Been busy these past few months but...

Hello Pop-Up Studio Readers,

Sorry for the lapse in blog entries these past few months - it's been pretty hectic this summer. Lots of changes in the studio and pop-up projects to finish! Needless to say, all is well and many new books are coming in the near future, including...

DC Super Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book - to be released October 5, 2010....


and the cover art from the final book in the Encyclopedia Mythologica series - Dragons & Monsters (Spring 2011)!

And that's just a taste of what's ahead! Lots more details on the making of each of these books to come and as well as some teasers on more future projects.

XO Matthew Reinhart


PS - This is my niece Lillian - cute pigtails, huh? I think she just might make an appearance or two in future books...

Smithsonian Pop-up Exhibit

I was excited to learn that June 14th marked the opening of a new exhibit from the Smithsonian Institute called “Paper Engineering: Fold, Pull, Pop and Turn” ()at the National Museum of American History.

I have been following the progress of the exhibition for a few months through an informative blog they launched to showcase various books and backstage stories.

Stephen Van Dyk, the show curator, carefully considered the 1200+ collection of pop-up and movable books in the Smithsonian Libraries before settling on 53 prime examples of paper engineering. The dizzying beauty of the volvelles in Peter Apian’s Astronomicum Ceaesareum start off a timeline of movables that include works from pop-up masters like Meggendorfer, Nister, Dean, Lentz and Kubasta. The current crop of masterful pop-up artists are also on display so look out for titles from Robert Sabuda, Matthew Reinhart, David Carter and others.

Not only are works from Bruce Foster and Chuck Fisher in the exhibition but they make another appearance in the running video that describes much of the pop-up making process. You can take a look at one of the videos here on Youtube.

“Paper Engineering: Fold, Pull, Pop and Turn” will be at the National Museum of American History until Fall 2011 so you have plenty of time to arrange that must-see trip to D.C.

~Kyle

Anton and Atlas

Last month I was lucky enough to swing through BookExpoAmerica at the Javits Center in New York City. I always love to attend this book fair each year to get a sense of what new pop-up books will be released and what the dozens of publishers and printers have to show off. Sadly, my tour of the floor was cut short after a great chat with paper engineer Gene Vosough. I had to hustle off to meet with Ellen Rubin, thepopuplady, Matthew Reinhart, and Bulgarian paper engineer, Anton Radevsky. I was very excited to meet with Anton as I have marveled at his paper engineering feats as he tackled subjects like Space Craft, Architecture or the Wild West.

Anton Radevsky was visiting Manhattan for the first time and was eager to meet some fellow paper engineers and talk shop while he showed us his latest tour de force pop-up book Voyage to the Heart of Matter. His book is a collaboration with CERN in Switzerland to share the story of the Atlas experiment and the Large Hadron Collider.


Voyage to the Heart of Matter is an ambitious pop-up book about an ambitious scientific project to discover the beginning of the universe. This complex experiment is broken down into bite size sections to help kids (and adults) understand what it takes to make protons travel near the speed of light. The book has just been released in the UK but the 2nd edition is set to be in U.S. bookstores in the next two months, so I have to keep waiting for my own copy.

~Kyle

I like Domino!

Even though this book came out a couple years ago, it is still probably one of my favorites! Domino: The Book of Decorating was created by the editors from Domino Magazine (which sadly is no longer with us). The book basically has all the best articles from the magazine on how to decorate a small entryway, the bedroom, living room, etc. It even has in the back how to calculate how much paint you'll need to paint a room or just a wall. But what the best part of the book is the photos! I love decorating books and magazines for the photos. I tend to find inspiration from them. Whether it's the wallpaper or a small trinket, I usually find something amazing!

Enjoy!
-Jess

Etch-A-Sketch King

To be named the king of something is a bold title, but George Vlosich deserves this title. He is also know as the king of Etch a Sketch. Yes. Etch a Sketch. As you can see from the one he did of New York, this guy knows his way around those two little knobs. Vlosich's creations has been on television, museums, magazines, and even the White House!

