Category Archives: Uncategorized

Manufacturing Looks Bullish in 2012 and Impressive at the EXPO

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Join dozens of local manufacturers for a two-day Manufacturing EXPO in the Galleria in downtown Cleveland on February 14 and 15. More than 3,000 attendees and 175 exhibitors from across North America will be meeting, sharing ideas and finding the last piece of the puzzle that leads to unbelievable success. The EXPO is the place to see what modern manufacturers are doing and put a face to the activities of some of the country’s and the world’s most innovative projects potential.

Manufacturing has expanded for the 29th consecutive month, according to the Institute of Supply Management. There is pent-up demand for consumer durable goods, especially in the automotive market. Many manufacturers began 2012 with leaner operations and better cash reserves. A continuing problem for manufacturers is finding people—people with manufacturing skills and a strong work ethic. Companies in our area find it difficult, at times, to find entry-level employees who are willing to work hard. Many of the new jobs will require strong math and interpersonal skills, along with a high school diploma. Manufacturing companies are working with schools to match what employers say they look for with what is taught. In addition to skilled entry-level workers, manufacturing companies throughout Northeastern Ohio need precision machinists and engineers.

As a participating sponsor of this inaugural event, we encourage you to check it out and tell us your thoughts about the EXPO in the comments section below.

MOCA OPENS THIS FRIDAY!

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The Cleveland Museum of Contemporary Art is on the move. This Friday, January 20 from 7–9pm, MOCA will be open its doors to the public at its new location in Cleveland’s emerging Uptown District. Located at the intersection of Mayfield Road and Euclid Avenue the new MOCA will be hard to pass by without a second look.

The new MOCA, designed by Farshid Moussavi of Foreign Office Architects, is leading the way in Case Western Reserve’s collaborative urban-revitalization project. The hexagonal shape at the base evolves over four stories into a square at the very top. The unique geometry is given form by black stainless steal, tinted and transparent glass. The varying trapezoid and triangular exterior walls lean in and away from the base, creating reflections of both the street below and sky above. Positioned among the University Circle’s academic life and cultural organizations, MOCA is certain to provide a new energy and life to the community.

Though contemporary art can, at times feel, aloof, strange or hard to relate to, the interior of MOCA has been designed to be as inviting as possible. There will be no charge for entrance to the first floor, as visitors are encouraged to gather, eat, shop and absorb all that MOCA has to offer.  For a modest fee, guests can explore the remaining three levels of exhibition space. The new MOCA is an exciting opportunity for the greater Cleveland community to experience local, regional and international art exhibitions.

For more information on upcoming events, follow this link to MOCA’s homepage.

Colors for your Man Cave

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Color is an essential element in design. It can evoke moods, create emphasis and contrast, and make emotional connections with the audience. Scientists and Artists alike have studied it for centuries and it takes even the best decades to master.

Now marketing color is a different craft all together. The interior paint is a market saturated by female driven advertising. However, CIL Paints has dared to be different. Ultimate Man Caves, a “paint colors for men” collection, attempts to engage the neglected male market. CIL Paints has renamed 27 different colors, changing the mood and the market by the name.  From “Monterey Cliffs” to “Wolfden,” “Fairytale Green” to “Mo Money” the names certainly evoke a different mood.

Although not all of the feed back to CIL has been positive, the line of paints, in my opinion, accomplished the original goal behind the campaign; to be funny. Alison Goldman, a spokeswoman for CIL Paints said the original idea behind the campaign was to “do something hilarious.”  I think they certainly hit the mark with names like “Porcelain Throne” (Pillar) and  “Zombie Apocalypse” (Juliet’s Potion).

See if you can guess the original name with the color and new manly name. The answers are on the side, but don’t cheat! Use the key to check your guesses.

If you’d like to find out more and to check out a photo gallery of some man caves, click here.

