Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier.

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Work as we know it is changing. Even before Covid-19, the days when we’re held accountable to a nine-to-five office job were pretty much done. But what does it really take to set out on your own and build something new? The book Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier. is now available at the Slanted Shop!

This book is a ticket to change, to actually Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier. The knowledge and resources it provides work as a compass to help navigate the shallows and depths of running a successful and yet meaningful business—putting personal fulfillment first and leaving the ethos of the corporate world behind for good.

A glance at the global news might give people pause at the thought of venturing out on their own, though. The allure of a stable salary is tempting amid a shaky economy, political instability, and a global pandemic. And there’s no denying the fact it’s been a seriously bad time for many businesses around the world. But it’s also true that turbulence has historically opened up market gaps as big companies scramble around in an attempt to adapt, and established industries shift—leading to countless opportunities for those who know where to look for them, and for those who have a good understanding of ways to turn ideas into action.

While there’s indeed no one path, there are certainly best practices to follow, business insights to understand, tools to use and the experiences of others to learn from. This book is designed to help its readers to brainstorm, plan, and build something new from the ground up—and craft a life that they genuinely love in the process.

From the editors of Courier, the global magazine for modern business, comes a manifesto and how-to guide for living and working on your own terms: This truly international book acts as a start-up manual for people with a dream, no matter the scale and champions a generation of dynamic, driven decision makers. More than 30 business owners around the world—from a streetwear brand run by a group of friends in Accra to an L.A.-based online marketplace driven and supported by the Latino community, a platform for creative culture from Hong Kong or affordable furniture from Detroit that is built to last—tell the stories of how they got started, overcame hurdles, and found purpose in their work. Including insides into new business opportunities in industries from food and retail to media and fashion, the book turns inspiration into action with more than 85 pages full of knowledge, hard-won lessons, practical advice, how-tos, tools, and resources.

Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier.

Authors: Courier, Jeff Taylor, Daniel Giacopelli
Editors: Courier & gestalten
Volume: 288 p.
Format: 22.5 × 29 cm
Binding: stitch bound, hardcover
Printing: full color
Price: 39.90 EURO
ISBN: 978-3-89955-856-2
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Photo credits: 
Photo 2: © Dan Wilton, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 3: © Lit Ma, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 4: © Paul Gambin and Alejandra Orosco, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 5: © Elaine Cromie, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 6: © Claire Martin, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 7: © Robert Rieger, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 8: © Francis Kokoroko, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021
Photo 9: © Ana Cuba, Work Better. Live Smarter. Be Happier., Courier, gestalten 2021

Slanted in Stockholm: Letters from Sweden

Posted on by Vicky Blake

When visiting Stockholm in the summer of 2021, we took a close look at the contemporary design scene. We were happy to meet great designers from the local creative scene, among them Göran Söderström!

Göran Söderström is a self taught type designer and the founder of Letters from Sweden. He has designed custom typefaces for companies such as Acne Studios, Cadillac, Ableton, The Nobel Prize, Craft Sportswear, Lindex, and Nordea and his retail fonts are used worldwide. One of Göran’s typefaces has been carved in stone and he loves collaborations, vegan food, Ashtanga yoga, and his family.

Letters From Sweden’s work can be found in the Slanted Magazine #39—Stockholm. Additionally we shot a video interview to talk about his attitude and view of things. Take a look at our new issue and the video platform to encounter new ways of design thinking!

Portrait and studio photography: © Thomas Mandl
Product photography: © Letters from Sweden

Landing Hong Kong

Posted on by eyegix

The designer and photographer Daniel Bretzmann edited his first photo book. The book Landing Hong Kong is a journey and it has taken some time to finish it. It all started with a trip to Hong Kong in 2007 and it turned out to be a much more personal and intensive project than he had thought at the beginning.

The photo book takes the viewer on a journey through urban sceneries and spaces which most travelers pay little attention to. The images captured show a very orderly, structured view of a city that seems almost extinct, but also represents constant change, chaos, and crowds. Nevertheless, shifting the angle reveals us unseen beauty and order in the apparent chaos.

