culturalboundaries

In my classroom I challenge my students to think beyond there own cultural beliefs and to expand the dialog of what globalization and culture means as applied to their ideation and design thinking. Here are a few examples of mindmapping/billboarding techniques used to jump start there projects. Below are several examples of students finished projects, billboarding presentations and team interactions.

Isabeal Maryland Crab presentation

Roni, Sarah and Sparky deep in thought

Dominka Polish Food expo, she incorporated poetic verses.

Stick + Stones project

Audra Buck-Coleman, is our first keynote speaker of the day, Coleman’s topic Identifying Potential Pitfalls + Windfalls in Collaborative Projects will definitely set the tone for what follows. She will address some major issues surrounding collaboration, and it consistent use as a  buzz word in higher education. Finally she proposes design educators develop more projects that foster critical thinking skills to make students better prepared for today’s creative working environments. Audra explores some of the pitfalls that exist with her projects, and investigates the advantages and disadvantages of working collectively across boarders with other cultures where English is not there first language.

How can design educators adept some of Audra’s rich skills and knowledge for collaborative projects?

What happens when language is a barrier to enhance collaborative critical learning outcomes?

Audra’s presents one project between Blacks students in  southern community and Mormons who came to realized they shared  more similarities then differences.

She proposes the following question to consider: When working on collaborative projects do your students know how to navigate through stereotyping issues with other ethnic, religious, gender based groups?

Audra proposes the following suggestions based on her collaborative experience of working with Students in China:

Chinese students prefer organized structured learning over US students flexible learning.

What is your Classroom Culture?

Are you well versed in the nuances of the culture?

How prepared are you for flexibility and improvisation in the classroom?

What are the benefits of the professors experience from collaboration?

Check out: Stick + Stones

Sorry I took a little time-out, however I’m back with this week’s buzz. Eric Benson from the University of Illinois, in Urbana and I will be the quest blogger for GLIDE10, a virtual symposium taking place on 27 October, 2010, starting early at 8:30AM. Eric maintains renourish blog that focuses on sustainable design. We’ll be posting questions on our blogs, and twitting simultaneously during each presenters talk from all over the globe. This years theme focuses on indigenous design with line-up featuring a host of design intellectuals from around the world, such as Audra Buck-Coleman from China, Adream Blair-Early from USA, Dr. Li-Hsun Peng and Chia-Hsin, from Taiwan are among some of the distinguished presenters this year. Great you don’t need to travel anywhere far. It’s easy to register then throw back while you relax  at home in front of your computer, TV in your jammies, or office or classroom space and just listen.

Keep in mind none of my commentary postings directly reflect the opinions of the conference planning committee Audrey Bennett, Adream Blair-Early and Gloria Gomez. As a designer and educator I was asked to share my opinions and that’s exactly what I have done.

This is major step in the right direction in the sphere of Graphic and Type Design, for MacArthur Foundation to award Matthew Carter, a major Type Designer as one of the 2010 MACARTHUR Fellows. Carter is a masterful wizard in working with letterforms having had created over 6o typefaces,  he’s also the Co-founder and Principal of Carter and Cone Type . If you’re a type connoisseur you’re sure to want to send him words of praise. Read more about Matthew Carter on the Mac Arthur Foundation website.

Bond Family papers at Columbia University:
Last year, the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library acquired the papers of J. Max Bond Jr., the African American architect and former Columbia professor who died last February at age 73. The documents, which are still being unpacked from 30 boxes, provide a window into the life of this accomplished and barrier-breaking architect of the 20th century.

Check out AIGA’s Design Journey: You Are Here

This is a photo essay of the opening night celebration.

Above is a selection of photos which include mural design by Rafael Esquer of Alfalfa Studio, Exhibition Design by Marcos Chavez of TODO, group shot of 2010 graduates of D-Crit program Angela Reichers, Alan Rapp and Fred Duarto.

After recently reading this post on a design colleagues Ayana Baltrip blog, DESIGNSPEAKS, I decided this essay was definitely worthy to share, with my design friends too. Steve Mehallo, teaches at American River College and he decided to share his views on the best ways to teach and research Graphic Design History. I’m interested in hearing your thoughts about Mehallo’s essay, on how design history should be taught.

Read about Mehallo’s refreshing methods on, how he teaches Design History. His essay offers you a thorough review on many of the key design history books considered the best by lots of design educators. I’m not going to mention any of the design history books, since you’ll get to read all about them in Mehallo’s essay. Although Mehallo’s does give you his aesthetic reasons on which books are worthy, and which ones need to skipped. In addition, his essay offers a solid rationale why anyone who teaches design history should not solely depend upon one book, but develop their own research methodology to make this subject engaging. Otherwise once you start lecturing and showing slides, you might just get a lot of students sitting in your class with their heads bowed once you turn down the lights. Last fall, I started my second Master’s in the Design Criticism program at School of Visual Arts in NYC. As a design educator, who also loves teaching Design History, I must confess that teaching this topic is an arduous task. However, my design history instructor in the program, Russell Flinchum, taught our class with the rigor of a southern baptist minister on Sunday morning. All to say, none of my classmates dared to bow their heads once the lights were turned down. As for me I left Russell’s class with a more varied knowledge on the history of design, and a lot of new books to add to my already overloaded bookcases at home. (above photograph; by Steve Melhallo student Samantha Costanilla).

