I recently edited a new book titled Total Armageddon for Slanted Publishers. It is a book about design. And culture. And complexity, notably how we, as a global civilization, deal with science fiction, taste, social media, the cities we live in, aesthetics, PowerPoint, burkas, authenticity, monuments, HIV, screens, representation, Big Tech, full-contact sports, and other thorny topics.

This book is full of essays culled from the first 32 issues of Slanted as well as new writing and writing from elsewhere, the leading international design journal, alongside a number of writings from elsewhere, all specifically chosen for this book. They include essays written by the most vital and vibrant global voices in writing on design and culture today from Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the Middle East. Writers like Natalia Ilyin, Randy Nakamura, Steven Heller, Piotr Rypson, Silas Munro, Gerry Leonidas, Yoon Soo Lee, Kenneth FitzGerald, Kiyonori Muroga, and a host of others.

In a world that feels like it is bursting at the seams due to overpopulation, climate change, economic downturns, strife, selfies, discord, and all-out war, we need somewhere to turn. Our mobile devices tell us that the Apocalypse is just around the corner … perhaps we just need to look the future in the face by examining the present and all of it’s designed faults, fractures, beauties, luminosity, issues, complexities, and cracked screens.

Welcome, friends, to the end of the world.

Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Editor: Ian Lynam
Release: March 2019
Volume: 400 Pages
Dimensions: 16 × 24 cm
Language: English
Printing: LE-UV offset + white (Vogl)
Paper: Holmen BOOK Extra 2.0 (Holmen Paper)
Cover material: Invercote G Metalprint (Iggesund Paperboard)
Typefaces: Beatrice (Sharp Type) and Edit Serif (Atlas Font Foundry)

Total Armageddon is available for preorder via Kickstarter now.

I was so happy to present at PechaKucka Night Tokyo—the very last one at SuperDeluxe in its current location.

Giant thanks to Brian Scott Peterson for both the invitation and the amazing photos, Astrid and Mark for the warm welcome onstage, and to everyone who presented.

Wandered across this project from 2011 today—the design for the debut album by The Universal Moment.

TUM is a Tokyo-based band that is fronted by two brothers who are incredibly nice people.

We recently launched a micro-site for Glot, a ten-member flared terminal sans serif family of typefaces based on a mix of proportions of Roman square capitals and hyper-readable sans serifs. Read the story of Glot here!

I have some work in this upcoming exhibition and the resultant catalog:

The Annual Poster Exhibition of TPDA Member, Designer Submission Invitation, Awarded Entries of International Taiwan Postar 2018 “Love. Peace”
The exhibition begins on Dec. 15, 2018 (Sat.) to Dec. 25, 2018 (Tue.) in Taiwan Academia Industry Consortium K² Square, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
The ceremony starts on Dec. 15, 2018 (Sat.) 2:00PM

Organizer: Taiwan Poster Design Association
The co-organizer: Kun Shan University Department of Visual Communication Design-Print Media Lab
Official Website: TPDA www.taiwanposter.com

I will be lecturing in Houston, Texas at the University of Houston’s Katherine G. McGovern College of the Arts on Tuesday, October 16, 2018 at 1 pm. Free!

I was interviewed a while ago by the inimitable Ella Gold for Inform, the CalArts design blog.

I and Kyle Lynam are participating in the new graphic design exhibition SuperSurfaces at In the Paper Gallery in Seoul.

Our contribution is Ggreg, a science fiction opera in the form of a printed case of paper and a promotional poster for our book-as-case of paper.

SuperSurfaces
On View: July 10 – July 17, 2018, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Opening: July 10, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Hours: Weekdays 10:00 am – 6:00 pm, Saturday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm / Closed Sunday

In the Paper Gallery
Doosung Paper Co., Ltd.
Seoul, South Korea
+82 2 3470 0001
http://www.inthepaper.co.kr/

Participants:
60603, Byung-hak Ahn, Mary Banas, Alexander Böhn, Erik Brandt, Mark Callahan, Alyssa Casey, James Chae, Amy Fortunato, David Gay & Moon Jang, Isaac Gertman, Golden Tree, Minjae Huh, Jae Jeon, Hwara Jo, Hoon Kim, Jinhee Kim, Minkyoung Kim, Yunim Kim, Minsu Kim, Minho Kwon, Ohyun Kwon, Ian Lynam, Kyle Lynam, Katherine Miller, Once-Future Office, Chaehee Park, Jangho Park, Michael Radyk, Pooroni Rhee, Chris Ro, The Rodina, David Smith, Chulmin Yi, and Sera Yong.

SuperSurfaces Committee
Moon Jang / Curator
Namoo Kim / Coordinator
Chris Ro / Coordinator
James Chae / Graphic Designer
Minkyoung Kim / Web Design and Development
Eunjung Paek / In the Paper Gallery Director

Sponsor / Doosung Paper

Poster Design / James Chae and Moon Jang

I just finished up the identity for 向竹堂合同会社 / Kōchikudō GK, a new publishing, translation, writing and editing house based in Kanagawa.

Kōchikudō is run by my Néojaponisme collaborator and friend Matt Treyvaud.

We’ve redesigned the website for Wordshape, our hybrid type foundry, publishing entity, distro and software venture. Check it out here.