Landing Hong Kong

Design: Daniel Bretzmann
Format: 20 × 25 cm
Volume: 84 p.
Paper: Matte coating
Language: English, German
ISBN: 9781006176753
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Domestika Course by Lars Harmsen

Posted on by Vicky Blake

A magazine is like an open door that allows you to discover the world and break new ground—you always wanted to know how we make magazines at Slanted Publishers? Then this Domestika Course by Lars Harmsen, the co-founder and editor of Slanted Publishers is just perfect for you!

Transforming and rendering fragments of reality through the subtle magic of color, typography, and layout is the specialty of Lars Harmsen. In this online course, you will explore the possibilities of editorial design using Slanted Magazine as a case study.

Together with your teacher, learn how to develop a magazine and all the aspects it entails. Lars shows you the different possible options for designing a magazine, from the idea, research, and layout, to production and marketing. By the end of the course, you’ll have the tools to find the right format for your publication. Take a fragment of reality, analyze it, and reassemble it in magazine form.

What will you learn in this online course?
Begin the course by getting to know your teacher, Lars Harmsen, who tells you about his career and experience in editorial design. He also shows you some influences that have impacted and inspired his work.

Next, look at how to develop the concept of what a magazine can represent. Before you start manipulating pixels and warming up the graphics card, explore the importance of the planning, research, and organization phases.

Continue with an introduction to the tools of the trade in editorial design—illustration, typography, graphic design, and photography—and analyze how you can combine these elements in your storytelling.

Now it’s time to start experimenting! What happens when you think of a magazine not as a collection of information, but as a piece of music or poetry? Discover how to step out of your comfort zone in terms of graphic design, then tackle the photo for your cover.

Lars shows you what to consider for the printing phase and the choice of materials for your magazine, how to find distributors, and how to market your publication. To wrap things up, he covers different options for designing special editions.

What is this course’s project?
Using Slanted Magazine as a case study, learn about all the steps involved in creating a magazine.

Who is this online course for?
Design professionals who want to explore the possibilities and tools of editorial design, as well as beginners who want to learn how a magazine is planned and designed.

Domestika Course by Lars Harmsen

  • Course contents and forum are available as of August 2nd
  • There are additional resources available
  • Course audio is in German
  • Course is subtitled into eight languages (English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, and German)
  • Access is forever; do the course at your own pace
  • Case study based

Until August 2nd you may purchase the course at a very special price for € 9.99.

Find more information here!

Simulation City

Posted on by Vicky Blake

We are happy to announce the release of our new book Simulation City, an artistic approach to the feeling of Dubai by Jason Carlow, Dirk Gebhardt, and Lars Harmsen.

Dubai, in its newness, has redefined the notion of authenticity: city and spectacle have been intertwined. Mall culture, airports, and theme parks may seem strange and vacuous in other cities, but in Dubai, they are the essence of life.

Shortly before the outbreak of the global pandemic, Dirk Gebhardt and Lars Harmsen visited Dubai. Nowhere in the world had they seen drama and comedy so powerfully together as in Dubai’s theme parks. In the drive to bring more tourists to the UAE, develop the real estate industry, and retain a huge labor force of expatriate workers, Dubai itself resembles and operates in many ways like a theme park.

In his essay Simulation City: The Theming of Dubai Jason Carlow explores the uncanny atmosphere of spectacle, spatial control, and remarkable societal and cultural overlaps and adjacencies that have become an integral part of life for many residents of and visitors to contemporary Dubai.

Simulation City

Editors: Jason Carlow, Dirk Gebhardt, Lars Harmsen
Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Text: Jason Carlow
Photography: Dirk Gebhardt
Design: Lars Harmsen
Release: August 2022
Volume: 172 pages
Format: 21 × 28 cm
Language: English
Workmanship: Swiss brochure, thread-stitching with black thread
ISBN: 978-3-948440-36-7
Price: € 28.–
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Pardon 4 × 4

Posted on by Dennis-PFA

Pardon 4 × 4 is a carefully crafted handwriting font with a confident look. The approach is to give the impression that someone is writing while holding the pen with their toes. Paradoxically, this typeface is called Pardon. But actually Pardon would never be sorry, because it would like to be taken as it is.

