Cyan Loves Magenta - Design Thinking

Cyan is on FACEBOOK....

2011-10-11T15:33:00.000+11:00

I've finally decided to follow the trend and get a business Facebook presence.
Would LOVE to hear your thoughts and of course please "like" me!

Classic Old Advertising

2011-10-11T15:23:00.000+11:00

These made me belly laugh - I had to share them ! Enjoy

The Ensemble Theatre 2012 Creative

2011-10-11T13:04:00.000+11:00

I have been working on this lovely project for a few months and I'm so pleased to show it off !
This has been one of my biggest jobs that I have been solely responsible for and I'm just so proud of it..

I worked with awesome creative photographer Dario Gariman (check out his cool stuff here) and the creative team at Ensemble, Claire Nesbitt-Hawes and Mark Kilmurry.

I think we should all go and see a play (or two) next year - there are some really good ones on offer.
( Oh check out the very cute talent for Bear Hunt - I'm not biased at all as his mum !)

Enjoy

Bear Hunt Cutie!

Thursday Music

2011-07-14T13:52:00.000+10:00

Thursday Music

2011-06-29T12:10:00.000+10:00

on a wednesday .. This one is pure fun.

Elvis - Polk Salad Annie

Just one more !

2011-06-23T13:24:00.001+10:00

This song always, always, always makes me smile and I just cannot help but dance to it ...
Also if you ever get the chance to see these guys live - they are awesome - we've been twice !

enjoy... princess - datarock

Thursday Music

2011-06-23T12:57:00.001+10:00

I'm really busy working most Wednesdays and Thursdays but love to listen to music while I work - So I thought I'd post a special song, each week to inspire you too..
So here's the first song - It's AMAZING ! Enjoy :)

Gorecki - Lamb

Our Wedding Graphic Design

2011-06-17T16:57:00.000+10:00

I thought I'd share some of my work that I did for our wedding.
Our invitations were a series of postcards starting with an illustration of us two as fish !

The beginning of the drawing

This is how it looked all done..

Completed illustration - printed postcard size

Details Card

RSVP Card

Link to our wedding website - which had all the travel and accommodation info and pictures !

And here are a few pictures from the day. You can read more at Rock and Roll Bride.

Ella - This is one of my most favorite pics

Some Wedding Inspiration

2011-06-09T12:14:00.000+10:00

Stirling and I got hitched a year ago and I forgot all about posting these pics ! We had an artist make us some "cake toppers" of our family .. I love them so much !

The artist is Paola Zakimi..

You can look at some of her other work here...

Some of her latest work is also to die for - I am so wanting to get a bunny girl ! Beautiful and delicate work !

Wow - Amazing StitchWork

2011-04-05T22:51:00.000+10:00

I stumbled across this beautiful post after a rough day ... (all my work from 8.30am til 5pm is MISSING from my computer -grrrr) but anyway this amazing work is brightening my day..

Penguin has asked this amazing crafter to embroider the covers of their classic books - they are utterly magical ! Have a look for yourself and also check out her lovely blog for more beautiful work..

http://blog.jilliantamaki.com/2011/03/penguin-threads-deluxe-classics/

all things YUM!: Landsdowne has never looked so pretty

2010-09-29T23:52:00.000+10:00

all things YUM!: Landsdowne has never looked so pretty: "...what an absolute amazing day. Beautiful springtime and finally the big day had arrived, it was almost as if 'Yum!' was getting married. A..."

Missing Thomas

2010-08-23T12:35:00.000+10:00

I found Thomas when i was in my second year of uni. I bought him for $10 from cat care and his name was otis (then). He drew me to him with his big eyes and a little boy was holding him and he was not bothered by the child swinging him around at all .

I named him Thomas after a Robert Mapplethorpe photograph. He was a gorgous black man.. Similar to my gorgeous fluffy cat.

We lived in Jesmond and he would sleep on my chest every night.. and fetch sticks - he was more like a dog than a cat. He had an accident and broke his leg but we fixed it and he was fine - even though he had a slight limp - he's still do everything at 100 miles an hour.

