new book that must be owned and marvelled at: Akay and Peter's 'Urban Recreations'.

When you take the time to search, there is a huge collection of poetic urban interventions and recreations out there waiting to be explored. Banksy really isn't the only one, although his work is rather delicious.

The Consolations of Architecture

2006-06-03T19:48:00.000-07:00

I've just read Alain de Botton's "The Consolations of Philosophy" and I watched his lecture at the Sydney Opera House on: "The Architecture of Happiness". It's all very enjoyable stuff. But I'd have to agree with the following quote from the New Statesman:

"The Architecture of Happiness is rather like a rubbery Starbucks cappuccino: it is 65 per cent shattering banality presented in a froth of Latinate polysyllables."

Mind you, reading his light weight work on the consolations of Philosophy inspired me to hunt down Montaigne's essays (which are all out at the local library, I think I'll be reading about biomimetics until they're available).

I'm still wondering if I find de Botton's work largely trivial with some profound moments...or just like one big cheap coffee. Either way, my favourite comment about architecture was that Le Corbusier's modernism was 'the greatest red herring' in design history. I enjoyed the story about Le Corbu's famous house, the Villa Savoie in Poissy. The roof leaked horribly for years and Corbusier was about to be sued by the owners. (The court case didn't go ahead due to the outbreak of WW2). Counter to his claims about modernism, this house was all about aesthetics and was an incredibly inefficient machine for living in.

Biomimetics and Design

2006-06-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

Biomimicry is something I haven't checked up on for a while. I initially came across it while I was reading up on David Suzuki. One of the major contributors to this arena of research is Janine Benyus, who has been compiling an in-depth listing for:

"...Google for Nature’s Solutions—a public database of biological literature organized by design function. She is also developing a “biology- taught-functionally” course for engineers and designers, the only biology most will encounter in their university education. These projects are intended to create a flow structure so that nature’s ideas can move freely into human systems design."

Her book "Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature" is on my must read list. It's interesting to see the close relationship biomimetics has with nanotechnology and robotics research. This is the opposite end of the spectrum from Benyus' approach which has more to do with developing sustainable designs inspired by nature.

IOP Electronic Journals has an interesting section for bioinspiration and biomimetics research papers...

Unintelligible Design

2006-05-21T03:59:00.000-07:00

If we can't understand it...blame it on The Designer.

I read another article in the Sydney Morning Herald this weekend about Intelligent Design supporters in the US. I've been reading extensively around the topic...I would like to read a detailed description of the actual curriculum for schools promoted by the ID clan. I'd actually love to read a transcript of a teacher presenting the topic in class. It would be fascinating to get feedback from the students of such classes. Do they find it enlightening or confusing? Does having this additional choice of theoretical basis in their science classes work for them? Do they know the difference between the topics: science and religion?

Mind you the topic will only be presented at highly religious schools so the debate is moot.

I just discovered ID advocate Dembski's blog and a host of related sites. It's staggering how much there is of it out there. I am enjoying the vehemence with which they deal with Richard Dawkins. It's entertaining, but really rather sad. I watched Dawkins' two part documentary "Root of All Evil" the other night. Although I am a big fan of his I was a bit disappointed because he came across as a crusty academic with no empathy or respect for those with religious convictions. He preaches to the converted and leaves the rest of his audience out in the cold. As a public figure he lacks a certain sensitivity to some of his audience. If he doesn't watch it someone will issue a fatwa against him or perhaps an edict...

No amount of science or intellectual jousting will change the fact that humans crave security, love and certainty in life. When a man's life feels complete and it feels like those things are in place, why would he want to change? In terms of nourishing what is left of our concept of a soul - would you swap your comforting, grilled cheese sandwich for a cold, raw liver protein shake? Science just isn't tasty enough for most people.

1. Anatomy of a Number

2006-05-17T19:49:00.000-07:00

This number would be 33. I hit this age with a thump and a vision of a progress bar on a computer screen with one third of the bar filled in. 'One out of three days now lived for this potential lifetime' was the helpful prompt under the progress bar.

