war movie backwards

"American planes, full of holes and wounded men and corpses took off backwards from an airfield in England. Over France, a few German fighter plains flew at them backwards, sucked bullets and shell fragments from some of the planes and crewmen. They did the same for wrecked American bombers on the ground, and those planes flew up backwards to join the formation.

The formation flew backwards over a German city that was in flames. The bombers opened their bomb bay doors, exerted a miraculous magnetism which shrunk the fires, gathered them into cylindrical steel containers, and lifted the containers into the bellies of the planes. The containers were stored neatly in racks. The Germans below had miraculous devices of their own, which were long steel tubes. They used them to suck more fragments from the crewmen and planes. But there were still a few wounded Americans, though, and some of the bombers were in bad repair. Over France, though, German fighters came up again, made everything and everybody as good as new.

When the bombers got back to their base, the steel cylinders were taken from the racks and shipped back to the United States of America, where factories were operating night and day, dismantling the cylinders, separating the dangerous contents into minerals. Touchingly, it was mainly women who did this work. The minerals were then shipped to specialists in remote areas. It was their business to put them into the ground, to hide them cleverly, so they would never hurt anybody ever again.

The American fliers turned in their uniforms, became high school kids. And Hitler turned into a baby, Billy Pilgrim supposed. That wasn't in the movie. Billy was extrapolating. Everybody turned into a baby, and all humanity, without exception, conspired biologically to produce two perfect people named Adam and Eve, he supposed." (74-75)

In Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five, he describes what Billy sees as he watches a World War 2 movie on rewind. I adore the scene because it has this lovely, optimistic undertone in spite of the documentary's unfortunate reality. When I read about the potential signing of a new nuclear arms reduction treaty yesterday, I immediately thought of this scene and its relevancy. Isn't it amazing that reality is now somehow reflective of Billy's ethereal vision?

awww

Oh my goodness! Look at all the baby wind turbines!

You have to admit, they're working pretty hard over there in China.

(Obama was right to address this particular issue in both his state of the union address and his remarks to the House Republican retreat on Friday.)

Though I would love for America to raise the bar and start innovating in the realm of alternative energy, I will say that I am happy this subject has become something important in the world, even to politicians!

I will also say that I appreciate the fact that China is designing their future with my affinity for cute and chubby objects in mind.

(you can read about their progress here at the new york times online)

sigh of fleeting relief

Upon reading today's news, I was relieved to find that the doomsday clock is now 6 whole minutes away from midnight, pushed back last night from 5 minutes. Bleak, but also, somehow, encouraging.

"The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which maintains the clock and puts an illustration of it on its cover, attributed the move to efforts by world leaders to reduce their countries' nuclear arsenals and collaborate on climate stabilization."

via reuters

thanks stefan

-stefan sagmeister

just a little quote to live by.

Heirloom Design

I finally received my first issue of GOOD Magazine this month after a mix-up with my subscription back in September. (sweet!) It's the Slow Issue, containing inside a number of great articles focused around the issue of our quickening lifestyles.

There is a small interview with an inventor named Saul Griffith (He's the founder of Instructables!-and developed designs for energy-producing kites!) The topic of the interview was "Heirloom Design." I was unfamiliar with the term until today, but it's a pretty interesting concept and goes along with the ideas expressed by William McDonough in my previous post.

"An object with "heirloom design" is something that will not only last through your lifetime and into the next generation, but that you also desire to keep that long because it's beautiful, functional, and timeless." -Griffith

The newest issue hasn't been posted to their webpage, so I'm not sure if the interview will be available online. I will share a few quotes that I particularly enjoyed, but if you get the chance, check out the newest issue; it's informative AND it's pretty!

Griffith says...
"We have to do things in new ways and think differently. That's an opportunity for people with their eyes open. Planned obsolescence and fashion seasons are new and constructed problems."

"You can't make a solution for climate change add up unless you address the issue. If you are a young designer today, it might be hard; it might go against the grain. But, the only way you will win in the long run, the only way you will design for the world we all want, is if you design heirloom products. Thumb your nose at the establishment."

(NOTE: This second quote is kind of a definitive statement and I don't necessarily agree that it's the ONLY way to design for a better world, but it seems like a step in the right direction. )

Design is the first signal of human intention.

I haven't updated in a while. Things have been so hectic, and I think I started to lose sight of a lot of the things I really care about. After a minor breakdown yesterday, (My mom would probably argue that the term "minor" used in this situation is a bit of an understatement. She is awesome for helping me get through it; listening to me vent for almost an hour and encouraging me, as my parents always have, to do whatever it takes to be happy.) I sat down, sulking, and clicked through some TED talks to cheer myself up. I've always found these addicting and incredibly inspiring (so stoked that there is a whole category devoted to design).

I chose to post William McDonough's talk because I couldn't sleep after watching it. I'm moved by his ideas of what design can be, and what it should be, but even more so by the resolve with which he has developed these ideas into fruition. I am inspired by his enthusiasm; it takes a lot of determination to breach the boundaries of modern thought, only to re-enter them in an effort to help the rest of us escape.

If you like the talk, you should definitely read his book Cradle to Cradle, co-authored by his colleague, Michael Braungart. Using history, science, modern business models, and the idea of design, they begin to address the question: How do we love all the children of all species for all time? prettyyyyy prettyyyy cool.

Camp Firebelly

I have been home from Camp Firebelly for a week now and I thought it would be appropriate to post some appreciation for all of the people in the image above (and the rest of the team at Firebelly Design of course).

