alexa's reading responses

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Reading ResponsesAlexa Mendez

Fall 2012

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Doyald Younglogotype designer

Helvetica

Hillman Curtisartist series

Marian Bantjesgraphic designer

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8

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Margo Chase

Art & Copy

Kit Hinrichsgraphic designer

12

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contents 3Type Reading Responses

DoyaldYoung

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Doyald Youngs views on typog-raphy and his love for letters make him truly a unique individual. He passionately studies and re creates typefaces in a way that makes him and artist and a inova-tor. I really appreciated how he took good typefaces, and made them to support whatever he needed them to be used for. He didnt settle for a typeface that already existed even if it didnt work with the project. He takes initiative and creates something new that serves its purpose perfectly. I think the techiniques he applies to his work served as not only technique for typography, but also into other art practices.

For example, his attention to detail was similar to that of draw-ing. I really feel that this tech-nique is what makes his craft so elegant and unique, even in a field that is so commonly about representing something thats already been accepted. I also really appreciated how Young uses the more classical approaches to art as mean for creating a very technological present part of the art world. The influences from typefaces of the past are what largely impact all of art today and seeing him use it in the field of typography was very interesting.

logotype designer

Type Reading Responses


HelveticaHelvetica is not just a typeface design for something specific, or a one time use. According to some designers, its timeless. Classic in design and purpose making it revolutionary for a typeface. To others, though, because of its unending possibili-ties it has become so overused that it has lost its purpose. I find that there is merit in both opin-ions. Helvetica is literally every-where you go. Signs, advertise-ments, posters, and more are plastered with the same typeface or variants of it. I think that any-thing that becomes so common-place will lose its appeal eventu-ally, its only a matter of when that is. With new things develop-ing and designers learning from the past and moving forward, it seems almost impossible not to pick originality over classic. But on the other hand, there is merit in saying that a typeface is so recognizable and can be used in so many different ways.

I think overall a type that has been around for so long and used in so mnay ways, obviously is validated in its existence. It’s simplicity is what makes its so effective and useful.While other typefaces could be more interest-ing and visually exciting, when an idea is trying to be pushed forward, it can be distracting. I believe that this benefit of helveti-ca highly outweighs the “boring” reputation it has.

6Type Reading Responses

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Helvetica


contentsA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

pen t ag r amsagmeister

d a v i d c a r s o n

JAMES VICTORE

PAULA SCHERmilton glaser


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What was most interesting was that David Carson fully supported self-indulgent work and be totally abosorbed in his work. The work become personal and it is important to pull from who you are into the design. As a designer for Ray Gun magazine, Carson always worked like it would be the last ///desgin. He always promoted Interpreting what your reading or listening to and pulling from your emotional response into the design.

Pentagram is a group of designers who all work in different media and different projects in the same environment. This allows for a wide variety of disci-plines that become extremely beneficial in the creative process. The essence of the group is in the creativity of a group that learns from other partners. A designer can build their platform while also looking to others as inspirations and resources. There is a reward in getting the most out of partners and working with them. Its about solutions to prob-lems and being able to solve it creatively and look-ing at everything in a new way. Graphics is so fluid and its unpredictability and flexibility make it perfect for a group setting. Achieving something you didn't see possible and visually showing it to people with the help other other like-minded people.

Pentagram 07 is unique in how it has changed just as much as the design world has over the years. With 5 offices all over the world, designers come and go, make changes, and put their mark on Penta-gram. I think this idea of changing though, is what brings fresh new ideas while also keeping classic, timesless elements as well.

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Stefan Sagmeister strongly believes that everything about his designs comes back to him. He always knew he wanted to be a designer which lead him to put so much of himself into his design. He believes that a final piece should demonstrate the process of how it came about and how it was developed fully in it. I think this idea can be plainly see in how he wants to display his design under a certain aesthetic, like his poster of coffee cup and the need to make it in real life and then photograph versus working straight in photoshop.

In keeping with theme of putting himself in his design, Sagmeisters show presented multiple idea and quotes that describe exactly how he feels about life. I can really appreciate how he isn’t afraid to say the things that are on his mind and express them in the ways he sees as most creative and effective.

Victore believes graphic design is best used for pure and strongest potential of getting a message relayed, not just selling a product. In the same why I do believe that design is best used to be heard and change lives.

Scher's design process of finding a problem and using creativity to solve it is very interesting. She does more than just think of it visually but creating an identity for something, like her work for the public theatre. Another example would be Citi bank, where she states that every idea is done in a second and if it takes any longer than it wont be good. Typography first is where she explored not using type but drawing on her own, something I found interesting. As someone who loves art as a craft, I admire that she is still using her hand to design. Her mantra of feeling that what she is work-ing on is the best things she's ever done is some-thing I really believe in and found interesting as well.

Art is work. Glaser believes that the life of a design-er is a mixture of a business man and an artist. Important design is becoming part of a single expe-rience so that people can relate to a design and therefore accept it into their lives. Glaser believes that having that intuition is what can make a designer a good designer, which I agree with. Design is access to the mind and realizing that idea and the idea transferring ideas from one to another is what makes design successful. He also was certain that to be successful in design one has to sustain their interest and curiosity in what their doing. He is still amazed and astonished by things, and thats a benefit of being in the arts and also is realizing that you can never fully know.


