Fauxsiacs

As we’ve mentioned before, we occasionally have a lapse of design envy. It doesn’t happen too often… after all, we are a pretty terrifically creative bunch here at Barbour. But sometimes we encounter work that is just so damn brilliant. So good, in a “why didn’t we think of that?” sort of way, that we have to concede our envy publicly (in a good way, of course). In this instance, it’s the illustrious work of New York-based designer and letterer Nick Misani. Though we are absolutely taken with Misani’s entire stunning body of work, we are particularly impressed with his ongoing Fauxsiacs series. Here, Misani hones his stellar lettering skills in the context of realistic mosaic illustrations to great effect. Misani’s work is clearly historically influenced, with a modern twist, and it’s no surprise that he has worked with design icon Louise Fili, perhaps the highest compliment. We will be keeping an eye on this series, which features destinations from around the world. The possibilities are endless, and hopefully coming to a city near you! Prints available here.

Via fauxsaics.com and Instagram

Masterclass in Manipulation for Happy Finish

Photo manipulation, at its very core, is surrealist. The results are often unnerving and illogical, but with photographic precision. London-based creative production studio Happy Finish offers high-end retouching as one of its many capabilities to a vast array of notable clients including Nike, Google, Samsonite, Gillette and Smirnoff, to name a few. Here are a handful of samples of Happy Finish’s work that could honestly stand on their own, outside of any marketing context, as thought-provoking works of art. Hats off to the talented artists at Happy Finish for elevating CGI to a whole new level.

More surrealist work here and here and here.

Via Behance

The Fun-Loving Photos of James Popsys

Australian photographer James Popsys has some serious skills behind both the lens and his MacBook Pro, but his work is anything but serious. Popsys is not one to indulge in self-importance or highbrow projects but rather focuses on manipulating scenes from everyday life into playful, sometimes ironic works. That’s not to say his approach is not conceptual or smart… Popsys just can’t help but inject his subversive sense of humor into his surreal photographs. In these globally solemn and often humorless times, Popsys’s work is refreshing. Keep it coming.

Via jamespopsys.com

Time Traveling Photography

It is often said that art has a way of transporting viewers, whether conjuring past memories or sometimes through the immersion of visual stimulation. In the case of London-based Japanese photographer Chino Otsuka, such transport is a bit more literal, and turned on herself as both photographer and subject. Otsuka’s series Imagine Finding Me is a sort of conceptual time machine, where she digitally inserts herself into childhood photos. In her own words, Otsuka says, “A new journey has begun, on board a time machine built from digital tools. I’m traveling back, transported to places where I once belonged, cities where I once visited and on arrival I find myself from the past. Navigating through the labyrinth of memory I become a tourist of my own history. And throughout this unique journey I keep a diary.” We are absolutely taken with the concept, but it’s Otsuka’s adept skills with said digital tools that really make this series shine. In the hands of a less capable photographer, this would not have been nearly as effective. Huge success any way you look at it.

Via chino.co.uk

Airportraits: Airplane Photography Like You’ve Never Seen

Architectural photographer and (self-described) “aviation dork” Mike Kelley has found a new and intriguing way to capture commercial airliners. If you’ve seen one YouTube video of airplanes taking off and landing (yes, that’s a thing… proof here, with over 2 MILLION views), you’ve seen them all. But Los Angeles-based Kelley documents these aircraft in a whole new way. What if you saw a flock of jumbo jets taking off or landing? Amazing sight, right? This talented photographer captures these very scenes in his brilliant series, cleverly titled, Airportraits. Kelley has spent the better part of nearly two years photographing airplanes and airports. After his initial piece, Wake Turbulence, a day’s worth of takeoffs from LAX’s south runways composited into a single image, took off (pun intended) via social media and subsequently named one of the top images of 2014, Kelley mapped out a plan to capture the “inherent beauty in aviation” through similar composite images from airports around the globe. The result is absolutely awesome, from shooting the underbelly of planes from Dockweiler Beach in Los Angeles departing around sunset, to the descent of morning rush arrivals at London’s Heathrow Airport. For fellow aviation dorks in your life (or folks like us who appreciate stellar photography in general), prints available here.

Via mpkelley.com and Instagram

Transforming the World, One Silhouette At a Time

Sure, we’ve seen paper cut art before (here and here and here), and we’re very fond of it, by the way. But we’ve never seen anything quite like this. London-based artist/photographer Rich McCor (otherwise known as @paperboyo) brilliantly pairs his paper cut skills with his keen eye for photography. And the results are clever, playful and unexpected. McCor’s carefully crafted silhouettes are brought to life against sometimes familiar and iconic backdrops. While his work may seem simple in concept, there’s no doubt in our minds that these smart compositions require much more skill than one may think. Needless to say, we are thoroughly impressed and inspired. And his growing base of 175,000 Instagram followers would surely agree.

Via Instagram

A Penchant for Paper: The Work of Lobulo

Initially drawn in by typographic papercraft, we quickly realized the portfolio of Lobulo was a treasure trove if dynamic designs. Splitting time between London and Barcelona, Lobulo Design is actually just one man: Javier Rodríguez García. His penchant for working with paper has gained him much respect, and even a viral following online. The well-produced short videos he posts on social media give a nice behind-the-scenes glimpse at Lobule in action, feeding that central hunger for all-access documentation (see some below). The intricacy of Lobulo’s work is striking, and his sense of color and space outstanding. We especially appreciate work that is outside of our comfort zone, and this certainly falls into that category. Just awesome.

Via lobulodesign.com

David Bowie 1947-2016

The late great David Bowie has been a cornerstone of pop culture for decades. So it’s no surprise that visual artists around the world have paid tribute to him and his chameleon-like persona over the years. Here’s a sampling of some of our favorites. R.I.P. David Bowie

 

Pablo Lobato (Buenos Aires)
Via Flickr

 
Vincent Altamore (New Jersey, USA)
Via Blogspot

 
Ed Chapman (London) see previous post here
Via edchapman-mosaics.co.uk

 

 

Marta Zawadzka (Poland)
Via martagallery.com

 

Steve Payne (UK) see previous post here
Via Tumblr

 

Karen Clark (New Jersey, USA)
Via Facebook

 

Faux Food by David Sykes

We certainly have a thing for creative food photography (here and here and here), so it’s no surprise that the inventive work of London-based photographer David Sykes caught our eye. Sykes looks at food from an unconventional perspective, and we particularly like the subtle injection of humor in his work. In fact, it’s not exactly food photography, but food-like. His keen eye for composition and smart use of color prove that Sykes is more than a quirky photographer, but a terrific conceptual artist.

Via davidsykes.com

Turning Fear on its Head

Design really is all about communication and education, whether its purpose is to sell, explain, or simply draw attention. In the case of this brilliantly clever self-initiated poster, the visuals do all the work to raise awareness of an often ignored issue facing sharks in their, well, house (more about that here). A collaborative effort between Italian-born, San Francisco-based 3D master Matteo Musci, and London creative studio, Featherwax, which specializes in retouching and CGI, this striking poster does a terrific job of immediately drawing the viewer in with its arresting visuals. Inspired by an iconic movie poster, this piece’s strength is in its irony. In their own words, the duo explains: “An in-house concept to promote awareness for shark-culling, and the number of sharks killed annually. Due to the demonization of sharks, it’s often an overlooked issue. The concept here is to compare the number of deaths each species cause each other, and visually turn that fear on its head. The Jaws poster naturally springs to mind, and can be viewed as a boat full of harpoon-guns.”

Jaws related posts here and here and here

Via Behance

Original JAWS poster: