Graphic Design Broadly defined, graphic designers (sometimes referred to as communication designers) are the visual ambassadors of ideas: their role is

Graphic Design• Broadly defined, graphic designers (sometimes referred to as “communication

designers”) are the visual ambassadors of ideas: their role is to translate, communicate — and occasionally even agitate — by rendering thinking as form, process and experience. *

• * ["experience" is a widow (also called an orphan), a word or fragment appearing alone at the end of a paragraph. No good graphic designer would have let this go to press in print or online it's an obvious mistake.]

• Graphic design is an international language composed of signs and symbols, marks and

and logos, banners and billboards, pictures and words.

In addition to their role in the visual engineering of most printed matter, graphic designers today lend their expertise to a host of related disciplines including, but not limited to:

•strategy and consulting,

•information and experience design,

•branding and broadcast design,

•signage and wayfinding systems.

They are groomed to acquire a certain classic set of skills (which today demand a facility with software) including :

•drawing,

•photography,

•composition

•typography — the design and structural characteristics of letterforms, graphic design’s lingua franca.

Icons of Graphic Design

I Love NY Logo: Designed by the grandfather of graphic design, Milton Glaser, in the 1970s, this rebus combines a red heart with the rounded slab-serif typeface American Typewriter.

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If, in the business of communications, "image is king," the essence of this image, the logo, is a jewel in its crown.

"Logos, Flags and Escutcheons"By Paul Rand



UPS Pictograph: The UPS logo was designed in 1961 by Paul Rand as a sort of heraldic pictogram. Rand said he gauged his success when he showed the work to his daughter. ("Why, it looks just like a present, Daddy," she said.)

UPS 1920s-61United Parcel Service developed its first shield in the 1920s, using the bold image of an eagle carrying a package labeled "Safe, Swift, Sure." This was simplified in 1937 to a shield outline containing the company initials, with a new message to appeal to the retail trade. In 1961, the current logo was born, the work of Paul Rand. He abbreviated the shield, added a rectangular package, and clarified the lettering. The key to good design, he explained, was "taking the essence of something that is already there and enhancing its meaning by putting it into a form everyone can identify with."

1920 1937 1961

The role of the logo is to point, to designate -

in as simple a manner as

possible.

NikeThe Nike logo is a classic case of a company gradually simplifying its corporate identity as its frame increases. The company's first logo appeared in 1971, when the word "Nike," the Greek goddess of victory, was printed in orange over the outline of a checkmark, the sign of positivity. Used as a motif on sports shoes since the 1970s, this checkmark is now so recognizable that the company name itself has became superfluous. The solid, orange check was registered as a trademark in 1995.

1978 1995

McDonald'sThe McDonald's Golden Arches logo was introduced in 1962. It was created by Jim Schindler to resemble new arch shaped signs on the sides of the restaurants. He merged the two golden arches together to form the famous 'M' now recognized throughout the world. Schindler's work was a development of the stylized 'v' logo sketched by Fred Turner, which was conceived as a more stylish corporate symbol than the Speedee chef character that had previously been used. The McDonald's name was added to the logo in 1968.

1968

A logo is a flag, a signature

A logo doesn't sell (directly), it identifies.

A logo is rarely a description of a business.

A logo derives its meaning from the quality of the thing it symbolizes, not the other

way around.

A logo is less important than the product it signifies; what it means is more

important than what it looks like.

AppleThe, now well-known, American company Apple was the first computer firm not to use its name as its corporate identity. The idea of selling a computer under the name and image of a fruit was conceived by Californian Steve Jobs and his collegues (even the word "Macintosh" is the name of an apple variety). The motif of a multicolored apple with a bite taken out of it is a reference to the Bible story of Adam and Eve, in which the apple represents the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge.

1984

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Design, good or bad, is a vehicle of memory.

Good design adds value of some kind and, incidentally, could

be sheer pleasure; it respects the viewer - his sensibilities -

and rewards the entrepreneur.

I t is easier to remember a well designed image than one

that is muddled.

A well designed logo, in the end, is a reflection of the

business it symbolizes.

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Graphic RecognitionSaks Fifth AvenueA good identity is simple, but never boring; flexible, but never chaotic; playful and iterative — and always supremely recognizable. Seen on everything from shopping bags to shipping vessels, print collateral to web and motion graphics, an identity program balances variety with specificity. Often accompanied by “bibles” — detailed style guides outlining the proper procedures for implementing a logo or trademark. While infinitely scalable, a good identity program is grounded in a kind of basic formal system: color palettes, font choices and grids (the underlying armature upon which most printed materials are placed) all help to solidify a brand’s visual recognition.



THE POSTER AS A GRAPHIC MEDIUMFrom nineteenth century broadsides to twentieth century propaganda posters, the poster is to graphic design what the building is to the street.

Posters have always existed in that tension-filled space between culture and commerce, situated somewhat precariously between the fine and applied arts.



Russian Constructivist film poster designed by Georgi and Vladmiar Stenberg, 1929 and

Obama Hope poster, designed by Shepard Fairey, 2008

Partial GLOSSARY

•AIGA: The largest professional design association in the U.S.•Bleed: When an image or color extends beyond the trimmed edge of a page. •CMYK: A color system used for printing — usually referred to as four-color process; An abbreviation for cyan,

magenta, yellow, and black, which, in varying combinations, produce most colors. •Font: A specific size and style of type within a given typeface. All characters that make up 10 point Helvetica italic

comprise a font. (Not to be confused with typeface.) •Grid: Underlying structure of columns, rows, margins, and lines, information organized on a page.•Kerning: Adjusting the space between individual characters in a font.•Lorem ipsum: Used as placeholder text because it approximates a typical distribution of characters in English. •Point: A unit of measurement for fonts and line-spacing: 72pts = 1“. (There are 12 points in a Pica.)•Serif: The small horizontal lines on the ends of each stroke of a typeface, e.g. Times Roman.•Sans Serif: Typefaces without horizontal lines on the ends of each stroke, e.g. Helvetica.•Widow: The final word of a paragraph that stands alone, or the last line of a paragraph from the previous page

flowing onto the top of the following page. •WYSIWYG: Acronym for What You See Is What You Get; screen representation of how a final image will look.

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Graphic Design Broadly defined, graphic designers (sometimes referred to as communication designers) are the visual ambassadors of ideas: their role is