Check out more of his Etch a Sketch work on his website:

http://www.gvetchedintime.com/

-Jess

I'm a Cyborg, but that's OK

As I was trawling through the interwebs this week I came across a very cute virtual pop-up book. I’m always excited when my different interests align so it was a delightful bonus to find that the virtual pop-up book was created as a promotional for one of my favorite Korean directors, Chan-Wook Park. I’m a Cyborg, but that’s OK was released in 2006 and has yet to have make it’s way to the U.S. or Netflix, but I have my fingers crossed. You can learn more about the film at IMDB and Wikipedia.



The virtual pop-up book is quirky creation from the Korean design firm D.O.E.S. which stands for “dreams of electric sheep” and references Phillip K. Dick’s seminal work that spawned one of my favorite movies, Bladerunner. Based on the preview of their 2010 reel it seems they are no strangers to the virtual pop-up book and have created another version of the pop-up book for LG. You can also check out their fun cut paper animation for the LG Cyon Lollipop and don’t forget to see the “making film” section for a behind the scenes look at all the hard work they put in.

Getting back to the charming virtual pop-up book, the viewer can explore three chapters and interact with the characters on each of the spreads in fun ways. While they cheated on the physics of the constructions, it works well with the surreal nature of the project. The pop-up book closes with an appendix that promises three make-your-own masks based on the movie, but I was disheartened to find that the links were no longer available. Guess I will have to make my own bunny mask. Now all that is left is for me track down a copy of the movie this weekend because the pop-up promo sure sold me.

~Kyle

A pretty book about an ugly duckling

On a recent trip to Virginia I came across this pop-up book in a used bookstore and I just had to pick it up!

Besides the pop-ups, the illustrations have a very nice line quality that I admire. The paper engineering was done by Clare and Jack Segnit and Dennis K. Meyer.

I hate to give away the ending of the book, but the pop-up on the final spread is so nice I couldn't resist showing it! It's very simple but also elegant and effective.

The photo doesn't completely do it justice - take a look at this book if you get a chance!

-Shelby

Libros Moviles in Spain

I just learned of a new pop-up exhibit that opened last week in Andalucia, Spain. More specifically at the Teatro Auditorio in the Southern resort town of Roquetas de Mar. The movable books in the show come from the extensive collection of Ana Maria Ortega Palacios and her husband Alvaro Gutierrez Banos.



I have had the good fortune to meet with these lovely collectors on past occasions and know that this exhibition will be tastefully presented with many rare books selected from their 1,700 title holdings. I learned the show is divided in two sections. One side of the hall represents a general history of movable books dating back hundreds of years with impressive examples of Meggendorfers, Nisters, Kubasta, Wehr and other masters of the Golden Age of Pop-ups. As the exhibition continues, viewers can peer into twelve cases to see different book formats and explosive mechanism used by various paper engineers.

The exhibit is slated to run from April through June, which gives me time to save up for a trip to Spain.

~Kyle

P.S. Spanish articles covering the opening can be found here and here.

We all fit together.

Check out these cool Lego animals. Lego artist Sean Kenney has set up this exhibition at the Philadelphia zoo to raise awareness about endangered species the world over. The exhibition also focuses on teaching children and adults the importance of recycling and lowering your environmental impact.



http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/04/lego-artisan-creates-endangered-species-for-zoo.php

Looks like it's time for a quick trip to Phily!
Simon

Fun at the MoCCA Festival!

Last weekend I attended the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art Festival and I had a great time! I originally decided to go because one of my favorite webcomic artists was there (Kate Beaton), but I realized as I arrived that it was just the sort of event that some of my old college friends would be at.

Sure enough, as I walked into the room I saw my friend Marc showing off his illustrations at a table. He pointed me to some great places to browse and I ended up spending tons of money on books and posters as well as a little robot magnet that my friend Alisa made.

