This is not a newspaper

As part of Offset's Transform Your City project mentioned recently, graphic design studio Aad has produced a printed project and website entitled This is not a newspaper. While it might look like a newspaper, be distributed like a newspaper and (hopefully) smell and feel like a newspaper, This is not a newspaper doesn't tell you the news, it fills you in on the thoughts some people have had and stories they've decided to tell about Dublin's South William Street, a Georgian street in Dublin's creative quarter full of shops, cafes, quirky basements and - to contributor Andrew Griffin - 'a Machiavellian world of intrigue'. This is not a newspaper brings together 8 short stories and musings along with 8 illustrations and poses thoughts on online and in person experiences, imaginings of a future South William Street and a call for curiosity and daydreams. Grab a copy if you're in the area or dip in online for a sense of one of Dublin's loveliest streets - what it is and what it could be. Find out what other transformations are occuring in Dublin here and click through for more images.

Here's the Heads Up #17

Welcome to the first London/Dublin edition of Here's the Heads Up, with some info on current and upcoming design exhibitions and events that a) I've been to, b) I plan to go to or c) I wish I could go to but am sorry to say I'll miss. Enjoy!

Edinburgh International Book Fest

Edinburgh's Festival season continues to pick up pace, with Edinburgh International Festival opening yesterday and Edinburgh International Book Festival kicking off today. I've already been to a number of Fringe and Art Festival events (keep an eye on my Twitter feed for 140 character reviews) and am looking forward to having two more festivals - each with a different focus - added to the mix. Edinburgh International Book Festival is the largest celebration of the written word in the world, with over 750 writers and thinkers from all over the world coming to Edinburgh to share their work through talks, readings, workshops and more. While talks and readings occur in a host of venues, the Book Fest's hub is in Charlotte Square Gardens. Free to attend and open to everyone, the Festival's hub features two bookshops (one for grown-ups and one for children), a cafe, workshops, readings and more. It goes without saying that if you're in Edinburgh at the moment you should take the opportunity to spend a few hours there and soak up whatever's going on, but there are some other highlights from the festival below worth checking out too:

Mid Century Modern Dot-to-Dot

At the recent DesignMarket in the Fruitmarket Gallery there was heaps of great stuff to look at made by a host of Scottish-based designers, makers and retailers. While there I picked up Mid Century Modern Dot-to-Dot, a zine made by Edinburgh- and Reykjavík-based team The Lindström Effect. As the title suggests, this is a zine celebrating iconic 20th century designs through the medium of join-the-dots puzzles, featuring pieces by Louis Poulsen, Verner Panton, Charles and Ray Eames and a portrait of Le Corbusier himself. It's a fab little publication, click through for more images and you'll find copies to buy on The Lindström Effect's online shop.

Design for Children

This article was first published in Architecture Ireland #269

To date, this column has always focussed on design for adults, be it the visual communications us adults consume, the furniture we sit on, the lights we read under or the events we attend. But it's not just the older and taller members of society that use design, and with the recent Children's Books Ireland (CBI) conference in Light House Cinema, it seemed apt to take a closer look at design for children. In fact, when we consider the importance we place on instilling a love of reading, or sport, or music, or nature at a young age, should we not be doing the same with well-considered, attractive design too?

You're All Just Jealous of my Jetpack

Last week I headed along to Analogue Books for a talk and signing by cartoonist and illustrator Tom Gauld. Scottish-born Gauld has just published a collection of cartoons drawn for the Guardian newspaper called You're All Just Jealous of my Jetpack, and a group of about 20 people squeezed into Analogue on Thursday evening to hear a bit about Gauld's work over a beer. The cartoons featured in the collection are all drawn to sit on the letters page in the Guardian, so always take their inspiration from the comments and complaints of Guardian readers. Though their starting points come from readers' rants, they sit really well out of context and are really funny all in their own right. See below for the cartoon that the collection's title comes from, and read more cartoons over on Gauld's tumblr page. The book is available in store in Analogue and from other retailers listed on Gauld's site.

SET - Cinema and its Architecture

The Irish Architecture Foundation's recent Archizines Challenge, a competition designed to encourage a new generation of architectural publishing in Ireland, had many entries including 2ha which was recently funded through FundIt. The winning entry was SET, a publication exploring cinema and its architecture and Issue 1, which is sponsored by Plus Print, was launched recently in the Irish Film Institute. Written and edited by architecture graduate Jamie Young and designed by Paul Guinan, Issue 1 of SET takes a look at architecture and space in Alfred Hitchcock's Rope (1948), which was screened at the launch.

2ha - an Archizine for the Suburbs

As you might recall, back in November the Irish Architecture Foundation launched their Archizines Challenge, inviting architects, designers, artists, writers and curators to create new architectural publications, with the winning individual or team receiving support from Plus Print to produce their archizine. The winners were Set Collective and they're busy at work producing issue one of SET, which examines the relationship between cinema and its architecture, something I'm looking forward to reading more about and - according to twitter - is due to be launched soon...

The High Street by Alice Melvin

Once I moved to Edinburgh one of my first ports-of-call was Analogue Books, an art and design bookshop on Candlemaker Row. Analogue is a great spot to spend some time in, with a fab selection of art and design books, magazines, zines and even a small selection of beautifully illustrated children's books. One such book which caught my eye was The High Street by Alice Melvin, a fold-out book charting a little girl's afternoon searching the high street for the list of things she needs to buy.

