2012 Planet Jam!

Global Service Design Jam 2012, joining 36 dedicated jammers, 11 nationalities, split into 5 teams

Okay. So you’ve come to terms with the idea of Service Design/Design Thinking/Designing with Empathy and all these evolving perspectives on Design, right? If you graduated from Design School a while ago, this is probably a new learning curve you’d rather not try on a new client. Or maybe you need a critical mass of like-minded people to work through a nascent idea.The solution? Join a Service Jam!

Jam Sessions–inspired by jazz and improvisation–are all the rage in the Universe of Problem Solving (read Design). Everyone’s jammin’, even IBM, and they seem to be having a good time.

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April 27 is World Communication Design Day

It’s Today! And this year’s theme is Convergence.

Get your whimsy on and Celebrate the
2012 World Communications Design Day!
Pronouncements, Events, Photos & Posters are welcome
on Facebook.
Decorate your twitter feed with #wcdd2012

Thanks to Rob Peters for these lovely posters. Continue reading »

XCD Student Showcase: CAAD goes to Il Salone

The CAAD-AUS showcase at SaloneSatellite!

Graduation is in the air and in the spirit of the season, the XCD revisits its student showcase, featuring the work of aspiring professionals from the global design community. This post features the work of eight students and recent alumni from the College of Architecture, Art and Design (CAAD) at the American University of Sharjah (AUS). Opening this week, CAAD will have the honour of being the first design school from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states to exhibit at the prestigious SaloneSatellite in Milan, Italy (April 17 – 22, 2012).

Created in 1998 in Milan, SaloneSatellite counts as one of the most exciting gatherings of promising young designers. It’s the first international event to focus on young talent, attracting prominent design houses, manufacturers, the press and the general public. Many of the prototypes presented in previous editions have gone into production, launching successful careers in design.

CAAD was invited to join approximately 700 young designers and 18 international design schools. Eight furniture pieces designed and built by CAAD students will be on display; they issue from courses in Furniture Design Basics and the recently launched Furniture and Graphics taught by Professors Bill Sarnecky and Amir Berbic.

“After teaching beginning furniture design…, I teamed up this past semester with Amir Berbic to teach a new course entitled Form, Furniture and Graphics. Students in the course were encouraged to explore the potentially reciprocal relationship between two-dimensional graphics and three-dimensional form…” said Sarnecky.
Berbic adds, “In some examples of student work, typographic patterns became a skin for the piece of furniture, while in others, the form of letters was the shaping element. Students from both the architecture and design department enrolled in the course and the unique conditions of the course resulted in a hybrid between 2D and 3D design.”

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Book Review: Design By Nature

XCD gives the thumbs up to Maggie Macnab’s Design by Nature.

Biomimicry, derived from the Greek for “imitating life”, is a growing field that looks to Nature for problem-solving and processes. It’s therefore no wonder that the quintessential visual problem-solver, the Designer, is embracing this “new field” as a source of inspiration, or more accurately, openly acknowledging Nature as creative muse. Maggie Macnab has tapped into this current in her new book, Design by Nature , where she attempts to formalize the Natural World’s impact on the design process.

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The 2012 Design Manifesto

Read It, Believe It;
No Matter How Hard the Reality Is…
Vada a Bordo, Cazzo!

Supporting a Creative Economy: Munich und Bayern, February 7-12, 2012

As national and cultural entities thrive in a globalised economy, they face an interesting balancing act between being reaping the benefits of diverse voices and influences while highlighting their assets and identity. Many advocates of economic development are turning to Design for affirmation. XCD continues to follow the interaction between municipalities and engaged citizens using design. Our latest article covers the Munich Creative Business Week (MCBW) scheduled for February 7-12, 2012 and is based on an interview with Bayern Design, the principal event organiser.

If you’re cruising through The Continent looking for Design Inspiration or have some frequent flyer miles you need to cash in, this might be worth checking out…

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Welcome to 2012

Time to turn the page and a new leaf! Many thanks to Francois Caspar for this beautiful poster

The Power of Window Dressing

In this 7 metre wide textile work named Grisgris-Blanc, Abdoulaye Konaté reflects on Malian writer Massa Makan Diabaté’s comment, “the guinea fowl spreads out its colours over its plumage and man keeps them in his heart”. Grisgris-blanc merges political commentary and traditional craftsmanship using inspiration from the striking plumage of the Guinea Fowl, famous in Malian tales, legends, theatre and literature. The artist sees this treatment as a commentary on the ambiguous position heads of governments take with respect to religion.

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How to sell Design Research: SonicRim

SonicRim’s Uday Dandavate pitches the value of Design Research: succinctly and persuasively…

Design Research. The roadmap and justification for our creative activity, the underpinnings of creative work in the commercial realm. Many designers have a love/hate relationship with Design Research, which they erroneously see as an impediment to the creative impulse.

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XCD does Taipei: Taipei101 & Damper Babies!!

In our previous post you probably noticed the elegant spire rising out of the sky. That’s Taipei 101, the City’s Pride and Joy–especially on New Year’s Eve. Until the January 2010, Taipei 101 was the Tallest Building in the World.

Aside from the obvious publicity effort that goes with a unique landmark, how do you assure the Public that this feat of engineering ingenuity is safe in earthquake-prone Taiwan? The Answer: Damper Babies!

Check out how the Tapei 101 communications team translates hard engineering data and dry facts into an endearing, loveable animation that is appreciated by young and old alike.

ps: Can you say Brand Extension? These Babies get around! Follow their adventures in shopping and promoting an eco-friendly lifestyle.