This vision prompted me to gather up all my most treasured learnings and observations. I figured I needed to quantify what I have learned about life, what I valued. We seem to spend too little time wondering what our values really are and what really matters in the melee of modern life.

With the 33 project I was hoping to make something concrete and reassuring (like a book) where I could collate these ideas into something that might be useful to others.

So - here it is in the following 15 sections...an online record of a thought process.

2. The Physiology of Seeing

2006-05-17T19:37:00.000-07:00

Op Art finally made sense to me once I read a book about the physiology of seeing. Why didn't I learn about this in Art History? Too much science? Why didn't I learn about it in Biology...too arty?! 'Eye and Brain' by Gregory ought to be compulsory at school for every student...with eyes and a brain.

Op Art plays with the various biological limitations of human visual perception and the differences between the physical properties of the eye and the systems the brain employs for post-processing our visual world.

Man is, biologically speaking, virtually blind. We are able to perceive just a small fraction of observable light. (We are also pretty deaf - as any dog might tell you.)

I find our limitations reassuring, humbling. These facts are delicious and point out how flawed we are and remind us how difficult it is for us to build a rational picture of the world around us. We are not biologically predisposed to find life easy to understand!

In my reading on evolution the eye is a wonderfully flawed design and it relies on all sorts of complex interactions with and image post producing by the brain. Susan Greenfield, Head of the Royal Society of neuro Surgeons in the UK offered further, fascinating insight in her books including 'Brain Story' and 'The Private Life of the Brain'.

The evolution and design of the eye was also a turning point in the acceptance of Darwinian theory. Darwin nearly revoked his core thesis based on his doubts that the perfection of the eye could be anthyting other than a purposeful design rather than a result of the processes of evolution. His theory was later reassuringly proven right by a couple of Dutch evolutionary biologists who mapped the evolution of the eye to 72 steps.

3. On Cladistics

2006-05-17T19:23:00.000-07:00

"...man - with the rest of creation - ascended from hades rather than stepping down from the Garden of Eden. Genetics has drawn a new map of hell, with mankind firmly placed in the suburbs." Steven Jones Language of the Genes p387

So this would be a double page spread in the 33 book. An illustration putting mankind in his place in the biological hierarchy of things. Maybe quoting something from the Classics about someone who got his comeuppance from an act of hubris...Icarus no doubt.

"Now a radical new logic has emerged. The DNA reveals that plants and animals lie close together. Mushrooms deserve a branch of their own, closer to animals than to plants. Most of the tree belongs not to the lords of creation, or even to mushrooms, but to the bacteria and their previously unrecognised relatives. They put humankind in its place, near bananas." p337

It has now been discovered that the human genome only comprises of around 30,000 genes. Even less than ...'the number of parts needed to build a modest executive jet' as Steve Jones put it. Now scientists are reassured by the complexity of recent discoveries by scientists like Marcus Pembury regarding epigenetics. Phew! Us humans are a bit more complex than our genome suggests.

4. The Geometry of Beauty

2006-05-17T19:13:00.000-07:00

Illustration of the Golden Section: a venerable lesson from Art History 101. In the updated context of the global obession with celebrity looks it's taken on a new lease of life. The cosmetic surgeon, Dr. Marquadt has created the perametres of the geometrically perfect face: you can go to his site and print a mask to measure your own face by. You can guage how far you deviate from what is deemed to be classically beautiful.

The use of numbers and formulae to summarise and categorise the aesthetics of perception. Another attempt at making a yardstick, a finite measure of the successful proportions that equate to 'beauty'.

Success and beauty, modern culture is obsessed with the dream of success and 'beautiful' people are often more successful and are trusted simply based on their looks. Michael Milken vs Socrates: Michael would still win the people's trust more readily than poor ugly old Socrates.

So the venerable Golden Section with its classical, timeless elegance has been co-opted into a formula for success in the modern era. How do you measure up?

Eugenicist mathematics.

