Before and After 0034

7/29/2019 Before and After 0034

1/310 Before&After Issue 34 www.bamagazine.com

The most beautiful designs are the

simplest designs; not the easiest to make,

usually, but the purest. A pure design

has been distilled to its essencea word,

an image, an idea; to add or subtract a

single part will diminish it. As a rule, the

stronger the design, the fewer its parts,andthe fewer the differences between

the parts. Instead of two typefaces, use

one. Instead of three sizes, use two. Pay

attention to negative space; every image

that you place creates an opposite and

equal negative space that affects the

design. And so on. To illustrate, designer

John Odam created ve CD covers for us

whose simplicity conveys astonishing

clarity. Have a look at how its done.

Designs by John Odam

ItsSimple

To a world awash in clutter, simplicity is thebeautiful answer. Here, ve CD covers illustratethe astonishing clarity ofminimum.

Page layout

Two squiggly shapes The beautiful piano cover forms an unbroken line from

left to bottom, dividing the space into only two shapes, positive and negative.

The effect is silent, regal and emotive. Keyboard and pianist are offstage, yet

present in the air. One, low-key typeface (Myriad) alone in the white space

draws the viewer into the quiet. Note that Solitudescolor matches the strings.

Where do the words go? In this

case, simplicity means one kind of

thingthis like that. The invisible

left margin matches the right, not

precisely but perceptually; they

feel alike. Hale Thatcher is ush to

the center, which is also the point

of the piano cover.
http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/


2/3

An award-winning graphic designer, John Odam

is highly respected by B&A for his creative ver-

satility. He understands and meets the artistic

demands of visual communication, and he

offers multiple solutions. John has co-authored

the books Start with a Scan, Start with a Digital

Camera (Peachpit Press) and The Gray Book

(Ventana Press), all of which display his distinc-

tive style of simple beauty.

Before&After Issue 34 www.bamagazine.com

It looks innocent enough. You start with

a square, and onto it place a snapshot-

shaped image (6x4), leaving a small

border. Visually, whats just happened?

Your mind says you see a rectangle atop

a square, but your eyes see more.

You see the square and rectangle, all right,

but what you havent noticed . . .

. . . are the four rectangles youve added

(above left). You also havent noticed the

phantom lines now connecting the dots

between corners. Result: Instead of two

objects (some viewers perceive only one)

you have six, in ve different proportions,

pulling your eye to and fro unintentionally.

The not-so-simpleproblem of borders

Add a circle to the scene and the acciden-

tal shapes increase exponentially; your

eyes now trace all kinds of oddball niches

and cubbyholes, none of which you can

design until youre aware they exist.

Thats visual complexity.

Solution? Lose the unintended shapes!

Here are the square and rectangle without

borders, and what a difference! Two clear

objects (three, actually), in harmonious

proportionsone-third, two-thirds, three-

thirds (square); none are accidental. Note

that white is not a passive backdrop, but

an active color in the composition.

Thats simple.

Two rectangles divide the eld into a dark half and a

white half. The white doesnt look empty, does it? Its play-

ing a very active role. As a beautiful alternative, darken the

white half (below), which effectively creates a solid eld

punctuated by a ragged spot of light in the corner, identi-cal in concept to the piano cover. Although tiny, type on

the boundary commands great attention by its isolation.

Two squiggly

shapes

W E T

If WET was not on the edge but above it,

the result would be another shape between

word and image, adding complexity.
http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/


3/312 Before&After Issue 34 www.bamagazine.com

Two squares Beautifully serene,

here an inner square echoes an

outer. The size difference is so

great that the border effect does

not occur; the eye perceives two

distinct elds. In the square, over-

laysnormally complexwork.

Why? Because theyre repeating

shapes, the same thingagain and

again. Circles repeated within the

squares complement perfectly.

Convex, concave curves Circular

glass divides dark space from light;

rim and liquid form more circles.

Straight straw is the visual inter-

rupter; by splitting the title it

creates a look again double-take.Artists list (note its lowercase

setting) turns an attractive but

meaningless image into excellent

communication; cover it with your

thumb and see what it adds.

Page layout

A crossing line A face in

silhouette alters an otherwise

symmetrical photograph. To

restore balance, the type aligns

ush left(note really short lines)

on the center axis. Yellow eld

echoes the sunset and makes a

neutral background for the black

headline and white subhead.
http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/http://www.bamagazine.com/pdflink/

Documents

Before and After 0034