Form and Content

Gary Hustwit's film, "Objectified," analyzes the design of everyday objects.  We are surrounded by mass produced objects that we use in our daily lives without giving a thought.  Design is implemented in every object we interact with, whether we realize it or not.  "Objectified"  brings this fact to light by presenting a perspective we, consumers, usually never see: behind the scenes of industrial design.  The film takes the content  of everyday objects and puts it in the form of objects of design in the form of a documentary.  I enjoyed this film because it made me realize how much effort is put into designing everyday objects.  Who knew there was so much behind the design of yard tools?  Maximum comfort for all potential users is key, while considering effectiveness.

Comparison and Contrast

Personal style. It varies on many levels from one artist to the next. Comparing and contrasting personal style in various classes I’m taking is quite amusing. It is fun to see and appreciate styles that are different from mine. For example, in Design 1, we make quick sketches every lecture. Then, in small groups we hold our drawing pads up and look at each other’s work. Some have a very realistic style, some focus more on the gestalt of the image and leave out realistic details, some use bold confident line strokes, some make quick dashes to form the image. It’s interesting to compare such different personal styles.

In my landscape architecture drafting class, we do the same comparison and contrast with our work. In this drafting class, we are all learning the same techniques and skills, but the outcomes of our projects vary from designer to designer. Some students take a more technical approach and some go for a more artistic portrayal of the assignments. Either way, all of these sketches and projects portray the same assigned image, but are depicted how each individual interprets it and add their own style to their work. We all work with the same content, but form it on our papers in our own ways.

Speaking of Gap...

Analyzing Gap's logo redesign (and reversion to the original) reminded me of this particular ad of theirs.  This is from their 2005 favorite songs, favorite jeans campaign.  I love the juxtaposition of images / video in this.    It utilizes the power of images, accompanied by powerful music.  Music is an appealing feature in advertising because it sounds nice to the audience’s ears, and it communicates the message in a fun, creative way.  It has great design, and is a well-made video. 

The aspect of design that stood out the most to me was the contrast of black-and-white and color.  When the musicians are speaking, they are shown in black-and-white on one half of the screen, while a close up of someone wearing jeans is shown in color on the other half.  Although the viewer is intrigued by the famous singer, their eye is also drawn to the pair of jeans because it stands out in color.  The contrast between the grayscale celebrities and the color images of jeans also exemplifies the play on words of the celebrities’ statements.  Although their statements generally seem to apply to either a favorite song or a favorite pair of jeans, you know they are speaking of their favorite song.  However, seeing a close-up of jeans on half of the screen makes you apply their statements to a favorite pair of jeans as well, and makes you realize the similarities in the two.  Another aspect of the design of this Gap commercial is the background for both the celebrities and the jeans.  They are both very simple: a plain gray background.  I think the plain background is intended to direct all attention to the subjects.  It is signifying that nothing else is important besides what is being said or sung, and the double-meaning of the jeans being similar to a favorite song.  It is successful because it is a very creative message conveyed in a very artistic and intriguing way.

Well done, Gap… if only you kept this aesthetic design model in mind when creating a new logo.

Design As Conversation

Design is not a finalized product, but rather an ongoing conversation.  Looking at the etymology of design, we can see the literal roots of the word.  Kostas Terzidis wrote about the etymology of design from a philosophical perspective. “…from its Greek definition, design is about incompleteness, indefiniteness, or imperfection, yet it also is about likelihood, expectation, or anticipation,” Terzidis wrote.  The indefiniteness of design is apparent:  the way fads go in and out and styles change; of fashion, graphics, art, photography, etc.  Design is an ongoing conversation between designers, artists, corporations, businesses, and the general public; between anyone involved in its discourse.


A recent example of design as a conversation has been blowing up all over the internet.  Gap introduced a redesigned logo which quickly met rage from unhappy consumers.

The classic logo used by Gap for over 20 years shows on the right, and the new one on the left.  Thanks to society’s technological means of communication the clothing company received immediate feedback to the newly released graphic.  Critiques were written on networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and they appeared in blogs and online articles.  Critiques were particularly negative.  Communities of designers ripped Gap’s new logo and their idea to redesign the classic logo apart.  To switch from Serif to Sans-Serif font is one thing, but to strip the logo of its aesthetic qualities and add a small gradient box is just not smart.  Many including myself wondered, “Who was paid for their destruction of the original Gap logo?”  On one design blog, there was even a Gap Redesign Contest, just for fun.  There were loads of entries by designers who wanted to fix this disaster.  David Lauer wrote in his book, Design Basics, that, “The goal of a critique is increased understanding through examination of the project’s successes and shortcomings.”  According to mass opinion, there were far more shortcomings than successes in the Gap logo redesign. 