ArtistSeri� Bantj�

Marian

She sent out promotions/unsolicited junk mail to designers to get their attention and with the love and attention in the pieces, she was well received. One thing that I though was really interesting was her mixture of the two holidays. She believed valentines and christ-mas work well together and had the idea to cut hearts out of cheesy christmas cards. Her newer work includes more of a modular look with hearts of mixing and matching colors and shapes. Her process, which I relate to very much includ-ed drawing first and then moving it into illustrator to design. Her art was unique and I think that was mainly through the fact that she thinks through her craft, not to replicate, but believing in the direc-tion she's moving and following it through until the end.

Marian Bantjes goal is to make you see beauty in the hard way of doing things. Her work shows that some-one cared and took the time. She is motivated by uncovering what is possible in art and design. Bantjes left her business, digitopolis, as a graphic designer when meeting with clients and figuring out the strategy for them wasn't enough for her. She considers her work more as an illustrator, showing that design can be personal. Through discovering something new and following her intuition, she resists the idea of autopilot. Her first job was as a type setter for books, follow-ing the instructions of the designers over and over again until you learn the right/wrong ways to do things. This soon became boring for her and she moved to wanting to explore a wide variety of material and surfaces.

One of her most inspiring pieces was created when she picked up starting an entire new body of work- Valentines and Christmas Day cards.

graphic designer





MargoCh�e


Margo Chase’s basic design philosphy is rooted in creating beautiful design that serve a purpose and require strategy and research to make the most effective design. Her office space is one thing that definitely supports this theory. With her own personal library of books on art, design, architcture, typography, and more, she and her firm have access to tons of inspiration and reference materials.

In the first ten years of Chase’s design career she worked in mostly the music industry creating cd covers, identity, and advertisement for many many bands. These jobs were useful in getting her name out into the industry, but she eventually became bored with doing the same type of things all the time. She then decided to explore other things, packaging, branding, and creating things for a purpose. This I think is where Chase’s work became much more interesting as she worked with big name companies such a Starbucks, Polly Pocket, Chinese Laundry and more.

I also think the technique of using a lot of hand lettering and the influence of her mothers work in her designs is something that makes Chase’s work very unique. All of the skills she has learned about technique and process are things she has learned from just trying new things until she achieves what she believes is perfection for each project. This knowledge of processes of not only the design aspects but also business and produc-tion is very important and I can defi-nitely say that Chase has mastered all of them to creat a successful business.


MargoCh�e

Art is work. Glaser believes that the life of a design-er is a mixture of a business man and an artist. Important design is becoming part of a single expe-rience so that people can relate to a design and therefore accept it into their lives. Glaser believes that having that intuition is what can make a designer a good designer, which I agree with. Design is access to the mind and realizing that idea and the idea transferring ideas from one to another is what makes design successful. He also was certain that to be successful in design one has to sustain their interest and curiosity in what their doing. He is still amazed and astonished by things, and thats a benefit of being in the arts and also is realizing that you can never fully know.

Art&CopyArt & Copy, a documentary or the advertisment industry and it’s influence on society, attempts to not only explain the logistics of practicing advertisement and design but also its large impact of changing the way people think. These people that are immersed in the industry know best that creativity is a base for anything and everything. It can produce feelings amd make people change their opinions on some-thing. It is a extremely powerful force and makes bad advertise-ment worse for lack of an excuse. Designers like Rich Silverstein and Jeff Goodby created monu-mental campaigns- like Got Milk?- that changed the way people viewed an everyday normal product, like milk.


Other influential people included in the video like Mary Wells, see advertisment as a place to bring something completely new to the table and shock people with the creativity. As the first person to use planes as a canvas for adver-tisement

All of these people in the adver-tising industry have their own opinions on how things should be done and the problems they face daily, which is something that I think makes this documen-tary so interesting. The differing perspectives show an important aspect of this specific industry.

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Art&Copy



KitHinrichsgraphic designer


Kit is solid in how important typog-raphy is in his art. He believes in transforming type and text so that it is treated in an art format. His biographical poster is a quintessen-tial example of this philosophy. Drawn completely from letterforms and the text of his own biography, his poster communicates the idea of his own identity with the idea of storytelling. Storytelling is such a big part of Kit's life as a designer. I found this really interesting, espe-cially the aspect of of storytelling that is meant to help others realize something. How type communicates is so vital to how something is understood and when type is rightly used it becomes something that can make a real difference is how some-thing is compelling and engaging.

Kit's balance of creativity and the business aspect of the design world was also something I found very interesting. He understand how the industry works and the importance of caring and understanding clients and being equal to all people you work with. He believes in teamwork and collaboration and sharing ideas to promote success for all people involved. It's not only about creating the best design all the time, but creating what is best for the client and having them see how important good design is for them. Design has becoming something valuable and that comes with both benefits and consequences.

KitHinrichs

Reading ResponsesAlexa Mendez

Fall 2012

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alexa's reading responses