If you’re going to call yourself a designer in 2010, it seems like you’ve got to go beyond the call of duty in order to separate yourself from every other stooge out there with a Mac, a blog and a cracked copy of Photoshop. And it’s probably for this reason that we’re such big fans of Melbourne based, multi disciplinary design studio Tin & Ed.
Drawing on their skills in sculpture, installation, graphic and motion design to create a range of consistently exciting and innovative work, be it building Gundam style battle robots out of courier messenger bags for Crumpler or constructing a 3D string sculpture in a Melbourne laneway for Tourism Victoria these guys are always striving to push the envelope.
In a recent commission for Visa’s ‘Go’ campaign, they suspended hundreds of pieces of miscellaneous computer junk and digital detritus on strings from the ceiling, arranged to magically form the word ‘Go’ in perfectly shaped sans-serif, which really has to be seen to be believed.
If you’re going to be at Semi-Permanent in Sydney tomorrow, make sure to catch them speaking and if you can’t make it down, well, as a close second we’re thrilled to have Tin choosing his favourite magazines for us here…
1. Colors
Colors magazine was conceived by graphic designer Tibor Kalhman and photographer Oliviero Toscani. Admittedly it’s changed a lot since the Kalhman and Toscani days but its still always a really interesting read and I always get from it an understanding and view of the world that i can’t get from anywhere else.
Each issue deals with a different topic: birth, god, race, wealth, toys, trash, aids. but whatever the issue, the message is always the same, the world is an infinitely diverse place, but ultimately we’re all the same.
I really love the way that Colors relies more on images rather then text to communicate. They did an issue a while ago which had no text at all, it took you through a tour of the world using only pictures, it was sort of like a printed version of Koyaanisqatsi, really powerful stuff.
I really like Olivier Zahm, he’s got his finger in so many pies, and they are all awesome. He use to be an arts curator and his blending of art and fashion seems really effortless, irreverent and most importantly fun.
His magazine Purple fashion can be a bit cliquey though and the same names crop up constantly in every issue (there’s always at least one or two shoots by Terry Richardson and Juergen Teller) but there’s not necessarily anything wrong with that.
The magazine is designed by M/M Paris, and the layout is quite simple, I like the use of the different paper stocks to the define the different sections. The interviews are always interesting and there’s always a good mix of people i already know about and people I’ve never heard of. Lindsay Lohan is on the cover of the latest issue which is awesome and funny so soon after her disastrous collection for Ungaro.
2. Uovo
Apparently Uovo means egg in Italian, which could seem a bit like an obvious analogy for an arts publication (if you speak italian) or really cryptic if you don’t (like me).
It explores the world of contemporary art through articles, interviews and images, and at nearly 500 pages per issue with no ads, it’s a really serious hit of contemporary art! It also comes with an audio CD full of weird and exciting sounds. It’s sort of like a printed more in depth version of VVORK with words.
3. Acne Paper
I love this publication. Each issue draws it’s inspiration from one key idea and brings together content from now as well as the past, there is something really nostalgic and romantic about Acne Paper, but it doesn’t come across as old or tired at all.
The latest issue is about art and spirituality and has an incredible shoot by Paolo Rovesi with an almost un-recognizable Tilda Swinton dressed as Marchesa Casati, there are also Interviews with Alejandro Jodorowsky, Orlan and David Lynch where he preaches about the benefits of Transcendental meditation (of course).
The design is classic but playful, which describes the content well, it mixes high culture and pop culture, past and present in a really fresh and dignified way, it’s full of really lush images but unlike most fashion/art magazines it doesn’t seem flashy at all.
4. Doing Bird
An awesome Australian magazine full of local and international content. I’ve still got the first and second issues which are ten years old now but they still look completely fresh.
The design hasn’t changed a whole lot in that time, it’s clean and simple without being boring. The ads are kept to the front and the back and there aren’t too many so the images and content have a lot of room to breather, and there’s no break in the continuity which is rare for a fashion/art magazine. Doing bird comes out twice a year and is always a reliable fix for australian and international fashion, art, illustration and writing.
