Reflecting on the late artist’s legacy, life, and works left behind
“The artisan has a plan, but they’re free to meander and do what they want. The spirit of that is deeply embedded in everything I do,” Lynne Golob Gelfman, lifetime artist and self-proclaimed trickster, told us in 2018 ahead of a solo show at the Pérez Art Museum Miami. It was here, in the very same city, that Gelfman lived and worked until her passing this week. With a playful spirit and a rebellious work ethic, she forged a legacy—a BA in 1966, an MFA in 1968, and 40+ solo shows and gallery acquisitions that followed—that transcends mere appreciation of her work. She represented much more, and serves as inspiration for passionate individuals like her.
Any time Gelfman began a piece, she explained in the aforementioned interview, “the trickster enters.” A traditionally trained artist and an alumna of the New York City art scene, she regularly broke convention and long-standing “rules” to service her intentions. She’d paint on the backs of canvases; she’d test the limits of the surfaces she worked on, and frequently toyed with the idea of order, oftentimes to the point of patterns—many of which were influenced by her appreciation of Colombian basket-weavers—losing their sense of it.
“They were all based on a plan,” Gelfman told us about her work. “And then it’s sort of a game of chance—how much you can control and how much you can let go.” Perhaps unintentionally, she laid out a wise theory on living, and her last days were indicative that her words were more than appealing statements, but rather a deeply ingrained code. Gelfman, as she did most days prior, spent her final hours working on new paintings, and producing artworks that defied expectation.
The Smell Like Your Own Man, Man ads are everything fans of Old Spice’s advertising can expect, featuring Isaiah Mustafa riding a dolphin, balancing on a log, and playing an extra long sax.
Except this time, he’s appearing in the role of dad to his slightly embarrassed son – which is somewhat ironic, given that Old Spice introduced the character to get rid of its fusty dad reputation in the first place.
None of the gags are new, but the Man Your Man Could Smell Like hasn’t lost his charm, and it’s fun to see Mustafa cast in a different light.
Understandably, these two ads don’t have quite the impact of Old Spice guy’s first appearance, back in 2010 – when he famously proclaimed, “Hello ladies, look at your man, now back at me” – but it does show that with some time, and dedication to the story, adverts can leave a lasting memory.
In a world that is getting more crowded by the day, where there’s hardly any place to walk, let alone drive our cars, compact means of personal transportation have gained immense momentum. Innovative and exciting designs have been coming up for electric scooters, e-bikes, and even skateboards! There could be a world where everyone will be zipping by on their little electric vehicles. Upholding such a vision in mind, and to meet the needs of such a world, Ekaterina Tiholova designed her version of an electric scooter, and to be honest…it looks like a flat-packed one!
Designer: Ekaterina Tiholova
Tiholova’s scooter features a plain black base supported by two bulbous wheels. Its metallic grey and matte black looks are eye-catching, with a flash of lime yellow where you hold onto the handle, sealing the deal. The intricately treaded front wheel leads up to a quadrilateral-shaped handle, the scooter’s most unique feature!
The handle provides you with a strong grip, allowing you to maneuver the electric scooter, however, when not in use it can be folded back so that it lays directly above the base of the scooter. Once folded, the scooter resembles a sleek platform, one that can be easily stored away. But the designer planned for that as well!
To support her vision for a world where electric personal transportation reigns supreme, she designed an automated storage area for the flat-packed scooters, and it makes me feel like I’m in 2050 already! At first glance, the storage space looks like a mini nuclear reactor!
At the entrance, the designer has incorporated a long narrow slot to place the scooter upon, which can be controlled using a touch panel on one side. Once inside the different scooters are stored at various levels, forming a neat capsule.
When the scooters are needed, they can be easily accessed, unfolded, and started up! As convenient, space-saving and efficient Tiholova’s design scheme seems, the fact is that it’s still a concept. Could it become a reality anytime soon, or more importantly could such a design work in the future? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see!
The brand overhaul was done by Angus Hyland and his team at the Pentagram London office, and according to the design studio is an attempt to reconnect with existing readers, as well as find those all-important new ones.
Hyland has kept the the open book shape that people will be familiar with, but reduced some of the detail – allowing it to work more effectively at different sizes and in different environments. The serif typeface is now gone, replaced by a bespoke serif.
While many of us might have had a soft spot for the old logo, this is undoubtedly an improvement. There was always a hint of clip art about the previous motif, and it very much felt like the symbol of an educational company rather than a publisher.
Pentagram’s work brings it up to date, but also transforms it into a surprisingly elegant mark. It’s easy to imagine it embossed on books of all kinds.
The agency have also introduced a new tagline – For the curious – which reflects the diversity of content DK publishes.
