There are a few items of note I wanted to share...

I now have a twitter account: @tomdavie. Unfortunately I won't be using it to update you on where I am, or what I'm reading, watching or eating, because honestly, my pizza eating schedule is really not that interesting. I will be using the account to automatically feed new updates on the studiotwentysix2 site and blog, as well as Good Type, Bad Type, Well Designed and interactive alley. A one-stop-shop if you will.

Good Type, Bad Type was created as part of my introduction to typography teaching process, and although that class finished in December, I will keep the site updated as often as I can. I'm always looking for new work to post, so if you run across something of interest, send the URL my way.

Well Designed and interactive alley are also to be used as teaching aids. Well Designed is dedicated to all forms of print, packaging and publication design, while interactive alley is dedicated to site design, movies, title sequences and kinetic typography. Again, if you come across some impressive work, please let me know.

As for this blog, the titles of each post are now clickable links; this will make it easier to get the permanent URL for bookmarking and sharing.

Tom Davie via Twitter

Labels: blog, Good Type Bad Type, interactive alley, resource, studiotwentysix2, Tom Davie, Twitter, update, Well Designed

The folks at creative nerds have compiled a list (with links) for the "50 Best Free Fonts from 2009." Enjoy the freebies and download to your heart's content.

Pictured above is the typeface Facet, released by the independent type foundry Fontfabric.

Free Fonts via creative nerds

Labels: blog, creative nerds, Fontfabric, free fonts, resource

I've been blog tinkering the past few days, having added three subtle but useful new features. Each post will now offer a bookmark and share feature, to quench all your bookmarking and sharing needs.

If you look to the north, there is now an easy-to-use RSS feature located in the main address bar, this should eliminate all your feed needs. And last but not least, the option to receive new posts by email is now available (a permanent link for email opt-in is now located in the sidebar), or you can click here.

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

I recently visited the Cooper Union Typography blog, and the latest entry features typographer and designer Stephen Farrell. Stephen was one of my mentors during graduate school, and he is as smart, detail-oriented and talented as they come. He doesn't maintain a site of his own, but Cooper Union did a great job of compiling all the information available on him into a single point of reference. Be sure to check out his work, it's definitely worthwhile.

Stephen Farrell via Cooper Union Typography

Labels: blog, Cooper Union Typography, graphic design, Stephen Farrell

My typographic-based White Space poster is now available for download as an iPhone wallpaper via typenuts (a member of the i love typography network). Enjoy.

Tom Davie's White Space via typenuts

Labels: blog, graphic design, iPhone wallpaper, resource, studiotwentysix2, Tom Davie, typenuts

I was really impressed with the design, photography and content on Justin Knopp's Typoretum blog. He seems to have a wonderful appreciation for the history of type and printing...

Since then my involvement with letterpress printing has deepened and I have acquired a substantial collection of lead and wooden types, printing machines and other paraphernalia - much of which I have rescued and restored to working order. My continuing interest in letterpress printing has led me to provide practical demonstrations and workshops and I am deeply involved with preserving the history of the Anchor Press, with the long-term ambition of establishing a printing museum in Tiptree.

Typoretum blog

Labels: blog, graphic design, Justin Knopp, site design, Typoretum

Type Daily is a nice RSS feed site packed with content from the web's best sources for typographic-based content.

Type Daily

Labels: blog, graphic design, resource, Type Daily

Sorry for the lack of posts this week, I was out-of-town for a few days.

Lost and Taken is a great resource site for Hi Res, good-quality textures and scans. Most, if not all, are copyright / royalty-free images that are acceptable for personal and commercial use. Check it out.

Lost and Taken

Labels: blog, graphic design, illustration, photography, resource

I will be teaching an introduction to typography class this semester, and as a reference point for examples and discussion, have created Good Type, Bad Type - where the best and worst of typography, mingle seamlessly. I encourage you to stop by and check it out, and if you would like to join or start a discussion, or have an outstanding example of good / bad typography to share - that's even better.

