Charlotte Graphic Design

 

By now I'm sure you know how much I love type and illustration, so when I came across this beautiful illustrative alphabet I knew I couldn't keep it to myself. Jessica Hische, Brooklyn based designer, is responsible for these exquisite letters. She started a blog called the Daily Drop Cap, an ongoing project in which she posts a new hand crafted illustrative initial every day. These are a group of 2 color letterpress prints, and can be found at jessicahische.com. My own illustrative alphabet is in progress, I'll keep you posted! In the meantime, check out beautiful graphic design from birdsong gregory at birdsonggregory.com. 

Most designers will agree that creating a logo for a client is one of our most exciting tasks. Being able to visually represent a company is a great challenge. There are so many articles for designers and clients about the importance of this piece of design, and all that goes into creating it, but I was intrigued by this article from LogoLounge.com. It's all about the trends in logo designs of 2010. The examples above are only a few of the group they discuss, but lets take a look through them.

 

1. PARTS:

This trend is all about iconic pieces (or "parts") that come together to create the silhouette of the whole. From a distance it's one thing, and closer up it reveals more information. This particular example's objective is to visually represent the statement "We the people form this nation". It's a smart visual solve of a more organic concept.

 

2. GHOST:

This trend is all about engaging the viewer. Gaining the viewers attention in a visual world is such huge challenge for a designer, so this trend forces the viewer to engage with the logo if for no other reason than to confirm what they're seeing. It's soft and subtle, but in a way that demands attention. Interesting concept, huh?

 

3. CUBIST:

The inspiration for this trend comes from a place that shouldn't be surprising. Fine art has always been an influencing factor to designers, and I believe that the best design comes from a knowledge and background in fine art. There's a certain visual pleasure in reducing images down to their essence, thus the appeal of cubism.

 

4. BOX-UP

The terminology is pretty obvious, as is the reason this trend is so popular. It can be difficult for a designer to balance the importance of typography and symbol for a company's logo. Enlarging the pair to be sure the type is legible can throw the symbol into the dominant role, and reducing the size to make sure the symbol isn't too loud can make the type too small to read. Using a literal box insures that it's all together in a package. 

 

5. STAINS:

This trend is another example that calls for the attention of the viewer, often times in a second look. The blurred edge creates motion. The immediacy of these marks creates an impression of authenticity and humanity. It looks hand crafted, not computer or machine crafted.

 

6. DUST:

This trend understands the importance of subtlety. The stippled effect creates almost a whisper that can produce different tonal levels with its density. There's kind of a sparkle about this kind of technique. It creates the illusion of motion with hard edges. The most obvious connection for inspiration is that of an airbrush.

 

7. FESTOON:

Another trend that's about creating motion, the festoon trend accomplishes this by using streamer like elements (almost as if they are blowing in a breeze).The key to this graphic solution is that the elements have a diminishing point. They also often use overlapping and transparency to accomplish the goal and push the mark a little further. This trend evokes a free spirit and lack of control that's visually interesting. It's lighthearted and festive.

 

8. PIXEL:

This trend is inspired by the digital building block, the pixel. Small elements come together to create a larger result. The same idea is executed in pointillism. Dots of color create the whole picture. The challenge for designers with this one, is making it new. I found this example particularly interesting because of the warped perspective of the pixels, which ads another layer with dimension. It's an interest and different way to do pixels. 

 

There are more trends you can read about at logolounge.com, but of these select few, what do you think? We tend to have a negative connotation with the word "trend", but in the article Bill Gardner says that we should consider trends to be a report of where logo design is headed. Studying trends can help reveal our growth, and thus allows us to move further. What's your take? Let us know what you think about these growing trends. Really… the good, the bad and the ugly. birdsong gregory wants to know!

To learn more about our Charlotte Advertising Agency, and Charlotte Graphic Design visit our website at birdsonggregory.com!

That's the phrase our copywriter, Phillip, lives by and it was the first thing I thought of when I saw this video. It takes an extremely complicated problem, the US Education system, and boils it down to the core elements and presents a quick and easy to understand overview. As a Charlotte Graphic Design agency, we make a living expressing ideas through the use of imagery and we always appreciate great work from others. Check out more from GOOD here.