Read more about Mehallo on his blog: http://mehallo.com/blog/

So I’ve been teaching my version of ‘a history of graphic design’ for several years now. Just finished up my 9th session.

As a text, Philip B. Meggs’ landmark research book – History of Graphic Design, first released in 1984 – is the bible on the subject. Even the ‘making of’ has its own edition.

It’s the most thorough analysis, and one of the best graphic design reference books I own. But as Meggs points out in his introduction, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more to discover, find, research and incorporate into one’s own view.

Finally, there is another book that just hit the market – The Story of Graphic Design by Patrick Cramsie. It tackles similar ground, but from another angle. A refreshing find. And from what I could tell so far, it syncs with my own classroom take on ‘The Story’ . . .

Rick Griffith, Design Director & Principle at Matter is organizing, curating, and presenting: Pressed: An Exhibition of Letterpress Printed Ephemera along with few other forms of typographic mischief throughout Denver May 28th through July 4th.

On Friday the 28th of May Untitled #29: TYPO kicks off the weekend with Printing demonstrations, Spoken word, and various sorts of Typographic mischief that are sure to tickle senses throughout the night. The show opens at 7pm and runs until 10pm.

The following day the ABOUT FACE Symposia will be set into motion with two type related film screenings: Typeface, by Justine Nagan & Jack Stauffacher, and Printer by Jim Faris. The screenings will be followed by a Panel discussion lead by Nick Sherman of FontBureau & Woodtyper, Jim Sherraden & Brad Vetter of Hatch ShowPrint, Rick Griffith of MATTER and Tom Parson of Now it’s up to you publications.

Closing out the weekend on Sunday May 30th Pressed: An Exhibition of Letterpress Printed Ephemera will open to the public. The show will feature work from the Hamilton 10th Anniversary show, Hatch Showprint, and Works produced at the TypeLab/Rob Roy Kelly American Wood Type Collection.

The AIGA/XCD is promoting “Design Is Not Justice,” they are asking designers to become more socially aware of what it means when countries sentence people to death. If you believe that “death” is wrong, then make your voice heard with your design.

Posterfortomorrow.org call for entries launches:

Call for Entries!
Death is not Justice.
October the 10th 2010 (10/10/10) is the World Day against the Death Penalty.
Poster for Tomorrow is holding its second annual poster exhibition featuring 100 exhibitions in 100 cities.
This year’s theme calls for the universal abolition of the death sentence, in the spirit of Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states: “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

We’re working with Amnesty International, the Council of Europe, Reporters Without Borders, the World coalition against the Death Penalty and Bianca Jagger to raise awareness of our cause.

In 2009, countries with the highest number of executions were Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United States. In China information regarding the death penalty remains secret, but estimates indicate that China probably executes more people than the rest of the world combined.*

There is hope – executions around the world are apparently on the decline. In December 2010, the United Nations is scheduled to deliberate on a universal moratorium on the death penalty.

To respond to our call for entries, please visit the Poster for Tomorrow’s website. Be sure to register and create an account in order to properly submit your work. Call for entries closes on July 18, 2010 at Noon, Pacific Standard Time. There is no entry fee.

Selected winners of the Poster for Tomorrow (as selected by the jury) will be included in 100 locations worldwide on October 10, 2010. Their entries will become part of the permanent collection of selected design museums worldwide, and published in the exhibition catalogue.
For more information about the awards, please contact:
Setareh Farsi, press office manager
T: +331 5341 4161, E: setareh@posterfortomorrow.org
*source Amnesty International

I have a knack for meeting incredible people and quickly adopting them as lifelong friends. Archie Boston, a Los Angeles-based designer, author and educator is one of those people. Recently, I was talking to one of my fellow design critters, Alan Rapp, when I noticed a book on his desk, Fly in the Buttermilk by Archie Boston. Alan told me he had just finished writing Archie’s profile for the upcoming “Design Journey” Exhibit that opens on May, 19th at the AIGA headquarters in NYC. Then he told me that another fellow design critter, Mike Neal, was one of Archie’s students at California State University Long Beach. I approached Mike at the end of the Crossing the Line: The 2010 D-Crit Conference this past Friday told him we share a close friend Archie Boston. His face lit up like a Christmas tree, as he ranted about his thrill at having had Archie as a design teacher, and that he viewed him as a mentor and father figure.

Watch this video on VideoSurf or see more Videos or Art (Law & Order: Cr Videos

A few weeks ago Archie sent me an email with a post announcing his retirement from teaching after 30 years, and included a video of his last lecture. (See this remarkable man at work). I’ve know him for almost twenty years, we met when former graphic designer Fo Wilson and I co-curated an exhibition “21: African American Designers Challenge Modern Stereotypes,” held at Parsons School of Design in NYC, in 1991. The show featured his work and since that time we have remained design friends. Here’s a few samples of Archie’s work from his self-published book. And check out Archie’s award-winning designs, plus his videos clips from his DVD, “20 Los Angeles Designer”.

Contact: Archie Boston to order his book and his DVD’s.

Email: bostona@earthlink.net

Proceeds from Archie’s booksigning will be donated to the VCDA Student Group at CSULB.
Proceeds from this FU lecture DVD will be donated to the Archie Boston Graphic Design Scholarship Fund at California State University, Long Beach.