as technology progresses, the demand for our gadgets and gizmos to miniaturize our obsession with the micro is only emboldened by our equal craving for high fidelity imagery. is this demand for such fine detail making it difficult to see the forest through the trees? fast company reviews the google art project and professor james elkins’ consideration of whether this service is in fact a detriment to art history. google art project digitizes artworks at such high definition that elkins inquires if the artists, devoid of knowledge of this technology, ever intended onlookers to view their work with such scrutiny. does this seemingly self-indulgent access to detail devalue the illusion or suggestion of a brush stroke? does it unveil the mystery and optical illusions to the extent that it devalues these works that have been treasured and studied pieces for centuries?

not really, just using it well to make our government more accessible, revolutionizing the fireside chat concept. the white house offers a blog, mobile app, live streaming, and podcasts. some of the more notable interactive features include the federal taxpayer receipt which shows you how your money has been spent; and the ability to start and participate in petitions. the newest feature is an audio series being biden, a narrated blog giving citizens personal insight into the vice presidency.

Imgembed from Imgembed on Vimeo.

the democratic nature of content creation on the internet is a proverbial pandora’s box. with anyone enabled to post and share copy and images, the minefield of copyright and fair usage is in heated debate as we tread further into these uncharted waters. as the time of the blogger unfolds content becomes more proprietary than ever. for those looking to monetize and protect the usage of their content and images specifically there is a new service available to track and market your image use. imgembed’s services can bring in extra cash for creators and new options for users as an alternate to stock photo sites.

when you think of any brand or company that consistently offers a user experience that fosters a cult-like following, apple or target might come to mind. what do they have that other groups can’t seem to capture? well google seems to be the most recently initiated member of this club, and they believe that it is a unified design culture that informs the entire brand.

here the verge addresses google’s attitude adjustment that is bringing them rave reviews:

and here allan peters [a senior art director at target] features designer, clesete prevost’s work that illustrates google’s new direction:

have you ever found yourself in a target store or viewing an advertisement for the iconic chain and thought to yourself: it would be awesome to design for target? their love of simplicity and affection for the power of white space nearly makes me giddy. not to mention their collaboration with great designers and brands of varying disciplines, like the new shops concept and the recent campbell’s warhol soup cans. target inhouse, target’s “internal creative studio” is behind much of this eye candy, and they have launched a new website that features the work of their “collective of designers, copywriters, art directors, developers, information architects, production designers, account executives, art buyers and producers.” they also have a blog where you can follow the development of many of their creative wonders.

The Iranian Internet – An Infographic by Maral Pourkazemi from Gestalten on Vimeo.

for infographics to be successful they must distill complex facts into manageable and meaningful visuals that tell a specific story. maral porkazemi has created a six-piece series of infographics that do just that, which is made all the more impressive that she was able to access facts at all. her subject: the iraninan internet. the notoriously isolated country provides very little information and statistics to it’s own citizens, and further censors and or manipulates any information accessed by the outside world. with such a sprawling subject as the internet, which in and of itself is difficult to visualize, these beautiful circuits of statistics depict in detail how iranians are harnessing the power of the internet and social media to access uncensored information.

the annual report has officially been inducted into the digital era. companies are not only offering a downloadable pdf version of their printed annual report, they are all together abandoning the annual printed tome of business practice past. shareholders are now able to access the usually dry data in the dynamic form of websites. here are a few organizations embracing the future of the annual report.

warby parker

mailchimp

at&t

ge

over the last several years a web trend has emerged, as they do with such an ever-evolving entity. wordpress has increasingly become the platform of choice. even large entities are opting to stick with the basic architecture to cultivate their customer relationships, despite being able to afford and access systems unique to them. so is wordpress living dieter rams design philosophy, in that good design is unobtrusive and is as little design as possible? here are some corporate giants incorporating wordpress into their brand:

the sfmoma is collaborating with a series of designers/firms to rethink the branding of the united states. their partnership with mgmt to produce (re)flag has generated a series of flags that are a statistically accurate representation of our nation. mgmt has removed the aspirational veil of unity and abstract symbolism to bring a more literal portrait of the states of our union more perfect or not. could this sometimes sobering analysis of our national reality prompt a behavioral change-of-heart like a good long look in the mirror, or will it fall on deaf ears as the theatrics of politics trumps real human issues?

election day is upon us. not only has there been campaigning for and by candidates, but there is also a bi-partisan drive to register voters. you have probably been inundated with election registration ads, including pleas from the first lady, various parties and their surrogates, as well as organized campaigns like rock the vote, and get out the vote. another creative campaign, called know your potus by superfad, utilizes humor to stimulate your patriotic duty to participate… so, vote.