Big is beautiful in Kevin O’Callaghan’s eyes (and hands). He is the master artist and artisan of extraordinary re-purposings of things like Yugo automobiles (into everything but automobiles), horse drawn carriages (into fuel efficient vehicles for an oil-poor tomorrow), and old-fashioned typewriters (into anything you want them to be). This fall, Abrams is publishing “Monumental: The Reimagined World of Kevin O’Callaghan,” a thick compendium of his mental monuments to ingenuity and imagination created under his direction by his students at The School of Visual Arts 3D Design and MFA Designer as Author classes.
From May 25-27, one of his mental masterpieces (constructed by Scott Lesiak), a twenty-plus-times life-sized typewriter will be on view at the Abrams booth during the BEA (Book Expo America) at the Javits Center in NYC. If you’re lucky enough to get into this extravaganza of print (and digital) bookmaking and bookselling, you may even glimpse Mr. O’C peeking from the keys. (That’s him below.)
About Steven Heller
Steven Heller is the co-chair of the SVA MFA Designer /Designer as Author + Entrepreneur program, writes frequently for Wired and Design Observer. He is also the author of over 170 books on design and visual culture. He received the 1999 AIGA Medal and is the 2011 recipient of the Smithsonian National Design Award.View all posts by Steven Heller →