Film - Waltz with Bashir

This Animated film is easily one of the best films i have seen, it depicts director Ari Folman's journey back through his time in the Israeli army during the lebanon war. The animation and production is really stunning and is a fantastic achievement it's no wonder it has won so many awards. This film is not only animation it is a documentary, historical and also fiction which makes very unique and definitely one i won't forget.  

Books - how to be a graphic designer without losing your soul

How to be a graphic designer without losing your soul by Adrian Shaughnessy is an honest, practical and very useful source of information for any young designer. I found it very informative on such topics as setting up your own studio, client relationships and self promotion. Shaughnessy talks about the design ladder and different paths you can choose as well as interviews with other designers to gain different perspectives. This book is definitely worth a read and is very useful for the young designer.

80 years of book cover design

This book by Joseph Connelly is an index of nearly 300 pages of book covers taking you through the development of book cover design from as far back as the 1930's. It is really interesting to see how the covers change with current events and over time from the colourful hippy covers of the 60's to the more sedate 50's. The book celebrates Faber and Faber's 80th anniversary and contains a great wealth of work  as well as being a great tribute, however it contains so many covers that a real focus is needed to absorb all the covers and really take them in. 

Jumeirah towers

I came across this photograph in the telegraph and it really caught my eye and i found it very intriguing. It is a really surreal image of the Jumeirah tower in Dubai but the combination of the light and reflection makes it really interesting and a fantastic photo.

Inspirational Architecture - The pyramids of Giza

Seeing the great pyramids of Giza first hand was an incredibly inspiring architectural sight. The great pyramid, one of the 7 ancient wonders of the world, certainly lived up to expectation not only in scale but the sheer feat of building them nearly 5000 years ago. Information is so scarce on the how the pyramids were actually built it makes it all the more interesting to me and that they are so well preserved and intact is fascinating.

 Visiting the pyramids of Giza made me realise that pushing architectural and design boundaries is crucial for development into bigger and better things. The innovation and forward thinking that occured for these massive pieces of engineering to be constructed nearly 5000 years ago really inspired me and the ideals that the impossible is possible.

 A short walk from the pyramids is the sphinx which had the same effect of fascination, it has so much detail and is in such good condition. These historical architectural sites made me want to create things entirely different and interesting just as they did all those years ago. I have had a problem with the photos and they will be posted shortly.