We are all prone to hitting the creative wall from time to time but sometimes the only way to get around it is through the eyes of others. We have curated a list of sites that get our creative juices flowing, to hopefully inspire you into action. Enjoy!
My Modern Met
My Modern Met was formed in May 2008 to create one big city that celebrates creativity. Their mission is to promote a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity- from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening. Today, My Modern Met receives over 5 million web visitors each month, who come to enjoy articles on art, design, photography, architecture, science, technology, environmental issues, and more.
Colossal
Called the “Tate Modern of the Internet”, Colossal is an international platform for contemporary art and visual expression that explores a vast range of creative disciplines. With an archive of over 6,700 articles written by twelve contributors, Colossal prides itself in celebrating the work of both emerging and established artists through an ongoing commitment to making art accessible to everyone. Their coverage explores visual culture through the latest in fine art, design, modern craft, street art, photography, illustration, science, and animation.
It’s Nice That
It’s Nice That was founded in 2007 in response to a university brief to “put something into the public domain that makes people feel better about themselves”. From the start, they were built by creatives, for creatives. Since then, It’s Nice That has grown to become one of the leading platforms globally for the creative community, encompassing an award-winning website, a range of social channels, a regular live events series, and a top-ranking podcast.
Their mission is to inspire the global creative community, with stories and insights that bring people together to help them make more of their creativity.
designboom
designboom aims to bring together professionals and young creatives from a diverse range of backgrounds by publishing the latest news and key issues in the fields of architecture, design, technology and art. Their mission over the past 20 years has remained the same. Unearth the best projects and curate a selection of the most interesting aspects of contemporary culture – before you can find it anywhere else.
Today, designboom is a comprehensive source with over 50,000 articles worth of useful information and insightful interviews, studio visits, documentation of new products, reviews of exhibitions and books, and historical surveys.
The Design Inspiration
The Design Inspiration is an online resource of design inspiration by designers for designers. It gathers together patterns, illustrations, and logos that serve as a source of inspiration and as a showcase of talent at the same time.
As the Design Inspiration team says: “There are lots of creative professionals out there. But there are also times when one feels uninspired and glassy-eyed. They wait for inspiration to hit them, positive that their big break will certainly come one day. Perhaps they’ve even tried taking internships to get a mentor. If they’re fortunate, they would find a role-model full of great ideas all the time. In less fortunate cases, they might find others like them, waiting for inspiration to come.”
“Don’t wait for inspiration. It comes while working.”
– Henri Matisse
Abduzeedo
Abduzeedo is a collective of individual writers sharing articles about design, photography, and UX. It was founded by Fabio Sasso in 2006 as a personal blog, later growing to become a digital publication with several writers from all over the world, working independently.
Also known as ABDZ, the short version of the blog name which means “abducted” in Portuguese, the site has seen the evolution of the design community for a decade. From different styles to mediums, ABDZ has evolved with the industry and became one of the most sought-after design blogs on the web.
iGNANT
iGNANT is an award-winning online magazine featuring the finest in art, design, photography, fashion, and architecture. The team at iGNANT are passionate about bringing you a curated selection of the most captivating work from both established creatives as well as emerging talents. In addition to publishing inspirational projects from around the world, iGNANT produces their own unique editorial features on the cutting edge of contemporary culture that includes interviews, studio visits, travel stories, and more.
Booooooom
Booooooom was launched in 2008 by Vancouver-based artist Jeff Hamada. It is Canada’s highest-traffic art platform, and one of the largest on the Internet. Over the last decade, Booooooom has established itself as an authoritative voice in the new contemporary art scene, highlighting emerging talents, and launching the careers of many young artists internationally.
Juxtapoz
Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine (pronounced JUX-the-pose) is a magazine created in 1994 by a group of artists and art collectors including Robert Williams, Fausto Vitello, C.R. Stecyk III (a.k.a. Craig Stecyk), Greg Escalante, and Eric Swensen to both help define and celebrate urban alternative and underground contemporary art. Juxtapoz is published by High-Speed Productions, the same company that publishes Thrasher skateboard magazine.
Juxtapoz launched with the mission of connecting modern genres like psychedelic and hot rod art, graffiti, street art, and illustration to the context of broader more historically recognized genres of art like pop, assemblage, old master painting, and conceptual art. Although based in San Fransisco, Juxtapoz was founded upon the belief in the virtues of Southern California pop culture and freedom from the conventions of the “established” New York City art world.
