Albert Camus Covers

While browsing for books on Amazon I came across these elegantly simple Albert Camus book covers. I've owned this edition of The Stranger for some time, but never really thought much of the cover until I finally saw it laid out with the rest of the collection. These were published by Vintage in the late 80s/early 90s and designed by Helen Yentus. The only exception is the first cover shown (top-left), which was published by Penguin Books a decade later and designed by David Pearson. Pearson's other designs are also worth checking out.

Back to Basics

I think I'm going to start drawing again. A lot of people have recently asked me why I stopped drawing and I always come up with a myriad of excuses that don't exactly answer their question. I talk about the lack studio space, time, money, equipment...but it all really just boils down to laziness. I don't want to be one of those people that tacks on "I used to..." when I talk about my passion. Unfortunately, I've been heading down that direction. I decided to pull up some stuff I did in high school, the last time worked on my technical skills, and I see a lot of room for improvement. I'm going to make it a goal to work on that this year.


2"x 3" design exercise in Gouache. I hate gouache. One can only truly appreciate Illustrator after working with gouache and a 000 brush.



Shading exercise. Embarrassing perspective error on the left.



Pen and Ink Illustration from Junior year of High School.



Drawing of Winston Churchill photograph by Yousuf Karsh in Prismacolor.

Enough is enough!

Am I the only person that finds Mondrian inspired prints hideous and asinine? Clearly no one else is annoyed with this trend because every year someone decides it's a great idea to release a limited-edition something-or-other covered in black lines and name it "The Mondrian". Lee Homes did not think they were too late on the band-wagon when they developed their $1,000,000 luxury condos in Marina Del Rey. Let us disregard any commentary these products may have on neoplasticism and abstraction (which I'm sure was the primary concern over at Lee Homes) and really look at this architectural atrocity for what it is: plain tacky.

The only excusable product of this trend is the YSL shift dress - which apparently is the result of some very clever craftsmanship. But to everyone else, I think we can give it a rest.

Weekly Roundup

I actually haven't checked Brand New in months, but I'm digging their new redesign. [www.underconstruction.com]

Conde Nast's desperate attempt to keep the place afloat. [www.nypost.com]

Loaf...Loafers...get it? [www.swiss-miss.com]

Online magazines that actually read like magazines. Refinery's top list.[www.refinery29.com]

João Ribas discusses his style with The Boston Globe. I honestly wouldn't take their lifestyle section seriously either. [www.boston.com]

Bronson Pinchot's spills the beans. The interview is a bit dated, but it's so refreshingly candid it's still worth a read. [www.avclub.com]