Designs on 2013

Parlour Lighting, image courtesy of I Do Cartwheels

This article was first published in Architecture Ireland #267

2012 is over and a new year has begun, and ‘tis the season for making plans, reviewing past projects and kicking off new ones. With that in mind I spoke with a number of designers, collaborators and curators to get a sense of what they’re planning and hoping for in 2013. Some have kicked off the year with major projects, others are putting the wheels in motion for events later in the year, but it’s clear from all who I spoke to that 2013 will be filled with much design activity.

TILEWATCH Print Edition

Buy the TILEWATCH print edition here!

Some of you may have noticed that the more time I spent in Lisbon this year, the more obsessed I became with the city's patterned tiles. First that obsession manifested itself in an online project called TILEWATCH where I collected 250 photographs and drawings of ceramic tiles over my six months in Portugal. Well my tile-inspired endeavours didn't stop there, a printed project is just off the press! The print edition of TILEWATCH takes the form of a tile-spotting trail that brings you on a tour of two of Lisbon's central neighbourhoods - Alfama and Mouraria - highlighting a number of tiles along the way.

Archizines

Image via IAF

Last night saw the launch of Archizines, an exhibition presenting new architectural magazines, journals and independent publications from all over the world. Curated by Elias Redstone and presented in Ireland by the Irish Architecture Foundation and the National College of Art and Design, the exhibition is on opens to the public today in NCAD Gallery, Dublin 8 and runs until 11 January.

Introspectiva

This article was first published in Architecture Ireland #264

Having recently relocated to Lisbon in Portugal, I have been getting to know a whole new design scene. Previously, I knew very little about Portuguese design but gradually I’m getting a sense of a small but very active community of creatives both here and in Porto in the north. While architecture is explored at the Lisbon Architecture Triennale (next edition in 2013) as well as through the Triennale’s ‘Intervalo’ programme between editions, design has its outings too. Design is experienced and exhibited at MUDE – the Museum of Design and Fashion on Rua Augusta (one of Lisbon’s main shopping streets), while for two months every two years the city centre is home to EXD (ExperimentaDesign) – an international biennale dedicated to design, architecture and creativity, which returns in autumn 2013.

Here's The Heads Up #12

A special edition of Here's the Heads Up; here lie recommendations of design events in two cities. If I could have my cake and eat it too, I would, but unfortunately I'll have to give the Dublin events a miss this time round...

Mr. Spoqui & Me

You may remember a post from a month or so ago about Mr. Spoqui, a family zine full of 'a lot of love, creativity and non-commercial purposes'. Well they've just released their latest issue which takes a look at ceramic and it features a pattern I made based on Lisbon's tiles (above), along with a short interview about my tile obsession enthusiasm! The issue also features comic strips, interviews with ceramicists Ben Fiess and Lili Scratchy, photos of work by Giorgio di Palma and team Spoqui themselves and more. If you're that way inclined, you can buy a copy (or even a subscription) over on Mr. Spoqui's site.

Orfeu Negro & Orfeu Mini

I've spotted books published by Orfeu Negro in various bookshops in Lisbon and can't help but linger over them every time. This Portuguese publisher has been re/producing books exploring critical thinking on various art forms since 2007, such as Le Modular/Modular 2 by Le Corbusier, The Empty Space by Peter Brook and french writer Jacques Rancière's Le Destin des Images, with a beautifully-designed cover by Portuguese studio Alfaiataria, pictured above.

Fabrica Features Lisbon

On Sunday I popped into Fabrica Features, a design shop, lounge and exhibition space on the top floor of Bennetton's branch in Lisbon's Chiado neighbourhood. Selling work from Bennetton's design lab Fabrica as well as products, notebooks and artworks by Portuguese designers, Fabrica Features is a great spot for a leisurely browse. They stock notebooks from Serrote as well as Portuguese brand Wonder's Italic Notebook (pictured at the bottom, ideal for quotations and so forth). The shop also sells some nice products, a range of beautiful children's books from Planeta Tangerina and other cool stuff. There's space to lounge around in and a small exhibition area, currently displaying some of Bennetton's 'Colors' magazine's explorations of happiness. Certainly worth a visit if you find yourself in the area :)

Mr. Spoqui - A Family Zine

Created by four siblings based here in Lisbon between the ages of 13 and 21, Mr. Spoqui is a family zine. Produced every two months or so, each issue is - according to the family behind it - handcrafted 'with a lot of love, creativity and non-commercial purposes'. Taking themes such as 'memories' or 'face' the zine gives the siblings opportunities to explore, question and create (in ways they can't at school), and has become a platform for collaboration not just with each other but with people all over the world. I haven't gotten a copy yet (they're all out) but am looking forward to the next issue, which looks at 'ceramic' and is due to be published at the end of the month.

Mag Kiosk

(Image of Mag Kiosk via Visao)

The neighbourhood I live in in Lisbon is called Alcântara, which is a little west of the city centre, right underneath the 25 April bridge. It's a nice neighbourhood, and one of the highlights is a place called LX Factory. LX Factory is a complex of restaurants, bars, shops and studios, so-named because they're housed in former factory buildings. I've been finding myself in LX Factory regularly - mainly to attend dance classes (it's like exercise but not mind-numbingly boring), often to grab a coffee and occasionally to pick up a magazine or two in Mag Kiosk.

Martí Guixé

While reading a recent-ish issue of Icon Magazine I came across the work of Martí Guixé for the first time. This Catalan 'ex-designer' has for over 14 years been exploring one of the world's biggest mass-produced products: food. Through exhibitions, installations, conceptual projects and prototypes, all gathered together in the 2010 publication Food Designing from Corraini Edizioni, Guixé has reimagined how food is composed, presented and ultimately designed.