TED: Technology, Education & Design

TED is a beautifully designed site housing short [usually 20 minute-long videos] of speeches given at the TED conference. I have created a column, on the right, to index some of my favorites. Here are a few, I'm watching these days.

Of course I think all these are great. If you only have 15 minutes, watch them in the order I list here.

Stefan Sagmeister: Yes, design can make you happy

David Pogue: Simplicity Sells

Paul Bennett: Design is in the details

Experience Design

For sometime I have studied experience design. When I find others who understand I like to share. Imaginary Force is one company that gets it.

Experience design is storytelling incorporating anything that contributes to that overall experience. Think Cirque du Soleil. That's experience design.

When applied to electronic media, it can mean: audio, visual, graphics, animation or any combination there of. Have a peek at Imaginary Force's experience design project for Airbus. Look closely at all the layers of technology being presented not only within the project itself....but also how the project is presented and the technology applied.

Idea Workout

Innovation Network
Scroll your mouse over the images to energize your ideas.

Design Life Now: at Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston

On Thursday, September 27 @ 6:30pm

AIGA Boston and the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston invite you to the opening event of Design Life Now, the inaugural touring exhibition of the Smithsonian Institution/Cooper-Hewitt's National Design Triennial. Be among the first to see the most important design show of the season, before it officially opens to the public.

Explore what "Design Life Now" means today with Julie Lasky, editor-in-chief of I.D. Magazine, and two of the Triennial's designers J. Meejin Yoon and Joshua Davis. Yoon and Davis are young, innovative, and engaged in working across and between design disciplines. From architecture and concept clothing to web design and rock posters, find out why their work is significant in this exhibition and why this exhibition is significant to them.

Admission:
$15 general admission
$8 AIGA Members
Gallery admission is included.

Sign up now. Seating is limited.

Register at ICA Boston or call 617-478-3103
(call for AIGA member discount)

Wise Women Design

Wise-Women: an online community and network dedicated to supporting women web designers, developers, and programmers

Environmental Graphic Design

Investigate The Society of Environmental Design
Environmental Graphic Design embraces many design disciplines including graphic, architectural, interior, landscape, and industrial design, all concerned with the visual aspects of wayfinding, communicating identity and information, and shaping the idea of place.

Some common examples of work by EGD practitioners include wayfinding systems, architectural graphics, signage, exhibit design, identity graphics, civic design, pictogram design, retail and store design, mapping and themed environments.

Have a look at the:
2007 Design Awards
and more examples, by poking around the site. You can also look @ the Communication Arts magazines, check the table of contents under Exhibition. These have loads of ideas and applications.

Design Challenge:
Create an environmental design to be applied to the windows of CDIA’s ‘new building [across the street]. Your designs might include: a typographical approach, involve photography or perhaps involve illustration. For example let’s say we wanted you to promote ‘design @ CDIA’. What images would you use? How will you approach the design of this? Which elements of art will you apply to your design?

Be open to ideas.
At the onset, there are no boundaries.
Think of what overall idea [about the college or design], you desire to convey.

More Interesting Sites

Every page of Stephanie Levy's gallery is a study in one color scheme. She uses ordinary household scenes to make striking visuals. Great place for some inspiration.

See how one artist used her art to solve some other health issues. Our Lady of Weight Loss: using art to bring change.

One of my favorite mixed media artists Sarah Fishburn: look here for ideas and to see someone whose followed their heart's desire.

When you need a quote, visit the oldest quotation site on the Web, established 1994. We have over 26,000 quotations online from over 3,100 authors, and more are added daily. It is not the prettiest site...in fact I don't think they have changed their look since they began. However, functional when you're dying to find that one quote.

Before & After and InDesign Secrets

Before and After Magazine assists you in finding out how to design cool stuff.

InDesign Secrets is an independent resource for all things InDesign

Moo Printing

Moo Designs they print nice things [with your pics or theirs!]

Marian Bantjes

I came across Marian Bantjes, again, and I feel it's worth sharing her work. I have her listed, on the right column, under typography. She's just a fabulous designer! Have a peek at what she's up to.

More sites of interest

My Good Deed Org Changing the World. One Good Deed at a Time. Their mission is simple: to encourage people everywhere to set aside time every September 11th to perform good deeds of their choice to help others in need. In this way, they hope to keep alive forever, in our memories and actions, the spirit of giving and selfless service that unified our nation following the terrorist attacks.

Rhodopsin is the protein in the rod cells of the retina that converts light into electrochemical signals for the brain to interpret.

Rhodopsin Productions Ltd. is a small Canadian production company specializing in documentaries and dance films by director Daniel Conrad. This is a mix of dance, film and design.

If you plan to be in San Francisco in October and might be able to get your boss to cover this Voices that Matter Conference this looks like a good one.

What I found interesting is they claim every technology discussion at this event will target designers first, developers second. That means no arcane technical acronyms but lots and lots of inspirational visuals. The focus will be on the design options presented by technology and the impact of those choices on design decisions.

Do listen to the interviews, on the opening page. These folks have some great concepts and thoughts. However, I did find the volume of some of these were challenging.

America Public Media

Word for Word
These downloadable programs are fabulous, I highly recommend a listen and look thru the archives for more programs.
China's growing environmental challenges

The Brain on the Stand

How to do business in the 'flat world'

Interesting Links

Charles and Ray Eames' The Power of Ten
David Hochbaum, has some interesting collage ideas
Jeffery Robert does amazing things with crayons