One of my favorite things about the festival is that artists had to represent their own work. This meant that there were mainly independent comic artists and cartoonists there - and it was cool to know that whenever I bought something, I was buying it directly from the artist!

I'll definitely go back next year.
-Shelby

Play With Your Food

Some really great photos from the Sydney International Food Festival of international flags made of food! Definitely check out the photos and try to guess which country is which!




Jess

Short and Sweet

I just have something simple to say. At this studio a lot of the art is done in cut paper collage - the colors are mixed and arranged in order to make them pop. All the papers are painted in-house by the talented Jess Tice, but of the hundreds of sheets we have, this one is (in my opinion) an amazing piece of art on its own:



-Simon

NY Antiquarian Book Fair

This weekend is the New York Antiquarian Book Fair! I completely lost track of time and forgot that the book fair was coming so soon to the Park Avenue Armory. I have been fortunate enough to attend the last few years and always get excited to see some amazing books from the past.



As you can imagine my interests tend toward all things movable so I make sure to make the rounds of my favorite independent booksellers. It is so exciting to actual hold some of the rare Meggendorfer and Kubasta titles found at Aleph-bets Books and Joann Reisler’s booth. Or drool over the glass cases of rare antiquities from Justin G. Shiller. I always find wonderful treasures at Chez Les Libraires Associes where the very pleasant Jacques Desse and Thibaut Brunessaux are on hand to share the latest pop-ups out of Paris alongside rare European titles. And the trip would not be complete without checking out the bookcases of Bromer Booksellers and visiting with Peter at the massive Books of Wonder booth.

Below is the essential info for the Book Fair but you can also get a full list of exhibitors and learn more about the 50th Anniversary of the Antiquarian Book Show here.

Location: The Park Avenue Armory at 643 Park Avenue and 67th Street in New York.
Dates: April 9 - 11, 2010 (With a Thursday preview)
Hours: Friday noon - 8pm, Saturday noon - 7pm and Sunday noon - 5pm.
Admission: $20/per day, $30/two-day pass & $45/three-day pass (Catalog included.)

~Kyle

Chupa Chups!

This week I discovered that Salvador Dali had made a logo for a candy company back in the day. And not just any candy company, one of the first companies to make lollipops. What company was this? Chupa Chups! They make some of the best lollipops out there in my opinion (does it get any better than Cola Lemon? Better than Kiwi Strawberry Orange?). I remember these lollipops from my childhood while living in Spain and the Caribbean.

Definitely check out their website:
www.chupachups.com

And check out the Daily Heller for great tid bits on design, type, art (that's where I first heard about this!):
http://www.printmag.com/dailyheller/

Jess

of course

I recently came across this table design and it made me feel like smacking myself in the forehead. Why have people not thought of this before?


(Designed by Beatus Kopp)

The table's legs are hollow, making channels for plugs and cables to stay organized and out of the way! So simple, and so smart. More images and info here.

-Shelby

Gods & Heroes on Telegraph.co.uk

Sunday, April 4, 2010 - The best books for all ages by Dinah Hall:

No matter how many times you open GODS AND HEROES BY MATTHEW REINHART AND ROBERT SABUDA (Walker, £19.99), the thrill never diminishes as a giant Anubis springs out of the pages and unfeasibly folds its outstretched limbs neatly back in as you close it. Tucked on to each page, as well as one large pop up of the Argo or Quetzalcoatl, are several smaller ones, equally intricate. Reinhart and Sabuda are themselves gods of paper engineering and it's a shame to leave this thing of magic and wonder to the collectors who, to maximise its investment value, will keep it in its cellophane wrapper. (Age: 6-11)

On its way from Adobe...

Here in the studio we often use Adobe programs to design and make our pop-ups. We use Photoshop to scan and work with the art, Illustrator to draw die lines and place the art, and InDesign to lay out type for the books. The programs are super useful, and we are always discovering new tools or commands that make our lives much easier! It doesn't help that Adobe adds new features with every new suite that comes out.