Then we moved to Sydney and he ruled the roost again.. He loved to be outside and used to jump onto dogs backs as they walked by in the street from a tree to scare them. He would walk down to the corner store with me but would always insist on being carried home.

He moved in with me and my future husband but was always there for me when I was upset or needed a hug. Always playing with a ball or chasing a ribbon.

When I was in labor with my son he came and laid with me on the lounge to comfort me. and when we brought our son home he came to him and gently sniffed him and rubbed his face.

I will miss his meows for breakfast in the morning and his head smushes.

We love you so much Thomas.. I have a broken heart without you.

Found Art

2010-02-10T01:23:00.004+11:00

Art Surprises...

I've recently been looking through some old work and came across some pics of old artworks of mine.. here's a self portrait.. I'll load a few more up as I come across them!
I like the yellow.. very early Brett Whitely influence I think!

Our Baby Belly

2009-11-05T13:42:00.010+11:00

Stirling and I had some professional "belly" shots done of our impending new arrival.. We were both really excited about the finish and wanted to share them with you.

The whole experience was really wonderful and we felt completely comfortable. The Photographer - Karen (Dragonfly Gallery)- who has two kids of her own and is an ex-graphic designer.. comes to your home so you feel completely relaxed and comfortable. I had a bit of idea of a few of the shots I wanted like the painting series... but she also helps you with ideas as well ..

Have a look at our pics and check out her other online work - the newborns are so cute ! I'll post ours up here when we have something to show!

Alice in Wonderland

2009-11-03T08:20:00.003+11:00

I'm so excited about the new Alice in Wonderland movie that will be out next year.

Have a look a the preview !

And Some beautiful images ..makes me feel inspired to paint today!

Motion Graphics Inspiration

2009-08-23T18:46:00.003+10:00

Madonna TVC

This was designed by a very talented designer - who's in the UK and heading back home to Aus. soon!
Very inspirational.

Blacktop Rollers

2009-08-13T23:47:00.005+10:00

Some More Jazz Band Websites!
Loving working on this stuff at the moment - it's really fun.

The client has chosen concept 1 (Below) .. What do you think?

Concept 2:
Maybe too modern looking.. perhaps not "RSL" enough?

Concept 3

This one I like - I think the font really works for the logo.. Very Jazz.

Inspiration Tuesday....

2009-08-11T08:50:00.001+10:00

Saul Bass

I figured Saul would be the perfect place to start an a weekly section on showcasing other designers work.. He's a total inspiration to me .. I guess I thought of him when I was working on my latest website job for the Blacktop Rollers Jazz band. Although the designs in the end haven't taken much inspiration from his work - I think he has a very beautiful style !

So, Saul - he was an Amercian designer - Died in 1996 sadly - he was mostly well known for his movie posters and motion graphic title sequences.

Check out these amazing movie title sequences:

His other work includes some very amazing poster and children's book work:
Poor unhappy animals - especially love the bright orange dead thing bottom left

More recent file sequences also take inspiration from Saul's work..One of my very favourite executions is this one, From the movie Catch Me if you Can:

Cool Jazz at the Victoria Room every wednesday night !

2009-08-10T14:26:00.000+10:00

Experiment Street
I've been working on a web design for a very cool Jazz band. They play in Sydney at the Victoria Room every Wednesday night.

Here are the initial ideas..

Look out for the website ! Coming soon...

More about the night:
Jazzing up midweek evenings at The Victoria Room is industry pro, Lindsay Winkler, with his 5-piece live band. Jamming to everything from jazz classics to lively improvised numbers, patrons every week are invited to delight in an original performance- each set guaranteed to be different from the last. These talented musicians are providing that extra acoustic flavour to your Wednesday night cocktail or antipasto plate.
From 7pm-11pm, entertainment is free!

Check out the website for more details and location.

Red Room Company - The Poet's Life Works

2009-07-09T12:56:00.000+10:00

The Poet's Life Works

I've been working with the Red Room Company on a wonderful project that I thought I'd share with you.. The look has been inspired by my collage. Which I've really enjoyed doing and I'm very proud of.

The Poet's life works is a series of performances and installations featuring four high-impact Australian poets. Showcasing a different poet each month, the project presents four events in various spaces around Sydney, exploring each poet's life through objects, music and visual interpretations by four contemporary artists.

There are two more events left in the series..

17 July - Kevin Hart (VIC/USA) with artist Michael Robson

St James Church King St, Sydney
6.30-8.00pm

$5 entry includes refreshments and illustrated poem

27 August - Lionel Fogarty (QLD) with artist Tara Marynowsky
Venue TBA

Some pictures can be found online from some of the last evenings...

online here

Here's me and Jo and Stirl checking out the Poems...

Love to see you at the next event.

Vintage Look Photography

2009-06-14T15:37:00.000+10:00

I came across the wonderful little set of tools today and decided to try it out on a few of my old photographs I took a few years ago in Alaska. Love the effect !

http://lassekorsgaard.deviantart.com/art/Vintage-action-56296140

Here are a few more originals and vintage effects....

Love to see your photo's like this !

Very Cool Wine labels..

2009-04-30T11:20:00.000+10:00

Some Young Punks
Love love love this wine label .. it's so creative and fabulous.. you get a bunch of stickers to dress your nude(ish) girl on the label. .
It's so great for dinner party or a wine gift..

And the wine is also delish!

I know it's available in Darlinghurst from Camperdown cellars and it's only about $30..
Woot!

Natural Art

2009-04-30T11:10:00.000+10:00

I was surfing a few weeks ago and came across this wonderful idea... I love the simplicity of the idea and will give it a go myself - Especially since it's autumn at the moment and the leaves are such spectacular colours!

I need a walk today so I'll post my efforts up tonight..
I'll try and find out my source for these and post that as well ..

Newtown Street Art/Stencil Art

2009-01-19T14:30:00.000+11:00

Mural in Sara Jane Store King Street Newtown

Newtown is such a fabulous hive of creative inspiration. Aside from the great shopping, food and coffee there are some really good examples of Street Art. I have the personal opinion that this isn't graffiti (basically street tagging your name in writing no-one can read??!?! What the?? ) but real art. If you have a few hours to kill in Sydney - It's so worth a look. Some more info can be found here.
Check out some of the examples below - Sorry I don't know artists names to cred them.

Pasteups - are another form of street art involving work done at home then glued to surfaces
King Street Newtown

Stencil art is really simple to do and can often be very political.. One of the greatest stencil artists with some amazing work is Banksy.
If you're keen to add your own street art (oh be warned it City of Sydney does consider it to be graffiti) you can follow this link. But I think if you are sensible about where you put the art - ugly places can be made beautiful - and you aren't wrecking other peoples property then go for it!

Here's a couple of pieces that Stirling Batcock (my boyfriend) and I have done on canvas for home.

Sunshine & Lollipops
Michelle Moore
Mixed Media

Watching
Stirling Batcock

Black and White: Music and Design

2009-01-19T14:00:00.000+11:00

Great inspiration for a Monday. Simplistically beautiful. Have look at it here.

Video for "The Owl" created by Emmanuel Ho from the album Fear Is On Our Side by I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness on Secretly Canadian

Backyard Nature Journal

2009-01-16T12:43:00.000+11:00

"wildness..is the key to unlocking the miraculous in the commonplace; to the understanding that ..’heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads’."
Henry David Thoreau

We were lucky enough to get away from Sydney last weekend to meet the newest member of our "extended" family - Ziggy Green.
Obviously very gorgeous !!

The Sunday was glorious in the mountains and I spent some time really paying attention to the creatures in Azure and Kai's (Ziggy's parents) garden. It really got me thinking about the idea of creating a nature journal for illustration inspiration. There was just so much to see - so much activity when you really stop and take notice! These are just a few of the wonderful bugs and flowers I found.

