First off, we created their new identity by designing custom lettering in an attempt to emit grace as they, and their work do. They’ve been working hard the past few years creating tons of amazing content and they needed a new way to showcase it. We based the design on their photography by using a clean and minimal aesthetic, letting the work’s true beauty speak for itself. It lent itself well to responsive, full screen layout which we totally love. We partnered with Eric Jacobsen and developed the site using CSS3, HTML5, and jQuery.

Let us know what you think!

UPDATE: ‘Tis better to give than to receive

We are paying for all the gift wrap and donating the money to charity! Anyone who has purchased our holiday gift wrap or who purchases a roll before the deadline (sales end December 13, 2011 Sales have ended) will have the 100% of what they pay donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (up to $1000). CF is a fatal disease that affects kids and currently has no known cure. Kids and their families grow up with the knowledge that they are unlikely to pass their 30th birthday, but the CFF is working to change that. This charity is especially meaningful to us, as a member of our team has a personal association with it and we are very proud to support it this holiday season.

Original Post Below:

This season we decided to inform and inspire with holiday gift wrap for our friends and family. Our custom designed, limited edition paper reveals 20 little known, quirky facts about the season. Did you know that Christmas trees are edible? Or that Santa’s sleigh is carrying 321,300 tons? Or that the average density of a fruitcake is the same as that of mahogany? As a special 5-day offer we are taking your orders right now. We will contact our printer on your behalf and have a roll printed and shipped to your house. Spread the joy of beautiful design and fun facts this season to those you love!

We are selling the gift wrap at cost We are paying for all the production and shipping costs and donating your $20 for charity (see above) —Happy holidays! Each roll measures 19″ x 6′ 4″ and is printed on demand and shipped via USPS 2-3 day delivery to the address you provide (domestic US addresses only).

The good news is you can still get a print of the poster. We printed a limited edition of 500 24′ X 36′ posters and 500 18′ X 24′ posters. The posters are printed in CMYK plus a spot silver ink on an 80lb cover uncoated, 100% recycled Astrolite stock. The larger posters are $40 + shipping and the smaller ones $25 + shipping. You can get them here:

Hyperakt World Cup Radial Bracket Poster

24" x 36" + domestic shipping (USA) $49.00 18" x 24" + domestic shipping (USA) $34.00 24" x 36" + internationalshipping $52.00 18" x 24" + internationalshipping $37.00

Puyol’s most recognizable physical feature is his curly mane. Many who admire Puyol’s efforts on the field have questioned his coiffure choice. My friend Meghan’s Facebook post yesterday inspired me to conduct an experiment. Should Puyol borrow a new do from one of his more polished looking teammates? You decide:

In the week since we launched our world cup poster funding campaign, we’ve interacted with a bunch of really great soccer enthusiasts. Last night I received an email entitled if you’re soccer obsessed, you will like this. He was right.

The email contained a link to a video through which a profoundly experienced photographer delivers a masterclass on how to photograph ‘the beautiful game’. The email was signed John McD, also soccer obsessed. I sat and watched the entire video, enthralled by the emotion captured in the images, fascinated by the amount of soccer history this man has witnessed on the front lines.

Pat Rice and Johan Cruyff, N. Ireland v Netherlands, Windsor Park, Belfast

In the 1970s John McDermott became one of the official photographers of the North American Soccer League (NASL) where he photographed the greatest players of that era, including George Best, Franz Beckenbauer and Pelé. He became a regular contributor to Sports Illustrated, Newsweek and Time Magazine. His client list includes Adidas, Diadora and FIFA. He has covered 10 Olympics and 7 FIFA World Cups. He was a member of the FIFA Photographers Pool at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups and has been recognized as one of UEFA’s World’s Best Soccer Photographers. You can see more of John’s work at mcdfoto.com. We had the pleasure of asking him some questions about his impressive body of work.

What was the first World Cup match you covered, and what was the experience like for you?

1982, Argentina vs. Belgium at the Nou Camp in Barcelona. It was difficult because, even though I was working for the International Edition of Newsweek, I was from the USA which at that point had less standing in FIFA’s eyes than Outer Mongolia. I had to beg and plead for days just to get a ticket to work on the field. The answer from the FIFA people was always something like, “But you are from the United States. You are not INTERESTED in soccer. Why are you even here?” It was a frustrating, but also fun, month and I learned an awful lot. And now, of course, the USA has hosted one World Cup, is bidding to host another one and is an important player within FIFA. And I’ve been one of FIFA’s official photographers at two World Cups, 1998 and 2002.

What’s the most exciting match you’ve covered?

That’s an easy one. Brazil-Italy in Barcelona in 1982. Brazil were beautiful to watch, not like the Brazil of 2010. Everyone thought they would win the World Cup, and wanted them to do so. But Italy shocked them that day. They shocked me and everybody else too, and knocked the joyous atmosphere right out of that World Cup. But it was a very exciting game.

Italy v France, 2006 World Cup Final, Berlin

As a sports photographer, you have to be ready to capture important moments. While it sounds like a dream job, I can’t imagine what it must be like to be so close to the action and not jump up and down with euphoria when a player scores an amazing goal. Can you describe the discipline you have to maintain to successfully do your job?

I understand what you mean but that’s not something that’s ever been an issue for me, luckily. I do know some photographers for whom it IS a problem because they identify so closely with a particular team and are friends with the players. In fact, there seem to be more “Fans with Cameras” on the sidelines now than ever. This kind of photography requires a lot of concentration and it can be very distracting when another colleague behaves more like a fan than a professional photographer who is there to do a job. For me, the job comes first and I’ve always managed to enjoy and appreciate what’s going on in front of me without losing sight of why I am really there. It’s work that requires a lot of discipline. In that sense it’s no different than anyone else trying to consistently do good work in any challenging profession. You develop a clear picture of what you need to do, of what it takes, and you just get on with it. Over and over again.

I imagine you’ve gotten to interact with a lot of legendary players throughout your career. Can you tell us about your most memorable encounter?

I’ve met a lot of athletes in a lot of sports. Fortunately, most of those experiences have been positive. Some of the nicest ones, folks you’d like to know under any circumstances, have been people like Joe Montana, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Magic Johnson, Steffi Graf and Matt Biondi. But my absolute favorite is a soccer player, Roberto Baggio from Italy. I met him in 1992 through a friend who is the Juventus photographer, and then I spent about two weeks following him around for Newsweek a few months prior to the 1994 World Cup. He is just a wonderful human being, as well as one of the funniest people I know. We became friends back then and have remained so ever since. He’s a big duck hunter and I send him a care package of DVDs and other paraphernalia from the USA a couple of times a year.

Roberto Baggio. Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Lazio v. Fiorentina, May, 1989. I took my parents on a trip to Europe. They arrived the day before and were jet-lagged and so I decided to go to the game while they took a nap. I knew the Lazio photographer who set me up with a photo pass on short notice. I’ve always liked this picture and I gave Roby a print of it a few years ago. But when I took the picture I didn’t yet know him as anything other than an upcoming young player.

Roby had won the European Player of the Year shortly before I showed up to do a story on him. After the first week, after a Juventus game in Piacenza, he called me over and asked me what I was doing the following Tuesday night. “Nothing,” I said. “Good,” he replied. He was having a thank-you party for his teammates, and he wanted me to come. I was speechless. I thought maybe he wanted me to take pictures, but he said to leave my cameras home. The only people at the party who were not his teammates at Juventus were me and Salvatore Giglio, the Juve photographer who was also Roby’s close friend. I was deeply touched by his gesture. It was a great night, unforgettable really. It ended with all the Juve players chasing each other around pushing pieces of cake in each other’s faces. No pictures exist, and that’s fine with me.

Fabio Capello is also a good friend. We met at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico when he was doing TV commentary. He was staying down the hall from me in the same hotel and we ended up hanging out together a lot and have always stayed in touch. At that point he was an assistant coach at AC Milan under Nils Liedholm and Berlusconi had only just bought the team. He’s a very smart, very interesting guy who isn’t necessarily exactly what you would expect from his public image. He’s into scuba diving, travel, fine dining and especially fine art, about which he is very knowledgeable. He’s also always expressed an interest in working in the USA some day, which I think would be great.

Ronaldo

Having been to forty countries and seven World Cups provides you with an envious perspective of the soccer world. In your travels, where have you experienced the most passionate fans and the most magical stadium environment?

I’ve been to some amazing games, but the top for me was a friendly game at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro between Brazil and Argentina, two months before the 1998 World Cup. I had been there the week before for a league game between Flamengo and Botafogo and there couldn’t have been more than 5,000 people there in a stadium that I am told holds almost 200,000. It was jammed full for the game with Argentina, which Argentina won, 1-0, by the way. It was just an amazing night, apart from the result. Another really special one was the 1998 World Cup Final in the Stade de France in Paris. France was playing Brazil. I still get goose bumps when I remember what it was like when they played the French National Anthem. It was electric. Brazil was expected to win the World Cup but France just blew them away that day. It was pretty incredible, the best place on earth to be that day.

Very similar was the night in 2002 when South Korea beat Italy 2-1 in sudden death overtime in a World Cup quarterfinal game in front of their own fans. The stadium and the whole country were rocking and I fell in love with the Korean fans.

Ghana celebrates winning goal against USA, 2006 World Cup, Nuremberg

I grew up playing soccer in Miami with kids from all over Latin America. Many were recent immigrants from low income families. When we played other teams it was very palpable that the kids were mostly from middle to upper class upbringings. The U.S. is unique in that its youth soccer leagues cater more to middle and upper class families. In most other countries, soccer is very much a working class sport. What was your experience as a young player, and how does it compare with your observations on soccer’s relationship to class after documenting the sport throughout the world?

I grew up in a lower middle class Philadelphia neighborhood where soccer had always been important. The area had traditionally been home to a lot of Scottish, Irish and English immigrants who came to work in the textile mills. There wasn’t any organized youth soccer then, just the teams at school. And there certainly was never any soccer on TV. So we played in the streets. When I got a little bigger the local semi-pro team, Cardington, which was about 100 years old, let me come and practice with them and that’s where I really learned a lot and began to gain some skill and confidence, training with the bigger and much better senior players. In a sense, my experience had much more in common with what it’s always been like in other countries than how it is now in this country. It was very working class. I think that’s largely gone by the wayside as soccer, especially as it relates to teaching it to kids, has become such a huge business here. And some experts would argue that all the “coaching” and regimentation kids are subjected to these days does more harm than good. I think if we are ever going to be really successful internationally it isn’t going to be because of kids coming out of expensive camps or college teams. There ARE still those kids who are playing in the streets, playing for the love of the game, whose parents don’t have the resources to pay for them to go to camps or participate in expensive travel teams. Many of those kids are Hispanic, but they are just as “American” as anyone else playing the game. We need to not overlook them. I don’t think Diego Maradona ever went to a soccer camp.

Marrakech, Morocco

Sule Pagoda Road, Rangoon, Burma

This article is a collaboration between Deroy Peraza and Jenna Shapiro.

Help us fund the printing on Kickstarter and get yourself a limited edition print with a $25 pledge.

Prior to printing, the bracket will be updated with all official final results.

The limited edition 18″ x 24″ and 24″ x 36″ prints will be printed in CMYK plus silver, on a heavy bright white uncoated stock. Anyone who pledges $25 or more will receive a 18″ x 24″ print and an additional print for $25 increments thereafter. Pledges of $40 or more will have the option of choosing the 24″ x 36″ print and an additional print for $40 increments thereafter. Pledgers will get to see pictures of the poster while it’s being printed.

Hyperakt is an independent New York City design firm with a passion for creating work that effects change in the world around us. We believe meaningful emotional and intellectual connections lead to action. Our core area of expertise is design and creative direction for organizations that serve the common good. We create brand identities, websites, and printed communications for our clients which include the NAACP, ACLU, UNICEF, United Nations, GOOD Magazine, North Star Fund, Syracuse International Film Festival, Focus Features, Nikon, NHL, Saucony, Monster and Penguin Books, among others.

Check out Hyperakt’s work and follow us on twitter and Facebook.

Help us fund the printing on Kickstarter and get yourself a limited edition print with a $25 pledge.

I found a gem on this trip. The American Geographical Society published this set of travel guides called the Around the World Program in 1957. I’m a huge fan of both traveling and travel guides, so this hit the sweet spot. The guides, from Scotland, France, Portugal, Italy, Mexico, India and Puerto Rico, form a beautiful set. In mint condition, they look like they were printed yesterday. Each book has a gorgeous full color illustrated map cover in rich color palettes. The interior texts are printed in black with one spot color adding some life to the illustrations. Each book has an insert sheet of full color images of each countries major attractions which can be pasted into the guide where indicated – a clever way of keeping the printing costs low while engaging readers to interact with the books.

I’ve posted a images of the full set on our photostream so you can take the journey too. Here’s a few of them:

We have been living on Smith Street for nearly a decade. We are, dare I say, utterly in love with Carroll Gardens. We stroll up Smith Street when we return home from our travels, head over to Henry Street and weave our way back home, checking in on local favorites and snooping around the latest construction sites. One of the many stops on our neighborhood check-in is on the corner of Henry Street and Sackett Street, at the Vermont Pharmacy and Market. This corner storefront has been vacant for years. We had taken to searching out the smallest rips in the newspaper covering the windows: anything for a peek into this abandoned relic. On a sunny day, we could see slivers of the tiled floor and endless cabinetry, still stocked with brown medicine bottles and tiny, yellowing cardboard boxes.

A few weeks ago, upon our return from several weeks away from Brooklyn, we embarked on a neighborhood walk. We debated the merits, and specifically the neighborly investment and pride, of different neighborhoods we had recently visited as we walked down Henry Street just after sunset. The front door of the Vermont Pharmacy and Market was propped open, and the lights were on. This was the first time we had ever seen anybody inside. We poked our heads through the door and a scruffy, smiling man greeted us warmly and invited us to come in and take a look around. It was even cooler than we had imagined. The interior looked like it had been frozen in the 1920s. Original pharmacy cabinets were packed with old medicine bottles filled with colorful pills and decorated with beautifully designed labels. We found aspirin with an expiration date in the early 1920s, mysterious bottles with handwritten labels, comically outdated product descriptions, and bank checks dated to 1928. We ventured into the basement, where there were even more little drawers full of curiosities. The space was amazing: a historical goldmine.

Petey Freeman, the cheerful man in his early 30s who invited us in, is a dreamer from a tiny town in Maine. He’s the kind of guy who makes big decisions on a gut feeling and believes anything is possible. He moved to Brooklyn last year after stints in Montana and Hawaii, and happened to move in upstairs from the Vermont Pharmacy. Mark Stein, the building’s owner, agreed to let Freeman clean the store out. He worked at it for seven months with no guarantees. He developed a close relationship with the elderly Stein, and helped care for him when he fell ill. After years of turning down attempts to lease the store, Stein gave Freeman a proper lease. Freeman knew exactly what he wanted to do with the space. He wanted to make it a neighborhood hangout again by turning it into a soda fountain and serving the best egg cream in Brooklyn. All products would be locally sourced, sustainable and organic. He even came up with the perfect name: The Brooklyn Farmacy. Now he just had to figure out how to finance the project.

According to Megan Finnegan’s article in the Spring issue of Overflow, the building had been a boarding house in the 1800s, and became Longo’s Pharmacy around the turn of the century. The Stein family purchased the building in the 1990s. The storefront was Mark’s Pharmacy until 1996, and then the Vermont Pharmacy and Market for a few years before closing down in the late 1990s. It’s been empty since. Amazingly, no one ever thought to clear out the old merchandise or undertake any major renovations. Petey carefully collected all the artifacts he found in the space and placed them on the shelves.

A few days after we first visited him, a scout from the Discovery Channel’s Construction Intervention paid Freeman a visit. Construction Intervention is NYC construction veteran Charlie Frattini’s reality show. Over the course of a mere four days, Frattini and a massive crew work around the clock to completely renovate and rebuild struggling small businesses from top to bottom while respecting the historical character of the spaces. This is all filmed, of course, and concluded with a grand finale when the newly refurbished space is revealed to the business owner for the first time in front of a neighborhood crowd. For Petey Freeman, that dream moment is happening in about an hour.

When we visited Petey last week he was bursting with excitement and scrambling to get everything together for the show: he had just found out the Farmacy was a finalist. This morning on our run, we decided to pass by and see if, in fact, the Farmacy had been selected. As we approached the corner, we noticed more activity than usual. The street was lined with trucks, suspended cameras and dozens of hard working folks. It turned out that Freeman’s dream had been in the making all weekend. According to the Brooklyn Paper, the renovation project, which included major structural repairs, came in at about $450,000 and today is the final day of construction. As of tonight, Carroll Gardens will begin its quest to serve the best egg cream in Brooklyn. Through sheer will, luck and love, Petey has succeeded in reviving a dormant corner.

Check out the Brooklyn Farmacy Soda Fountain for yourself at 513 Henry Street, on the corner of Sackett St. in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. For more pictures of the Farmacy, check out our Flickr set here.

This article is a collaboration between Jenna Shapiro, Cat Catanzaro and Deroy Peraza. Special thanks to Megan Finnegan for her great article on the Farmacy in Overflow.

Thurlbly has cleverly illustrated each letter of the alphabet in a retro 1950s style that just made me want to start collecting them for the walls of my future children’s bedroom. If you’re a graphic designer and a parent, these will be irresistible. Check out Paul’s site where you can buy prints of each letter for 27.00 GBP. He’s even got a 3 for 2 special going on.