I Have Too Many Shoes

Shoes can say a lot about a person.

My wife and I moved to New York City recently from Provo, a small college town in northern Utah. While we were getting things packed I made this startling observation:

I have too many shoes.

It was a bit frightening, to be honest. I had always considered myself a man of simple needs—pragmatic, yet not too aloof to maintain a well-groomed and clean appearance. I used to believe that a man need only one sturdy pair of shoes, maybe a pair of sandals too, until those shoes wore out; then it would be on to the next modest, simple pair.

But there, before my eyes, was tactile proof that I was no longer that man: I was a hoarder. A materialist. I had upwards of fifteen pairs of shoes. Fifteen. I felt pangs of remorse—not so much for the discovery as for the feeling I had for my shoes. I liked having lots of shoes. I thought it was fantastic. I could wear this pair with these pants, and this pair with these other pants. The combinations were endless.

I got rid of a few of those pairs. You know the ones. They kind of hang out in the back of your closet because they’re too old and worn to wear out anymore, but you still kind of like them because they’re just the perfect fit and you never know when you might…

There I go again. A sentimentalist, too. 

Anyway. So we moved here and I find myself rotating an average of four pairs of shoes through my regular wardrobe. But still, I have more sitting in my wardrobe. And I don’t want to get rid of them.

So what do my shoes say about me? I don’t know. I guess some of my priorities have changed. But is that such a bad thing, really? Again, I don’t know. But one thing I do know: I like my shoes. So I’m going to draw them.

The Future

Avant Garde Gothic Makes a Comeback

So I wish I had some more examples to show to prove my point, but it seems that avant garde gothic is everywhere you look these days. Predominantly on CD covers and music event posters, it’s also popping up in fashion ads and even—no kidding—internal documents at a real estate office (though come to think of it, that instance may have been a remnant of its heyday in the 60s).

I think it’s interesting that a typeface that used to be considered cliché after being so abused for over a decade, is now resurfacing as fresh and vibrant as ever. After all, the designers today—many of whom never lived during the 60s—are seeing it as a new discovery of sorts. And besides that, it’s cool to be retro these days.

Myself, I think the letterforms are great. I’m glad I wasn’t around during the 60s to see it get overused and abused. Though, I wonder if we’ll see something similar here in the next few years…

I Hate to Even Raise the Question…

It really irks me that people are still trying, after so many years, to raise or answer the question “What is art?”

Here’s a more relevant and, I think, honest question.

Who cares?

I mean, come on, let’s admit it: art is important, but not THAT important. Seriously. It has it’s place, it makes us glow with happiness or shake with anger and disgust, but that’s true of so many other things in life. I felt both of these contrasting emotions watching the US soccer team playing in this year’s world cup. Does this warrant the profound query, “What is soccer?”

I think it’s time people get over the question and just start enjoying it (art that is, but soccer too, in case you were wondering). After over a century of exploration, analysis, bad art installations, and stereotypical artists fawning over their latest personal manifestation of the question, how much closer is anyone to actually answering it?

It’s a bad joke by now. A rotten aftertaste that refuses to go away. Take this stunning piece by David Castner for example.

Not only is this extremely tacky, boring, clichéd, plebeian, and above all, hyper-dramatic, it’s also just plain useless. I can’t even keep people out of my yard with this thing.

Yes, Mr. Castner, we’ve all considered the UBER important truth that art is a communicator of ideas, and sometimes dangerous ones. Yes, we know all about censorship and creative repression. And yes, you HAVE succeeded in stimulating thought by the mere act of placing a sticker on a commonplace piece of signage. Congratulations.

Now can we all just please get over it? Couldn’t you have just said, “art is dangerous” at a dinner party, or written it on your blog? I think that would have been just as effective, and possibly more aesthetically pleasing. Maybe a tweet would have sufficed?

But enough ranting and raving. The post-modernists have won again. Their victory is that I’m upset about this issue, and I have no place to turn for gratification. I suppose it’s something like trying to convince the prisoners in Plato’s cave that the outside world is reality, and the shadows are the illusion—not the other way around.

In conclusion, I’m going to give you something to enjoy, not to ponder over. Just look, take it all in…

and ENJOY. 

I Will Judge These Books By Their Covers

Are you kidding me? How awesome are these? I love the combination of classic typography with these sort of naïve illustrations. Perfect. Way to go, Pentagram. You’ve done it again.

+ + + +

Wall Art From Feira de Santana, Brazil.

These pictures are a couple of years old, and the artwork itself even older, but it’s all still remarkably fresh. At the bus station in a Brazilian town called Feira de Santana, there’s an entire wall full of eclectic paintings and typography—a collage of the region’s history and art culture. It’s really incredible.

iPad Sketchbook

Yes, I have an iPad. It was an early birthday present from an all too generous family (thank you Mom).

I bought a super awesome app called SketchBook Pro, which has taken some getting used to, though I’m finally starting to get it.

This was a little sketch done in church last week. The trick is, figuring out which preset brush options offer the best blending for color and value. There were some “marker” presets that seemed to do the trick.

Bern Hill.

I just had a friend, Randy Bangerter, tip me off to a fantastic illustrator from the 50s named Bern Hill. Such incredible compositions—in aspects of both design and color. You can almost taste the suspense and sense of action he creates with those striking diagonals. Awesome.

So my wife, Megan, came the other day with a number of old books she had picked up from a thrift store. One of them was this fantastic little book called Simon, by Molly Cone. I say fantastic not because I’ve read a word, but because of these awesome illustrations by Marvin Friedman.

I had never heard of Mr. Friedman until I saw this book, but man I wish I had. Just check out those pictures! The line quality is superb and his compositions are simple yet exciting. I can’t get enough of these.

You can see more of his work on this great flikr set here. Awesome!

Here’s a sketch I did at church a few months back, a-la Brad Holland.