Hotel, motel, Holiday Inn...

Amazing: Motel America, a Flickr set of old motel signs.



(images by Thomas Hawk)

Anna Sui for Target

Pictures of the new (Gossip Girl-inspired) Anna Sui for Target line can be found here on The Cut, NY Magazine's fashion blog. Here are my two favorite looks:

Poster child

Garrett Karol has some great gig posters (along with other cool work) using lots of texture and vintage-style imagery,. His posters are available for purchase on his site.




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(via designworklife)

Keen on Mean shades of Green?

I'm as into the eco-friendly thing as the next guy (see here and here), but I found this tote to be kinda hilarious.

To the Lighthouse

I've been in New England for the past few days, hence the lack of posts.
Sorting through my pictures now. Here's are a couple from Martha's Vineyard for your viewing pleasure!

The Simple Life

John Maeda on simplicity vs. complexity.

Food, Inc.

Food, Inc., a movie about the food industry, sounds good. NYTimes blog The Moment describes it as similar to "An Inconvenient Truth," providing

a captivating if slightly disturbing presentation of a problem. The problem this time is America’s messy food system. The film takes us through supermarkets, corn fields, chicken coops, slaughterhouses and courtrooms to reveal the inner workings of a giant food-producing-machine, resulting in a powerful wake-up call for consumers.

Check the link above for more info.

What's your type?

Lettercult did a great roundup of the best of the first half of 2009, in which they selected the best custom lettering they've seen over the past months. It's certainly worth checking out their selections. I've posted some of my favorites below.

Some (very) random pictures taken recently while wandering through NY. Might as well load 'em on this here blog.
(Click to enlarge)

Cristóbal Schmal

I originally saw Cristóbal Schmal's work on designworklife, where his blog header for the blog What's on the Hi-Fi was featured.
I'm loving these other images from his portfolio. His simple illustration style & grainy textures are right up my alley:

The High Line visit

Over the weekend, I took a visit to The High Line and I was pretty impressed. Though there was a huge line to get in (to be expected in NY), it moved quickly, and the concept was well executed. The old railroad tracks were left intact throughout the park:


and local seeds were used for the plantings, ensuring a "wild" feel that is true to the area, much like the train tracks.


The elevated path runs below the new Standard Hotel:


Perhaps my favorite feature was the chaise lounge chairs, which are equipped with wheels that run on the old track lines. Because of the wheels, you can move the chairs along the track to the location you want, allowing you to group chairs according to the size of your group. A good location for laying in the sun:


Every detail has been thought out so no part of the park looks boring. Even the benches are unique:

Here's a view of the street from one spot of the park:


Below is a picture of the "The River That Flows Both Ways," a glass "mural" created by artist Spencer Finch at the area where the High Line cuts through the Chelsea Market. The colors of the panes of glass are inspired by the colors of the Hudson River (insert joke about the dirty river here):


The concrete blends with and balances the landscape:


An observation deck, where viewers can look down upon the street below, brings people watching to a whole new level:

More cool benches:


And beautiful flowers:


Signs warn people to "Keep it wild, keep on the path":

The view of the Hudson:


And the surrounding area:


All in all a good trip. I'll have to go back and take more pictures when it's less crowded.