 

Check out Time Magazine's slideshow of all 19 official FIFA World Cup posters, which runs from the first World Cup back in 1930 to the action happening right now down in South Africa. It offers a great retrospective of graphic design trends over the last 80 years. From Swiss Modernism to Punk and Post Modern, this collection of posters shows how far graphic designers have come in terms of their aesthetics and technical capabilities. This retrospective also demonstrates the timelessness of fundamental design principles like balance, contrast, and arrangement.

In anticipation of next month’s World Cup in South Africa, FIFA has commissioned 17 artists and graphic designers to create limited-edition soccer-themed prints. The original artworks were auctioned at New York’s Phillips de Pury, but the signed and numbered prints — 2,010 of each image — go for as little as $121. See the rest here . . .

 

 

 

As the newest addition to Birdsong Gregory, I felt it appropriate to start off my blog by sharing one of my more recent and most interesting resources for graphic design from my design library. Naive: Modernism and Folklore in Contemporary Graphic Design, a recent release from Gestalten, is full of strong design and beautiful illustration. It explores the "extraordinary renaissance of Classic Modernism, from the 1940s to 1960s in contemporary graphic design" by compiling and showcasing recent work from designers who are working in this style. I give the book the official design nerd stamp of approval and I continue to be captivated by the work it contains. We at Birdsong Gregory are always keeping our eyes open for inspirational gems like this one, so be sure to stay tuned for other recommendations.

This week, the Charlotte Chapter of AIGA, the professional association for design, is screening the documentary Proceed and Be Bold. The documentary covers the life and works of Amos Paul Kennedy Jr., an African American letterpress poster designer. At 40 years of age, Kennedy abandoned the traditional American Dream to follow his own. Unsatisfied with his comfortable, middle-class life, Amos traded in his computer for a printing press and his white collar for a pair of overalls. Armed with life, liberty, peanuts, and a meager yearly income of $7,000, Amos cranked out a new, mutinous declaration of independence.

Charlotte graphic design professionals and letterpress aficionados won't want to miss this screening! Proceed and Be Bold will be shown this Thursday, February 25 at Johnson C. Smith University. Doors open at 6:30, and screening starts promptly at 7:00pm. Click for further details.

Want to make your bookshelf look both smart and stylish? Charlotte graphic design professionals should check out Penguin Classics' series of hardbound classic novels with beautifully patterned cover designs by Coralie Bickford-Smith. Titles include Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility. Books available for purchase at Anthropologie.

I love vintage design. Especially when it comes to consumer goods packaging. And all graphic designers know that what was once vintage will come back around to be new again. Check out some old soda can designs collected by TheDieline.com. Mountain Dew has already brought back their vintage can design. Who will be next?

Not being much of a football fan, I primarily look forward to the Super Bowl not for the guts, glory and game but for the clever advertising sandwiched in between the heroic plays and crushing tackles. Also as a member of the Charlotte graphic design community I found it interesting to take a look back at the 44 year history of the Super Bowl logo.

 

 

Bob Noorda died last week. As the designer known the world over for giving the New Your City subway system its iconic modernist design, Noorda introduced simplicity to what (to me) still appears to be a confusing welter of express trains, dank passageways, and garbled announcements. At least the signage is friendly.

 

Here's an excerpt from his New York Times obituary:

"Mr. Noorda had helped found Unimark in 1965, teaming up with a group of American and European designers, including Mr. Vignelli, who initially set up shop in Chicago and Milan. Theirs was among the first international design firms to base their work on the Modernist principle that a good design could have a positive effect on all aspects of life, not just on business. An early proponent of unified branding -- the consistent use of distinctive type and imagery to identify a company -- Unimark has been credited with awakening the corporate world to Modernist design thinking."

Here at our Charlotte branding agency, we're following in Mr. Noorda's footsteps and trying to help our clients adopt and successfully use unified branding systems. Not always easy, but the payoff can be huge.
 

For Charlotte advertising agencies, marketing gurus, and designers wanting to brush up on their graphic design knowledge, look no further than Graphic Design, Referenced by Bryony Gomez-Palacio and Armin Vit. This visual and informational guide covers the most commonly referenced terms, historical moments, landmark projects, and influential practitioners in the field of graphic design. With more than 2,000 design projects illustrating more than 400 entries, it provides an intense overview of the varied elements that make up the graphic design profession.

