Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Not Just a Box

So when you say I want to be an Industrial Designer when I grow up, people normally say "Ohhh that's interesting." In reality they have absolutely no clue what you're saying and think it's another garbage degree that universities are spitting out that will NOT lead to a proper job. But it's everything, it's product design, it's the chair you sit on, the i-pod in your pocket, the kettle you pour with, it's even the box you bought your new tv in. Even packaging is considered part of industrial design. There is a lot of value in packaging, and ridiculous amounts of money are spent on it. It's the beginning of an experience that gets people into the product. Thus begins the birth of a new series on Design-UD, Not Just a Box. Whenever I see a cool packaging that isn't just a typical box, where a company/designer has made an effort into the packaging. I'll post pics whenever I find a new packaging. Below is a Cinnabon box. I know, Cinnabon, not glamorous but ridiculously yummy. The shape is like a typical hamburger box, but the corners are unique. The way they poke out, adds a little bit of color and a way to hold it together. Not the sturdiest, but props to Cinnabon for trying.



Sunday, September 11, 2011

AB-EX

The Ab-Ex - aka Abstract Expressionism
There’s a moment in my life, I replay it over and over again in my head because I am constantly experiencing deja vu coming to the same realization again and again. Learning about design is like entering a whole new world. It changes your perspective on everything, You end up constantly thinking about design and end up analyzing the world ad nauseam. I acknowledge that everyone’s experience is different from the rest. To each his own, right? A girl and what appeared to be her “date” walked in while I was there. She was dressed way too early for the night, like 8 hours too early. She came in way after me and probably left way before me. This is me being judgmental, but my best guess is she didn’t have the same experience as me.
OCAD taught me about modern art movements. After all that through out the exhibition I could not help but think Po Mo, Po Mo, Po Mo. Post Modernism. This period is characterized by experimentation and emotion. The experimentation was intense every artist was unique with respect to each other. But the epic moment was seeing Ad Reinhardt’s Abstract Painting. It’s a large painting. I call it Black. It really is just a black painted canvas. But you don’t really appreciate it until you look closer, from different perspectives, really how the light reflects off of it. There’s a video describing how he actually mixed black paint, a little bit of color and tons of paint thinner, shook it up, let it sit, poured out the thinner, and then painted with the sludge. 
What looks like one black square there are actually 12 squares, each with a slight color difference between each. It was a product of technique. The only way the piece could have existed, was through his method of separating the paint. When art is so subtle, and slight, to the point that even a camera can not capture it. I’m going to put this out there. the piece is slightly genius. 

While you may not be able to enjoy the exhibition in Toronto, I can only assume they are on their way back to MOMA in New York, and if not, the AGO has pretty good documentation on it, you may find an experience unique to you. 
http://www.ago.net/abstract-expressionist-new-york