5. The Secret Life of Numbers

2006-05-17T18:52:00.000-07:00

Starting with a Fine Art BA hons degree didn't give me a great respect for numbers. In fact, I pretty well grew up with hostility to maths or anything restrictive and numbers based. After several years of computer related design I have a strange, brewing love affair with numbers. I'll never be able to remember a phone number but the more I learn about numbers and how they relate to the natural world the more I'm fascinated.

The finer points of commercial graphic and information design have necessarily given me a more acute sense of the importance of grids, measurements and rules. Understanding how to divide space in the picture plain or page layout using image and type has given me a greater understanding of the application of things like the 'Golden Section' and of formal graphic composition.

The underlying rules that determine seemingly random phenomena. The Fibonacci Series is a great eaxample of mathematics being used to map natural things like pineapples and pine cones.

By extension, the design processes of natural objects like shells really fascinate me too. This is discussed at great length in Richard Dawkins' Climbing Mount Improbable. There are sequences of mathematical rules that govern the spirals of all shells. These rules are encoded in the molusc's genes. All deliciously interesting stuff to me...(!)

The mathematician S. Wolfram wrote a huge work about complexity growing out of simple units. (Hopefully the Intelligent Design agitators should take note).

"Stephen Wolfram in cellular Automata states - "This seashell may hold the secret of stock market behaviour, computers that think and the future of science."

There is also some bizarre and interesting thinking around Phi and 'irrational numbers'...

"A peaceful heartbeat is said to beat in a Phi rhythm. A normal human heart beats in a Phi rhythm, with the T point of a normal electrocardiagram (ECG or EKG) falling at the phi point of the heart's rhythmic cycle."

I like to think that my own heart has an irrational beat (I have a slight heart murmer). Perhaps that murmer means that I can escape some rigorous mathematical norm. My beat perhaps can only be expressed with irrational numbers.

We constantly strive to increase our command of the world about us. Mathematics and Physics are a way of defining the 'truth' of the natural world. From my perspective it seems like a strange, runic language trying to gain mastery of the known world. Systems of finite definition, the names yielding the power of the named.

6. The Miyadaiku

2006-05-17T18:35:00.000-07:00

This dates back from 1998 but it stays with me and seems ever more relevant...

Powerful and inspired computer art requires a melding of the aesthetic and engineering sensibilities in the same person:

The South Face of the Mountain
Viewpoint by John Maeda July/August 1998

In Japan, a miyadaiku (a carpenter trained in the ancient art of Japanese temple carpentry) attains special status from the Emperor if the temple he builds stands for more than a thousand years. "Such temples,'...said one of the miyadaiku, the late Tsunekazu Nishioka, "stand not because of the magnificence of their design, but because the miyadaiku goes to the mountain, and selects trees from the south face of the mountain to be used for the south face of the temple, trees from the west face of the mountain for the west face of the temple, and so on for the other two sides." Because the building materials are carefully selected in order to respect the laws of nature, the temple can coexist in harmony with nature. Both the extrinsic and intrinsic qualities of the temple radiate its overall strength and beauty.

Whether we accept the specifics of the miyadaiku's explanation or not, the metaphor of harmony between the materials and the work of art is a powerful one. Indeed, although this story might seem quaint and old-fashioned, we can use it to explain the situation in the most high-tech of contemporary fields: computer art.

Among the best proponents of this is John Maeda, Golan Levin and Joshua Davis of Praystation.com fame. Joshua's work encompasses 'iterative' graphics which are generated by code routines. Some of his work is about the disappearance of the author/artist (hence he was impressed with Jackson Pollock's action painting even though he initially hated the aesthetic). In some of Joshua's work, the designer is invisible and the quirks and accidental successes of the code shine through.

"...the mathematical sciences particularly exhibit order, symmetry and limitation and these are the greatest forms of the beautiful". Aristotle

7. Signal to Noise

2006-05-17T18:26:00.000-07:00

We have all the more technology with which to say nothing more eloquently than ever before.

Google is always a great source of inspiration on this topic. It's the ultimate way to picture what the world searches for in the vast information matrix. They have released their stats on most popular searches...the Zeitgeist section. Some strange and fascinating summaries of how we surf.

