1/1/26 • 1 min read
You may not know Jon Hicks but you’ve likely seen his work as the graphic designer of Firefox, MailChimp and Shopify logos.
In 2012, he published a book entitled ‘The Icon Handbook’ - it’s a great primer and culimination of two years of work and guides you through the process of designing icons - from identifying an appropriate metaphor to drawing symbols through to the practicalities of implementation. Best of all, he is providing it free of charge on the basis that quite a lot of the content has aged although that does not apply to many of the foundational principles.
Even if you’re not interested in creating your own icons, the chapters on history, metaphor and use are valuable and accessible to a non-design audience.
Warning systems rely on icons to overcome language barriers and issues with translation so understanding the design process can only inform better briefs and more effective design.
12/2/25 • 1 min read
Wildscreen’s Science & Storytelling has been announced for 19-20 March 2026. The full programme is going to be released
_This event brings scientists and filmmakers together in a symbiosis of minds to learn, collaborate and share how best to keep science at the heart of our natural world stories.
Highlight the importance of nurturing relationships between those with knowledge, and those that want to share it.
Platform successful case studies of scientists and filmmakers coming together to communicate science effectively and creatively._
11/15/25 • 2 min read
I went to the Cecil Beaton exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery last week. It’s always a pleasure to see original prints that have been overseen by the artist themselves. I’d only ever seen the image of Eileen Dunne on the cover of Life magazine. The Life cover which was displayed next to the print was tonally quite different - much higher key, probably a feature of the press and lacked the tonal nuance of the original print.
“Beaton was commissioned by the Ministry of Information and the show contains strikingly beautiful photographs which show not only the devastation caused by Nazi bombs but also resilience and camaraderie. There are also photographs from the Middle East, India, Burma and China.
In particular his photographs of Winston Churchill, the royal family and a little girl called Eileen Dunne all played a propaganda part in helping to bring American public opinion round to intervening in the war. The Dunne photograph is especially poignant, showing a three-year-old girl with her stuffed toy and a bandage round her head after getting caught up in the blitz.
It is an incredibly important image, splashed all over the world, but who Dunne was or went on to be is still something of a mystery. “It is a story waiting to be told,” said Roberts. “But the impact of it was extraordinary.” - The Guardian
Further information on the picture is available on Time Magazine’s website.