 

 

 

Humblepied

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Mig Reyes is an interactive designer at Threadless and an instructor at the Chicago Portfolio School. I stumbled upon his interview at createthemap.com (which is totally worth the 9 minutes). After watching his interview I found my way to his site, Humblepied.com

Humblepied is a collection of short interviews–conducted by Mig–of creative professionals offering advice to young and old creatives alike, all via ichat. As its name implies, it is humbling and inspiring to see what these seasoned veterans of the creative industry have to say.

As a recent graduate, I am all too familiar with all of the fears and anxieties that come with developing a portfolio, graduating, and jumping into the “real world” with a life-time of work in hand, searching for someone who will give you a chance to do the great work you know you can. Luckily, I found Studiothink, or was it Studiothink who found me… either way, I’m very fortunate and thankful to be working with these awesome creative professionals.

I wish I would have known about this site several months ago. These short videos are great sources for inspiration, and offer a chance to hear the thoughts and philosophies of people we may never meet. Mig has done the entire creative community a great service by bringing all of these people together in one place.

If it were my turn to be interviewed on Humblepied, I’d say this to help get through those months of anxiety leading up to graduation:

If you’re there right now, or approaching that time period as this semester ends and your next (or last) begins, believe in yourself, know who you are and go after it. And if you ever find yourself at a loss (as we all do at some point), check out humblepied.com for a few words of wisdom, guidance and support.

Idiosyncrasy – at the University of Akron

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I had the pleasure of attending the 2nd Advanced Graphic Design Exhibition at the University of Akron entitled, “Idiosyncrasy.” This semester-long course, taught by Markus Vogl, a second year professor at the Myers School of Art, has one goal: to brand, create and host a design exhibition at the end of the semester. Yesterday was the show’s opening reception. This course provides Graphic Design students the invaluable experience of creating an exhibition, which in my opinion, is all too often reserved for the Fine Arts.

Going back to my alma mater was a great experience for me. I was a part of Vogl’s first exhibition experiment, as a student in his class, and it was really awesome to see what the students came up with this year.

As part of the theme this year, the students explored the idea of obsession in a multitude of mediums that challenge the boundaries of what “Graphic Design” can be. Many of the students removed themselves from the two-dimensional plane of print and web design and found themselves in perhaps uncharted territory.

Jessica Peiri’s, “Poise,” was her tangible realization of the balance and responsibility she feels for her emotions and relationships with those closest to her. Pieri wrote on words and phrases on rice that represented people near and dear to her. She encapsulated these in colored glass, and hung them in perfect balance as apart of a larger metallic mobile.

Jessica Pieri's "Poise"

 

Alex Zvada’s “Tempo,” was his expression of his obsession for music. He used a colorful display of lights that reacted to the tempo, tone and amplitude of the music that accompanied. As Zvada states “This artwork illustrates audibly, as well as visually, the moods and themes that are presented in my mind, throughout the day.”

Alex Zvada's "Tempo"

I don’t want to give away the rest, because this exhibition truly deserves a visit. If you’d like to find out more information, follow this link. http://www.idiosyncrasy.co/

And if you do find yourself in the Akron area, stop over to Folk Hall for a peek at “Idiosyncrasy.” The show runs through November 23.

10,000 Lakes, 10,000 Logos

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As a creative agency, we like to recognize others in the industry who are doing something out of the box that shows off their talents. Nicole Meyer is one of these individuals.

Nicole has started a project called Branding 10,000 Lakes (an ambitious project might I add) that does exactly what it says: Brand 10,000 Lakes. Every day, Nicole designs a logo for each Minnesota Lake, an undertaking that will take 27 years to complete! Her inspiration stems from the fact that she feels most lake logos tend to be unappealing, and so she has made it her purpose to change that.

I’m not a designer, so a concept like this is a bit foreign to me, but I am a writer, and I would imagine something like this would be similar to writing a page or a chapter in a book every day, for 27 years –(that would be one long book)—which would be hard to do, because sometimes your creative wheels just aren’t spinning, and  so called “writer’s block,” or in this case, “designer’s block” sets in. So I find it really fascinating that every single one of the lake logos have turned out simply amazing. She’s done 100 so far and still going strong.

