My Fonts

A new and improved version of my favorite font site. Still in beta, but a vast improvement over the old version.
myfonts

AT&T: Speak in Thumbs

An Atmosphere BBDO and Firstborn produced site for AT&T that promotes the brand's Pantech Matrix and Samsung Propel mobile devices. The site features virtual Pantech and Propel models, where visitors can type in their definitions of popular acronyms like LOL and OMG.

Speak In Thumbs

Threadless Select Series

John Maeda, the graphic designer, computer scientist and recently appointed Rhode Island School of Design president, is the first guest curator for the Threadless Select Series, the online t-shirt design and distribution company's new stand-alone Web site and brand.

Maeda commissioned four RISD professors to design t-shirts that went on sale at the Select Series site. He also chose a theme for his designers: "newness," to signal both his new post at RISD and the American political climate.

Threadless Select

Epsonality

Nicely done product selector and product feature demos. Great copy.
Discover Your Esponality

Zappa's Cough Drop Ad

Frank Zappa was one strange cat. Check out his foray into advertising.

IKEA's Let's Dance

Promoting IKEAS's wardrobe solutions, Let's Dance allows users to control all of the movements on the site by sound and music. Change songs, upload your own music, play on your keyboard or sing into the microphone.
Try it

Created in Sweden by these guys:
Koko Kaka

Wario Land: Shake It

Excellent Wii/Youtube advertising:

http://www.youtube.com/experiencewii

Save the Bears

Great spot from Ogilvy.

T-Shirts Galore

Threadless is one of my favorite sites. Great idea, great execution, smart business model.

2 Different Approaches to Production

Crispin Porter + Bogusky Production Department Video Tour

The CEO of WPP's newly-formed production arm, Deliver, talks about offshore production.
Neal Prescott talks Deliver

How will you create the universe?

With EA's newest game, Spore you can nurture your creature through five stages of evolution: Cell, Creature, Tribe, Civilization, and Space. Or if you prefer, spend as much time as you like making creatures, vehicles, buildings and spaceships with Spore’s unique Creator tools.
Spore

Brand Tags

From the site's creator:
The basic idea of this site is that a brand exists entirely in people's heads. Therefore, whatever it is they say a brand is, is what it is. 1.2 million + tags and counting.
brandtag.net

The Process

100 Push Ups

The title says it all. A single-minded fitness program.
Hundred Push Ups

Can't Sleep?

YouTube + Channel Surfing = upl8.tv

You... but Smaller

be-a-doll.com

From the homepage:
"How about immortalizing yourself in a doll? Or a loved one - your parent, your child? Your doll will be one of a kind, just like you are! Each doll head is hand sculpted from photos by Doll Artist, Cyndi Safstrom. The head is then sculpted onto a vinyl doll or action figure, and dressed in the clothing of your choice."

Creepy and yet somehow intriguing.

Animator vs. Animation - crazy stuff...

Animator vs. Animation: Part 1 (Be sure to watch this one first!)

Animator vs. Animation: Part 2

Fantastic photo Blog

Forgive the fact that it's on Boston.com, but The Big Picture has some of the most amazing photos, updated daily.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/

You gotta love David Cross...

Gatorade Ad

Book Cover Design Competition

Think you got what it takes? Enter the Penguin book cover design contest.
Penguin's Heart and Minds Artist Competiton

Data Visualization

Flash 9 allows for some pretty insane 3D visualizations of data. You'll want to bookmark this site.
http://bestiario.org/

AIGA Design Archives

The AIGA has archived all of the winning entries from their many design annuals. The archive includes a very sophisticated search engine allowing you find content by category, client, agency etc.

AIGA Design Archives

The Harvest

Ever wonder where great ideas come from?

Content or Contests?

An article worth reading...
Why Agencies Are Failing

From Gizmodo: MSNBC Newsreader Will Vomit Stories From Household Objects

Very cool RSS reader, neat Flash.

MSNBC Newsreader Will Vomit Stories From Household Objects

http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i//msnbc/Components/spectra/index.html

Inter "Face"

This designer really used his head to create a unique portfolio site.
guraphic.com

Got Kids?

Check out Kidzui, a new kid-friendly browser that recommends sites based on age and interest.

You Suck at Photoshop

Over 8,000,000 people have seen the "You Suck..." videos. If you’re not one of them then maybe you really do suck at Photoshop. Make sure you watch the entire, 10 video, series. Be prepared to laugh your ass off.
Video #1

Time Magazine did a story on the creators
Fun with Photoshop

Webby Award Winners

The annual Webby Awards have been announced. If you're like me you'll refer to this list often when you're in desperate need of some inspiration.
Webby Award Winners

Some of my favorites...
Stunning and simple flash animation: Checkland Kindley
Nice portfolio: Red Interactive
The People's Voice winner: Sony Bravia

Standards and Guidelines Reference

Ever find yourself tasked with creating a style guide or set of standards and guidelines? Here's a directory of online style guides along with some best practices.
Catalog of Style Guides

My favorite; developed for the New School:
New School Style Guide

Mouseless Navigation

Navigate the new Hal Riney website using hand gestures. (Make sure you have a webcam)

Steven Harrington

Another cool illustrator/poster designer:
Steven Harrington

Type as Illustration

The work of Alex Trochut

Identifont

Very cool, accurate type analysis tool. Asks a lot of questions but does a great job in identifying typefaces.

http://www.identifont.com/

Live Design Discussions

This is a free, live stream of design industry discussions.

