mStoner Heads to SXSW:Interactive

mStoner had fantastic news for Laurel and me last month, asking us to attend South by South West:Interactive on behalf of the company. Since 1994, the Interactive event is an extension of Austin’s legendary music conference. We’re getting ready for five days of keynote speakers, panel discussions, interactive readings, workshops and social events. It will be a great opportunity to mingle with and learn from some of the giants in the industry of interactive media. Will you be there too? Let us know! We’d love to meet for a meal or beverage. There’s a higher-ed buzz, and we’re charmed by the thrill of it all. Check back for pictures and report.

Posted by Kevin Rieg
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AIGA Annual Members Meeting

Last night I attended the Annual Members meeting for AIGA at the Art Institute of Chicago. They handed out three awards. First a Corporate Design Leadership award to Crate & Barrel, which included a thorough presentation and history of this Chicago based company formed in the 60s. The idea started when Carole and Gorden Segal were asking themselves why they couldn’t find the aesthetically pleasing housewares they’d found in European countries locally, and on the cheap. They knew there must be other couples like themselves who would appreciate the same level of design in the household. There’s more to the story, but I liked the background and how it was focused around making design accessible, bringing simplicity to the table and spelling it out in clean, black and white adjusted Helvetica. It was mentioned that the Crate & Barrel logo was created by a store clerk who took over the task after several unsuccessful design firm submissions. I’ve always been more of a shabby chic, but my shower curtain is CB, and I like it a bit more now.

Next, the AIGA Fellow Award which recognizes mature designers who have raised standards and excellence in design. Recipient: Morton Goldsholl. My lights came on seeing his portfolio of identity work. Most of them simply iconic…no type. I admire the fact that this design is decently abstract. I mean this is the Pilsbury Co. tradmark!

The final award was the 2009 AIGA Chicago Student Enrichment Scholarship, given to Adam Muran, a Senior at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Check out his Design Hygiene Series. A few people applauded when they heard the school name, and I think that meant they were relieved to hear a name other then any of the art schools within our 5 mile radius. The two other honorable mentions offered were also awarded outside of that radius. What’s up inner city design students…too many Empty Bottle shows? The AIGA has a new policy in place: student scholarships will be funded by student membership fees.

dK from mStoner headquarters. Happy Friday.

Posted by Kevin Rieg
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Oh My Kingdom

Posted by Kevin Rieg
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Categories: Design and usability / Real life

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