I really enjoy this animation chronicling the childhood and life of a coffee bean, set to the tune “Java Jave”—the 1940′s hit by The Ink Spots. The animation was illustrated and produced by Kristyna Baczynski, an artist from Leeds, UK. It also won the Digital Media Award in 2008 at the Northern Design Competition.
Kristyna’s whimsical, but refined illustration style reminds me of Ren & Stimpy with a more refreshing color palate, I love her unique take on comics and sequential art. Check out more of her work, shop her Etsy, or read a nice interview with her at Pika Land.
There’s been a lot of recent talk about the rising cost of green coffee and the impact it will have on consumer prices. Much of that talk, like most things related to global markets and trade, can be difficult for the average person to understand. Thankfully Peter Giuliano, President of Counter Culture Coffee & the SCAA, and designer Katy Meehan have turned an overwhelming topic into something a bit more manageable. “What’s the deal with the coffee market?” is a colorful 12-page comic that sums up the various factors responsible for rising coffee prices.
I got to spend a lot of time talking with Peter G. while we were at Coffee Common and he’s one of the most sincere coffee enthusiasts I’ve met. Peter’s passion for sharing the miracle of great coffee with anyone willing to listen is inspiring and encouraging. The effort to create this comic is just one example of how he continues to help elevate the industry. This is the kind of work that will help inform consumers and invite them into the conversation instead of alienating them.
Jess Giambroni has a habit of drawing on his coffee cups to pass the time during monthly design meetings at DDW. Here’s a look at some of the collection he’s created while multi-tasking at work. They immediately made me think of the styrofoam cups that Cheeming Boey transforms into works of art.
Louis-Martin Tremblay is a Montreal-based designer who was inspired by the advertisements plastered all over Paris at the turn of the century. He created this great series of posters illustrating a range of cultures and coffee brewing methods. I especially love the babushka poster above. They are supposed to be available for sale on his website (www.lmtl75.com), but it seems to be down right now.
“Remember the little things.” Sometimes I just feel like shitty diner coffee and a doughnut. Combine that with everyone’s favorite typographic glyph, the ampersand, & you get this! Dan Beckemeyer created a fabulous series of illustrated ampersands using various “food groups.” This, for obvious reasons, was my favorite.
I came across Susan Rudat’s beautiful illustrations on her Flickr stream and had to share some of them with you all. I’m not much of an illustrator, so I’m always fascinated by what can be done with a marker, a Moleskine, and a major love for coffee!
Sometimes good ideas don’t always make it to fruition. This is one of them by Félix Ajenjo from Madrid. A cool looking illustration for a web project that never made it to the finish line.
I love this work was done by Christiano Siqueira, an illustrator from São Paulo, Brazil. They were commisioned by Café do Ponto to represent various artistic movements in the 20th Century. Above surrealism, below cubism.