Not a book nerd? You can get the design scoop and further inspiration from one of the authors himself! Armin Vit is coming to Charlotte on January 28th as part of AIGA Charlotte's Talk About Lecture Series to share with our members his process, learnings, experiences and latest work. The event is open to the public and the design team from birdsong gregory will be in attendance. Hope to see you there!

This holiday season you don't have to be a Charlotte graphic designer to create your own festive decorations. Design-conscious blog Design*Sponge offers a variety of handy DIY guides for making unique and fabulous decorations that will give your holiday flair a designer edge.

This holiday season look beyond the standard wrapping paper when packaging up your gifts. New Japanese washi paper tape from happytape is a great way to get creative when sending packages or wrapping up festive treats for your favorite Charlotte graphic designer.

 

As any good graphic designer knows, the look of a typeface can determine how readers perceive a word or phrase, a brand, or a company. And to fully understand how type works to communicate a marketing message, it helps to know the history of printed characters. 

 

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American and European type foundries – where type was designed and cast for commercial and industrial use  – churned out thousands of eccentrically decorative typefaces and typographic ornaments, most of it bought by printers. 

 

Back then advertising was a burgeoning industry, and the more outlandish display styles were conceived in equal measure to attract the public’s eye and to distinguish one merchant from the next.

 

TYPE: A Visual History of Typefaces and Graphic Styles, Volume I, 1628-1900 is a new TASCHEN collection of exquisitely reproduced pages from an array of lusciously printed vintage foundry specimen books that were used to promote type fonts to commercial printers. Many quirky specimens in this compilation predate the mid-1800s, but most were produced in the second half of the 19th century, when fierce competition among foundries fostered an abundance of smartly designed and ludicrously gaudy faces. 

 

So let's hope Santa is listening . . .

Designers are color obsessed by nature and our birdsong gregory team knows how important color is to a successful brand. Thanks to the extensive line of Pantone accessories Charlotte graphic design professionals can now color code not just their professional works, but also their personal lives. Luggage tags, wallets, messenger bags, coffee mugs, pepper mills, key chains, cufflinks and iPhone cases are just a few of the ways you can define your own personal color brand.

Then here you go. The modern furniture company BoConcept is looking for a few good graphic designers to help them create their spring line of china. Among all the applicants, there will be 6 winners whose designs will be produced and sold in all BoConcept stores around the world.

 

This is how you do it:
 

Go to www.boconcept.com and download a template of the BoConcept cup layout and make your very own design to enter the competition. All the entered designs will be featured in 3D on the website. In January 2010 when the competition finishes, an international jury of 4 judges will decide the winning design of 6 different cup designs that will be put into production. The 6 winners will each get their name and country written on the cup. Furthermore they will receive a set of the 6 winner cups and – last but not least – an BoConcept Imola chair in a fabric of their own choice. 

Nixon, the über-trendy surf and skate clothing company has a flair for west-coast flavored euro-styling. I'd love to find this watch in my stocking, and the company's use of a super skinny version of Chalet on their website and in their ads is refreshing. Here at birdsong gregory, the design team always keeps an eye on the underground fashion world to help our Charlotte marketing agency stay inspired and informed.

 

If you work in an image saturated field like graphic design or advertising, then you understand the need for a more user-friendly and hierarchical way to search online for stock photography. So we were excited to see Google recently roll out their smooth flash-based image search tool: Google Image Swirl.

 

When you click a stack of images, Image Swirl displays a fluid matrix of photos based on a quasi relational basis, i.e., search for dogs and you get several thick stacks of dog shots, which you can then rifle through. But bugs in the search logic remain. A search for dogs also turns up a shot of machine parts. And a search for ambition returns a shot of two young japanese guys staring blankly into the camera. 

It's still a fun way to hunt for that perfect visual metaphor, though. Plus the resulting patterns that develop are a loose art form unto themselves.

Go search for something yourself at image-swirl.googlelabs.com.

I'm sure I am not the only designer that has nightmares about Comic Sans or bad kerning. Any Charlotte graphic design professional would sleep better resting their creative brains on one of these type-centric pillows.

Pillows: (clockwise from upper left) House Industries, Bonjour Mon Coussin, 1girl1boy, reiter8, Bev Hisey, Jonathan Adler, pilosale, and Alexandra Ferguson.