Lyme Park

"On the edge of the Peak District, nestling within sweeping moorland, Lyme Park is a magnificent estate. Its wild remoteness and powerful beauty contrast with one of the most famous country-house images in England – the backdrop to where Darcy meets Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice. Discover a colourful family history – from rescuing the Black Prince, sailing into exile with the Duke of Windsor, to the writing of the hit series Upstairs Downstairs. Enjoy hearing visitors play the piano as you discover impressive tapestries, clocks and beautifully furnished rooms, or escape to the park and feel miles from anywhere. "

I recently visited Lyme Park and in all honestly it is one of the loveliest Parks I have been to in some time - the breathtaking views and surreal calmness was a pleasure to part of and it was easy to fall in love with the vast openness.

My pictures highlight the 'Cage' a place that women used to watch over their men while hunting, stunning views from the 'Lanton' and finally the 'Manor House' surrounded in its own gardens.

On the next sunny day - take a visit, eat ice-cream and bake in England's finest sun!

Interesting 'FINDS' of the week ...

Gotta love the humour of David Shrigley - always brings a smile to mind as his sometimes crass and dirty minded thoughts entertain us. Not for the faint hearted!!

As a passionate researcher and ideas-led Graphic Designer, I think that interesting 'finds' are an ideal source of inspiration (and no matter how many times I say this...) I am always surprised by what I come across on a daily basis. I seem to collect an immense amount of sources from the most unlikely places to the most reliable sources, so I will continue to share them with you.

Enjoy for now!

TYP-O-GRAPHY

Examples of posters that combine typography and communication as the topic in conversation!





Posters included in a 2011 Calender - notice how the use of words and colours highlight what particular 'month' it is e.g. January (poster above).


Lovely use of hand drawn type and illustration - if done well (there is a lot out there at the moment!) it works in harmony together and visually appeals to the eye.

Beautiful Home Styling

These are stunning examples of still life photography - great use of layout, space and colour with Home objects. Photography is an essential part of Design if used correctly and can either 'make or break' a campaign.

Enjoy!

Keetra Dean Dixon

Just some of Keetra Dean Dixon's cordial invitations, her work is graphical and beautiful - exploring typography in its most natural form. Engaging and provocative.

Great website too - find it here

Khristian Mendoza

Stunning visuals by Khristian Mendoza.
'Transparency' explores space in a memorable and defiant way. Beautiful!

Would love to see more of this - challenging the unexpected and the environment.

MAC : Wonder Woman

Some great packaging design for a new range at MAC.
The Wonder Woman range is a collaboration between MAC and DC Comics and was launched in stores on the 3rd March.

"Wonder Woman is psychological propaganda for the new type of woman who should, I believe, rule the world,” creator William Moulton Marston once wrote of his super heroine.

With her strength, animal cunning, physical prowess and super-agility she is as much an icon for the modern day woman as she was for women in the early 1940s, when she first leapt onto the screen with her lasso of truth and indestructible bracelets. While we don’t have the bracelets a coat of red lipstick always does the trick for a sense of empowerment and thwarting of enemies."

So with this new secret weapon let the real you be unleashed!

BURO RENG

"The best work you are not only, but as a team.
Graphic Design does not begin with form, but with language.
Communication requires inspiration and sometimes confrontation."

BURO RENG is a Design Studio based in the Netherlands - above is just one of their projects, a rare form of design that provokes a reaction and has similar views to my own when it comes to putting pen to paper. Their quote above reminds me so much of why I love design .. and where it is I want to be and the type of work I produce. Communication is so important and its great to see a studio doing it, and doing it well.

TOPSHOP 214

Topshop has launched its 214 Magazine : a Spring Summer update on everything that is fashion!! Including trend updates, style advice and like always beautiful layout! Really nice and simple design, even on the Accessories pages - looks clean-cut and product focused.

Grab yourself a copy now - not to be missed!

FRENCH CONNECTION : Man or Woman?

I love this Campaign - it has been featured everywhere, and more recently the latest version was released in early January and it is just as good! The design has kept consistent with the earlier work - a slight change in art direction digs deeper to allow the viewer to question and answer what the copy does not...

The campaign is also featured on the website - (see screen shots above) where viewers can watch videos and participate in discussing what it means to be a Man or a Woman. The SS11 Lookbook also is a really nice piece of design - using stunning imagery to capture the clothes and create situations that compliment how they are worn.

See the campaign here Man or Woman?

Diesel SS11 Campaign

Diesel's latest Spring/Summer 2011 Campaign is very impressive - the 'look and feel' takes form on-line and off-line encouraging the viewer to access it within all areas. The design of the campaign is quite daring - the stunning graphics and photography really do stand out, the vibrancy of the colours complete the look - but what I love about it is that I am drawn to it...

The graphics keep me wanting more, it has become more than just a Look Book - it creates desire for the products, and for the brand. It has really nice visuals that provoke your senses - wanting you to want more, and importantly dress better!

To see the campaign for yourself (please do!!) just visit their website here.

Northwich Salt Museum & Artist Michael Hitchens

Northwich Salt Museum is not a place where I would normally visit - however I did, and whilst it was not a particularly stimulating experience ... I found myself appreciating the typographical posters and packaging a whole lot more!

The packaging and posters of the salt was typical of that time - clean, bold and oversized. It was these that drew my attention to how it was packaged and promoted - many of us will take salt for granted, however the heritage of how it was made will remain an important part of history for the town.






Whilst at the museum - passing the toilets - I stumbled across a piece of art that did not fit entirely with the decor!! That is because is wasn't - and looking closer I found out that in fact it was the work of Michael Hitchens (Artist and Screen Print Technician at MMU) - his work mainly revolves around water-based screen printing and acrylic painted canvases. It was quite interesting to see, and I felt proud to see his work as I had never seen it in this way previously.

You can see Mike's work here and below are a few images of his work.