Good Type, Bad Type.

Labels: blog, Good Type Bad Type, graphic design, resource, Tom Davie

The redesign is official. Let me be the first to welcome you to the home of the new studiotwentysix2 blog. It may take a while to get used to the visual changes, but hopefully they are for the better. This entry represents the new post formatting. The main text column has increased in width, and the images will now be a consistent 550 x 300 pixels.

I have no intention of going back and updating previous posts with the updated format, they will remain 'as is.' You may also notice some funky characters in previous posts as well; it appears that all special characters did not make a smooth transition with the upload. I may go back and fix those, as time and energy allows.

If you have feedback on the new-look blog or site, feel free to let me know what you think. I will be back to my regular posting duties on Monday.

Tom

Labels: blog, site design, studiotwentysix2, Tom Davie, update

Sleevage is a blog / archive dedicated to album cover art.

Accompanying each cover is detailed information about the band, the artist (if known) and any historical art or design references that may have influenced the cover art. It's a quality site and definitely worth a bookmark.

Sleevage

Labels: blog, fine art, graphic design, music, resource, Sleevage

The UnderConsideration team has launched a new blog focused entirely on print design...

FPO is a blog dedicated to both the visual stimulus and the detailing of the development and production of printed matter: Annual reports, books, business cards, stationery suites, collateral materials, posters, packaging and anything else where ink meets substrate. A subject matter we know, love and understand. A process that, despite numerous eulogies, is still alive.

For Print Only

Labels: blog, For Print Only, graphic design, resource, UnderConsideration

Print magazine’s web site is hosting a daily blog written by art director, design educator and design historian Steven Heller. Heller has written and edited numerous books about graphic design. He is currently co-chair of the MFA Designer as Author program at the School of Visual Arts and writes for the New York Times.

Daily Heller via Print

Labels: blog, graphic design, Print magazine, resource, Steven Heller

Italian graphic and web designer Francesco Mugnai maintains the design blog, ‘Oh My God. It even has a watermark.’ The blog is a nice reference collection of contemporary business card design, categorized by color, style and printing technique.

Oh My God. It even has a watermark

Labels: blog, Francesco Mugnai, graphic design, resource

You The Designer has assembled a pretty nice list (with links) containing 30 of the most popular graphic design books available for purchase. Most of the publications are well known within the field, but even if you are familiar with the books, the list is still a quality resource and a good bookmark to have.

This list also reminded me that I would like to read How to Think Like a Great Graphic Designer — but I have never come across a copy of it.

30 Delightful Graphic Design Books

Labels: 30 Delightful Graphic Design Books, blog, graphic design, resource, You The Designer

If you were searching for typographic inspiration coupled with the avoidance of direct confrontation — passive aggressive notes has you covered.

passive aggressive notes

Labels: blog, humor, passive aggressive notes, resource

As promised, I have finished adding labels to all 300 blog entries. To maximize their use, I have included direct links to the labels that occurred most often and would be of the greatest search interest; the links are located on the right hand column directly below the Blog Archive.

In addition to the labels, a search feature has been added to the site as well.

Labels: blog, resource, update

It’s not your imagination; things look slightly different around here.

Due to a Blogger conflict, I had to choose between keeping the original layout, and creating a new layout that would allow the recently added labels feature to work properly.

For the past three days, I have been working within the confines of a Blogger-approved layout, to make it similar to the original blog format. There are a few changes for the better, including: slightly larger images, RSS for posts and comments, the ability to email a post, and the troublesome, yet now resolved labels feature — which I am still working to complete.

Feedback is welcome.

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

It’s time once again to bring forth the celebration monkeys, as the blog is rapidly approaching 300 posts.

I’ve been evaluating the site to determine what could improve — from the aspect of retaining old readers and attracting new ones, to encouraging a greater level of participation from all those involved — myself included. So for the short-term, here’s the plan:

#1) I have added a “submit” link, located above “Last posts” in the column to the right. By submitting, you can inform me of interesting links, worthwhile artists and designers, or art happenings that might be of note. If I use your submission, you will be aptly credited by any name you like, and said name will be linked to any site you request.*

#2) I am in the process of adding reference tags to all 300 posts. It’s time consuming, and not terribly exciting, but I think it will dramatically improve the usability of the site — and will aid in the search of older posts that may be difficult to otherwise locate. I’m sure this function will be elementary to many of you, but for those unfamiliar, there will be a series of labels at the end of each post. When clicked, these labels will take you to a page containing all the previous posts with the same keyword.

At this point I am less than a third of the way through the process, but aim to have the labeling completed late next week.

#3) To become more consistent about posting, I am going to (on a temporary trial period) add a new entry Monday through Friday. Each weekday there will be at least one new post, with additional humor and Featured Art posts as they are completed. This will begin on Monday January 19th at noon (EST), and will continue for four weeks — at which point I will reevaluate the response and effectiveness.

#4) To encourage reader commenting and participation, I’m considering an artwork bribe. Perhaps a screen print or small work to the reader with the most comments over the course of a month, or to whoever is able to bring in a gaggle of new recruits.


Over the Long term, I plan to conduct several artist and designer interviews, as well as evaluate the overall look of the blog. A redesign is something that would not be done hastily, as I can’t stand when sites that I enjoy change their look and functionality. I like the current look, but feel that larger imagery and a wider text column might be beneficial.

Well, that’s it for now. Be on the lookout for my super-epic post that contains the 25 top television opening sequences from 1953 through 1990 — it has been several weeks in the making.

Tom

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

I’ve been meaning to mention this for a while now, but Sara Pearce, the arts editor for the Cincinnati Enquirer, has taken early retirement and started her own blog titled ART 513. If you’re interested in following the Cincinnati art scene, she’s one of the most informed and hardest working people out there.

Sara Pearce

Labels: blog, cincinnati, fine art, Sara Pearce

This Ain’t No Disco is a great site for interior design lovers, and for anyone interested in checking out the hippest agency workspaces on the planet — like this image of Victoria, Australia’s Sputnik Agency.

This Ain’t No Disco

Labels: blog, graphic design, interior design, workspaces

What’s not to like about Canada? The folks are friendly, the beer is like a fresh mountain stream and it’s the birthplace of my adolescent favorite, Linda Evangelista.

As it turns out, Canada also has a mighty fine Design Resource blog, aptly titled, The Canadian Design Resource. The blog offers entries for every conceivable design discipline, including graphic, urban, furniture, toys and packaging. The site has a consistently interesting mix of both contemporary and historical design, including this 1972 Survey 68 catalog cover, designed by Gottschalk+Ash.

Certainly worth a look and a bookmark.

The Canadian Design Resource

Labels: blog, graphic design, resource, The Canadian Design Resource

I’m a few posts late, but it’s time to bust-out the celebration monkeys. Last week, the blog surpassed the 200-post mark. Woo Hoo.

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

All packaging, all the time.

If you’re into a quality-made bottle, get excited about a clamshell or blister pack, then TheDieline.com is a blog you may want to probe.

Devoted entirely to package design, the blog was founded by Andrew Gibbs, a senior packaging designer in Southern California, and features a wide array of work that encompasses all forms of packaging — including a reader submission category. So, if you are in the market for packaging inspiration, you might run across a dandy like the Blossa bottles by Blidholm Vagnemark Design, based in Stockholm.

