The PSDA Blog

Spanish Design: Azulejos

Inspiration

Spanish Design: Azulejos

On a recent trip to Spain, Alexander was accosted by a barrage of aesthetic inspiration in Madrid, Seville, and Barcelona. As a means of unloading some of the weight under which his eyes were straining, he captured many photographs along the way for later digestion of these sights in tranquility. The next few posts will contain examples of the sorts of design that most peremptorily attracted his attention.

Our Neighbourhood, the Garment District

Inspiration

Our Neighbourhood, the Garment District

The Garment District has been our home for 14 years now, since moving to 35 Camden St. in 2005. Located between Bathurst Street & Spadina Avenue and Queen & King Streets, it’s a vibrant neighbourhood with a rich history and a lively future.

Käthe Kollwitz

Inspiration

Käthe Kollwitz

On recent trips to the A.G.O., we were able to behold the extraordinary charcoal drawings, etchings, and sculptures of Käthe Kollwitz, which are currently on display as part of a three-part series. In numerous macabre and gestural yet naturalistic portraits, Kollwitz renders the plight of the poor, working class, and women in early-20th century Germany.

Grapheme-Colour Synaesthesia

Inspiration

Grapheme-Colour Synaesthesia

Have you ever felt that letters and numbers imply certain colours, almost like an aura or personality, that come to mind when you think about them? This phenomenon, whereby the comprehension of aesthetically-neutral semantic units is accompanied by corresponding hues, is called grapheme-colour synaesthesia. It’s experienced by a portion of the population, though the exact percentage has yet to be determined.

Toronto Subway / Bloor–Yonge

Inspiration

Toronto Subway / Bloor–Yonge

If you take the TTC regularly, you may be familiar with what’s possibly the most prominent Torontonian typeface, since it appears in most subway stations and in much of the TTC’s print materials. A geometric sans serif, it made its first appearance with the opening of the first subway line in 1954. In typical Torontonian humility, it was introduced with such little fanfare that no one knows who designed it, their name having been lost to history.

Facing the Anthropocene

Inspiration

Facing the Anthropocene

On our most recent expeditions to the Art Gallery of Ontario, we were able to behold a poignant exhibition of photography and videography by Edward Burtynsky, Jennifer Baichwal, and Nicholas de Pencier called Anthropocene. The title refers to the epoch in which humans are the dominant terrestrial force—shaping ecosystems, the climate, and landscapes, for example, more than anything else—as we now are.

Birthday Feasting

Inspiration

Birthday Feasting

At Philip Sung, our six birthdays a year mean six reasons to feast on delicious food from local restaurants. We may all be getting older, but at least we’re not getting any skinnier!

Design Fuel

Inspiration

Design Fuel

Although we’re mostly seated, design can be mentally draining, and each of us have foods and drinks that give us much-needed energy and comfort throughout our busy days. Leaving aside our common forays into the ever-bountiful cookie jar, here are our favourite quotidian foods and drinks.

Didi & Dusty

Inspiration

Didi & Dusty

Sometimes our show and tell sessions yield gems from our non-work lives, and Darien’s recent contribution was just that. He’s given us glimpses before of his and his friend’s drag photography—wherein they go by the names Didi and Dusty, respectively—which evokes both the glamour and paradoxical alienation of Hollywood stars from the ’40s and ’50s.

Why does paper yellow?

Inspiration

Why does paper yellow?

When Bill showed us a yellowed page of newsprint from the ’60s for a recent show and tell session, we realized that, though we’re graphic designers that specialize in print, we couldn’t explain why the yellowing process happens. Why does paper turn yellow with age? After a bit of research, we’ve found the answer to quell our curiosity.