Surreal Saturday – Surreal Watercolor Paintings by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law

Posted on March 9, 2013 by admin

It’s Surreal Saturday once again! This time, we will be featuring another traditional artist whose works are beautiful interpretations of dreamy scenes, surreal landscapes and magical worlds in canvases using watercolors.

Surreal Saturday - Surreal Watercolor Zodiac Paintings by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law

Meet Stephanie Pui-Mun Law, a US based traditional artist whose watercolor paintings are characterized by swirling magical branches, stained oak leaves, and the endless soft and dreamy palettes of skies. Most of her subjects are based from folktales, mythology and legends. She started creating art since childhood but her professional artistic career began in 1998 after graduating from a program of Computer Science. She worked as a programmer for a software company for three years by day until she left the world of typed logic to pursue her career in painting surreal and magical world of dreams.

One of her most applauded project was the zodiac series of paintings for Llewellyn’s 2011 Astrological Calendar. Her interpretation of the 12 zodiac signs are simply breathtaking where each was magically interpreted with the sacred ambiance and continuous movement.

“Aries” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Capricorn" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Capricorn” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Sagittarius" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Sagittarius” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Taurus" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Taurus” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Virgo" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Virgo” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Cancer" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Cancer” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Leo" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Leo” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Gemini" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Gemini” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Pisces" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Pisces” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Libra" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Libra” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Scorpio" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Scorpio” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

"Aquarius" | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

“Aquarius” | © Stephanie Law | Llewellyn Astrological Calendar 2011

Most of Stephanie’s works are created for various game and publishing clients like Wizards of the Coast, HarperCollins, Tachyon Books and more. She has authored and illustrated some books and illustrated the best-selling tarot deck, the Shadowscapes Tarot for Llewellyn Worldwide. Her work also regularly appears in Realms of Fantasy Magazine.

Check out more of Stephanie’s awesome artworks in her website or visit her DeviantArt gallery for more info.

Share us your thoughts and suggestions by leaving a comment below. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google Plus. And for more design related stories, you can subscribe to our blog using our RSS Feeds. Lastly, please do check out our print templates page and download our amazing set of blank print templates to aide you in your future projects. Stay awesome everyone!

Read more posts by Kerby Rosanes

You! Be Inspired! — The Amazing Illustration of Jon Reinfurt

Posted on March 9, 2013 by admin

The success of a story or article doesn’t just only rely on how well it is written. At times, an equally amazing illustration is also much needed to pique the interest of the readers and reel them in. Other than reeling the readers in, an illustration also contributes in helping the viewer to further visualize or at least get the gist of what the article is about.

Today we are going to take a look at the amazing illustration of Jon Reinfurt. A graduate of illustration at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and a recipient of numerous illustration awards and recognition from known publications such as Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts and American Illustrators. His inspiring illustrations and paintings also graced a number of publications and galleries around the country. His clients range from publications such as Reader’s Digest Asia, Runner’s World, READ Magazine and the Wall Street Journal. Apart from creating beautiful illustrations, Jon also teaches an illustration course at UArts.

SEE ALSO: Inspirations from Sketchbooks

If you guys would like to see more of Jon Reinfurt’s wonderful illustrations be sure to drop by at his blog.What do you guys think? Tell us at the comments below! We’d love to hear your thoughts about today’s post. Do check us out in Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+! And lastly do not forget to subscribe to get the daily dose of news, freebies and illustration in your feeds for your inspiration!

Looking for a library of high-quality print templates? The search is over! Hit the link and get high-quality print templates here for free!

Read more posts by Patrick Jude Ilagan

TEN’s 3rd PSD by Brazilian Artist Adhemas Batista Available Tomorrow, March 8th

Posted on March 7, 2013 by admin

Fotolia launched the TEN Collection last December 2011 worldwide: ‘TEN’, as in 10 artists, 10 themes, 10 months and 10 PSDs. As they continue this year for TEN Season 2, Fotolia will showcase some of the most amazing graphic artists in 12 countries to share their works and stories with the aim of inspiring all graphic artists across the globe.

TEN Collection Season 2

The ten digital artists plus two surprise artists for TEN Season 2 were from France, USA, Argentina, Brazil, Korea, Japan, Russia, Poland, Spain, Italy, United Kingdom and Germany. Each will share new beautiful work as well as the local cultural influences with the world. Internet users especially digital artists will discover the different creative techniques by downloading the PSD file of each artist’s work for free in 24 hours. It comes with a making-of video, shot in the native country of each artist, sharing their cultural background and creative processes subtitled in 12 languages. In addition to the 10 new artists, two surprise artists will be featured, unveiling all new creative works.

