I started reading this article Neatorama article on the stories behind Hollywoods Studio logos for the design but I left with a renewed appreciation for the illustrators. The world, pre-computer, was an amazing place… a place i wish i could go visit.
No one paints like this anymore… it’s a refreshing contrast to the predominantly vector world we live in now.
Check it out…it’s well worth a read.
Ellen Lupton (design hero) came to visit PC last week.
She showed us her website Thinking With Type that promotes her book Thinking with Type (which is really on of the best books on typography I’ve ever read). But the part that interested me most was the section on Crimes against Typeography. The amusing flash games and videos are well worth a visit whether you care about type or not. Check it out.
Hanks send out school wide emails once in a while but this one was really well done and much needed…I will say no more.
All Cowboys and Hot Rods,
Good Saturday morning…
As you get to your emails this morning, I want to speak in a positive way to a sensitive issue that needs to be brought to everyone’s attention. Because it is something that just needs to be said. Because we are all part of a larger responsibility than just ourselves.
So as you are about creating and defining your work how important that you be very careful, evaluating your work, making sure it’s authentic as you do so. For while it may be true that there is nothing new under the sun, we must still acknowledge the difference between influence and plagiarism. And, when you are passionate about things, sometimes they can become skewed. Between memory and forgetfulness is the realm of the subconscious, where ideas can sometimes lodge and get mistaken as your own, especially when you’re being bombarded by all kinds of media every minute of every day.
Now, to purposely plagiarize is to cheat yourself–and to cheat the world of what YOU have to offer. Never let your fear drive you to that. As for the subconscious, remember that if you are doing as you’ve been taught–filtering all your work, your projects through YOUR values, i.e., the universal qualities of human experience, then that personal experience will keep you where you need to be–even accidently you cannot replicate someone else’s work by way of following this course.
So, what is so very important is to keep focused on AUTHORING YOUR VALUES — to position your signature as a style and to develop a vocabulary— a form, that is yours. Then go out and share it and, then you should channel your time and your energy by the learning you gain into establishing a unique identity in this homogenous world we live in as it is a best way to make your work engaging and empowering. Remember, there is only ONE YOU.
Martha Graham, the illustrative choreographer and dancer, imagined it this way, “There is a vitality, a life-force, an energy,a quickening that is translated through you into action. And because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is or how valuable or how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly to keep the channel open…live each day from your own creative source. Above all else, keep the channel open!”
In order to have an identity, you need to have a voice— your voice, and until you speak for yourself, you will not know how powerful you are. Every day you must do good work, and assuredly seek perfection, and seek excellence. It is important to recognize ours is a group effort, for as you might look to your own values to drive your work, then everybody’s stock goes up. Anything less is disadvantageous and will keep you from achieving as much as you might wish in life.
What an opportunity we have— we are the work we do. And it all emerges from our ideas. We can become cultural contributors and we can change our world.
Thanks for a moment of your Saturday.
Have a great day.
Hank.
…AMEN
Found this video of an awesome pop up book that celebrate the alphabet in really clean and sophisticated way. Enjoy
CONGRATULATIONS BLUE IRIS…you are color of the year
The Pantone color forcast was just recently announced. I’ve seen this report before but I’d never given it much thought before today. I’d figured it was more or less and arbitrary stab at what colors would be hot this year throughout the many faces of design. Being grounded in the fashion industry it was interesting but I hadn’t yet grasped the impact it has on what I do. So I’ve been doing some reading and I am interested in what I have been discovering. Apparently the color forcast is based on more than just the willy nilly opinions of the worlds fashion gurus. Political, ecological, economical impacts are all taken into consideration and in many ways the colors seek to define the attitude and personality of the coming year. Of course, this is speculative in many ways and should be taken with a grain of salt but it still brings up some interesting ideas.
In past few years green has gotten bigger and more impactful as concerns over the environment steadily increase. Green has so saturated the market, in fact, that it has become overdone. This is the reason for this season to go blue…purple even. Accourding to Graphic Design Magazines color issue the switch to blue is a natural progression. Environmental concerns are still a big deal and green just isnt’ cutting it anymore. Blue is the next best things. It’s cleansing, and pure…represents water and the clean open sky. Below is color approximations for the spring and fall seasons. I’m most surprised by how muted and subtly beautiful they are. I really like them. They may be shifted by the color of your screen…but it will give you an idea of what may be in store.
I have this Uncle. I see him about twice a year. He’s a cool guy but recently he’s been giving me a hard time about my decision to pursue design. He wonders what motivated me to sink deeper into debt so that I can learn how to “sell people crap they don’t want.” My initial reaction was that he obviously doesn’t get it. First of all I’m not to be confused with an “advertiser” (which at the time would have said squeezed through a grimace). I would have defended my still intact soul and my dedication to making the world better through logo sketches and well rehearsed diatribe on the importance of form and function. None of this did anything to change his opinion. It’s been a few months since the last time I spent any time with my Uncle but I think things have changed and that I may have a different answer the next time we talk.
The design/ad world is tarnished with a (quite possibly well earned) stereotype of deciet and trickery. We are blamed for urban landscapes cluttered with screaming, sunbleached billboards, Starbucksosaurus’s and
Head-On commercials. It’s a Cool-aid that many have tasted, including myself. Especially, in the world of education, it’s easy to get caught up in empty brand-ification where logos are pretty, taglines witty but consequence is inconsequential
So there we go… as they say, admittance is the first step to recovery. This, however, is not what motivated me to want to be a graphic designer. Even the paycheck…(which will definitely be a perk) has little to do with checking myself into this tricky, nut house of an existence. So why then do I want to go into design? Simply put, I want to go into design because there are so many great opportunities for me to do start some amazing new perspectives. There are so many old problems that need new answers, especially these days. Over the break I want to read Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough & Michael Braungart. The book is “a manifesto calling for the transformation of human industry through ecologically intelligent design.” Not a book about new ways to think but a book that helps you think in new ways. Things are changing and this is an exciting time to be a designer…despite what my uncle may think.
