This last module of the course is a demonstration of my time management and the ability to apply what I've learned on the course to the design processes. It is clear from the range of briefs that the amount of work put in has decreased as the later briefs come in. This is an example of poor time management that did not effectively balance the amount of work between all Modules. During the Easter break I spent far too much time on OUGD404. My aims for that module were too vague and caused me to spend more time on the brief than what I wanted to. This had a domino effect on how much time I spent on the other briefs, making me push back the work, sacrificing the quality of the work. I need to learn when and what to priorotise in order to effectively achieve the desired outcome. That means planning ahead and booking facilities to save trouble later on. This was evident in Studio Brief 03 where the mock ups of the posters were digitally printed instead of screen printed. This was due to my inability to book a screen in time to produce the print. Not only do I have to plan ahead and book facilities, but take into consideration how long those processes take. Learning from my mistakes in Studio Brief 02, the errors in setting up the screen for printing set me back another day to progress on with the brief. That being said, I feel that in the end, the outcomes for Studio Brief 02 achieved the aims I set out in the beginning.
In terms of applying what I've learned on the course, I feel that the module overall will demonstrate that. In Studio Brief 01 what was noticeable about my design process was the amount of possible designs I drew up for the Secret 7 Submission. This large range of ideas demonstrated a varied approach to the brief problem before refining down the ideas into those that worked the most effectively. By having this varied approach it allows me to have different options to take further. Therefore better informing my developmental process and allows me to understand better why some idea work and don't work. Studio Brief 02 demonstrated my ability to tackle a problem during the developmental stages and refine it to a point where the design considers the limitations of the processes used and the context of which its placed on. This is evident through simplifying the designs to suit both the screen print process and the size of the note. It also highlights how a design conceived is not necessarily the final design of the outcome. Necessary developmental work is beneficial in taking the idea further and to again, understand what works and what doesn't. Furthermore Studio Brief 02 was the first brief in using an analogue print method. What was beneicail to understand and get exposed to is the different kinds of finish one can produce through analogue printing. And how you can use these different finishes to suit the context of the problem and add depth to the final resolution.
Studio Brief 03 is the demonstration of how well I can work within a group. I feel like my contributions to the groups effort was substantial. The branding and identity of the exhibition was one of our strong points in the presentation. The advantage of working in a group is that opportunity to have constant feedback on ideas. This was something that gave me confidence in deciding which logo to use for the final design. Initially I felt the flat design would be quite uninspiring since flat designs are the mainstay of today and to have one would not allow for the exhibition to stand out. However through the positive feedback of the flat logo, it ended up being one of our strong points for the exhibitions concept. This is something that needs to be improved on in the next group project. Having that constant feedback is invaluable as feedback can always further enrich and develop the design. However during the group project I felt the feedback needed to be extended outside of the meetings more, even if its just for a few minutes. To have an alternate view on something can help highlight what was not previously seen. Another weak area within this brief was the lack of contextual mock ups seen in the presentation. Because my role was signage, it would have been beneficial for the audience to see how these signs would be seen in real life. Not only that but it gives me an idea as well which could lead to further improvements. Adding to this, having an idea of the space allows for possibility of new ideas in how the signs can creatively direct the viewer. It leaves less to the imagination and better evidences as to why the designs work.
Studio Brief 04 is the culmination of my new interests in Graphic Design. And being that the brief was introduced after Design Principles, it allowed me some time to learn from my mistakes and develop a resolution that demonstrated that. Furthermore this brief gave me the opportunity to write my own. This means I can work within my own parameters that allowed to create a design that I enjoyed making. This is not limited to the nature of Studio Brief 04 however, by getting into the habit or knowing how to manipulate the brief to suite me, it results in designs that are not restricted to the linear problem. It can open possibilities and approaches that otherwise may not have been seen initially.
Overall this last module was definitely the most challenging, however it made me appreciate the effort I put into idea generation, my ability to work with a problem, to work in a group and to demonstrate how I can manipulate the brief to suit my interests.
Friday, 29 April 2016
Studio Brief 04 - Printed Zines
The zine was printed on usual printer cartridge stock that did not hinder the overall quality. The colours reproduced are strong and despite the thinness, the colours do not show through to the next page. What the thinness of the stock adds to is the easy reading experience it is meant to achieve. The thin stock doesn't feel substantial enough to make it feel of a professional quality however within context, it is appropriate for the zine's purpose.