All this information - dizzying amounts of it available at your fingertips...a million pieces of fish food, small fragments of image and data, nothing too deep. Ready made data meals. Almost infinite plagiarism. Soaking yourself in it to become 'media savvy' risks a loss of your own creative authenticity and original voice - it becomes harder to hear your own voice amongst all the noise.

8. Resonant City Map

2006-05-17T06:15:00.000-07:00

This section of the 33 Book would map parts of London most familiar to me...it would be entirely rendered in words, the streets would be replaced with adjectives. A typographic double page spread with an emotional and resonant map of a city remembered. The resultant illustration might be similar to the piece about nationality (described below), however it would be more specific to my interaction with and feelings about some specific places in London.

I think this piece would be about the levels and layers of urban decay...the palimpsest of the city, like an infinitely revised musical score. The city that formed the basis of 'resonant city' - an installation created in collaboration with Kevin Carter and Greyworld in Hoxton before I left for Sydney.

9. Night Chorus of Crickets

2006-05-17T06:06:00.000-07:00

Apparently crickets chirp at an exact rate and rhythm based on temperature. I find facts like this just delicious to know:

Because they are cold-blooded animals, crickets' metabolic rates are closely linked to the temperature of their surroundings. An interesting side-effect of this is that you can calculate air temperature based on the number of times a cricket chirps per minute: just divide by 4 and then add 40 to get the temperature in Fahrenheit. So 120 chirps per minute translates to 70 degrees F.

I only ever really feel 'at home' in a country where I can hear crickets at night. I have always found their sound soothing and reassuring. I can visualise an illustration with numerals and sound waves, temperature markers and a mechanical looking, beady-eyed cricket presiding over my world of early child hood dreams.

10. Hiraeth

2006-05-17T05:56:00.000-07:00

The word 'Hiraeth' has no worthy translation in English...but a close description would be: "an intense longing from the soul for 'home'. A feeling of connection to a place different from the place of sojourn." Homesickness in other words.

I love this wonderful Celtic word and this illustration in the 33 book would be dedicated to the feeling of deep affection I have for Wales. I love the countryside there and I love the spirit of the place. (Especially around Ynyslas in Dyfed).

11. Infrasound or Sibelius?

2006-05-17T05:31:00.000-07:00

I love the raw power of music on the senses. The power of music to stir up tears. I find it incredible when a piece of music captures my feelings and perhaps inspires a smile or a sudden rash of goose-bumps.

I remember my step-father Jerry with a tear in his eye while listening to Sibelius' Finlandia. It was so moving to see how much he loved his classical music.

I've been interested to discover the impact that subsonics have on human emotions. The following are short extracts from "infrasonics" on wikipedia.

It has long been realized that infrasound may cause feelings of awe or fear. Since it is not consciously perceived, it can make people feel vaguely that supernatural events are taking place

12. Laughter's Gift

2006-05-17T05:24:00.000-07:00

Many years ago we used to own a two foot tall sculpture of a laughing Buddha made of dark polished wood. He used to stand with his hands outstretched, one hand hung with a set of mother of pearl worry beads.

The laughing Buddha came to symbolise my late step father Gerry Broidy. This illustration, using old photos of the sculpture, would be a personal remembrance of Gerald. A testament to a life lived with a smiling heart, a generous spirit and a loving nature. All the things that will make you live long in everyone's collective memory.

Life's most valuable legacy are not material things (which can be taken away like our statue of Buddha) but in the memories and the values of a positive, generous heart.

13. Footprints

2006-05-17T04:46:00.000-07:00

The symbol of Buddha's feet "Buddhapada" is an emblem representing Buddhist teaching, and symbolises Buddha's continued presence on earth.

While visiting India I came across the symbol at various intervals and have an abiding affection for it. I wish other religions had the same humility and quiet, gentle wisdom of Buddhism. The symbol really does carry a kind of innate serenity and simplicity which I find inspiring.

