This timely meeting of design professionals in Washington DC could be the beginning of something really good for the country as it struggles with charting a new course under a new administration. 
This exhibition is a product of a nationalize policy that promotes the creative and economic development of the country and the industry to the world. This touring exhibit is also a first towards the development of a Design Museum of Japan. 
Article: National Museum of American History
Society of Envoronmental Graphic Design
The New York Times and AIGA have created a program to collect photos of the voting process, view images or submit images by visiting this repository.
Company Website
Interview: Shepard Farley
How it Works
Saki Mafundikwa whom I met earlier this year at a design summit to address the issue of designers of color and their declining numbers within the profession.
A fellow Detroiter, and now visual op-ed columnist for the New York Times Charles Blow will be entertaining questions from readers this week.
Chip Kidd Book Covers
This also serves as a good example for the students in my packaging design course to think creatively about solving a problem that addresses the needs of a specific user group. By focusing on the needs of a unique segment of users if is more likely that a designer would arrive at a conventional remedy.
Video
I have a sense that the latest generation of cell phones are significantly better than the generation of phones that were on the market two years ago.
Museum of Art and Design
Wacom/Bamboo Site
My use of the phase is based on all the considerations that a design should be aware of in addressing a design problem. It is the ability to access a broad range of knowledge to address the needs of a situation by utilizing the tools appropriate to provide the understanding that would allow for the best solution ideas to be generated and weighted by the designer and client.
Most impressive was the student design competition that allow 12 schools to present their design solutions for a National Memorial and Interpretive Center of the Civil Rights Movement. The Cornel University design team won, with a beautifully rendered story and model entitled "Breaking the Silence".
I envision tossing a foldable bike in the trunk of my car when I travel and therefore I would have the option to pedal around town as an alternative to walking or mass transit.
Given America's current economic woes the documentary I.O.U.S.A. deftly uses information graphics to represent the situation in such a way that information is a main character in the film.
"More particularly, in St. Laurent’s work, while this change was in part one of fabric and visual reference, it was most significantly one of geometry, of form, of shape, of profile. That first post-Dior collection essayed a sort of triangular dress sillhouette, followed by something linear, then by something convex, and on and on. One quality that ostensibly distinguishes “designing” from its sister “styling,” as modes of applying form to objects, is the seeming constancy of the former, and the seeming changeability of the latter. A good design solution is a good design solution, goes the argument, regardless of the calendar or clock. But as for style, what’s lively in April is deadly in September." 
NPR's: Audio Review
Illustration by: Ismael Roldan
This was a conclusion that was partially formed by seeing the popularity of the converse sneakers on so many New Yorkers. I thought how well the low profile of converse "all star" worked with the slim leg/ saggy bottom jeans that so many new yorker's have adopted. And so, the look (shape)that these two pieces of clothing create is part of their overall appeal. The the slim slacks and the low profile of the "all star" make a union that highlights the owners legs and feet, allowing them to be visually connected in away that works so well.
I marvel at the scale of the project he and his team undertake, before this he took on Virgin's space flight aircraft (see posting 2007)
"the effectiveness of the original Tide package, which communicated “cyclone in a box,” he says. “There’s this great dynamic tension there. The word ‘Tide’ is bursting out of the circle, and the circle is standing out of the box. It’s almost a baroque composition; it’s like what Steven Spielberg would do if he were designing a brand.” The idea was that Tide is “a force of nature — it’s a phase shift.” After all, an effective synthetic detergent was a real innovation in 1947, a result of years of expensive research and development. The bull’s-eye look was actually borrowed from earlier P.&G. products, Dash and Oxydol. But in his memorable culture and design book, “The Total Package,” Thomas Hine noted that “some sophisticated color research” — involving a psychologist who specialized in such things — went into selecting a bright scheme that would suggest “sufficient power,” tempered with the “likable” blue that had a more “sensitive” connotation. Reaching the market just as automatic washing machines were catching on, Tide was a sensation; anecdotal accounts from the time suggest people lined up to get hold of the stuff — as if it were an iPhone."
Design Observer Article
For this designer, this new phenomenon will make it a little more difficult to educate the uninitiated as to what design is and the value of good design to life and culture.
For years Gap sales have been shrinking from the highs reached in the 90's as retailers like Abercrombie and Fitch have grown in popularity. Robinson has the task of introducing the Gap brand to a new generation of shoppers. 
I have not seen the program but I have seen comments that state how surprisingly interesting it the process of designing and building an practical homes is. 
But, for those with basic drawing skills in place will no doubt be found more equipped to perform basic generative development sketches if important to the employer.
