Christmas flourishes: paper, pattern, type
Collected images with a seasonal feeling, featuring special printing and finishing techniques.
Black Swan tribute: erotic intensity at the ballet
Before the Black Swan, the White Swan and the dichotomy between them ever existed, there were pioneering 19th century ballerinas who defined different types in ballet. The most famous is Marie Taglioni, the first to reinforce her ballet slippers and rise up on pointe, creating the impression of floating or flying—a creature of the air, innocent … Continue reading
Timeless Danish Modern 1963 and 2008
January 1963. It’s almost ridiculous this Danish Modern interior appears utterly contemporary 47 years later…
Kitsch design
Kitsch is a theory of the kind of bad taste that emerged in an era of reproduction—where the Venus de Milo can be reproduced as a garden statuette, or imagined using a speakerphone. Like pornography, it follows an “I know it when I see it” standard. Kitsch is a watered-down, false, or inappropriately used reference … Continue reading
Maximalist design: sweet & opulent Victorian valentines
I’d call this style maximalist marzipan—almost too saccharine, but the dimensionality of the collaging and diecutting is of enduring beauty and interest. I am always touched when I see fragile ephemera in good condition. It’s poignant to peek into sentiments a century-plus old. The layering impulse is one people still have: the more lace doilies, … Continue reading