A sewn bound was chosen to demonstrate one of the new skills I learned on the course. The yellow thread is unassuming and lets the zine's content be the focus. Unfortunately there are still problems in printing that have been cropping up since the start of the course. The alignment of the two sided spreads is always slightly off which affects the dimensions of the pages, displays colours from other spreads and affects the overall reading experience. However because of the context of the publication of being a zine, these problems can be relatively overlooked. Even though printing in greyscale would have made the publication cheaper to produce, the colour is needed to maintain the readers attention and is part of the zine's appeal.
Overall through the constant visual overload of colours, small A5 size and brief descriptions of designers, the zine achieves the aim of being an accessible and easy read for new student to learn about a selection of editorial designers. Furthermore this small zine is probably my best demonstration of understanding editorial design. Learning from the mistakes made in Design Principles, there is a lot more consistency in the contents layout. The layouts that needed to be experimental worked within the context of the content and didn't stray too far. The content has a focused scope which was a problem in the second brief of OUGD404. This meant that along with the layouts cohesion, there is a cohesion with the content, which makes the reading experience easier for the reader.
Studio Brief 04 - Designing the zine
Based off the feedback, the idea I chose to pursue with is the editorial designer zine. This was chosen because of how it relates to the briefs requirement to opt for an resolution that is personal to me and allows me to demonstrate what I've learned during the course so far.
This is a chance to showcase interesting magazines that are a good basis for learning about the possibilities of editorial design and to showcase some of my own selection of magazines.
Firstly is the cover page.
This type was purposely set to grab the readers attention. By breaking up the word Editorial, it slows down the read speed, forcing the reader to comprehend each segment as a whole. The large offset configuration is unusual and is meant to grab the readers attention through this way. The addition of the hyphen only on the IAL is meant to give play on the word editorial. As one word it clearly says editorial but the addition of the hyphen makes the 2 segments editor be more distinctive on the page because that is what an editorial designer is called. Therefore on the cover there is the word editorial and the more implicit editor.
An adjustment was made to give the cover a better visual flow.
The first spread graces Matt Willey's work. On the left page, Matt Willey is represented by his own typeface NSW01. One of the appealing characteristic of his typeface is the long and thin stems that really standout once expanded to a large scale. In the copy is a brief overview of what he is known for and his achivements. What this spread does is setup the layout of the zine. Having copy on the left and an image of the magazine. Throughout this zine, the colours and magazine images are all full bleed. This is to create a high impact visual that is aimed at grabbing the readers attention.
In the second spread is where the consistent layout of content starts to appear. From Matt Willey to Mike Meiré's page, it is clear that the page for copy is meant to reflect the personality or recognisable trait of that designer. So for example in Willey's page, what was recognisable was the use of his own font that was oversized on the page much like his poster designs.
For Mike Mieré, his name was done in the style of one of his most famous magazines, brand eins, where the masthead was clearly all lower case. The blue background was chosen because of his prevalence of using blue within brand eins covers.
Against the bold red of 032c's cover, the combination is of high contrast, maintaining the reader's attention.
Unlike Matt Willey and Mike Meiré, Elana Schlenker of Gratuitous Type represents a more fun approach to typesetting, colour scheme and page construction. On the left the irregular forms are meant to represent that and communicate to the reader the personality of the publication.
Along with Mike Meiré's 032c, Kinfolk was chosen because Charlotte Heal's successful re brand of the magazine. In this spread the page elements on the left are meant to reflect the cover of Kinfolk which has definitely replaced the old one and become a sort of icon for clean and minimal editorial design. This is also conveyed through the narrow columns of giving a slight insight on Heal did to Kinfolk.
What Mushpit represents is the complete antithesis to Kinfolk and offers a nice visual contrast between the two. In this spread, more jarring colour schemes were used to communicate Mushpits identity. Furthermore, the type of colour as well added to this. In the Kinfolk spread, it is clear that a pastel green is used. This conveys the soft, toned down nature of the publication both in content and visuals that is meant to ease the reading ecperince. In Mushpit, unconventional typefaces are used combined with unorthodox gradient combinations and high impact imagery, filled with varying colours. What this creates in terms of design is an "ugly" publication, however because its so well done and how it suits the type of content showcased inside, Mushpit provides an alternative approach to editorial design.