I applaud Nicole for her ingenuity, motivation and passion for what she is doing. She’s a motivation to all of us in the creative industry, whether designers, writers, illustrators, etc. Check out Nicole’s page here and tell us what you think!

Cinemagraphs

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Motion picture? Kind of. But not the kind you are probably thinking of.

Not a Hollywood motion picture—they’re not movies or animations. They’re literally a picture that has motion.

Let me demonstrate:

 

See what I mean?

Through a partnership that has changed the way we view still photography, Visual Graphics Artist Kevin Burg and Photographer Jamie Beck created/invented cinemagraphs, which are essentially animated .gif files. The duo takes a simple still photograph, and enhances it with movement through separate animation of multiple frames.

 

Pretty neat, huh?

While some people have viewed animated .gifs as a step backwards in the way technology, animation and design have advanced, this duo has given new meaning to the technique, and brought about a trend that is both artistic and revolutionary.

Personally, I think these moving pictures are amazing. The subtle movements and creativity are genius, and give the viewer the impression they are looking at a real-life image instead of a still photo. And I think we all crave this sort of photography—we want to see our photos come to life. Just look at the Harry Potter books—all of the portraits and photos move and contain glimpses of reality.

It could just be my personal opinion, but photos contain real meaning and memories for a lot of people. To be able to animate them to show life, is something extraordinary. Just imagine what this form of photography could do to everyday photos if we could all animate them to recreate what happened in the photo? The possibilities are endless.

Check out more cinemagraphs and read more about the process here, then tell us what you think! We’d love to hear your personal opinions on this topic.

-Britni

Does Cleveland Rock?
Is Cleveland a Plum?
Are you down with C-town?

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Studiothink Banners

How do you express your Cleveland Pride?
We want your best Cleveland-focused quote, quip, limerick, haiku, muse…however you want to say it – just say it!

Studiothink is hosting a “Cleveology” quote contest from September 16th through noon on November 1st.

We’re proud to have our roots and branches planted firmly in Cleveland – and we know that whether you were born here, transplanted, in school or just visited once or twice – Cleveland grows on you pretty quickly. The word on Cleveland is spreading and eliciting big interest (hence the “ology” part) and we want to continue to get the word out.  We’ve got great people, culture, cuisine, location, business, sports, weather (really!!), Cleveland’s got it all in a package that just keeps getting better and better.  Show your knowledge about all things Cleveland by entering our “Cleveology” quote contest.

Here’s the deal:
Post your cheeky, cool, clever, creative, quirky quote about Cleveland.  Please make it positive – and refrain from posting something that would make a sailor blush.

The winning author will receive a “Cleveology” prize pack, and their quote will be made into banners that will hang in some great places around Cleveland.

We’re also going to design a very cool t-shirt using the winning quote that will be available for purchase with proceeds going to local charities. Finally, we’ll be hosting a party where the guests of honor are the top five vote-getting quote authors. We’ll announce the winner and reveal the banner and t-shirt design at the party which will take place just after Thanksgiving.

Get your creative Cleveland juices flowing and leave your ideas under this post!

fine print:
1. Must be a quote about Cleveland
2. Must be posted under this specific blog post as a comment
3. Let’s keep it positive – wit wins.
4. Judging will be the task of a panel of really smart and creative Clevelanders.
Judges’ decisions are final.
5. Multiple quote submissions are welcome (and appreciated!)

National Awards for Studiothink!

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Studiothink recently won several awards for our creative and strategic marketing materials created for CommuniCare Health Services, a client that prides itself on dedicated and compassionate service in rehabilitative and nursing home environments. We’ve created materials that portray the passion our client has for treating the elderly in a way that is both engaging and meaningful.

The National Mature Media Awards is an awards program that recognizes the best and most creative materials created for individuals ages 50 and over. It’s the largest program of its kind, accepts materials for 32 categories and awards recognition in the levels of Gold, Silver, Bronze and Merit. This year, there were 1,000 entries competing for recognition.

Awards were received for photography, commercial, logo and brochure work done for our healthcare client, and we are excited and thankful for this achievement!