Credit to: Utpal Pande

Credit to: Fernando Machado
Images credited to:   http://blog.iso50.com/logos/gap-redesign-contest/#more-20224

Tropicana had a similar conversation with the public about their orange juice logo redesign.  One designer’s entry in the blog’s redesign contest made a comical connection between the two companies’ failed logos.   Apparently Gap ‘increasingly understood,’ or maybe just had enough of the negative feedback, and reported to scrap the new design.  They're now turning this disaster into a social media opportunity.  Gap is claiming they still like the new design, however they are opening the redesign process to involve the public.  They will be accepting design entries for a fix to the new logo.  "One social media expert says the decision to crowd source a new logo demonstrates how sites like Facebook and Twitter can be used to turn mistakes into opportunities."  Hopefully, with the conversation open, and with collaboration, Gap can settle on a decent design.

The conversation between consumer and corporation proved again to be important enough to be logo-altering.  Design is an ongoing conversation with indefinite anticipations and solutions.

"Nsane Graphics"

Graphic design at its best.  Anthony Graglia's company, "Nsane Graphics" is run out of his Davis apartment. He designs websites, stickers, logos and custom work. Graphic design is a realm of design which interacts with society directly.  Whether its created for a new business' logo to help advertise, or for a Davis student's snowboard, these graphics affect how society perceives them.  It's about designing graphics to express one's essence, either on a large or personal scale.  This is a webpage design for El Macero Apartments.  The design shows apartment layouts and has easy to follow links.  It is graphically organized in an aesthetic way.  The color scheme and design seem to target a younger crowd of potential renters.

http://www.facebook.com/nsanegraphics?v=app_4949752878

 This is a logo design for OC Fitness Source.  "OC Fitness is the result of a "reinvented" business model which caters to a smaller market of customers who demand a higher level of quality and service," reads their website (also designed by Nsane Graphics).  The logo designed for their newer, elite fitness business reflects this goal.  The graphic appears shiny, clean-cut, and expensive, or high quality.

http://www.facebook.com/nsanegraphics?v=app_4949752878

 This one of the many stickers designed by Nsane Stickers.  Stickers such as this one are created for self expression on vehicle windows, laptops, snowboards, binders, etc.

http://www.nsanestickers.com/Hands-Hand-Gestures/HAND-ROCKER-005/Detailed-product-flyer.html

 Quite impressive work! Check it out. 

Creativity From Without

Sure, creativity comes from within designers' minds; but, what about from their surrounding worlds?  The things, people, places, and ideas surrounding designers can inspire them just as much as their inner selves.

Graffiti.  It’s found all over urban buildings, walls, trains, etc… especially in the Bronx, New York.  Graffiti is what inspired an artist/ fashion designer who goes by the name Indie184.  She was born in New York and this form of art had a huge impact on her style.  Indie184 admired graffiti artists such as West. Some of West’s tags follow:

Photo Credit:  http://www.westonefc.com/WALLS.html

Photo Credit: http://www.westonefc.com/TRAINS.html

This inspiration lead to a fashion line called “Kweenz Destroy.”  In an interview with The BVX, Indie184 was quoted, “Graffiti has always been part of my environment.”  … "I too wanted to be part of that culture!”  Her clothes feature her artwork which she developed from years of tagging.  "I first started tagging up when I was 21-years-old then after having my son I took on the more artistic, legal approach, which required less risk but lots of time and dedication," she stated.  Although graffiti is a huge part of Indie184's inspiration, she gains her creativity from many other surrounding elements of her world as well.  When asked what inspires her work, the designer answered, “Inspiration comes from everywhere, it could be an old rusty sign, my kids' artwork, walking around my neighborhood, books or music.” (http://www.thebvx.com/2010/07/26/graffiti-artist-indie184-talks-kweenz-destroy-fashion-line-bomb/)  Some pieces from Indie184’s fashion line follow:

Photo Credit: http://kweenzdestroy.com/lookbook2.html#look19

The world surrounding a given designer often has a huge impact on their creativity.  Things outside of a designer’s own self, such as graffiti, can be a part of that world and have an impact on their style.  This is creativity from without!

