Design is a part of life, and good design adds to the quality of our lives in a multitude of ways. Echoing Michael’s point in his road sign blog on Monday, sometimes the greatest success for a design is how little we notice it. Great design can allow us to focus on what we are doing, rather than how we are doing it – making activities a pleasure rather than a chore.

The London Design Museum is presently exhibiting the UK’s first retrospective of Kenneth Grange’s work, Making Britain Modern  - a master class in design that combines form and function. Described as “Britain’s leading product designer” Grange has spent the last fifty years shaping the world around us, from bus shelters to food mixers, Kodak cameras to black cabs.

 It was great to see the work of an icon collected, with such insight into his methodology – a particular revelation was his lateral thinking/craftiness when faced with what seemed like an impossible deadline. Given just a few days to create a model of a food processor, Grange slashed his production time by only creating half of the model and presenting it fixed to a mirror, thus giving the impression of the completed article. I doff my cap sir!

All this would have made for an interesting visit for design enthusiasts, but it would seem the Design Museum has set its sites a little higher. Our Friday night tickets (a snip at £7 each) opened a veritable banquet of interactive entertainment. And when I say interactive, I mean hands on, glue on your sleeves, icing in your hair interactive. Visitors got stuck into cupcake decorating, mask making, an alternative tailoring table, and probably more besides that I didn’t spot. Add to that a generous supply of fancy 70’s nibbles (very on brand for the exhibition) an orchestra, and even a secret bar, and you’re talking about a seriously unserious evening.

The absolute highlight for me though was the invitation to commission a unique piece of art, inspired by something at the exhibition, and created by a pair illustrators shipped in specially for the evening. We picked “Camera Obscura” as the title, one of Grange’s Kodak cameras as the object, and discovering it in the pocket of a second hand coat, with a role of film featuring 50’s shots of London and Moscow. Our fantastic illustrator, Hannah Richards from Concept Lounge, stepped straight in from her commute, and knocked us up our very own original works. And that’s something you don’t get from most exhibitions.

Peace One Day is an initiative founded in 1999 by Jeremy Gilley. As you can guess from the name, Gilley’s aim is to have one day every year where peace prevails on earth. He came some way to achieving that goal when in 2001 the United Nations adopted 21^st September as Peace Day.

Trying to achieve a reduction in global violence, however, is no small undertaking. In 2007, as part of the initiative, Gilley travelled to Afghanistan alongside Jude Law, ambassador for Peace One Day. Their campaign resulted in the vaccination of 4.5 million children against polio. Then, in 2008, the UN Department of Safety and Security recorded a 70% reduction in violent incidents in Afghanistan on Peace Day thanks to the efforts of Gilley and his team. Partnering with organisations such as Star Syringe, to date Peace One Day has participated in 88 life-saving and humanitarian activities with 28 organisations across 31 countries.

Going forward, the 2012 Peace One Day global truce is being supported by several global organisations including the Cultural Olympiad for the London 2012 Games. Aside from events happening in Mexico and Austria, three concerts have been organised in London to raise awareness of Peace Day, the first of which took place last week on 21 September at the O2 Arena in London.

The night started with the Brazilian band AfroReggae, stars of the film ‘Favela Rising’ that charts the story of the band’s transformation, from its humble beginnings in a notorious favela of Rio into a social movement of global amplitude. After their vibrant performance, the head of the Cultural Olympiad, Ruth Mackenzie, came on stage to reiterate the importance of Peace One Day. She was followed by a jaw-dropping dance collaboration between the English National Ballet and contemporary street dance group Flawless.

The night also included performances from chart toppers Eliza Doolittle and Razorlight. They played between the screening of videos showing the work that Peace One Day and other partners have been doing, and included a message from UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon. The legend formerly known as Cat Stevens, Yusuf, performed classics such as Wild World, Father and Son, Moonshadow and a touching homage to John Lennon. The vibe in the arena reached a fever pitch, as if all had been touched by hope. And as people were leaving, you could hear animated conversations about how they planned to get involved and help increase peace.

The educational reach of Peace One Day is immense, with talks taking place in schools all over the world, reaching over 40,000 young people in 65 countries. They have also developed an educational resource pack with tools and material put together with teachers. Aligned with the National Curriculum, lessons are currently being implemented in UK and will be expanding through US.

For the second Peace One Day concert, taking place to coincide with the launch of the London 2012 Festival on 21^st June 2012, names such as Massive Attack are already confirmed. The final show will happen on the 21^st September 2012 with Elton John headlining.

