This is my kind of collaboration.
Eclectic and Soulful.
My friend William Watson, and his friend Ebi Kagbala, are Death To Tennis, and they’ve been cultivating a series of interludes with musicians from New York City and Seoul.
Styled in Death To Tennis.
Rhythm their own.
Unique.
I’ve been listening to them for the last few days,
and this one is one of my faves.
Only a few days after writing my other newsletter Mellowing Blend, inspired by a conversation about Pantone colours – albeit of a more Autumnal flavour – they release their Colour Of The Year 2024 – Peach Fuzz 13-1023.
Intuition, or coincidence?
Inspiration is everywhere, weaving its way around the world. Floating in the ether.
For anyone and everyone to reach out and catch.
And it’s interesting to see where similar sources of inspiration eventually re-appears, and on what.
How inspirations can begin in a similar place and go on such different journeys.
Through the minds of different people, and appear on different materials, on different products, with different brands and in different markets.
For a recent project, I designed a tropical inspired print to brighten up the days of those who work in healthcare, and their patients.
A print that would embellish the Toffeln clog’s that nurses love so much.
After all, images of nature’s beauty can inspire health benefits, no matter how slight.
My trip to Hawaii in 2001 came to mind.
Tropical flowers felt right.
The clogs launched a few weeks ago.
While Oscar de la Renta’s gorgeous new dresses (atop) might not be suitable for the ward,
Toffeln’s tropical clogs certainly are.
They’re Clogs with a cause – check out their charitable side.
And on the weekend, you could wear both!
Comfort, elegance, and charity.
A year ago I probably wouldn’t have imagined being so inspired by the art of woodturning.
And then I came across some artists creating vessels with a intriguing aesthetic.
Initially, the work of Greg Gallegos (above left) who’s based in Michigan,
and then more recently found Ash & Plumb (above right)
who are a bit closer to home in East Sussex.
Watch them craft
While watching the Loewe Women’s SS24,
this detail and craftsmanship,
the elegant choice of colour,
stunning.
The music was delicious too.
See the show
“Your job as an artist is to create meaning, create beauty, create transformative experience. You are an agent of culture, not a functionary of the social order.
Believe you are doing something meaningful every time you create a work of art. Everything you write, reflecting what is true. Everything you shape, reflecting your way of seeing. Everything you film or perform, brimming with the life in your heart and mind. Each of these is its own butterfly in the Amazon, no matter how insignificant you think its impact. You cannot know down the channels of time what it will touch or how it will transform the world.”
: Susan Dirende @susandirende
There is a book I might never finish reading,
with words that were never meant to be read.
The words of wisdom shared in Meditations
were Marcus Aurelius’ thoughts, for himself.
They weren’t preaching to others.
They were teaching himself.
Which shifts the perspective,
and feels like a lesson in itself.
More curiosity = less division.
More humility, and more creativity.
After reading The Unbearable Lightness of Being early last year for the second time, I wondered about the art of the cover, and tracked down the artist’s own website.
David Miller’s work is nurtured from his fascination of Bohemian circus life and the Czech tradition of pantomime theatre. I assume his frequent visits to Prague brought him into contact with Milan Kundera.
It was the refined palette and striking graphics – much like the American rock band The White Stripes – that what drew me to Haruki Murakami’s books, long before learning that they were also really good books.
Standing out on the shelves in a collective statement.
They’re a great example of book design and marketing, working beautifully together.
And so, I began my Murakami adventure with Norwegian Wood and Kafka On The Shore.
(both wonderful, and a little strange.)
The art for these covers were created by Suzanne Dean; the Creative Director at Vintage books.
In a recent instagram post Dean mentioned the source for some of the images used for the new cover designs for Ian McEwan’s catalogue (below).
One of them came from The Anonymous Project Collection – an intriguing source of vintage photographs I’d never heard of before.
It was for On Chesil Beach, and it shows how the strength of a fresh book design can reach a fresh audience, as well as rekindle a read from those who are already fans.
It’s in the art of the cover where we can make a connection, as well as the quality of the content.
Worth a post simply to remember that.
On the packed commuter train to school,
Ryuichi Sakamoto would simply listen;
to the sounds of the journey.
Identifying a series of sounds
that would occur on every trip.
The journey was playing
its own piece of music.
A symphony of everyday sounds
that most would’ve heard,
but too few would’ve listened.
Doors opening.
Doors closing.
The squeeze of the brakes.
The rolling of the wheels.
Clicks and clacks.
Brushes and rasps,
and
the rhythm
of the rails.
When you’re so immersed in what you’re doing.
Reading or writing,
Painting and drawing.
The path draws you in,
the flow that turns you on,
and time fades away.
Absorbed,
In the hues of sound.
And the colours of taste,
When what you feeling
and doing, dances.
Leading your ideas
in to a tango.
or your thoughts into a Waltz.
Opening up the doors
to your dance floor,
allowing your mind to play,
to create something unique.
