Logo: Sage Studio; Raue Center for the Arts

Posted on August 5, 2011 by Ivan

In April 2011, the Raue Center for the Arts reached out for another logo development project. This was for the Sage Studio, their educational arts programs for all ages.

In this case I was given an existing logo and asked to develop something similar; a two-tone logo which included text clipping and masking. I delivered three thumbnails for their review:

Sage Sudio initial thumbnailsThe top left was chosen as the baseline, though the client did emphasize that they would like more clipping and masking of the text. As a result, I delivered four new treatments based on the thumbnail:

Sage 2nd DraftsThe client then asked to add a film-style clipboard in the background, operating off the top right of the four above logos. I found that keeping the “Studio” in place naturally failed when implementing the clipboard, so bumped it up in line with the “e” in Sage.

Sage with clipboardsThe bottom left logo was chosen as the final, which was delivered in .ai, .eps, and .jpg; along with versions for black, white, or transparent backgrounds. The entire project took less than five days.

Final treatment of Sage Studio logo

Posted in Graphics | Leave a comment

Logo: Lucy’s Cafe, Raue Center for the Arts

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Ivan

This logo was an emergency project for Raue Center for the Arts, a local theatre with whom I work regularly. The request was for a creative direction that included the keywords: “Younger, retro tin signs, weathered, cool, hip, exclusive, underground.”

The project had a three-day deadline, which included delivery of full-color, black and white, greyscale and layered versions of the logo. Working with the marketing manager, I delivered two concepts in greyscale:

Rejected logo treatment for Lucy's Cafe.Initial draft for Lucy's Cafe

A brief discussion followed, and the second was chosen. Some back and forth on color and fonts later, we landed on the agreed-upon logo:

Lucy's Cafe

Logo design for the Raue Center for the Arts: Lucy's Cafe

This project was undertaken and completed in November 2010.

Posted in Graphics | Leave a comment

Tilapia Oreganata

Posted on June 25, 2011 by Ivan

Is Oreganata even a word? It sounds like a sailing event in Parma.

Anyway, you guys, I know this is something that probably most cooks learn to do at the age of like negative two months, but it’s the first time I’ve cooked a fish that wasn’t a side of salmon, and I’m so pleased!

See, the missus doesn’t care much for the smell of fish; and it wasn’t exactly a big part of my diet growing up about as far from a coast as non-Siberians get. Today, though, we had a big breakfast, I’d planned a calorie-intensive dinner, the missus was going to be locked in her art studio, and I’d found this recipe at skinnytaste.com yesterday.

THE PERFECT STORM. [end Peter Falk impression] [RIP Peter Falk]

I altered the recipe slightly:

Two tilapia filets
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 Tbsp minced oregano (from the garden)
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp bread crumbs

Season the tilapia with salt, pepper, oregano and garlic.
Drizzle with olive oil and bread crumbs.
Grill on indirect heat for 10 minutes, move to direct heat, grill (covered) about 5 minutes.
Squeeze lime onto filets, serve over light salad and grape tomatoes.

I also threw some leftover French bread on the grill the final two minutes, because I wanted some carbs desperately. It was light and succulent, with crispy oiled bits along the side and plenty of fresh earthy flavor from the herbs and lettuce. Eating it outside made everything better, too.

One thing I would change: I served it alongside a glass of Argentinian Torrontes white from Crios, which is delicious on its own but a little heavy for the meal above. I’m looking forward to finishing the bottle over smoked pork tonight, though.

Posted in Cooking | Leave a comment

Human Tales and the Shadow Self

Posted on April 27, 2011 by Ivan

Human Tales, by Jennifer BrozekHuman Tales was released today! My short story, Bloody Spindle, is the lead tale in the anthology. Having a lead story has been a goal of mine for years, and the pride I feel in reaching that goal requires me to share a secret.

This tale was a purge. Because there’s a lot of the old Ivan in old Ramplestiltskin.

He sees himself as ugly, crooked, deformed … and oh so much smarter than you, my dear. He is weak and twisted, but he knows secret things you could never, ever guess. He knows how much he deserves and he hates the world for not delivering it all, steaming in a silver tureen, the moment he stamps his faerie foot. Most importantly, while he thinks himself a romantic … it’s not you he loves, my love. It’s all the things he imagines you’ll do.

The first draft of this story was some of the most painful writing I’ve ever done. When I realized what was happening, why this terrible, passive-aggressive character was so easy to write … my cheeks were flushed and my stomach hurt, but I knew for a fact that I’d better get it down while I could. It wasn’t fun writing, and hell, it wasn’t good writing – first draft and all that -but it was a character I knew inside and out. He danced onto the page straight out of the shadow I’ve cast for too many years.

Now before I get a lot of sympathy or hate mail, let’s be clear: I wouldn’t be writing this post today if I hadn’t changed since then. I wouldn’t have been able to write the story if my pride in who I’ve become didn’t outweigh the shame of who I used to be.

I know, now, my strengths and weaknesses; I know now how much I needed the self-confidence I’ve gained in all areas of my life. It was rough going, though; coming back to edit, returning again and again to the bitterness of a little, twisted thing who sought power and pity alike.

I like to think it’s some of my best writing to date. But I know for a fact that it’s some of my best work.

You can order Human Tales from Amazon or Dark Quest Books. If you do, I’d love to know what you think.

Posted in Writing | Leave a comment

30 in 30: Day Nine: A Song To Dance To.

Posted on April 7, 2011 by Ivan

A few days ago, I mentioned dancing. Specifically, my style of dancing, which relies more on energy and noise than any kind of training, style, precision, accuracy or beauty.

That has both drawbacks and benefits. Basically, if it’s got a beat, I can dance to it. I may not like the song – I may not know the song – but as long as I’m capable of jumping around without spilling whatever drink happens to be in my hand at the time, I can dance to anything. I may not be Terpsichore’s favorite, but I do love her.

Despite this, I’ve very rarely gone out “dancing.” When I was younger and single I was too nervous and self-conscious, now that I’m older and self-confident, I don’t see as much appeal in driving into the city at 10 PM for dancing. As a result I look forward to wedding receptions and the like because they are excuses to dance, and I’m past the age where the receptions devolve into dance club situations.

Sadly, it’s the rare reception that plays my favorite song to dance to – I Wanna Be Sedated, by the Ramones.

Like I said – Energy and Noise.

Posted in Memes, Music | Leave a comment