compete-tee-tion

Coleoptera by akoelle got my nod as the best shirt of the week for its uniqueness and its concept- while bugs can be kind of creepy, they're also undeniably fascinating to look at because they seem so alien. The size variation (culminating with a bug that seems poised to skitter right off the shirt) and monotone color brought to mind both scientific illustrations and old horror movies, which is a fun mix. I admit that the bug thing is a little too weird for me to really want to wear, but I think it still makes for a great shirt.



Skunk Ape by xjoshuabelangerx is a big ape face, boasting big fangs and mischievous eyes. It's a great illustration. That said, I honestly don't see the appeal of it as a shirt- the repeating lines seem to ruin the integrity of the illustration to me, and in general wearing a shirt that has a face larger than my own seems like an odd choice to me. I'm also pretty sure this is the second huge ape face print in the last month, which is a little insane. I love animals, but some variety at least would be nice.

JAPANISMO by ryozilla is another of DBH's Asian-inspired prints, using layering to look more unique. For me, the layering is a bit of a miss- while there are some areas where it looks quite cool (in particular around the geisha's eye), for the most part I found myself wishing it weren't so heavy and distracting. I feel it might have been a stronger piece if the amount of layering was more varied, leaving some portions of the illustration crisp and empty.



Grenada by thiagob is a collage-y take on a grenade. Like a lot of DBH prints, it feels too large to me, I think something a bit smaller would let viewers see the shape of the grenade better without it wrapping around the body quite so much. There's a time and a place for a huge print of course, but this doesn't feel right to me here. My other issue with this shirt is that while it is a cool image, it feels really empty and overdone to me because this same style has printed so much on DBH. That freshness that excites me about a new shirt is sadly absent from this one, making it a shirt a might wear but not one I'd buy.

SUIT UP? by K-19 is kind of a typical riff on how wearing a suit for your job is so soul killing or whatever. The whole design reads in a really expected way- skull suit guy, building photo, boring font, watercolor splash... it feels like I've seen it, just maybe not in this particular arrangement. The composition of elements is just as boring as the elements themselves to me, with the suited figure cutting the shirt almost exactly in half. It's not something that makes me want to take a second look.

Design By Humans is an on-going t-shirt design contest that prints new shirts every weekday. Prints are chosen from the shirts submitted by and voted on by DBH members. Shirt of the Day winners receive $500 cash and $250 DBH credit. Shirt of the Week winners get $1000 cash. Shirt of the Month gets $1500 cash and $250 credit. Winners also have an opportunity to earn residuals through the Rockstar Awards Program.

Labels: design by humans