Well, I was checking out Gizmodo today and they had a post about this new feature Adobe has just announced for Photoshop CS5. This should definitely help in the rare cases that we are cutting up photos or flat art to turn into pop-ups...that is if we can figure out how to use the tool properly!



Looks like we'll be able to literally tie images into knots!

-Shelby

Pop-Ups in Ohio

This coming Monday marks the opening of a new pop-up exhibit at the Cincinnati Library. The Wonderful World of Pop-Ups: From the Collection of Carolyn S. Hughes will be on view in the Main Library’s Cincinnati Room from April 5 through June 27. Carolyn Hughes is a passionate book lover and pop-up collector that I have had the pleasant of meeting with over the years. She contacted me to let me know that she selected my book, Castle, to be one of pop-ups presented at the library. Carolyn went on to say, “There will be 115 books & things… It will be in the rare book department in beautiful cases that have alarms in them. How sweet! I have 570+ books, so it was really hard to select which would be used. I tried to have variety of subject matter, artists, & of course the all important paper engineer.”



One of her favorite paper engineers is Bruce Foster, who is no stranger to this blog. In fact Carolyn goes so far to claim, “I'm the self appointed President of the Bruce Foster Fan Club, Ohio Chapter!” So it only seems fitting that Bruce will be joining in the opening festivities and give a presentation on his amazing work next Sunday, April 11 at 2:30pm. More info can be found here.

Additional details of both events can be found on the first two pages of the library newsletter.

I had a chance to get a sneak peek at the exhibition list and found it a well balanced show. Go check it out for yourself, you won't be disappointed!

~Kyle

Sweet Dioramas

As Easter approaches and so does the thrill of Easter baskets from the Easter bunny, there is also a thrill that comes once a year- PEEPS! Now I know there are some die-hard fans out there that love eating Peeps (I know we like to microwave them occasionally here), but there are people out there that make art out of Peeps! I was so surprised when I saw these dioramas this morning made with Peeps. They really are great and witty. So far, my 3 favorite are these:

This photo gallery also made me remember making dioramas in grade school and how much I really enjoyed them. Maybe next year I'll think to make a diorama as well!

If you want to see more, check out the Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/gallery/2010/03/29/GA2010032903934.html

-Jess

Fun with Venn Diagrams.....Seriously.

Check out these sweet Venn Diagrams that show us the limitless range of things you can diagram through this graph. From self-referencing Venn diagrams to Denzel Washington Venn Diagrams!






Enjoy,
Simon

April Fooled!

Check out these products that were just released today by one of our favorite online stores, ThinkGeek.com:

iPad Arcade

LOST inspired Dharma Initiative Alarm Clock

Programmable Tattoos

Some of us were fooled until we remembered that one of ThinkGeek's most famous products, the Star Wars Tauntaun Sleeping Bag, was originally created as an April Fool's prank, and these are just the kinds of things they'd do for this year's round.

Good one, ThinkGeek!

-Studio

President Obama buys Star Wars Pop-Up book

During a recent visit to a bookstore in Iowa, President Obama bought a copy of Star Wars: A Pop-Up Guide to the Galaxy for his press secretary, Robert Gibbs (who chose it for his son).

Asked by the Official Star Wars blog about the visit, Matthew Reinhart says, "What can I say? He’s got taste! Seriously, its a tremendous honor & delight for this humble pop-up book maker. Just goes to show you how universal Star Wars really is!"

Read more at the following links:

Official Star Wars Blog

Yahoo! News

NYTimes Blog

Happy 1st Birthday, Lillian

Among the exciting things that happened this past weekend, my niece Lillian Elizabeth Aynes turned one year old! Pink was definitely the color of the day. Hardly pop-up news, but since she's my ONLY niece, I have to brag. I can pretty much guarantee she'll be the model for many characters in upcoming pop-up books, so I guess that makes this news of her special day news-worthy to the paper engineering world, right?

