AIGA Exhibition: Bordo Bello NYC

Skateboards Skate Park!!! Design! Illustration! Wine! No make that Beer!


Need I say more? At the AIGA National Design Center on 5th Avenue in NYC

This is an annual exhibition hosted by the Colorado AIGA chapter. 1,000 artists celebrating the colorful Colorado skateboard culture. The exhibition is a collection from all the previous Bordo Bello shows so there will be a range of art styles on display.

There will be brand new artwork available for purchase during the opening reception on Wednesday 8th May 2013 from 6–9pm.

There will be a silent auction, schmoozing and someone's special beer. you can dance too because a DJ will be supplying beats.If you are young enough and brave enough, there will be the opportunity to skate (!) in a TechDeck Skatepark.
Personally, I'll be there to see the 30 and 40 something design community try out the half pipe. (!)

AIGA NY is hosting the exhibition from April 22 through July 2 at the AIGA
National Design Center (http://www.aiga.org/national-design-center/) in New York City.

The reception is open to the public, the auction will support mentorship programs in AIGA chapters across the US.

The AIGA Gallery is also open to the public. Their hours, Monday through Thursday 11am–6pm, on Fridays 11am–5pm

General Assembly Free Online Class - Start Your Creative Business With Etsy

This fun and tactical course is designed to help anyone new to Etsy. Even if you are not yet totally sure what you want to sell? This class helps you to learn the success of opening an Etsy shop.

General Assembly will guide you through planning the basics of your business strategy and give you an indepth look at Etsy’s tools to help you succeed online.

The instructor is Kathryn Fink  

Seller Education Manager at Etsy
tweet her @kathrynfink

So what do you get out of this?? You get the inspiration and knowledge to start your own Etsy shop,
some basic business strategy for selling you creations online and making moola!! A few very effective tips and web tools for making the most of Etsy’s business, and tips to understanding the Etsy marketplace. these and some necessary resources to continue growing your business after you open up your shop is what this class is about.

So when is it you ask? Wednesday 24th April 2013 from 4 – 5 PM

And does it cost? no it's FREE!

And how do you sign up? click here!!

Connect with her @kathrynfink

Gimme the Loot

Speaking of Grafitti!

National Library Week April 14th to 20th 2013

“If you go home with somebody, and they don't have books, don't fuck 'em!”
― John Waters

Flip the Script - The Evolution of Graffiti Hand Styles

Designer and Creative Director Christian P. Acker's 10-year-long book on graffiti tagging is out.

And while my busy self missed he opening launch reception at the awesome! Reed Space in NYC, I was lucky to attend his Type Director's Club presentation on April 19th 2013 at the TDC Salon

My type nerd in crime Molly Hein and I were very happy to buy his book and to meet Christian. The book is lovely and I am eager to peruse.

The normally standing room only TDC space was surprisingly empty for a Salon night.

Acker was entertaining and very happily laid his thesis on us. The connection between black letterforms and certain tagging styles especially from Philadelphia and the Los Angeles areas from the late 1960's to the late 1980's

I loved the spirited presentation and would have watched the videos he showed all night long. A documentary is what should be done with this info.

Molly and I were not too happy with him though, when he dismissed the fact that there was not a woman graffiti writer in his entire book! (!) not one! Yes! Yes, for shame Christian! For shame…

Not good at all!
Anyway the book is out. Look for it online

Art Directors Club - Paper Expo

The twice annual Art Director's Club Paper Expo is happening again.

Thursday 2nd May 2013 at 5:30–8:30pm

$5 ADC members
$5 APC, SPD, TDC members
$10 non-members

This event is for professionals only. But students may pick up paper samples on Friday3rd May from 11:00am–3:00pm.

You can R.S.V.P. for tickets on the ADC website

Earth Day Month is Here!! Go Plant a Tree!!!

…or if you want, some flowers too!

This is Earth Month where we pay closer attention to our impact on the earth and I wanted to let you know of some programs you can get involved in. If you know of any others, please feel free to drop me a line.


Earth Day is April 22nd
Do at least one thing to make the world better for yourself and those who are going to live on after you.

