Fleurs Fraiches

It has been widely publicised that David Hockney has taken to using iPhones and iPads to create digital artwork.

In his new exhibition, entitled Fleurs Fraiches David is using the iPad as the canvas to show the artwork in its native environment.  Runing until the 30th January 2011 at La Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent, Paris, the exhibition is a fantastic example of an artist embracing new technology.

Watch a video of David talking about his work on the BBC website.

Banksy creates Simpsons title sequence

Controversial artist Banksy has created a new title sequence for The Simpsons. Featuring images of sweatshop workers creating cartoon cells - it's sure to ruffle a few feathers!

Watch the sequence on the BBC website.

BA (Hons) Photography

Our new BA (Hons) Photography Degree, is led by Lawrence Giles, whose recent exhibition 'Thoroughbreds' focused on the culture, customs, dynamics and social engagement of a typical British Racecourse.

Museum of Contemporary Art for London (Moca London)

Charles Saatchi, co-founder of the global advertising company Saatchi & Saatchi is gifting the Saatchi Gallery and over 200 pieces of art to the nation. Artwork includes pieces by Tracey Emin, Grayson Perry and Richard Wilson. Read more on the BBC website.

Fashion Image Making & Styling

Have a look at the uber cool newspaper showcasing work from graduating students from BA (Hons) Fashion Image Making  & Styling.

WearPeace

Check out the rather beautiful online portfolio of Gareth Hughes. The Wearpeace clothing label in particular is a lovely project for the Manchester based charity Carisma.

Visual Arts Degree Show

View the fantastic range of work from graduates of the BA (Hons) Visual Arts Degree Show on our flickr page.

R2D2 meets Rhino

Ji Lee has some fantastic work on his website, the Parallel Worlds project (pictured), Goollery and the All-In-One Card Stamp are my particular favourites.

I lived on the Moon

Stunning visuals and a haunting soundtrack from Kwoon - take time to watch the full I lived on the Moon music video directed by Yannick Puig.

Use Less Plastic

Directed by Mariana Blanco, this beautifully illustrated animated short asks us all to use less plastic.

The animator is Sol Linero who's portfolio is well worth checking out.

Degree Shows 2010

Check out the beautiful viral created by BA (Hons) Graphic Design student Matt Frodsham, with music by Michael Dedaj.

Our Degree Shows are running from 4th - 8th June 2010, (Monday-Saturday), 10am-4pm. Further details on our website.

SolarBeat

Luke Twyman has a great portfolio website called WhiteVinyl, I'm particularly smitten with his SolarBeat - a simple ambient musicbox, with sounds generated using the orbital frequencies of our solar system.

ArcelorMittal Orbit

Artist Anish Kapoor has collaborated with structural engineer Cecil Balmond of Arup on this unique spiraling sculpture which has been chosen as the landmark monument to the 2012 Olympic Games.


Watch the video on the BBC site to find out more. I was hoping it incorporated a super-sized Carsten Holler style helter-skelter...

Nature by Numbers

Have a look at this fantastic video by Cristóbal Vila of Etérea, it's a beautuful and informative film, with a great sound track - Often a Bird - by Belgian minimalist classical composer, Wim Mertens.

Reverse Search Engine

After reading Stefan's post over (on UberSuper) regarding a random photo he'd located, I realised that TinEye is still relatively unknown.

Especially useful for those using found imagery in their essays and dissertation, TinEye helps you to locate the original source image for accurate referencing. Find out more by watching the TinEye FAQ video.

Less is More

The beautiful and stunningly simple folding plug by Min-Kyu Choi has won the Brit Insurance Design of the Year 2010.

Unchanged since1946, the British 3 pin plug (type G) has remained the largest plug in the world - let's hope this heralds a new era!

Let's take it from the top...

Directed by James Frost, OK Go and Syyn Labs, check out this amazing video for their song 'This Too Shall Pass' taken from the new album "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky".

Filmed in a warehouse, in Los Angeles, the "machine" was designed and built by the band, along with members of Syyn Labs over the course of several months. It's an amazing piece of kinetic art, try and look at the making of videos too.

Life is Beautiful - and so is this!

After an amazing show at the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery last summer, Banksy is back, and this time on the big screen!

Exit through the Gift Shop is a fantastic film, documenting the journey of  Thierry Guetta, an obsessive and highly committed film maker, as he chronicles the work of street artists Invader (who has 47 hits in Manchester), Shepherd Fairey and Banksy. If you have the chance to see this film, I highly recommend it, it provides an insight to the artists processes, effectively expresses the passion the have for their work and introduces you to Mr Brainwash - an unforgettable character. 

