Crazy mad skills

Every now and then I receive a card that totally knocks my socks off, and reminds me in no uncertain terms that we live in a country full of brilliantly creative and funny people. This one, in particular, is from Jen.

I kind of want it enlarged to poster size and framed to hang on my wall, not only for a daily dose of self-esteem, but because it uses one of my favorite visual humor techniques: using type and imagery that is completely inappropriate for or unrelated to the meaning of the text. Keeps you on your toes. Anyway, it also reminded me of a project I did for one of my graduate courses a while back; wouldn't it be cool to finally use it for something? (Fathers' Day IS coming up...)

It just goes to show that in design, as with all creative pursuits, there's always a way to break the rules to your advantage. All rules -- that is -- save one: form follows function.