Rube Goldberg: it’s a name so closely associated with ridiculously complex machinery, so synonymous with the image of the crazy inventor, that it’s sometimes easy to forget he was a real person. Starting at the beginning of the last century, Goldberg’s ‘Inventions’ series was syndicated nationally, quickly making him a popular, household name. By the time this film was made in 1940, he was world famous and immensely popular. [Read more...]
What do Prudence Prim, Flossie, Gloriette, Dimples, Pretty Polly and Sunny Sue have in common? They’re all 1920′s illustrated heroines by artist Nell Brinkley. Brinkley’s artistic career, spanning the 1910s to the 1940s, largely involved her producing action-packed weekly illustrated serials for newspapers like The American Weekly. She also illustrated quite a few advertisements for hair wavers and bob curlers. [Read more...]
Lynn Ward was an American artist and storyteller that lived from 1905-1985. Throughout his life as an artist, he is most well known for his wood panel engravings. The works, which were entirely without any text, tell visually moving stories. The originals, which date back to 1929, are regarded are some of the first examples of the graphic novel and Ward is regarded as one of the founding fathers of the form. [Read more...]
Designer and artist Cari Vander Yacht works for the well known advertising company Wieden+Kennedy by day… but by night she paints and works on experimental projects like this wonderfully surreal series “TGIMGIF” (Thank God It’s Monday’s Graphics Interchange Format). [Read more...]
What happens when you take world-famous artworks from the distant past and re-interpret them through the lens of modern fantasy? I’m not sure what’s more exciting about these artworks, the fact that they where made based on some of the worlds most famous paintings, or how well each re-working stands up on its own. [Read more...]
Since its discovery by Nikola Tesla in the late 1800s, radio has vastly influenced the world, changing how we get our news, how we communicate and how we entertain ourselves. This informative and entertaining graphic looks at the evolution of the technology from its birth to the modern age of internet radio, looking at how it has adapted to different times and uses. [Read more...]
The history of the American brewing industry has been one of dramatic ups and downs, from a vibrant past of locally stocked saloons, to prohibition and the complete shutdown of the industry, to todays far reaching microbrewery scene. This fast-paced motion graphic from our friends over at Visual.ly, explores that wild ride through the past 110 years. [Read more...]
Just when I was feeling pretty young because I didn’t understand some of my older friends’ pop culture references from the 60‘s & 70’s, I came across this amazing YouTube Channel and realized I’m no spring chicken! The Museum of Obsolete Objects is a catalog of videos- each featuring an archaic apparatus that was once cutting-edge technology and is now relevant only to antique collectors in today’s society. [Read more...]
Who are the mysterious actors underneath the masks of our favorite movie and TV characters? When an elaborate costume like Chewbacca’s is featured on the big screen, that image will reserve a spot in our memories, but what about the person behind it all? Don’t they deserve some acknowledgement as well? Without these talented and animated actors the characters wouldn’t be nearly as memorable or amusing. Let’s pay tribute to the talent behind the mask. [Read more...]
If there’s one thing missing in modern designs, it’s a whole lot of patterns… I mean lets cover everything in checkerboard print! I’m not sure if these shots of far out interiors from the 1970s are showing us how far we’ve come in design or how far we’ve regressed… but it certainly makes me want to let my hair down and relax over some warm fondu. [Read more...]
