For all you up and coming designers, don’t miss this years National Portfolio Day. It’s your chance to have the leading northwest art colleges answer questions and review your portfolio. Jan. 5th @ Cornish in Seattle, & Jan. 6th @ PNCA in Portland.

Matt Terich’s firm, Design Medicine, has been consistently putting up quality concert posters for a while now. His posters offer well thought out typography with various illustration styles.

John Randall Nelson paints like a good designer. Each piece shows well thought out layouts, balanced elements, beautiful color choices. His show at the Grover/Thurston Gallery ends on Dec 22nd, so catch it before it’s gone.

For the first time Modern Dog has gathered all their groundbreaking work in poster design over the past two decades and bound it into a 160 page book. I have always enjoyed seeing posters done by Modern Dog founders Michael Strassbuger and Robynne Raye. Their distinct style shows through, whether it’s for a theater or music event, or just some good ol’ fashion self-promotion.

In pop culture/music news, Seattle lost one one of it’s greatest music venues, the Crocodile Cafe, on Monday. Not only did it help support and foster amazing local and national bands, but it helped put seattle designers/poster artists on the map as well. It will be missed….

KEXP.org put together another CD of all their best 2007 in-studio performances by The Shins, Hot Chip, The English Beat, Peter Bjorn and John and more. Gracing the cover of the “Live at KEXP volume 3″ CD is gorgeous artwork by artist Oksana Badrak. Space penquins rule!

Bainbridge Island’s mad creator, Blaine Fontana, has overhauled his website. Worth the wait? I think so. Lots of new projects are now available for viewing in a very user friendly interface. In addition to the new site Blaine has released 3 new prints.

Here’s photos from the Shag “Motorino” show and BLVD Gallery’s “Good vs Evil” show last night. Mercury Four played a nice set of atomic powered surf music during the Shag show.

Design Bum did some nice work on the Minus the Bear “Pachuca Sunrise” video. Who would have thought sponge animals could look so good?

Tonight, from 6-9 PM, sip some Elysian brew, chomp some Cupcakes Royale, and of course, enjoy some fresh, fine urban art at the new Twilight artist collective. Featuring work by Justin Hillgrove, Brad Strain, and Kim McCarthy. It’s happening in the West Seattle junction at 4306 SW Alaska St.