Making of a Book Cover

A quick representation of what an art director does - from research and the broad idea to the little details that are oh so important. From Orbit Books art director Lauren Panepinto via their blog.

Mixing Fonts

Hoefler & Frere-Jones give techniques for how to combine fonts. Using their own, of course, they give four tips on combining the typefaces.
1. Use a palette with wit: use typefaces with complementary moods to evoke an upbeat, energetic air.
2. Use a palette with energy: mix typefaces from the same historical period whose families have different features.
3. Use a palette with poise: mix typefaces with a similar line quality if they offer different textures.
4. Use a palette with dignity: mix typefaces with similar proportions and give each a different role.
In a nutshell, use typefaces that have one thing in common and then experiment. Above is one example. Their variations came out beautifully.

Giving Independents a Chance

A bookstore in Colorado (Boulder Bookstore) is giving authors an opportunity that is generally only given to publishers - that of consignment. Money is paid to the store to give the book a good placement in the front of the store. This gives the book a much better chance of being bought. And it gives independent authors and publishers a much better opportunity because they can compete with other books. They are willing to pay for the option.

Most Popular Websites

In a report by Neilson and posted by BBC, the 100 most popular websites are listed. Google and other search engines are the most popular, followed closely by Facebook and YouTube, as well as Wikipedia. The New York Times is down at 61. It's an interesting look at websites and what the internet is used for - mostly entertainment.

Choosing Type

It's important to realize what type you are using - and what it conveys to the audience. A NYT article explains some blunders done by television shows and architectural signage. Especially to experts, these typeface mistakes can be grating. And to those that are not experts, it can create an aura that is not intended.
I used optima for my powerpoint presentation, a typeface that was not quite right. It did not give the presentation the look and feel that should have been given the subject. It's important to give consideration to these details, not just pick a random typeface. It should reflect the content of the piece as well.

Google's Dynamic Identity

Alice Rawsthorn discusses Google's corporate identity (or lack thereof) in her recent NYT blog post. Google changes its search logo for holidays and other special days of the year, leading it to be seen as unsophisticated and sloppy. But is that really what is being portrayed? In the age in which people are wary of giant corporations, this changing logo and dynamic identity helps keep consumers interested. As she says "Google's clumsiness makes it look sincere."

I like that it is a dynamic logo that is able to change with the times and need of design. It still can be recognizable -- the very name google conveys to its audience the company. It is not just attached to one logo.

See also, the new Melbourne logo. This was updated from a drab out-of-date logo to a dynamic one that has the ability to change color based on the need of the design.

Book Design

In a NY Times post about the blog of Craig Mod, a former book designer, discussion of the future of book publishing is a central issue. The result: it's all about the content, not the technology. The question, Mod tells us, is whether or not the e-Reader is necessarily the best means of conveying the content. Pixels versus print is not the concern - it's how you get the message across to the readers. Good point.

I Lego

Check out this video about Christoph Niemann's I Lego N.Y. It's super cool and the illustrations are extremely creative.
I remember playing with Legos as a child and making tons of different structures - from cars to houses, my siblings and I even made our own town.
This book is looking at Legos in a new way, seeing things that may not have been there before. By naming the structures, we are able to see them in the way Niemann sees them and grasp a new meaning that we perhaps didn't see before.

Northwest Airlines Redesign

Northwest airlines recently went through a redesign in which they were trying to reinvent themselves. The new one has some good elements - the use of color and shortening the name to nwa - but the integrity and ingenuity of the old one is not transferred to the new one. It's disappointing.

Film Credit Design

There is design in everything - even the seemingly meaningless credits at the end of films. Good titles can be what makes the movie that much better. In the New York Times article, Alice Rawsthorn discusses the titles in films of this year. She says that Avatar, for its technological triumph, was not well designed and this is a discredit to the film. While the creators may not realize the importance of good titles, in design every detail is important.

Some Cool Web Designs

These images are from a post from a blog called DesignRFix - it's a compilation of 40 examples of visually appealing web designs. It gives me some inspiration for my own community website, and shows how creative you can be with a website.

Rube Golberg Machine

Check out this video! It's the most intense Rube Golberg Machine I've ever seen. It goes on for 3 minutes!
This goes back to an earlier post about the increasing complexity of design and the unnecessary additions that are made simply because the product looks better or does something in a more interesting way. Completely unnecessary, but interesting to watch.

Snow

Over the course of this past week, my hometown of Westerlo, NY got over 4 feet of snow. Yes, that is over 48 inches. It was so much that we had to shovel off the roof. This was extremely difficult because there was such an abundance of snow and it was very heavy. We broke a couple shovels in the process, and I was wondering what the best shovels are. I looked on core77, and they had a post about the various kinds of shovels, shown below. However, I'm not sure any of these would be best in the conditions I was in this weekend.

The cartoon below is a good description of the situation. So much snow! And it made me want to make some wonderful creation like Calvin does with his various snowmen. What great designs can come from snow and creativity.

Smallest Library Ever!

Check this out! It's the smallest library in the UK - and it's located inside an old phone booth. It holds 100 books, is open 24 hours, and it lit inside. How perfect! It's a great way to use the old phone booths that have been discarded because of cell phones. More are springing up in England, and it would be so cool to have them in the US!