This typeface is intentionally a failure. It is multipersonal, nonconformist, original, and eccentric. Nothing is standard here, which is absolutely fine! Imperfection and disproportion are the mainspring of an unconditional passion. Openness is celebrated here without measure.

Pardon 4 × 4 is a single weight font but has an extremely wide range of characters. There are four different alternates for each uppercase and lowercase letter, which is very special. There is also a huge selection of numbers, arrows, icons, and special characters, which are also freaks. Find a special expression to your individual intend.

Pardon will add a confident and peculiar feel to your work, even if you haven’t tried all the 4 × 4 options that Pardon has to offer. There is also a playful a tool called Pardon 4 × 4 Generator, which selects the stylistic set options randomly for each character and helps playfully to introduce some combinations. It can be used by everyone online.

Pardon 4 × 4

Foundry: PFA Typefaces
Designer: Martin Aleith
Release: April, 2022
File Formats: OTF, WOFF, WOFF2
Test Version
Type Specimen
Price: 40.– Euro
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Slanted in Stockholm: FOLD

Posted on by Vicky Blake

When visiting Stockholm in the summer of 2021, we took a close look at the contemporary design scene. We were happy to meet great designers from the local creative scene, among them Filip Kleremark!

FOLD is a graphic design studio based in Stockholm, led and founded by creative director Filip Kleremark. Working primarily in the fields of fashion and culture, with a background in corporate design and brand identity. Critical thinking is applied to each project, solutions are rooted in contemporary and cultural contexts in order to create relevant design solutions. Fold’s work is instilled with a great degree of craft and high production values. Design that is built to last.

FOLDS’s work can be found in the Slanted Magazine #39—Stockholm. Additionally we shot a video interview to talk about his attitude and view of things. Take a look at our new issue and the video platform to encounter new ways of design thinking!

Portrait and studio photography: © Thomas Mandl
Product photography: © FOLD

schaubau 2022

Posted on by Vicky Blake

schaubau 2022 is the international summer school of design in Dessau and will take place from August 14th until August 20th.

What is our social role as designers? What worldview are we helping to shape? For whom do we design? Are we designers on the side of the future? Do we want to live the way we design? Or was it all just a job in the end? Are you still thinking or are you already moving? In this year’s Summer School, schaubau is looking for your answers and perspectives, crafting messages for the future and challenging ideas for a new tomorrow. They will print your artworks as posters on the Risoprinter environmentally friendly and present them in the urban space.

In addition to designing and creating, a culturally program ensures a varied, sunny workshop week. So don’t forget your swim suits.

schaubau is a cooperation between BÜROHALLO, drucken3000, Projektschmiede Dessau e.V., Anhalt University of Applied Sciences and the partnerschaft Gelebte Demokratie Dessau-Roßlau.

schaubau 2022

When?
14.08.–20.08.2022

Where?
BÜROHALLO
Ferdinand-von-Schill-Straße 6
06844 Dessau
Germany

Book now!

Characters #03

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Characters #03 is the third specimag by Character Type—a blend of a type magazine and a typeface specimen. The two were married into one creative space and share some recent type-related thoughts and insights, while introducing Character Type’s newest typeface family Tragic Grotesk. It is now available at Slanted Shop!

For the first time the specimag is published as a double issue: Tragic & Boring. “We create the Characters specimags series out of love and delight for type and print and colors. And we love to see the work of great artists in magazines. So we mix all of the above and hope others are just as elated by the result as we are.” says Character Type’s type director Henning Skibbe.

The Tragic part introduces Tragic Grotesk, a 16 style sans type family inspired by 19th century grotesk typefaces as well as technical typefaces such as DIN. This combination conveys warmth and digital clarity. The specimen showcases the typefaces features and explains the design ideas on 20 pages. The Tragic part was printed on pink 160 g/sm Joly pink paper in Pantone 072 and Pantone Bright red.

The Boring part showcases designers, illustrators, and artists and their ideas on boredom. Whether imposed from outside or triggered by nothing, everyone reacts to boredom. The excesses of human activity caused by boredom are manifold and complex, obscure and exciting. Directly or indirectly: Some of these facets can be found in the works of featured artists Pavel Ripley, Nora Hollstein, Sebastian König, and L’outsider. This 32 page magazine was printed on 170 g/sm Arctic Volume with an additional silver spot color.

