FINDING THE ELEGANT SOLUTION
The idea of elegance is something that I came across while studying programming in college. It is the idea of beauty in simplicity. On rare occasions, when I was working on a problem, a clever solution would appear that was both incredibly simple and highly effective. These flashes of brilliance would come and go, and the only requirement for them appearing seemed to be total immersion into a problem. This sort of solution is my obsession. Sometimes it pays off, and sometimes not, but I am always looking.
01 COURSE:
Page Layout
INSTRUCTOR: Sean Bacon
CATEGORY: Packaging Branding
PORTERHOUSE PIES OVERVIEW: Porterhouse Pies, a casual dining restaurant
STRATEGY: Using the butcher shop experience as an
in the North Park neighborhood of San Diego, serves
inspiration I created a system that wrapped the pies
meat, veggie, and dessert pies made from locally sourced
individually in brown kraft paper and labeled on the go
ingredients. Their menu also includes a selection of sodas
like fresh cuts of meat. Menus are printed black and white
and beers from local San Diego brewers. The restaurant’s
to keep printing costs low; an icon system based on pie
goal was to develop a cost-effective system for their menus
ingredients is used to make browsing easy and ensure
and packaging to accommodate their ever changing
items were appropriately represented. The Porterhouse
ingredients. They also needed a website that showed both
website moves this experience online and goes into depth
their local origins and appeal to the clientele in the area.
on their community connection philosophy.
Harry Kim
Project 1
Porterhouse
Harry Kim
“Stress cannot exist in the presence of pie.” David Mamet
“Promises and pie-crust are made to be broken.” Jonathan Swift
Project 1
Porterhouse
“ e p
Harry Kim
02 COURSE:
Mobile Experience
INSTRUCTOR: Paul Drohan
CATEGORY: Interactive Environmental
Project 2
Pathfinder
PATHFINDER OVERVIEW: Pathfinder is a mobile app designed to assist
STRATEGY: Pathfinder pares down the feature list to just
students with tasks such as finding parking, signing up for
parking, navigation, campus alerts, and event tracking.
classes, scheduling and keeping track of student events
The home screen provides one-stop access to the most
and campus deadlines. Unlike the typical mobile apps
important information, and detail pages are one touch
created by schools which tend to mirror the functionality
away. Color coding and sorting help students assess the
of school websites, Pathfinder’s goal was to focus primarily
parking situation and find a spot quickly. The interactive
on functionality a student on campus would need on a
map highlights buildings and features based on category
day-to-day basis.
and make it easy for students to find what they need.
Harry Kim
Project 2
Pathfinder
03 COURSE:
Logo & Packaging
INSTRUCTOR: Min Choi
CATEGORY: Branding Packaging
XURION AIRLINE OVERVIEW: Xurion is a high-end airline that offers both
STRATEGY: Inspiration for the Xurion logo comes from
standard international flights and space tourism flights.
images of early space flight and of birds in motion. The
The company seeks to elevate itself above competitors
upward orientation and symmetry of the logo reinforce the
like Virgin Galactic by providing a more comfortable and
ideas of freedom and safety. A conservative color scheme
lavish flying experience. Being at the forefront of new
based on colors seen in earth orbit, conveys ideas of
technology requires both track record and visuals that
professionalism and stability to business clients. Patterns
inspire trust. Xurion hopes to become a trusted expert and
based on high-end textiles echo refinement, and are used
generate excitement for space travel.
subtly to reinforce the brands sophistication.
Harry Kim
Project 3
Xurion
Harry Kim
Project 3
Xurion
Harry Kim
04 COURSE:
Page Layout
INSTRUCTOR: Sean Bacon
CATEGORY: Publication Illustration
Project 4
MYTHIC MAGAZINE OVERVIEW: Mythic Magazine is a monthly publication
STRATEGY: In order to appeal to target demographic, a
inspired by the pulp magazines of the early 1900s but
cartoon character was developed and placed throughout
targeting a teen audience. Pulp magazines historically
the magazine. Branded wearable merchandise become
combined cheap paper, cheap printing, and cheap authors
walking advertisements for the magazine promoting the
to provide affordable entertainment to the young working-
brand on playground and malls around the country. The
class and this was my inspiration. Mythic Content would
masthead pulls inspiration from the titles of old horror
be focused on myths and monsters and each issue centers
films and the covers mix gritty photography with playful
around a specific theme to help engage a younger viewer
illustration, creating a juxtaposition between the playful
throughout the publication.
brand and sometimes frightening topics.
Mythic
Harry Kim
Project 4
Mythic
05
ZOLA OVERVIEW: Coconut water is a fast growing industry in
STRATEGY: The color scheme and photography on the
the US. Zola is one of the main producers and focuses
homepage and drink packaging were created to inspire a
their brand primarily on coconut water. What makes Zola’s
feeling of freshness. Blues and greens were chosen to be
coconut water different from others is its light, not overly
reminiscent of tropical beach environments, with accent
sweet flavor profile and the drink’s suitability for after-
colors incorporated from the existing logo. The site design
CATEGORY:
workout use. There is an opportunity to set Zola apart by
is kept simple and open to reflect the idea of coconut water
Interactive
marketing it as a fresh “everyday” drink for active people.
as a natural and clean alternative to other drinks.