“Experiencing good typography is like walking into a well-lit room. You may not stop to analyze it, but good lighting makes you feel better, and if it makes a sudden change for the worse, you will know it.”
Ellen Lupton, curator of contemporary design, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum
So the weekend is almost over and I’m still working on my 7 currency design ideas. It’s been a lot harder than I had even thought to come up with ideas that I feel are suitable. The way i see it currency is a unique design challenge because unlike many of the other projects I work on this item isn’t intended to persuade others to purchase or to act. There are two main functions, that must be constantly under consideration. First the US dollar, more than anything, is a representation of trust. The actual dollar has next to no intrinsic value. It’s really just fancy ink on compressed cotton fibers. What the dollar represents is the peoples faith in the promise the government stamps onto each bill. When most people think of money they visualize coinage and dollar bills but in reality the idea of money goes far beyond these simple properties. IOU’s, contracts, credit card reciepts, etc are also examples of this same promise but are not usually concidered currency. In the late 19th century African tribes of in Liberia, Siera Leone and Guinea began using a form of currency that is known in the west as the Kissi Penny. Shown below
Forged from iron the distinctively, twisted forms of the Kissi penny were used much the same way that we use the dollar today. The pennies came in different lengths (the longer the more valuable) The pennies were bound together to represent different denominations. A cow would cost about 100 bundles of Kissi Pennies at the beginning of the 20th century, a virgin bride 200 bundles and a slave 300 bundles. The twisted structure might have been and anti counterfeiting measure that made tampering evident. What is most interesting about Kissi pennies, however, is that each piece was believed to have a soul. The money in its whole form could be used to purchase many things but if the bar were to break it was immediately worthless. For a small fee, the owner of the broken penny could hire the traditional witchdoctor, called a Zoe (most often also a blacksmith) to reincarnate the escaped soul and renew the value of the piece. To me the Kissi penny has many lessons to teach the modern currency designer. Money isn’t just a decorated piece of paper. It’s the physical manifestation of a promise between two people. It’s very important, in my opinion, for my redesign to take this incredibly important idea into account. The notes i design are symbolic of a binding and sacred contract between two entities. Money is responsible for a large portion of human interaction and the responsibility to hold true to the agreements forged within these interactions can’t be taken lightly. For more information on Kissi Money please check out the Fagalde Collection Web site where i got all of my source materials.
The second consideration that I must always have in mind is actually an extension of the first. U.S. currency is a representation is an agreement between a person and the government of the United States of America. Despite who is using and who is receiving the currency the promise that is contained with in the notes is that of the US treasury. So in designing the note, it is important to show the reasons why this trust is warranted. The money is only as good as the faith of the receiver. It is my job to showcase the trustworthy nature of the United States (the elements of the US that will instill in the worlds people a piece of mind that the services or goods they exchanged for currency maintain their value within the coinage or paper. Current currency, according to my syllabus for the class “was designed with icons and illustrations to represent strength, stability, the union of the states, the power of peace and war and the beginning of the new American era in 1776. These are all very powerful ideas that in many ways make up the foundation of the American image.
So then my job is to make this all relevant today. What today provides the American image with strength, respect and trust? What ideas and what images are both distinctly American as well as powerful enough to hold the promises of value? I’ll keep you posted as to what i discover.
In other news, I am sad to say that the internship didn’t pan out. I am comforted by the fact that I view both the students who did get the position as talented and deserving individuals and I happily wish them the best of luck.
Oh, and look how cool the new UK coinage is. The design was created by a 26 year old designer who won a nationwide competition. This was his first attempt at currency design (which gives me a lot of hope when it comes to my own first attempts). It’s really a visually exciting idea and a new way of looking at an old problem.
This is a great article about The Final Decline and Total Collapse of the American Magazine Cover
Little pessimistic…but otherwise spot on.
Another Communication Arts article about the effects of “spirituality” on society and subsequently design. I use the term spirituality loosely in this sense because the article describes a fifth element of human nature. This fifth element is that which is not seen. Christians call it faith, to others it is the power of feng shui. Atheists would see this as a weakness perhaps but in design it can be a really handy tool for your kit. The power of the unseen has its seed in all of us. Superstition, religion, ritual or tradition these unseen fifth elements have in impact on the way people make decisions about their lives.
It’s an interesting article and well worth the read.
Knock on Wood
DK HollandOriginally published in Communication Arts November Design Annual 2007 prodID=”ISS200711″;document.write(inStockStr());
Purchase Issue
At age nine, I learned to read palms, the “scientific way.” What did I mean by that? Telling little girls how many babies they would have by counting the number of lines on the sides of their palms could not be less scientific. Yet, 50 years later when I taught a pre-conference class at TED called How to Read Palms, it was filled to overflowing. Heads of large corporations, revered pundits and billionaires stared intently at their outstretched palms as they learned how to read the intricate map of lines that spelled out their unique lives.
Humans are fascinated by occult practices: astrology (who doesn’t know their sign?), not to mention the more exotic Tarot, Ayurveda, Feng Shui and Palmistry. While we may laugh about them, many of us believe that these practices hold insights that may enhance our lives and provide guidance for an uncertain future. Read the rest here.
This I found really interesting. I’ve posted it here to help me remember it.
There are a number of words in the English language called Janus words, because they have contradictory definitions. “Clip” means to attach and to separate, “fix” means a solution and also a problem, “screen” means to display and to hide. The mindful creator, in the telling of any story or the making of any visual, takes all this into account and, when able to harness these contradictions, we are the richer for it.
