New SuperCAR

Check out this new supercar it puts the Mach5 to shame.

http://www.spadaconcept.com/

Spada Codatronca by SpadaConcept

TREX

Because legos are rad!

Economy and design!

It is time to wake up and smell the recession people. Rising gas and food prices are just the begginning of this wonderfull thing that is going to put a hurt on everyone. What happens to design in times of economic crisis it no longer has a place in anyones mind. Whom is going to care what the next shoe or car looks like when they are trying to put food on the table. So will designers be the first casuality? I hope not but history tells us that great design (of all kinds art, theater, product) all come from times of good economic growth.
So what should we as designers do about this.
Protect your job, by diversifing what you can bring to your company. By volunteering for jobs or letting the boss know that you have more skills than just a desk jockey. I myself have taken on the roll of IT support for our office and other odd jobs around the office.
Work harder not smarter, don't take all day on projects anymore get your stuff done and turned in ahead of schedule.
Get more work, while it's out there get as many side jobs as you can now and stock pile money or get your bills paid now. Side jobs may be the first to go when people have less money they will be slower to part with it.

To be continued...

I have updated my coroflot portfolio today. With new products and concepts.
Check it out @ http://www.coroflot.com/fischfolio

Upcomming Articles

Here are a list of articles that I am pondering as of now.

*i-Pood - Is it really great tech or really great marketing or really great trash.

*Economy - Made in Country (P4) discusses how the need for a global economy is becoming more clear.

*Aid - Made in Country? (P5) Why can't people donate to their own country in need?

*New Design - Is there room for new design in the world or are we rehashing everything?

Plus many more!

Also look for other new blogs from me!

SPOONFORK

There is a website that has been around for a while now and if you haven't checked it out yet, you owe it to yourself to do so.
GOTO -> http://www.spoonfork.de/
The site is in dutch but who cares? In my opinion it is the best designed online magazine site on the internet. They feature music and art and it's all in flash. Every issue has music and wallpaper you can download.

To Sketch or Not To Sketch

There was a recent board posting on coroflot that asked the question, "is it important for a designer to know how to sketch".

My answer to this is a resounding yes!

No matter what dicipline of design you are involved in sketching is the most important thing that you should know how to do. Even in the age where everything is translated onto the computer.

*Sketching gets your mind thinking in the correct direction. Sketching to me is like in the sixth or seventh grade when you first started writing short stories. The teacher always had you write a free thinking story before you began the big story. So without sketching you may actually get lost in your own thoughts.

*Sketching makes you to think in 4 dimensions. When you only work on the computer you are limited to the constraints of the program. I know there are people that say, "I know Illustrator (for example) so well that I can make it do whatever I want. But if you could really make Illustrator do everything then why do companies bother making other programs like Photoshop, AutoCAD and SolidWorks. They all do something different and your mind has to be focused only on that program you are using or how you are going to make it work with the other programs. Sketching the only thing you have to worry about is if you are going to need to use another piece of paper to finish you thought.

*Even cavemen sketched. Need I say more?

Made in (insert your country here)??? Part 2

I posted my questions on a few boards and I did not recieve any feedback. One said because my questions were too random that it was not understandable what my question was. I guess what I am getting at is... Why do people find other countries more facinating then their own?

Middle class America only used to want to buy stuff that was "Made in the USA". And then Walmart changed all that when they started importing EVERYTHING they stocked from China. And there was a small backlash. But soon everyone was like, "oh well, if it's cheaper I don't care".

And then there are other items that come from European countries like handbags and fancy shoes that are always super expensive. And people use this high expense as a fashion or status symbol. And again people just don't seem to care.

Does this apply to the countries that the product comes from. Do people in Italy have the same regard for the ultra shiek as Americans seem to? Or do people in China want to buy the products that are made from Chinese factories? Does "Made in America" even matter anymore?

I will contiue to ponder this and continue this discussion further.

Do You Need Help with Fantasy Baseball?

I know this post has nothing to do with design. But I love playing fantasy baseball. And even better I love helping people play fantasy baseball. If you are a newbie or would just like some tips email me and I will help you out. I may start another blog for it but we will see.

Tip of the week: Don't pick up David Beckham (he's a soccer player)

Try out sketchcasting