Here is some of his work, and this is just a small portion of his work. He has worked with major companies such as Louis Vuitton.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Takashi Murakami
Here is some of his work, and this is just a small portion of his work. He has worked with major companies such as Louis Vuitton.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Nostalgia
Nostalgia design comes and goes, but right now it is popular and for good reason. Nostalgia is meant to bring up fond memories and connect your audience with their past or a sense of belonging. Antique, vintage, and retro can call to find different parts of our past even if we did not live through them. Perhaps the reintroduction of the barrel lamp reminds you of something your grandparent had and you feel a connected sense of warmth.
This is popular in graphic design has well. Throw back designs are everywhere today I spotted a throw back design for 7up, which was very 80s in style. Perhaps this the packaging teams way of connecting with the 80s fashions that have come back in trend.
Old can be new again. The Nostalgia movement has also brought back the craft movement. Which has encouraged some designs to "cheat" to make things look hand printed with subtle variations of tone and texture. I think this is a fun look, and I hope it sticks around awhile, and it brings back the true artist and craftsman.
If you are interested in designs of the past check out Vintage Me Oh My!
This is popular in graphic design has well. Throw back designs are everywhere today I spotted a throw back design for 7up, which was very 80s in style. Perhaps this the packaging teams way of connecting with the 80s fashions that have come back in trend.
Old can be new again. The Nostalgia movement has also brought back the craft movement. Which has encouraged some designs to "cheat" to make things look hand printed with subtle variations of tone and texture. I think this is a fun look, and I hope it sticks around awhile, and it brings back the true artist and craftsman.
If you are interested in designs of the past check out Vintage Me Oh My!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Hitachino Nest
I am not a beer drinker, my brother would not let me have it anyway, but I love label design on alcohol. This particular beer has a fun owl, which has a modern woodblock feel to it.
Their different beer varieties have this sixties-ish type which is a bet odd to me, but what I love is their color choice and there logo/icon. It reproduces well large and small. The illustration has whimsy and texture. It's round shape fits well on the bottle cap.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Always a Student
Life often requires that we be constant learners, but as a graphic designer I seek out knowledge. "Knowledge is Power" I guess all those cheesy movies i was forced to watch as a child has fully brainwashed me. I crave learning, whether it is learning new techniques, new coding, or subjects completely separated from graphic design.
The internet is a quick easy source to develop further knowledge on almost any subject. I learn best by doing myself, so i can read as much as I want, I do not fully comprehend the words until I delve into it with my own hands.
With all of this being said, I plan on starting a section focused on tutorials or educational posts. If you have any subjects you wish to discuss or projects you wish to learn please leave me a comment. Not only can this be a helpful contribution to the design community, but more selfishly it will help me practice and learn useful skills. I am excited for this new endeavor.
In the meantime here are some good sites if you want to learn something new:
The internet is a quick easy source to develop further knowledge on almost any subject. I learn best by doing myself, so i can read as much as I want, I do not fully comprehend the words until I delve into it with my own hands.
With all of this being said, I plan on starting a section focused on tutorials or educational posts. If you have any subjects you wish to discuss or projects you wish to learn please leave me a comment. Not only can this be a helpful contribution to the design community, but more selfishly it will help me practice and learn useful skills. I am excited for this new endeavor.
In the meantime here are some good sites if you want to learn something new:
- Smashing Magazine (mix of everything, but I use it mostly for web)
- CreativeCow.net (motion)
- Pixel77 (illustrator and photoshop)
- Vectips.com (illustrator)
- And of course google and youtube can help you search for particular skills you would like to learn.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Iconography
An icon is simply: a representation or if you want to ad to it: a representation that stands for its object. Iconography is becoming more entrenched in our modern visual culture. We see icons on the apps on our phones, street signs, and even in our browsers.
I recently designed the new website, and we decided to use iconography for the navigation. It was challenging, yet fun to come up with icons to use for this site. Icons are almost simplified logos. A logo acts as an icon for a business, but usually more meaning is involved versus an icon. Icons are typically made as simple as possible, because they are used small and need to be universally understood. Icons were some of the first art made by humans. Simple figures that stood for people, weapons, and animals. A way of recording culture. How we have created the symbols has changed through the centuries. We began with simple cave paintings, added color, then used more developed tools for etchings and other art making techniques at styles, and now we have computers and the cellphone has really sparked a new need for unique yet universal icons .
We need unique icons for the personality, customization, and style that we crave as a way of expression. Companies needs the uniqueness for brand identity. Universal icons are needed become a global society. Icons need to relate across cultures and languages. Because we have this rich history in iconography there are still many styles and techniques used for making icons, but there has been a return to simple illustrations, due to the nature of cellphones. The icons used on cellphones (smart and not so smart) and it is difficult to read an illustrious icon because the detail will be lost in small sizes. App icons help us identify the program we want to use and assist us in a quicker many than we would be able to with words.
I encourage you to observe the world around you this week and identify the icons around you, and make some icons of your own to some how help facilitate your life in some manner.
I recently designed the new website, and we decided to use iconography for the navigation. It was challenging, yet fun to come up with icons to use for this site. Icons are almost simplified logos. A logo acts as an icon for a business, but usually more meaning is involved versus an icon. Icons are typically made as simple as possible, because they are used small and need to be universally understood. Icons were some of the first art made by humans. Simple figures that stood for people, weapons, and animals. A way of recording culture. How we have created the symbols has changed through the centuries. We began with simple cave paintings, added color, then used more developed tools for etchings and other art making techniques at styles, and now we have computers and the cellphone has really sparked a new need for unique yet universal icons .
We need unique icons for the personality, customization, and style that we crave as a way of expression. Companies needs the uniqueness for brand identity. Universal icons are needed become a global society. Icons need to relate across cultures and languages. Because we have this rich history in iconography there are still many styles and techniques used for making icons, but there has been a return to simple illustrations, due to the nature of cellphones. The icons used on cellphones (smart and not so smart) and it is difficult to read an illustrious icon because the detail will be lost in small sizes. App icons help us identify the program we want to use and assist us in a quicker many than we would be able to with words.
I encourage you to observe the world around you this week and identify the icons around you, and make some icons of your own to some how help facilitate your life in some manner.
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