Drastically reducing violence, or even stopping it for one day, can seem like a mission doomed from the outset, but Peace One Day is showing that it is possible to make something positive by mobilising the world leaders, decision makers and the next generation who together can change the world for the better.

There are several ways to get involved. For more information visit www.peaceoneday.org

There’s an idea that states good typography should be invisible — meaning that the reader should perceive firstly the message and not the manifestation of the letters on the page. Another broader idea states that “less is more” — a more measured response from Milton Glaser however is ‘Just enough is more.’ The idea at the heart of both of these notions is essentially a system of reductive design — form dictated by function. An example of design in a very pure form is the british road sign — brilliance of design rendered so purely that it operates on a level of pure undecorated functionality, yet with an aesthetic which garners instant recognition. Instant legibility is of the highest importance when you consider that the reader of the road sign, travelling at speed, generally has a second or two in which to respond to the information presented.

There was a time when Britain’s road signs were without such a clear system — they were designed by various individuals — using different symbols and typefaces, rendered in various colours; visually conflicting and ultimately confusing for drivers.  It was a designer called Herbert Spencer who brought the issue to prominence in the magazine Typographica when he published two essays featuring photographs of the road signs on a journey he took from London to Heathrow; highlighting the disarray. The government of the time was aware of the danger of such a lack of uniformity and the need for a unified system, so formed The Anderson Committee, a body dedicated to reviewing the problem. Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, who had previously designed the signage for Gatwick airport were commissioned to develop a new system. It was given a trial-run on the Preston by-pass in Lancashire, before being rolled out nation-wide.

The system, still used 50 years later, is so well-designed that it seems “un-designed” — ubiquitous and taken for granted — part of the visual furniture of our environment, as common as buildings and trees. And this is the true marker of their brilliance — invisible yet completely perceptible. Their names may not be well known, but Kinneir and Calvert’s legacy is omnipresent — our environment is their gallery and our roads are safer because of their work.

Campfire is ditto’s monthly gathering, celebrating storytelling in all its forms – narrative, visual and music. On the third Thursday of each month we open the doors of our studio The Lighthouse, welcoming guests, clients, friends and collaborators to come down and share a glass, a bite to eat, meet old friends and make new ones. We are professional storytellers for brands and companies and we work all over the world. We created Campfire as way of championing the art and science of communication. Inspirational speakers telling their tale to a roomful of likeminded people. Now in its second year, these critically acclaimed evenings have entertained thousands in the flesh, and tens of thousands more digitally via our Campfire archive, available on ditto’s website with blogs and films of the nights.

Nobody has exemplified the spirit of Campfire more than Shane and the onedotzero story. The history of onedotzero is pretty much the history of digital and graphic storytelling. To a packed audience, and with a stunning exhibition on our ditto doors, Shane set out the manifesto of onedotzero – coalesce, collaborate and create.

We work in an industry were at times creative thinking, our solutions and our work is abused, copied, maligned and poorly rewarded. From the outset onedotzero gave creative people all over the world the confidence to explore their art form, to be valued, to get recognised, get commissioned and get paid. And they took that mission to the world – 120 cities in 40 countries in 15 years. Their contribution to the creative world has been profound.

 They say that the measure of every successful person or company is the ability to reinvent itself. onedotezero have continually achieved this; they are always one step ahead. The beacon at the crest of the horizon that lead into new territories. Flag bearers and champions of creatives globally. We at ditto and thousands like us all over the world would not be here if it wasn’t for onedotzero showing what could be done, the art of the impossible made real, the ambition to be bold, and the business of creativity.

A huge thank you to Shane and all the onedotzero family for a wonderful Campfire. For sharing with us in such a generous way their story and adventure, and its a measure of onedotzero that at the end of the evening, having explored their 15 year journey, it felt that it was only the beginning of what they yet plan to achieve. That’s an astonishing and very special thing. And that’s why onedotzero is the success it has been, is and will be. onedotzero. Past, Present, Future.

To explore the contemporary artist Cy Twombly (25 April 1928 - 5 July 2011) exhibition this weekend as it closes at Dulwich Picture Gallery.

Cy Twombly. untitled 1955-1956

Not much gets me south of the river these days, but this show needs to be seen before the weekend’s over. Twombly sadly passed away less that a week into this exhibition (july 5^th) which sees his work side by side with that of Poussin – a pairing which is vague at best, but non the less holds enough links to mythology to serve a purpose. Twombly’s early work of the 50’s made him a hero of mine in my early artschool days with his scratchy delivery set to pave the way for the likes of Warhol protégé Jean Michael Basquiat, decades later.

