Posts from — December 2006

Jonathan Yuen is a multidisciplinary graphic designer based in Singapore. His portfolio website is an understated visual feast of silhouette proportions!

Using Flash, he presents visitors to his site with a short landscape, inspired by traditional oriental watercolour-scapes, devoid of colour except for red buttons to reveal more information . One minute you’re looking down on a shadow teasing realistically animated koi carp and the next you facing a profile of a child observing fluttering butterflies. The variety of viewpoints adds to the aesthetic presentation of the gloriously intricate interface, completed with a synthetic watery reveal of each segment.

Visit : www.jonathanyuen.com

Technorati Tags: Flash, graphic design, traditional watercolour

I recently discovered ‘The Notorious MSG’ on a giveaway dvd in my last subscriber issue of the US-based Giant Robot magazine. MTV launched a new channel called MTV CHI in December 2005 and the dvd was to promote it with some intro’s, stings, idents, videos and interviews - you know, the usual MTV mix.

The Notorious MSG are hilarious! They’re the “original Chinatown bad boys, serving up deep-fried beats straight from the Chinese ghetto”. They play up to much of the stereotyping East-Asians get in a Western world, and formulate hip-hop inspired tracks that reflect on Chinese kitchen toiling, food delivery boys and discrimination.

Technorati Tags: Chinatown, hip-hop, MTV CHI, music, Notorious MSG

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This German website has a neat lil’ idea to clip a pair of chopsticks together for easier usage. Looks like a useful idea if you need them at your oriental dinner party and plan to invite the uninitiated chopsticks user. There are a few other clever ideas using common household implements to create useful items, although this is the only Oriental-themed one.

Brings me to another point. Is it me, or do other people notice non-East-Asians (or to be fair, people who haven’t grown up using chopsticks) tend to eat with chopsticks off plates? I’ve grown up always using a bowl which is a helluvalot more practical in scooping up rice than attempting to pick up a few grains at a time..

Technorati Tags: chopsticks, clever ideas

If you’re like me, you’ll be working on a computer for most of time. I like to personalise my interface to get some visual satisfaction while I stare at my screen. Here are carefully and lovingly collected links to some cool desktop icons if you feel like orientalising your interface! Copyright owned by their designers and website.

Technorati Tags: Qin Dynasty, traditional, origami, sushi, bonsai, Samurai, zodiac, Gods of Wealth, Japan Edo Period, Chinese, icons, oriental, Doraemon

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