Last year our melodic mates at Insound commissioned gifted designer Jason Munn to create the limited edition Insound20 line of posters, hoodies, and tees in tribute to 20 contemporary indie rock stalwarts including the likes of The National, Beirut, and The Decemberists. If last year’s collaboration didn’t do a good enough job convincing us of their good taste in both graphic design and musical arenas, this year’s sequel finished the job and damn near knocked our socks off in the process. Insound has turned to one of our favorite artists, Mike Perry, to create the “Insound 10 Classic” collection. This time the focus has been turned away from the contemporary and towards creating an updated visual representation of influential bands that helped define the genres of punk, post-punk and indie rock between 1977-1997. Included in the visually inspired line of tees, totes, and posters are seminal acts like The Feelies, The Magnetic Fields, and Sleater-Kinney. While the products are slated to arrive in September, pre-order officially launched on Monday at the Insound store, so your time to grab them is already running out. Save a Galaxie 500 Tee for me.

I just came across a wonderful short new film by Brazilian director Cisma, the result of the latest commission from Adobe’s very inspiring Adobe Artists project. With the strict rule that everything must be produced using only Adobe products—Creative Suite 4, in particular—Le Sens Propre continues successfully in Cisma’s trademark surreal style. We watch a little girl in her room throw dishes into a tidy and unbroken stack, tie her shoes but accidentally knot up her thumbs instead and see bunnies turn into colorful, soft pebbles. It’s a bit Alice in Wonderland meets Candyland; totally charming to the end. Amazingly enough, no 3-D software was employed in the making of the film. According to an interview with Motiongraphics, Cisma wanted “to create strange scenes and weird connections between elements of the story,” giving viewers the chance to be surprised. It’s this aspect that keeps you glued to the computer screen. Check the Adobe Artist site for other gems, including a short by another Brazilian filmmaker, Nando Costa.

Not everyone has the talent to be a professional in the arts, but that doesn’t make that itch not worth scratching every once in awhile. While serious types often spend lots of cash on the latest design software, more casual types try our hand at creating without the serious loot. Aviary is a cheaper way to give into your artistic whims. The site that comes off like an online Photoshop, complete with visual laboratory, image editor and color palettes. It allows aspiring artists of all genres — whether they long to be an audio editor or graphic designer — to indulge their imaginative sweet tooth. Go ahead, poke around and see what inspiration comes out.

Many toy fans have been closely following Kidrobot’s evolution from designer toy hub to lifestyle brand and media conglomerate. The latest news falls into the latter category, with Kidrobot essentially curating the redesign of the Cartoon Network. Per motion design studio Capacity’s press release:

“Using one unifying body shape (designed by urban vinyl legends Kidrobot) we created an interchangeable system of elements that gathered all of CN's characters into one place. These blank figures, called Noods, are the canvases upon which characters of all shapes, sizes, and styles can coexist. The CN logo is also an extension of that vocabulary as the colors and patterns from the characters — their DNA — find their way on to the network's blocky logotype for the first time. The resulting world is a playground of rich colors and unlimited combinations, ownable only by Cartoon Network.”

Or ownable by you? Sources speculate the company that’s responsible for getting Rosie O’Donnell hooked on toys have developed Noods into platform figures, which are inevitably and eventually destined for retail.

A little over a week ago we gave you fair warning of the exquisitely spontaneous design event that is this season of Layer Tennis. The 2009 season kicks off this afternoon at 2 p.m. CST with a match between Interactive Designer Brendan Dawes and Threadless’s own Jeffrey Kalmikoff, a graphic designer with a bloodlust for branding. While we can feel the tension building, there are only two ways to watch the drama unfold: follow the action on Twitter, or get a front row seat at the official layer tennis site by investing in some free season tickets. For a preview of today’s match, check out John Gruber’s Match Preview.

We’ve grown accustomed to the graphic awesomeness from MWM. The Portland-based designer doesn’t disappoint with two new books. Both volumes are the result of a self-described “mega groove” he found himself in the fall of ‘08, though the products are vastly different. MWM B/W B:5 is a profoundly, mysterious black and white gaze into the artist’s personality, whereas MWM Alphaphont 3.0 is the third in a series of vibrant, colorful hullabaloos in tribute to the alphabet

The Australian Open may have just settled on two winners, but there’s another huge tennis event on the horizon that doesn’t require you work on your half-volley or be a clay court specialist. Layer Tennis 2009 is a season of live online design events presented by Adobe Creative Suite 4 and Coudal Partners, in which two players swap files in a real-time design volley, enhancing each other’s work over a period of 15 minutes while a writer adds insightful play-by-play. Each game contains 10 volleys and allows viewers to vote on the winner when the match reaches its logical conclusion. The first dose of design action gets served up this Friday February 6th at 3p.m. You could have a front row seat to all the excitement by simply becoming a season ticket holder, which makes you eligible to vote on the winners and post comments. The Layer Tennis 2009 season has 43 matches taking place every Friday until May 29th. You can tune into the matches on Twitter or get your season ticket for a better view.

We love to hear from our readers about the various creative endeavors they’ve got themselves into. Shane Ermitano posted a simple note and a link to his site packed full of graphic design beauty. A Filipino raised in Arkansas, he’s now a Chicago resident and has done quite well blending these influences. Have a browse through his collected print and web work, but don’t miss his food blog. Keep up the good work Shane and thanks for sharing.

