07/2009 Article Archive

  • July 31, 2009 in Friday Blog Clips

    5 for Friday | The Week's Best Blogs (7/31/09 Edition)

    Getting back into the usual swing this week on Mirificam Press with Web Design: The Ephemeral Art. Most of the links I stumbled across this week have been fun stuff—nothing too deep this week. If you, get a chance, check out the new design on designbump.com. It's quite an improvement over past iterations. Now, here are this week's 5 for Friday.

    • 1 Comments
    • 1028 Views
  • July 29, 2009 in Web Design Culture

    Web Design: The Ephemeral Art

    After designing for the web for over eight years, I've come to the conclusion that web design is truly a strange and unique art form. There's no other creative craft that quite compares to the temporary nature of it. You might try to compare it to ice sculpting, or sidewalk chalk drawing, or sandcastle building. And though these art forms are temporary (even more temporary than web design), the way in which they deteriorate is completely different. The ice sculpture slowly melts, the chalk is smudged and smeared, and the sandcastle is washed away, but not a web design. A website is not eroded into its primary natural elements. It can be no symbolic offering to natural law. In fact, the opposite is true: the ones and zeros that make up digital design hold faster and firmer that the hardest marble on the statues of Greece and Rome. Paradoxically, there is hardly a website alive today that looks anything like it did ten years ago.

  • July 24, 2009 in Friday Blog Clips

    5 for Friday | The Week's Best Blogs (7/24/09 Edition)

    Well, I've officially finished the Mirificam Press interview series that started in May. It's been an educational experience for me and a lot of fun. I want to thank everyone who was featured. I've posted the whole series on the Series and Study page if you'd like a retrospective on the whole series. Now my big focus is getting this video series finished up. I have the whole thing written and all of my illustrations designed. Now I just have to shoot the video! Here's this week's 5 for Friday.

    • 3 Comments
    • 1351 Views
  • July 22, 2009 in Web Design Culture

    Mirificam Press Interview: Wesley C. Griffin

    I decided to round out the Mirificam Press interview series with something a little different. Wesley C. Griffin is an accomplished architect working in the Austin, Texas area and he also happens to be my father. I think you'll find his insight as a designer in an ancient vocation and as a mature Christian to be unique and refined. You can see some of the projects Wes has worked on in the past at GriffinJacobson.com. I consider it a great honor to feature my father here and I want to thank him for taking the time not only to answers these questions but countless other questions throughout my life. I may a little biased but, great answers.

  • July 17, 2009 in Friday Blog Clips

    5 for Friday | The Week's Best Blogs (7/17/09 Edition)

    This is my first 5 for Friday post in a few weeks so I thought I'd do a little penance by extending the usual five links to eight. I'm excited about jumping back into the saddle on Mirificam Press because I know there are some new and interesting things on the horizon, not the least of which is the upcoming video series. Travel and vacationing for the rest of the summer will be minimal so expect to see the regular release of articles in the coming months.

    • 3 Comments
    • 1002 Views
  • July 15, 2009 in Web Design Culture

    Mirificam Press Interview: Nate Ernst

    Nate Ernst is a web designer/writer out of Charlotte, North Carolina. He is the owner of Varloo Design and right out of the gate he has an impressive portfolio of sites and clients. But the unique flavor that Nate brings to the Mirificam Press interview series comes from his dual interest in design and writing. Nate has recently returned to school for a degree in English from the University of North Carolina. It's an honor to have Nate here on Mirificam Press, a fellow designer and friend.

  • July 7, 2009 in Mirificam Press News

    Oh Yes, Soon to Return

    I've received some inquiries about the recent silence on Mirificam Press. No, I'm not quitting. A combination of vacation and unforeseen family events has kept me away. I plan on resuming the interview series next week and then taking some time to rewrite and refine some articles from the Mirificam Press vault while I finish up my video series. I appreciate the comments and the emails with ideas and suggestions so keep them coming.