It’s rare for my wife and I to find time to watch a movie, but a few months back we managed to sneak in Julie & Julia[WARNING: Link Autoplays sound]. Anyway, it inspired the purchase of Julia Child’sMastering the Art of French Cooking, and that is the subject of this post.
Actually, it’s the French Onion Soup, pictured above, that is the subject of this post. Now that we have the subject out of the way, let’s move on to the body of this post. With the exception of securing five generously proportioned tureens, Ms. Child’s recipe was easy enough to make. And finally, the conclusion of this post: It was delicious.
Andy, my 17-year-old tennis prodigy, is playing his final year for Glendale High here in Springfield. As co-captain and graduating senior he gets to pick the team’s uniform and logo: That’s where I come in. Above is the crest Andy and I decided upon, featuring the school’s falcon mascot, crossed rackets and clenched balls (ha!), the founding date and the year of application.
Go Glendale! Go Andy!
UPDATE: I have replaced the art with correct school colors, Columbia Blue and red.
All jokes aside, the overwhelming reaction of the geek class of pundits are missing the point: Apple’siPad is not for them, at least not yet.
The Stevedid say it was between a smartphone and a laptop, not a new device to replace them.
Geeks, powerusers, programmers, and yes, designers are all frowning on the Pad because it doesn't do anything for them. Or should I say, it doesn’t do anything more for them. I’m calling this projection, or projecting what they know, what they’re used to and most importantly, what more they want form the next iGadget.
Here's what they don’t get: It’s not for them. It’s for the un-them.
Apple’s iPad is for my wife. She loves Facebook. She loves family photos. She loves making photo albums in iPhoto. She emails, browses the web a little, shops a little, watches a movie or two on her iPhone the handful of times she travels, pay bills online and that’s it.
The iPad is for my daughter. She does just about everything my wife does (except pay bills).
Apple’s tablet is for my mom who has never figured how to use a computer let alone set one up, install software, manage all the cables, printers, scanners, external hard drives, burning CDs, backing up, viruses, connecting to the internet, email, blah blah blah.
The absence of multitasking, Flash, a camera, an always there physical keyboard and whatever else the computing class have grown accustomed to, all amount to stuff that's done on devices that the iPad is not trying to be. And though the iWork stuff was pretty amazing, it’s stuff my wife, daughter and mom don't really care much about.
So, instead of looking at what the iPad is not, the important thing to remember is what it is: (present company excluded) A computer for the rest of us.
I stumbled upon the Booth Ranches Black Box I drafted In the produce department at the Price Cutter in Springfield, Missouri, while shopping for ingredients for leek soup. The box is cool. The soup was hot.
I have decided to quit the business of graphic design and dedicate the remainder of my mortal life to writing. Let me be clear: I’m not going to just write, I am going to write in Ommwriter. Farewell Mr. Rand. So long Saul Bass. Good day Mr. Glaser.
Those were the orders from Hasbro on a re-packaging, re-positioning assignment for three of Hasbro's classic board games.
Pictionary, Trivial Persuit, and Taboo were canned to appeal to a younger demo with a bit more pocket change, but a shorter attention span in this hyper-digital-handheld-device-driven era we’re all traveling through.
We presented two themes with designs to match: Co-Ed Wrestle and Shock Talk. The games were miniaturized and made portable by using a squat can and decreasing the size of gameboards, pawns and whatnots.
Using found imagery and period appropriate typography, the cans take a spin in the mosh-pit of retail punkery with hopes kiddies and their mums are eager, or at least curious enough to slap down a few bucks for a little gameplay.
Another quick post to announce the selection of another logo I drafted to be included in the upcoming LogoLoungeMaster Library series
Above is a logo concept I did for Larry Barnes at Eternal Screen Printing in Bakersfield back in 2002. LogoLounge and Rockport Publishers will include it in the book, Animals, Birds and Mythology.
Sweet Street Desserts is venturing into the world of the consumer and as such, is ramping up their brand to appeal to the delicate sensibilities of the rabid American shopper.
Here at Marlin, working with senior copywriter, Judith Garson, we put together the above 7-panel consumer brochure to be included in every outbound online order from the amazing Sweet Street confections factory in Reading, Pennsylvania.
The idea was to take a series of Sweet Street’s products and create photo-realistic icons reflecting the essence of the dessert.
I'll put up the complete series of images in a future post.
My pal Brian Williams, CD at Inspiration Networks, threw me a bone with an identity exploration for a documentary television network.
Halogen takes a faith-based approach to exploring real world issues without the all-too-common whitewashing or sappy storytelling many Christian programs trip over.
Up top are my favorite solutions to the problem. Below are sample pages for a Field Guide the network publishes to express the voice, tone and manner of the channel.
A quick post to announce the selection of 6 logos I drafted to be included in the upcoming LogoLoungeMaster Library series.
The Master Library is a bit of a twist on the popular LogoLounge book series focusing on singular topics of reference including: • Initials & Crests • Typography • People • Animals, Birds and Mythology • Shapes and Symbols • Nature and Food • Arts and Culture (including transportation, sports and architecture)
Here’s my work which LogoLounge and Rockport Publishers will include in the first book, Initials & Crests:
Is any idea really original? What’s old is new and what’s new is old? I received an anonymous comment on my First Light post calling me to the carpet of unoriginality. The commenter pointed out a similar logo was created for another production company with a similar name and similar concept for an identity, Natural Light Films. Have I been called out?
The First Light Solution Logo design, when it’s done well, seeks to create a visual play between the mark and the thing it represents. In my solution for First Light, I used a big door in the form of an ‘F’ revealing a crack of light for the movie production house. I wouldn’t say that a big ‘F’ by itself is compelling, nor is using light cascading from an open door original either. But the two together create an interesting representation of the specific nature of First Light:
“First Light can either be one of two things: 1. The big bang that brought you all to my blog, or 2. The first star a new telescope is trained upon. Either way, the metaphor is spot-on for what the production company is trying to do: Get young directors and writers funding to realize their digital movie making dreams.”
For a point of reference, and a look into the work done exploring the First Light problem, below are the options presented to the client:
The Natural Light Dimmer Switch In the case of Natural Light the open door revealing a natural light source makes sense, but only in the literal form, and by itself, doesn’t create an ownable metaphor for the production company. On the Natural Lightsite there’s a brief statement outlining the mission of Natural Light:
“NATURAL LIGHT FILMS specializes in true to light documentary and television series production. We create programs that entertain, educate, motivate and involve each viewer as a participant in the lives and stories of each subject.”
So what do they mean by “True to Light?” I suppose it could be interpreted as presenting something as it is, or it could be faith-based. Whatever the reason, using an open door to represent the idea of “True to Light” simply isn’t unique. A quick search for ‘door’ and ‘light’ over at LogoLounge demonstrates the open door solution is a popular one:
What about my open door solution? Clichés can be good, but most often they’re bad, occupying that place along the road where pedestrian design resides. Good logo design often employs clichés to build a familiar link between an audience and a company, but the best clichés are those with an unexpected or clever twist.
So, the bell has rung and the gloves have come off: The open door for Natural Light is a bit of a bore. It’s rendered well enough and it does make sense, but the ambitious contender simply sits in its corner hoping for another chance at the title. But really? With a glass jaw, and an open door to an alley littered with tired ideas, did the First Light logo ever have a shot, all the while lacking the heart of a champ?
