I think it’s impossible to not be captivated by the vibrant nature of this picture.

This image was taken by my favorite photographer (of the moment) J. Quazi King. The color palette is rich, warm and inviting. It really pulls you in and leaves you wanting more.

See more from J. Quazi on his awesome Tumblr page Quazimotto.On.Wax.

This PBS Off Book series video touches on the world of HTML and CSS, grid layouts within web pages, the importance of understanding the user experience and the rise of mobile platform. It’s an educational 7 minutes if you have the time to watch.

Enjoy!

I was on my favorite blog of late, Baby Food for Creatives, when I was reminded of a fantastic site called Good Fucking Design Advice. Good Fucking Design Advice is chock full of awesome quotes to give you the swift kick in the arse you to keep you motivated. I think all the quotes on the site are wonderful. I’ve included a few of the ones that delighted me the most. Read them all here.

*Please excuse the expletives in this post and look past them to see the great advice that’s shared.*

The images above are samples from letterer/designer Drew Melton’s work from “The Phraseology Project”. The idea is a basic site with a form where Drew takes user submitted words or phrases and designs them with type. Since the project launched it has seen over 20,000 submissions and continues to be an outlet for creative play for Drew.

This guy’s work is incredible. See more at his portfolio site here.

Really love the messages on these hand-done signs by illustrator/designer Biljana Kroll.

Biljana is also an author and has penned such titles as Typography in a Semester and Digital Imagery in a Semester. Both books are great for design students or those looking to expand their design education.

See more more of Biljana’s work here.

Artist Alan Craig recreated these famous celebrity portraits by using crowds of people. I find them to be both genius and a bit creepy….the texture that is.

You can see more portraits here.

via fubiz

Tuesday typographic inspiration by Bryan Patrick Todd. Bryan’s work was also recently featured in the  Type Directors Club 58th annual exhibition for typographic excellence in communication design. The exhibition opened in New York and will be traveling around the world and shown in Canada, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, Spain and Vietnam. A huge honor. Congrats Bryan!

See more of Bryan’s work here and keep up with him on Dribbble.

There are only a couple more weeks left in the summer after all. Have a great weekend!

Image by Joey Ponce

Hip-hop head illustrations by Dale Edwin Murray.

The above shows Kanye, Biggie, Dilla and Flavor Flav. See more including Tupac, Snoop Dogg, excuse me, Snoop Lion and Drake at Dale’s portfolio site here.

I just finished reading Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon and I have to say that it’s one of the best books I’ve read in a long time.

It’s full of ten fantastic tips to spark your creativity. I enjoyed it so much that I literally wrote out every major lesson that was stated. I did this to be an active and not passive reader. By rewriting what I had just read, I was able to reinforce the message and allow it to settle into my subconscious.

Every lesson is valuable, but I’ll list those that really hit home for me.

1. Steal like an artist.

There is no such thing as an original idea (peep the video I posted on that here). All creative work came on what was built before. It’s all about putting your own spin and interpretation on what you’ve seen. Remember that bad artists copy, good artists steal.

2. Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started. 

I don’t think we ever truly know who we are. The thing is to just start doing whatever it is that interests you. I actually think that’s half the battle. A lot of us don’t start these things because we’re afraid of failure. But what is failure anyhow? It’s better to have tried something than be filled with with the “coulda/woulda” feelings of regret later on.  Decide who/what you want to be and then take the steps to become it.

5. Side projects and hobbies are important.

This blog was my hobby to get my mind off of work and actively involved in looking and sharing what I believe to be good design and art. Now that I’m pursuing design as a profession I’m looking to get back into learning how to play the guitar as another way to channel my creative energy.

7. Geography is no longer our master. 

I’ve met some of the coolest people online. Get a Twitter account. Start a blog. There’s a whole world filled with awesome like-minded people like yourself. Go find them. Connect, build and collaborate. We are no longer constrained by physical proximity.

9. Be boring. It’s the only way to get work done.

Yes, you read right. Be boring. That might mean not going to that free Little Dragon concert in Prospect Park because you need to make tweaks to your portfolio (I’m still sore over this experience last Friday) or coming straight home after work to work on a freelance project instead of grabbing drinks with friends. It takes a lot of energy, focus and dedication to be good at your craft. Making sure you set aside some down time to work on things. It’s really important.

Check out the book on Amazon here. Happy reading!