XO Matthew

Beyond the Text

I had the privilege to attend the opening reception to a wonderful artist book exhibit last night and the Grolier Club. The inventive book artist, Shawn Sheehy invited me to join him at the event where we met up with the always cheery, Ed Hutchins and Ellen Rubin, the popuplady. The gallery was packed wall to wall with artists, book collectors and book lovers but I was able to squeeze off one photo of Sheehy next to his work.



"Beyond the Text: Artists’ Books from the Collection of Robert J. Ruben," includes over 60 examples of accordion books, codices, scrolls, box books, pop-ups and tunnel books, in every variety of mixed media. Some are by artists of international renown, others by new artists forging their creative paths. Some of the books have previously known texts, others new texts or no texts at all, and the subject matter ranges from political, argumentative, ironic, lyrical, to tragic.

In speaking with the very pleasant Dr. Robert J. Ruben, I learned that this show represents about ten percent of his notable collection, which he has been amassing since he picked up his first artist book in 1952. Ruben has two intellectual centers to his life: medicine and books. A leader in the medical field of Otolaryngology, Ruben has also been an ardent student and collector of artists' books for twenty-five years, and a similar exhibition of his artists' books, "Beyond the Text", was held at Adelphi University a few years ago.

This exhibition is accompanied by an impressive catalog with beautiful full-page color illustrations of each book. The catalog is a joint effort of the art historian, Yvonne Korshak, PhD and the collector, Robert Ruben, MD and is available for purchase at the venue. The show will be on exhibit at the Grolier Club, Second Floor Gallery, 47 East 60th Street, NY, NY, 10022, from March 25th through May 28th, 2010, Monday through Friday, 10 am to 5 pm. The exhibition is free of charge and open to the public so you have no excuse not to see it for yourself.

-Kyle

Art of the Arduino

This Saturday at NYCResistor we are hosting an art show of pieces that use the Arduino, a customizable microprocessor that lets you incorporate electronics into basically anything you can dream up.

One of the pieces in the show is by artist Edith Kollath, titled "thinking i'd last forever". They are books that breathe! Bre made this video a while back for another show that she was in:

Things - Edith Kollath Creates Books that Breathe from Bre Pettis on Vimeo.

So cool! I can't wait for the show on Saturday!

Edith's website: http://www.edithkollath.net/

-Shelby

Fashion follows function

I am not too aware of the fashion world as a whole, but I do like good design no matter what avenue it is on. Check out these cool 'bike to work' pants, with built in reflectors so you can bike safer on your way home at night. Any time something can fulfill two or more functions in one object it gets my vote.

http://www.cordarounds.com/bike-to-work/

You might own another pair of pants after these, but you only have one skull.

Ride safe,
Simon

Folded Spring

I usually take a stroll through SoHo to get to work in the morning. I absolutely love passing all the window displays with a cup of coffee in hand. The other morning I saw that Kate's Paperie had put up giant paper flowers in their windows (If you're in the city, definitely check them out on Spring St)! They really are stunning pieces of work. Check out my photo below of one of the windows.



Also, on Kate's Paperie website you can download a template and make a wonderful paper daisy!
http://www.katespaperie.com/ideas_and_inspiration/category/inspirational_crafts/daisy/article/daisy

Jess

Gods & Heroes in the Washington Post

This review appeared on Sunday, March 21, 2010 in The Washington Post:

GODS AND HEROES
By Robert Sabuda and Matthew Reinhart
Candlewick. $29.99, ages 5 and up

