Have a break …from Zoom calls

How clever is this ad by creative strategist Sam Hennig. Hennig designed this ad on spec for One Minute Briefs, a U.K. creative project.

It’s a clever play on Kit Kat’s famous slogan—”Have a break. Have a Kit Kat”—which at least in the U.K. is so renowned, the ad didn’t need to mention it. The ad has gone viral and Kit Kat even spotted the work and sought permission from Hennig to share the ad across its social channels.

The gorgeous production design for the Queen’s Gambit

We just finished watching The Queen’s Gambit in Netflix and I was so impressed by the cinematography, costumes, sets and the overall impeccable production design and styling. The last time a series’ art direction and design made such an impression on me was when I watched Mad Men.

The show is situated in the 1950s and ’60s as the story’s fictional heroine Elizabeth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy) — a brilliant yet self-destructive chess prodigy raised in an orphanage — rises to international fame.

The show’s production designer Uli Hanisch is behind the sets, whether it’s the orphanage, or the traditional mid-century-modern home, or the glamorous chess-tournament events hosted in Las Vegas, Paris and Mexico City. Everything is palette-matched and perfect. Special mention will have to go to the full-pattern and colourful wallpapers inside the Wheatley home.

It is interesting that, while the story spans the globe, most of The Queen’s Gambit was shot in Berlin, even the Aztec Hotel chess tournament which is supposedly based in Mexico City.

Designed by Gabriele Binder, costumes for The Queen’s Gambit reflect the growing sophistication and self-assurance of the main character, often incorporating structural lines and black-and-white patterns, taking inspiration by chess colours, while paying homage to Pierre Cardin, Courrèges and the Mod style of the era.

A very interesting (virtual) exhibition of the costumes included in the series is presented in “The Queen and The Crown” by the Brooklyn Museum.

Choice

Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.

– Roy T. Bennett

The typographic portraits of John Mavroudis

“Trump Words” cover for The Nation magazine
Trump Covid-19 poster

John Mavroudis is one of the most influential contemporary illustrators. He was born in California (from a Greek father and an American mother) and gained international reputation for the cover of TIME magazine, featuring Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, created by her powerful quotes. Using the same method, he previously created the portrait of US President Donald Trump for The Nation.

He is also the designer who created the posters for the 60th anniversary of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival this year.

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