Apr 9
Print Design
I'm slightly depressed. It seems as though, at every turn, I come upon a designer whose work knocks me into next week. This time it's Fabien Barral, a guy who claims to be living in the middle of the French countryside—no comment. Seriously though, his deft mix of typography and old/new design elements is very interesting. Another one for my “when I grow up I wanna design like” list.
Fabien Barral...
More Fabien Barral...
Okay Fabien Barral, you're starting to get on my nerves...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Getting It Printed...
Mar 17
Print Design
In his article for The New Yorker titled “The Social Life of Paper,” “Blink” author, Malcolm Gladwell proposes that the only reason paper is viewed as an antiquated medium is because, “We have been tripped up by a historical accident of innovation, confused by the assumption that the most important invention is always the most recent.” Had the computer come first, he speculates, we would think of paper differently.
I point to this because I think we can get so wrapped up in the beauty and flexibility of the online medium that we can loose track of the importance of the conventional form of communications—collateral, correspondence, direct mail, and so on. If you did not read it when it originally appeared, take a look, it is worth reading.
The Social Life of Paper, Looking for method in the mess by Malcolm Gladwell...
The article in PDF form...
Gladwell's page...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Templates for InDesign, QuarkXpress, or PageMaker...
Jan 16
Print Design
Ask any author, publisher, or bookseller—a book cover design can have a dramatic effect on the interest in and sales of a book. It is considered so critical to sales, cover design is almost exclusively under the control of the publisher—yes, even for design-oriented books. Needless to say, I have great respect for those with a talent for finding the essence of a few hundred pages and presenting it in one compelling, provocative image. Designer and illustrator Ben Gibson has a real talent for it.
Ben Gibson's portfolio (1MB PDF)...
Gibson's web...
Jan 14
Print Design
Have you considered integrating icons into your print design? Here's a nice example from Gardner Design. I guess Bill Gardner, principal of Gardner Design, is a bit of a business card icon himself. In addition to being a talented designer, he is the creator of LogoLounge.com, a top-tier resource for exploring the current state of logo design.
Business card icons...
The Logo Lounge...
Dec 20
Print Design
I like the way the illustrator integrates the real with the unreal. The question I ask myself is, “How can I use the same idea in my own work?”
The studio is SifonDG in Argentina (you may need to click the image to enlarge it)...
Their portfolio (nice stuff)...
Dec 3
Print Design
“Similar Diversity is an information graphic which opens up a new perspective at the topics religion and faith by visualizing the Holy Books of five world religions.” As I understand it, they used a programming tool to search the texts and to calculate the connections between them—the number of times particular terms are used and so on. What I want to point to is the overall design—how the artists use proportion and color to communicate the results.
Similar Diversity...
Nov 28
Print Design
The Turner Duckworth design studio uses an innovative, build-it-yourself company brochure. As you browse the projects in their portfolio, you are invited to click on an “Add to brochure” icon and in doing so, add that project to a downloadable PDF brochure. The final version includes an orientation and a back cover. Very interesting.
To see how it works, choose “Portfolio,” select an item, then click the “Add to brochure” icon at the top right. After you have added a couple of projects, choose "Brochure" from the menu then click “download brochure” to see the resulting PDF.
Choose "Portfolio," select an item, then click the "Add to brochure" icon...
Oct 26
Print Design
Today we mark a bit of a milestone. This post makes 300 on PagePlane.com —some originated with my Design Links Briefings in years past, the rest were posted directly on the PagePlane blog since it launched last year.
It has been a great encouragement to discover so much great work by so many talented folks. I hope it has been interesting and encouraging to you as well.
If you haven't yet, I invite you to comment on the posts and to introduce yourself via email (click Contact Chuck, top right).
Here's to the next 300. Chuck Green
Oct 12
Print Design
To me, the very nature of a logo is singular—a visual signal that comes to represent the entity it is tied to. But great design sometimes redefines the application. Wolff Olins designed the Tate identity back in 2000 and opened (some argue re-opened) a different chapter in logo design. Instead of one version the created several. Instead of one color, they chose eighteen. It is as fluid as the institution it represents.
Click the logo in the upper right to see several variations...
A case study by the designers, Wolff Olins (PDF) ...
How Tate explains its brand...
Jul 30
Print Design
Here is a wide and deep collection of out-of-the-ordinary business cards compiled by Kariann at dailypoetics.com. Below that: sources for variations on the theme.
