Posts Tagged ‘From’

What You Can Learn From Zynga’s Cool Company Culture [PICS]

Posted on May 20th, 2012 • Filed under Learn • No Comments




This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.

When thinking of model places for workplace perks, the successful startups of Silicon Valley undoubtedly come to mind. And while heavy-hitters such as Google and Facebook are famous for their jaw-dropping employee amenities, up-and-coming mid-level companies are also getting in on the act.

Mashable took a tour of Zynga, a wildly popular distributor of some of the most played social and mobile games. When it comes to perks, the father of FarmVille doesn’t skimp. In fact, Zynga’s office is so loaded with perks and amenities, it would make working from home a bore.

Good Food

It’s not uncommon for tech companies in Silicon Valley and San Francisco to offer its employees catered lunches, but Zynga takes it further with meals cooked on-site by professional chefs. Each floor has a fully-stocked and themed kitchen, including a candy kitchen and a healthy “zen” kitchen.

Everything is prepared on-site — there’s even a pizza oven — and made with locally sourced ingredients. The company’s executive chef is Matthew DuTrumble, who was the youngest chef instructor at the California Culinary Academy and also had a show on the Food Network, Private Chefs of Beverly Hills. Want to eat some meat for lunch? The on-site butcher will take care of that in his two-floor kitchen.

If you’re more interested in keeping a good diet, there are always healthy options, including a fully loaded salad bar and freshly brewed Kombucha. The healthy options are an important perk, considering desk jobs are notorious for helping people pack on pounds.

Good Fun

In the basement, there is a lounge area packed with big screen TVs, a curved wood bar area and free beer on tap. If you’d rather unwind with a workout than an ice-cold beer, you can hit up the Zynga gym. Employees can take CrossFit classes, meet with a nutritionist or schedule a free massage.

And if you want to work and play with your canine friend, he’s more than welcome — every day is bring your dog to work day at Zynga. After all, the company is named after the CEO Mark Pincus’ late dog, Zinga.

Work Hard, Play Hard

Zynga provides hotel-like amenities to keep employees happy and retain (and attract) talent. Tech companies in particular are notorious for providing awesome on-site perks to encourage employees stay at work longer and up their productivity. Facebook offers employees a free shuttle to work, plus numerous “micro-kitchens” stocked with snacks, and a free cafeteria where employees are welcome to invite family members for lunch. Google has a golf course, basketball courts and nap pods for a mid-day snooze.

Zynga churned out six games in the first quarter of 2012, so the team is definitely working hard. Despite the long hours, the employees’ access to a spacious top-of-the-line gym, a team of chefs and all the free beer you can drink makes for quite the hook-up.

All the perks in the startup world make sense — several Gallup studies have shown a correlation between productivity and worker happiness, and Gallup estimates that organizations whose employees are not happy and engaged lose out on billions of dollars in potential revenue.

Check out the gallery of pics below to see some of the cool stuff they get to do at Zynga.

Work Life at Zynga

This staircase leads to the lounge area and the gym.

Click here to view this gallery.

What do you think about this company? Would you work here? Why or why not? Tell us in the comments.

More Small Business Resources From OPEN Forum:

- Should Small Businesses Follow Everyone Back on Twitter?
- Are You Falling into the Pricing Trap?
- How to Take Your PR Pitches to the Next Level

More About: mashable, open forum, startup, Zynga

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Read the original post on Mashable!

 

New Work from JORGE RODRÍGUEZ-GERADA

Posted on May 20th, 2012 • Filed under Look • No Comments

 

Soon after returning to Spain I was invited to go the Middle East. I went to the city of Manama in Bahrain to make a mural as part of the Alwan 338 festival put together by the Al Riwaq Art Space. Knowing the current situation there, I was a little apprehensive but a good friend working with the gallery explained the special nature of what the Al Riwaq Art Space was doing. I met some truly extraordinary people who believe in the role of contemporary art in their country's future. Against all odds they strive to change the barren artistic landscape that exists in Bahrain today. There are so many layers to Bahrain. There is a huge class division, exotic cars, colossal images of the king everywhere, boundless hospitality, arrests, the smell of tear gas every weekend, road blocks, women who can drive and are free to dress as they wish, a graffiti war between dissidents and the police, an American naval base since 1947, Fuddruckers, Sizzlers, a clamp down on dissident areas, the legal sale of alcoholic beverages, a rich cultural history…

It is easy to resort to the didactic or aesthetically pleasing image, but it is much more difficult to create poetic and emotionaly charged art that can reach you at different levels. There are few Bahraini artists creating profound work about this multilayered place and time. Al Riwaq Art Space is trying to change that and I have nothing but admiration for their efforts. I decided to create a mural of Yousif, a traditional Bahraini fisherman, one of a few hundred that are left. My Identity Series murals fade away with the wind and rain.”
Jorge Rodríguez-Gerada

 

Read the original post on Wooster Collective

 

“Drawing from the Bestiary: Animal Anatomy of Real and Imagined Creatures,” Class with Artist Saul Chernick, Observatory, June 25-July 16

Posted on May 18th, 2012 • Filed under Learn • No Comments

I am very excited to announce “Drawing from the Bestiary: Animal Anatomy of Real and Imagined Creatures, a new class developed specially for The Morbid Anatomy Art Academy by one of our favorite artists, Saul Chernick. This class will teach students–via illustrated lectures and in-class projects including paper puppets and the creation of bestiary pages–”to use observational and imaginative drawing skills in tandem to capture the essential qualities of their subject” and “learn to draw animals (real, mythic, and otherwise) with greater skill and sensitivity.”