Finally we have Flanuer magazine. Because of how vibrant and engaging the front cover is, to have a plain page next to it gives the spread a good contrast that doesn't detract from Flaneur's visual style. They were chosen to be included in the zine because of my interest in Studio Yukiko. They represent a an alternative way to go about editorial design. Up until discovering Studio Yukiko, the magazines I knew were mostly attributed to one main person, e.g Matt Willey, Yukiko represents how that doesn't have to be the case an that as a studio, can create editorial work.
Throughout the spreads the copy is brief and doesn't go into much depth about the designer. This is to keep the tone of voice in relation to target audience. A wall of text is discouraging for the younger audience to want to read. Keeping the copy short and brief allows the reader to flip through the pages relatively quickly maintaining a level of attention that doesn't drop off halfway.
On the back of the zine is a reflection of the front.
This again to give the reader a little surprise when flipping to the back page and to keep the engagement all the way till the end. When opened up with the front cover, they read Editorial Design, which is the topic of the zine.
This is a chance to showcase interesting magazines that are a good basis for learning about the possibilities of editorial design and to showcase some of my own selection of magazines.
Firstly is the cover page.
This type was purposely set to grab the readers attention. By breaking up the word Editorial, it slows down the read speed, forcing the reader to comprehend each segment as a whole. The large offset configuration is unusual and is meant to grab the readers attention through this way. The addition of the hyphen only on the IAL is meant to give play on the word editorial. As one word it clearly says editorial but the addition of the hyphen makes the 2 segments editor be more distinctive on the page because that is what an editorial designer is called. Therefore on the cover there is the word editorial and the more implicit editor.
An adjustment was made to give the cover a better visual flow.
The first spread graces Matt Willey's work. On the left page, Matt Willey is represented by his own typeface NSW01. One of the appealing characteristic of his typeface is the long and thin stems that really standout once expanded to a large scale. In the copy is a brief overview of what he is known for and his achivements. What this spread does is setup the layout of the zine. Having copy on the left and an image of the magazine. Throughout this zine, the colours and magazine images are all full bleed. This is to create a high impact visual that is aimed at grabbing the readers attention.
In the second spread is where the consistent layout of content starts to appear. From Matt Willey to Mike Meiré's page, it is clear that the page for copy is meant to reflect the personality or recognisable trait of that designer. So for example in Willey's page, what was recognisable was the use of his own font that was oversized on the page much like his poster designs.
For Mike Mieré, his name was done in the style of one of his most famous magazines, brand eins, where the masthead was clearly all lower case. The blue background was chosen because of his prevalence of using blue within brand eins covers.
Unlike Matt Willey and Mike Meiré, Elana Schlenker of Gratuitous Type represents a more fun approach to typesetting, colour scheme and page construction. On the left the irregular forms are meant to represent that and communicate to the reader the personality of the publication.
Along with Mike Meiré's 032c, Kinfolk was chosen because Charlotte Heal's successful re brand of the magazine. In this spread the page elements on the left are meant to reflect the cover of Kinfolk which has definitely replaced the old one and become a sort of icon for clean and minimal editorial design. This is also conveyed through the narrow columns of giving a slight insight on Heal did to Kinfolk.
What Mushpit represents is the complete antithesis to Kinfolk and offers a nice visual contrast between the two. In this spread, more jarring colour schemes were used to communicate Mushpits identity. Furthermore, the type of colour as well added to this. In the Kinfolk spread, it is clear that a pastel green is used. This conveys the soft, toned down nature of the publication both in content and visuals that is meant to ease the reading ecperince. In Mushpit, unconventional typefaces are used combined with unorthodox gradient combinations and high impact imagery, filled with varying colours. What this creates in terms of design is an "ugly" publication, however because its so well done and how it suits the type of content showcased inside, Mushpit provides an alternative approach to editorial design.
Finally we have Flanuer magazine. Because of how vibrant and engaging the front cover is, to have a plain page next to it gives the spread a good contrast that doesn't detract from Flaneur's visual style. They were chosen to be included in the zine because of my interest in Studio Yukiko. They represent a an alternative way to go about editorial design. Up until discovering Studio Yukiko, the magazines I knew were mostly attributed to one main person, e.g Matt Willey, Yukiko represents how that doesn't have to be the case an that as a studio, can create editorial work.