From initial startle to final analysis ("How did they do that?"), a well-made pop-up book is all about surprise; it's a further astonishment when the text is worth reading. Robert Sabuda and Matthew Reinhart have dedicated "Gods and Heroes" to "all the educators who have supported our work over the years," and they have crafted concise and lively versions of many of the world's ancient myths and legends. But the ingenious paper structures that emerge from every spread and collapse back again are the big draw. First up -- literally -- is the Egyptian god Horus, whose falcon head extends over the top of the book and whose long human-like legs extend below. On the same spread, smaller and tucked away in corners, are no fewer than four other 3-D scenes, and this is a typical page in this exuberant book. In addition to the Egyptian pantheon, Sabuda and Reinhart pay tribute to such luminaries as the Greek gods, goddesses and heroes, Gilgamesh, the Norse "masters of battle" (including Odin with his flaming red beard and bright purple garment), the Polynesian volcano goddess Pele, China's Heavenly Grandfather, and the Aztec Empire's plumed serpent Quetzalcoatl. They all loomed large for centuries, and now they pop up in a big way.

-Abby McGanney Nolan

Pop-ettes

I like odd things, even more so when they are made out of paper. This should not be too surprising by now. So I was really pleased when I came across these little oddities shown here.



These rubber band-activated paper toys come in four bizarre flavors, which I have dubbed clown, devil, yokel and shrew. I’m guessing these are not the original monikers nor the first stereotypes little boys and girls clamber after at the toy store. I’m also guessing they are from the 1970’s based on the artwork and original packaging.



In some ways, the box is even better than the toys. I don’t know if I’m more scared by the heavy lidded children or the “new-astonishing” pop-up Pop-ettes. Needless to say, I could find no information on these little critters or the manufacturer on the Internet, but maybe that is just as well. I can’t imagine these being a big seller or that many sets survived the ages. Which is a pity as there must have been a second “animals” version with the coveted tiger Pop-ette. So in the interest of posterity I introduce you and the rest of the web to these unique pop-up toys. “They snap! They Pop! They Chatter!” boasts the packaging for these four puppets. These Pop-ettes do more than that…they totally freak me out, and I love them for it.

-Kyle

6 Easy Pieces

I picked this book up the other day and I've been reading it in every spare moment I get:



Feynman was a pretty crazy guy! When I was younger I read his autobiography, "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" and it definitely changed some of the ways I look at the world and approach problem solving.

"Six Easy Pieces" is amazing! Feynman's discussion about atoms, the electromagnetic field and energy is actually pretty easy to understand (as the title would lead you to believe) and he provides plenty of analogies to help you visualize the concepts. I haven't gotten to the chapter on the theory of gravitation yet but I can't wait!

-Shelby

The Collector - Continued

Last year, I had posted about my Kidrobot Dunny collection and I have acquired one of my favorites! This little magical guy is from the company Shawnimals. Definitely check out their website. They have created an entire world of characters-- including a map of the world! The best land is Moustachio Territory (well, in my opinion). Enjoy exploring Shawnimals!

http://www.shawnimals.com/

Jess

Sesame Street

If they had this when I was watching Sesame Street I'd be a rocket scientist by now.



Its the lovely Feist making her famous song 1,2,3,4 adaptable to cognitive learning skills and counting monsters. As well as imprinting herself on the impressionable minds of the next generation.

Plop the kids down in front of the old computer and enjoy!

Simon

Interviews on Inquirer.net

from the Philippine Daily Inquirer, March 13, 2010:

What inspires you?

Robert: I think that inspiration comes from the experiences of my everyday life. I’ll read about something or someone and say “wouldn’t that make a wonderful book?” I’m also inspired by other authors and artists like Matthew Reinhart. Since we work together in the same studio, sometimes I’ll see him make an amazing piece of art and I’ll get so excited and inspired that I have to get right back to work creating!

Matthew: Everything around me —whether the gargoyles on buildings, food packaging in the grocery store or even good music.

How much do you love your job?

Robert: I am thankful every day to have such a wonderful, fun, challenging job. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else!

Matthew: Very much—wouldn’t trade it for anything."

Read the rest of the interview here!