Stone Soup

Marcia Brown’s “Stone Soup” is an inspiring story.  It is a story about bringing people together, about individuals contributing what they have to share and benefit the group.  In the story, a great feast is prepared despite the hard times and lack of food, beginning with only stones.

Photo Credit:  http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=3126183521747749942

“Stone Soup” is a story that can be seen as an analogy for design.  In the case of design, instead of food being brought to the table by individuals, it is ideas.  In my introductory design course, we were assigned to create “stone soup.”  With recycled materials and ideas to throw in the pot, a group of eight of us design students came together and made art.  This concept may be elementary, but it exemplified the creative design process.  The first step was looking at the mash up of recycled things we had to work with and begin planning our “soup.”

The pile of recycled materials included brown paper, denim, tire tubes, cardboard boxes, paper clips, tissue paper, newspaper, glitter glue, and more random things.  After deciding on turning our “soup” into a “tree,” the magic began.  With a basic plan in mind, we began to wrap paper and tire tubes around a light post.  From there the process became a free-for-all.  Everyone was throwing ideas out, and adding materials onto the “tree” left and right.  This was a fun project, and it really gave me an idea of how the design process works. Working with other creative people on an art project that had no rules, no boundaries resulted in a cool experience and a beautiful thing we called “Tree In a Box.” 

"Tree In a Box"  looks as if there is an industrial tree exploding out of a small cardboard box.  Made out of all recycled items, it expresses backwards recycling.  We created the art and assigned meaning afterwards.

Solitude.

Photo credit to Chad Siddal

http://www.baisermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/cs11.jpg

The peace and quiet found in solitude is irreplaceable.  Stepping out and away from monotonous routines is always rewarding... The silence is humbling.  There is time to think the thoughts you usually don't have time for, there is no one there to distract your attention.  You're free to perceive your world how you wish. This photograph captures a perfect moment of solitude.  The light, shadow, and scenery create a mood which epitomize the tranquility felt in solitude.  I love the design of this photograph. Its composition is interesting and I like the washout spot the sun creates, as well as the sun spots across the photograph.  It has a very pleasing gestalt.

We've Got To Start Somewhere

Pursuing your passions is a part of life that can really bring satisfaction.  It is something that encourages self fulfillment.  The thing about pursuing our passions, though, is that we’ve got to actually begin to do so.  Beginnings are important.  One of my favorite inspirational quotes is: “What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?”  If you can answer that question without hesitation, that’s probably a passion worth pursuing.  As a student at UC Davis, I have begun to discover my true passions.  I have begun to pursue my true interests with an “if not now, then when?” attitude.  Taking that leap of faith is the hardest part, the rest will come to you.  Passions I have been pursuing include photography, design, landscape architecture, guiding white water rafting… all things that I could have easily told myself I might fail, and avoided those intimidating beginnings.

An Early Impression

Design has always been intriguing to me.  Ever since I was an elementary school girl, I was awed by appealing graphics, art, photography, etc.  I can recall several memories when I realized the impact design has on our lives; but, one picture in particular truly sparked my fascination.  This picture was a hand drawing of the English alphabet.  It wasn’t your average calligraphy, though.  The artist had drawn children forming their bodies into the shapes of the letters.  This picture was framed in my grandparents’ house.  I can remember staring at the picture in that hallway every single time I passed by it.  The picture had careful depictions of the kids’ features with a simple white background.  But, it was the creativity of forming the alphabet this way which is what made such a big impression on me.

I used to try to mimic each girl and boy in the picture (because if they could do it, I could too, right?) Well, this proved to be quite challenging for some of the letters!  It was, after all, from the artist’s imagination and not realistically portrayed.  But, viewing the picture gave me such a sense of awe that I had to try again and again to master the poses; tweaking my back, touching my toes, reaching my arms… 

I think pictures such as this one from my childhood impacted my perception of design in my life.  Whether it was animation, graphics, or hand drawings, I became very interested in this realm of creativity at an early age.  It’s those first impressions that make a difference and a lasting impact on our understanding of such concepts as design.