The third featured artist and work in the series will be unveiled tomorrow. March’s artist, Adhemas Batista, is known as a “color salesman” thanks to his use of bright and lively colors, which has inspired his slogan, “I’m selling colors”. Inspired by the vibrancy of his home country, Brazil, Batista’s work is highly energetic, detailed and urban.

TEN by Fotolia Season 2

“I think our environment and personal experiences directly influence our life, as artists or designers. My work is probably more Brazilian than I am. I can be very calm and serious, while it’s happy all the time,” says the now L.A. resident. According to the artist, his creation is a “graphic explosion evoking the urban and youth culture, a kind of energetic rebellion, with bright colors and complex shapes.

More than just a learning tool for other designers, every artist shares his or her personal style and influences, how they came to become the artists they are today, along with the techniques they used to create the PSD through short videos. These videos are released on TEN Collection’s Facebook page and on Twitter (@Fotolia), or view them directly on Fotolia’s TEN Collection channel.

Find You The Designer on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google Plus for more awesome news and updates! And for more design related stories, you can subscribe to our blog using our RSS Feeds. Lastly, please do check out our print templates page and download our amazing set of blank print templates to aide you in your future projects. Stay awesome everyone!

Read more posts by Kerby Rosanes

TEN’s 3rd PSD by Brazilian Artist Adhemas Batista Available Tomorrow, March 8th

Posted on March 7, 2013 by admin

TEN Collection Season 2

TEN by Fotolia Season 2

Read more posts by Kerby Rosanes

Typography Thursday – Three Typography Films You need to Watch

Posted on March 7, 2013 by admin

We’ve seen different documentary films that tackled different aspects of design, street art, and even advertising. But there seems to be a lack of documentary feature about typography – well except for Helvetica, the 2007 documentary by Gary Huswit. Despite of the well-meaning and informative documentary of the Helvetica type, there seems to be no other film that discussed typography as it was meant to be – invisible, legible, and readable.

If you’re looking for creative and typography-focused feature films – look no further. We’ve compiled some of the best three documentaries that feature typography not only as an element of design, but as a passion and source of inspiration for those who practice and saw them.

Typeface Film

Typography Thursday – Three Typography Films You need to Watch

Typface is an independent feature documentary film that focuses on visual culture, technology, and graphic design. The main focus of the film is the Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. The film shows different international artists meet retired craftsmen and how these two, modern and traditional, cultures converge and share ideas.

The film is a motivational documentary that allows its viewers an inside look at how wood types are created, and how it was challenged by technology.

Linotype: The Film

Linotype is a full-feature documentary featuring the Linotype casting machine. The film features the charming and emotional story of the people connected and impacted by the Linotype machine. The documentary also features the struggle of the highly-skilled operators of the machine against the lack of interest on the machine. It’s a melancholic yet enlightening film about preserving the past and looking forward to a better future.

“Linotype: The Film” Official Trailer from Linotype: The Film on Vimeo.

Upside Down, Left to Right: A Letterpress Film

The film Upside Down, Left to Right is a short documentary about letterpress printing. The short documentary focuses on how the letterpress works and the inspiration it gives to its practitioners. It provides an insight on the complicated yet calming process of creating prints using the letterpress process. The film features Paul Collier of Plymouth University.

Upside Down, Left To Right: A Letterpress Film from Danny Cooke on Vimeo.

If you know other typography films that we haven’t featured here, let us know through the comments section!

Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google Plus or you can subscribe to our blog using our RSS Feeds. And if finally, if you’re currently working on a design project for a print product (business cards, posters, postcards, etc.), please do visit our print templates page and download our awesome blank print templates to help you get your designs print ready in no time.

Creative Advertising Ideas – 003

Posted on March 6, 2013 by admin

Creative advertising ideas is not just about having which advertisement is the boldest, loudest and eye-popping visual effects. Sometimes for an advertisement to be creative it has to step out of the norms and push boundaries. Before the modern times the most creative an advertisement can get is by employing the use of witty words and entertaining images in order to catch people’s attention.

In this week’s edition of Creative Advertising Ideas we will go and sit in extremely cold cinema to prove a point, change a key to escape, bring back someone we loved and build a quirky machine just so we can have the best parts of a sweet treat.

FiftyFifty

Havas Worldwide advertising agency was tasked to create a campaign that would help launch a donation campaign. This campaign spearheaded by FiftyFifty is to help the homeless and to educate the people of how it is like to be homeless and sleep in the icy streets of Germany. What Havas Worldwide did is they turned down the heating system of the UFA Cinema Center in Dusseldorf . They handed out blankets with QR codes printed on them to the audience while showing a live video with the homeless being interviewed on what is happening on the theater.