TheDieline.com

Labels: Andrew Gibbs, blog, graphic design, TheDieline.com

Recently, I did an interview with Jason at what to wear during an orange alert? A blog dedicated to literature, art and music. It’s fairly in-depth and may reveal a few interesting nuggets about my work, musical tastes and whether I partake in a regular cup ‘o joe. The interview was actually a good exercise for me, as it got the mental juices flowing, and helped to determine how I wanted to focus the upcoming lecture at The Dayton Art Institute. Check it out.

what to wear during an orange alert? interview

Labels: artist, blog, studiotwentysix2, Tom Davie, what to wear during an orange alert?

ilovetypography.com has chosen to showcase fifteen sites that excel in the use of web typography.

It’s a difficult task to cover all the typographic possibilities with only fifteen sites, but the selections appear to have a pretty good range of variety. Certainly worth a bookmark if you dabble in web-based design.

Web Typography

Labels: blog, graphic design, resource, site design

I’ve noticed some issues with the blog not formatting properly the past few days. I reinstalled and tweaked the code, so hopefully the problem’s taken care of — If the formatting still appears screwy to you, send me an email and let me know.

Labels: blog, update

Although my exhibition at the DAI had been open for three weeks, the opening reception was the first time I saw the work installed in the space. I thought the arrangement and scale of the work looked good for the gallery, although it was slightly disappointing that a few of the pieces had to be cut to keep the show from looking over-hung. Two of my newer paintings were withheld from the show, so since you can’t see them at the museum, I’ll post them for you here.



My work and website have been popping-up on random art sites and blogs lately, but one I’d like to mention by name is artistaday.com. It’s a blog site run by a really nice guy named Geoff, who featured me as artist of the day on Monday. He even dug my work so much, he bought a print from my shop — so for that alone, I need to give him props. Check out his site, browse through the artists, vote on my work (and everyone else’s) and if you’re an artist, send him a link to your site so he can check you out.

Tom Davie at artistaday.com

I recently added ten paintings and five drawings from the Parishioner Series to the studiotwentysix2 shop. I’ve wanted to add the work for a while now, but had to wait until the final work was selected for the exhibition. The work can be purchased through either the Parishioner Series site or the studiotwentysix2 shop. Speaking of the Parishioner Series site, I have added several new paintings to it, including the two shown above.


Here’s an article about my current exhibition from the Dayton City Paper:


One final tidbit, last week, I recorded a segment with Dayton NPR talking about religion and my current work. The segment is supposed to air either next week or the week after — so I will post a link to the mp3 file once it is up on their site. I’ll write about this experience in detail because there’s a good story behind it, but I’ll wait until you are able to hear the finished segment.

Labels: artist, artistaday.com, blog, fine art, Parishioner Series, The Dayton Art Institute, Tom Davie, update

Feed Me Cool Shit has a plethora of art and design related links, user updates and interviews with some of the top up-and-comers. The layout is somewhat overwhelming due to the sheer amount of stuff they have decided to put on the homepage, but if you have some time to browse, there is some good work to be found amid the clutter.

FMCS

Labels: blog, fine art, graphic design, resource, site design

There’s never a bad time to bust-out the sock monkeys, but in this instance, a twofold celebration is in order.

First, the studiotwentysix2 blog has officially broken into triple digits, that’s right ladies and gentlemen, the blog has reached the century mark — 100 big, badass splendiferous posts. Through hard work and dedication, this feat took me just under eight months to accomplish — outstanding! This means, if my grade school math skills are still in working order, we should be celebrating the millennial post sometime around August 2012. Hell, who knows, by that time we might have flying cars and robot maids who cook us breakfast, I know my fingers are crossed.

Second, I turn the ripe-old age of 32 on Saturday — Yep, 32. When I was 16, I honestly had no concept of what 32 would be like, now that I’m 32, I can’t even remember what it was like to be 16 — except that my parents wouldn’t let me drive alone, even though I received a 100% on my drivers test, and I had a crappy job washing dishes and an equally sucky job washing cars. Apparently at 16, my major occupational skill was washing stuff — Yep.

Anyway, I’m sure the day will consist of cake, meat and beer, but probably not in that order.