One of our good friends in the pop-up collecting world, Adie Pena, was also interviewed:

"Adie, who runs PLW, an advertising firm based in Makati, has been collecting pop-up books for about 18 years now. “It all started in 1987 when I came across a pop-up print ad of the famous San Francisco Transamerica Building in Time magazine. It simply blew my mind. Here was a child’s medium that actually made my heart skip a beat.”

Continue reading here!

Soon to be Spring

Spring is just around the corner, or so I am told, and it's never too early to see the blooms at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. But if you're like me and it's still too cold to hang around outside, you can always enjoy the garden's inside attractions: artist Emilie Clark's new show 'My Garden Pets' is having an open reception on Sunday, March 14th from 1 - 3 pm. These cool water colors show a neat cross-section of any garden's seedy underbelly.





The show is open until the 31st of May. (And there is a rumor the garden is free on weekdays during the winter but you didn't hear it from me.)

Stay warm,
Simon

Thomas Allen

I don’t write fan letters often. In fact, I can count them on one finger. Yet, a few months ago, I visited Foley Gallery in Chelsea for the latest exhibit from Thomas Allen. I was so blown away by his latest and (final!?!) series that I had to let him know how much I appreciated the art. He mentioned that his creations are inspired by pop-ups so I thought it only fitting to take a piece of his full circle and make a pop-up out of one of his images.



Allen is one of my favorite artists and it’s not hard to see why I’m head over heels for his work. He cuts and manipulates old pulp book covers into arresting compositions and then photographs them with selective focusing and great lighting. I first learned about his work when the studio received a copy of the great Uncovered book from Aperture in 2007, and I have been following the artist ever since.

The cut paper…the dime-store detective novels…the clever arrangements…it’s like the work is genetically engineered to appeal to many of my diverging interests. I cannot wait to see what Thomas Allen decides to do next!

-Kyle

Paper Artist Charles Clary

I recently found out about this artist from an article on Wired's website so I looked him up. Charles Clary's work is slightly similar to Jen Stark's, in that he uses layers of cut-outs in paper to show depth in his pieces. However, his shapes are more organic, and extremely mesmerizing!



Can you believe it's hand-cut?

MANY more pictures of Charles's work can be found on his blog:
http://percusiveart.blogspot.com/

-Shelby

Maira Kalman

In one of the design blogs I follow, I found out about this exhibition at the Julie Saul Gallery in NYC. The exhibition is of Maira Kalman whom I am not familiar with... though it seems that I may have seen her work before. She has illustrated many New Yorker covers, children's books, and even backgrounds for theater! I'm going to visit this exhibition of her work that is mainly in gouache and of her travels.

http://www.saulgallery.com/

http://www.mairakalman.com/home.html

Jess

Gods & Heroes in the Boston Globe

Sunday, March 7 2010:

"I, along with the rest of the children’s book world, have long been an admirer of the exquisite paper-engineered books of Matthew Reinhart and Robert Sabuda. To call them pop-ups is a gross understatement of their intricate complexity and art. From “Alice in Wonderland’’ to winter scenes to encyclopedias of dinosaurs, Reinhart and Sabuda have created some of this century’s most marvelous books. But “Encyclopedia Mythologica: Gods and Heroes’’ may well be their best work yet."

Read the rest of the review here!

Printing with Paper, Not Ink

There has been a lot of talk among my friends about 3D printing lately, especially since some fellow members at NYCResistor have a company called Makerbot which sells a DIY kit for a 3D plastic printer you can build yourself.

But now a company has made one that uses paper as its raw material instead of plastic! Check out the examples of what it can do around 2:03 in this video:



More info at Mcor Technologies' website: http://www.mcortechnologies.com/

-Shelby

Posters are Not Dead

Heads of State are a great design duo. Just like one of my previous posts on Jolby, Heads of State are a true collaboration. One of the designers lives on the West Coast, while the other lives in the East. They produce some of the best music posters out there, in my humble opinion. Check them out here:

https://www.theheadsofstate.com

Enjoy!
Jess

Jim Tierney

I received a letter from a former student that recently graduated from Pratt Institute. This is pretty rare as I can barely get my current students to contact me. Dylan was a welcome addition to my paper engineering course and brought an enthusiasm to the class that matched his ambitious designs. It looks like his zeal continues to this day when he shared a link to an amazing book cover designer.