NatWest has launched a new digital banking service, Bó, which aims to help people spend less and save more. We explore how the brand was created – and what its launch tells us about the future of banking
James Corden isn’t the most obvious choice as brand ambassador for a Japanese skincare range, but SK-II has proven that beauty and humour don’t have to be mutually exclusive. We speak to CEO Sandeep Seth about the brand’s refreshingly playful ethos
Dezeen promotion: Italian brand Flexform has launched its first outdoor furniture collection designed with the help of architect Antonio Citterio.
The newly released Outdoor collection includes sofas, armchairs, tables, chairs and an array of other accessories.
To create the collection Flexform called on designers including Citterio, and re-edited historical designs by Mario Asnago and Claudio Vender, to create products for outdoor use.
The collection includes the Ortigia Outdoor armchairs and Fly Outdoor side tables by Antonio Citterio
The range draws on the company’s characteristic design culture, which is rooted in Italian craftsmanship, and using long-lasting materials on products that are “timeless and elegant [with] a light contemporary touch”.
“Outdoor space, whether large or small, deck, porch or patio, is increasingly becoming the place to fully enjoy every season,” said the brand.
“It is almost an extension of the indoor space and, no matter what you call it, is worthy of the same careful design consideration.”
Citterio also designed the Vulcano daybeds and Tindari side table
Two sofa designs are included in the new collection: Vulcano, designed by Citterio, and Zante, created by Flexform’s Design Centre.
The Vulcano base is made from marine plywood, while the arm and backrest structures are composed of austenitic stainless steel.
The woven upholstery is made of polypropylene fibre or polyurethane rubber and comes in a variety of earthy tones from bordeaux red to olive green.
Citterio’s Peter Outdoor armchairs and ottomans are also now available
The Zante sofa comes in two different seat depths and can be easily disassembled and stacked for safe storage. The upper part of the seating system is made from iroko veneer – a type of wood that is highly resistant to weather conditions – and sits on a frame made in austenitic stainless steel.
The arm and backrests are made from solid iroko and feature a unique design of hand-fitted, interlocking strips of irregularly shaped wood.
Citterio’s Fly Outdoor dining table can be combined with the Moka Outdoor dining chairs by Claudio Asnago and Mario Vender
The outdoor collection also includes a series of dining and coffee tables. The Zefiro dining table by Citterio has sleek, cast-aluminium legs, with an epoxy powder-coat in white, khaki green, wine red, or a burnished or satin finish.
The tabletop comes in a variety of stone suitable for outdoor use, including Beola argentata (silvery green gneiss), pietra del Cardoso, lava stone and porphyry.
Citterio’s other designs include the Fly Outdoor occasional table, Tindari Outdoor side table and Thomas armchair
Other tables designed by Citterio include the Monreale made of iroko wood, the Fly Outdoor family of tables and the Tindari coffee tables that are covered in a woven polypropylene fibre or rubber.
A duo of ottomans also feature in the outdoor collection, called Bangkok and Phuket, which are each covered in woven polypropylene fibre and are available in the colours bordeaux and olive green.
Citterio’s Vulcano sofa is available in many option including a three-seater version
Citterio has also created a series of chairs for Flexform, including the Thomas armchair – a bestseller from the indoor collection, now adapted into an outdoor version.
Thomas’ seat cushion is padded in polyurethane foam covered with a protective, breathable and waterproof laminated fabric, which all rests atop an iroko wood base, with feet made from die-cast metal alloy tips.
Other pieces in the collection include the modern Moka Outdoor chair by designers Asnago and Venderto, the Dafne chair by Flexform’s Design Centre with a woven seat and backrest, and the Cesta Outdoor cabinet also by Design Centre.
The Cesta accessory is designed as “the ideal complement to sofas and armchairs”, and can be used as a magazine holder or storage bin on places like terraces and patios.
Douglas-wood fixtures and furnishings feature throughout this Copenhagen restaurant, which local studio Vermland has designed to have a cosy, familial atmosphere.
Hverdagen offers an entirely organic menu and is situated in Kødbyen – a part of Copenhagen’s Meatpacking District which is populated by a host of contemporary art galleries, breweries and trendy restaurants set inside former factory buildings.
The restaurant has been designed by Vermland to be a mix of the traditional restaurant typology and “long-table dining” – an experience the studio thinks is too-often reserved for eating with family and friends.
“We see how more and more people are asking to share their food when being out in restaurants. This experience concept resembles a casual dinner at home where you have one or two shared pots instead of single plates,” said the studio.
“We love this intimate way of eating together and wanted to embrace it.”
A long, communal dining table has thus been made the “centrepiece” of the restaurant. Simple bench seats have been slotted underneath, while spherical paper lanterns and bunches of wildflowers have been suspended directly.
