Browsing Amazon

I was dong some online Christmas shopping and one of Amazons recommendations for me was this.

Though I am not going to buy it, it did catch my eye as having the plakatstil look. Its got a bold strait font, flat colors, and its been overly simplified. The background is more flashy then classic plakatstil but all in all it shares many characteristics.
I also did a little research and fond that the font used for the title was created specifically for the show and is obviously called "Futurama" font.

As compared to a piece from the time the style was made popular.

Very similar.

Hey check out my hand coded web page.

I designed this for IMM120 Web Design.

 www.fixzign.org
I'm happy with how it turned out for a first attempt.

I Greeked the text because that's not what this assignment was about.

Review of Print Magazine

 

Print is a bimonthly magazine filled with articles and images from the Design community. The images chosen come from some of the top designers from fields of design and the articles are written by cultural reporters and critics who analyze and break down the many contextual elements that make such work as wonderful as it is.

            This particular issue of Print is the December 2011 issue titled “The 31st Regional Design Annual, The Best of American Design.” This issue is special, in that it breaks down the United States into six regions (far West, Southwest, Midwest, South, East, and New York) and displays the winning entries from each. Of the two thousand five hundred and thirty-six entries only four hundred twenty-one were chosen as winners and displayed in the magazine. This annual copy of Print does not have the usual number of articles or advertisements but focuses on the winning entries and the individual designers or firms that submitted them. Their work and title of the piece or the reason it was created is displayed. The city and state are also given and in some cases the writers of the magazine asked a particular designer a question about their inspiration of something about their region and the quote is also put next to their work.  An example of this would be the question posed to Karl Hirschmann of Hirschmann Designs.

Q. “What visual stereotype would you eliminate from Colorado?

A. “Mountains, mountains, mountains. At this point, creating a distinctive mountain symbol is quite difficult. (But not impossible.)”

The scope of the entries is wide ranging. Some of the pieces are simply self promotional pieces intended to get the artists/designers name out there. Others are ad campaigns, logo designs; product/packaging redesigns designs, from major companies like Coca-Cola. One begins to look around and realize the beauty in the simplest of everyday objects, when one thinks about how much time was spent on the design process alone.

The layouts of the pages are pleasing to the eye. One finds one’s eyes scan the pages fluidly from piece to piece, taking in each in its own right, moving on to the next unhindered by dark boarders or sharp divisions of the page. The editorial content is arranged in columns with a graphic or two to break up text blocks and illustrate the writer’s content more clearly, or ad a bit of humor or flair to the written word. As one would expect from a design magazine, the graphics are tastefully chosen and arranged, only helping to enhance the reader’s understanding of the content.

One article entitled “The end of the Glue-Pot Era” by Steven Heller, asks contemporary designers how technology has remade graphic design. Mr. Heller gives his own opinion of the topic posed. Then he goes on to ask the same of several other distinguished designers.

The advertisements are obviously geared toward design. There are ads for paper in every conceivable size, color, weight, and finish and some even have samples to tear out. Some ads are selling design software and printers for Mac and PC. Even more predominant are advertisements for stock photos, illustrations and fonts. There’s an ad for a company that will train you in Photoshop and photography though online tutorial, and live video feeds at photo shoots. There are even companies advertising for online assistance with time and project management to help keep companies profitable and on track. What all these advertisements have is an ability to catch the eye and make you want to know what they are selling.

One ad in particular shows a woman totally covered in tattoos up and down her arms and across her chest with piercings in her nose and lips. She is in a wedding veil, hands folded in prayer, looking skyward in reverence. On the opposite page as a mirror image, is an animated version of the same woman with some slight modifications to her tattoos. The ad is for a company and its subsidiary that sells stock photos and elements used to modify images. The ad states,

            “Whether you need 64 creative elements (Veer) or the one (Corbis). We’ve got it all. From the hero to supporting elements, find everything you need at Corbis Images and Veer.”

When quickly browsing through the magazine initially, it is tough to tell the difference between an advertisement, and the “art”. Truly where does one draw the line? Page layout is just as important as color choice and graphics. In many cases it probably took just as long for the advertisers to design the ad layout as it took an artist to create his work for the design contest.