14. Perfect Indigo

2006-05-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

This section of the 33 book would be illustrated with a Haiku of some sort. This would be an attempt to illustrate the intense, infinite, deep dark blue of the Australian sky. I was so struck by this incredible sky blue when I first arrived here. (Okay although not technically indigo.)

I am not sure exactly why the Australian sky is so incredibly blue. Maybe the lack of humidity at certain times of year or the latitude or lack of Ozone? Whatever it is, it continues to make a huge impression on me. The intense blue has a concrete presence within the urban city scape. It's majestic in the truest sense.

Celestial vaulting - there is an installation out in the desert in California by James Turrell, a light installation artist. He built a temple to light. There is one element where you can lie on a tilted slab in the middle of the desert and your entire field of vision is filled with nothing but the 'celestial vault' of the sky. Apparently this has a strange, dislocating impact on the senses and your emotional state. It is said to make you feel disconnected from the earth.

James Turrell should create a temple of light here in Sydney I think it would work incredibly well. I see that he's built one in the dunes of the Hague too...but that European sky is just to pale by comparison.

15. Global Citizen (We Are All Refugees)

2006-05-16T23:36:00.000-07:00

As part of the 33 book I wanted to dedicate a double page spread to a diagramatic illustration of my nationality. "Where are you from" has been a question I've grown up with. It's never been an easy one to answer and my responses are often edited to suit the person asking the question. The following is a typical attempt:

"Well, I am not exactly English. (The most British bit of me is my accent). I was actually born in Switzerland, but I'm not Swiss - I was born in Zurich because my mother didn't want me to be born in a hospital in Baghdad. I hold both UK and NZ passports. Although, I never have lived in New Zealand..."

I lived with a sense of being 'foreign' and ' just a visitor' with a permanent yearning for 'elsewhere' for most of my 25 years in the UK. The place I felt most at home in Britain, was Wales. I still feel an almost visceral connection to Wales (where I went to Uni) that is always a surprise. I love the place but could not call it home...home to me is where I can hear crickets at night. Australia really is my home.

How much does history or a previous generation impact on your personal sense of nationality?Until very recently, a sense of belonging hinged on a singular national culture or identity. Now so many of us drift around the world mediated by technology and super fast communications - we are all increasingly global citizens whether we choose to be or not. Despite or because of this freedom, we travel with a permanent sense of yearning (well at least I used to) for a sense of belonging, a sense of home.

I could illustrate my nationality in context with my immediate family. My picture of my nationality would, no doubt, differ from the perceptions of my immediate family members. We are not a close tribe but a collection of diverse individuals. Does my brother feel more American than British, more British than a New Zealander? Does my mother now feel wholly American? They are both US citizens now and don't seem to yearn to live elsewhere. I could never live in the US maybe because I spent longer in the UK than either my mother or brother.

My family is a collection of 'Global Citizens' then again, only based on the countries we've collectively lived and worked in. I could create a world map just showing the countries we've lived in and remove the rest - that would effectively be 'our world' or 'nation' - those of our collective history. An illustration of the atomised modern family.

Maps are the scientifcally correct, diagramatic summary of the world - a visual representation of all that is known, conquered and controlled. The illustration I would need to make would map the anatomy and meaning of nationality as it is felt in the heart but hard to define on paper.

I am fascinated by crimes from the map room

16. Gandhi's Tomb

2006-05-16T23:18:00.000-07:00

This section of the 33 Project would deal with 'desire lines' (previously discussed in this blog). Ever since I visited Mahatma Gandhi's memorial park I've held a vision of the bare ribbon of earth worn by the feet of thousands of pilgrims through the grass to the simple marble tomb in the centre. The idea was a natural one - to let the people define their own pathway through the space...once visible it would then be paved.

Sensitivity and sustainability in design - ergonomics and human centred design. Sometimes the best design is not exactly design at all, but a sensitivity to the environment and having a light touch.

There are no strictly straight lines in nature. I believe that civic spaces should be more Steiner than Corbusier.