The collection...
Business cards with detachable labels...
Metal business cards...
Plastic business cards...
Books of business cards...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Art Parts Clip Art...
Jul 20
Print Design
Even though profits of newspapers have fallen, I am told profits still exceed those of the average corporation. Obviously, publishers are looking for ways to build on what they've got. Here is an interesting example of where things may be headed.
A demo of the Guardian and Observer Digital Editions...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Getting It Printed...
Jul 13
Print Design
When I see the work of a young designer like Jamie Wieck, I can't help but ask myself, “Am I innovating? Am I pushing hard on every project?” You can't help but admire this guy's thinking.
One of Wieck's many innovative designs...
The list of projects...
My two-cents on “jolt thinking”...
In the Ideabook Design Store: The Desktop Publisher's Idea Book...
Jun 13
Print Design
I'm a sucker for a photographic record of how a project was produced. I guess you don't see more of them because it takes a certain amount of discipline to pause during the process and record the step you just completed. Here is an excellent little animation of how the folks at House Industries produced the cover artwork for Communication Arts Magazine.
Play the animation here...
In the Ideabook Design Store: FontHead Typefaces...
May 28
Print Design
If you find yourself in Nashville, Tennessee, stop by Hatch Show Print—a working letterpress shop that opened in the late 1800s. (Its around the corner from the Ryman Auditorium at 316 Broadway.) They are still cranking out (literally) advertising posters using wood and/or metal type and hand-carved illustrations. I've been and can tell you its worth a visit.
An excellent photographic tour by Marshall Sokoloff...
A good background on the shop...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Getting It Printed...
May 16
Print Design
The premiere issue of a new magazine or the first issue of a re-design is often where you find the best of the best layout ideas. It is typically a highly developed model that a publication designer and his or her team have been working on for a long stretch with a significant budget—the ultimate execution of a new look and feel. (The issues that follow are likely designed by an art director within the parameters established by that model.)
For example, here is the first issue of Blueprint Magazine. I found it to be an excellent source of many powerful, fresh layout ideas.
Page through the premier issue...
I never would have thought to choose Letraset Fling for the nameplate, but it certainly works...
Apr 6
Print Design
A new clean, sharp design keeps Time looking young.
The Time makeover...
Apr 2
Print Design
Kit Hinrichs is, in my never-to-be-humble opinion, is one of the top designers of the last 25 years. Here is a brief but interesting piece about his home and passion for collecting.
The pictures...
The article...
Mar 14
Print Design
Don't know if you have ever attempted to create an icon. If it does nothing else, it gets you focused on the fundamentals of what you want to say. The folks a Funnel Incorporated do it for mega-clients such as Banana Republic, Turner Broadcasting, and Owens Corning—a good indication they're pretty good at it.
Funnel Incorporated...
Feb 28
Print Design
Louise Fili is a designer and author who specializes in, among others, the design of food packaging and restaurant identity. It's easy how the knowledge she gained in authoring such books as Italian Art Deco and Dutch Modern has influenced her work.
Examples: a logo...
Packaging...
A restaurant...
Feb 5
Print Design
I contributed a column to the November/December 2006 issue of Layers Magazine—The How-To Magazine for Everything Adobe. The magazine is published by Photoshop guru Scott Kelby's KW Media Group. A good publication run by folks who understand the art of teaching. Hope you'll check it out.
Layers...
Jan 31
Print Design
A good example of how to fit a lot of information in a small space. (Download the 3MB document to get the full effect.)
The Copper Colorado map...
Jan 15
Print Design
A wonderful, in-depth look at all aspects of the printing process.
International Paper Knowledge Center...
Dec 18
Print Design
The proverb says “Rivers need a spring.” As a designer, to get a vision for where I'm headed, it sometimes helps to be reminded of where the craft originated. To that end, I hope I am the first to introduce you to Octavo—an organization dedicated to creating digital facsimiles of the world’s rarest books and manuscripts. It was founded by John Warnock, a name you may recognize as one of the founders of Adobe Systems. Study a masterwork such as The Grammar of Ornament by Welsh architect and interior designer Owen Jones and you'll be wading the headwater.
www.octavo.com
Nov 6
Print Design
The Tech Talk section of The Sheridan Group's DigitalExpert site offers valuable information about, and tools for, preparing files of printing. It covers such topics as image resolution, file types and file formats, font handling, proofing, and so on.
