marapr2007preview by Commarts

Paprika Stuart Hamilton House Industries Unconventional Advertising Kinetic Singapore Melinda Beck Exhibit

March/April 2007 Eight Dollars www.commarts.com

Finksans Fink Condensed

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March/April 2007

House Industries exist—and that becomes the packaging and story that sells the font. The fonts are fun. The stories are even better.” No better example exists than the ruse House cooked up about one René Albert Chalet. In their self-published ten-year anniversary volume, House explains: During the late ’90s the “dumb modernism” thing really took off, and the entrepreneurs in us were trying to figure out how to get a taste of the soulless Swiss redux. Originally, we planned on making a stylistic rendition of Helvetica and releasing it as Swiss Haus, or something to that effect. Finally Andy agreed to let Ken work up a fictional story about a forgotten designer who distilled the minimalist style years before Max Miedinger created his classic typeface. We thought that the name alone (Chalet = Swiss house) would let everyone in on the joke. But, surprisingly, no one immediately caught on. It didn’t hurt that we plastered the Chalet catalog with glowing endorsements of René Chalet’s work by graphic design industry heavyweights like Michael Beirut, Erik Spiekermann and Charles Anderson. Those guys kicked better BS than we did. Their tenth anniversary book has been through two printings—13,000 in total. Left and this page: “We’re always looking for ways to step outside the make-believe world of graphic design, so we sent press releases to the automotive press when we introduced the Rat Fink Fonts. Soon we were getting calls for Rat Fink gear from people who had no use for fonts. We decided to reproduce some of the more poignant images from Ed Roth and apply them to consumer products such as T-shirts and lighters. In the interest of authenticity, we designed the boxes for the Rat Fink Fonts, Monster T-Shirts and Showcar Shirts to be exact replicas of the original Revell model boxes. Conventional wisdom would have us concentrate on the actual product, but as graphic design geeks we always put more energy into the packaging. Big Daddy had a week between car show appearances, so we hosted a little Rat Fink Fonts release party.” Andy Cruz, art director; Ken Barber, designer; Adam Cruz/Ed Roth, illustrators. “House Industries shareholder portrait for our 2001 Annual Report.” Andy Cruz, art director; Adam Cruz, illustrator; Brazo Fuerte, strategy. Communication Arts

Beck Melinda

by Anne Telford

rodigy is a word that comes to mind when considering Brooklyn illustrator Melinda Beck’s auspicious introduction to art. It’s not every kid that takes a life drawing course at the prestigious New York Art Students League, at the age of twelve. In second grade, when she had trouble reading and writing, the girl who loved drawing chose art. Since she wasn’t interested in learning an instrument or ballet, her parents enrolled her in a life-drawing course. Beck’s parents and their friends were artists so although she admits that it seems completely bizarre now, “New York in the ’70s—a lot of things seemed normal that were completely abnormal,” she says with a laugh. By the time she got to the Rhode Island School of Design she had already taken six years of life drawing, oil painting and anatomy. She remembers thinking, “This is school and I get to draw all day. How great is this?” When it came time to choose a major, it was a toss-up between illustration and design. Her parents urged her to pick design, cautioning that if she chose illustration she’d have poor health insurance and wouldn’t make any money. “Now everyone has cruddy health insurance,” she says. For Beck, college provided the discovery that the way things look can express feelings. She learned to think creatively. Instead of making things look, as she puts it, “superfreakishly realistic,” she learned technical mastery while pushing the boundaries of creativity. While at RISD she took only one illustration class, a scratchboard class with Chris Van Allsburg. And she met her future husband, illustrator Jordin Isip, in their freshman year. She graduated in 1989, unfortunately in the middle of the recession. After 30 interviews, she got a job at design ﬁrm Cato Gobé (now Desgrippes Gobé). There she was given opportunities to take on important projects. Two years out of school, at the age of 25, she redesigned the corporate identity for Ethan Allen. But she still loved drawing and did scratchboard illustrations when she could. Jordin suggested she put together a book of her scratchboard drawings and he’d shop it around as he went on his rounds. That opened doors to the world of illustration. Beck left the ﬁrm when she had reached the point where she was being asked to hire and supervise other designers, realizing that she wanted to do creative work, not administrative. After she left Cato Gobé, she was oVered a freelance job at Alexander Isley Design, working on projects for Cooper-Hewitt and the Brooklyn Academy of Art. Freelance quickly turned into full-time, and for two years Beck worked from nine to seven, then she would go home and do illustration until three in the morning.