Throughout the spreads the copy is brief and doesn't go into much depth about the designer. This is to keep the tone of voice in relation to target audience. A wall of text is discouraging for the younger audience to want to read. Keeping the copy short and brief allows the reader to flip through the pages relatively quickly maintaining a level of attention that doesn't drop off halfway.
On the back of the zine is a reflection of the front.
This again to give the reader a little surprise when flipping to the back page and to keep the engagement all the way till the end. When opened up with the front cover, they read Editorial Design, which is the topic of the zine.
Thursday, 28 April 2016
Studio Brief 04 - Speaking from experience
The outline of this brief should be a reflection of my time on the course, the content I've taken on board and my development in design practice. Thus the research should be informed by my own reflection of the course as whole and relating to my own experiences.
This outline clearly aims to produce a response that reflects my interest within Graphic Design. As stated in my PPP blogs and evidenced in Design Principles, at this point in time, my interest in Graphic Design is within editorials. Therefore as a starting point, this resolution will be distributed to new students through zines.
What zines offer is an accessible form of printed media that it suggests light reading, a compact form factor that is easy to keep and versatility to display any type of information. Through the zine, I have an opportunity to display my new knowledge in editorial design. For example to demonstrate a informed placement of figure and ground and to also demonstrate new binding techniques.
This zine idea also is an opportunity to develop a response that makes the new students interested in editorials as well, which can be through playful typesetting, colourful stock or unique content. Therefore there is a need to create a visually engaging publication that holds their attention whilst communicating the information.
Because of the zines form factor and easy construction, it is able to be quickly produced for the number of new students. To further save on costs, the zine could just be printed in greyscale as well, which is another advantage of zines.
To develop on this zine idea, 3 possible content resolutions were brought to feedback. One was to create a zine that showcased 10 Graphic Designers to know. To give the reader an idea of the prominent designers that had an impact on Graphic Design. The second idea was to create like a crash course on Graphic Design. To inform the reader key aspects that will be useful in developing work and ideas in the first year. Lastly is to create a zine that displays different editorial designers and the magazines they've worked on. This last idea is most personal to me because of my interest in editorials.
From feedback, the two ideas that stood out were the graphic designer and editorial designer zine ideas. The main criticism for the crash course idea was that it was too large of a topic to condense. Being that Graphic Design is a large field, what aspect within each discipline would be essential for the first year. The tone of voice would also be affected as the zine will include more directive language. The feedback group doubted people would want to be already taught on the intricacies of Graphic Design on the first few days of the course.
For the graphic designers zine idea, people were interested in possibly reading about how the designers became to be. This could possibly inform the students on how they could become influential designers themselves. Their ow n design process for briefs and to be exposed to different careers once establishing yourself as a Graphic Designer.
What the feedback did agree on was to create a zine that is succinct and highly visual. This is to fully take advantage of the short attention span of the students. Adding on to this the zine should only focus on 3-5 designers to keep things brief and easy to read.
Lastly for the editorial designer idea, what the feedback liked about this was how personal this resolution could become. Because of my interest in editorials, the zine offers a great way to demonstrate that and to experiment with how the information is conveyed. Furthermore as a field in Graphic Design, I believe that not many people decide to pursue it. This could be disinterest or lack of knowledge of the area. Regardless, the zine again is an opportunity to demonstrate what is possible within editorial design and to inform the new students of the more unknown designers.
Studio Brief 02 - Evaluation
The final note design is a product of trial and error that definitely achieves the aims set out for the brief. Through the considered stock choice, limitation of colour and size, the note successfully achieves the aim to create an environmentally conscious solution to the Earth's bank note. The failure to produce accurate prints in the first run of screen printing lead to further design development which improved the overall quality of the note drastically. Adding to that, through the failure of the initial prints, I learned a lot more about the process of screen printing. The importance of applying the emulsion thinly, exposing a design that isn't too detailed and having ink that is the right consistency to create better quality prints.
This brief also exposed me to the importance of choosing a stock that supports the design. In much of the feedback, the stock that was most favourable was the Mountain Lotka Paper. Because of its characteristics, it effectively communicated the notes theme. If the design was printed on refined stock, the theme would not have shown as strongly or as explicitly to the reader. Furthermore the choice in stock added another dimension to the overall design. This lesson in stock can also be applied to different disciplines in Graphic Design, namely editorial work. For example how the choice in stock can affect how the reader interacts with the publication.