The covers were designed by illustrator Sebastian König. He interpreted the two aspects of Tragic Grotesk by having the cover look at the reader with teary eyes which have had a bit too much of digital intoxication. Who hasn’t had a few too many reels and doom scrolls lately? The second cover plays with the effects boredom might have on the mind.

Both magazines are connected with each other through a couple of simple velcro dots.

Characters #03

Publisher & Author: Character Type
Design: Character Type, Henning Skibbe
Format: 20 × 26 cm
Volume: 52 p.
Language: English
Typeface: Tragic Grotesk
Price: 12.– EURO excl. shipping
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Find more information here!

Baghira

Posted on by Moritz Kleinsorge

Just as letters rarely come alone, humans, too, are social animals. We all need an assertive companion sometimes. Someone who radiates confidence and reliability. Someone who shows us the right approach to our challenges. Typographically speaking, such an aide would be Baghira, our contemporary serif typeface. Like its feline namesake from Kipling’s Jungle Book, Baghira has an elegant, smooth appearance and an impressive set of large, sharp teeth. And like the panther, this typeface is poised enough to bear its serifs without flaunting. Try it out: despite the size of these wedges, you’ll never feel that they are distracting. In fact, they may even add to the reading flow by creating a horizontal drive in every line that draws you along, guiding you through the jungle of the text. That’s what faithful companions do, after all.

With smoothly drawn curves, precisely placed corners, and rectangular dots, Baghira is a design rooted in the here and now. Its true italics gently allude to calligraphic roots, but overall, Baghira doesn’t follow any historical model. This cool cat sets his own standards.

Designed by Christian Gruber, with art direction by Moritz Kleinsorge, the Baghira font family consists of eight fonts, with four weights ranging from Regular to Bold. Its character set contains almost 800 characters per style and is suited to quality typography in editorial design, book design, UI/UX, and advertising. Numerous OpenType features bring its versatility to perfection. This includes small caps, different figure sets, circled numbers, arrows, and many more.

Baghira is a perfect pick for any project in which very legible body copy with a contemporary look as well as serious but energetic serif headlines are called for, unburdened by historical baggage. This font family is especially suitable for brands and corporate designs that opt for a single typeface, given its great performance in all sizes and all media. Thus, Baghira is a great font for books (whether fiction, nonfiction, or text books, printed or ebooks) magazines and newspapers from indie to financial, annual reports, catalogs, and websites.

Baghira feels at home in the world of journalism, activism, literature, fashion, art, NGOs—and wherever a message with biting wit is waiting for a matching visual voice. Our sleek black cat is not limited to those fields, though: a true panther makes his way in the teeth of the jungle.

Stuck in a project? Lost in type specimens? Can’t see the forest for the trees in your font menu? Just let Baghira take the lead. This trustworthy aide might nudge you into the right direction.

Baghira

Foundry: Identity Letters
Designer: Christian Gruber, Moritz Kleinsorge
Release: November 2021
File Formats: otf, woff2 + trial fonts (via Identity Letters)
Weights: Regular, Regular Italic, Medium, Medium Italic, Semi Bold, Semi Bold Italic, Bold, Bold Italic
Price: starting from 35.– Euro
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Das kleine g

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Das kleine g (engl. The Small g–An Experimental Study) is a book about an experimental study of the lowercase “g.” It is now available at Slanted Shop!

Without doubt the lowercase “g” could be described as the most special one of all the letters. The loops, drops, and bridges multifarious forms. Through the observation and preoccupation with its peculiarities, dynamics, and the perceptible spring balancer of this letter the author Annette Riechert managed nothing less than an approach the being of writing itself.

The unique character of a font is shaped by the form of each letter. And each letter has its own ways of absorbing a character that shapes the typeface. Starting from these thoughts, Annett Riechert has investigated the character of the lowercase “g” in the study The Small g.

The holistic approach ranges from graphic appearance, linguistics, the effect as a spoken sound, to the analysis of similarities and differences in the series of letters of the alphabet.