Right: “An editorial illustration for an article titled ‘Interdisciplinary Graduate Education.’” Charlie Hess, art director; Chess Design, design firm; UCLA Magazine, client.

March/April 2007

Communication Arts

March/April 2007

Exhibit

Umi Children’s Shoes print ad

“When it comes to building relationships with a styleconscious mom, you can’t fake it,” said Mike Kriefski, Shine Advertising co-founder. “We knew that Umi’s products would have immediate appeal given their vibrant, yet sophisticated design. For Umi’s ﬁrst national print advertising campaign, we developed emotionally arresting ads inviting moms to remember the warm experiences of their own childhoods as an inspiration to enrich the lives of their children with a pair of Umi shoes. Ads ran in publications such as Child magazine and were used as direct mail, a poster campaign and in-store displays at more than 300 Umi retailers across the country.” Mike Kriefski, art director/creative director; Chad Bollenbach, design director; stock photography; Shine Advertising (Madison, WI), ad agency; Umi Children’s Shoes, client. 2

Georgia Boot print ad

“Georgia Boot has been making high-quality work boots since 1937,” said writer Puﬀer Thompson. “Simply put, Georgia Boot makes work boots for guys who are comfortable with who they are. They aren’t afraid to get dirty on the job or wear dirty boots on the weekend. And while they want tough, durable footwear that works just as hard as they do, they also want to feel comfortable in them once quitting time rolls around. In short, they’re for guys who live in their boots. This particular ad features Georgia Boot’s Farm & Ranch line, and is currently running in various hunting magazines, farm-trade media and NASCAR pubs.” John Cruz, art director; Mark Robinson, creative director; stock (main image)/Woody Woodliff (product), photographers; Thompson & Company (Memphis, TN), ad agency. 3

Forecast brand makeover

“We were asked to rebrand Forecast, a chic apparel retailer in need of some dressing up after 28 years in business,” said creative director Jim Rivett. “Forecast helps its female customers look their fashionable best, but the shop’s brand was practically bare. By contemporizing the brand with sophisticated communications design, a cohesive color story and message simplicity, we elevated Forecast’s retail environment. Uniformity of the integrated branding execution included a new, fashion-forward logo and seamless in-store accessories to complement the designer look—Euro-style bags, labels, hangtags and table tents.” Luis Avalos/Robb Mommaerts/Laura Treichel/DeGaull Vang, designers; Megan Pichette, project director; Arketype (Green Bay, WI), ad agency. Communication Arts

fresh

Emily Twomey

I am currently working from home in Bournemouth, Dorset, England (near the sea!) and www. emilygolden.co.uk. Location:

Duration: This

is my fourth year down in Bournemouth doing illustration. I will be moving to London later next year to carry on my work there.

Staff:

Me.

Education: I completed a Foundation Art Course in Taunton, Somerset, and then moved to University in Dorset. I graduated with a ﬁrst class degree in BA (Honors) Illustration from The Arts Institute at Bournemouth. Cultural Influences: I have always loved the darker side of children’s tales, especially those from past eras. I love the illustrations of Aubrey Beardsley and Kay Nielsen and the humorous stories of Edward Gorey and Hilaire Belloc. I draw inspiration from my imagination and strange animals.

I work best with a cup of tea and music. I tend to spend most of my time drawing at my desk using pen and ink and then playing around with it on my computer. Generally I prefer to use old-school techniques rather than a wide range of computer programs. I live with three other artists, so it’s a productive environment.

Environment:

Make sure you always maintain some hint of your childhood—stay open minded, don’t let reason hold you back and use your imagination.

Philosophy:

106

March/April 2007