Hi-Fructose
Hi-Fructose began as a quarterly print art magazine, founded by artists, Attaboy and Annie Owens in 2005. Hi-Fructose focuses squarely on art that transcends genre and trend, assuring readers of thorough coverage and content that is informative and original. Hi-Fructose showcases an amalgamation of new contemporary, emerging as well distinguished artists, with a spotlight on awe-inspiring spectacles from around the world.
Each beautifully designed, full-color issue is printed on high-quality paper. Hi-Fructose goes beyond the comfort zone of the “alternative” norm to deliver a diverse cross-section of the most influential, genre-bending art of our time as well as breaking new and amazing talents.
Hyperallergic
Hyperallergic is a leading voice in contemporary perspectives on art, culture, and more. The online publication was founded by the husband-and-husband team, Veken Gueyikian, and Hrag Vartanian, in 2009 as a forum for playful, serious, and radical perspectives on art in society. With over one million visitors monthly, Hyperallergic combines round-the-clock art world news coverage with insightful commentary.
Challenging the art world status quo, Hyperallergic goes beyond the surface to investigate the inner workings of art institutions and markets, shedding light on the movements and individuals fighting for greater inclusion and representation. With hundreds of global contributors, Hyperallergic is a constant source of the latest in film, visual art, books, and performances around the world.
Beautiful/Decay
Beautiful/Decay began as a small black and white, DIY, photocopied ‘zine in 1996, releasing three issues in its first incarnation. In 2001, it was resurrected as a full-color art and design publication featuring some of the most cutting-edge and exciting work by artists and designers from all over the world. Over the years Beautiful/Decay grew a cult following and evolved from a widely distributed magazine to a limited edition book.
After releasing 35 printed issues, B/D shifted its attention full-time to its rapidly growing blog; beautifuldecay.com is now home to the same exciting content that made Beautiful/Decay a widely loved and revered creative bible. As B/D’s 20-year anniversary approaches, its coverage of groundbreaking art and design reaches a global audience of millions every month and is an inspirational resource for artists, art collectors, and creative tastemakers from all walks of life.
StreetArtNews
StreetArtNews is the definitive guide to the Street Art World. It was founded in November 2009 when Founder & Editor-in-Chief Rom Levy announced his plans for starting a publication devoted to Urban Art that would cater to what he called “Art Geeks”.
In the ensuing years, with formidable contributions by a unique editorial staff, StreetArtNews became a trusted source for Art news, exhibitions analysis, reviews, lifestyle, and nearly everything else found in between layers of paint.
As StreetArtNews enters its tenth year, they are looking beyond the murals themselves to explore how they impact our lives, because of the belief that “without knowledge, art is nothing.”
The Dsgn Blog
Founded, designed, and curated by Ruby Bacanovic – a Croatian designer based in Los Angeles, CA, The Design Blog brings you carefully curated design inspiration, featuring works of designers and design studios from all over the world, with the main focus on young designers and students.
Aint-Bad
Aint–Bad is an independent publisher of contemporary art. Founded in Savannah, Georgia, the collective is dedicated to supporting a progressive community of artists from around the world through online web features, printed periodicals, monographs, and exhibitions.
Aint–Bad reveals an ever-more urgent, critical conversation about the human condition by way of thought-provoking imagery. The periodicals address specific cultural themes and observations. Each monograph is an intimate project with a hand-selected artist, printed in small editions with the best materials available. Aint–Bad’s objective is to stimulate the collection of and appreciation for contemporary art by way of accessible and affordable publications. The brand supports local initiatives by working together with artists, curators, and institutions to help foster a creative community.
“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.”
– Mary Lou Cook
Quick Inspiration
Canvas, Saatchi Art
The world’s leading online gallery, connecting its audience to the art and artists they love.
Shillingstone Education
Shillingstone Design Blog is run by Shillington, the Original Graphic Design Bootcamp.
Aisle One
Each issue offers design inspiration from the world of photography, film, music, and cultural content.
Design Milk
Since 2006, Design Milk has been feeding its readers’ design obsession with what’s cool and what’s next in architecture, interior design, automotive, fashion, technology + art.
We Made This
We Made This is the graphic design studio of Alistair Hall, specializing in thoughtful, simple, beautiful communication.
Stockpress wants to give the creative community their time back by transforming the way they work across mediums. Photography, illustration, video, documents and more can easily be discovered, used, and shared. So go forth, get inspired, and spend less time looking for your creative files and more time making them!
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