Cy Twombly. Landscape 1951

His work resonates strongly with generations of younger artists, ranging from Brice Marden to Richard Prince to Tacita Dean to Patti Smith. Also, his work opens up a very visceral response, and with his post 1960 work leaves you admiring his metaphors and spatial awareness.

Here in ditto film & video we find it’s always a deadline that gets us going. Funny that it should translate outside work also…

Cy Twombly. III notes from salalah (note II) 2006-07

Culturally, I must say, there is no place like London. There are so many events going on simultaneously that it is impossible to know about all of them, let alone attend them all. We all pick and choose as to our tastes, and as a result we miss much of what is on offer. Festivals offer a great chance to cast the net a little wider – so  we’ve picked three annual  London festivals we think you should check out if you haven’t already.

The Thames Festival, celebrates multi-cultural London and this year’s edition happened just over a week ago, as the closing London summer event, on the banks of the Thames from Tower Bridge to Embankment. There were free gigs with all sorts of music styles, from vintage to Mercury prize nominated artists, plus food and craft stalls, performances and light sculptures. The highlights included the educational global project ‘Rivers of the World’, a cross-cultural exchange between six countries and UK, involving the creation of artwork made by students in collaboration with artists and teachers. This show, exhibited at the gallery@OXO Tower, was of outstanding quality, with eye opening content related to the rivers of each country. Surrounded by rainbows at Southwark Bridge, ‘The Feast on the Bridge’ curated by Clare Patey, offered a responsibly sourced seafood menu, designed and cooked by the talented chef Thomas Hunt. With a totally different feeling to the bridge from the usual stream of cars and buses, there were also live bands, a cycle-in cinema, family activities, stalls, charities supporting sustainable fishing, and a wonderful London view. In the evening ‘Watch this Space’, outside the National Theatre, presented ‘Page Blanche’, a political painting show with live music. The truly incredible performance from the French-speaking group, had the artists hooked on scaffolding using the stage set as endless canvasses. On Sunday, the traditional Parade was really impressive with over two hours of entertaining carnival, followed by the fireworks show and the well attended after party at HMS President.

The London Design Festival celebrating the creativity in London, is always a must-see. This year it featured over 280 events, including our Campfire with Shane Walter from onedotzero, a dedicated programme at the V&A, Google Design Lectures, the Landmark projects that will spread around Trafalgar, Southbank, Covent garden, and Saint Pauls, and plenty of other innovative pieces by designers and architects. Recalling last years’ success with ‘Outrace’, the Audi light- writing robots, we were curious to see what this year’s treat would be. See our previous blogs from our designer Sofia Velez and our Art and Visual director Phillip Long to find out more of our recommendations.

And coming soon in October, the BFI present the London Film Festival dedicated to the most complete art form of storytelling that is now coming into its 55^th year. The programme will include 300 shorts and features, of which 40 are hot off the press. They include new interpretations of literary  classics by celebrated director Michael Winterbottom, documentaries, discussions, educational and other industry events, and hot networking opportunities. If you can still get a ticket for the Gala event, don’t miss the screening of The First Born, restored by the BFI. On the last night , watch The Deep Blue Sea by Terence Davies and the Sutherland Trophy ceremony, awarded to the most original film in the festival since 1958, with previous winners including Jean-Luc Godard, Bernardo Bertolucci and Peter Greenaway. More information here.

As a teenager avidly interested in the creativity of music videos and advertising, onedotzero were the bible. With ditto eagerly awaiting Thursday’s Campfire with the Creative Director of onedotzero, Shane Walter, I thought I would look back to the pieces that influenced me most.

A new onedotzero DVD was all my Christmases at once. From the minimal Japanesque artwork, to the aesthetically animated menues, before I saw the first video piece I was already a happy bunny.

From the very first onedotzero DVD, Vol.1 comes the Animator, LynnFox’s masterful interpretation of FC Kahuna’s enchanting soundscape, Hayling.

FC Kahuna – Hayling on MUZU.TV

The profound underwater scene is a beautiful synthesis of sound and vision. The kind of inspirational work that led me to peruse a career in the creative industry.

Also from DVD Vol.1 is the short film Salaryman by Jake Knight. Filmed in Japan, it is a ‘mini spectacular.’ With a dry sense of humour Salaryman explores the day-to-day life of a office worker. This clearly demonstrated to me that you don’t need action and violence to create something spectacular – in fact you can do quite the opposite.