Do something local that will have some impact globally.
Earth Day NYC has events planned look them up.
There is the free NYC Green Festival at the Javits Center. JetBlue is partnering with the NY Restoration project to host a One Thing That's Green tree planting event in Queens

There are events happening at the Queens Botanical Garden, Prospect Park, Jamaica Bay, Mc Larren Park, Union Square, Central Park, Grand Central Terminal all over and are free to the public. Go learn something new

You can plant a tree. NYC Parks department just gave away tons of trees to plant in your back yard if you have one.

If you don't have any land to call you own (or the bank's) then adopt a tree.

You see all those trees on your block in your neighbourhood? Yes the ones people let their dogs pee and poop on, those trees can be taken care of by you! Yes You!! no climbing or pruning though.

Just take care to water the tree, especially in the summer 20 gallons a week (all at one time please!)

The other things you have to do, are to do some weeding, mulching (you can get this from the NYC Parks Department.

Just call them and they will tell you where to go), building or installing a tree guard (you can get a grant to have these put in or you can build them yourself you "handy sandy", removing litter, putting up a “Curb Your Dog” sign (these you can get when you become a steward, preventing harmful waste being poured into the bed, and planting flowers in the tree bed.

NYC Parks Department gives away flower bulbs each year in the Autumn so look out for that coming up soon.

Now doesn't that sound like fun, plus! your block will look like a million bucks!!

I Contributed to an Awesome Collaborative Typeface

The Font Aid VI: Aster Affects typeface was created to raise funds for Hurricane Sandy relief.
In October 2012, Hurricane Sandy struck portions of the Caribbean, and the mid-Atlantic and northeastern United States with a vengeance.

Sandy was the largest Atlantic superstorm on record and is currently ranked as the second costliest Atlantic hurricane, surpassed only by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Designers from all around the globe contributed glyphs in the form of asterisks and other star-inspired symbols. Over 250 designers from 41 countries contributed glyphs to the project.

Behind the scenes, volunteers Neil Summerour, Delve Withrington, and Grant Hutchinson compiled, assembled, and tested what would become the final typeface.

More info here at the Society of Typographic Aficionados (SOTA)

All funds raised will be donated directly to the Red Cross

The typeface is available now for $20US through the SOTA Store.  Tell your friends. This is a very cool thing you can do for Hurricane Sandy relief. This is my asterick

The Society of Typographic Aficionados (SOTA) is an international not-for-profit organization dedicated to the promotion, study, and support of type, its history and development, its use in the world of print and digital imagery, its designers, and its admirers.


Font Aid is a charitable endeavor. We wish to ensure that we provide the maximum support possible to the people and organization that need it. 

Any work submitted to a Font Aid project will be deemed a charitable gift and a work made for hire. Whenever possible, we are happy to credit the creativity of the participating designers.

Design Events - April 2013

Society of Publication Designers Spring Fling
Tuesday, April 16, 2013, 7pm
Penny Farthing, 103 3rd Avenue, NY NY
Free and open to the public networking event. 

Go know some people!

  Type Directors Club, 347 W 36th St., New York, NY 10018

TDC Salon: Flip the Script / Christian Acker

Thursday, April 18, 2013 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm

TDC Education Series: Adobe Muse: Web Design w/o Coding.  

A beginning class and not intended for traditional web designers
Friday, April 19, 2013 from 8:30am to 4:30pm


TDC Type Walk with Paul Shaw: Tribeca
Tuesday, May 7, 2013 from 11:00am to 2:00pm

TDC Education Series: A Crash Course in New Typography on The Web
Saturday, May 4, 2013 from 8:30am to 4:30pm

TDC Salon: Debbie Millman — On Failure....

Tuesday, May 7, 2013 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm

TDC Salon: After the Jump: Designing Better Experiences in the Digital Landscape
Friday, June 7, 2013 from 1:00pm to 6:00pm

A whole bunch of stuff happening during Creative Week NYC this year. Check their website to see what looks good to you. It not free, hey, it's not even cheap, but there are events happening in parallel that are free or inexpensive. 