Playstation, FinalFantasy and MetalGear

FinalFantasy and MetalGear are celebrating its 25 years of awesome gaming experience. Using the idea of Bento which is a traditional Japanesed boxed lunch, Hakuhodo Tokya made a stunningly accurate replicas of in game characters using edible ingredients to make the “Character Bento”. The agency asked the fans of the game on who are the most lovable characters of the two great games on social media site. The Character Bento is given as a surprise gift and as sign of gratitude to the makers of FinalFantasy and MetalGear.

(Source)

Land Rover

Being stuck inside the cubicle or being tied down in front of the computer all day can be exhausting and escaping once in awhile is the only solution. This is what Land Rover’s newest campaign is all about. By sending out batches of 800 pieces a specially designed ESC key replacement to remind people working in the office that there is away to escape the daily grind of work. These special keys are sent out to prospective customers inviting them to test drive the latest Land Rover LR4 as an escape. The campaign was so successful that the sign-ups for the test drives increased by 208% percent.

Galaxy

Harnessing the power of CGI, AMV BBDO brought the charming Audrey Hepburn back on screen. The lovely actress stared in the newest TV Spot for chocolate maker Galaxy. Fans of Audrey Hepburn are delighted to see their favorite actress back on screen again creating an online buzz in Twitter. Despite the overwhelming support for the ad there still those who find the ad to be of bad taste but despite the on-going online debate, we here at YTD thinks that this advertisement of Galaxy made a really good use of CGI technology.

Oreo

Last week we featured David Neevel’s quirky machine used to take out the cream of the Oreo cookie. This time David isn’t the only one working on clandestine projects in order to build a contraption to pick out parts of the Oreo cookie. Meet Barry Kudrowitz and Bill Fienup, Fienup likes cream while Kudrowitz loves the cookie part. Together they built a machine that separates the cream and the cookie parts for their satisfaction. This is the 2nd installment of Oreo’s Cookie vs. Cream web film campaign made by Wieden + Kennedy Portland.

How do you guys like this week’s Creative Advertising Ideas? Tell us which ads you like the most! We’d also like to hear your insights and if we missed something give us a beep at the comments section. Follow us out in Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ also do subscribe to get your latest dose of design news, tutorials and creative advertising ideas for inspiration.

Looking for a library of high-quality print templates? The search is over! Hit the link and get high-quality print templates here for free!

Read more posts by Patrick Jude Ilagan

You! Be Inspired! – Hyperrealistic Paintings by Pedro Campos

Posted on March 5, 2013 by admin

If realism made you speechless, wait until you encounter hyperrealism. It is a genre of painting and sculpting involving an intricate resemblance of a high resolution photograph. The themes and subjects of most hyperrealistic paintings are portraits, still lifes, landscapes and narrative scenes. The term hyperrealism is primarily coined with an independent art movement and art style that has developed since the early 2000s in the US and Europe.

One amazingly talented hyperrealist is Madrid based painter Pedro Campos. Most of his subjects like Coke cans, glass bottles and jars, and fruits wrapped in plastic sheets are painted with exact pictorial details. Huffington Post describes his work as having “an aura of glossy, and sanctified perfection about them”.

Hyperrealist Pedro Campos

Pedro Campos working an a piece. | Source

Like any other artist, Campos grew his talent at a young age by working on different creative projects like decorating restaurants and as an illustrator in different creative agencies. He studied art restoration in Madrid and began focusing on oil painting at the age of 30. All of his works are truly etraordinary, lets take a closer look at some of them below and be blown away by the precision of each piece.

oil on canvas 195 x 97 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Painting by Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 100 x 100 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Paintings of Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 150 x 150 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Paintings of Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 162 x 114 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Paintings of Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 100 x 100 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Painting by Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 150 x 150 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Paintingby Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 162 x 97 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Hyperrealistic Painting by Pedro Campos

oil on canvas 130 x 130 cm (c) Pedro Campos

Pedro Campos and his artworks are represented by Plus One Gallery, London. Check out his official website for more of his hyperrealistic paintings.

Read more posts by Kerby Rosanes

Tutorial Tuesdays – How to Stop Procrastinating

Posted on March 5, 2013 by admin

Procrastination is a forever part of life. Like it or not it is here to stay with us whether you are a designer or not. If one thing, almost everybody is procrastinating in one way or another. Ironic as it may seem reading this post only shows that you are searching for ways on how to stop procrastinating while procrastinating.

