2006 was an exciting year for Rule29. Lots of cool experiences, opportunities and recognition. From creating Mr. Cato and traveling the country to tell his story, to designing and helping curate the American Red Cross 125th Anniversary Art book, to working with DC Comics in creating the Superman Returns collector’s edition, to hitting up the New York Stock Exchange and witnessing the bell ringing of a big listing for one of our favorite clients, to working with Rand McNally illustrating and redesigning a school atlas, and so much more. Check it all out here.

So what were you doing in 2006?

We are officially at the halfway point to Rule29′s Making Creative Matter anniversary edition. If you have been following previous posts, you know this post is going to be a mix of work, from small to large projects. A little bit of bold, a little bit of beautiful, at least that is how we like to think of them. This time, from the good year of 2005.

’05 seemed to be the year of branding systems and books for us. In prepping for 2006 there is a much larger variety to choose from, but 2005 was really dominated by that kind of work. It also was capped by R29 going from 3.5 to 6 full time team members.

From the NHL canceling the rest of the season, resulting in no hockey from 2004-2005, Hurricane Katrina, Apple releasing Mac OS X v10.4, the Funeral of Pope John Paul II, The Chronicles of Narnia in theaters, and of course the start of “TomKat”, 2005 had it’s share of ups and downs. What were you doing and working on in 2005?

So here we are in 2004, almost half way through our 10 years. The type of work and all the various industries with which we’ve worked always surprises me as I create these posts. 2004 was a brand identity and book year it seems, yet we did a plethora of sites, advertising campaigns and corporate communications as you’ll see.

I started thinking of some things that happened in 2004. This leap year had many highlights (ready for the list?): the Howard Dean scream “speech”, the Patriots winning the Superbowl, the Lord of the Rings winning best picture, the last Oldsmobile rolling off the assembly line, South Africa being awarded the Wold Cup for 2010, the World War II memorial being dedicated, President Reagan passing away, Barack Obama delivering the keynote at the DNC, the Summer Olympics taking place in Greece, Red Sox winning the series, George W. Bush winning the White House, the Tsunami ravaging Indonesia, Rule29 moving into a new office, and so much more.

Dance a jig down memory lane and check out 2000 through 2004.

What were you listening to, working on, or just plain remember from 2004?

With Spring here in full swing, we’re happy to share a fresh edition of Creative Matters with you. So, grab your favorite springtime refreshment or outdoor café table and dig into our latest issue packed with all sorts of newly-picked goodness, like our latest promo calendar, hi-tech comparison websites, inspirational card decks, movies, apparel, and much more.

:: Click here to download Creative Matters 24 ::

As with previous Creative Matters, please download the interactive PDF to click your way through via each hotlink, or simply scroll through it page by page (best viewed with the latest version of Acrobat Reader).

We hope you enjoy our new projects. If you would like to know more about any of the featured pieces in this edition, please give us a shout, and we’ll be glad to explore how we can make creative matter for you.

IT’S TIME TO BE IN CHARGE
Time management is always a challenge, but why not make it fun? Check out our latest collaborative promotional calendar & site all geared around being in charge of YOU. These one-of-a-kind calendars are shipping soon, so let us know if you’d like to have one! And check out the companion site, beinchargeofyou.com!

TEN X TEN – RULE29’s 10TH ANNIVERSARY
Have you seen our latest installment of Rule29′s decade of design? As part of celebrating our 10th anniversary and remembering all of our friends that we’ve worked with over the years, we created the Rule29 10×10 project blog. Each month during 2010 we’re posting a set of work from the past. Currently on the site you’ll find projects from 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003, and 2004 will be going up soon. To see more, check out Rule29 10 x 10.

Enjoy!

It was relatively easy to pick our projects for 2000, 2001, and 2002, but 2003 was the first year we could have put up twenty projects. Looking back, I can’t remember a single reason why we had so much more work outside of the fact that we were starting to get established and a bit more known. Rule29 worked hard, as we do now, to support our community, make connections, and build networks of great people that can support each other. This is a big part of making creative matter™ in our opinion: the love chain effect. Help when you can, expect nothing in return, and good things tend to happen. That was best demonstrated by our first big collaboration with our pal Terry Marks. You will see in the 2003 samples a book called Mr. Crumbly Dreams a Tiger. This was a book written and illustrated by Terry, and designed and packaged by Rule29. This led to a lot of great press, etc., but the coolest part was working with another design pal, printer, paper company, and bookbinder. And, in the end, helping all those businesses and creating great friendships. Thus, 2003 was the start to big change in operations and perspective. So for this year’s posting, I picked some work that is more a fav than some of the most recognized samples.

Take a walk down memory lane and check out 2003 thru 2000.

What were you doing in 2003 or what was a big project for you that year?