The central table also helps split the floor plan into different zones. On one side of the table lies a row of booths, where small groups of guests can enjoy their dinner in a slightly more private setting.
The other side of the table is a grab-and-go area where customers can perch upon stool seats to enjoy a quick drink or snack.
To heighten the homely, “everyday” ambience of the restaurant, the cushioned backrests of the booths have been upholstered in a checkered fabric that’s meant to resemble a typical dishtowel found in domestic kitchens.
Padding on the seats has been covered in cognac-coloured leather from Danish company Sørensen.
A majority of elements in the restaurant – from the tables and seating booths, to the framework that extends across the ceiling – has been crafted from a single Douglas tree.
“We try our best to design and manufacture furniture based on local and long-lasting materials that we believe will continue contributing to its environment for many decades to come,” explained the studio.
The wood has also been used to make the stone-topped bar, and a tall, gridded shelving-unit that shows off jars of fermented vegetables. Some ingredients like chillis and cloves of garlic have been attached to string and hung up in the shelve’s larger display niches.
A blush-pink curtain from Kvadrat conceals toilet facilities at the rear of the restaurant.
Vermland was founded by Joakim Tolf Vulpius and Anton Bak, and works out of offices in Copenhagen’s Amager East district.
The studio’s Hverdagen project adds to Copenhagen’s already thriving culinary scene. Other places in the city where foodies can flock include Yaffa, a Middle-Eastern eatery that takes cues from bustling French bistros, and Boulebar, a restaurant where diners can play games of pétanque.
Artists and designers in India have joined protests against controversial new citizenship laws by sharing posters for use at demonstrations and creating infographics to counter misinformation.
Some of the country’s best-known creatives are using a combination of craft skills and digital savvy to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which was passed into law on 11 December 2019.
The act allows refugees from religious minorities to become Indian citizens but leaves out Muslims, leading to anger and often violent protests around the country.
Protesters, who believe the act discriminates against Muslims and could lead to millions of people becoming stateless, have had to negotiate curfews and internet shutdowns imposed by the government. Thousands of people have been arrested and dozens killed.
Designers including Illustrious Creates are protesting in India
“When lots of people feel oppressed, art comes into the centre of their lives in very powerful ways,” said Orijit Sen, one of India’s foremost graphic novelists, who has produced a stream of cartoons, memes and posters opposing the act.
“It’s about being in solidarity with each other,” he said.
The suspension of internet services in parts of the country has led to a revival of hand-made media such as graffiti, posters and printed pamphlets, according to Assam-based designer Abhishek Choudhury.
Shruti Thakkar is one of the designers who has created a poster to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act
“During times of internet shutdowns, digital posters wouldn’t really work, because how would you share them?” said Choudhury, who is a member of Gauhati Art Project.
“So the traditional routes like zines and graffiti, which don’t leave any digital trails, look very attractive,” he said.”We have a bunch of people who help get the artworks out there, share the printing costs and turn them into protest signs.”
“In this period, a lot of people have found their voice to use art to express on this topic,” said Bangalore-based graphic novelist and artist Appupen of Brainded India.
Appupen’s work has been widely adopted by protesters both to create banners for marches and memes for social media.
“After this, maybe when we get to a better future, people can use art to say many more things,” he continued.
Many posters, including this one by Vinayak J, are available on Creatives Against CAA
“During protests like this, you’re accessing a rage that’s been simmering for a long time, that suddenly boils over,” said Mira Malhotra, a Mumbai-based designer and part of Kadak, an all-female collective of South Asian graphic storytellers.
“It is a non-violent, constructive expression of collective rage and shock” she added. “I find it ludicrous to mourn the death of democracy but celebrate its saving grace: great art.”
Kadak has created Creatives Against CAA, an online repository of shareable and printable posters and informational material. Many designers have submitted their work and protestors have widely made use of these resources.
Maithili Madhusudan also created a poster that is available on the online portal
Among them is work from an Instagram page called @sodonechilling, which appropriates the popular MS Paint aesthetic format of “Good morning” messages that are popular among Indian users of WhatsApp.
“It was a way for us to push back against what has become a misinformation crisis,” a spokesperson for @sodonechilling said anonymously over WhatsApp.
Priyanka Kumar’s poster is also in the archive
“People tell us they’ve rejoined their family WhatsApp groups just to send them these forwards. Many have expressed that it’s the first time they’ve been political in their family WhatsApp groups.”
Over 30 artists have created and submitted art to @sodonechilling’s page in this format.
“The point of the art more than anything is to remind people about the constitution and their rights,” the spokesperson.
The CAA, which came into effect on January 10, relaxes the criteria for the followers of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian faiths – but not Muslims – from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan to naturalise as Indian citizens and be listed as “genuine Indian citizens” on the National Register of Citizens.
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