High Design

High Design

We’re fascinated by airlines. Specifically, the airlines operating in the period of c. 1950-1980.

During those three decades, something extraordinary happened: design and technology merged for the first time with audacious, striking results.

Looking backward at the history of aviation design (graphics, illustrations, photography, couture +), there is a marked shift in how the industry portrayed itself. Corporate identity went from trust-inspiring, federal-looking shields and banners to bold typefaces, abstract forms and creative color palettes.

The thirty years of the period saw, as we all know now, an extremely volatile culture as America redesigned itself from a war-making country to conqueror of world markets. And airlines were our new ambassadors (or propagandists). The shift in design was (and is) as profound as the society from which it was formed.

a material world

We’re experiencing something similar. The “flattening” of logos, meaning the loss of shadows, perspective and depth) is a precursor to today’s material design as professed by Google and like-minded companies.

Material Design is a design language developed by Google in 2014. Expanding on the “cards” that debuted in Google Now, Material Design uses more grid-based layouts, responsive animations and transitions, padding, and depth effects such as lighting and shadows. Wikipedia

This design evolution is very apparent in the following examples from BrandedSkies.com:

You’ll notice that shadows, filigrees, framing and, perhaps most remarkably, text in any form gives way to abstract form and meta-meaning.

the difference this time

It may not be possible to experience such a dramatic shift in design now. The emergence of “material” design already quotes previous design trends and reiterates them. The shift from ornamentation to abstract, free-form shapes has more to do with the fact that most communication is now digital and visual. Airlines (and other industries) do not need to stand out in print, they need to punch us in the eye so that we click.

We welcome your feedback as we explore this topic.

fashion is ENVIRONMENTALLY EXPENSIVE. Very EXPENSIVE.

fashion is ENVIRONMENTALLY EXPENSIVE. Very EXPENSIVE.

less is more

We are all connected. This is not a kumbaya moment from us to you. It is real and indisputable. You, your actions, and your thoughts affect everyone and everything around you.

This is neither abstract nor a slogan. It is critically important. Your actions have immediate, measurable and wide-ranging effects.

This inescapable fact is evident in spades when we talk about the degradation of our environment. And this deleterious effect is nowhere more evident than in the fashion industry.

It’s well-documented just how toxic fashion is. And it’s data can be overwhelming. Indeed, only gas & oil production is more polluting.

LOOKING good can be bad for the planet. Massive amounts of energy, water and other resources are needed to make clothes. From the pesticides poured on cotton fields to the washes in which denim is dunked, making 1kg of fabric generates 23kg of greenhouse gases on average, reckons McKinsey, a consultancy. Because consumers keep almost every type of apparel only half as long as they did 15 years ago, these inputs go to waste faster than ever before. More than half of the fastest-fashion items made are chucked away within a year of production. But such rampant retail therapy costs the earth. 

The Environmental Costs of Creating Clothes, Forbes, August 11, 2017

fashion ain’t pretty, doll.

The film below details in great depth the heinous environmental abuse created by a culture of fast fashion. Schein, TEMU, AMAZON, H&M, all create an insatiable lust for disposable apparel.

what this means to you (and cgk.ink):

We’re proud to be an early member of STRIPE’s CLIMATE initiative. We’ve joined over 200K small to large businesses in this industry effort. As our payment processor, we pay a 1% fee to STRIPE’s Carbon Removal efforts. It may not seem like a large amount, but when taken in aggregate, the efforts become powerful.

care to join?

SOURCING

Wherever possible we select environmentally beneficial materials, created responsibly. You can find our latest efforts on this by selecting the ECO-LOGICAL COLLECTION from the SPECIAL COLLECTION menu.

SHIPPING

We’ve added the option to contribute a small amount when selecting your shipping method to offset carbon emissions intrinsic in moving your purchase from A to B.

MINDFULNESS

Ecology is only a part of what we care about. We work closely with suppliers and vendors to make sure that our business relationship is founded on fair and equitable compensation and adherence to globally recognized labor laws.

the GENRES of INDIAN ART

the GENRES of INDIAN ART

The diversity of the world’s largest national population is astounding.

122 languages, including the planet’s oldest language: Hindi. 12 religions. 1.408 billion people (est. 2021). 29 states.

This pluralism nurtures an insane wealth of art and cultural expression. Arguably, this is the creative soul of Earth.

cgk.ink is exploring this rich history. And we’re here to share our very fundamental, simple understanding of its expressions, its forms and what it says to us now in the 21st century.

Below are some of the genres of Indian art that we gleaned from ArtZolo.com:

Madhubani

Madhubani paintings are the most celebrated style of folk painting from India; it is a form of wall art that arises in the Mithila region of Bihar. This eye-catching art style never fails to amaze one by its beautiful illustrations on the exposed interior walls of the houses in Bihar. Madhubani paintings are a perfect example of artistic expression and evocative portrayal of culture and traditions. The designs make perfectly distinctive geometrical patterns, scenes from mythology, and symbolic images. The perfect blend of bright vibrant colours and unique patterns make Madhubani stand out from other painting styles. Katchni, Tantrik, Bharni, Khobar, and Godna are five different styles of Madhubani paintings.

