Semblance

Words by Alex Bec, Friday 18 September 2009

This week HelloVon has made the long trip across the pond to open his new show in LA. Unveiling “Wispy, luminous, and waif-like portraits” that the man himself has become so renowned and respected for. The private view is tomorrow night (Saturday to avoid time zone confusions) and it’s safe to say that the west coast is in for a treat

Most Recent

National Geographic’s creative director Emmet Smith on the publication’s redesign 20 April 2018
Leon Mark’s refined and infinitely stylish photography 20 April 2018
Sophie Harris-Taylor shares anecdotes and insights from her photo series, Sisters 20 April 2018
Designer Anatole Couteau's technical approach lets him communicate simply and precisely 20 April 2018
A peek inside Hicham Amrani's trippy new comic Svend & Xanax 20 April 2018
Friday Mixtape: The Orielles mix for "good times with good people" 20 April 2018

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Contrary to its distinctly present-day focus, the Design Museum’s latest exhibition, Hope to Nope: Graphics and Politics 2008-18, started off as a historical retrospective. Curator Margaret Cubbage and designer of the show, GraphicDesign&’s Lucienne Roberts, discussed beginning in the 50s and 60s, but then Brexit happened. Then Trump. And what was immediately evident was the seismic creative response to global crises. “We suddenly felt there was an urgency to respond to this,” Margaret tells It’s Nice That. “How pivotal graphic design had become to political movements, and how diverse and rich and democratic it was.”

It's Nice That — 27 March 2018
Work / Exhibition A Vitra Design Museum exhibition shows the hedonistic history of nightclub design

As many middle-aged men will tell you at length, clubbing ain’t what it used to be. Looking through the exhibits from new show Night Fever: Designing Club Culture, which is due to open at the Vitra Design Museum near Basel later this month, it seems (much as it pains us to say it) that they might have a point. Are you, for example, dancing in clubs under storeys-high Keith Haring murals or dipping in a Philippe Starck-designed pool or receiving party invites in mousetraps complete with a slice of cheese? No, us neither. And if you are, sort us a slot on the guest list alright?

Laura Snoad — 12 March 2018
Work / Photography Jamie Allan Shaw offers an alternative to the one-sided relationship between creatives and magazines

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Ruby Boddington — 01 March 2018
Work / Exhibition Jamming the Stupid Machine: Disegno goes behind the scenes of Hella Jongerius' show, Beyond the New

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Matthew Ward — 14 December 2017
Work / Exhibition Exhibition Silver Sehnsucht unlocks nostalgia's past, present and future

“Sometimes you can be nostalgic for what is yet to come. A strange feeling of longing for a future yet unknown," or so argue London-based curator trio Mara-Johanna Kolmel, Silvana Lagos and Rafael Schacter from the collective Approved by Pablo. That feeling is encapsulated neatly in the German word ‘sehnsucht’, a word which lacks clear definition in English but was termed by C. S. Lewis as “That unnameable something, desire for which pierces us like a rapier at the smell of bonfire, the sound of wild ducks flying overhead, the title of The Well at the World’s End, the opening lines of Kubla Khan, the morning cobwebs in late summer, or the noise of falling waves.”

Bryony Stone — 27 September 2017
Features / Exhibition “It’s pop culture that has educated this country”: Peter Saville on Manchester’s True Faith exhibition

“The influence of this is in everything,” says Peter Saville gesturing at his sleeve designs for Factory Records, alongside a wealth of work inspired by Joy Division and New Order. “It transcends music completely. It’s in every gallery you go to, it’s in every fashion collection, the influence of this,” he says again looking around him, “has spread through everything.”

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Work / Publication National Geographic’s creative director Emmet Smith on the publication’s redesign

A long-established and highly respected staple of the newsstands, National Geographic, has been redesigned for its May issue. Released on 24 April, the rethink of the magazine and “the most significant overhaul of content and design since 2000,” builds upon the magazine’s successes, creating even more exploratory visual storytelling. Debuting new paper stock, design, updated sections and specially created typefaces, the redesign is revealed at a time when the publication has a particularly strong reputation and readership.

Lucy Bourton — 20 April 2018
Work / Photograhy Leon Mark’s refined and infinitely stylish photography

Leon Mark’s photographs are refined, graceful and infinitely stylish. The London-based photographer has worked with the likes Vogue Italia and Chanel, cementing his name across the fashion industry. This is partly due to Leon’s ability to capture the distinct personalities of his sitters, extracting their idiosyncrasies with his lens. “I got into photography by studying film and cinema. I’ve always been interested in fashion and art so I started to focus more on the mise en scène of cinema which pushed me towards photography. That, in turn, let me to fashion photography,” Leon tells It’s Nice That. Working mainly across Europe and the US, Leon shoots both film and digital, and is currently working on short fashion films.

