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My new font-love: Whitney by Tobias Frere-Jones. We just purchased it for a new publication I’m working on and I’m especially excited to use the Numeric range for all the tables and figures that will be involved. You would never guess what kinds of things a slightly out of line number chart will make people do. Let’s just say I’ve encountered scenes that could have come straight from 28 Days Later. I’m sure the designers for Zagat’s breathed a huge sigh of relief at the discovery of such an eye-catching yet user-friendly element.
The other morning while I was walking to work I saw a discarded Safeway soda can. I’d noticed that the Safeway soda line had recently been redesigned, but I hadn’t really taken a look at the new cans. So last night I made my way over to my neighborhood Safeway and spent a little time in the soda aisle.
I like the new designs – they’re much more interesting than the old Safeway Select design. They have a pop art feel to them and the design is simple enough that it can be altered according to flavor. I like the way that the name of each soda is presented in a straightforward way. The designs are so simplistic, but they emit such a fun vibe of “try me, i’m fruity and delicious.” The bright color blocks really tie the whole lighthearted design together.
I got to thinking, wouldn’t it be interesting to repurpose empty cans into a some sort of pop art piece – maybe a sculpture? Or what about a series of prints, each featuring a single flavor, a la Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s soup print? How about a play on a Rembrant-esque still life featuring a can placed beside the actual fruit it represents on a bare wooden table? I think that’s my favorite.
The folks at Safeway have included some pretty interesting flavors in the mix, grapefruit being the one that caught my eye. Then again, that may be because the grapefruit soda was the only flavor still fully stocked on a Wednesday night at 8:00. They don’t call it Soviet Safeway for nothing.
Maybe there should be a writer’s strike more often. Last night’s SNL show was one of the best I’ve seen in a long time – full of hilarious political and social commentary and (to my excitement) several Oscar-worthy ribs. I’ve seen all the best picture nominees and, although I loved Juno, I have to say that my two favorites were “There Will Be Blood” and “No Country for Old Men.” Apparently, SNL felt the same way, and worked up a skit including both movies that is bound to become a classic. “I Drink Your Milkshake” was the perfect precursor to the Oscars. Seriously, Amy Poehler, you don’t even have to speak to be the funniest person alive.
One of my favorite artists is illustrator Grady Mcferrin. I first came across his work in an illustration issue of Communication Arts magazine a few years ago. The issue showcased a few of his music posters for the Fillmore. I’m planning on starting an artistic poster collection soon, and a Grady McFerrin will definitely be among my first purchases. I haven’t yet decided which of his works I like best yet but “Blind Boys” is definitely one of my favorites.
During my childhood, I always loved visiting my dad’s store around Valentine’s Day to stare at the elaborate seasonal Whitman’s candy display. Dozens of heart-shaped boxes wrapped in pink and red frills that could only have come from the recycled costumes of a long lost production of Gone With the Wind. It was the 80s after all, and tackiness was king, but to me the heart-shaped arrangement of boxes on a lone section of pegboard was one of the most beautiful things I could imagine.
I would stand in front of it wondering which one my dad would choose for me this year. Would it be pink or red? He always got red for my mom. I wanted pink. Maybe I would get a big box this year instead of a medium box. I was bigger, so why shouldn’t my box of candy be bigger?
Come Valentine’s morning, my excitement would build up to its highest level, almost too high to make it through breakfast, despite the appeal of the newest rubber heart toy with bendable arms or plastic heart beaded necklace that my mom had given me. That’s because I knew that this year’s box would be waiting in my room for me when the cereal bowl had run dry. I’d race back to my room and there it would be, in all it’s fabric-covered glory. Pink. Yes.
