Hard to argue with and also in keeping with the heuristic Occam’s razor…

No comments necessary… a terrifyingly candid portrait of the frocked ilk by talented illustrator © Brian Stauffer.

A mid-1960s Renault 8

I bought my first car for $300 in February of 1974, an amount earned by working for what seemed like an eternity in a window factory (in reality, it was a single two-week pay period). With some minor repairs, a set of well-used steel-belted radials, and a fresh paint job (by hand—but I swear you could hardly see the brush strokes) this beauty got me to where I needed to go in style… and while the 956 cubic cms (58.3 cubic inches) and whopping 43 horsepower could hardly be considered a powerhouse, the 40+ m.p.g. fuel efficiency and smooth performance of the svelte little five-bearing engine made up for it.

Key features included deep-sprung, super-comfortable polyurethane-molded seats, “aircraft-style air louvres,” four doors, a (synchronized!) 4-speed manual transmission, four-wheel disc brakes (a first in its class), a four-wheel independent suspension (read great road holding), a “huge luggage boot” (OK, 11 cu. ft.) in the front, and the advantageous rear-engine (complete with emergency hand-crank!) and rear-wheel drive—brilliant for muscling through snowdrifts on wintry prairie roads. My sweet little R8 also offered one of tightest turning radii of all time… which all has me waxing just a wee bit nostalgic for this diminutive French charmer.

Thanks to Icograda Friend Frederick Burbach for this design quotable today…

Warsaw, Poland

If you happen to find yourself in Warsaw two weeks from now (don’t laugh—it happens) be sure to attend the latest exhibition of works by my irrepressible friend Stasys Eidrigevičius (who I have posted about earlier here and here). And, if you are wandering about at the vernissage, please pass on my personal greetings, OK?

Gratulacje!

This made me laugh out loud… and I’m still grinning. A suitably tongue-in-cheek quote by my friend Noreen Morioka, chanced across on a somewhat self-aggrandizing website posting entitled “All the Quotes About Design You’ll Ever Need or Want.”

No slight to dentists intended…

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

I have to say—it’s a lot of fun having a partner as creative as my darlin’ Evelin (Richter). A side benefit of our relationship is my being able to assist in the ceramics studio (with the chance to hone tactile and haptic sensibilities) as her latest iterations come to life. I’ll post more of her most recent figurative work (and maybe even some of my own) as it reaches fruition over the next months. In the meantime, have a look at what she’s up to here.

Image: On The Surface, All Seemed Normal Figurative slab-built stoneware sculpture, finished with low-fire glazes and iron oxide stain (augmented with cold-finishes); sterling silver bridle and a formed copper bit; 420mm x 210mm x 340mm tall.

Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Brazilian designer Yomar Augusto designed the distinctive Unity font featured in the current FIFA World Cup as part of a commission by Adidas.