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Pantone’s fashion colour report for fall 2010 is vibrant, fun and a little bit retro. Fashion crosses over to graphic design and for that matter, all things design! So be sure to incorporate a little endive or golden glow into your life!

I recently watched a short documentary about the dying art of hand painted billboards. It was created by Stella Artois (yes….a big corporation, but it’s a really inventive way to promote your company!), and it featured colossal paintings completed during a 28-day period on a 20- by 50-foot wall in SoHo.

According to some people the technique of hand painted advertising is making a come back, but it’s hard to believe it when we live in such a fast paced society where a 20 foot billboard can be printed off and hung within a few hours.

Apparently the larger companies are willing to fork out the big bucks because it’s authentic and it creates a spectical in the city or a “buzz.” I can definately understand that, since you can actually watch the image appear over a period of time, while the guys are dangling above the city in their rigging.

I am blown away by the skills they have. Unfortunately I don’t think those skills will be passed on to too many more people in the future if their industry really does die.

So next time you think of designing a billboard, why not think of the artists and get it hand painted for a change!

Check out the documentary here:

Today the Vancouver Whitecaps revealed their new logo. It’s much more modern, clean, contemporary and “pro.” The reflected peaks can also be interpreted as V’s for Vancouver or W’s for Whitecaps.

What do you think?

After:

Before:

Yes it’s really true, fluorescent colours, like Pantone Plus Neons, are found in nature! Check out the photo below of fluorescent minerals by Hannes Grobe.

The web development team at Cowie and Fox recently launched their latest and greatest interactive project: the 2010 Legacies Scrapbook. The 2010 Scrapbook, focused on strengthening arts, healthy living accessibility and volunteerism, uses innovative touchscreen technology to connect diverse communities from all over the province. (more…)

Well ok, so we know that this winter in Vancouver hasn’t exactly been a frigid one, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who wouldn’t jump at the chance to escape to Jobbie’s Surf Camp, Costa Rica. Jobbie’s website, created by the Cowie and Fox interactive team, masterfully combines an original logo, brand and look-and-feel to create an awesome site that is totally representative of Jobbie’s carefree philosophy.

Whether you’re an avid surfer, yogi, or just looking to have fun, Jobbie will be there to ensure your trip is nothing short of supernumberonegoodtimes…

Visit Jobbie website »

Helvetica is like a celebrity, (no really it is, it’s in a movie). It’s so highly regarded among designers and never hated on like Comic Sans or Arial.

I’ve discovered a brilliant crafty exploration, showing Arial vs. Helvetica side-by-side. You’ll notice that in most cases Helvetica is the simpler, more elegant of the two. (see the angles of the r, t and c).

You might also noticed that there’s only 10 characters listed here, is it because all the others are identical? Some investigation needs to take place! Anyone up for the challenge?

(image via: google.com)

Turquoise, the 2010 Color of the Year, is PANTONE 104-2-3 C in Goe and PANTONE 3258 C in PMS.

“Turquoise inspires thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a comforting escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while restoring our sense of welllbeing.” (via Pantone.com)

I’m loving it, it’s probably one of my most favourite colours, especially for home decor.

Recently, I have seen I a lot of news about a Ralph Lauren model who was airbrushed to look reeeeeally skinny and then fired for being fat.

As a result, there has been a lot (more) of talk lately about this topic and thus some French legislators are pursuing the idea that all digitally enhanced photos should carry warning labels saying that they just that.

Now nobody needs to be told that the photo above is altered, but there are definitely too many cases where you can be mislead believing you’re looking at a “real” image. Now, there’s nothing wrong with altering images and creating interesting illusions, but it’s gone a little too far with human portrayal. N’est pas?

Read Ralph Lauren article
Read warning label article

They’re here! The official team outfits for Canada’s 2010 Winter Olympics team were revealed, Thursday morning by the Hudson’s Bay Company, the official supplier for the team. They sure are classically Canadian, what are your thoughts on them? It scares me that they’ve already been called “Hoser Chic” but, they’re definitely much better than Beijing, right?

Vancouver 2010

Beijing