What is Graphic design?

This is work from Letman i really like his style. I love expressive typography. I think this is graphic design from the more expressive artistic end of the spectrum.

What is Graphic design?

This is work from Experimental Jetset, they have been a really big influence recently. I love the simplicity of their work, I like the fact that they approach every project from an intellectual angle but they still do it with humor and wit. To me their work epitimises what graphic design is about.

Artimo Catalogue Poster

Speaking from Experience

I finally seem to have managed to work out the format and content for the speaking from experience final pieces. They are going to be A2 fold out posters possibly with some A4 fold out versions that would fit in your wallet. I decided on the fold out format because it would allow me to do my original idea of poster campaign but I could add a bit more depth of information. It would also give the object more of a role or purpose: The posters could be given out to the first years and they would give them ideas and information on things they could do to unwind that don't involve drinking.


This is an early test piece investigating the fold out format. The content hadn't really been finalised at this point. I found deciding on a format helped me pin down the content. I had been looking at fold out pieces like this from Monica Nelson. Also a lot of things from experimental jetset like this.


Once I had got the format I designed its contents. This basically contains a little drawing exercise showing you how to draw a hand. It will be part of a set of 3. I had got the content and format sorted... just a few more tweaks to get the front and back cover right.

Unfortunately I was tired while I was doing this so I forgot to remove the grid before it was printed. Its quite interesting though as it gives you an idea of how the layout is constructed.

This time I thought I had it. I got another piece of paper out and set it off printing again... only this time I forgot to put the paper in the right way when I was printing the second side! Great work! It gives a pretty interesting finish although it is completely useless.



By this time I'd run out of yellow paper (and patience) but i managed to get it printed out properly. This is just an A4 test piece the final posters will probably be A2.

3d Alphabet

I came across this video while researching 3D lettering its really cool and gave me some interesting tdeas about how i could construct letterforms.



I also tried to find some places that sell 3D letter for, I found this website that sells acrylic and foam 3D letters but they cost around £5 each so its not really practical for this project in terms of buying a large number of them.

http://www.bhma.co.uk/3dimensional-lettering-for-signs-c-55.html?gclid=CNXG-ObdvpMCFRSO1Qod0hGACw

I also tried searching for nets for 3D letters and i couldn't find any on the internet so I decided to make one myself, I quickly realise why there arn't any on the internet: because they are complicated as f**k and very fidly to make.

This is a net for an M

This doesn't look to bad but when you look at it close up it is quite scruffy and it took a long time to make, not really practical to make a lot of.

I tried making them out of card this was a bit better but again very time consuming and when it came to doing curved letters it didn't really work.

I may have to scrap the idea of actual 3D lettering. I have some plans which are simpler and more appropriate.

Helvetica and other things

So after spending most of yesterday watching Helvetica and all its extras, which are almost as good as the movie itself, I thought I would check out some of the work by the designers featured in the film. I came across the website for Experimental Jetset which, although it hasn't been updated for a while, has some really good content on it , talking you through in great detail a lot of there projects up until 2005. While being a brilliant resource it also helps you understand the process and thinking behind a lot of their work.



Coming from from a pretty different end of the design spectrum I got out "Hand Job" from the library. I am really into hand lettering and would like to incorporate it into my work more, However I have come to realise that it is incredibly time consuming and not appropriate for a lot of projects. I think in the future this will probably make up more of a hobby rather than a central part of my practice. Here are a few pages that initially caught my eye.





Everyone has seen the Sagmeister piece on the left, But the one on the right where the lettering is made up from bacteria would have been interesting and appropriate for the 'bacteriologist' mail shot brief.



Finally here are some of my designs for the speaking from experience brief. I wanted to incorporate photography and hand lettering. I don't know if I've set myself too bigger task and I don't really know how appropriate hand lettering or photography is to my chosen subject which is Ways to relax without getting wasted. Anyway I've tried to base all the hand lettering on an appropriate source and tried to get the photography right. This is where I am at, at the moment, the idea is that these would be A2 posters.

Here I based the typography for "eat out" on the typography on the window of Cafe Rouge which you can actually see in the photo which is clipped into the type (click the image to see it larger). This idea of European cafe culture i.e. drinking and coffee and maybe and glass of wine kinda of relaxing and treating yourself rather than getting drunk was quite appropriate.




I didn't base this typography on a specific source, however i tried to play around with the copy height to give the type a jarring unpleasant feeling kind of like how it feels to be in college with a particularly nasty hangover. I set it in caps to emphasise the how loud and overbearing things can seem in that situation.



Well that was pretty long I have been meaning to do a proper post here for a while now. Until the next time. Bye!