A few years back I began a Nature Journal for a university project. My inspiration then came from this book.

A Trail through Leaves.
The Journal as a path to place
Hannah Hinchman

Newcastle City Council have a wonderful article based on creative expression using Hannah's method. They Suggest three different methods to find your nature inspiration but I think the one that suits this concept is...

Unmeasurable phenomena
TRY: finding a special place where you can experience the glory of nature. Sit still, alert, fully present, mindful, awake. Let all your senses absorb the scene. Later, when you are ready, capture your response in words, drawings, or music.

The shapes of clouds and how they move
The way wind reveals itself moving across the water
How the surface of water reflects light in different ways
How dew forms on leaves according to their different textures
The sources of different fragrances encountered during a walk
Whether sounds in the night are of insect, bird or amphibian origin.

These Shots are from a camping trip to Myall Lakes last year - it was nice to just sit and draw the small things I found..
I really recommend a trip there.

The following are from my uni assignment... I love the marking sheet :)

( That I got 18/20 for "the benefit of the doubt" ....and no the life drawings were not mine!!)

So in terms of inspiration - I think this is really something everyone can enjoy. It's amazing just how many fascinating things there are, just in your own backyard... waiting for you to notice them.

Spectacular Sunset

2009-01-06T09:47:00.000+11:00

In the beginning of December we were lucky enough to be up the coast staying in Harrington.
We decided to try some fishing off the wall.. After a few throws I gave up but was lucky enough to catch these sunset shots that are so worth sharing.

Competitive Design

2008-11-27T00:04:00.000+11:00

Designer against Designer
How healthy is it??

I stumbled across this site today, (actually I was reading those emails that you only glance at then come back to when you have time - or too much work to do and you are procrastinating...) from a marketing friend of mine who recommended this site to me 99 designs.

I had a look through it and it seems pretty cool - You can basically add your ideas to any of the live briefs that are active....and GET PAID for it if you win. Free to join and all you have to do is design - right ...easy ??

NO !

Let me tell you about it... I started with a simple logo project - Design a logo for a company called Laser Source. Use Cyan, Yellow, Magenta and Black in the Logo and make it look fast. No problem.
Well I had a look at the competition first... Hmm should be able to do better...

So I sit down and come up with a few versions... (I am feeling quite proud of myself at this moment!)

Post them to the site and sit back and wait for my (US$ !!) 300 prize money...that is until... the client gives me "feedback"

"Cyan Loves Magenta thank you for designs #8 , 9 and 10. I liked how you came up with an original way to incorporate the CMYK colors into these concepts, i'm not too excited about the font however. I want the font that is used in our logo to say that we are moving forward, and I also think that LaserSource should be the same font, but you guys are the creative ones so maybe it can work with two different fonts but it didn't for me in these concepts. Thanks for your work."

I'm shocked - Not excited about my font.. How can that be! So I immediately design another logo just to prove to this guy that I am not a user of "dull" fonts!

Shazzam - If that doesn't rock their world then this one surely will!

The reply was...

Cyan loves Magenta thanks for #19 . The font kind of looks like heavy metal band to me more than corporate america. Also, i think you can do a better design with the colors. Thanks again for your design

OMG ! Devastated !

At least the next comment was more heartening...

Cyan loves magenta I like your design concept in #20 better than the other ones. I would lije to see #20 or something similar to it with an LS above the name. Getting better, thanks!

Which brings me to right now.. I am obsessed - I keep looking at what the competition have put up and what Mr Client has to say about each ( and I keep refreshing my screen to see if he's changed his mind and want's to make me an instant winner!! - I'm still waiting however.....)

So Competition ? Is it a good thing ? Am I helping in the undervaluing of design work? hmm I have to say probably... But I've got 6 days and 11 hours remaining to beat the rest of those other designers and get my pissy $300.

Damn!

P.S. But don't worry I've seen a wine label job that is so MINE!

First Time Blogging

2008-11-24T16:40:00.000+11:00

Hi, this is really a test - I'll write something more later on :)