You can see some of Chernick’s wonderful artworks above; you can see more of them by clicking here. The class will take place on 4 consectutive Mondays, from June 25 to July 16th. The full class description follows. Also, please note that the class size is limited to 15, so if you are interested, please RSVP as soon as possible to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com.

Drawing from the Bestiary: Animal Anatomy of Real and Imagined Creatures with Saul Chernick
A 4-part class with Artist Saul Chernick, M.F.A., Rutgers University
Dates: Mondays June 25, July 2, July 9 and July 16th (4 consecutive Mondays)
Time: 6:30-9:00 PM
Class Fee: $120
***Class size limited to 15; Must RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com
This class is part of The Morbid Anatomy Art Academy

Contemporary artist and arts educator Saul Chernickis renowned for gorgeous artworks featuring convincingly corporeal depictions of imaginary or mythical creatures rendered in the style of Medieval and early Renaissance woodcuts from Northern Europe. Observatory is very pleased to announce a new workshop developed by Saul Chernick specially for the Morbid Anatomy Art Academy. In this class, Chernick will teach students–via illustrated lectures and in-class projects including paper puppets and bestiary pages–”to use observational and imaginative drawing skills in tandem to capture the essential qualities of their subject” and “learn to draw animals (real, mythic, and otherwise) with greater skill and sensitivity.”

Full class description follows; you can see more of Chernick’s fantastic work by clicking here. Class size limited to 15; Please RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com.

Course Description
Open to artists of all levels, the goal of this workshop is help participants learn to draw animals (real, mythic, and otherwise) with greater skill and sensitivity. Through exercises in drawing and paper puppetry, participants will gain a deeper understanding of the skeletal/muscular structures of most mammals, reptiles, and birds. Participants will also learn to use observational and imaginative drawing skills in tandem to capture the essential qualities of their subject and create works of convincing visual fiction!
What to expect

  • Participants will cull images from the web to create a dossier on the animal(s) that interest them
  • Participants will fashion movable paper puppets to understand how their chosen animal moves
  • Participants will draw studies of the skeletal and muscular structures of animals
  • Participants will use the medium of their choice to create a Bestiary page entry that depicts an animal situated in an environment

Materials
What to bring to the first class:

  • Choose 1-3 animals and gather pictures on the web. Be sure to get images of their skeletons in profile. Please print these as they may be hard to use on a phone screen.
  • 3-5 sheets of Bristol Board Paper 9″ x 12″ or larger
  • Pencils & erasers
  • Scissors
  • Xacto or utility knife
  • Glue

What to bring for subsequent classes:

  • White or tinted drawing paper 16″ x 20″ or 18″ x 24″
  • Tracing paper (same size as drawing paper)
  • Mechanical and/or regular pencils (2h, hb, 2b, 4b)

Optional:

  • Markers, watercolors, gouache, ink, brushes, chalk/oil pastels, colored pencils, Caran D’Ache, collage papers, etc (we’ll discuss further in detail!)

Saul Chernick, M.F.A., Rutgers University, is a visual artist and educator. Chernick has exhibited internationally in galleries and museums including the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, the Bronx Museum of Art, the Jewish Museum of Art, as well as Max Protetch and Meulensteen Galleries in New York City. He has taught art for the public school system, the 92nd Street Y, Cooper Union, Parson’s School of Design, and the Museum of Modern Art. He is currently the Professional Development Coordinator for the Joan Mitchell Foundation where he coaches New York artists in teaching art to young people throughout city. His work can be seen at www.saulchernick.com.

All images are by Saul Chernick and include, top to bottom:

  1. Field Urchin, 2011, from a series of studies in which he attempted to impose the proportions of cherubs onto horses.
  2. Desktop 2013, 2010, Ink, Watercolor, & Opaque White on Paper
  3. Heavenly Touch , 2009, Ink, Watercolor, & Opaque White on Paper
  4. Guilty Pleasures, 2010, Ink, Watercolor, & Opaque White on Paper
  5. Ars Gratia Artis, 2010, Ink on Paper

You can found out more here. As mentioned above, class size is limited to 15, so if you are interested, please RSVP as soon as you are able to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com.

Read the original post on Morbid Anatomy

 

Things We Shouldn’t Talk About: New Video From Anthony Lister

Posted on May 8th, 2012 • Filed under Look • No Comments

Read the original post on Wooster Collective

 

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