A lightly more diminutive Gallery selection this
month, although that doesn’t mean a compromise in
quality - oh no! There’s a seriously funny and clever movie
site, a Flash-hungry vanity URL, and even a seriously retro
HTML example. Something for everybody eh?
When can an RIA constitute a website? It’s tough to make
a distinction these days, and that’s the quandary we had
about crowning this month’s top Gallery pick. Perhaps the
ultimate example of RIA development thus far, Adobe’s trial
version of Photoshop Express is without a doubt a triumph
of online design. Very much a testament to Flex coding that
will surely make the shift to desktop with AIR at some point,
Express allows you to perform common image edits and
manipulations to stock photos or uploaded pictures. Crops,
rotations, colour flips and many more tools are available with
everything functioning in a timely and slick way. Pay particular
attention to the previews and visual command history that
adorns the understated interface – this is a masterclass in Web
2.0 execution.
This exhibition site for the 2008 Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) show is a joyous celebration of
vibrant colour and equally vibrant Flash design. Featured works can be organised or reshuffled by
artist and year, producing an interactive colour spectrum that rises and falls as the mouse is moved.
Upon selection, we’re given a smaller-sized photo of the chosen piece that can then be expanded
out and dragged around the browser – probably a moment where Silverlight’s Deep Zoom would
have yielded higher resolution results. Various hotspots around the general page interface provide
access to quick explanations about the works, and users can quickly preview the whole collection
via the forward and back arrows. This website is truly a fantastic example of art and design colliding
to great effect.
This lush portfolio site for this Florida-based agency was actually sent to us in the hope of some exposure – they
needn’t have worried. No sooner had we checked out the emailed screenshots were we at the URL and snapping our
own for this month’s Gallery. The design here is by no means wholly unique in style, but everything is so beautifully
realised and polished that you can’t help but fall for the warm colours and organic feel. Brought to life in Flash, the real
triumph of this effort is the sugary colours, gradients and general chunkiness. Cute little touches like the night and
day switching background aside, you’ll get a good glimpse of Magnetic’s trademark aesthetic – backed up by a rich
portfolio section.
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Directors: Damian Butt, Steven Boyd, Mark Kendrick, Alistair Ramsay, Harry Dhand, Andrew Hartley, Sam Watkinson