            When it comes to comparing Print magazine to other magazines of the same genre without experience in the field one would be hard pressed to know what to look for. One’s personal experience with any other magazine is all they would have. Looking around the internet to see what else there is out there one might find Graphic Design USA (from here forward titled GD USA). It is a good comparison at least for this current issue of Print considering both focus on US designs and designers. Browsing GD USA’s website (http://www.gdusa.com/) there are a lot of similarities. The banner ads were for paper and printers and software. The layouts of both websites were very similar. A difference between Print (http://www.printmag.com/) and GD USA was their leaning towards being “Green” or environmentally conscious. Not to say Print is not environmentally conscious but with GD USA there were a few ads talking about recycled paper or synthetic paper and there featured article was “A Culture of Green” sponsored by SAPPI (http://www.na.sappi.com/eQ/index.html)(a recycled paper company). Without the physical magazine it’s tough to know what kind of paper their actual issues are printed on but it is nice to see a paper based media, potentially advertising and writing for artistic paper consumers, being conscious of their environmental impact. One only wonders if they insist their printed issues be recycled after a reader is done.

            As a new Graphic design student I enjoyed Print magazine. I found it inspirational even on a first flip though in the book store. When I read the articles and spent time really looking at each page and piece I would have to recommend this magazine to others. The writing was easy to comprehend there was little if any jargon that went over my head. I believe the articles would even be interesting to someone outside the design field. The use of tasteful page layout, color, images, and overall design of the magazine made it a pleasure to leisurely read. I truly would recommend a subscription to Print magazine to anyone who wants to keep up with the industry or is just looking for inspiration.

Two Dimensional Desing Projects

I'm taking two dimensional design this semester and I decided  to put up some of my work.

This design is based on a 10x10 grid composed of five different smaller designs all based on a one inch squares. Its radially symmetric and forms a diamond like shape based on the ordering of individually patterned 1x1 squares.

This is an impossible form I drew based on M.C. Escher's impossible triangle. I added depth to the form by altering the weight of my line and adding the woven grid pattern behind the main triangular form.

This next project was fun to work on. It started with a 8x8 square and an 8in diameter circle. The square and circle were cut up into smaller shapes and then glued back onto illustration board to from a new shape/design.

This was is the shape I put together after cutting up the circle. 

I've heard it likened to a lion with an angel in its mouth.

In the upper left corner  it is possible to see how I cut up the circle to get the smaller shapes.

Here you can see the form made from the dissection and reassembly of the 8x8 square. I was surprised at how curvilinear i could make a from that was originally a square.

In the lower right corner you can see how I cut up the square.

In my travels

Since I've been taking these graphic design classes I find myself seeing patterns and designs and fonts based on art movements we have been studying. They really are everywhere and i always try to stop and take pictures to put up.

 I spent a little time in Men's Warehouse the other day. I was killing time so I started looking at the selection of shirts and ties and realized that the patterns and designs were things that i recognized. On the left is the back of a shirt that uses a series of free flowing curvilinear lines
in an art nouveau style.

On the right is another shirt with the pattern on the front. This "S" and "C" curve ornament is in a French rococo style.

Here are a few more patterns i found on ties and handkerchiefs. 

A  Paisley pattern.
Paisley or Paisley pattern is a droplet-shaped vegetable motif of Indian, Pakistani and Persian origin. The pattern is sometimes called "Persian pickles" by American traditionalists, especially quiltmakers or "Welsh pears" in Welsh textiles as far back as 1888.









Just a few more simple grid based patterns. 

On my way around Philly

Walking though the city the other day with a friend, I came upon a statue I had never noticed. I said "HEY!". I had to stop and take a picture. It only seemed appropriate considering the subject of recent chapters and lectures in History of Graphic Design. The Statue stands on the Northwest corner of Broad and JFK and was made by Joe Brown in 1981.
(On a side note Joe Brown also made most of the statues that stand around the Philly sports complex)

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN at his printing press

Plaque on the base

My First Post

So this is my first blog. I still don't quite understand the point. I figure I'll use this blog to share pictures that I take of my work or of other work that I find interesting and try to talk about them if I can.

So I was in the Jacksonville airport on Saturday. I had driven some friends that had an earlier 1 pm flight, so I was stuck there for quite a few hours till my flight departed at 5pm. Needless to say I now know the Jacksonville airport like the back of my hand.

Anyway, I was wondering around and something caught my eye. As i was passing the entrance to the rest rooms I saw this.

 Both restrooms had, in edition the the familiar male and female symbols, quite a few other interpretations of the same symbol.

I laughed to myself because, as it turns out, This is actually an assignment I will have to do for my 2 dimensional design class later this semester that states, "Re-imagine the male and female rest room sings."

Seeing as I can't just rip this off (especially now that I've drawn attention to it). I will use these images to influence my work. I may even share with the class to inspire/steal other peoples ideas.

I did a little research and it turns out these "Pictograms" were actually studied and collected by the artist Gregor Turk from around the world. So as it turns out the, "familiar male and female symbols," are only familiar in the united states.