Friday Finds 8.19.11

Jaime: Brand New, Revisited

One of my first posts when I started at Dwell a year ago was a slideshow of logo comparisons drawn from the site Brand New, created and manned by Bryony Gomez-Palacio and Armin Vit, two graphic designers who dedicate themselves to, among other things, chronicling and critiquing redesigns and new designs of corporate and brand identities. I recently found my way back there and remembered how much fun the site is for design nerds like me, thanks to the engaging and no-holds-barred evaluations. Check out the recent Cheer detergent makeover—the third redo in four years. Way cooler now. Brand New agrees: "This is the best of all attempts. Of the logos this is the least annoying compared to 2007’s squat version and 2009’s party-in-a-box version. 2011 is far from great—the rounded corners on the bottom of the characters are uncalled for and even though I get that they were going for tight letter spacing this seems a tad too tight for the product it represents—but it’s an improvement.

Diana: The Silliest Military Uniforms Ever

This slideshow of uniform design for guards from places as far ranging as The Vatican and Korea is a really fun read. Seems all manner of practicality is thrown out the window when it comes to dress attire for members of the military. I guess when your job involves standing there and looking good, a cape or puffy silk sleeves is in order.

Miyoko: At Home in Japan: Beyond the Minimal House

When we think Japanese-influenced (like we did for our September 2011 issue, now on newsstands), we generally think white walls, crisp lines, and exacting geometries. London's Geffrye Museum has a fantastic exhibit on right now that presents another image of Japanese life. Titled At Home in Japan: Beyond the Minimal House, the show features "Japanese life through an ethnographic lens" and consists of photographs of private homes, filled with the people and the surprising number of things that reside within. The show closes Monday, August 29. If you can't make it, be sure to check out the online gallery.

Aaron: Philip Roth on Twitter

Clearly this is a fake Twitter account, and fake Twitter accounts vary wildly in effectiveness, but something about imagining Philip Roth tweeting this nonsense kills me every time. "Charlie Rose just called, asked me to come on his show next week. Told him I 'just wasn't up for it.' Actually got Taekwondo that day." Not the stuff of American Pastoral that's for sure, but utterly diverting and perfect with that author photo.

Jordan: Maricor/Maricar

Wow wow wow wow check out this unreal embroidery from Sydney, Australia-based designers Maricor/Maricar. I stumbled upon their work from this Turns of Speech series, where they took misheard lyrics and turned them into textile magic, but ohmygoodness is their site amazing. Seriously, check 'em out.