Held Design

Have a fill of Beans…

I saw this mans work on the internet and I knew I had to blog about him, it’s taken a while. I’d love to say that’s because I was jet setting with Brangelina, then stopped by Paris to visit Johnny and finally took at break at Buckingham Palace for a cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit (it was a little soggy, I’m not sure they’re biscuit fans) before returning to my computer. Unfortunately if I was to say that it’d be a blatant lie and who am I if not honest!

So Kyle Bean is his name and I don’t think there is anything he cannot do with cardboard. He’s from Brighton and works freelance on craft models, props and art direction. His clients include BBC, editorial illustrations for the New York Times Magazine and shop window displays for Selfridges, Liberty and Hermes.

I especially love his Laundry Day Video which you can find here

Visit his site KyleBean.co.uk to view his portfolio, its worth the trip!

A Big Blue Cock in Trafalgar Square…

Well I have always said when they do it in London they do it right!

Who wants a lady bathing in public or her haggard sister pushing a wheel barrow not to mention the over sized sewing needle, when you can have a bronzed boy on a rocking horse and a great big blue cockeral?

The next two commissions for London’s Trafalgar Square will include a bronze figure of a boy on a rocking horse by artists Elmgreen & Dragset and a large ultramarine cockerel by Katharina Fritsch…

Berlin and London-based artists Elmgreen & Dragset will unveil their sculpture “Powerless Structure” in 2012; while Fritsch’s sculpture “Hahn/Cock” will appear in 2013.

I am not one who professes to know much about public art outside of whether I like the piece or not. All art by nature is subjective and what I like is likely not what the person next to me will find arousing, so lets see how the cock fairs!

Willie Duggan Lighting YouTube Christmas Card…

So this took me a while, my background is interactive media but I haven’t touched flash in as long as I can remember, then set with a brief to make a Christmas card that didn’t cost the earth and was innovative I thought, what the hell, lets use flash (and caused myself days of bloodshot eyes and roaring headaches!)

Anyway here’s the results…

Happy YouTubin’ Christmas from Willie Duggan Lighting

Pipped by the Post, the Business Post…

So this is how it started…

I was in the car with my brother, both in a revolutionary mood . We were giving out about the state of this that and the other, the usual really and about how quiet we are as a people. “No matter how bad things get,” we said, “nobody seems to do anything about it.” (we included ourselves here). “Right,” we said in unison (because that sounds more dramatic) “we are not going to give out again unless we have done something about it.”

So I went home and gave out to my flatmates about it but nobody seemed to notice. Then my brother sent me a link to contact all TD’s, so I did and gave out to them about it, that too didn’t make much of an impact. In a giving out mood, I decided lets give out to the papers about it and I sent a letter to the Editors of the Sunday editions.

It was taken up by the Business Post and suddenly romantic ideas floated through my head…freedom of speech, marches through the streets, addressing the people from the steps of the GPO… my mind ran rampant as I thought about what I would say to Vincent Browne and should I curtsy when I met McAleese.

Alas my words were minced, the Post printed the meekest two or three lines of what I thought to be the start of my revolution. Here is my original letter…

Dear Editor,

I am writing to you as a young person who did not previously take great political interest in my country. I voted of course, and then I left the job up to those elected…that didn’t work out well!

I am totally appalled at the lack of courage shown by our representatives. Yes I agree, we did get ourselves into this mess, with the aid of European banks I might add, but we cannot lie down and let Europe rape us. Rape is a strong word I know, but that is exactly what they are doing.

Men and women of courage graced these lands and fought for our freedom not so long ago, now we have men and women in pin stripped suits who open every door to Europe and let them invade our fair Isle. Make no mistake, it is an invasion, a financial invasion. If they don’t get us on the battle field they’ll get us in the banks!

Just yesterday I heard that there is a move in Europe to make the corporate tax universal across all member states, something we were promised was sacred. Come on, open your eyes, this is not about what’s best for Ireland, this is about what’s best for the larger European members. We cannot let the bail out go through, we need to default and get ourselves out of this mess. We are our own people, we are a strong and brave people who have been brow beaten by those in power. We need to stand tall, we need to stand together.

Our elected representatives have the fate of a country in their hands. I ask them to take responsibility for it. Have some bloody balls!

Yours Forcefully,

Helena Duggan

Click HERE to see what the Post printed (third article)

The Tribune also took up the letter (I found out today), they didn’t print it complete but it’s a better rendition. Click HERE to have a look.

I think I’ll have to try another tact, anyone for a march?!!

Join the Dots…

I am currently working on a project for a festival, its a tender and I’d love to get the job. So the problem is I was trying to think of a way that everybody who picks up the design could get involved in the festival straight away. I also wanted elements of the festival to become part of the design, so I put my thinking cap on, it was a little tight (I think I’ll have to get a new one, maybe fleecy to combat our beautiful weather) and got under the table (I think best under the table) and this is what I came up with….JOIN THE DOTS.

Remember joining the dots sitting by the fire as you drew a line not fully sure what the picture would be, then you got out your pencils and coloured it in. Genius! So I put together an illustration, then took it apart and replaced the lines with dots. I can’t obviously show you the design (yet) but here’s a few join the dots games to play if you’re board (that should be bored, if you’re a board you prob won’t be able to play the game unless you’re a board with arms that is).

The Son of…

I’m working on a piece at the moment which is in a small way inspired by “The Son of Man” a painting by Magritte. The painting is a self portrait, which I think is great, I’d love to meet a man with an apple for a face. I think we’d become firm friends, he’d be great to have around if a little peekish. Anyway, so my work is inspired by the painting and by the idea behind it, it is based around a conflict between the present that is hidden and the present that is visible, also note his partly revealed right eye (just noticed my mistake it’s the left eye actually just looks like the right one), ummm more food for thought.

Anyway I have posted the painting above. I just noticed this bit of a blog makes me sound quite profound, a little deep and an expert in the field of arts, off course all of these things are completely true of my character, I’m extremely deep especially when asleep.

Here’s a little more of Magritte.

Graphic Design

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