Producing the final design through trial and error can be a double edged sword however. On one hand trial and error will often lead to a more informed and richer designed solution that has evidenced solutions that work around the problems. On the other hand when working against a deadline, having a problematic development process can hinder the final outcome due to the limited time. But this ultimately comes down to time management, and with better knowledge of the process, the less mistakes will be made.
This brief also exposed me to the importance of choosing a stock that supports the design. In much of the feedback, the stock that was most favourable was the Mountain Lotka Paper. Because of its characteristics, it effectively communicated the notes theme. If the design was printed on refined stock, the theme would not have shown as strongly or as explicitly to the reader. Furthermore the choice in stock added another dimension to the overall design. This lesson in stock can also be applied to different disciplines in Graphic Design, namely editorial work. For example how the choice in stock can affect how the reader interacts with the publication.
Producing the final design through trial and error can be a double edged sword however. On one hand trial and error will often lead to a more informed and richer designed solution that has evidenced solutions that work around the problems. On the other hand when working against a deadline, having a problematic development process can hinder the final outcome due to the limited time. But this ultimately comes down to time management, and with better knowledge of the process, the less mistakes will be made.
Wednesday, 27 April 2016
Studio Brief 03 - Wayfinding
Based on the aims to demonstrate a versatile logo design, the way finding system incorporates the recognisable features of the exhibitions identity. As stated in the previous blog post, the theme of the exhibition was to use the blueprints as a way to incorporate the architecture of Bank House. Therefore the way finding will include shades to blue to keep the theme coherent across all of the areas.
In this iteration, the stacked are positioned into the shape of an arrow, clearly showing the viewer the direction of which to go. To keep in line with the stacking theme, there are two levels of the arrow. However this feature was not opted for in the final variation of the way finding logo. The different levels don't show the intended direction as clearly as the iteration below.
The lengths of the arrow have been shortened to better resemble a realistic dimension of a banknote. The flush top of the arrow is more effective in displaying the direction as the flat level does not break the image and is easier for the reader to quickly understand the symbol.
In this final version of the way finding system, the top layers of the arrows are in a lighter shade compared to the layers below. This is to help with legibility issues, making the arrow very explicit in which way it is directing the reader. There were also suggestions to add type to the arrows. This would allow the arrows to have a more specific purpose rather than a general direction which could lead to confusion. However as a group we are unsure of the placement of the type, either to place it on or to the side of the arrows. But after some debate, the type to the side of the arrow was chosen because of how it lets each component of the wayfinding system to "speak". When placing the type on top of the arrow, the purpose of the lighter coloured top layer is lost. Furthermore, the angled type worsens the readability of the sign.
Studio Brief 02 - Final Notes screenprints
These final prints and designs represent two main concepts that will be presented for the exhibition.
This represents the idea to present 2 sides of a single note. Based on previous feedback received on the stock choices, the final choice for these 2 sides is the Mountain Lotka Paper. On the front of the note, the faded effect across the design was initially undesired, upon feedback however it was received well because of how well it reflected the printing process of creating the note. If the print was entirely uniform in the quality, it would resemble too much of a digital print which is not the theme of the exhibition. Overall the concerns over the front's details didn't have an impact on the overall print quality. All of the lines in the representation of the wood grain came through.
In this idea, each note work together as a set. Each one is distinguished by how much the paper has been recycled. The 10 Terra note is the most recycled as shown through the translucent 30 gsm stock with visible fibers and specks. The following 20 Terra note is a visibly more refined stock, which also affects the tactile feel, further adding to how the user will distinguish the notes value without looking at the number. Finally with the 50 Terra note, this stock is the closest in resembling proper refined stock. This is shown through the smoothness and the limited amount of flecks in the paper's material. In terms of printing quality, the new 10 and 50 Terra note design have produced the same quality as the 20 Terra note. This is due to the similar design treatment applied to these designs. This is significant as it a key element in making the notes work as set. The same visual style creates consistency and a coherent identity.
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Studio Brief 03 - Poster designs
As these were showcased in the first presentation, a lot of feedback was given on how these could be improved to better form a cohesive identity for the exhibition. The colours were originally chosen to give the exhibition a vibrant promotion, however these did not help in making the public identify the exhibition effectively. Therefore a suggestion was made to change all the posters to blue. Furthermore the details in the poster were inadequate. The poster needs to state the date in full, include Leeds College of Art and the sponsor.