School of Visual Arts, 136 West 21 Street, New York, NY

School of Visual Arts MFA Design Criticism D-Crit Lecture with Kurt Andersen, "Why Spy"
Tuesday, April 16, 2013 from 6:30pm to 8:00pm

School of Visual Arts MFA Design Criticism Counter/Point: The 2013 D-Crit Conference

Saturday, May 11, 2013 from 12:30pm to 7:00pm

Cooper-Hewitt Design Center, 111 Central Park N, New York, NY 10026

Design Kids: Design Tales. Design classes for children. Check the Cooper Hewitt website

Free AIGA design workshops for teens

INSPIRE / MAKE: WORKSHOPS
Location: Main branch of Brooklyn Public Library – 10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn, New York


Schedule:
12:45PM – 1:45PM INSPIRE – Students will attend a tour of the Central Library. There they will view books from different divisions, learn about the library’s history and use what they see in their workshops.
1:45PM – 4:45PM MAKE – Workshop: Making & Publishing an iBook about Brooklyn Public Library
4:45PM – 5:30PM Student presentations


Making and Publishing an iBook (about Brooklyn Public Library) with instructor Carla Echevarria
Description: 

Using a few simple apps on the iPad, students will write, design, and publish their own storybooks. Using inspiration from the Brooklyn Library, they will learn to use a basic word editor to write a simple story, a painting app to create illustrations, the iPad camera to take photos, a photo manipulation app to crop and recolor photos, and then an app like BookCreator to put it all together into a book format. 

The final product will be “published” to the Apple iBook store, where their friends and family can buy a copy.

Coming to NYC: Pencil to Pixel, an Exhibition from Monotype

As part of Creative Week NYC, The Type Director's Club and Monotype that historic type foundry is hosting an exhibition called Pencil to Pixel.

The exhibition runs from Friday to Saturday 3rd and 4th May, and then from Monday to Thursday 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th May 2013. Register and pick your specific date and time. It's a guided tour.

It is at the Tribeca Skyline Studio, 205 Hudson Street New York, NY 10013

My Pinterest Interests

My Pinterest Interests are varied, earnest, funny and sometimes strange.

I invite you to visit my Wrapping Paper Pinterest page and let me know what you think by pinning a few to your own boards.

I get those emails when someone pins on of my images.

Don't think you can stalk invisibly I SEE You!!

United States Tax Day - April 15th - Did You Do Yours?

Well, it is tax day again in the United States. Did you file? Yes? Well this post is finished for you. Move on to the next one and have a great day!

YOU! Yes you, the one stressing. Here are a few places you can go to file an extension. You have until 11:59pm Monday 15th April 2013 to get it all done — or at least file for an extension that gets you off the hook until October 15th 2013.


The Internal Revenue Service provides filing aid. Just fill out Form 4868 and mail it by
Monday's deadline. Here, listen to a little music, Robert Cray's 1040 Blues

 Now, go gather all that paperwork and get yo taxes done procrastinator!!

Lefferts Community Food Co-op

For all you folks living in the Lefferts Brooklyn area. There is a new food co-op starting up. So maybe you don't have to walk so far for your food (I didn't say the Park Slope Food Co-op)

Check out and become a member.

Their website is not up and running great yet, but sign up so they can send you info.

And if you are website savvy as well, lend a hand for pete's sake. You can contact them through their MeetUp group or email them

2013 Season of the Flatbush Farm Share is Approaching

SIGN UP

20 weeks of fresh organic produce from a farm in New York State and you can get to know the good Farmers at Miller's Crossing

I am posting what they have posted on their blog about the farm share. I have been a member ever since it started and the food is great!

You get lots of food and you are forced to eat all those good foods you wouldn't regularly buy in the market.

Contact them for more info, but the deadline of Monday 15th April is upon us so hurry!!!! First distribution is Wednesday, May 29 from 6pm-8pm at the Flatbush Reform Church, 890 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11226, at the corner of Flatbush and Church Avenues. It in the back.

FLATBUSH FARM SHARE is a CSA based in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Our mission is to make local, organic produce available to any Brooklyn resident, regardless of economic status. We offer a sliding scale price structure and the options to pay in installments and/or with food stamps.

We are entirely volunteer-run. We have two seasons of operation: summer (June-October) and winter (November-January). Sign up for summer begins around February or March.
Flatbush is a food desert: a neighborhood without enough grocery stores selling fresh produce, where many people choose fast-food over cooking healthy meals, and where affordability is a major factor in what people eat. CSA is one way we can begin to change this!