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

It’s been 52 weeks since studiotwentysix2.com went live, and I must confess, it has far-surpassed my original expectations. So, I thought I would take this opportunity to tell you about the past year, and also let you know what’s in store for the future. My very own annual report so-to-speak, only this annual report will not subject you to awkwardly-posed photographs of me in a suit, standing in front of a computer or painting. Nope, for you it’s a fantastic picture of sock monkeys getting ready to tear into some cake.



This past year:

The original intent for studiotwentysix2.com was to create a simple site that showcased my fine art work — nothing more, nothing less. However, within the first few weeks, I decided to include my design and personal work, choosing to have the site cover my full-range of creative interests. I thought studiotwentysix2.com might attract a few visitors per month, catering mainly to a local crowd. As it turns out, I was pretty shortsighted on my expectations.

Over the past year, studiotwentysix2.com has had tens-of-thousands of visitors from across the globe, combining for just under one million hits. During this time, HOW design, Design Observer, NOTCOT, Newwebpick, Vivianite, Gawker and many others, have been kind enough to link to my site and blog.

The aspect of studiotwentysix2.com that has been extremely flattering, is the amount of traffic my site receives from universities and fine art schools. I had hoped that posting my design projects would attract students and faculty alike, and as it turns out, universities in the United Kingdom, Greece, Poland, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and China, not to mention a few-dozen schools in the United States, have visited studiotwentysix2.com. Since I am no longer teaching, it’s great to know I can still help students, even if I don’t have the daily interaction like I used to.

Enough with the past, on to the future.

What’s coming-up?

In an attempt to further expand the studiotwentysix2.com site, I will be opening the studiotwentysix2 shop. Beginning sometime next week, there will be a “shop” link added to studiotwentysix2.com’s navigation that will lead you to the works available for purchase through the website. To begin with, the shop will offer my screen prints, several 24 x 24 inch paintings, and a few various other items. While some of the paintings will be quite expensive, I will try to keep lower-priced products available, to ensure that anyone who would like to own a piece of my work, is able to.

I am currently in the process of going through my inventory, photographing work and setting up the shop via PayPal. I will let my faithful readers know when the shop becomes live, via this blog. Also in the next few weeks, I will be adding more work to studiotwentysix2.com. This will be a combination of brand new work, and previous work that I have yet to photograph. Again, I will keep you updated on the status of this as well.

In closing, I want to thank each of you for visiting my site and blog, you are, without question, the most amazingly-fantastic group of remarkables ever. Seriously, thanks!

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update

Chip Kidd, the legendary book jacket designer, spoke January 11, 2007 in Denver at an AIGA Colorado event. Be a Design Group was kind enough to record the event, and create a 75 minute Podcast of the lecture in its entirety. Enjoy...You will want to avoid using the play button below (unless you want the 2-minute super fast-forwarded version), just click on the link I provided.

Chip Kidd Podcast

Labels: blog, Chip Kidd, graphic design, resource

If you have meandered over from my art + design site studiotwentysix2.com, I welcome you. If you have no idea what studiotwentysix2 is, then you are probably some random blog stalker who hasn’t showered in weeks. Please, step way from your computer, shower, then I will happily welcome you as well.

I have decided to revamp and better utilize my mucho-ignored blog. Instead of updating the news page at studiotwentysix2.com, I will now be posting news updates, interesting sites, thoughts on books and articles and pretty much anything else I feel like writing at this site. New work updates will still be posted at studiotwentysix2.com. Feel free to comment with your own thoughts, as I could use some interesting dialogue, a good laugh or dozens of semi-nude photos of you, or your grandmother (or hell, even your grandfather if he has the balls to pose for you).

Just a note — since overall tone doesn’t translate over the internet, if you think I’m making a joke, or being witty or sarcastic, I probably am, or am I…

Anyway, welcome to the studiotwentysix2 blog.

Labels: blog, studiotwentysix2, update