nyc

/ Don

4G in NYC

This is the first day my HTC Evo has allowed me to connect to the 4G network in both Manhattan and Hoboken. Needless to say, I’m pretty excited, though I haven’t seen much of a difference yet. So far, my favorite part was to be able to rub it in Zeh‘s face as his Nexxus One isn’t 4G capable.

/ Don

Ian Wright’s Paper Trail

Ian Wright—the artist, not the English footballer turned television and radio personality—made this illustration with pieces of paper for the cover of the current album of T.I. called Paper Trail. On Wednesday, September 22nd, he’ll be speaking for AIGA/NY’s Small Talk Number 1. Shame that I’ll be out of town, but I really love the quality of craft and originality of his work.

Here’s the recap from the AIGA site:
A Londoner currently based in NYC, Wright has been making portraits across art and design since 1978 for clients such as Vitra, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nike and Issey Miyake. After a sharing a studio with designer Neville Brody at “The Face” magazine in 1981, Wright set up his own studio.

Enjoying the unpredictability they offer, his use of deliberately inexpensive materials has included salt,  cassette tape(s), pin buttons, mascara brushes and paper cups.

Wright’s illustrative artwork has been exhibited internationally, including the London Design Museum (2007), the Exposure Gallery (2007), the Cosh Gallery (2007), Rosemary Gardens (2005), Pentagram  Gallery (2005), Reed Space NYC (2006), Mass Production at The Christopher Henry Gallery (NYC) (2006), and Issey Miyake (2002), among others.

/ Don

Random Musings III

Sir, this area is just for waiting

After just having returned from a month researching my family in Italy (we were able to trace our family back to 1200 when previously we couldn’t get past 1860), I noticed the prevalence of the green man over The States’ preference for the red word “Exit”. But I also saw a number of signs that I felt were funny. Here’s one for the “waiting area” of an airport. In a place where iconography is especially important due to so many international speakers around, I initially thought this was a sign for the bathroom.

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/ Don

Our Ten-Year Anniversary

Two weeks ago, I turned 32-years-old. I’ve barely come to terms with the fact that half my life ago, I already owned a driver’s license and could legally drive in the State of Michigan. And now I’ve come to realize that next week marks the 10-year anniversary (the “tin” anniversary) of the date I threw everything into a U-haul and moved to New York City. Within the span of a week, I accepted a dot-com job offer, graduated from college, said goodbye to my friends and family, drove through the night and slept in a truck on the streets of Polish Brooklyn until I leased an apartment and began my new job days later. It was exactly 800 miles from my alma mater, five states away from the rest of my family and the longest week of my life.

Three years ago, I wrote a list of accomplishments to mark my 29th birthday. I won’t do that today as I’m afraid the undoing of some of those milestones would only depress me. And today isn’t a day to contemplate my own achievements, but rather to reflect on what New York City has done for me in the past decade. Read more