Saturday, February 20, 2010

More Type Experiments



In my typography class, I was given four words to work with. For this assignment, I have to physically construct, or print out my words and photograph these physical representations of the words in a creative manner. In other words, this isn't about taking a photo and slapping some text over it in Photoshop.

Since these photos need to go beyond simple snapshots, I've gotta think about some interesting ways to create photos that aren't merely simple depictions of a word. Additionally, all of the "effects" I might use need to be created in camera. At first I was skeptical about my ability to meet this requirement. I've grown really accustomed to relying on Photoshop over the years, but it's awesome to be forced out of my comfort zone and now it feels like I'm really expanding my creative limits.

I'm happy with the results of my first experiments, but the fridge magnet letters may be a little cliche. Also, the surface that I photographed Wish on created a strange glow that makes it slightly illegible. I might experiment with some different letter forms and recreate this scene for my final presentation.


Thursday, February 18, 2010

"I know that guy!"

Graphic design is a strange thing; while it's inherently commercial and eminently visible in the world around us, it's a faceless industry. We don't know the names, let alone the faces behind the familiar graphics that surround us. One of my favorite things about studying graphic design is when you learn the identity of an artist whose work you're familiar with, but whose name and greater body of work you were previously unaware of. Some of my favorite examples of this:

Michael Schwab - michaelschwab.com









Lucian Bernhard - aiga.org/content.cfm/medalist-lucianbernhard




Matthew Carter - aiga.org/content.cfm/medalist-matthewcarter

Recently, with all the debate circling around Ikea's decision to abandon their use of Futura and begin using Verdana in their print advertisements, I couldn't help but think of how ugly a typeface Verdana is. Even in its intended environment (the computer screen) it's just an ugly looking font.

So who designed this ugly typeface? Probably some hack, right? I guess not. A few weeks ago, I was introduced to the classically informed, beautifully precise work of Matthew Carter - aka the man who created Verdana.

Pictured:
Verdana
Rocky
Mantinia




Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Type Experiments




W - dissected, and reassembled.

Punishment

In the absence of care, our bones have shown symptoms of wear.

A brutal grind straight through our hide.
A filthy fate of our own design.

It's a heavy weight to fit the crime.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

More Poster Designs

This week in school, I've been given an assignment to create two posters. Each poster will present a combination of images that speak the the themes of several different plays scheduled to be performed this year by the A.C.T. theatre group. I think our assignment parameters are a little too muddled - basically, it seems that our instructor wants us to be able to prove our proficiency in all the areas of Photoshop and Illustrator that we reviewed in class.

I wish we weren't be pushed in a photo/special-effects based direction. Here's some work that I really admire that captures a bolder, more formally subdued direction...

Tom Whalen - strongstufftom.blogspot.com





Eric Tan - erictanart.blogspot.com






Dan Stiles - www.danstiles.com





Jeff Kleinsmith - www.jeffkleinsmith.com






Harry Diaz - www.harrydiaz.com/