1. Amazing hats and headpieces from Moody & Farrell via Trendland
2. Darling DIY fringed clutch via design*sponge
3. These handmade woodland creature masks are adorable via Design Crush
4. Gradients on rocks via Present & Correct
5. Playful culinary compositions via Plenty of Colour
6. These DIY fringed garlands look like so much fun via A Subtle Revelry
7. Gorgeous glass art from Ruth Allen via The Design Files
8. Lovely photos by Nico Krijno via Miss Moss
9. Well, aren’t these adorable via Mr. Printables
10. Aerial mosaic of Johannesburg via Colossal
11. Fun DIY tassel sandals via Honestly WTF
12. A stack of newspapers, a very sharp x-acto blade, and artist Myriam Dion via The Jealous Curator

Contributed by Emily Gup

Who here’s downloaded the latest i0S7 iPhone update? I have, and outside of the excessive (sometimes dizzying) white space, the paralex seasickness, the non-index finger-friendly calendar and fast-draining battery, on the whole, it’s a sleek looking evolution (ha).

For those of you still holding out, perhaps this wallpaper release from the creative folks at Percolate will encourage you to accept the inevitable. It’ll also help ease the transition from purely an aesthetics point of view. Read a bit more about it (and download the art) from Percolate’s blog. In our humble opinion, the vectors are fresh, flat and geometric and tip their hat to the angular trend we’ve grown to love from Matt W Moore and Andy Gilmore.

So, this is very cool. If you’re a New York-based graphic designer, a student, or simply an enthusiast of all things design, put this event on your calendar.

Cooper Union’s shining a spotlight on the inner workings of the print and web industries with their current exhibition, Image of the Studio. The show opens to the public today and features over 75 current graphic design firms based in New York, ranging from large to medium-sized to collectives and one-person studios. It’s a great gage the current state of affairs in contemporary design in our ever-evolving city. Check it out if you’re free.

The artists in this week’s gallery picks effectively refine the beauty in contradictions.

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1. Augustine Kofie’s recent collection began with a series of small notes and doodles on found paper, “a usual task in the studio, but this go around I kept the idea in mind of sound structures and systems of reliability” at White Walls
2. Jason Yates’ work finds meaning and therefore truth in contradictions, a reflection of a culture chasing it’s own tail. The artist distills his punk aesthetic,editing out representational imagery,to find the essential at M.J. Briggs
3. In her work, Vadis Turner has created a visual language that re-imagines gender roles, rites of passage and the classification of heirlooms in a contemporary cultural context at Jack Geary Contemporary
4. Leonardo Ulian’s Sacred Space consists of a series of mandalas, a symbol from Hindu and Buddhist symbolism that represents metaphysical enlightenment, made entirely from meticulously arranged electronic components at Beers Contemporary
5. For Tim Biskup, a ‘charge’ can be harbored by things constantly rejected as too abstract, too small or too anomalous. Biskup acts as a physical receptor to these alternative cultures, by producing works that channel musicality and vibrancy into a stream of progressive Modernism at Martha Otero
6. Alyce Gottesman’s paintings and works on paper reflect the interconnectedness between nature, geometric forms and space. The work is at once both intuitive and analytical, while exploring a spiritual connection with nature at The Painting Center

Abstract watercolors have been in the illustration spotlight since geometrics took a back seat. Proving their weight in gold in the female homegoods market, the notion of luxury, individuality and beautiful imperfection has been a refreshing turn from the preppy rigidness of gridded patterns. Mara-Mi is a line of stationary, table decor and desk accessories that gets this. Their surface patterns are made in-house and speak to the creative, high-spending, free-spirit (hello ABC Carpet, Rifle Paper Co, and Ampersand Design Studio). Their foil-stamped envelope inserts add an interesting accent of luxury to mirror the time investment of writing a note. We’re big fans.

1. Jonathan Bréchignac draws elaborate carpets with a pen via Yatzer
2. Bill Gekas photographed his daughter like the Dutch masters via Yellowtrace
3. Lovely instruments of air vessels via The Artful Desperado
4. Digging these wooden “crystals” via Design Crush
5. Would you use wrapping paper as walloper? via Poppytalk
6. Raise a hand if you want a Colour Chaser via Plenty of Colour
7. And now I want some swan wallpaper via SF Girl By Bay
8. Interview with Cressida Campbell via The Design Files
9. Andre Levy paints coins collected from his travels via Honestly WTF
10. Creating DIY textiles with Sharpies and alcohol via Curbly
11. The 9000 fallen soldiers of Normandy etched into the sand via Colossal
12. Nike Savvas’s colorful string installations via Patternbank

Contributed by Emily Gup

This video by Shimi Cohen‘s fascinating. He explains and dissects human loneliness, social order, the internet, and our personal fantasy worlds. The idea of live conversation and spontaneous reaction are the pillars behind real relationships…when you don’t have the opportunity to edit, the payoff’s much greater. Some food for thought for your Friday afternoon.

Have you seen Laura Callaghan’s illustrations? They’re unique and interesting and filled with texture, gesture and attitude. I stumbled across her work by way of Gems, one of my favorite creative newsletters, and did an immediate deep dive into her site.

Check it out for yourself (and buy a print if you’re so inclined), as you’ll find intricate mixed media scenarios that test the limits of felt tip pens. Callaghan’s also the Illustration Editor of Oh Comely magazine and currently based in South East London. She’s a member of Illustrators Ireland and is currently taking on contract work both locally and abroad. Hit her up if you’ve got a good collaboration in mind!

These two are really the antithesis of each other- it’s almost comical to compare the stratospheres. Sean Williams, an exceptionally talented tattoo artist living in LA, recently posted his latest work to instagram. Take a deep dive into his reel, and while it’s rather dark, you’ll find beautiful illustrations and inticate body art.

Fast forward four minutes, and I’m looking at Facebook, then Refinery29′s piece on Erica Domesek of P.S I Made This. For those who are unaware, Erica is one of the internet queens of DIY replica fashion. My brain had a fission, but when you’re visual, you can’t deny the obvious comparison, and with social media, you also can’t control or avoid the stream coming at you. Alas, I’m sharing these military tassel themes.

Any odd but poignant compare/contrasts in your reels? Would love to see…

In this week’s gallery picks, it’s all about how you orient yourself.

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1. Digital tools can both mimic material phenomena and become art historical reference points. Three artists trace image manipulation devices like paint-brush, gradient, and alpha-mask to produce works that translate emerging vocabularies of digital image production back into analog painting and sculpture at Suzanne Geiss
2. Ai Weiwei: According to What? examines how the artist spotlights the complexities of a changing world and probes such issues as freedom of expression, individual and human rights, the power of digital communication and the range of creative practice that characterizes contemporary art today both in China and globally at Art Gallery of Ontario
3. The group exhibition “Up in Smoke” is a reaction to the concept of a poem by Jack London at Greenpoint Terminal Gallery
4. Steven Hull continues to explore in the various ways that painting and sculpture overlawhere a flat image can appear to be dimensional, and a sculptural piece can feel image-based. By extension, we are led to consider the ways that our notions of these delineations are contingent, where received logic can be broken down by simple contextual shifts at Rosamund Felsen
5. Observed at a distance, each work presents a mesmerizing field of candy-colored pink, teal, lilac and sand, which appears to pulsate with energy. Only upon closer inspection does each burst of color transform from the abstract into figurative at Pace Gallery
6. Clive van den Berg looked to the diagrams and mapping techniques of archeologists and prospectors, and the resulting landscapes challenge our sense of perspective, and invite us to reconsider our orientation at Goodman Gallery

Pop quiz: can you figure out which woodgrain print is FW13 and which is SS14?

While you try to figure it out, I’ll give you a little insight into the top shot- which I took last month while visiting Port Washington, NY. Just beside the train station, there’s a pizza shop with a decaying wall and a fabulous slice.  I added it to my instagram reel, then gave a good think about what a beautiful translation it would be to silk slacks or winter outerwear.

Fast forward, and as we all know with trends, nature, inspiration and instagram, the designers are constantly digesting. Raquel Allegra’s recent Fall release includes a collection of woodgrain prints. They’re beautiful, and present a relaxed, luxurious execution. To the right is 3.1 Phillip Lim’s recent runway collection for Fashion Week- representing SS14 themes.

What’s the point of this compare/contrast? That everything’s cyclical. Woodgrain has as much staying power as florals- it all depends on the creative filter, the market, the color palette and the fabric. Would love to hear your thoughts- how often to you reinterpret and reapply staple themes?

1. Mao’s new suit via Trendland
2. Katie Rodger’s beautiful NYFW sketches on Paper fashion via Honestly WTF
3. Katja Mustaniemi’s gorgeous woven backpack via Miss Moss
4. Swoonworthy scarves from Block Shop via design*sponge
5. Digging Justin Windle’s glitchy style via Patternbank
6. Michelle McKinney’s beautiful woven metal installations via The Jealous Curator
7. Candles from crayons via Brit + Co.
8. Stippling tattoos from Kenji Alucky via Colossal
9. Loving this combo of pale pink and copper via Poppytalk
10. Hankering for Proef’s sheer, printed tights via Design Crush
11. A fan of the effect of wallpapered flooring via Yellowtrace
12. Showcasing colored powder as an artful, adaptable material via Plenty of Colour

Contributed by Emily Gup