What was effective about these designs is the minimal approach taken. When placed onto context the relatively empty space stands out from the noisy posters, full of copy.
Moving on from the feedback, these are the final poster designs. The inconsistencies have been resolved. Further information has been included to better inform the reader of the exhibition.
Having the posters printed out, the blues turned out a lot deeper than expected. This creates a higher contrast than what is seen on the computer screen, making the overall poster visually stand out a lot more. At this point in time, the posters are digitally printed to demonstrate what they'll look like as a print. Ideally the posters would be screen printed in A2. This would make the posters reflect the emphasis of print in the exhibition.
Studio Brief 03 - Creating an identity
From the observations made on the exhibition identity of Leeds Print Festival, the intended identity of the money exhibition will achieve several aims. Firstly is for the identity to be versatile. Much like the logo of the Leeds Print Festival, the logo needs to be versatile enough to be used on a range of mediums and scale, this versatility also translates to the ability of the logo to be transformed into various forms to suit different needs. Secondly, is for the logo to be recognisable. Part of why the Leeds Print Festival logo was successful was because of how effective of an identifier it was. Even though the logo was a simple flat design, it was unique form which stood out making it easy to identify in the public space. This simple design also meant it can be used on small scale platforms, such as social media on mobile devices. Lastly is for the logo to be contextually appropriate to the title, theme of the exhibition. The Leeds Print Festival logo played on the idea of the exhibition being all about print, representing that through a rolled up poster and this carried through in how the exhibition was presented.
To establish what the theme of the logo will surround, the name of the exhibition needs to be identified. From the original license to Print Money title, we changed the name to Get Rich. This is based around one of our original ideas in conceiving the concept for the exhibition, that being the theme of cops of robbers. This idea is about how the robbers would use the blueprints of Bank House to steal money. However this was too conceptual and did not relate to the purpose of the exhibition. What we did decide to keep from this concept was the blueprint idea, this was a unique take on using the buildings architecture as a form of identity. How we got to title of Get Rich was by following on one of the aspects of robbery, i.e getting rich off the stolen money.
This is a very rough demonstration of the thought process that resulted in the final designs of the logo. The main idea is that by getting rich, you get a lot of money, which then can be represented through stacks of money as regularly seen in the entertainment industry.
This is the first mock up of the logo design. The two heights of the blocks are meant to represent differentiating heights of stacked money. This was chosen as opposed to designing stacks of the same height because of how more explicit the difference is in conveying stacked forms. Furthermore this difference in height and the differentiating coloured sides of the stack adds depth of the flat logo. An isometric angle was also used to further add to this depth as well as how effective it was in displaying the stacked money notes shown in a later design. A sans serif font was chosen because of its appropriation to the intended audience. Being that the exhibition is aimed for young creatives and professionals, the font needs to modern and reflect their creative practice. By doing so it appeals to their interest and attracts them to the exhibition. The bold typeface is impactful and clearly states the title of the exhibition whilst the spur of the G is minimal creating and an overall rounded look for the title. Overall the choice in font represents contemporary design which aligns to the trends of today and appeals to the type of work creative professionals are creating. Green was chosen because of the connotations it has to money in general and greed.
In the first iteration of the logo, there was no indication of it representing stacked money. Therefore lines were added just to convey that idea.
Further progression was made on the addition of the lines. In this iteration, the level of each stack was made to resemble a 3D note.
The "notes" were thinned out to better resemble paper, rather than blocks. However the amount of lines in this version would pose as a scaling problem, as much of the detail would be lost.
So less notes were displayed in each stack, giving the audience a clearer view of the individual notes. What was lacking the previous iterations was that despite the forms resembling stacks, it did not resemble stacks of money. And typically in images of money stacks, there are the bands that wrap around each bundle. This gives a more direct connotation to the overall idea surrounding the logo design.
Despite these development in designs, a more minimal approach was opted for because of how versatile the simplistic forms offer in terms of being manipulated to suit the context. The lines of the forms were made thick to keep in align with the bold type. The thick lines also easily establish the form of the shape and will allow for logo to be recognisable from a distance much like the Leeds Print Festival logo.