DigitalExpert...
Oct 30
Print Design
To my eye this sleek, unusual logo for Alfa Laval (a multi-national engineering company) breaks new ground. It was designed by Landor Associates.
The Alfa Laval logo...
Sep 25
Print Design
From the “just in case you ever need it” category, here is a definitive resource for the creation of many types of public use signs.
http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/ser-shs_millennium.htm
Aug 16
Print Design
Seen the new Weekend Edition of the WSJ? Here is the press kit describing the rollout.
http://www.dowjones.com/Pressroom/PressKits/weekendedition.htm
Prototype Front Pages (7MB PDF)
http://www.dowjones.com/DJCom/Uploads/WeekendFronts.pdf
Jul 19
Print Design
John McWade, the publisher and creative force behind Before & After Magazine, has an extraordinary talent for busting through the veneer of design and revealing the essential framework within. Here are some free examples:
How to design small calendars
http://www.bamagazine.com/du6ah3Land.asp
How to find the perfect color
http://www.bamagazine.com/6Hare6Land.asp
Design a $10 clock
http://www.bamagazine.com/q9S3acLand.asp
And a list of other issues you can purchase
http://www.bamagazine.com/
Jul 12
Print Design
A better bottle. Wow. You couldn't ask for more than to design a package that looks good, solves a problem better than its predecessors, and has the potential to have a positive impact on the world.
Taget's better bottle...
A better sign. ClearviewHwy is a highway signage typeface system ten years in the making. It was developed to increase the legibility and improve ease of recognition of road sign legends while reducing the effects of halation (overglow).
Cleaview...
An article about Clearview from the New York Times...
Jul 3
Print Design
I really like the complexity of these package designs—nice type treatments and illustrations. They really make me want to try the products.
Arrowhead Mills Cereals
http://www.arrowheadmills.com/images/products/w450/07433337492.jpg
Asbach Chocolates
http://www.gdh-trading.com/Asbach_pics/AS21510.jpg
August Schell Brewing
http://www.compassdesigninc.com/work/beverage/prodA3.htm
Jun 26
Print Design
Need some inspiration? The AIGA, THE professional association for communication design, offers the AIGA Design Archives: a record of its annual juried selections of design excellence and the work of designers it honors.
http://designarchives.aiga.org/
Jun 19
Print Design
Tony Spaeth, the expert behind identityworks.com, demonstrates how to use identity as a tool in marketing and managing. His clients are big brands such as Caterpillar, Dow Jones, J.P. Morgan, and Sony Corporation—but his thinking works at all levels.
http://www.identityworks.com/
Be sure to see his excellent flow chart on identity design...
http://www.identityworks.com/tools/CI process charts.gif
And his links to guidelines and standards manuals...
http://www.identityworks.com/tools/guidelines_and_standards_manuals.htm
May 31
Print Design
I like the boldness of the design here. Looks like something from the 60s...
http://www.vasava.es/content/portfolio/portfolio.php?id=17
May 17
Print Design
“The Rationale for the Use of Professional Design” is one of many free forms and articles provided by author Cameron Foote at creativebusiness.com—one of my favorite places.
http://www.creativebusiness.com/forms.lasso
BTW—I sell the archive of these and hundreds of other great forms and articles from creativebusiness.com in the ideabook.com store.
May 1
Print Design
Newspagedesigner.com is a forum for showcasing the work of publication designers but much of what is here applies to most types of print design. (Lots of great information graphics in the individual portfolios section.)
The cover...
http://www.newspagedesigner.com/
Individual designer portfolios...
http://www.newspagedesigner.com/portfolios/alpha/user_list_alpha.php?LETTER=A
A feature about a re-design...
http://www.newspagedesigner.com/star-telegram.html
An elegant page from the re-design...
http://www.newspagedesigner.com/star-telegram/large/0822Insightstopsix0001.jpg
Apr 26
Print Design
The Poynter Institute is a school for journalists, future journalists, and teachers of journalists. I find their Web is a terrific resource for journalists AND designers.
The Graphics/Design section
http://www.poynter.org
The cover...
http://www.poynter.org
Mar 13
Print Design
The online version of a Smithsonian touring exhibition presenting “some of the great graphic images made in the United States over the past century.”
Start at the beginning...
