Consuming Finnish Design

Yes, this is my third blog in a row showing postage stamps, but there are some really cool designs out there and I feel compelled to show them to you. These are from Finnish Artist Kaj Franck. Franck was one of the leaders of ever-popular midcentury Finnish design. Like many influential Artists of his time, he designed about a million other things as well (textiles, furniture, interiors, tableware, etc).

The Arabia Finland website describes Franck's philosophy this way, "had a strong social conscience that was aroused particularly during the war. He was interested in mass production and the possibilities of technology to produce diverse practical objects at a reasonable price". I think it's interesting that this way of thinking has, for better and worse, shaped a lot of our current consumer culture... but that's a much longer blog post for another time!

Stamped

As often happens on the interwebs, I was looking at Stefan Kanchev's stamp designs for my last post and ended up ogling the many gorgeous stamp designs the world has to offer. I like this set of Finnish stamps for the artwork and for the way they work individually and together. Unfortunately, I can't find the name of the artist.

I'd love to design stamps. Will someone please hire me to do this? You actually can get your own images printed on real USPS stamps. Check it out here. I don't think you can do a series that flows from stamp-to-stamp like this but still a cool idea.

Brilliance

Take a look at these genius stamp designs from Bulgarian Graphic Artist Stefan Kanchev. I especially like the bird/woman on top. Kanchev (1915-2001) was an incredibly prolific designer, creating thousands of trade marks, logos, advertisements, labels, packages, stamps etc. throughout his lifetime. Apparently he drew each and every design my hand. You can find more info and samples of his work here.

My Stuff—Fox Terrier

My first real-life professional job was with Buster Brown Apparel where I drew lots of fun, happy artwork for kids' clothes. I dug up this old sample to show you, plus one of the artwork options that I created as part of the collection. I worked with a great apparel designer (hi, Oriole!) on this group and many others. 

Asian Floral—Rothko Palette

Voila... yesterday's Rothko Palette applied to a set of prints I created after a trip to Vietnam. Rothko and Vietnam don't have much to do with each other as far as I know but I do think he would approve.

Color Fields Forever

In art school I learned about Mark Rothko but I didn't see the point. Looking at his work projected on a wall or printed in books just didn't do anything for me. It wasn't until I visited the Tate Modern in London and had the immersive experience of sitting in a room, surrounded by his enormous, color-saturated canvasses, that I finally understood. I know this little blog post can't do him justice but I love this color combination and the subtle transitions it holds. (Sorry, I can't find the name of the painting!)

A Circus

This piece by German Artist Henk Wyniger reminds me of the old Popeye cartoons. I also like the way their hands interlock—M.C. Escher, anyone? It must have taken a good bit of graph paper to work out the illustration!