You can't Miss - Indexcard generator

I just think things like this are neat, so I thought I would share. It would also be fun to learn how to create this type of generator - is this in flash? or some other crazy program that we should all be learning? ;) check it out: http://www.blyberg.net/card-generator/

Critique - Summer Camp Illustration

Here are the two drafts of an illustration I designed for short talk this week. The image with the flamingo on top was my first draft, which was drawn before I (or the editor) knew which camps would be in the story. Once I saw the final text, however, I discovered that the items I drew weren't necessary content driven (no flamingos at the veterinary camp and no chess, video game or cooking camps were still included in the final version). SO, I redrew it. The editor requested a zany illustration á la Dr. Seuss to reflect the wacky camps. I checked out some Dr. Seuss books from the library, and decided that a tall stack of the different camp motifs would be just the ticket. I also like the fact that most illustrations aren't vertical, so this adds some variety to the mix. Sometimes I worry that my illustrations are too amateurish, but I hope that my work with VOX will help me improve my drawing skills.

Class Response - Web Critiques

Here is my inspiration for the design of my website. Each page is incrementally longer than the next to create the layered/tab format. The blue vellum sheets contain a couple sentences about the design that follows it.

It was fun to see how everybody's websites are evolving, and helpful to receive feedback from people who aren't married (in other words, didn't spend hours mapping out how all the flash and navigation elements would work together) to my website. I think I because I spent so much time on it and thought extensively about (most of) my decisions, I found it hard to accept others feedback for some reason. Perhaps it is because I know that a critique on a layout just means I need to correct things on a few pages, whearas the though of making changes to a flash file with tweens and movie clips and buttons sounds so daunting! It's also hard when you have very thought through reasons for your choices, and then someone just happens to disagree or have a different preferance than you. The most consistent complaint I received in my critiques were about the black M behind the portfolio pieces, so that will DEFINITELY be revised. As for typography choices? What if I like them even though nobody else does? Is it wrong to not change it? I will decide as I continue working on it.

PS> for those of you who thought I needed to change the typography on the splash page, if you would like to provide more detailed suggestions (perhaps with specific font types or names) I would appreciate it.

Ace Jet 170 Blog Report - Uncommon Knowledge

In addition to his regular blog section called "Found Type Fridays," AceJet is planning to start a new series called "Uncommon Knowledge." It is based on the book A Technique for Producing Ideas by James Webb-Young (according to AceJet, this book is "ace" and a must-read). James Webb-Young gives tips on how to collect examples of designs you like and use them to inspire your own original and creative work. Perhaps it is worth the read!

P.S. This index card images contains one of James Webb-Young's principles.

Critique - Restaurant Issue Cover

If you go here: http://flickr.com/photos/mmmappingdesign

you can see all the different background styles I played with for the restaurant issue cover. In the end, I'm glad I decided to keep the background in. While the solid color backgrounds had a clean, crisp appearance, the context of the background gives the photo a elegant, relaxed mood. The back cover was kind of a last-minute addition to the book. You can see the different arrangments that I played with for the back cover photos, as well. In case you were wondering, the food on the fork is peanut butter. It was late at night and I didn't know how to make my fork look like someone had used it, so peanut butter is the first thing I though of. Katherine Reeds comment in the critique about the photo illustration being staged is an interesting point. This may be more of an issue, because as we saw at Meredith, the photo studio has more props than a theater to help them present their photos.

You can't Miss - Knowledge Maps

NOTE: I'll upload images when Blogspot works again.

At the University of Minnesota (where I went for undergrad), they have a special program called the Design Institute. One of the projects they worked on was making knowledge maps (of scents of Mpls/St. Paul, spirituality, restaurants/gathering places,etc) of the Twin Cities. There are only small images of the maps on the website, but they might give you an idea for an infograph-y layout. Tonight in lab we talked about possible visual features for VOX, and a map like these could be an option. Check them out: http://design.umn.edu/go/document/TCDC.03.KMap.mappage

Warning: sometimes there server is really slow, so you might have to visit during an off-peak hour.

Response - 20/10

I think what is so great about the 20/10 assignment is that it forces you to brainstorm and at least attempt to take your thinking in new directions. Without having to come up with 20 ideas first, I probably would have brainstormed the minimum amount that was required for the final product. In class we talked about people who work best under deadline. Oftentimes I think I am one of these people, but being like this sometimes means that you don't take the proper time to brainstorm. For me, sketching with a pencil and paper allowed for more freedom of thought. Plus, a sketch on a piece of paper looks like it has more potential (maybe because it is more "rough") to me than a "sketch" done on the computer. Pencil and paper also has a faster response rate - I can get my ideas down instantaneously, whereas if I were on the computer I would have to make sure I had the right tool and the right tool properties. These adjustments take time and may prohibit the quick, free thinking that brainstorming should inspire. I'm all for pencil and paper.

Blog Update (AceJet): Content-Driven Ads

This week, www.AceJet170.typepad.com displays an advertisement that is an excellent example of content driven design. The real genius of this ad, however, is that not only is the street sign a content driven symbol for the service advertisement, but the psychological experience of consuming the ad mimics the experience that they want you to avoid. This experential component of the ad sends the message out loud and clear. I don't know if this would be applicable to any design work, but if we could somehow create an experience, that would be ideal.

You can't Miss - Ads of the World

I think advertisements can be some of the best inspiration for magazine design. So can travelling to different countries. Well, combine those two sources and you've got: http://adsoftheworld.com/. There are some pretty neat ads from around the world. Check it out and get some fun ideas.

Ace Jet 170 Blog Report

This week AceJet talks about how you don't need to stick to design conventions in advertisements. Specifically, he points to the text-heavy ads by Philco televisions. Although the text is used as a means to show what you are missing when you don't have a widescreen television rather than being directly persuasive text, it goes against the idea that you need mainly images in ads. The highlighted text makes you want to understand why it is highlighted, and then you figure out how that serves the purpose of the product....pretty clever because of the intrigue factor. AceJet also points to advertisements for History Files, which use small, stick-figure like sketches on a plain background rather than lavish photographs. He's right that the little sketches are just as (if not more) successful in relaying the message "history in brief."

Poise Meredith Prototype 2

While a solution on one end of the spectrum in creating a magazine for busy women is to give the book a relaxing feel to counteract the chaos, this design was intended to embrace the chaos. I want to use bold, bright colors and include illustrations that were less refined than in my other prototype, which sends the message that imperfections and slight imbalances are OK and normal. I had trouble finding typography that went well with this bold and active design scheme, so perhaps I will have to search around and download some fonts that fit the feel better.

Poise Meredith Prototype 1

For this prototype of Poise — the magazine for the busy woman — I wanted to use elements that would lead to a relaxing break from the chaos of life. Thus, I used a pastel palette and included plenty of whitespace (or green space, depending on the spread!). On my cover and in the photos of the contents page, I tried to include images of diversity. This wasn't intentional at first, but I found many photos of women of all backgrounds that I really like and thought fit the tone of Poise. I think diversity is lacking in many magazines, but I can't understand why. Perhaps if more people start increasing the visibility of diversity, it will catch on within the industry. I like how my typographic choices of a lighter sans serif and a script mesh with the tone of the design.