Pentagram's Custom Signs Make Picking Up Dog Poop A Religious Experience At Manhattan's Famous Cathedral Saint John the Divine.

Michael Bierut and designer Jesse Reed of Pentagram have created a series of heavenly signs for New York's well known Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine that gently remind visitors to curb and leash thy dogs on Sunday, Oct. 6 (today) for its annual St. Francis Day Blessing of the Animals.



Funerals of many notables have been held at St. John the Divine, such as Soprano's star James Gandolfini, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, writer James Baldwin, inventor Nikola Tesla, musician Dizzy Gillespie and puppeteer Jim Henson.



Visitors will encounter a new set of commandments designed for the institution, which employs the custom font Divine, a redrawn version of Frederic Goudy’s 1928 Blackletter.


above: The font, St. John The Divine, was created exclusively for Pentagram to rebrand the Cathedral by typographer Joe Finocchiaro in 2009.




Throughout the past few years, Pentagram has been refreshing the identity of Manhattan’s Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. Their relationship with the Cathedral, an extraordinary New York institution, goes back fourteen years. They designed its previous identity in 1999.



Shortly after 9/11, the Cathedral was severely damaged by fire; a painstaking seven-year restoration followed, and the interior was reopened to great acclaim last November. The updated identity, which has been slowly introduced over the past years, builds on the success of the reopening.


above: The updated identifier pairs a drawing of the Cathedral's rose window with the name set in Franklin Gothic.

The Cathedral’s identifier juxtaposes a drawing of the rose window (shown below) that dominates the building’s western wall with asymmetrical sans serif typography. The signature is complimented with a new version of Frederic Goudy‘s blackletter text from 1928, which Goudy had based on Gutenberg’s 42-line Bible.



In a process that paralleled the Cathedral’s detailed interior restoration, typographer Joe Finocchiaro “repointed” Goudy’s letterforms to ensure crisp reproduction at large sizes.


above: A comparison of the letter P in Goudy's original blackletter, left, and redrawn by Joe Finocchiaro for the custom font Divine, right.

The signs will be a permanent addition to the Cathedral grounds, a popular spot for walking dogs in the neighborhood.


above: The church also holds many exhibits. Dog Bless You: The Photography of Mary Bloom, opened there last month and will be on view through winter 2013. For more information on the exhibition and photographer Mary Bloom's evocative portraits of Cathedral friends both four- and two-legged, visit here

Related links:
Pentagram
Joe Finocchiaro
Cathedral of St. John the Divine
Architectural history and images of the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine
Construction of the West Rose Window

Got Your Nose! Belt Buckles, Pendants & Keychains Cast From Your Dog or Cat's Nose In Sterling Silver.

Incredible Things posted these fabulous custom pet pendants cast from the noses of dogs and cats the other day, so I simply had to dig a little deeper. And I'm glad I did or I'd never have discovered handmade jewelry designer Jackie Kaufman and her Rock My World, Inc.

Even better, these unusual pieces are made from "recycled" sterling silver. The jewelry is crafted from a major jewelry firm that no longer sells their items. Jackie "recycles" the silver by taking the jewelry pieces, melting them down and repouring the silver to make new pieces.

Cat Nose:



Dog Nose:


Using the lost wax cast process, Jackie will not only immortalize your beloved pet's nose as a pendant, but also as sterling silver keychains and belt buckles!

Sterling Silver Custom Cast Cat and Dog Nose keychains:


Custom Dog Nose Sterling Silver Belt Buckle:




The backs of the pieces are inscribed with your pet's name:


Jackie creates many forms of fabulous handcast sterling silver jewelry including human fingerprints and more. Be sure to see all her stunning work at her etsy store here.



You can also find some of Jackie's custom cast products at Uncommon Goods and at Daily Grommet

Paul Boddum's Pet Paintings & Custom Portraits

above: Lucy (1992-2008), Portrait for Ann Rohmer

Paul Boddum (b.1966) is a visual artist based in Toronto. His passion is creating contemporary artworks for people who cherish their dogs and cats. Paul's inspiration comes from his love of animals and the unique personalities and stories of each pet he paints. Boddum's paintings are concerned with the idea of dogs being little versions of our ideal companion and the positive effects pets have by enhancing our quality of life.

Moira McLaughlin: Dog Art, Dog Talk, Dog Videos. Doggone Fun.

Who is Moira McLaughlin?

Above left: photo of artist and dog lover Moira McLaughlin
Above right: portrait of Moira by Sheila Cameron

She's been an actor's assistant (Kevin Costner), a screenwriter, and a video producer, but says that "being an artist and a blogger has been by far the most satisfying career yet. And, I get to stay home with my Longhaired Dachshund muse, Darby. Perfect!"


above: Moira and Darby

Moira McLaughlin (MORE-a Mc-LOCK-lin) began her career as an artist in 2002 when she made a dog collage for each of her family members for Christmas. They were a huge hit and inspired her to start her company, DreamDogsArt, where she make custom collages and dog art products that she sells worldwide.

Her blog, Dog Art Today, is devoted to daily dog art from around the world. Features include contemporary dog art, the history of dogs in art, dog art auctions, books, posters, fashion and decor. She has lists and links to many dog related sites worth checking out.

Below are some examples of her custom dog collages:



Get pricing info on her custom dog art collages here.

Below are some of her greeting cards:


and some of her limited edition dog art prints:



Her latest endeavor is this fun morphing video of dogs in art throughout history:



Above: 5,000 years of dogs in art. Inspired by Philip Scott Johnson's Women in Art film.
Music: Parlez-Moi D'Amour by CharlElie Couture from The Moderns soundtrack.

For a complete list of the art and the artists within her video shown above, visit her blog, Dog Art Today
Visit her blog here.
Visit her cafepress store here.
Visit her dream dogs art store here.
Visit her etsy store here.