Supercool

Change is afoot – Part I

31 Jan 2012

Categories: Extra-curricular, Nice stuff, Our work,

Last year I took part in the first Pointe Blank with 26 other designers/illustrators. We each created a poster for Birmingham Royal Ballet's production, Coppélia, and those posters were subsequently displayed in one of BRB's studios at Birmingham Hippodrome, and over on the project's website.

Now the time has come for Hobson's Choice to get the Pointe Blank treatment.

So, this time the brief is to visually represent the tale of Hobson; the drunken owner of a boot shop in Salford, who refuses to allow his three daughters to marry … until the eldest offers him a choice which is, in fact, no choice at all. That's the hugely abridged version – there's more detail about the Hobson's Choice plot on Wikipedia if you're interested.

One of few stipulations in the Pointe Blank poster design brief is that there must be some sort of reference to the Victorian era, as that's when the story's set.

My initial idea was to incorporate some Victorian language in there somewhere, so I set about researching such things – meaning that part of my brain will forevermore store the fact that Victorian slang for shoes was 'crabshells' and boots were known as 'trotter cases'. They had a way with words, those Victorians.

The slang didn't make the final cut but I can confirm that the design will include an illustration of a boot – a Victorian ladies' boot to be precise – and ten zeros.

I attempted to shoe-horn (!) in the puntastic phrase "It's a story of the well-heeled and the well-oiled" too, but it wasn't quite right … so an equally groan-worthy play on words will be included instead.

All will be revealed – at the launch exhibition and online – on 20th February, along with the work of the 26 other designers/illustrators.

Designy reflecting

19 Jan 2012

Categories: Learning things, Our work,

Supercool are eight years old. Eight!

To mark this milestone, we've been reflecting on eight years of intelligent, well-considered and effective design. While we were doing our thing …

2004 – 30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin) won the RIBA Stirling Prize.

2005 – Git was released.

2006 – Twitter launched.

2007 – Apple unveiled the first iPhone.

2008 – Jos Buivenga designed the hugely popular Museo – a font for print and screen.

2009 – 'In Praise of Shadows' was part of the London Design Festival.

2010 – Get Satisfaction won the 'Business' category of the SXSW Web Awards.

2011 – A Book Apart published 'Responsive Web Design' by Ethan Marcotte.

 

Season’s Greetings 2011

19 Dec 2011

Categories: Silly,

There’re many ways of keeping Superwarm this wintertime:

Heating slippers by the fireside; sipping piping-hot glühwein;

Sporting jolly, patterned jumpers; dancing wildly on the spot; 

Having hearty soup for lunch and wearing all the socks you’ve got.

Have the warmest of all winters and the happiest of new years.
(For best results, please read this with a scarf wrapped round your ears.)

Warmest winter wishes from Supercool.

Elevenses

11 Nov 2011

Categories: Silly,