5 days (not my work)

I’ll be really excited to see where this blog goes after sign off.  Most of the ramblin’ has been about school or my work… what will i have to talk about when this is all said and done. Heres hoping this site is filled with strange, (international would be nice too) adventures.  Not to get ahead of myself but here are some of the plans in the near future.  the big project is the website.  Got to get that up as fast as i can.  I’m hoping once the work is finished the site should piece together nicely.  I’ve already planned it out and started working out the little fiddly bits.

Also phase two of the mystery project commences… well more like unexpected part two that I’m really excited about.  and in mid august I’ll finally be able to reveal what the mystery project is.  Which will be a HUGELY happy day.

anyways… back to day five.  Nothing “out of this world” to show today. so instead I’ll post the following.  they are cool faux retro book covers of famous films novelized.  I LOVE the simple graphic approach and technique.  They achieved that authentic, full bodied feel that so many student vector based artists just can’t seem to land.  I love the besier curve like anyone else… but it’s just not the same.

Sita Sings the Blues

I do a lot of searching.  On a day to day basis i troll the internet for inspiration and new ideas.  It’s rare that I find something as awe-inspiring and wonderful as what i found today.  Sita Sings the Blues is an animated retelling of the story of the Indian epic, The Ramayana. The story is woven together with scenes from a parallel contemporary story about a broken heart. All this and it’s a musical too…set to the musical numbers of 1920’s jazz vocalist Annette Hanshaw.

I’ve always been a myth lover but this takes the cake.  It’s not only beautifully animated but the story is wonderful too.  The film can be seen streaming free at Reel 13 but you should also check out sitasingstheblues.com.  One of the more amazing aspects of this film is that it has been released as Creative Commons.  Nina the animator gives her work freely to the world to enjoy.  It’s a great concept and well worth a read.

The film is a little over an hour but completely worth it.  If you get a chance to watch it i’d love to know what you think.  Take some time today to watch this incredible film.  You won’t regret it.  Enjoy

If you got em… Use em

What I find so strange about the following is that the were made about 170 years ago.  These woodblock prints of Racoon Dogs (Tanuki) were produced by Utagawa Kuniyoshi in the 1840’s.  It’s a long series that demonstrates all the neat things the Tanuki could do with their “voluntarily enlarged scrotums.”

retail signage and boating

weightlifting and carp clobbering

scaring the crap out of other people… and seine fishing

keeping out of the sun for fortune telling and more retail signage

making soup and something called a boy festival…

archery practice and turtle espionage

net fishing and moving

moving

fishing some more and keeping dry in a sudden storm

Classic Film Studio Logos

I started reading this article Neatorama article on the stories behind Hollywoods Studio logos for the design but I left with a renewed appreciation for the illustrators.  The world, pre-computer, was an amazing place… a place i wish i could go visit.

No one paints like this anymore… it’s a refreshing contrast to the predominantly vector world we live in now.

Check it out…it’s well worth a read.