In our efforts to find out ways on how to stop procrastinating, let us review some interesting facts about procrastination to further deepen our understanding about it. One fact is that there are about 20% of Americans who are admittedly chronic procrastinators. Other than that procrastinators are often the best liars especially with themselves. They often lie about the importance of task deeming it as unimportant and easy which makes it not too difficult for them to reason out why they are just going to do it the next day. Last interesting fact is that there are three types of procrastinators according to Joseph Ferrari Ph. D., one is the Arousal type, these are the type who get the rush when cramming on a task. Second are the Avoiders, these are the types who fear failing and would rather excuse themselves in doing a task. Lastly is the Decisional, they are the ones who cannot decide which task should be tackled first or how how will they tackle the task at hand.

In this edition of Tutorial Tuesdays, we will move a bit from the usual tutorial rundown to showcase to you guys some amazing and insightful videos that can help you combat procrastination and turn it around with these amazing videos.

Vik Nithy’s is one person that you should watch, apart from being able to start 3 companies before reaching the age of 21. In such a young age it is very interesting to hear what he has to say on why do people procrastinate and how to tackle procrastination.

AsapSCIENCE explains to us what procrastination and the science behind it. They also introduced the idea of using the Pomodoro technique in order to win over procrastination.

Funny and very thoughtful, Wellcast has made a tongue and cheek approach in procrastination. The video also talked about 3 simple but effective ways on how one can beat procrastination.

In this lengthy but thoughtful video, Stefan Molyneux offers some very interesting points on why do we procrastinate and tips on how to stop procrastinating.

Are you guys feeling ready to work after this post? Tell us what are your ways in dealing with procrastination and how you turn it around in the comments section below. Follow us out in Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ also do subscribe to get your latest dose of design news, tutorials and inspiration.

Looking for a library of high-quality print templates? The search is over! Hit the link and get high-quality print templates here for free!

Read more posts by Patrick Jude Ilagan

Tutorial Tuesdays – How to Stop Procrastinating

Posted on March 5, 2013 by admin

Procrastination is a forever part of life. Like it or not it is here to stay with us whether you are a designer or not. If one thing, almost everybody is procrastinating in one way or another. Ironic as it may seem reading this post only shows that you are searching for ways on how to stop procrastinating while procrastinating.

AsapSCIENCE explains to us what procrastination and the science behind it. They also introduced the idea of using the Pomodoro technique in order to win over procrastination.

Funny and very thoughtful, Wellcast has made a tongue and cheek approach in procrastination. The video also talked about 3 simple but effective ways on how one can beat procrastination.

In this lengthy but thoughtful video, Stefan Molyneux offers some very interesting points on why do we procrastinate and tips on how to stop procrastinating.

Looking for a library of high-quality print templates? The search is over! Hit the link and get high-quality print templates here for free!

Read more posts by Patrick Jude Ilagan

Minimalist Monday – Minimalist Posters of Bands and Music Icons

Posted on March 4, 2013 by admin

Hey creatives! It’s Minimalist Monday once again! Today we will showcase a nice collection of minimalist posters featuring some of the most iconic bands and singers in music history.

Minimalist Monday – Minimalist Posters of Bands and Music Icons

We’ve seen a lot of minimalist posters around, from movie posters and print ads to pictograms and typography. But the set of music posters of Bizhan Khodabandeh has a different feel and executed in a unique style. Bizhan, an illustrator and graphic designer from United States has created this collection as a present for his wife’s 30th birthday. The theme was Karaoke, so the featured musicians in the posters are mostly his wife’s favorites. Check out some of them below:

Which among the posters is your most favorite? Tell us your thoughts as well us your suggestions for our next feature on Minimalist Monday by commenting below.

Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and Pinterest for more design awesomeness! Also, don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for the latest design inspirations, stories and freebies. Speaking of freebies, check out our free print templates page where you can download templates for calendars, brochures, business cards and more! Stay awesome everyone!

Read more posts by Kerby Rosanes

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Category Archives: Graphic design

Surreal Saturday – Surreal Watercolor Paintings by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law

You! Be Inspired! — The Amazing Illustration of Jon Reinfurt

TEN’s 3rd PSD by Brazilian Artist Adhemas Batista Available Tomorrow, March 8th

TEN’s 3rd PSD by Brazilian Artist Adhemas Batista Available Tomorrow, March 8th

Typography Thursday – Three Typography Films You need to Watch

Creative Advertising Ideas – 003

FiftyFifty

Playstation, FinalFantasy and MetalGear

Land Rover

Galaxy

Oreo

You! Be Inspired! – Hyperrealistic Paintings by Pedro Campos

Tutorial Tuesdays – How to Stop Procrastinating

Tutorial Tuesdays – How to Stop Procrastinating

Minimalist Monday – Minimalist Posters of Bands and Music Icons