February 2025
Monkey Mind
2025/02/15 08:36 Filed in: Product Design / Branding
Monchhichi is a line of Japanese stuffed monkey toys first released in 1974 (when Arda was born). They were licensed by Mattel in the US until 1985. These adorable monkeys were created in order to inspire respect and love in young children. There name is derived from the words ‘Mon’ (which translates to ‘Mine’) and ‘Chichi’ (which closely resembles the sound of baby sucking on a pacifier [Dutch: zuigspeen]). This is a special edition to celebrate the brand's 50 years. Straight from Japan! Wearing a T-shirt with the famous Hokusai [Grote Golf] wave. For Arda, for Valentine’s Day. I have added her little monkey from 1984(!) to this short stop-motion movie.
A Close Shave
Since his first appearance in ‘A Close Shave’ with Wallace & Gromit, Shaun the Sheep has become a global superstar, whose TV adventures are enjoyed in 170 territories. He has a huge following on social media, with over 5 million Facebook fans and 1.7 billion views on YouTube. He’s also appeared on the big screen in two acclaimed feature films.
In 2020 I went to the international exhibition ‘The Art of Aardman’ at Forum Groningen in the Netherlands following successful runs in Paris, Melbourne, Frankfurt and Seoul. The popular exhibition gave a masterful insight into the work of Academy Award-winning Aardman Studios. The exhibition took visitors on a journey of discovery past original versions of Gromit’s famous vegetable garden, the flying machine from ‘Chicken Run’ and the spectacular five-metre tall galleon from ‘The Pirates! Band of Misfits’.
I made this screensaver (2560 × 1664 px) for my happy Mac. :)
Ceci n’est pas une pipe
2025/02/08 06:53 Filed in: Animation / Illustration
The cigarette was one of a collection of ‘bad habits’ icons designed by Susan Kare (an American artist and graphic designer, who contributed interface elements and typefaces for the first Apple Macintosh personal computer from 1983 to 1986) for the bookstore at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York. They were featured on magnets, sticky notes and stationary. Other bad habits were represented by a frosted doughnut, television, cake, pill, cocktail, pizza and dice.
Add another 4 slightly different layers, refresh them in 0.1 seconds … et voilà: there you have a smoking chimney! ;)