Or skip right to the collections—American Events...
Designed to Sell...
Advice to Americans...
Patriotic Persuasion...
Mar 3
Print Design
If you've read much of my stuff, you know what I mean about “jolt thinking,” questioning the basic premise—the what, why, and how of doing something. There is, for example, no design law that says a brochure has to be a certain size and shape. To the contrary, breaking the mold can be the breakthrough that gets a prospect interested. To that end, consider designing your next brochure in the form of a “zcard.” If you're printing more than a few thousand, and your client isn't afraid to do something different, check out this intriguing, proprietary format:
The zcard...
My definition of “jolt thinking:”...
Feb 20
Print Design
Here's a handy reference site recommended by a reader. It includes, among other things, a guide to international paper sizes and inches/fractions to inches/decimal conversion tables.
http://home.inter.net/eds/paper/inchmetric.html
Feb 13
Print Design
Have you seen the collection of Word templates I designed for the printer manufacturer OKI? They are basic but incorporate some of my best thinking on the production of documents such as direct mail letters, simple newsletters, proposals, and so on:
http://my.okidata.com/PP-OKIPAGE14ex.nsf/InsideSolutions?OpenFrameSet
Feb 3
Print Design
If you think designing materials for a plumbing valves and fittings manufacturer holds any less potential than working on the Porsche account, take heart. These folks discover and demonstrate the compelling benefits of the products they represent and do it with high-energy and exquisite style.
The current HSR portfolio...
Jan 23
Print Design
I came across Fragile Design in OZ Graphix 2002—a showcase book of work from top Australian design studios. I particularly like the way they use photographic collages to illustrate their brochures. They spark some ideas I'll use in future projects.
http://www.fragiledesign.com.au/HTML/portfolio/brochures/brochures.html
Jan 18
Print Design
I've seen lots of online printing vendors but this is among the best—the instructions are comprehensive, the prices are right, the quality is decent, and the people are responsive. For example, I had 250 business cards printed in 4-color on 2 sides for under $60. If you try them I'd be interested in hearing about your experience.
http://www.psprint.comt
Jan 6
Print Design
Is a graphics standards manual overkill for a small organization? Seeing how a large corporation directs the usage of its logo, color palette, and typefaces clearly demonstrates the value of the process.
http://www.dow.com/about/corpid/dowstds.htm
Jan 4
Print Design
If you ever wonder why you don't get to work on any of the prime design projects, I have the answer—Hornall Anderson Design Works (HADW) has them all. Well maybe not all of them but you will see by their portfolio they do work for many of the world's most coveted clients—Adobe, Blue Nile, Ghirardelli, Nordstrom, Porsche, and Starbucks. Of course it could be the clients are interesting, in some small part, because of HADW.
http://www.hadw.com
Dec 30
Print Design
Magazines and newspapers are among my favorite sources of design inspiration. Garcia-Media has spearheaded several high-profile media makeovers in recent months—no less than The Wall Street Journal and San Francisco Examiner. Their Web features articles about each of these fascinating projects complete with the theory behind the designs and plenty of samples of transformed pages.
http://www.garcia-media.com/
Dec 23
Print Design
Reading about life from a designer's point of view is therapeutic—it's nice to know I'm not the only one who obsesses over the aesthetics of life. In his latest book, “My Wife and Times, ” Daniel Will-Harris, recounts the sometimes touching, often hilarious consequences of two designers living in one house and the ramifications of being a warm person in a cold world.
Start with a tour of his site...
Then check out the book...
Dec 19
Print Design
I think of IDEO as the Tiger Woods of industrial design firms—it redefines the game everyone thought they knew. Recently, they unleashed their brain trust on the concept of business cards. How might they be used and what might they look in years to come? |
The business card exercise:
http://www.ideo.com
If you're not familiar with IDEO to take a few minutes to see what a well-oiled innovation machine is capable of:
http://www.ideo.com
Dec 14
Print Design
Richard Saul Wurman is the original information architect. He has a genius for using illustrations and words to simplifying complex ideas and for making information accessible. If you have not already seen it, Understanding USA is one of his recent projects that is well worth a visit. You'll see that he enlisted the help of sponsors and notable designers such as Nigel Holmes, Clement Mok, and Kit Hinrichs to paint a portrait of America through the visual display of statistical data. Sound impossible?
Understanding USA...