In a business world dependent on change, design is one of the few differentiators left.
Design Matters, with Debbie Millman, is an opinionated and provocative internet talk radio show. The show combines a stimulating point of view about graphic design, branding, and cultural anthropology. Explore the challenging and compelling canvas of today's design world with Debbie Millman and her weekly guests every Friday from 3:00-4:00 P.M. EDT. Or listen at your leisure by downloading previous broadcasts. Design Matters with Debbie Millman

You can also go to archived discussions here: www.sterlingbrands.com

Print Magazine's New Artists 2008

Every year Print Magazine publishes a list of up and coming designers, illustrators etc.
The List

Some of my favorites...
Mike Perry
Elena Wen
Mario Hugo
Stephan Walter
Phil Lubliner

Coke Zero Game

A video? a game? a floor wax? you decide...
Coke Zero football game

The Next Creative Revolution

Interesting article by Nick Law, Chief Creative Officer at R/GA.
Creativity

AdAge Digital Marketing Conference '08

Last week Gene Tiernan, Josh Sacks, Suzanne and I attended the AdAge Digital conference in NYC. Gene took detailed notes (I just sat there staring at my shoes). Below are some of Gene's takeaways:

Traditional metrics are outdated -- need to apply success to emotional measurements (although no one is sure how).
Brands need to integrate within experiences -- and across platforms, often blurring reality and virtual.
Talent is willing to take risks online; opportunity for experimentation.
Consumer-generated media will never eliminate need for professional-produced content created by "talent."
Marketing needs to evolve to "customer service" mindset.

Some interesting projects and agencies represented:
Rockband.com designed by Mekanism
Sharkrunners created by Area Code
Hulu.com a joint venture between NBC and FOX, just officially launched

For a full summary click here

Modernista: The Website That Isn't

(From Adrants)

For its latest site redesign, Modernista tossed caution to the winds. It did away with elaborate imagery, hype-laced content and the notion of using a website at all.

Now, users that run a search for Modernista -- and that click on the link to Modernista.com -- will be redirected to the search engine they used. In the upper left-hand corner they'll find a funky red nav bar. (Look past the bizarre 'net-speak and spelling; it is so Web 2.0.)

Clicking on "ab.ou.t" will give you the option of bookmarking Modernista and visiting the agency's page on Wikipedia or Facebook.

"wrk" drives users to flickr images of Modernista's client efforts, organized by client, category or medium. "n3wz" sends you to recent Google News stories about Modernista, and "cont@ct" will give you USA/global contact info to copy onto a clipboard, as well as a link to job and internship options.

Direct visits to Modernista.com now point to the Wikipedia article.

This is a print ad.

No flash animation necessary. Straight-up optical delight courtesy of one of my favorite blogs, copyranter.

Wii Head Tracking

An interesting demo on how create a 3D gaming environment by reversing the role of the Wii controller with the infrared sensor bar. I can't wait to see the games developed using this approach.

Another blog worth reading

Lots of valuable info on design and web development

Six Revisions

Fantasy Illustrators

Incredible illustration from a studio in Italy and Russia

Saizen Media

Have a seat

Really nice Flash demo of AA's first class seating

Bed Transformers

Frozen in Grand Central

Check out this awesome prank:

Frozen

Unscrew America

A whimsical approach to going green. Check it out.

www.unscrewamerica.org

Juice Salon, Escalator Advertising

The escalator as an animated advertising medium. Brilliant.
Watch the video:
Hairscalator

Rick's Picks

Rick Webb, The Barbarian Group co-founder/COO picks some of his favorite recent items around the internet.
Creativity Online

Rock Posters

The rock poster as an art form is alive and well.
Check out some great examples:
Newbury Comics
Gig Posters

One of my favorite designers:
Todd Slater

Who needs agencies...

when there's BootB?

Check out the new eBay for creativity. The online creative auction house connects marketers, and anyone looking for a great creative idea, directly with the people who come up with great creative ideas. A brief is posted. Creative solutions are posted. One is selected. No middlemen. No pitch process.

Interesting idea and the site ain't half bad either.

Here's the site:
www.bootb.com/en/

And here's Ad Age feature:
http://adage.com/brightcove/lineup.php?lineup=1182767334

Nice Navs

Innovative site navigation:
Thomas Edison
Section Seven
Jan 3 Media
Urban Silo

CommArts Winners

Winners of the CommArts Interactive Annual:
Winners List

HP Banner for Gwen Stefani

Found this on MTV.com It's a pretty simple idea for interacting with a Rich Media banner. No mouse required. Each keyboard key is tied to a different customization feature of the doll. Pretty cool.

Pandora.com - Incredible

If you haven't already heard of it through Facebook, check this out.
You set up your own stations with the music you like and it has an incredible interface.

pandora.com

Pulp Fiction in Typography

what?

Very interesting talk by Sir Ken Robinson, who is an education guru. He talks about the fact that education tends to put us into compartments, rather than help derive our own talent based on our way of learning...

TED Talks

A collection of videos from the TED conference:
TED Videos

The Bubble

A funny video...