Arun Venkatesan

My DIY modular charging station How I built a modular USB charging station with a focus on material honesty.

Made a little charging station to tame the mess of cables around the house. arun.is/blog/diy-mod...

Milwaukee's many faces A family trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin showed me the surprising mix of old and new, urban and rural that this city has to offer.

Photoessay of the beautiful cultural spots I visited in Milwaukee arun.is/blog/milwauk...

Aesthetics over upgrades With devices lasting longer, I now have the unique opportunity to hold on to older designs I love the most.

With devices lasting longer, I now have the unique opportunity to hold on to older designs I love the most. arun.is/blog/aesthet...

Designing wearable tech history I've designed some shirts inspired by technology history.

I wrote about the T-shirts I have been designing. arun.is/blog/tech-t-...

insanely great! by Arun Venkatesan Homage to the product that started the personal computer revolution.

Made an insanely great T shirt

cottonbureau.com/p/5UQTE8/shi...

Mexico City's embrace of culture On my last visit to Mexico City, I discovered what makes this city special

Photoessay exploring what makes Mexico City so special arun.is/blog/mexico-...

Nintendate by Arun Venkatesan The visual style of one of our favorite game companies meets the hardware of another.

“Nintendate” shirt.

cottonbureau.com/p/V4GMBB/shi...

Family adventures in Tokyo XX

Or favorite places in and around Tokyo for both children and adults alike.

The creative power of constraints Constraints act not as limitations but as catalysts for creativity. Examples from architecture, design, and art reveal the paradoxical relationship between boundaries and innovation.

How constraints catalyze creativity

Photowalk through Shanghai I spent five hours wandering through Shanghai with my camera, discovering hidden coffee shops, historic buildings, and the beautiful chaos that makes this city unforgettable.

A long walk around Shanghai guided by my camera and my curiosity.

arun.is/blog/shangha...

I'm not seeing any discount when I click in from the app?!

Sigma BF: less camera, more vision By embracing Japanese minimalism, Sigma's BF camera creates a new relationship with technology — one that celebrates presence over specifications.

Sigma shocked the world this week with a minimalist new camera, one that I think is pure expression of Japanese aesthetic traditions.

arun.is/blog/sigma-bf/

My year-long sabbatical We burned through savings and faced uncertainties, but our sabbatical year was worth it.

We burned through savings and faced uncertainties, but our sabbatical year was worth it. arun.is/blog/year-lo...

Meishi Cards | Figma Tiny todo lists that fit in your wallet. More info here: https://arun.is/blog/meishi-cards/

Figma file here: www.figma.com/community/fi...

My original blog post will also shortly have a download link for files.

Meishi Cards | Figma Tiny todo lists that fit in your wallet. More info here: https://arun.is/blog/meishi-cards/

Figma file here: www.figma.com/community/fi...

My original blog post will also shortly have a download link for files.

The hardest working font in Manhattan A story of a 150-year-old font you have never heard of – and one you probably saw earlier today.

I think every designer should write a love letter to a font at least once in their lifetime.

This is mine: A 150-year-old font you have likely never heard of, and one you probably saw earlier today.

aresluna.org/the-hardest-...

Will do! I’m in the process of preparing some files for sharing.

Suzhou twenty years later I returned to Suzhou after twenty years, seeing the Chinese city through new eyes as I introduced my children to a place that shaped me as a teenager.

Photos and words about memory, change, and returning to Suzhou, China after twenty years.

arun.is/blog/suzhou/

Meishi: a tiny productivity system When my digital todo lists became overwhelming, I designed a minimalist system that fits in my MagSafe wallet.

Wrote a bit about the baby todo lists inspired by
@ugmonk.bsky.social Analog I have been using

arun.is/blog/meishi-...

Oops. Thanks for pointing that out!

Taipei through the layers of time Explore in words and photographs how Taipei transforms its historic spaces into hubs of culture, design, and community.

Photos and words about Taipei's lovely approach to historical preservation arun.is/blog/taipei-...

@braddielman.com I couldn’t reply on threads.

I had these cards printed at a local shop. They are business card sized.

Made some baby todo lists that fit into a card holder. Heavily inspired by @ugmonk.bsky.social Analog

The hidden bond between the Porsche 911 and Leica M What connects a rear-engine sports car and a manual rangefinder camera? A bold approach to design that turned limitations into legends.

arun.is/blog/porsche...

Hidden Taiwan: A weekend in Taoyuan & Yingge A half-marathon lead to some unexpected discoveries in Taiwan's industrial heartland.

We explored the lesser known Taoyuan and Yingge districts in our latest trip to Taiwan arun.is/blog/taoyuan...

I just wrapped up a one year sabbatical and a multi-month productive job search. I'm going to write a post about it. What questions do you have?

It was an honor to be on Prime Lenses. Go take a listen to some of the episodes in the backlog. There are some gems in there.

Inside arun.is · Photo storage How I built a storage setup that lets me focus on photography instead of worrying about storage space or data safety.

How I store all the photos I take arun.is/blog/photo-s...

Newsletter issue incoming.

Subscribe: arun.is/subscribe/

The tale of two Shanghais From my teenage days browsing skyscraper forums to standing atop the third tallest building in the world, I've witnessed how a single river divides two different architectural worlds that somehow for...

Photoessay about Shanghai's supertall skyscrapers and how they reflect the duality and contrasts at the heart of Chinese culture.

arun.is/blog/tale-of...