São Paulo, Brazil

There’s something truly delightful (and ever more rare it seems) about receiving a package in the mail. Here’s an example—a lovely surprise received recently from my friends Marcelo and Marta Aflalo (of Univers Design)—a beautifully designed CD package for Marcelo’s cousin Cris. I had the pleasure of seeing Cris Aflalo perform live five years ago at the special Friends of Icograda evening in São Paulo, part of the Icograda Design Week events we enjoyed there at Oscar Niemeyer’s Memorial da America Latina. Get a wee taste of Cris Aflalo’s quintessentially Brazilian vibe via YouTube here—or drop by Circle for a listen first-hand.

Thanks, Marcelo!

Lisbon, Portugal

I’ve finished preparing my presentation, and a week from now it’s off to OFFF in Oieras (just outside Lisbon) for what sounds like a very interesting event… a sold-out gig with nearly 4000 enthusiastic attendees. The theme this year is “This isn’t flying. This is falling with style. Fail gracefully.”

Over-the-top image by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) appropriated and pressed into service…

Worldwide…

Messages and greetings from Icograda Friends have been coming in from around the planet… it’s great to be part of a widespread family of like-minded practitioners.

World Graphics Day image by Rodolfo Fernandez Alvarez of Malaga, Spain (with a nod to recently departed Shigeo Fukuda).

Worldwide…

The 27th of April is celebrated around the world every year as World Graphics Day (gatherings by designers, exhibitions, etc.)—it marks the birth date of the International Council of Graphic Design Associations (Icograda) in 1963, and it provides an opportunity to recognize communication design and the role our profession plays in today’s world. World Graphics Day was officially inaugurated in 1995 to help further Icograda’s goal of “contributing to greater understanding between people, and helping to build bridges where divides and inequities exist.”

Peace; poster designed in 1985 by venerable Canadian designers Chris Yaneff and Manfred Gotthans, and described by Chris as follows: “We designed the ‘Peace’ poster for the exhibition Images for Survival for the Shoshin Society, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the first use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. 135 poster designs were selected by leading Graphic Designers in North America and Japan. The joint exhibition of American and Japanese peace posters was shown first at the Hiroshima Museum of Modern Art and then later in Nagasaki Japan, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C., Ottawa Canada, Paris, and Moscow. The inspiration for the poster came from a photo my son took while in Nagasaki, Japan, where North American tourists are often greeted with a peace sign by the local young children, as Nagasaki was the target of the second atomic bomb. My associate Manfred Gotthans felt that children showing the peace sign might make an adorable travel poster, but wouldn’t drive home the fatal consequences if mankind doesn’t heed the plea for peace and nuclear disarmament. This is why we used a skeleton (an actual skeleton was photographed for the poster); we felt the poster needs no words. The message is a serious reminder and is comprehensible in any language.”

Jenkintown, Pennsylvania

I was happy to stumble across some excellent posters here by Joe Scorsone and Alice Druedling.

Above: Alternatives to War; Fate.

New York

In today’s New York Times, the inimitable (and carefully observant) Maira Kalman has a poignantly illustrated Opinion piece on the importance of self confidence (among other things) entitled May It Please the Court—And the Pursuit of Happiness. Thanks, Maira.

Some sweet vernacular letterforms and type finds by Bradley Dicharry on lettermade.com. (thanks to Martyn Schmoll for the link)

A great new “bookmarking” site wholly dedicated to found type-related images, video, & texts—lots of typographic eye-candy worth exploring here…  (thanks Stu Ross for the heads up)

Winnipeg, Canada

Best wishes go out on this special day to my father, John Jacob Peters (born in Russia in 1920 amidst the turmoil following the Bolshevik revolution). May your 90th year bring you ongoing peace, joy, and fulfillment!

This photo of dad is from the late 1940s (scanned by my brother Jim, thanks). Within the past month dad’s undergone successful cataract surgery on both eyes—and can once again see perfectly without glasses for the first time in nearly 50 years!

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

I’ve been laid up the past few days with a bad cold/bronchitis—but being couchbound has provided the opportunity of adding a few sort categories to this blog. I’ve added Humour, Quotable(s), and Vintage—the above images (don’t you just love historic photographs?) are from Lumas, Life, and the like….