A French photographer (Sacha Goldberger) came up with this idea when he heard his 91-year-old Hungarian grandmother (Frederika) was feeling depressed. He told her his idea, she agreed, albeit reluctantly, and the viral web sensation was born. They came up with the poses and shots together, and she ended up enjoying every minute of it!
She now has a Myspace site with over 2,200 friends. Her depression is gone.
A friend of mine introduced me to this artist on Sunday. He carves standard pencils using a razor blade, sewing needle, and sculpting knife (notice I didn't include a magnifying glass in that list).
"I don’t make money from it but I would love a gallery owner in England to fly me over and put on a show."
It takes Ghetti anywhere from a few months to a few years to complete each project, depending on the complexity. The carving below of the 2 pencils connected by a chain is the most impressive to me, but the detail of all of them are astounding. Did you think to yourself "what happens to the broken pencils"? I did. If a pencil breaks when he's near finished, it becomes an addition to his "Graveyard" piece:
"My third students [at SVA] aren’t allowed to use computers. It really frustrates them because they don’t know how to use their hands. But I say listen, I know how much time it takes to boot up a computer, and open InDesign, and you get a box, and you type a letter in it. And you make it this big. Then you make it this big. Then you make it this big. Then you make it this big. Then you move it over here. Then you make it red. Then you make it this big. And it’s like: You’re not designing! You’re organizing. That’s easy. Worry about that later.
And this is stuff I learned from heroes. It’s the work you do before you ever put pen to paper. That’s the important part."
Read the rest of his "Don't Become a Design Zombie" interview for a peek into his approach to design (including ordering a dozen baby chicks for a book cover).
It has been a while since we created a post about the actual Wreck this Journal, and since the last post it has been through a lot! For my turn with the Journal I chose to tie the book to a string and take it on a walk with us around the lake. It went thorough puddles, ant hills and mounds of dirt and by the time it got back home it had leaves and brush sticking out of the pages.
Does anyone remember Letraset? I, for one, am glad that I don't. Read this article by Gene Gable explaining the process of creating comps with Letraset, and you'll be glad, too! Modern technology is truly a beautiful thing.