Neville Brody recently unveiled Vortext a unique piece of work for Converse and their Off Canvas Project which formed part of the first Beijing design week.

Off Canvas was the brand’s inspiring street-level exhibition of typography in areas of Beijing that have a strong connection with China’s thriving creative subcultures such as 751, Dashilar, Wudaoying Hutong, Da Wei Lang Ying Hutong and Gulou East Street. The project pulled together five other typographic talents from both Europe and China; Benny Luk, Ying Yonghui, Nod Young, Neils Shoe Meulman and Ben Eine to each create site specific installations in their chosen media.

Brody’s Vortext piece was installed at 751 D-Park part of the iconic 798 Art Centre in North East Beijing. Vortext has grown out of Brody’s Antimatter font produced for Fuse 20, his magazine publication dedicated to experimental typography, being published later this year by Taschen – you can find out more about the book here.

During Beijing design week Brody also gave a talk at CAFA (China Central Academy of Fine Arts) in partnership with the British Council’s Smart Talk series and joined a Financial Times and Baccarat discussion panel at Capital M.

Images in this story are copyright of Jonathan Leijonhuvud you can find out more about his work here

To find out more about the Off Canvas Project and respective artists follow the links below:

For Converse’s Off Canvas Project click here

For Benny Luk click here

For Nod Young click here

For Neils Shoe Meulman click here

For Ben Eine click here
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Neville Brody has designed the front cover of the forthcoming V&A Magazine dedicated to its new Postmodernism exhibition. Editor in Chief Thomas Phongsathorn commented “Neville Brody is a designer whose extraordinary body of work has significantly informed my idea of what a magazine should be – and the power of a great cover. The cover that Neville has created for us encapsulates the spirit, dynamism and energy of the V&A’s Postmodernism exhibition, but succeeds in being what Postmodern design, famously,
rarely is – beautiful, balanced and appropriate.”

On his front cover and the postmodernist movement in general Brody notes “For me, Post Modernism felt like a kind of facade built to cover over the cracks of a divided world, a surface of plucked effects and stylistic devices emptied of meaning, an extrusion of hollow traces and flat outlines forcing 2D into apparent depth. I was never a Post Modernist, rather a Modernist exploring humanist lines of enquiry in the collapsing world behind a wall of decoration.” The issue also includes an insightful article on the movement by acclaimed academic and cultural commentator Michael Bracewell

The Magazine is due to land on the doormats of V&A magazine subscribers this coming Friday 7th of October and on the shelves of magazine stores from Monday 10th October 2011.
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Research Studios are delighted to announce the forthcoming publication of ‘Fuse 1-20′ a celebration of 20 years of our internationally renowned platform for experimental design and typography.

Neville Brody, Creative Director of the Research Studios Network commented;

“FUSE was a project ahead of its time and is now even more vital in informing our understanding of our new digital communications space. It shows how important the need is for a constant state of experimental language. Its amazing to have this chance to re-view this vital collection of creative work for which we are delighted to partner with Tachen books.”

The publication, scheduled for release Autumn/Winter 2011, will include introduction texts by series Editor and long time FUSE collaborator Jon Wozencroft and design writer Adrian Shaughnessy. The book will contain stunning content from FUSE 1-18 and two exciting new issues of FUSE 19 (produced but not published) and FUSE 20 (a brand new commission by the FUSE team from some of the most exciting designers and typographers working today). An online resource will allow readers to access more content and have a richer experience around the book.

More about the project will be coming here soon alongside details or where and when you can pre-order your copies.

Neville Brody has joined Susan Hiller, Alex Danchev and EC Osondu on Radio Four’s ‘Start the Week’ programme hosted by Andrew Marr.

The broadcast focused on a panel discussion around several current topics including Brody’s appointment as Head of Communications at the Royal College of Art; Hiller’s work and new exhibition at Tate Britain; Danchev’s new book ‘New Boom 100 Artists’ Manifestos: From the Futurists to the Stuckists’; and Osondu’s new publication ‘Voice of America’.

To listen to the broadcast on the BBC’s iplayer please click here

Neville Brody’s Blur font has been chosen to be admitted to the Museum of Modern Art’s (MoMA) architecture and design collection. Blur was selected alongside 22 other digital typefaces which included Carter’s Verdana, Speikermann’s FF Meta, Pool’s FF Din, Frere-Jones and Hoefler’s Retina, Crouwel’s New Alphabet and Barnbrook’s Manson fonts too.

In its official gallery label MoMA writes “The letterforms of FF Blur—fuzzy around the edges like an out-of-focus photograph—seem to celebrate their own imperfection, speaking to his unique background. FF Blur resembles type that has been reproduced cheaply on a Xerox machine—degenerated through copying and recopying.” You can find out more about MoMa (New York) or search their collection here

To read an official design journalist Alice Rawsthorn’s piece on MoMA’s selection of new digital fonts in The New York Times click here

There is still time to catch a Smile for London – short 20 second films or animations designed to “make people smile” which will be screened at various tube locations up until this Friday 28th January. Brody alongside Jeremy Boxer of Vimeo, Shane Walter of onedotzero, author Stephen Bayley and Gavin Lucas of Creative Review each selected their five favourite competition submissions to be screened.

The Jury’s selected shorts also sit alongside a curated selection of more established artists and film makers – including Anish Kapoor, Airside, Aardman Animation, Jon Burgerman, Pete Fowler, Saam Farahmand who were invited to take part in the project.
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Screen Shot From Burgerman's Short

Screen Shot from Aardman Animations Short

Research Studios are delighted to announce that Neville Brody, our Creative Director, was awarded a Special Commendation at the Prince Philip Designers Prize 2010 this week. The prize was won by Bill Moggridge with Special Commendations also going to Dame Vivienne Westwood and John Makepeace.

Brody was nominated by both the Royal College of Art and D&AD, the latter of which stated “Neville has made a dramatic contribution to design, not only through his work as an immensely talented graphic designer, typographer and art director but also as a champion of the industry and, often, its fiercest critic”. Brody joined an awe inspiring short list of internationally renowned names which also included Christopher Bailey, Margaret Calvert, Zaha Hadid, Eva Jiricna and Adrian Newey.

The Prince Philip Designer’s Prize 2010 formed in 1959 has celebrated over 50 years of innovation in design. The prize goes to an individual designer or a leader of a design team, selected from nominations by professional bodies and educational institutions which include the Arts Council England, Chartered Society of Designers (CSD), D&AD, British Fashion Council, Design Museum, the Design Business Association, Institution of Engineering Designers, Engineering Council, Royal Institute of British Architects, Royal Society of Arts and the Royal College of Art.

The winner is selected based on the quality, originality and commercial success of their work, and the designer’s overall contribution to the standing of design, and to design education. The winner receives a certificate signed by Prince Philip, and the judges may also award Special Commendations as they have done this year.

You can find our more about the Prince Philip Designers Prize, this year’s winner, Special Commendations and the nominated designers and architects on the Design Council’s website here

Photograph © Graham Jepson

Photograph © Graham Jepson
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Research Studios are proud to announce that Neville Brody, our Creative Director, has been elected to the D&AD Executive Committee. You can find out more about the D&AD here.
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Neville Brody has appeared in a profile feature in the UK’s Design Week publication talking about his new role at the RCA, Anti Design Festival and personal feelings on design and the design industry. If you missed it you can click here to download a PDF version of the article.

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