All entries from June 2008

As designers we celebrate meaningful libraries of information. We love the information, but it’s not our only concern. We also take the design of the library itself – the system that organizes the information – very seriously.

Designers have a long history of library-making. Pre-internet, we compiled books (reference books, monographs, retrospectives, magazines, etc.) Now we find ourselves reinventing our libraries for an online world. We develop new systems to better manage and deliver our information, and to accommodate the scale and scope of the internet.

Unlike the finality of books, online libraries constantly change, and this dynamic nature makes modern library-making a unique challenge. To do it right, you need more than the designer and archivist; you need the information architect – the online system builder – as well.

Today we’re happy to announce the significant relaunch of a modern online resource. We partnered with our friend and colleague Duane King (the DK of BBDK) to develop a system that extends his immense library of online resources to the web. Please enjoy Thinking for a Living™:

http://thinkingforaliving.org/

This summer we have two new faces in the studio.

Jason Bishop – fellow Brooklynite and one of our long-time buddies via Richmond, VA punk rock (think Avail, Action Patrol era) – will be spending the summer with us. Jason is currently an MFA Designer as Author candidate at the School of Visual Arts. Prior to going back to school, Jason was working in NYC doing primarily web design/development for clients such as nytimes.com and Cornell University. Now he’s expanding his skill sets to include to motion and traditional print design.

Jason’s work:
http://jasonbishop.net

Dylan Mulvaney is entering his fourth and final year of study earning a BFA in graphic design in Iowa State University’s College of Design. Dylan is interested in the intersection of digital and traditional tools of production within graphic design; meaning, he likes to get his hands dirty. This summer he’ll be bouncing back and forth between here and our friends at Rad Mountain. In the fall he will be studying in Rome’s Piazza delle Cinque Scole, getting knee deep in contemporary European design culture. After graduating in May 2009, Dylan plans to locate to NYC proper.

Dylan’s work:
http://dmulvaney.com

The addition of Jason and Dylan required an Athletics expansion: birch-top desk #10.

We like building our own desks. And it’s always nice to visit “the nicest guys in the world” at Meserole Lumber.

Wood cut to size, Jason sanding:

Built, ready to poly:

Poly’d, drying:

The Wiggle Puppy, observing:

Final product in context. 3-desk superstation: