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Topic: Ken Carbone

  
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Rebranding the License Plate: 4 Designers Clean Up Graphic Road Kill

Why are so many license plates so bad? Ken Carbone sets out to revisit his state's much-reviled design and invites Craig Minor, Bart Crosby, and Stefan Bucher along for the ride.READ»

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Seattle’s Best Coffee Logo Is a Blend of the Bland

In the spirit of full disclosure, I confess that I drank my last cup of coffee 35 years ago. So I shouldn’t care about the re-branding of a legacy Seattle coffee merchant. However, the new logo introduced last week by ...READ»

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ICFF: The Best Branding Behind the Brands

99 percent of people on the planet would see ICFF as 145,000 square feet of "unnecessary." However, for the remaining one percent, it's an annual bazaar of the new and notable from the commercial and domestic landscapes that is not to be missed. READ»

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The Toyota Crisis Calls for a Logo Tune-Up

The bad news for the automaker is in overdrive. Should they refresh their logo to signal positive change?READ»

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The New Benjamin? Not So Money

The new $100 bill is a missed design opportunity. Wouldn't Franklin be disappointed?READ»

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Photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson: Father of Photojournalism

What is photography? What is a photographer? And, what is photojournalism today? Ken Carbone heads to MoMA to find out.READ»

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"American Trademarks" Traces the Origins of Our Logo Lust

A new book on logos unearths unusual symbols and trademarks from the past. Ken Carbone surveys some of his favorites.READ»

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London, We Have a Problem: U.K. Space Logo Proves Graphic Design Is Rocket Science

As the UK plans a new space endeavor, Ken Carbone boldly explores its less-than-stellar logo.READ»

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Curiously Curious: The Personal Journals of Ken Carbone

Co-founder of the branding and design shop Carbone Smolan Agency, Ken Carbone, shares his secret to staying creative—journals. Finding inspiration in the personal journals of post-impressionist painter Paul Gauguin, he has been ...READ»

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Brands in the Blink of an Eye

So which of today’s great brands can survive the blink test? Using this model Ken Carbone has composed this “thirty second spot” showing thirty brands from various categories to see how many their logo designs are identifiable. ...READ»

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Stone-Age Animation in a Digital World: William Kentridge at MoMA

We're dazzled by digital animation in Up and Avatar, but William Kentridge delivers as much visual wizardry with a chunk of charcoal.READ»

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Iran: Looking Towards a Bright Future?

Another odd photo from overseas has Ken Carbone wondering if James Cameron is to blame for a breakdown in diplomacy.READ»

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Super Bowl XLIV Ad Quiz: 30 Brands. 30 One-Second Ads. How Many Can You Spot?

What do you do if you want to advertise on the Big Game but only have a $100,000 ad budget? Try a one–second "blink" ad. It's a daunting design challenge to get a powerful brand message to stick.READ»

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Hey Stupid! Diesel Thinks You're Awesome

Who is Diesel's new campaign calling "stupid?" Oh, it's us.READ»

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Guilty by Association: The Colors of Christmas (and Other Holidays)

When it comes to branding and identity, red and green have been labeled taboo due to their Christmasy connotations.READ»

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Inspiration or Rip-Off? From "I Heart NY" Tees to Amex Smiley Face Ads

A new ad for American Express with murky origins gets Ken Carbone thinking about where great ideas come from.READ»

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Man Ray: An Artist Any Designer Could Love

A new show featuring the modernist artist opens this week at the Jewish Museum.READ»

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Nike Designers to Tackle College Football With Pro-Combat Gear

Nike's new mantra should be Just Re-Do It. In recent years they've successfully tackled everything from Olympic running shoes to swimsuits, to creating a essentially an elaborate pedometer that plays music, the Nike Plus. Next up, ...READ»

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Penalty! Unnecessary Blandness! Redesigning the Worst NFL Helmet Graphics

Ken Carbone couldn't stand to let another football season go by watching great teams play with subpar helmet graphics. So he redesigned three of the worst offenders.READ»

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Big League Chew: Phils Out-Spit Yanks

Are the Yankees and Phillies actually playing baseball on Ken Carbone's widescreen TV? To him they're just hocking high-def loogies.READ»

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Creepy, Crawly, Crafty: A Tapestry Woven by Eight-Legged Artists

What could possibly drive two men to spend $500,000 of their own money over four years, become employers of a million female spiders, and rekindle an indigenous tradition on the island of Madagascar?READ»

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Designed to be Wild: Full Throttle Choppers In Vermont

Ken Carbone takes a field trip to a Vermont museum and becomes enthralled with the sleek elegance of the motorcycle.READ»

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What Recession? Designers Storm the Waldorf for Gala

Despite the eco-friendly cardboard centerpieces, the ballroom at the Waldorf Astoria, with its velvet draperies and glittering chandeliers was an uncomfortably swanky venue for the annual AIGA Design Legends gala in a year when the ...READ»

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A Better Way to Health Care Reform: We Need an Information Design S.W.A.T. Team

Long before the current debate, an op-ed piece appeared in the Washington Post positing that the U.S. health care system was critically ill. The diagnosis? Terminal Information Design.READ»

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Les Paul: The Guitar, the Logo, the Legend

A tribute to the Architect of Rock & Roll, who died yesterday at 94.READ»