Where would you be without Adobe? Since they launched Photoshop in 1989, the technologically ubiquitous software company has been vital in transferring your imagination onto your computer screen. By creating programs like Dreamweaver, Illustrator, and After Effects (among others) you may think they’ve already seen a lifetime of inspiration through to its logical conclusion. But they already have. While Adobe may not be boasting about a program that can help you conjure graphic brilliance from thin air, INSPIRE, a new bi-monthly web publication from Adobe’s Experience Design team (a seriously bad ass group) is a welcome supplement to the company’s cluster of creativity. The online periodical seeks to connect the developer/designer community and put an accent on the importance of experience when it comes to dealing with a wide variety of applications. The new web mag will feature a new theme every two months and include videos, posts, and presentations from different conferences around the world. The theme for the inaugural issue is “New Experiences” and we’re confident after this new experience you’ll keep coming back for more. Even the UI of the site is inspiring, congratulations guys.

Also, be sure to watch the video of Chris Heimbuch, XD Practice Lead, and Ty Lettau, XD Design Manager, discuss the whys and wherefores of Inspire.

It’s amazing how advanced, yet accessible, high quality models and illustration have become. If you’re a sneakerhead, or just plain appreciate artistic talent, check out Jim Kim’s portfolio, titled “Sneaker Fiend: A Tribute To Classic Nike Design,” on Behance. This talented artist showcases a series of completely rendered Nike designs with a clear nod to fan favorites such as the Air Max 90’s and a couple of Jordans, complete with the signature Jumpman. At first glance, one might mistake them for real sneakers in an elaborately staged for a photo shoot. The textures, right down to the speckled leather and the reflective elements really bring this series home. Some of our favorites after the jump.

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Since last autumn the work of MWM (Matt W. Moore) has been the frequent subject of our praise and the object of our design affections here at JoshSpear.com. So it should come as no surprise that we’re absolutely percolating with excitement over the news of the art and design studio’s recently redesigned website. The latest incarnation of the online home of MWM Graphics is chock full of impressive new works that run the gamut of design disciplines created for an vast array of clients such as Nike, Zune, and Burton. If you’re in the mood for a visual feast, head on over to the new site and maybe get a bib for your eyes.

UrbanMedium is Derek and Heather, a husband/wife design duo who use paint, paper and the street to broadcast messages. Their iconic images use a mashup of pop culture and historical figures to provoke thought. One of their best-known prints, CheTrooper, reimagines the Marxist revolutionary as part of the Imperial starfleet. Back with some new screenprints, UrbanMedium now turns their attention to Kim Jong Il and Charles Manson. For the former, the duo presents a set of three prints, Kim Jong-iLL, mixing up the North Korean dictator with ODB, Michael Jordan and James bond. For the latter, Hello Charlie, UrbanMedium asks the question of what happens when an icon of evil is replaced by its absolute pop culture opposite.

Ever since Beijing was picked to be the site of the Olympics (which, as we all know, starts on Friday) controversy has ensued. From concerns about pollution to censored web access, issues leading up to the Games are only going to get crispier on this political hotplate. I just got an e-mail from my Brazilian friend Pedro Inoue (a graphic designer who did the splendid work for artist Stephen Doitschinoff’s book), alerting me to an online project he’s co-partner of called Remember Tibet. He’s putting out a request to all creative types to send in any copyright-free work related to the quest for Tibetan freedom — animation, music, T-shirt designs, etc. It’s a sensitive subject that sadly fluctuates from being a hot topic to a cold one and back again, but with China on the international stage this week the issue has never been hotter.

Christopher Delorenzo, a freelancer designer for Saatchi & Saatchi, shot us an e-mail the other day asking us to take a look at his work. We were impressed — it’s a dynamic portfolio with an array of projects, from packaging for a Jack Kerouac box set to a website on the gear used by your favorite bands. One of his most appealing designs is for “The Hub”, a rest area and bulletin board space for urban cycle enthusiasts. Thanks for the tip Chris, and keep up the good work.

Anyone in the industries of marketing, graphic design, advertising, film-making, journalism, publishing, and way more knows that the indispensability of Getty Images ranks right up there with Apple and oxygen. It’s a one-stop place to shop for a mind-bogglingly huge array of images, footage, and music and is relied upon by creative types worldwide.

Now, Getty Images has tapped even further into the mindset of right-brained creative types with Moodstream, a kick-ass new brainstorming search tool. It's amazingly intuitive user interface starts with a presets wheel where you start the foundation of your search by choosing feelings that stabilize, simplify, intensify, refresh, excite, or inspire. Then you fine-tune from there– make the mood happier or sadder, turn the images nostalgic or contemporary, go for a vibe that's warmer or cooler, and much more. As you adjust the settings, the site plays different tracks from its music library to match what you've chosen, and each time you refresh your settings you're taken down a completely new road of imagery, sound, and video footage.

As you gather materials that ‘work,’ you can collect them together into individual Moodboards that you can save online– ideal for working on multiple projects at once or, if something's not working, forgetting about it for a while before coming back to attack it again. Though with a creativity boosting tool like this at your fingertips, inspiration probably won't be much of a problem.