A CSA is a community of people who buy produce directly from a local farmer. CSA members receive fresh produce at a great price, while supporting their local food system. CSA stands for Community-Supported Agriculture — a CSA-community is dedicated to preserving sustainable farming, and every dollar members spend goes directly to the farmer, with no middle man!

We are organized in partnership with the New York City Coalition against Hunger, and our main farm partner is the Farm at Miller’s Crossing, an organic, family-owned farm outside of Hudson, NY.

 

New York Comic Con is Coming!!!

Do I have to say this is a big deal in NYC?
OK then. Lets get on with the business at hand.






The weekend of October 10th –13th 2013 is when the fun starts. It's at the Javits Center again this year so come prepared.





OK So who needs a ticket?


Well, if you plan on entering, then you need a ticket.
Only attendees 2–5 years old do not need a ticket to enter (mainly because they have no money). And if you are between 6–12 on Kids Day then you walk in for $5. (Bring ID! They will ask for it especially if you have giants in your family and little Billy is only 8 years old, but is 6 ft tall)

And still you need a ticket, and you need to be registered to do that, so go here to see what they want you to do to register your child. Adults you still need a ticket, or you wait outside while all the fun is being had.

You can come from Thursday 10th October to Sunday 13th October 2013
Thursday (Press and Professional Day) - 3:00pm – 9:00pm
Friday 10:00am– 7:00pm
Saturday 10:00am – 7:00pm
Sunday (Kids Day) 10:00am – 5:00pm

The Panels, Screenings and Special Events continue on until 10:00pm


VIP Tickets are sold out

4-Day tickets are on sale now.

3-Day tickets haven't been put on sale yet.
You have to check the website regularly or sign up for the email to know when they go on sale.

Professional and Press tickets go on sale around the summer time. See above for what you should do.

Get to sewing that klingon bat'leth sword! There's no time to waste

AT&T Aspire Mobile App Hackathon - New York

So are you ready with that mobile app idea? AT&T Aspire Mobile App Hackathon

You don't have to know how to code as you may have other skills needed for this hackathon. Like presentation skills and drawing skills and the ability to stay awake for hours and hours and hours…

Friday, April 19, 2013 at 6:00pm to Saturday, April 20, 2013 at 10:00pm

It taking place at Google (so if you've wanted to see the inside wink, wink)
111 8th Avenue New York, NY 10011

This info has been copied from their web invite

This AT&T Aspire Mobile App Hackathon is an event produced by the AT&T Developer Program in coordination with AT&T Aspire that is designed for attendees (technical & non-technical) to build apps/mobile apps, get fed, compete for prizes across different categories and most importantly: meet new people and scout for teammates to work on new or current projects. Our hackathon will introduce you to the latest cutting edge tools to help deploy your own app with a website backend, fully hosted in the cloud.

We Supply: Quick presentations and code samples that help to bootstrap your hacking, food to keep you going, and caffeine to keep you awake. Along with technical senseis to assist you in building faster, smarter, and with new tools.

You Bring: Your laptop, skills & ideas. Come with a collaborative, team focused mindset and/or team up in advance on Twitter/Facebook/Google+ via the #atthack hashtag. Whether you are a backend person and code in Ruby/PHP/.NET or are a designer and only work with Illustrator, you are invited to attend this event. Every group needs a good balance of talent and your development skills are needed!

Event Schedule. The following is a list of the weekends agenda:
6PM  Friday Evening -    Kickoff event with drinks, networking, and developer dating which leads into idea pitches and team formation.
10AM - Saturday Morning -     The fun continues with an all day hackathon. Work with the teams that you formed on Friday night to produce the app spec’d out the night before. Senseis will be available throughout the entire event to help you code up your solution. App submissions will be accepted throughout the day with a deadline of 7PM.
7PM - Saturday Evening -      Promptly at 7PM, teams will begin pitching their ventures. Pitches are limited to three (3) minutes per team.