The book was developed as a final study of the 10th annual Typography Intensive course in 2015 and revised for publication. The book is published by August Dreesbach Verlag in 2019.

Das kleine g

Publisher: August Dreesbach Verlag
Author: Annett Riechert
Volume: 72 p.
Workmanship: Paperback
Format: 21 × 18 × 0.6 cm
Language: German
Release: 2019
ISBN: 978-3-96395-005-6
Price: 24.– Euro
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art Karlsruhe 2022

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Past week the art Karlsruhe 2022 took place for the 19th time from July 7th to 10th. The team of Slanted came by to have a look at the modern and contemporary art market.

The Karlsruhe art fair has been cancelled in 2021 due to COVID and has been rescheduled for summer 2022. In four huge halls, 215 galleries from Greece, Turkey, Germany, the USA, and many other countries exhibited their works, including paintings, sculptures, installations, and prints. There were 180 one-artist shows, 24 places for sculptures, and two special exhibitions. Around 30,000 visitors came to see, what the modern art world has to offer.

The art Karlsruhe prize went to Ambra Durante, whose work was presented by Galerie Friese, Berlin.

After this years success the art Karlsruhe 2023 will again take place next year in the summer from May 4th to 7th.

Slanted in Stockholm: Bedow

Posted on by Vicky Blake

When visiting Stockholm in the summer of 2021, we took a close look at the contemporary design scene. We were happy to meet great designers from the local creative scene, among them Perniclas Bedow!

Perniclas Bedow (born 1976) is a Swedish graphic designer, art director, and founder of design studio Bedow. The studio’s work is described as simple, thoughtful, and practical and have won numerous international design awards such as Art Directors Club, Cannes Lions, D&AD, Epica, and One Show. Bedow’s work have been published in magazines as Fantastic Man, The Washington Post, Process Journal, Wallpaper, and Monocle.

Perniclas Bedow’s work can be found in the Slanted Magazine #39—Stockholm. Additionally we shot a video interview to talk about his attitude and view of things. Take a look at our new issue and the video platform to encounter new ways of design thinking!

Portrait and studio photography: © Thomas Mandl
Product photography: © Bedow

100 POSTER BATTLE 2

Posted on by Vicky Blake

100 POSTER BATTLE 2 is an experimental, bilingual poster design project supervised by Lars Harmsen and Markus Lange, that brings together students from different universities to design posters.

In a first round, black and white basic motifs were created, consisting of typography / text, or image / illustration / photo, or background. Just like in screen printing, the various layers were to be brought together in such a way that they all use the previously created pool. 

Symbolically, this is already the first step of sharing cultural identity: that everyone has formulated their idea and vision in advance, but then mixes it with the thoughts and images of others, combines—to then also see from others how their own work moves and acquires new meanings. In terms of content, they covered three topics: Fashion & Subculture, Food, and City.

With all these topics all participants learned a lot from each other. Not only then, but also in the aftermath. The creation of this publication gave rise to a very close relationship between some of them. The designers worked together for days and nights, appreciating each other over the countless online sessions and conversations. They became friends in the process.

100 POSTER BATTLE 2

Editors: Dortmund University of Applied Sciences, Münster School of Design
Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Release: July 2022
Supervision and Text: Prof. Lars Harmsen and Markus Lange
Design: Claudia Mai, Eyad Abushaar, Jacqueline Dalüge, Marie Bochen, Nouran Ahmed, Rana Wassef
Volume: 272 pages
Format: 170 × 240 mm
Workmanship: Softcover, thread-stitching
Specialty: Augmented reality on cover
ISBN: 978-3-948440-39-8
Price: € 30.–
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Parcours Summer 2022

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Parcours Summer 2022 invites you from July 15th to 17th, 2022, on behalf of all graduates, to the exhibition of the bachelor’s theses from the fields of illustration, communication, media, and product design, as well as master’s theses from the design program.

Parcours is more than an exhibition. Contrasting and versatile, sometimes contradictory, but always individual and special. After more than two years now is finally the time. Time to experience the emotions of the moment together again, to share experiences and adventures.