Sometimes, the subtle, organic or temporal elements should drive design whether it's architecture or even a website. So much of Le Corbusier's vision is a total disaster* because it was more about grand ideas and hubris rather than about serving universal human needs. Le corbu was a product of his time, all designers now ought to have a sense of duty - In our times considerations necessarily should be about sustainability, recycling and ethics.

Starck - Conway Lloyd Morgan
"Production in only one means of expression, and it should be the last resort. All the other possible solutions, not involving material consumption should be explored first. And if production is necessary, that production should be ethical. For example, re-organising a bus timetagble to reduce city centre pollution is design. It is honest work that serves social ends. It is a 'design production' even though no consumption of material is involved. It is pure design."

"The rise of materialism has created both greed, which kills love, and, in a more sinister fashion, passivity. This passivity is shown by the feeling people have, that control over their future has passed from their hands, and even from the politician's hands." P31

*I need to read Alain de Botton's Architecture of Happiness (I hope he agrees with my analysis on this one!)

Observa (aka The 33 Project)

2006-05-16T23:04:00.000-07:00

I was tidying up my portfolio and notes the other day...clearing the way for the next big phase (which is me getting back to gainful employment after maternity leave) when I came across my notes for the "33 Project". This is a personal project and a book idea which I never completed. I got as far as writing the outline and making a mock-up but didn't pursue it further. I thought I ought to at least document the ideas in my Blog - the best place for this project to live until I have the right time and space to look at it again.

The next few posts will be a series of topic headings and ideas from this project. The following is the introduction I wrote to the book:

Opening Thought
As an individual and as a designer, I am fascinated by the theme of things either being 'natural' or 'by design'. I am interested in the friction between the manmade and the natural worlds and the beauty or failure in both natural and man made 'design'. I am also fascinated by the continuing march of scientifc discovery in the face of what we understand to be natural and human.

The ethics of science in the age of cloning and the death of concepts like the soul are equally fascinating and complex. These issues form the core of who we are and how we perceive ourselves as humans at this stage in our history.

The wisest of us know that we do not know the answers....and that we will only be blessed with a fragment of knowledge in one lifetime and most of that according to the precepts of our age.

Summary
Then: " Art is made to disturb. Science reassures." Georges Braque
Now: Science is disturbing and Art is consumed by commerce. Only the enduring geometry of nature still reassures.

The Ghost in Your Genes

2006-05-16T22:55:00.000-07:00

We watched "The Ghost in Your Genes" - a Horizon documentary last night and it's startling how the impact of environmental factors can change the way your genes behave. The most enlightening and perhaps frightening part of this discovery is that the lives of previous generations actually impact on our own in a very specific way.

Check the BBC's own page about the program.

"Epigenetics adds a whole new layer to genes beyond the DNA. It proposes a control system of 'switches' that turn genes on or off – and suggests that things people experience, like nutrition and stress, can control these switches and cause heritable effects in humans."

I am now on the hunt for some good books on the topic.

Adam Alberts Arrives

2005-08-08T22:09:00.000-07:00

Adam Fletcher Alberts was born 9.11am Christmas day 2004!

He is such a joyful bundle. Very happy and getting cuter by the day.

His newest words of the week: apple and book.

Hope Mosaic

2005-08-08T22:02:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the opening of the Mobile Journies exhibition at the Sydney Opera House Exhibition Hall. The Hope Mosaic is one of the fifteen or so mobile phone related artworks on display. I am really pleased that I was asked to contribute the design for this conceptual piece which is in support of Amnesty International.

All the information about the exhibition and the Hope Mosaic is at: http://dlux.org.au/mobilejourneys/ideafarm.html

The work is launching tomorrow at: hopemosaic.com

Brand New

2005-05-11T22:22:00.000-07:00

AGENCY.COM was finally re-branded after a long branding exercise that started about four years ago. The designers were Pentagram and the final work is a credit to the determination and creative energies of Andy Hobsbawm.

The other day I stumbled across a book entitled 'Logo R.I.P' - http://www.logorip.com/ - I nearly started a photo collage to get the old ACOM logo onto a headstone.

...still wondering what will become of all the branded toys that every office in the network was flooded with - maybe a dot com bonfire is required.