But again, having too minimal of a logo design will not fully communicate the idea behind the logo design. Therefore in this final iteration, the logo combines both aspects with were effective. On one hand, the logo conveys a minimal approach through the representation of bank notes in vector form and the simple black and white colour scheme. On the other hand, logos details are conveyed through the representation of each bank note in each stack.
Demonstrating how this idea is versatile, the logo is also able to take on an alternate form.
In this version of the logo, the stacking motif is taken into the actual letters of the exhibitions name. Because of the rounded look Gotham has, there were comments that the letter forms resembled coins instead of bank notes. The varying heights of the stacks also relate to a graph of a stock exchange, further playing on the theme of the exhibition. The limitations of this alternate logo however is that because of the thin stroke of each layer and the amount of layers, there will be details lost in scaling down the image for certain uses.
Therefore a similar design treatment was done on this variation, creating better cohesion between the two logos.
To establish what the theme of the logo will surround, the name of the exhibition needs to be identified. From the original license to Print Money title, we changed the name to Get Rich. This is based around one of our original ideas in conceiving the concept for the exhibition, that being the theme of cops of robbers. This idea is about how the robbers would use the blueprints of Bank House to steal money. However this was too conceptual and did not relate to the purpose of the exhibition. What we did decide to keep from this concept was the blueprint idea, this was a unique take on using the buildings architecture as a form of identity. How we got to title of Get Rich was by following on one of the aspects of robbery, i.e getting rich off the stolen money.
This is a very rough demonstration of the thought process that resulted in the final designs of the logo. The main idea is that by getting rich, you get a lot of money, which then can be represented through stacks of money as regularly seen in the entertainment industry.
This is the first mock up of the logo design. The two heights of the blocks are meant to represent differentiating heights of stacked money. This was chosen as opposed to designing stacks of the same height because of how more explicit the difference is in conveying stacked forms. Furthermore this difference in height and the differentiating coloured sides of the stack adds depth of the flat logo. An isometric angle was also used to further add to this depth as well as how effective it was in displaying the stacked money notes shown in a later design. A sans serif font was chosen because of its appropriation to the intended audience. Being that the exhibition is aimed for young creatives and professionals, the font needs to modern and reflect their creative practice. By doing so it appeals to their interest and attracts them to the exhibition. The bold typeface is impactful and clearly states the title of the exhibition whilst the spur of the G is minimal creating and an overall rounded look for the title. Overall the choice in font represents contemporary design which aligns to the trends of today and appeals to the type of work creative professionals are creating. Green was chosen because of the connotations it has to money in general and greed.
In the first iteration of the logo, there was no indication of it representing stacked money. Therefore lines were added just to convey that idea.
Further progression was made on the addition of the lines. In this iteration, the level of each stack was made to resemble a 3D note.
The "notes" were thinned out to better resemble paper, rather than blocks. However the amount of lines in this version would pose as a scaling problem, as much of the detail would be lost.
So less notes were displayed in each stack, giving the audience a clearer view of the individual notes. What was lacking the previous iterations was that despite the forms resembling stacks, it did not resemble stacks of money. And typically in images of money stacks, there are the bands that wrap around each bundle. This gives a more direct connotation to the overall idea surrounding the logo design.
Despite these development in designs, a more minimal approach was opted for because of how versatile the simplistic forms offer in terms of being manipulated to suit the context. The lines of the forms were made thick to keep in align with the bold type. The thick lines also easily establish the form of the shape and will allow for logo to be recognisable from a distance much like the Leeds Print Festival logo.
But again, having too minimal of a logo design will not fully communicate the idea behind the logo design. Therefore in this final iteration, the logo combines both aspects with were effective. On one hand, the logo conveys a minimal approach through the representation of bank notes in vector form and the simple black and white colour scheme. On the other hand, logos details are conveyed through the representation of each bank note in each stack.
Demonstrating how this idea is versatile, the logo is also able to take on an alternate form.
In this version of the logo, the stacking motif is taken into the actual letters of the exhibitions name. Because of the rounded look Gotham has, there were comments that the letter forms resembled coins instead of bank notes. The varying heights of the stacks also relate to a graph of a stock exchange, further playing on the theme of the exhibition. The limitations of this alternate logo however is that because of the thin stroke of each layer and the amount of layers, there will be details lost in scaling down the image for certain uses.
Therefore a similar design treatment was done on this variation, creating better cohesion between the two logos.
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