Get Naked in the name of Art

Spencer Tunick, the famous American artist renowned for his installations featuring nude people in artistic formations is looking for volunteers for installations in Salford and Manchester in May. Find out more on the Lowry website.

Illustrator's Portfolio

Located in Stirling Scotland, freelance illustrator Steve Bonner, has a fantastic portfolio of work on his website.

Alongside two of our fashion students, Steve's work is currently featured in the 'Art & Advertising' Exhibition at the Lowry.

Check out Steve's version of a classic Star Wars vehicle too.

3D Genius

Matt Frodsham, a level 3 student on BA (Hons) Graphic Design has a selection of superb videos on Vimeo. It's great to see a history of work of revealing Matt's learning curve over the past year.

Matt's work on the Cartoon Network rebrand is really worth watching, as well as the seperate video showing the process involved in developing the 3D characters.

Spreading a little happiness

Robert Shadbolt, Senior Lecturer on our BA (Hons) Graphic Design programme, has an impressive selection of his work on his website. I particularly like Robert's work based on Manchester and Salford landmarks.

Metallic Bubbles

Nominated for the Brit Insurance Architecture Award 2010, this stunning metal bubble sits beautifully in it's surroundings, blending itself through the reflection of colours and surfaces nearby, it also has a hidden purpose...

Read the full article.

Paper Art

Peter Callesen, a gifted paper artist from Denmark, has a fantastic portfolio of work on his website.

It's great to see such diverse applications of his work, apart from the stunning framed A4 papercuts (particularly striking with a single solid colour), Peter's installation work is varied and well executed.

14,000 Dice

David Alvarez is a talented (and patient) artist, take a look at this stunning video of his portraits of James Dean and Marilyn Monroe made from 14,000 dice!

If that wasn't enough for you, have a look at David's stunning Rubik's Cube portrait.

Rex the Dog!

This stop motion video featuring Rex the Dog is fantastic - I particularly like seeing the process embedded into the narrative - nice touch.

View the full video

The Future is Here!

Apart from an i-Pad, this amazing piece of technology is high up on my wish list. The MakerBot is an open source 3D printer that allows you to cheaply print whatever you can conjure up!

Bre Pettis of Makerbot Industries describes the Makerbot as the "Gutenberg Press of 3D printing".

My minds already racing with visions of support sections on manufacturers websites, where you can print replacement parts for kettles and toasters and everyone from artists on etsy through to museums selling home printable pieces of art...
Watch the Rocket Boom video on You Tube.

David Shrigley Film

Glasgow based artist David Shrigley has created a humorous short film about Pringle of Scotland - I particulary like Gerald and his eye patch. Watch the film on the Pringle website.

Animated Book

London based Anderson M Studio have created an amazing stop frame animation for the New Zealand Book Council. Watch the full film.

Interior Design Portfolio

Omar Owaini, an Alumni from our BA (Hons) Interior Design course, has produced a fantastic digital portfolio charting his progress during his three years of study. Omar's design for a lighting showroom is particularly striking, especially the staircase with flowing illuminated hand rail.

Follow Al Heighton's latest adventures

Al Heighton, a graduate from BA (Hons) Graphic Design, has updated his website. Al has a very distinctive illustrative style, and judging by his client list, he's going from strength to strength.  Have a look through Al's latest work and products, I currently coveting his happy faced mug... I wonder if there's frown on the other side?

Objectified - Product Design DVD

Directed by Gary Hustwit, Objectified is a feature-length documentary on product design. The film acts as a fantastic primer (especially for those interested in studying the subject), covering the breadth of product design (commercial drivers for product design through to conceptual products challenging our preconceived ideas of what objects should look like.

It was great to see one of our Product Design Alumni, Martin Kay, who works for global design consultancy IDEO in the film.

Best Album Art of 2009

Celebrating the fifth anniversary of the awards, Art Vinyl has published it's list Top 50 Best Art Vinyl 2009 with the Muse album – ‘The Resistance’ winning first place.

Designed by La Boca the Muse album's illustrative style differs slightly from the brilliant retro work in their portfolio, but it shows their fantastic use of colour, and sci-fi leanings.

Cardboard Interiors

Using relatively cheap and often overlooked materials in new ways alway attracts my attention, so I was instantly smitten when I spotted this fantastic interior on Dezeen. Jeroen van Mechelen of Studio JVM has designed a cardboard room inside a villa.

I'd love to see a whole exhibition built using this technique, it radically changes the dynamics of a space (in this case warming and softening) and offers a multitude of possibilities, though I'd be a little worried about the heat from lights and the steam from the shower in this example!