etniq

Introducing Studio Kohl

2014-04-17T18:09:00.000+05:30

Etniq Design is now Studio Kohl.

While the site is currently under construction, you can follow the spankin' new tumblog at studiokohl.com/blog

See you there!

P.S. This blog will now no longer be updated but will remain as an archive.

The Trellis

2014-03-05T14:27:00.000+05:30

If you are interested in gender equality and representation of women in the media (or sometimes, the lack of it) you may be interested in this paper, which was part of my coursework at NID. In short, the paper questions the premise of targeting male condoms only at men, after it proves that the images on its packaging is crafted for heterosexual males alone. Other alternatives for visuals are explored that cater to a wider audience. Published by The Trellis, NID's research publication.

Animal 'Species' exhibits in Delhi

2014-03-05T12:44:00.001+05:30

Remember this post? Well, the guys at Animal will be exhibiting my work in Delhi along with 100 other artists' as part of their Species project. The showcase will take place on 7th March, Friday, 2014. Details and RSVP here. Some pre-event snapshots below.

2014-02-06T14:39:00.002+05:30

"The power of creativity amazes me. My once mentor Tadashi Sasaki told me while I was just starting out, “You have the gift.” I was surprised, “The gift?” Sasaki said, “Yes, the gift of creativity. Did you know it is also a curse?” I wasn’t sure what he meant until many years later. What Sasaki meant, I think, is that it is a real gift to think of all kinds of things you can possibly do. Unfortunately, it can be a curse because it prevents you from ever doing anything at all. You can get started on something, and then immediately derailed because you start to see something completely new elsewhere. And then when you branch off to that, you get off on another tangent. If you are not careful, all you leave is a massive trail of unfinished work with nothing to show for. So the gift of ideas, is the curse of doing nothing."

-JOHN MAEDA

Featured on CreativeBLOQ

2013-11-15T22:51:00.000+05:30

Just got news that I got featured on CreativeBloq, Computer Arts UK's sister magazine, amongst several talented individuals. Take a look at the other neon picks that CreativeBloq decided to feature here

A Phataka of a Diwali

2013-11-07T17:55:00.001+05:30

Happy Diwali all of you. Some of you will be getting this, or have already got this in your mail. In the spirit of the festival of lights, may yours be really BRIGHT!

Levi's Pioneer at NH7 Weekender

2013-10-24T01:50:00.001+05:30

Two of my tees among other artists' were on sale at NH7 Weekender, Pune, from Friday the 18th, to Sunday 20th October as part of the Levi's / NH7 Pioneer Studio. Was really fun to be able to screen print them yourself (well, to be honest, Yorick worked the squeegee), in the colours you like, seeing them get made right before your eyes!

Here are some pics from the stall:

That is one mother of a stall. More like a huge tent.

Getting the tee ready for printing. Laying it flat against the printing surface.

The design had two colours, and so two screens were washed and made ready.

Placing the appropriate screen on the tee, in the right position.

The fun part begins. We chose a colour we liked and lay a few dollops evenly across the bottom of the screen.

Yorick works the squeegee while I shoot, with a little help from the crew. It's nice to have your hubby print your art on his own tee!

After the first colour is dry (5 minutes with a hairdryer) we go for the second round, with yellow.

Yorick prints while Nikhil from NH7 hears out a member of his crew.

The crew was really enthusiastic and were wearing most of the tees. This was the other design I contributed.

If this guy looks happy, I'm happy!

Anu from Levi's holds up the reverse colour tee I printed for myself.

And if you'd like to get your hands dirty, but did not attend the Pune edition, the stall will be at the Delhi, Bangalore and Kolkata editions too.

Species

2013-10-15T21:42:00.000+05:30

Just completed this piece for Animal's Species Project. The gallery of pieces released so far can be seen on Facebook. Have a look!

My inspiration was a 'composite animal', the kind that appear in Mughal miniatures. In these miniatures, several animals are seen accommodating the form of another, single silhouette of an animal. Rather than choosing a favourite animal, which was the goal of the project, I interpreted several animals into the form of a single animal, the exception being that this single animal was a wordmark rather than a silhouette.

There's more planned for this project, so watch this space!

Creating Change - Now Online

2013-10-01T14:13:00.000+05:30

So Kyoorius has put up the book for all of you to read, right here, in a downloadable pdf, at no cost. See what they have to say about the book here. To directly read the actual book, click here.

Listen to Tony Porter

2013-09-28T01:22:00.002+05:30

I've always found it equally insulting when men call other men pussies, as when women call men pussies. It's dumb, thoughtless and worst of all, harmful. Men aren't meant to be knights in shining armour or beacons of strength, and women aren't meant to be owned or weak or belittled. People should just grow up and allow people to be.

Tony Porter makes a well-thought out argument and appeals to men, but I could equally say it's for many women. Women who expect to be cared for, or marry rich men, or borrow power. Women can be misogynists too and hold patriarchy against men by questioning their masculinity.