Daphne Milner — 20 April 2018
Regulars / Nicer Tuesdays Sophie Harris-Taylor shares anecdotes and insights from her photo series, Sisters

In her portraiture, photographer Sophie Harris-Taylor has a knack for capturing personality and dynamics in a beautifully natural way. This is exemplified in her series Sisters, which saw her shooting 80 pairs and groups of sisters over two years, and in turn depicting their unique and intimate relationships.

It's Nice That — 20 April 2018
Work / Graphic Design Designer Anatole Couteau's technical approach lets him communicate simply and precisely

For Anatole Couteau, communication always manifests itself in the simplest and most precise forms. With a portfolio spanning graphic and type design, his work is satisfyingly direct, combining monochrome elements with a variety of custom typefaces in a precise and astute manner.

Ruby Boddington — 20 April 2018
Work / Illustration A peek inside Hicham Amrani's trippy new comic Svend & Xanax

“I have been drawing since I was little. I wasn’t very attentive in class – like most creatives I know – so I would spend the time drawing in my notebooks instead. My parents ended up enrolling me in drawing classes to calm me down,” Strasbourg-based illustrator Hicham Amrani tells It’s Nice That. This instinctive creative energy Hicham describes clearly manifests itself in his busy, dynamic drawings. His latest project Svend & Xanax tells the humorous tale of Svend, the protagonist, who takes a strong Xanax only to be transported to a surreal, at times disorientating, world. Hicham even compares Svend to “the Joker in Batman” saying, “the more I drew, the darker the story became.”

Daphne Milner — 20 April 2018
Regulars / Friday Mixtape Friday Mixtape: The Orielles mix for "good times with good people"

Arguably releasing one of the most joyful records of 2018 so far, The Orielles are this week’s Friday Mixtape! Halifax-based trio Sid, Esme and Henry have made use of a mix of songs perfect for if you need a pick me up and ideal as the days are getting warmer.

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Work / Film Rod puppets in intricate felt sets profess The Need to Be Alone for Alain de Botton

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Jenny Brewer — 20 April 2018
Work / Animation The Art of Shinkansen animated gif series celebrates the Japanese bullet train

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Work / Illustration Furniture obsessions and oranges with acid rainbows: new personal work from Julian Glander

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Ruby Boddington — 20 April 2018
Work / Photography Jocelyn Lee's first UK solo exhibition surveys The Appearance of Things (NSFW)

Jocelyn Lee has a very certain way of looking at people. Her work is often driven by themes of “sexuality, family, death and ageing,” and in turn, there is an eeriness to her photographs that viewers just can’t help looking at.

Lucy Bourton — 19 April 2018
Work / Photography Okobo is photographer William Ukoh's mesmerising tribute to his grandparents

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Daphne Milner — 19 April 2018
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It's Nice That — 19 April 2018

Work / Photography Seung-Gu Kim creates Lowry-style photographs of South Korean holidays

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Ruby Boddington — 19 April 2018
Work / Graphic Design Baptiste Bernazeau draws on a degenerating building complex for his latest typeface

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Work / Publication DR.ME release the latest issue of Fin? filled with killed projects and ideas that never made it

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Lucy Bourton — 19 April 2018
Work / Publication “Collaborate or die”: Adrian Shaughnessy and Astrid Stavro’s RCA MA students launch a new publication

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Regulars / Nicer Tuesdays Veronica Ditting on The Gentlewoman and her editorially driven design process

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It's Nice That — 18 April 2018

Work / Illustration “Broader representation in illustration is important": artist Tara Booth (NSFW)

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Daphne Milner — 18 April 2018
Work / Photograhy Sam Rock's series Watching the French reimagines sports photography

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Daphne Milner — 18 April 2018
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Ruby Boddington — 18 April 2018
Sponsored / Opinion What's the point of an MA in design anyway?

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Robyn Cook — 18 April 2018
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Ruby Boddington — 18 April 2018
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Laura Isabella — 17 April 2018
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It's Nice That — 17 April 2018
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Daphne Milner — 17 April 2018
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Ruby Boddington — 17 April 2018
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Laura Isabella — 17 April 2018
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Lucy Bourton — 17 April 2018