Day of nothing

I don't delude myself that visitors to this blog want to read about my political leanings. This little corner of the internet is about design, not politics. I am neither learned in the political sciences nor thoroughly up to date on world affairs. My political convictions are based largely on what I hear on NPR a couple times a week, what I see in the headlines of CNN.com, and what I feel in my gut when I take all this, and much more into consideration. That being said, I promise to keep all political ramblings to a minimum.

At the urging of my gut, and aided by a strong desire to do more "extracurricular" design, I created this poster to promote the 9/11 General Strike. Whether or not they include it on the official website for download by the public is yet to be determined, but you can download the full size PDF here, print it and post it in your neighborhood if you are so inclined.


Regardless, it felt good to break from client projects and create something that reflects my personal convictions. While I don't think that design alone can change the world, I do believe that it is a critical tool in bringing about political, social and environmental progress.

Spoke Cards

I ride my bicycle every day: to work, to client meetings, back home, the grocery store, the bar, wherever. It's a large part of how I define myself—my own personal culture. I ride a messenger bike and I wear a messenger bag and I roll my jeans like messengers do. In spite of this, I am not part of the messenger community. Nevertheless, I enjoy observing this rapidly growing, always proud, and often arrogant group of cyclists in all their tight-pants glory.

One detail of messenger culture has always intrigued me; spoke cards. Used to identify competitors in alleycat races these cards are one of the few points where print design and messenger culture intersect. Here are some of the more artistic spoke cards I pulled off the web for your viewing pleasure.

Coke vs. Pepsi (Aesthetically Speaking)

Less is definitely more. The Coca-Cola Company proved that with the recent enema it performed on the famous Coke can. This simple redesign turned out to be one of the best product packaging overhauls of the last several years, and it is one that will go largely unnoticed by the general public. Instead, consumers will experience a barely detectable sense of nostalgia and perhaps an enhanced connection to the bubbly beverage, and nothing more. Why such a slight consumer reaction? Rather than slapping swooshes, splashes and halftone patterns onto the design, they removed extraneous design elements and, in so doing, returned the Coke can to its long-ago simple glory.


In a marketing milieu where corporations flood the public with visual noise, a move like this from such a large player should be applauded. Now Coca-Cola actually deserves the name "classic".

On the other end of the boxing ring stands Pepsi. Now I should probably mention that I have little conviction about which is a superior soft drink. My girlfriend Julie feels very strongly that Coca-Cola is the apex of all beverages. Because of this, no Pepsi can has ever seen the inside of our refrigerator. That notwithstanding, Pepsi's latest marketing effort takes the exact opposite approach as Coca-Cola, and quite frankly their new cans turn my stomach.

Adorned with flashy, urban patterns this suite of 15 unique designs attempts to speak directly to young consumers in what Pepsi calls "a salute to the spirit of youth and discovery". Unfortunately, these cans only succeed in widening the gap between mega-corporation Pepsico and it's consumers by trivializing youth culture with graphics of car rims, snowboarders and DJs. For Pepsi's full spectrum of youth culture clichés, click here.

The news never looked so purdy

Before I dive into this post, I'd be remiss not to make a quick address. I'm a bad blogger. It's true. The only excuse I can present for being such a sporadic author it that, at the detriment of my blog, I've been highly productive in other areas of my life. So to any of you out there who actually look forward to my posts—if there are any of you out there—I apologize for keeping you hanging.

Back to the news. I have an online fetish. It doesn't involve web cams, internet porn, or Myspace. No, this is much more highbrow than any of that. It's the news. CNN.com to be exact. Why the sudden interest in world affairs? Well, its never looked so darn good before. CNN.com went live with their newly designed website early this month and has set a new standard for news coverage on the web.



I won't even begin to mention the myriad technical ways that the site has been improved. For more on that check out Andy Rutledge's article "Quiet Structure". I will however say that CNN definitely knows how to clean shop. The ease of understanding has been vastly improved. Before the viewer would have to tediously sift through the stacks of often strangely worded headlines. Now, with so much less visual noise, the content finds you. This transformation perfectly illustrates the value of thoughtful design.

Make it Shiny-er

This past week Apple Inc. announced its partnership with YouTube. From the looks of it, the Apple design team broke out the chamois and polished the YouTube logo to a high-gloss sheen. While I understand this was necessary to inject YouTube into the Apple TV environment, it concerns me that they would hand their identity over to Apple with such ease.


Nowhere on the YouTube do the glossy, reflective surfaces of the new mark exist. This leaves me wondering, is it important for major web companies to follow the same rules of branding vital to the rest of the business world? Or does the kaleidoscopic internet universe require enterprises to be fluid right down to their corporate identity?

Web 2.0, I love you

Just a quick memo to proclaim my love for the era of immediate information. I'm smitten with the Internet. I love it in the same way I love my bicycle or Dunkin Donuts coffee. It's always there, ready to take me new places, show me new things and answer my questions. It's my professor, my doctor, my tour guide, my mailman, my megaphone, and my community.

Whether this is good or bad for the other relationships in my life is a question for the true, living-breathing apple of my eye, Julie. But I must admit that my infatuation with the Internet is long-standing and still going strong.

On a side note, you can now check out my fickr photostream by clicking on the flickr badge in the sidebar. Meet our menagerie of pets and catch a glimpse into the daily goings-on at the Weinstein/Vazquez household.

Labor of love

I'd like to take a moment to announce the website redesign of my girlfriend Julie's pet care business, Park Place Bark. While I still have a lot to learn about web design and development, I progressed leaps and bounds while working on this site. The original site was thrown up in a matter of days. Built with tables, cumbersome images, and shoddy code, it was in need of a revamp.


With the help of css, Park Place Bark now has one of the most sophisticated websites in the Chicagoland pet care industry—an industry that is riddled with mediocre websites. Big snaps to Julie for her excellent art direction. I don't just say this out of obligation to my girlfriend. She really did provide an abundance of strategic and creative direction and the end product wouldn't have been nearly as successful without her expertise.

The new site features rotating pet quotes and tips, a service area map, a client gallery, an "anatomy" component, and a highly informative blog.