We did so many amazing things during camp (all of which are documented in the camp blog here). But, my fellow campers were incredible and I miss them. Trust me when I say that you can expect big things from all of them in the future.

While we were there, we had a chance to work with Some Odd Pilot, The Post Family, Delicious Design League, AIGA Chicago, and tons of other kind members of Chicago's design community. It was such an inspiring/motivating experience and I'm so lucky to have been part of it. If you are a young designer, I HIGHLY recommend applying for next year's camp, you definitely will not regret it.

^d
sarah

Currently Enjoying

The Idealist.org: Handbook to Building a Better World.

Dawn at Firebelly gave these out as a gift to each of the campers this year. Though I have not finished, I found this quote to be pretty inspiring...

"One of my lifetime goals is to be as generous as I can be. I am not the most brilliant thinker in the world, so I am not going to push forward the frontiers of human knowledge. Nor am I especially ambitious in my career, so I am not going to be the CEO of the next Google. However, I do have moral ambition. I would like to stretch myself to be the most generous person I can be. I think that is in my power. Even if I fail, it can't hurt to try." -Cliff Landesman, donor, volunteer, Trickle Up, Oxfam America, Natural Resources Defense Council, Lake Champlain Committee, Alaska Center for the Environment, WNYC, Pedals for Progress, among others; Brooklyn, New York

Though I'm not totally ruling out the idea of drastically advancing human thought or creating and running my own multi-billion dollar web venture, I can relate to what he is saying here and I appreciate that.

The quote sort of sums up the book as well. It explains every level of involvement with non-profits and emphasizes the importance of giving, regardless of amount. So, I suggest checking it out if you have the time and interest.

Thanks Dawn!
^d
sarah

Conventional Wisdom, Think again

"No, your eyes aren't deceiving you. You're reading Stephen Colbert. And for that I apologize. The last thing I want is to contribute to the corrosive influence of the print media. I prefer to yell my opinions at you in person.

But I can't do that this week, because I am in Iraq. I've brought my hit TV broadcast over there to support our troops. I figure if I do this, I can finally take that yellow- ribbon magnet off my Audi without looking like a jerk. God knows what it did to my paint job."

I will be picking up a copy of this as soon as possible. Colbert is the magazine's very first guest editor since it was founded 76 years ago!

via

thank you!

It's only right that I update with a few of the things I've been doing that have kept me from updating this thing. For now, I will just post some thank you cards I've been working on.

I am very, very lucky and received lots of gifts and congratulations for graduating this past month. I felt like everyone who took the time to put a gift together for me deserved a special thank you card in return. I tried to pick the theme of each card based on the person receiving it. Here are a few photos of the ones I've completed so far...

^d
sarah

the less we use our power, the greater it will be

Just finished watching the Obama Cairo speech via the united states of jamerica.

So many things said that I've always wanted but never thought I'd hear. If you haven't seen it already, take a gander!

sorry!

I'm sorry to have neglected you for a while. These past few weeks have been crazy. Things are finally starting to slow down a bit. I will be updating again soon, but for now I'm at home for the Coldplay concert at the amphitheater!

design and government

"Design Den Haag 2010-2018 researches the relation between Design and Government in Europe within an international context, from cultural, economic and social viewpoints. Starting spring 2010, Design Den Haag will organize a total of five public events biennially in the field of design, architecture and visual communication, with exhibitions, publications, lectures and debates, workshops and documentary films. Each edition will entail a collaboration between Den Haag and another European government Capital: Berlin, Stockholm, Rome, London and Paris. Every edition will be evaluated. The final evaluation of the five editions will be submitted as report to the European Union at the end of 2018. This report will contain recommendations concerning the betterment of relations between design and governance, and on governmental funds for the quality of design, architecture and visual communication."

I had planned on writing President Obama a nice long letter when I graduated about design and its political/social importance in hopes that he would consider increasing its role in government. (and maybe offer me a job! haha)

So, I found out today that an organization called Foundation Design Den Haag in Europe has already started collaborating with the government of Berlin to discuss the potentially dangerous connection between design and government (hmmm). The group started a workshop this week with students to create future political campaigns. Kirsten Verdel, member of Obama's campaign team, even gave a lecture about the campaign and strategy.

It sounds really interesting and I'm excited to see what the future holds for these guys. (The website has a cool feature that takes note of every ip address that visits the site and creates a unique tone from the number combination. they play while you navigate!)

Design.nl will be following all of their events. You can find them here!

^d
sarah

Olsen Haus Vegan Sandal!

Saw these SWEET vegan sandals designed by olsen Haus on inhabitat this morning. They are 100% Vegan and made of sustainable and cruelty-free materials. They are a little pricey, but they're beautiful and it would definitely feel good to know that the shoes you are wearing came from a company with this outstanding philosophy:

"The philosophy of olsenHaus is anchored in the universal truth, respect for all beings, with a dedication to the expression of truth in the material world. We are committed to being 100% animal-free / cruelty-free, producing functional goods, with a high standard of ethical social responsibility in animal rights, human rights, and the environment. Products are made of non-animal materials, in sample rooms and factories that are personally checked for ethical practices & environmental impact."

You can find the shoes here.

hey, have you ever seen a planet dance before?

just a little genius clip of paul rudd on sesame street. the episode will air on earth day (wednesday). i love the giant foam earth and i love paul rudd!