Parcours overcomes borders and makes design tangible and creates direct access and exchange. They look forward to welcoming all visitors to this special moment.

Parcours Summer 2022 

When?
Vernissage: 
Friday, July 15th at 7:30 p.m. until 10 p.m.
Exhibition:
Saturday, July 16th from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m
Sunday, July 17th from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m

Where?
Münster University of Applied Sciences
MSD / Münster School of Design
Leonardo Campus 6
48149 Münster

Entry is free!

Before Paris

Posted on by AzuliqType

Before Paris is a multi-purpose typeface, which is pushing the boundaries of a classical display font. The typeface offers uppercase and lowercase letters, together with a variety of OpenType features like ligatures and stylistic sets.

Before Paris arose as an homage to the French movie Elevator to the Gallows (fr. Ascenseur pour l’échafaud). This masterpiece by Louis Malle from 1958 is an exciting mix between crime thriller and insane love story. It would later be called the first significant work of the Nouvelle Vague (en. New Wave). The designer’s goal was to recreate the character and the strong atmosphere of Elevator to the Gallows in a typeface. In the glyphs you can find multiple hidden references to the title and the hybrid style of the movie—soft and sharp structures colliding as well as parts being cut off or twisted.

Before Paris

Type foundry: Azuliq Type
Designer: Markus Abts
Release date: June 2022
Weights: Regular, Semibold (more to come)
File formats: otf, woff2
Prices: starting from 29.– € for students (all-inclusive license)
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Celebrating Design in Bavaria

Posted on by Clara Weinreich

Last night we had the pleasure of celebrating the release of our Slanted Special Issue Bavaria with many of the participants and friends in Munich at soda book shop. We had an incredibly nice evening and really enjoyed the exchange about the magazine and beyond.

Thanks to all the guests for coming. A special thanks goes to bayern design and the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, without whom the magazine and the event could not have happened. A big thank you also goes to Michael Schmidt of Melville Brand Design and the Makers Bible for his support in connecting us in Bavaria. Aqua Monaco was kind enough to sponsor some of their delicious lemonades, mixers, and water for our guests. We really enjoyed it a lot.

See you again soon!

Slanted Special Issue Bavaria

Editor, Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Release: July 2022
Volume: 192 pages
Format: 16 × 24 cm
Language: English
Bookbinding: Open stitch binding
Printer: Offset, Stober Medien
ISBN: 978-3-948440-40-4
Price: € 14.– / $ 15.50
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Slanted in Stockholm: Stockholm Design Lab

Posted on by Vicky Blake

When visiting Stockholm in the summer of 2021, we took a close look at the contemporary design scene. We were happy to meet great designers from the local creative scene, among them Stockholm Design Lab!

Stockholm Design Lab, an internationally recognized and awarded brand agency, has since 1998 worked internationally and domestically with a wide range of clients and sectors to transform brands and businesses with remarkable, simple ideas. The multi-disciplinary design work spans across airlines, fashion labels, spirits brands, museums, fast moving consumer goods to technology companies, cultural, and educational institutions.

Stockholm Design Lab’s work can be found in the Slanted Magazine #39—Stockholm. Additionally we shot a video interview to talk about their attitude and view of things. Take a look at our new issue and the video platform to encounter new ways of design thinking!

Portrait and studio photography: © Thomas Mandl
Product photography: © Stockholm Design Lab

Slanted Special Issue Bavaria

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Slanted Special Issue Bavaria presents a selection of the best of Bavarian creativity, diversity, and intelligence!

OK … Bavaria stands for: Men in Lederhosen and women in Dirndls (traditional dresses), beer, Schweinshaxen (pork knuckles), Knödel (dumplings), Brezeln and Weißwürste, Oktoberfest, FC Bayern Munich, BMW (75.000 employees), Audi, Allianz, Adidas, Siemens, Alps, Allgäu, Munich, Nuremberg, Augsburg, Dachau, Altötting, Chiemsee, Starnberger See, and all the other lakes, Schloss Neuschwanstein (logo template Disney), Kraus-Maffei Wegmann, Airbus and MTU (most German arms exports come from Bavaria), Deutsches Museum, Pinakotheken, Neue Sammlung, Münchner Kammerspiele, Bayerische Oper, Wagner-Festspiele, Karl Valentin, Gerhard Polt, Lothar Matthäus (“I hope we have a little bit lucky”) … Stop. In the case of Bavaria, the list of clichés can be extended indefinitely. 

