October 23, 2012
Fall is always colorful. The leaves turn to bright shades of yellow and orange, crisp Macintosh apples glow a rich red, and the sky is full of bright blue. Why then, should an autumn collection be void of all color? Exactly. It shouldn’t. Read more of this post
October 9, 2012 3 Comments
I was pleasantly surprised to see that the latest Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2013 fashion show, which debuted in Paris last week, had left one significant guest off their VIP list: the signature LV logo. Under the tutelage of Creative Director Marc Jacobs, the show featured bold check patterns, artfully combined in a variety of scales and colors. Despite the fact that the iconic LV stamp is nowhere to be found within this ready-to-wear collection, the careful craftsmanship and perfectly paired pieces are unmistakably Louis Vuitton. It speaks volumes of the brand’s distinct visual language and identity that even without the signature LV, the fashion stands on its own. Read more of this post
February 6, 2012
I had to share this video which captures a five year olds impressions of some of the biggest brand logos in the world today, courtesy of Adam Ladd.
April 10, 2011 1 Comment
Recently on a local exploring mission I encountered two radically different approaches to the retail medium. One, a treasure trove of found objects where the most rewarding discoveries come from not knowing what you’re looking for. The other, a meticulously organized creative playground for the minds of children and their parents. While both were certainly memorable they illustrated the drastically different mentality of two distinct groups of shoppers, people that believe great retail experiences come with hard work and dedication, and people that, well, want shopping to be easy.
September 29, 2010
About a year back when I first heard the term “New Normal”, I thought it was a marketing pitch by an economist who was looking to score with a new book. Don’t know how the book deal is going, but the term, and the idea, has certainly caught on. Bling is out – Excess is excess, and we just aren’t looking for so much Stuff anymore.
So what does this mean to the design community and our customers? The New Inquiry provides an academic discussion of how Ikea tells us how we are coming back to our roots; how we can enjoy the simple things. While I think this is all true, there is another thing going on. Ikea is telling us that they provide cheap great design, not great design that happens to be cheap. The shift is subtle, but Ikea lovers will know that low-cost was considered The Bonus, rather than The Substance.
Restoration Hardware has gone down a different path; They touted their new reinvention this past summer. Whether you like the new style or not (Rusty Lux?), it can’t be coincidence that the product line is monochromatic, well used, and familiar. There seems to be no evidence of prices dropping, rather the Look at Me factor has been toned down several notches:
Another rather surprising development comes from our friends at Ligne Roset. While some may argue that great Italian design transcends fashion, it’s usually not touted as such in ad copy. Words like “classic”, and “functional” are normally not we would expect from the brand, but these are new times. The style is something we have seen before, and comfort is definitely part of the equation:
How does this apply to the built environment, other than The Stuff We Buy goes into The Stuff We Build? It’s a bit early to tell, but there are some lessons:
A: Price may matter, but its not everything
B: Fashion may be a bit less fashionable these days
C: Familiar is the new Fresh
Over the next several months, I’ll be on the lookout for examples in the built environment. The New Normal is coming – we just need to figure out how.