Prizes. The following prizes are experiential and geared towards accelerating you towards a successful business as well as expanding your network and industry knowledge:

Best Education Hackathon Overall App
1st Place
$500 in Gift Cards for the team
$5,000 donated from AT&T to the team's choice of non-profit organizations**
JuiceTank would like to offer a 90-day membership and mentorship program to their coworking space to the overall winner of the hackathon event. Company will have access to shared office space, meeting rooms, and plenty of networking opportunities to meet more like-minded individuals and teams. JuiceTank's community of serial entrepreneurs, consultants, marketers, creative's, and developers all believe that collaborative environments fuel successful startups. At the end of 90 days, JuiceTank will give the company an opportunity to present their pitch to angel investors for funding opportunities.
2nd Place
$300 in Gift Cards for the team
$3,000 donated from AT&T to the team's choice of non-profit organizations**
3rd Place
$200 in Gift Cards for the team
$1,000 donated from AT&T to the team's choice of non-profit organizations**
**Due to federal regulations non-profits must be chosen from an approved list

So Have You Built That App yet?

Well looky here I have just the thing to help you.


Those busy bees over at General Assembly are having a free!! I said FREE webinar, on starting on that great app idea that will take over the world for about 10 days.

Sign up for Building an App for iOS with Brian Papa and Pablo Quinteros. 

Tuesday 16th April 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm (EDT)

Now I don't know these two people, but I have taken General Assembly classes before and they are good. 

So listen in with me and we can rule the app world Mwaaaaahhhh!

Game of Thrones Exhibit Comes to NYC

Well, winter came and so did this very wonderful exhibit.

So, an awesome thing happened this spring in NYC. The HBO series Game of Thrones from the spellbinding (actually addicting) George R.R. Martin A Song of Ice and Fire books, had an exhibit of the costumes and armour and all things good from the show. Aaaahmazing!

So I stood in line for one hour and 45 minuets and did not get in. Booo!

So the nest day I went back with a friend who had a Time Warner Cable subscription and we got into a shorter line. This saved me from being fired. And I have to admit, I would have stood in that line until I got in; which it seems would have been more that one hour and 45 minutes.

So what did I see? They had Ned's head! How cool is that? A little dragon, the hound's mail, and all the awe, the wonder that is the costuming of the show. The designers and producers (the smiths, seamstresses, tailors, archery masters, they all are genius)!

Swords, masks, gloves and boots, jewelry, money, bows and arrows, knives, and THE throne.

Yes it was so beautiful and I am very impressed. (MONEY!!!!).



I was saddened that the swords on the throne were dull.

Nanny State!

 

  

Oh boy, were these clothes gorgeous!

And the swords and bows, beautifully made, and the dragon eggs were, well they were, opalescent and scaly and absolutely what dragon's eggs should be. I guess…

I took a few photos, so I hope you get the jist of what it was like. 

Oh BTW, the two folk you see dressed like Daenerys Targaryen and Khal Drogo? 

Not actors! NOOOOO they came to see the exhibit. 

(p.s. this was the coldest spring EVER!)

As you can tell I had a great time! Thanks to my friends Evan Cheng and Sarah Rebar for coming along to what can only be a harbinger of a great spring and summer. 

Here are some of the photos I took, and the one we got taken for us by the exhibit. Enjoy, and go see it if it comes near your town.

Sustainable Flatbush's Spring Plant Swap

And you can come even if you have no plants to swap

When: Sunday 21s April 2013 from 12pm – 3pm

Where: Flatbush Food Coop, 1415 Cortelyou Road, Brooklyn, NY



This year's Spring Plant Swap is co-sponsored by Sustainable Flatbush and the Flatbush Food Coop!

So there are free garden plants to be had. Go sway gardening tips or learn how to satr that herb garden in the kitchen.

Take a cutting of one of your old ones, and get another type of beautiful plant. Look at that you just saved money, will make the world a better place and you recycled! Yeah You!

So the caveat is they do reserve the right to limit quantities taken. So leave your greed at home. See you there!!

Sustainable Flatbush's Earth Day Open House in Flatbush

Earth Day Open House

Where: Flatbush Reformed Church (corner of Flatbush Avenue and Church Avenues, Brooklyn NY 11226)

When: Saturday 20th April from 9:30am to 1:30pm 

This is the opportunity to learn about gardening and composting. Learn about the Community Compost Project, the Healing Herb Garden, and about native plants. You are planting this spring right? so go learn what will grow best for the area.

Wear comfortable clothes and closed-toe shoes. Tools will be supplied and a few refreshments too. Bring your family and friends, and its child friendly too!!!

For more information, or to volunteer for this event, email Sheryll and tell her you want to help out: sheryll@sustainableflatbush.org