Thursday, January 26 at 1 PM EST If you don’t immediately recognize the name Rudolph de Harak, you’ve definitely seen his work before. This midcentury icon managed to make simple, minimal design feel playful and innovative with his use of bright colors and psychedelic textures. He brought his unique vision to the covers of groundbreaking psychology books, covetable classical record sleeves, and even Seventeen magazine, where he served as Art Director for over a year. In his five decades of work, de Harak made significant strides in the field of graphic design and influenced countless imitators ..read more

Brazilian designers Laís Zanocco and Tiago Araujo from Estúdio Drama make a great case for buying a calendar late. This poppy risograph poster includes visuals of the moon’s phases, rich splashes of neon, and eye-catching illustrations of fruit. This design is an effort to raise awareness of food insecurity in Brazil, with the goal of raising enough money to feed at least 20 local families. The calendar’s connection to community only enriches its brilliant Day-Glo hues and earthy mystical design. You can still buy the calendar on the website for São Paulo design shop Gengibrão, and you can kee ..read more

To say that 2021 was a banner year for music is an understatement. From a murderer’s row of excellent jazz releases and guitar soli explorations to polished R&B and the psychedelic, it was further proof that your pal who says there’s no good new music is full of shit. Hell, we even got a ten-minute Taylor Swift song, and I’m not going to say anything negative about that because I don’t need that kind of heat in this lifetime. But that’s not our beat. Go here if you want that, because you’re bound to discover something new. What I can tell you, however, is that not only was it a g ..read more

The number of acronyms that have materialized since the birth of the internet is substantial, and somehow still growing. It seems the accumulation of shorthand like “LOL” and “OMG” will never stop circling throughout the depths of cyberspace. For decades, we’ve been living in a world where quite literally any chain of corresponding common words can be shortened. There’s BRB, RFP, TL;DR, and many, many more. In fact, there are so many examples of shortened internet jargon that Pentagram created an 83-page glossary called The FBI Guide to Internet Slang. This clever collection features over 2,80 ..read more

What positive lessons can we learn from the pandemic when it comes to improving education and accessibility for young creatives? D&AD President and Dean of Academic Programs at Central Saint Martins, Rebecca Wright, investigates. COVID-19 hit the creative community particularly hard, and it remains one of the sectors most at risk from the crisis. A year into the pandemic, a report from Otis College of Art and Design reported a loss of 175,000 jobs in California alone while in New York employment in the creative fields fell by 66%. On the surface, such bleak prospects do not bode well ..read more

Graphic designer Nick Fulcher, aka NickyChulo, knew what he wanted to do from a young age. Computer graphics were an early love of his, so he thought he would fall into game design. But Chulo started to veer in a different direction when a friend asked him to design a mixtape cover. He said yes, all for the price of two McChickens. Years later, Chulo dropped out of SCAD, describing the experience as “expensive for no reason.” After a stint at a branding agency, he returned to his roots of freelance designing for smaller musical acts. That led to Chulo creating mixtape covers for rappers l ..read more

At first glance, this book, designed by r m is nothing out of the ordinary. However, after further inspection, it’s clear that the design is something special. This publication design is elegant and enticing, with pops of neon orange and a silky typeface. And while simple, it’s the details that make the most significant impact.   The dictionary is the result of discussions about the current situation and issues of art institutions in Poland among representatives of the artworld. Above 120 slogans and their definitions assign goals and future of the cultural world ..read more

The American rock band Spoon is known for being unfailingly creative and has recently celebrated its 10th studio album. For the CD and Vinyl packaging, the band approached Edel Rodriguez, and the result is a fabulously gritty, graphical approach that is as moody as it is interpretive. Here are all of the paintings which became part of Spoon’s 10th studio album. When approached by the band, I decided to create a series of paintings that could work on their vinyl and CD packaging, as well as on streaming platforms. The colors and graphics would unite all the great new music coming from the band ..read more

We all love Aaron Draplin. His motivational, inspiring, and creative soul has captivated the creative world, and it only makes sense that Draplin has released new merch so that people can wear their love with pride. Soon to be released, Draplin’s merch includes a pair of beautifully designed mittens that feature his logo front and center. The shades of green are sure to make others green with envy, so swipe ’em up on Draplin’s website when they drop. Project Credits Aaron Draplin ..read more

Mobetterworks is a brand with products that poke fun of the corporate world, and, recently, the brand worked with New Balance to drop two collaborations. The first was a fashion collaboration, in which the two brands fused their identities of work-related jokes and working out, to create a line that ultimately sold out. The second drop was a play on how employees couldn’t go on vacation because of the pandemic, and the two brands created shirts surrounding this theme. The graphics for the collaborations are cheeky, with stunning typography and soft colors. If we know one thing, it’s that we’d ..read more