Warli

Warli is a 2500-year-old traditional painting style from Maharashtra majorly practiced in Thane and Nashik region. Warli paintings illustrate the nature and social rituals of the tribe. Warli paintings also showcase day-to-day life scenarios of the local people of that particular community just like dancing, farming, hunting, praying, etc. The local women used twigs to draw such beautiful lively designs with rice paste on mud walls to convey the celebration vibes of harvests or weddings.

Kalighat

The Kalighat painting was discovered around the mid-19th century at Kali Temple in Calcutta. These paintings and drawings were done on paper by a community known as “patuas”. A Kalighat painting depicts scenes of everyday life and mythological deities in a captivating manner. Kalighat artists use subtle earthy Indian colours like indigo, ochre, Indian red, grey, blue and white.

Phad

Phad is a traditional Rajasthani scroll painting from India, depicting the stories of local deities, heroic figures from battlefields, adventure stories, and legendary romantic stories on horizontal cloth scrolls with the hues of red, yellow, and bright orange. Phad Painting marvellously portrays multiple stories in a single composition and beautifully maintains the aesthetics of artistic expression.

Miniature / Mughal

Miniature painting is Mughal influenced art form; this style was introduced in India during the 16th century and transformed its identity in the history of Indian art. Miniature paintings are a blend of Islamic, Persian, and Indian elements. These paintings are created using all-natural mineral colours, precious stones, conch shells, gold, and silver. Across India, the miniature style painting has developed its own identity into distinct schools of miniature paintings like Kangra, Rajasthan, Malwa, Pahadi, Mughal, Deccan, etc.

Gond

Gond paintings are a series of arranged dots and dashes developed by the Gondi tribe of central India. The tribes used to recreate some famous epic mythological tales of histories to traditional songs and rituals with rich detailing and bright colours. Traditionally, the colours used for gond paintings were derived from natural resources like cow dung, plant sap, charcoal, coloured soil, mud, flowers, leaves, etc. With growing times, the Gond art has moved beyond being a tribal art style.

Kerala Murals

Kerala mural paintings are the most unique art form and have deep spiritual roots depicting themes of Hindu mythologies, epics of the bye-gone era, classic tales of Krishna, and mystic forms of Shiva and Shakti. These traditional art styles are made up of bold strokes, and vivid colours. White, ochre-red, bluish-green, yellow-ochre, and pure colours are predominantly used in Kerala mural painting.

Patachitra

Patachitra is a traditional art form from Odisha. Patachitra paintings are mostly derived from mythological and religious themes done beautifully with bold, strong outlines, vibrant colors like white, red yellow, and black with decorative borders. 

Picchwai

Picchwai artwork was made as wall hangings behind the main deity in Krishna temples in Nathdwara which narrates the stories related to Lord Krishna. Picchwais are the most colorful and intricate work concealed with symbolism in the artistic motifs. This classified devotional art practice has passed from one generation to another and a fine example of spirituality in art.

a NEW SITE

a NEW SITE

Thanks for noticing our snappy new look!

We started cgk.ink’s online presence way back in 2005. We were interested mostly in the burgeoning field of ecommerce and what technologies were being developed to further that goal.

“Developing” an ecommerce web site really is just that: development. An ongoing process. We’ve used cgk.ink well to explore, test out and sometimes force new technologies to function. We can not possibly advocate using one piece of software over another if we didn’t understand it intrinsically. Likewise, play with new design trends, new looks and new ways of displaying information. We’ve learned a lot.

And we created a lot more. Until just recently, we hosted over 16K SKUs. Yup, 16,000 items.

Truly Custom

Since we’re not an aspiring Amazon, we’ve decided that the time was right to start over using the great insight gained and begin to focus on a truly unique and personal aesthetic which is more sophisticated and detailed. At the heart of this endeavor, we are leveraging the power of print-on-demand technologies to allow each and every item in our catalog to be personalized.

By “personalized,” we don’t mean monograms. We mean that you can play, tweak, edit and revamp any item. The items we create are the beginnings of journeys exploring color, shape, texture and form. Use them as jumping-off points, or tell us what you’d like to see.

Ultimately, our goal is to create a more human shopping experience. This means outstanding communications, anticipatory problem-solving and a true commitment to sustainable production.

Creating New Collections

Our favorite collections are always driven by a fascinating aspect of our culture: art. Pop art, fine art, classicism, modern, surrealist — all fair game. We’re equally amazed at how this inherited human quality of “creating art” is expressed through different cultures. We’re exploring Ancient Islamic Art, Indian Art and the wonderful new topics we’re researching everyday. Expect the new collections to be full of information, thoughtful writing and as always, an exacting eye for detail.

We’ll also be exploring new ways to engage you. Visual storytelling through web stories, audio explorations via audio narrow-casting, events… we’re excited!

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