Theories of Everything

2004-12-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

I know nothing about theoretical particle physics...however, having watched three parts of a series entitled 'The Elegant Universe' I now have a vague understanding and a growing fascination for 'Super Symmetry', 'String Theory', 'M Theory', 'branes', multiple dimensions and the quest to observe 'gravitons' and 'sparticles'.

M Theory was a turning point for String theory...it is a unifying theory that re-connected the five diverse views of strings - M theory (variously stands for Magic, Matrix, Monster or even Murky theory) helps to unite strings as singular unifying theory of the fabric of the universe.

http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/gr/public/qg_ss.html#mtheory

The key problem with String theory is that there is no current way of validating it. It is more like a philosophy than a science. This uncertainty and the blurred lines between theory and true science is always fascinating. The elegant mathematics express a 'possible' world - but does it describe the world as it is? Scientists are in the dark with an increasingly baroque theory which raises more questions than it answers. Just a deliciously interesting area of exploration.

Two labs in the world are attempting to find evidence to support some aspects of String Theory. CERN has built a 27km circular particle accelerator "The Large Hadron Collider'" in order to find some circumstantial evidence to support strings. There are two approaches, to observe 'the absence' of gravitons and to observe 'sparticles' which would prove the idea of Super Symmetry.

The following map shows the location of the LHC:
http://intranet.cern.ch/maps/AreaMap.html

The instinct to find a singular, elegant theory to explain the fabric of the world around us is surely part of human nature. There have been several chapters in this scientific quest throughout the ages. Until something like the Hadron Collider at CERN can produce some coherant 'proof' - String Theory and its co-dependent ideas will have to remain as philosophy. Perhaps it is the religion of the 21st Century - a bible of physics with its many apostles...

A book like 'The Final Theory' clearly outlines the possibility of Strings being yet another misunderstanding in scientific research...Time will tell...
http://www.thefinaltheory.com/pages/1/index.htm

(Hmmm..thought to self, why on earth does CERN allow public access to a portion of their intranet? For the creators of the web that's a bit odd me thinkst...)

The Works of "Mine-Control"

2004-11-30T10:26:00.000-08:00

I discovered the interactive installation works of 'Mine Control' quite by accident. I was doing some user acceptance testing on an iTV application and the video streams happened to be about Mine Control. It was a very distracting work session as I spent most of my time noting the names and dates of the works and finally...found the URL at the end of the video loop.

http://www.mine-control.com/index.html

It's the most playful and enjoyable looking work I've seen since Rokeby's "Very Nervous System". The more I see interactive installations driven by natural human gestures...the more I want to be involved in making work just like it!

Mine Control's range of installations evolve in complexity - the early pieces like 'Sand' are very intuitive and simple..the newer works like 'Calder' include 3D elements with lighting and gravity/velocity in movement. The gestures you need to employ in order to interact successfully with the works also become more structured...fascinating.

It'd be great if they could do a retrospective show here in Sydney!

In The Bubble

2004-11-30T10:13:00.000-08:00

Another book for the wish list. John Thackara's "In the Bubble" designing in a complex world.

http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?sid=79BE0960-9CC9-42A6-BB53-A57135F55F73&ttype=2&tid=10445

"At the heart of In the Bubble is a belief, informed by a wealth of real-world examples, that ethics and responsibility can inform design decisions without impeding social and technical innovation."

Desire Lines

2004-11-18T17:10:00.000-08:00

...finally - I discovered a snippet of writing illustrating an idea that I've been thinking about for years. It has a name: Desire Lines. Pathways defined by the footfalls of people who 'use' the landscape...

"...the foot-worn paths that appear in a landscape over time. Called “desire lines,” these trails demonstrate how a landscape’s users choose to move, which is often not on the paved paths. A smart landscape designer will let wanderers create paths through use, and then pave the emerging walkways, ensuring optimal utility."

http://www.adaptivepath.com/publications/essays/archives/000361.php

Extreme Irony as Political Tool

2004-11-04T15:42:00.000-08:00

The Yes Men have the right idea. The only way to feel better about four more years of an insular and arrogant US administration is to harness extreme irony as a form of political protest.

