Kaoiro means “facial expression” in Japanese and is the name of this emoticon stamp. It has 7 belts with each around 20 symbols, so you can create 2000 kaomoji (japanese emoticons). Here you can find all the possible combinations.
~(T∀T)~

Remember the Nike Music Shoe ad from 2 weeks ago? Well, here’s the making of video. Seems like it was a very fun project.

Laptopograms are images made by pressing photosensitive paper onto a laptop screen and flashing an image in a manner not unlike contact printing or photograms.

found at Kottke

Oblique by Owen Silverwood.

found at It’s Nice That

“You trying to be Me trying to be You” by JK Keller.

Reverse Keetra

Reverse JK

At the beginning of the month, the Lifestyle & Brand Communications department of Mercedes-Benz invited a group of bloggers to Stuttgart, Germany, for a 2 day Mercedes-Benz Brand Workshop. It was quite a mixed group, from strict car blogs to fashion blogs. The design blogs were represented by NOTCOT, MoCoLoco, Lost At E Minor, Nowness, The World’s Best Ever … to just name a few.

On the first day we all met at the Mercedes-Benz Museum. We first got an introduction to the brand by their futurologist Alexander Mankowsky, he gave us a short trip through history and explained to us why Mercedes-Benz is an ambassador of European luxury.
The guided tour through the museum made is very clear what an impressive heritage the brand has. The collection is just amazing. But also the architecture by UNStudio is actually worth a visit. The obligatory wining and dining also took place at the museum and was very Mercedes-Benz like.

The first half of the second day was the highlight for me: a visit to the Mercedes-Benz Design Centre in Sindelfingen. There was a strict no phones, no cameras policy at this location, but I don’t think that we saw anything that hasn’t been published yet.
Steffen Köhl, the head of the worldwide Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Studios, gave us a presentation on the design department and its processes. Other brands often use the names of their designers in their communication, not at Mercedes-Benz. For the designers at Mercedes-Benz there isn’t a bigger reward than to see their designs in streets, on TV or in movies.
A second presentation by Alexander Mankowsky, introduced us to sustainable mobility and what kind technical and social innovation. He actually talked about mobility devices and not about cars, but what kind of concepts Mercedes-Benz is working on, was not revealed.
Then we had a short visit to the Colour and Trim department where Martin Brehmer talked about trends in the interior design. Mercedes-Benz is a global brand which means that the Colour and Trim designers have to be familiar with certain cultural differences. Not every colour or material has the same meaning in every country.
The last stop at the Design Centre was the presentation hall P1, where a whole line of cars were lined up. Steffen Köhl presented us different E-Class models and their unique features. There were also two 1/4 clay models and 1/1 model of the new SLS AMG. A few climbed behind the steering wheel and most of them bumped their head against the gullwing doors while getting out. Speaking of an over 50 year old design flaw.

The last few cars where show cars like the F700, the Concept Blue Zero and the F800 Style. These cars aren’t only about their design but also about what’s under their hood. But I have to admit that the F800 Style is a really, really good looking car.

In the afternoon we were transferred to the Mercedes-Benz testing ground in Malmsheim. Here they had lined up a fleet of their cars for us the try out. We could test drive an E 63 AMG or an E-Class convertible, but also a Smart electric drive or  a zero emission F-Cell and many others. The funny thing was, that I don’t drive cars. Indeed, I do have a drivers license but I don’t drive. I’m a front seat passenger par excellence. So I drove along with a very fancy E-Class and a demonstration of the Pre Safe Brake system.

Those were the 2 days at the Mercedes-Benz Brand Workshop. I would like to thank the whole team for this experience, every detail of those 2 days was on par with the brand itself.

During the Salone del Mobile in Milan, Tom Dixon presented his Etch collection, which was part of his Flash Factory. Visitors could buy a light or candleholder at the stand, or made of brass or stainless steel. The parts were made by employing an industrial process used to produce electronic products, including circuit boards. The patterns were directly etched on the thin metal sheets. This production technique allows the designer to produce a small bath of high-tech products in a very short time. But also the distribution model at the Flash Factory was quite interesting. The objects were offered in 3 versions: a pre-assembled one by one of the Flash Factory workers, or you could assemble it yourself at the stand and the last option was to buy a flat packed one and assemble it at home.

photo by MenthaArvensis

photo by MenthaArvensis

“Light Me Black” by Monica Bonvicini. You can see this installation at the Galerie Max Hetzler in Berlin, from this Friday on. The opening is part of the Gallery Weekend Berlin. If you’re around make sure to go and see Ariel Schlesingers exhibition at Galerija Gregor Podnar too.

found at fette

This is how two people can sit on one kitchen stool: Tryst designed by Peter Pless.

found at yatzer

RGB is a collection of wallpapers designed by Carnovsky. Three different patterns are printed over each other, resulting in a very unclear image. Red, green or blue light can hide 2 of the patterns and make the third one appear. I really like this idea and I can very well imagine this wallpaper in a bar or club.