Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
This one gets a post all it’s own. Thanks for writing. I think Japanese magazines have a look that’s all their own. Sure there’s great examples of cluttered, and it’s a place where their Kanji text looks like a logo every time it’s used in a headline. I think if you look at the weekly mags, they look just as bad as US Weekly. Cluttered, packed with junk, and so on. It’s about the content and that has to be done quick. But then take a look at Brutus, it’s a bit cluttered, but the work that goes into that editorial is amazing. It’s a bundle of content, for a low price, and it’s decently done. Relax magazine was once the gold standard for nice magazines in Japan. Clean layout, great images, awesome content, and I could hardly read it. It’s done like a design magazine. Casa Brutus, another fine example of a nicely done magazine. These aren’t indie magazine operations, these are funded and are owned by large publishing houses. They have ads, they make their money, and the design doesn’t suffer. I think there’s plenty of ads in Japan, it just depends on which magazines and so on. I think part of what you see here isn’t the creme of the crop… unless you dig a bit. It’s fun to see the magazines like Cutie which do the street snap photos. Why can’t they do that in the US? They shouldn’t. It would be filled with crappy photos. The kids in Japan, spend a lot on their gear if they’re in certain areas and they always look good. Catalogs are another story. I guess I don’t really look at catalogs, except Muji. Those catalogs are quite nice. It’s like a treat when I can grab one. umeboshi onigiri said… Speaking about catalogs, I’ve alwaysliked looking at catalogs from allover the world, (when I canfind them). It’s interesting for meto see the difference in layouts,products, ads, etc.The same formagazines, I’ve always liked scanningthe mag stands looking for newor different magazines. I’ve always noticed that manytimes catalog and magazinedesigns from Japan look cluttered.Compared to a western magazine,it might have 3 times more productsshown on a page. I feel sorry forthe proof reader. And then thereseems to be a lot less ads.How do they survive without ads?When my Japanese friendslook at a western magazine orcatalog, they tell me that theylook sparse and have too manyads. So from the design standpoint,is it a cultural perception aboutwhat a magazine should look like?,is it a matter of economics?,a perception of how space shouldbe used? Design is so importantto Japan, I’ve always just wonderedwhy it looks like not much attentionis put into the design of theirmagazines and catalogs.
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- This one gets a post all it's own. Thanks for writing. I think Japanese magazines have a look that's all their own. Sure there's great examples of cluttered, and it's a place where their Kanji text looks like a logo every time it's used in a headline. I think if you look at the weekly mags, they look just as bad as US Weekly. Cluttered, packed with junk, and so on. It's about the content and that...
Someone asked me, “why do I do a blog?” That’s a great question. My honest reasons are:1. I seriously hope that a few words by me, or even by someone else can make a difference. Which for some reason reminds me of the Jawbreaker lyric from their song, Kiss the Bottle, “hey mister, can you spare a dime? Some change can make a change, could buy some time, some freedom…”2. Sharing is fun and the bits of input and comments are fun. It’s just another small thing in a lot of things that I enjoy and don’t know why. I don’t need a reason to blog, do I? Guess what I won? A 32″ flat panel. Linda chills on it, while Tyler pushes it with all his might. Chinese New Year? I’m in.
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Someone asked me, "why do I do a blog?"
That's a great question. My honest reasons are:
1. I seriously hope that a few words by me, or even by someone else can make a difference. Which for some reason reminds me of the Jawbreaker lyric from their song, Kiss the Bottle, "hey mister, can you spare a dime? Some change can make a change, could buy some time, some freedom..."
2. Sharing is fun and the...
1. I seriously hope that a few words by me, or even by someone else can make a difference. Which for some reason reminds me of the Jawbreaker lyric from their song, Kiss the Bottle, "hey mister, can you spare a dime? Some change can make a change, could buy some time, some freedom..."
2. Sharing is fun and the...
The pigeon and it’s turd on one hat. What a great design from Staple. The infamous Pigeon from the nike Pigeon dunk, and the silkscreened shit makes for an amazing combo. The pink New Era logo is strange, but oh well. This is a cool hat. Maybe the bird ate some of these. Olestra causes anal leakage in some people and maybe in birds. I ate a bunch not knowing what the heck was going in me. Why do they still bother making this?!
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