Until the 1950s, many still considered Bavaria to be an agricultural state—an image that even then stood for only one side of the Free State. In 1972, the Olympic Games in Munich presented the world with a civilian Federal Republic that had shed the dull gray of the post-war years and was openly looking to the future. The Weltstadt mit Herz (World City with Heart) was proclaimed. Though “The games must go on.”—Avery Brundage, then president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), declared at the funeral service for the eleven members of the Israeli team killed the day before …

With the help of bayern design, we tracked down designers, artists, photographers, illustrators, and crafters—all people who love their region (almost a third of the Bavarian population prefers to spend their vacations in their own state) and are passionate about what they do. Clearly, Bavaria is rich. Rich in creativity, diversity, and intelligence. Our research uncovered so many findings that this issue could easily have been many times more extensive. It’s a typically Bavarian dilemma we have to face: Immer etwas zu viel des Guten! (There’s always more good stuff than you can enjoy). And we think that’s really good! Because life is really good here. Servus!

Slanted Special Issue Bavaria

Editor, Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Release: July 2022
Volume: 192 pages
Format: 16 × 24 cm
Language: English
Bookbinding: Open stitch binding
Printer: Offset, Stober Medien
ISBN: 978-3-948440-40-4
Price: € 14.– / $ 15.50
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SAUFEN

Posted on by jaredgrasser

As part of Jared Grasser’s bachelor’s thesis, he created a campaign with wit and looseness that educates young adults between the ages of 17 and 27 about alcohol and its risks at eye level. In his work SAUFEN, he dispels prejudices, encourages people to take a self-determined approach, and shows them that they don’t have to live up to society’s expectations.

“Because I have chosen not to drink alcohol, I know that you don’t need it in order to have fun and balance in your life. I also know how quickly my attitude is noticed and met with incomprehension.”

The approach is not to focus exclusively on the dangers and effects of alcohol. To do justice to the educational aspect, it is necessary not only to point out the risks of irresponsible consumption, but also to celebrate alcohol-free alternatives and the decision not to drink so that they become normalized in society.

His bachelor thesis won the university’s faculty award for outstanding work.

SAUFEN

Art Direction, Design / Illustrations, and Text: Jared Grasser
Release: not officially released, finished in March 2022
Volume: 26 p.
Language: German
Format: Din A3

A Place of Daring

Posted on by Emil Hoher

A Place of Daring, a house with charisma—the University of Arts Linz sees itself as an open space dedicated to critical thinking and shaping social processes. The new visual identity reflects this idea by using a fluid framework which never stands still. Embedded in a mindful layout, it provides flexible space for the various content of the students, teachers, employees, and researchers.

“As a young university that drives social change with art and cultural studies, with technologies and ideas for more sustainability, we need a corporate design that corresponds to this attitude. This has been achieved with Bleed’s open, flexible concept. I am convinced that now we will be able to show the open mind which we have always practiced to the world.” Brigitte Hütter, Rector of the University of Arts Linz.

Interactivity, digitalization, and motion define the core principles of the visual language. The mirrored logotype allows to integrate two languages at once—referring to the international mindset of the institution. The customized font Linz Sans unifies all written communication. From now on, the new corporate identity provides maximum freedom for individuality and expression of the arts.

“With the new visual orientation, the University of Arts Linz shows itself as an open, progressive house that shapes the future itself. The diversity of the university is reflected in a hybrid dialog between analog and digital applications.” says Astrid Feldner, Creative Director of Bleed Vienna. Bleed is an international branding and design agency with studios in Vienna and Oslo. More about the project here.

Dessau Design Schau

Posted on by Vicky Blake

At the Dessau Design Schau a colorful mix of students from many different semesters will show their integrated design studies.