Jim Tierney is currently an illustration student at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. For his senior thesis he has reimagined the book design of four famous Jules Verne tales. Each of the titles utilizes a different material or technique that compliments the theme of the book. Some have volvelles or pull tabs, while others employ clever diecut or transparent overlays. Check out his blog for some great close-ups of the covers, bookwraps and endpapers. There is even a great video that I first saw at Faceout Books that shows these books in action.

No need to wish Jim luck as I am positive he will find many commissions for his beautiful book designs now that he is graduating. I just hope Dylan and the rest of my students keep me posted when a publisher picks these up and I can get my own copy to display on my shelves.

-Kyle

Double Vision

Check out these stereoscopes of life in late 19th century Meiji-period Japan. Photographer T. Enami (1859-1929) captured these images that show many different scenes of daily life in the towns and countryside.

http://pinktentacle.com/2009/10/animated-stereoviews-of-old-japan/

The 3D quality of the animation of these images together makes the people look move contemporary in a way that old black and white photos fall short.

Simon

Fractal Fun

A few weeks ago I came across this cool looking vegetable, called a Romanesco Broccoli. It was just sitting in the grocery store bin, looking like alien fruit. Upon closer examination (and research) I discovered that its structure really is a fractal one: the pattern repeats itself all the way down, smaller and smaller every time.


It really reignited my interest in fractals - and guess what I found today on our reference shelves here at the studio?A book about making fractal pop-up designs! You can bet I'll be taking this home for a few days!

-Shelby

Flanimals

Apparently, someone can’t take a joke.
British comedian, Ricky Gervais hosted the 2010 Golden Globes award ceremony last month and raised eyebrows with some of his off-color quips. A few days later we learned that twelve thousand copies of his latest Flanimals Pop-up book was reported missing from the publisher’s warehouse.

There are a few theories of who may have hijacked the shipment. It’s possible that the cargo just disappeared like lost luggage at an airport. Or maybe thieves stole to merchandise thinking they lifted Plasma TVs and ended up with boxes of books. Some folks suggest that Ricky had a hand in this as an elaborate publicity stunt. He countered with his own suspicions when he stated, “This is obviously a misguided Flanimal Rights Group or an organized gang of eight-year-olds,” Personally, I have my eye on an evil consortium of slighted actors that wanted revenge on Gervais after his remarks at the Globes. Ringleader, Steve Carell was even quoted telling Gervais, “I will break you.”

Well played Mr. Carell, well played.

More details of the heist can be found in this article in Publishers Weekly.

Despite the lost, a full release of Flanimals Pop-Up will hit U.S. bookshelves on March 9. If you can’t wait that long you can get a quick sneak peek of the book in this YouTube video starring Ricky himself.



-Kyle

Shades of Spring (and Fall)

All right. Even though it's snowing outside here in the city, Spring fashions are out in the stores and rolling down the runways are fashions for Fall 2010! Amazing, isn't it? So I thought I'd share my love for color, fashion, and pantone with you all!

Every fashion season (so twice a year) Pantone comes out with color predictions. Here are the Fall fashion 2010 predictions:

And once a year, Pantone comes out with a color for the year. This year, turquoise. A blue that evokes warmth and relaxes the viewer. Pantone's description of this year's color is as follows:
"Combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigoration aspects of green, Turquoise inspires thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a comforting escape from the everyday troubles of the world."

I love that one color can radiate such a feeling. A picture truly is worth a thousand words. You can also check out the Fall fashion guide here: http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/index.aspx

Jess