Poster Palooza: Mid-Century Modern Ad Posters

Illustrator Bob Staake is amazing. I've always enjoyed his work and wished I owned a piece of his art. But as I was looking through my Mid-Century Modern results in compfight (which I have mentioned before), I stumbled across one of his Flickr sets called Poster Palooza! Amazing Mid-Century European Advertising Posters. Slideshow here.

His Poster Palooza Flickr set description it says...

A gallery of imagery, graphics and designs sure to inspire anyone who truly appreciates and understands the history of the advertising poster. The European 'poster aesthetic' of the mid-20th century continues to influence countless illustrators, designers and visual artists -- and this sampling of iconic, awe-inspiring images shows why so many of us remain unabashed poster fanatics.

Check out all of his sets. Bob is an amazing talent.

Terminology: What is Modern?

Recently I was emailing back and forth with a Flickr friend who has an amazing eye and fortune for all things thrift shop. We spoke about how often people misuse the word "modern" when they are describing something "new" or "now." But I believe it's worth clarifying that "Modern" really has more to do with design approach than time. Dieter Rams designed products in the 1960's which are nearly 50 years old now, and yet are all considered modern today. They are also retro and vintage.

Just a thought.

709 Finds. More Liquidation items.

More items which will be on the chopping block as soon as I finish photography and pricing. Especially interesting as I recently read this and this.

Mid-Century Modern Interior and Objects

Spin through the photos above. They were taken for a variety of reasons. For one, I am using my Canon Digital Rebel 300D more and more, and this was more practice. Secondly, much of these shots are for use as I go to sell this stuff. Not all, but some. And last, these photos are just plain fun to look at, and a big portion of BarryBlog readers respond to posts I have about such things. Plus, and perhaps the most important reason to me, and the reason I started BarryBlog in the first place, is because I'm enthusiastic about craftsmanship, charm, and innovations of the past, and so I share these mostly vintage treasures so you can appreciate them as well.

Time Life Chairs: Coming To A Store Near You

Tangible proof I finally coordinated getting these bad boys from the warehouse to my house. Seven in total. A sneak peek into a recent entry into my string of mid-century modern furniture, collectible and decorative arts good fortune. Ladies and Gentlemen, I introduce to you the Herman Miller Aluminum Group Executive Management Mid-Back Work Chair, or Time Life Chair– "BarryBlog Edition." Buy one for yourself at a store near you...coming soon.

Learn more about these chairs at my previous post. Or check out MidCenturyModernist for more. Email for inquires for purchase if you can't wait for them to go live. All proceeds to help fund our adoption in El Salvador.

Mid Century Modern Fashion: Time Life Chair

Grab some goods if you're a Eames nut like me. I threw together a t-shirt design which you can customize to your heart's content. Or send some postage in style. To be frank, these items are crap. But I wanted to experiment with Zazzle, set up a store, work the back end, and see how the process goes. Yes I received my brown long-sleeve T and yes it rocks the house. Hanes Beefy-T to be exact. So now I'm familar with how to do this when we may need this for work, to create a couple one off designs for my wife and I, or when we want to make some extra cash. Whatever. Let me know if you want a shirt. I'll go in to the back end and lower the %. I really marked it up. But hey, all proceeds (zero and counting) go to my wife and my El Salvador adoption fund.

create & buy custom products at Zazzle

New Canon Rebel 300D. New Possibilities.

My friend Tom let me take his camera (Canon Digital Rebel EOS 300D) to Costa Rica. I quickly realized this camera was a natural extension of my hand, eyes and brain. So after some begging and groveling, he let me buy it from him. Yesterday I put it to the test with still life found objects around my house. Below is what I came up with. Keep in mind these are without any lighting besides what was coming in the window, and it was rather gloomy and rainy to say the least. So overall I am very happy with the results. If you like the photos, they are available for your commercial use by way of a commercial Attribution Creative Commons license. Hey, it's all about sharing. Feel free to let me know your thoughts.

UPDATE: I have uploaded several new today (12/03/07)