This situationist style duo have done some remarkably strange and interesting things to show their dissent. They are not your average mainstream political protestors...they're more like the homeopathic alternative.

This link covers their 'Support Bush's Ice Age' position paper. They were astonished and depressed to receive so many supporting signatures on their petition...

http://www.theyesmen.org/hijinks/iceage/index.shtml

Massive Change

2004-10-27T15:59:00.000-07:00

I've been keeping my eye on Bruce Mau's 'Massive Change' website...and am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of 'Massive Change' which is coming out in November.

http://www.massivechange.com/staticpages/index.php?page=Book

Next stop...another trip to the Arial bookstore in Oxford street for a long browsing session.

Rushkoff's Karma

2004-10-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

Another discovery of my day: 'The Feature'. Never travelled there before but, Douglas Rushkoff writes a regular journal for them so I will return! His feature entitled 'Persuasion' illustrates the inherant and continuing failure of advertisers to understand interactive media. The advent of TiVo / PVR respresents a watershed techonology that will have a large impact on traditional TV advertising practices.

http://www.thefeature.com/user/rushkoff/journalentry?id=1108&ref=3802713

I loved Rushkoff's book 'Bull' which summed up the extremes of the .COM era perfectly. There's a great summary of the book at Rushkoff's site:

http://www.rushkoff.com/bull.html

Postman's 10 Principles of Technology

2004-10-26T16:23:00.000-07:00

I copied the following in its long form because I think it respresents an interesting framework by which emergent technologies should be judged.

This list comes from "The End of Education" by the late Neil Postman. (Another book for my ever increasing 'must read' pile).

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0679430067/202-0236255-8135045

1. All technological change is a Faustian bargain. For every advantage a new technology offers, there is always a corresponding disadvantage.

2. The advantages and disadvantages of new technologies are never distributed evenly among the population. This means that every new technology benefits some and harms others.

3. Embedded in every technology there is a powerful idea, sometimes two or three powerful ideas. Like language itself, a technology predisposes us to favor and value certain perspectives an accomplishments and to subordinate others.

4. A new technology usually makes war against an old technology. It competes with it for time, attention, money, prestige and a "worldview".

5. Technological change is not additive; it is ecological. A new technology does not merely add something; it changes everything.

6. Because of the symbolic forms in which information is encoded, different technologies have different intellectual and emotional biases.

7. Because of the accessibility and speed in which information is encoded, different technologies have different political biases.

8. Because of their physical form, different technologies have different sensory biases.

9. Because of the conditions in which we attend them, different technologies have different social biases.

10. Because of their technical and economic structure, different technologies have different content biases.

Urban Tapestries

2004-10-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

Thinking about geo-annotations reminded me of my favourite example of this in action. The work of Proboscis in the UK.

http://proboscis.org.uk/

It is really inspiring to see the project is alive and well:

http://urbantapestries.net/weblog/index.html

Two flash movies were posted to this site at the end of Sept. '04 which walk through two sample scenarios of use for public authoring. It'll be interesting to see how this phenomenon evolves.

Geo-Annotation

2004-10-26T15:38:00.000-07:00

Just discovered another interesting blog citing some of the current 'really big trends' noted from a conference talk by Mike Liebhold at 'New Geography' day 2.

The trends include: Geospatial hypermedia, context aware computing, sentient landscapes, automotive telematics and body extensions. Righto - better read up!

"The future of geo-tagged content doesn't just belong to the coffee shops that will beam unwanted coupons as you walk by (this will inevitably be done, and let's hope it dies a quick death) . This new medium will be most fully realized by people -- they'll use this forthcoming infrastructure, just as they have others in the past, to communicate, connect, and live life in new ways."

http://blogger.iftf.org/Future/000599.html

Blackbelt Jones

2004-10-25T22:31:00.000-07:00

No day or week is ever really complete without a visit to my favourite blog. It's always an education...!

http://blackbeltjones.typepad.com/work/