2013-09-18T15:19:00.001+05:30

Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

-PICASSO

Reflektor

2013-09-18T14:44:00.000+05:30

Arcade Fire's 'Reflektor' is another in the series of interactive videos they've released, the other being The Wilderness Downtown. This one is directed by Vincent Morriset (No, not related to Alanis, sheesh), set in Haiti, and has some great light effects triggered by mouse movements and clicks, because I was using just my computer. Apparently, hooked up with a smartphone or tablet, the experience is richer as your computer webcam tracks its movement rather than your mouse. Connect the dots, anyone?

Also they have an eight-minute-long, actual, normal video for it here.

CTRL+ALT+DEL v4.0

2013-09-18T14:04:00.001+05:30

Control Alt Delete 4.0 is upon us! On 28th September, a completely crowd funded gig (indie, in the very truest sense of the word) will happen. What's more, you get free goodies too! (Including the awesome Stupid Ditties 7 compilation, designed by yours truly). What does the indie-est gig mean for designers like me? No oversized logos on gig posters. Yeehaw! Would you like to be one of the crowd who funds this gig? Click here.

'Fuck Boring Music' Doodle by Rishu Singh.

Evil Eye

2013-09-18T13:50:00.000+05:30

You can always depend on Franz Ferdinand for some incredibly catchy hooks, great vocals and a good dose of humour (something I find very important). So besides their amazing tribute to all things graphic design, their new video 'Evil Eye' off 'Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action' is very B-Grade horror, only way funnier. The paunch with a face had me in splits. Don't watch it if blood and gore easily offends you, ok?

MIDDAY features Creating Change

2013-09-17T15:29:00.003+05:30

Hey look, it's a publication covering a publication! More press below for those interested.

Image Courtesy: Ruchita Madhok. Read online version here

If you are keen to get your hands on this book, it is available, for free from Kyoorius. Or you could borrow it, maybe from a kind friend who attended DesignYatra this year. If not, just email the generous guys: info@kyoorius.com. For more press, click below links.

NH7.in
Blouin Art Info
Indian Express
Mumbai Boss
Brown Paper Bag
Back of the Envelope

Creating Change

2013-09-05T18:01:00.000+05:30

Happy and grateful to be one of the writers that contributed to Kyoorius' and British Council's publication on design writing in India. For those who did not attend the Design Yatra, here are some of the snapshots from the book.

Publication Design & Cover: Viniyata Pany

The LFTC Poster Collection

2013-08-14T19:15:00.000+05:30

Just published these to my online folio.

See more here.

Jackson Katz on Sexism

2013-07-30T00:44:00.001+05:30

Sometimes feminism needs to be explained by a man.

Filter Coffee UK Tour 2013

2013-07-05T14:11:00.002+05:30

It's out! The new poster and logo for Filter Coffee's UK Tour 2013.

Thanks to Shriram and Swarupa for the pleasure of working with them. For more click here.

Sound Box June

2013-06-25T01:21:00.000+05:30

It's out, this month's Sound Box with my cover illustration!

Buy my prints!

2013-06-20T18:28:00.000+05:30

I will be selling a selection of prints at Visual Disobedience's Art Market on Sunday the 23rd of July. You can buy my whole set of Inspirational Posters (yes, the ones with the lettering!) and then some, like the one above. The sale will be on from 12pm onwards at WTF Versova. RSVP here. Details of my prints here. Prints are on archival, acid-free paper, which means they don't fade, so these ones are keepers!

Stupiditties:Lucky7

2013-06-20T18:14:00.000+05:30

If fortune favours you, and you're a musician, your track might just end up on the definitive annual indie unmetal mixtape we have all grown to love: Stupiditties released by Ennui.Bomb. In it's seventh year, Stupiditties: Lucky7 promises to be the best compilation of current indie tracks in India, ever. If, like me, you are too lazy to listen to hazaar bands on hazaar online radio stations, this is what you need to discover the cream of the crop. So go ahead and mail that track! Poster design by me, Illustration by Rishu Singh.

Apparently, these Posters do Inspire!

2013-06-18T01:50:00.001+05:30

Featured on Behance's Student Show, Betype.co and Type-Lover (A blog curated by FontYou type foundry).

563 Notes as of now on Tumblr, heck, that's way more mass appeal than I was expecting!!!
Thanks to the supertalented Abhijith KR for the heads up.

The Scene

2013-04-17T15:23:00.001+05:30

Last week I whipped up this quick gig poster for NH7 and The Scene's poster contest. See the rest of the entries here.

Illustrations for Grazia India

2013-04-09T19:05:00.001+05:30

Here's a few of the illustrations I did for the Grazia Young Fashion Awards (GYFA) 2013 Editorial Spread this year. This is the first time I've been given photographs to combine with illustration, and boy was it fun! Thanks to the Grazia team! And so I will be heading down for the event as well.

Photographs: Taras Taraporvala

For the full series click here.