This year they have the chance to show their work live and on site in Dessau. The appearance of the Dessau Design Show was created in a project (with Prof. Brigitte Hartwig) in this summer semester with 15 students. While reading this, they will still be in the middle of producing print media, a signage system, maps, merchandise, etc.

You can expect a varied program of exhibitions, project presentations, lectures, presentations, and hands-on activities! Come and talk to the students, lecturers, and alumni and get to know life on campus! They will also be present online so you can get an insight in advance on our university portal Incom.

Dessau Design Schau

When?
July 15th – 16th 2022

Where?
Seminarplatz 2a
06846 Dessau 
Germany

Find more information here!

Typeface of the Month: Rezak

Posted on by Vicky Blake

Our Typeface of the Month: Rezak is designed by Anya Danilova and published by TypeTogether.

Nothing is hidden in the simplistic forms of Anya Danilova’s Rezak font family recently published by TypeTogether type foundry. Rezak is not a typeface directly from the digital world, but was inspired by the stout presence of cutting letters out of a solid material. With only a few cuts, the shapes remain dark and simple. With more cuts, the shapes become lighter and more defined, resulting in a dynamic type family not stuck within one specific category.

Most normal typefaces change only in thickness; Rezak changes in intention, highlighting the relationship between dark and light, presence and absence, what’s removed and what remains. Rezak’s Black and Incised display styles are like a shaft of light in reverse and are perfect in situations of impact: websites, headlines, and large text, gaming, call-outs, posters, and packaging. The text styles are bold, energetic, well informed, and round out the family with four weights (Regular, Semibold, Bold, and Extrabold) and matching italics for a family grand total of ten. These jaunty styles work well in children’s books, movie titles, and subheads for myriad subjects such as architecture, coffee, nature, cooking, and other rough-and-tumble purposes.

Rezak’s crunchy letters are meant to expose rough, daring, or dramatic text. A further benefit is that this family is not sequestered within one specific genre or script, so it can be easily interpreted for other scripts, such as its current Latin and extended Cyrillic which supports such neglected languages as Abkhaz, Itelmen, and Koryak.

Rezak’s push toward creativity and innovation, with an eye on typography’s rich history, reinforces TypeTogether’s mission to publish invigorating forms at the highest function and widest applicability.

Anya Danilova is a type and graphic designer from Moscow, Russia. She obtained her Master’s degree in 2019 from Type and Media at The Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. Since then, she has made her home in The Hague and continues her type design practice as a freelancer. Anya’s Rezak family was the winner of the Gerard Unger Scholarship 2020.

Typeface of the Month: Rezak

Foundry: TypeTogether
Designer: Anya Danilova
Release: 2022
File Formats: otf, eot, svg, woff, woff2
Styles / widths / weights: Regular & Italic, Medium & Medium Italic, Bold & Bold Italic, Extrabold & Extrabold Italic, Black & Black Incised
Price per style / family: 31.50 EURO / 238.– EURO (for up to 5 users)
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Estonian Museum of Applied Arts and Design

Posted on by Julia Kahl

Design shapes our daily lives on many different levels; from clothing, home objects and vehicles to houses, environments and relationships between people. The function of design has been to mediate changes in technology, science or in human thinking more broadly. In this way, plywood furniture, synthetic fabrics or coherently marked pathways have become part of our everyday environments. The concept of design has been redefined over the past decades, reflecting the predominant attitudes of the time.

The Estonian Design Museum in Tallinn shows exactly this change on several floors in an old warehouse and presents extraordinary pieces in a clear and modern way. We were lucky enough to get a personal insight from the director Kai Lobjakas, who also revealed to us that the museum will significantly expand its collection in the field of graphics. We are excited!

The aim of the exhibition is to provide an overview of the layers, characteristics and variety of Estonian design, and highlight a small selection of examples that at various times and for various reasons have shaped the local design scene, either under the name of applied art, industrial art or design. The many layers of this well curated selection represent also political and economic changes of the period, abrupt endings and new beginnings.

The story of Estonian design is still young and the Estonian Design Museum has only been collecting and analyzing materials for the past 20 years. There’s still a lot to be uncovered, so that it can become a chapter in the history of Estonian design.

Find more information here: www.etdm.ee