Moving forward, DVD Vol.4 contained an incredible piece. The video for Electronic Performers, by Air. This work can be interpreted in many ways. Our first ever Campfire speaker, the multi-talented molecular biologist, neuroscientist and film maker Dr Barry J Gibb cited this as one of the most influential clips he has ever seen. He saw within this video, DNA, cells, nerve impulses and a human life being formed. So moved by the video was he, that Barry got in touch with the director, Lauren Bourdoiseau, only to find out that Lauren’s intentions were to describe a soundwave and its transmission. This video demonstrates to me the range of interpretation moving image can offer. We as humans put our own filter and lens on things, and each see things differently.

Electronic Performers from jerome Blanquet on Vimeo.

So I am going to meet a childhood hero here. How do I feel? Well I think its fair to let Shane know that his work reached me as a teenager and led me to pursue an education and career in moving image, cumulating in my work here at ditto. It seems like a perfect circle now complete. In fact, that would be a great idea for a music video!

These last few weeks ditto Film and Video have been traversing the length and breadth of the UK filming interviews with the Nominet 2011 Award winners.  Here at ditto we are very used to filming folk who utilise the Internet and all of its reach – and also the events connected to these people and organisations. What we are not used to, however, is filming folk who use the Internet not for monetary gain or prestige, but purely for the empowerment of others. With not a banker or pop star in sight, along our 1200-mile journey we encountered the six winning organisations of this year’s awards from the registry of UK domain names.

What we encountered wasn’t a blur of hi-tech websites, skinny jeans and FX heavy imagery – just plain and simple good people doing good things, a notion close to our hearts here at the lighthouse… With a special note going out to Ron – thanks for the sandwiches!

The six categories in the NIA awards 2011 were:

‘Building a networked nation’, ‘Making the Internet safer’, ‘Opening the world of knowledge’, ‘Empowering young people & citizens’, ‘Nurturing powerful local partnerships’, and a ‘Special award for co-operation’.

Nominet is a not for profit organization who celebrate great UK Internet projects – you can see pictures from the 2011 Awards here:

http://www.nic.uk/about/internetawards/2011/awards_images/

And the 6 winners were:

http://www.nominet.org.uk/about/internetawards/2011/videos/

We all know about London’s reputation as the creative capital of the world. The capital is populated by studios working across many disciplines, from fashion to product design to interactive, not forgetting digital, animation, magazine design… need we go on? For this reason, over the last eight years, the London Design Festival has been championing the power of design, transforming both private and public spaces with superb events and installations.

This year, the event will take place from 17-25 September. It promises an array of more than 200 creative events (the majority are free of charge) staged by over 160 partner organisations from around the world involving a diverse range of talents, from established innovators to rising stars. These will be focused again on six design districts, each celebrating their own particular contribution to the world of design in London.

The London Design Festival has established itself as a major event on the international design calendar, appealing to an increasingly wide audience, from consumers to professionals to students and all those with a keen interest in design.

This year’s Festival will demonstrate the power and versatility of design across London with landmark design installations by renowned British architects and designers all over the city, at the V&A Museum (the festival’s hub), and, for the first time, St Paul’s Cathedral.  Also, keep an eye out for what’s happening at Tent (we talked about that in a previous blog), Origin, Designersblock, The Dock, The Design Museum and Oxo Wharf Tower – which with two design exhibitions and 26 design studios make it a significant venue.

Every year International participation commands a bigger stage. Last year, over 25 countries participated in the Festival but this year sees increased cultural diversity with more international exhibitors including countries like Israel, Palestine, Slovenia and Romania. The Chairman of the London Design Festival, Sir John Sorrel, can be proud of having achieved ‘Growth’ – the theme of this year’s festival.

“The London Design Festival is the most vivid possible proof that London is the hub of the creative industries in the world,” says London mayor Boris Johnson. Watch the video below and see if you agree.

Final Cut Pro X received mixed reviews, some have praised the update for bringing revolutionary advancements to the video editing platform, others have criticised it for its lack of backwards compatibility and absent features. Among the most vociferous critics were our Film & Video department here at ditto: “It is now a totally different platform that smells distinctly like i-movie. Yes, I-MOVIE. This is not an update or next gen, this is something very different.”

As complaints about  Final Cut Pro X reached fever pitch, competitor Adobe began an aggressive push to lure new customers with its Premiere Pro software. Adobe has seen a 45% sales growth for Mac video tools driven in part by switchers dissatisfied with FCPX. Adobe even launched a ‘switcher program’ that offered a 50% discount to users who had previously purchased Final Cut Pro or Avid.

However, there’s a happy end to this story as the disgruntled voices of people in the editing world have finally been heard. This week Apple gave in to pressure and put its older Final Cut Pro back on sale through a new Final Cut Studio, which includes Final Cut Pro 7.

It looks as though the turkey has been saved from being served up as a fat man’s mains.