COURSE:
Mobile Experience
INSTRUCTOR: Paul Drohan
Packaging
Harry Kim
Project 5
Zola
Harry Kim
Project 5
Zola
Harry Kim
06 COURSE:
Advanced Type
INSTRUCTOR: Sean Bacon
CATEGORY: Branding Typography
Project 6
SPROCKET CAMP OVERVIEW: Sprocket is a day camp for preteen aged girls
STRATEGY: The color scheme uses bright, saturated
with technical intuition. Female representation is lacking
yellows, blues, and purples to target a preteen audience.
in STEM fields and Sprocket hopes to change this. The
The logo uses a custom typeface inspired by older
camp seeks to introduce preteen girls to programming
computer typefaces and handwritten marker letters. And
concepts and establish a strong foundation of knowledge,
the learning interface is visual, using virtual blocks of
but the main goal of the camp is to provide a fun
code that can be chained and combined to create new
environment for girls to play and explore programming in
programs, teaching core programming concepts in a fun
a digital sandbox, and be able to flex their creativity.
and intuitive way .
Sprocket
Harry Kim
Project 6
Sprocket
07 COURSE:
Portfolio Building
INSTRUCTOR: Sean Bacon Candice Lopez
CATEGORY: Environmental
YOUNG LIBRARY OVERVIEW: The Young Resource Room is a space housing
STRATEGY: I decided on a neutral look for the donation
a growing collection of design books at City College.
box in order to fit the gallery itself so that it might be
Funding has been limited but the design department has
used in future gallery shows. Stacked books for the base
goals of improving organization and increasing access
provide a clear visual link to the Young Resource Room.
to the room for City students as well as the community at
The categorization system for the books in the resource
large. The recent gallery show put on by the City College
room is based on reader interest. Users of the library tend
graphic design department provided an opportunity to
to browse, so strict placement of books is unnecessary,
generate funding for the resource room. A prominently
A color-coded category system helps maintain shelf
placed donation box along with merchandise sales would
integrity, and the digital catalog also works visually to
help the Young Library reach its next goal.
allow access to titles when not on campus.
Harry Kim
Project 7
Click here to access your Book List: http://d.yo/Bkk4m3
The library catalog kiosk sends the list of books you’re looking for directly to your phone.
Young
Color and pattern associations draw attention to misplaced books and encourage user reshelving through visual continuity.
08 COURSE:
Advanced Type
INSTRUCTOR: Amy Levine
CATEGORY: Publication Illustration
REACH OVERVIEW: National Geographic series of REACH
STRATEGY: Thinking abstractly about reaching I worked
textbooks seek to engage children in elementary school on
with the idea of tree houses representing “REACH�. The
a variety of topics related to language and communication.
idea of climbing and reaching these tree houses was a
They needed a theme to carry through all of the textbook
great metaphor for the students building knowledge. Each
while still crafting a clear indication that these were
textbook is a unique treehouse and ladders and walkways
separate textbooks. A simple masthead needed to be built
connect from one book to the next. Typography was subtly
that was readable and worked with the chosen direction
masked into the houses giving depth and texture. The
and concept for each cover.
chosen illustration style was youthful and engaging to help associate the curriculum with fun.
Harry Kim
09 COURSE:
Logo & Packaging
INSTRUCTOR: Min Choi
CATEGORY: Packaging Branding
Project 9
Sapphire
SAPPHIRE OVERVIEW: Sapphire is a collection of the best wines from
STRATEGY: Sapphire being a metaphor for the beauty
around the world that is packaged and designed to be
of Earth, I decided that the packaging should leave a
consumed in space. Sapphire attempts to circumvent some
minimal, luxurious impression that reflected both the
of the hurdles to low gravity wine consumption by taking
jewel and space concepts. The packaging for the wine
advantage of developments in food science. Packaging the
opens vertically, with a tall glass container to reinforce the
essence of wine into self contained units that can be easily
idea of upward movement. The bottle has faceted sides
consumed under microgravity conditions allows the wine
that echo the faces of a gemstone; colors are black, silver,
to be consumed in space. The clientele for space travel
and gold for a high-end feel. Marketing through a clean
are affluent and the packaging attempts to relate to this
contemporary website and partnerships aligns Sapphire
opulent and sophisticated travel choice.
for success and visibility.
Harry Kim
Project 9
Sapphire
LOGOS
tech camp for girls
tech camp for girls
tech camp for girls
Bluegrass musical
Musical musical
Space tourism company
Shakespeare comedy
Fancy wine
Pulp Magazine
tech ca
THANK YOU This book is dedicated to all of the friends, family, classmates and mentors that helped me get to this point. Every step has been a learning process and I’m grateful for all of the great advice and all of the words of encouragement I’ve been given these past few months. Special thanks to Sean Bacon, Min Choi, and all of the faculty at City College who are all amazingly talented and a wonderfully supportive group of people. Thank you to my girlfriend Michelle. I could not have done this without you. To my sister, Anna, thank you for being there when I needed it. Thanks go to Fannie and Tessa for teaching me crucial book making skills in the eleventh hour. This book is printed on Red River Polar Matte 60lb paper. Typefaces are Din Next and Museo Slab. Stock photography credits go to Dollar Photo Club and Shutterstock.