Actually, the unbearable weight of design struck one before the unbearable heat of the concrete world did. It seems so hard to escape the Brand. It seems that to design is to brand, to reduce for consumption, to package so nicely, and to sell, to be instantly apparent. One wishes to be clear and to convey information in a reasonable, digestable manner: one brands oneself. “So step back a bit,” one says to oneself. It can be clear and structured—and there can be a spot of blue!—and maybe not so much the identity package for a luxury sedan. (Although, next year’s model is already available here.) It might be a lost cause. These days, to give the thing a name is to begin the descent (or ascent) to Brand Hell (or Heaven).

Maybe the overheated argument is more plausible. It’s just too damn hot, and you gotta lighten up.

This redesign has been a couple months coming, and I almost scrapped it a few weeks ago (as can often happen in a too-lengthy design phase). I was (and still am) feeling very antagonistic towards the rigid templating which seems a prerequisite for “good” web design, especially when a CMS is involved. However, in the end I reconciled my frustrations with standardization in the realization that the information I want to convey in my site and the audience I am conveying it too really do require a recognizable architecture. I will just have to look forward to other concepts for sites which allow for a more organic and non-repetitive design and structure. Something with a bit more narrative potential.

There are probably some holes left in parts of the site (I really needed to just get it up here) and I have been less a stickler about validation, too. But, for the most part, everything should be pretty OK. Again, if I haven’t said it already, thanks for looking and reading.

As far as design methodology, this site embodies my recent ascent, or descent, into the world of web standards and css-based design. Much insight was gained on web standards and css from A List Apart, Jeffrey Zeldman, and Stop Design, to name a few. I’ve opted for an xhtml-transitional framework with reliance on a main structural table for each page layout (i.e. this is not pure css positioning). I’ve also not yet validated my code with W3C – but I will soon. If anyone out there notices any wierdness in terms of bugs, broken links, or whatever, please drop me a line – but I think I’m good to go in most of the modern browsers.

As far as the real work of this site, some new projects are in the initial stages and will be moving forward after the new year. Particularly interesting is a community design competition for a vacant lot in our neighborhood that J. Meredith Warner and I are organizing in cooperation with the Champaign County Historical Museum – more to come later.

Enjoy.

hope to have a new version of this site underway soon. it never ends, does it?

the foto (a destra) hopefully gives one an introductory impression of the summer landscape of central illinois. the day on which this foto was taken was particularly crisp, the leaves of the corn stalks gleaming like silver with each twitch in the wind.

I’ve been neglecting the ol’ web log as of late. here’s an attempt to rekindle some kind of regular engagement with this particular mode of writing, but I’ll not expect anyone “in the world” to read it. rather, I’ll shift my focus inward. perhaps I can return to some semblance of a discipline of writing: ebullient love poems, misguided and misinformed political rants, delusional conversations with YOU (hello!), notes for ten-minute tele-dramas, and the like.

so, next saturday, december 14 from 7 – 10 pm will be the time. click the image to the left for more info and directions to the space, which is a really excellent rehabbed warehouse at penn field center in south austin.

hope to see many of you there…

after some real frustration with the current state of graphic design (esp. on the web), I’ve settled down a bit and managed a redesign of my site—partly inspired (mostly inspired?) by kaz’s vision for manyfold, partly inspired by my impending doom as an ex-graduate student. temporarily exiled from the academy, one feels compelled to present oneself to the world in the most attractive way that one can. ha!

so, the blog. hmmm. a friend said that she thought the blog was cool because it allows friends and family far and wide to check up on you periodically. and speaking of “periodical”, kaz discovered that you can apply for an ISSN number for your weblog, thus placing it in the worldwide standardized encyclopedia of periodicals. we’ll see about that… (get your own free blog from blogger) I’m not very familiar with the subculture which centers around the practice of “blogging”—in fact, I don’t think I would read a blog that wasn’t written by a friend. that said, dear reader, if you are not a friend, thanks for you interest and time; and, by the way, don’t you have something better to do?

like I said, I’m just a few weeks away from graduating and I expect to have quite a lot of free time ahead of me. many projects to be undertaken, many ideas to investigate and then share via this particular medium. I hope to soon develop my thesis work into some form of web-based resource and on-going research project (that thesis work has only just begun), etc etc…