i AM the luckiest woman alive

Welcome to the post-grad me! As I file away my student card and start the post grad journey into employment, I have decided to suspend my blog posts on bon mardi and amalgamate my professional site with my blog so they can be found in one handy place. So feel free to trip on over to my newly renovated website: www.luckiestwomanalive.com , take a look around and sign up to receive news of my design exploits in this next, slightly thrilling, phase of my career.

Thanks very much for following - as I write this post I note that bon mardi has attracted over 20,000 views in four years which is pretty cool. Your interest has been a happy accident on my road to creative fulfilment. And one thing I have learnt in the last four years is that happy accidents can be the catalyst for amazing things.

The other things I have learnt? In taking on two degrees at this stage of my life, I have learnt that I continue to be capable of doing anything I desire and that photography, as well as being a rewarding career and pastime in itself, can also be a treasure trove of inspiration for many, many other areas of work. Armed with my various cameras, I look forward to the possibilities of a career in design, academia, curatorial roles, communications or the production of art itself. And these are just the tip of the iceberg... it really is on me as to where I go from here. I have never felt more full of potential. 

Finally, I have learnt that I AM the luckiest woman alive - because I am surrounded by love which informs all my craft and makes each of my days that little bit easier to get through. So to those whom I love and love me:

thank you

For all your support. And as Kevin Smith would say:

Don't let anybody tell you different, man: the main goal in life, career-wise, should always be to try to get paid to simply be yourself. 

Bon Mardi out.

Design in action

Cool idea found on kickstarter this week:

 

ccdn 244 | subverting the photographic process

One day, after professional family and pet portrait photographer Jame Clauss wrapped up a photoshoot, she found herself with nothing to do. So she and her photographer friends did what anybody would do in their position – they created a series of baby photos with their tubby Jack-Russell Terrier Snuggles instead of a baby.

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hello from here

It's been a while. I only did one design paper this trimester and it wasn't particularly well-suited for blogging so bon mardi took a break... Now it's break-time and I am back.
First some inspiration...

dsdn 101 | inspiration

This stop motion animation is really inspiring it almost made me want to drop everything and make my clip completely differently... really amazing.




The story of its making:

dsdn 101 | inspiration

A little inspiration - I love the work of Kirsten LePore who is an artist and filmmaker who works with different animation techniques, including stop-motion animation and claymation.

Here is her stop motion film 'Bottle' which is the most lovely, bitter-sweet story of an unexpected connection between sand and snow you are ever likely to see. Her sense of whimsy is exactly what I would like to express in my own animation...




Bottle from Kirsten Lepore on Vimeo.

dsdn 111 | precedent video

Found this interesting video on how a healthy bite and jaw joint work together... gave me some ideas about how to approach this project

inspiration | cupcake pavilion

Designed by design collective Oh.No.Sumo. for Auckland Architecture Week 2012, it reminds me of one of my ideas for Project 2 in DSDN 104 last year...

dsdn 101 | post-drawing-exercise-inspiration

I enjoyed project 1 so much. It is the first time I have 'had to' draw for any reason for ... well decades.
I found this cool blog post today and thought I should put it away for when I am deadline free and looking for more drawing goodness...

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inspiration | simplicity

This logo seems to encapsulate the concept of pared back simplicity. The brand is Coyote:

http://imjustcreative.co.uk/logostack/coyote/

inspiration | gordon road

Had to add - continuing on my thread theme from last year is Constellation - Mana by Japanese artist

Kumi Yamashita. Each image is constructed from a single unbroken black thread wound through an array of nails mounted on a white board. 

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inspiration | gordon road

I have a Campari Soda bottle I was given years ago while working on an event for this product. It is still hanging around my kitchen. The bottle was designed in 1932 to be used as a single-dose aperitif by Fortunato Depero (a renowned Futurist artist) and is still in use today. I like its qualities of symmetry and solidity. I also admire the ruby redness of the liquid inside. I don't much care for the taste of Campari and soda.

© helen k williams 2013

Quotidien Inspiration

Starting the week with some art deco objects. Sticking to a favourite theme - dressing tables.



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