the graphic design of Katie Riffle
design that moves Kinetic is design that moves. It’s the burst of energy when you come up with that perfect idea. The kind of idea that makes you run to your Mac to get started. It’s the feeling you get when you’re inspired. I used to watch the power lines on road trips with my family. How with a spark birds would just from the electrical shock and take off. This is what I feel when I design.
Overview
0 1 a l i c e ’s t e a c u p Restaurant Identity
Alice’s Tea Cup is quickly becoming a New York institution. An Alice in Wonderland themed restaurant where someone can have the classic afternoon tea or have an elaborate Mad Tea Party. An ideal place for mothers and their little ones to have lunch, Alice gives little girls fairy wings as they walk in the door.
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Challenge The current identity of Alice’s Tea Cup does not match the experience the patron gets when going to the restaurant. The walls are filled with the illustrations of Lewis Caroll’s original story, the tea cups are a throwback to the old Victorian era, and the menu boasts some of the best scones in the city. The challenge here was to accompany everything Alice’s Tea Cup has to offer with a sense of elegance and whimsy.
Solution The solution was to use design elements that conjured up the feeling of the era in which Alice in Wonderland was written. Wallpapers and deep pinks were a staple of the era so a twist on the classic damask pattern was utilized in different levels of mauves and pinks. The outlines were meant to emulate the iron metal fences of the time as well as what lines the street of the restaurant. The logo is meant to be seen in front of the pattern much like an old tea label.
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01 | Alice’s Tea Cup | Identity
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Overview
0 2 l e t t h e g r e at wo r l d s pi n Book Cover
In the dawning light of a late-summer morning, the people of lower Manhattan stand hushed, staring up in disbelief at the Twin Towers. It is August 1974, and a mysterious tightrope walker is running, dancing, leaping between the towers, suspended a quarter mile above the ground. In the streets below, a slew of lives become extraordinary in McCann’s stunningly intricate portrait of a city and its people.
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Challenge The challenge was to design a book jacket for the upcoming release of this new edition of Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann. The cover had to include the fact that it was a bestseller, be able to be seen on sites like Amazon.com, and include testimonials on the author and his work.
Solution The solution was to focus on 2 things: the tightrope walker and the city below him where all of the drama is taking place. The world was then made out of this city, a common sentiment of New Yorkers. The background contrasts nicely to common online book seller’s websites and the graphics are big enough to be deciphered in small sizes. The inner jacket was printed in an off-white so that when the customer is previewing the book online, this section is easily read.
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Overview
03 Ecolect
Editorial Design
Ecolect Magazine is my brainchild. It is a magazine that combines Ecology, Intellect, and how those things inform good design. The magazine has 4 spreads and various columns each month focusing on Graphic, Industrial, Architectural and Interior design.
Challenge The challenge was to create the look of the magazine from the masthead to the columns. The features are different each month but the goal was to set a tone for what was to come and what was expected from the in-house designers.
Solution The solution was to carry the name and the lines of the masthead throughout the design of the magazine. For instance: each month the magazine will feature a design studio that makes strides ecologically and it is called “Ecollaborate.� The features must be dynamic and use the image to inform the design. Color and line elements as well as elaborate type choices should be used for the titles. The masthead typeface was designed specifically for the magazine and its elements frame the pages inside.
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Overview
0 4 Cri sp-ellert Museum Identity
The Crisp-Ellert Art Museum is Flagler College’s space for shows and guests to present the students with their work. It was recently donated to Flagler College from the Crisp-Ellert family on the condition that it be used as a space for artwork.
Challenge It is a beautiful new space that needed an identity separate from the school. The design had to be easily edited and put into a template form so that it could be applied to each show without the help of a designer each time. Business cards and a stationary set were required as well as promotional posters and postcards to be sent to students, locals, and alumni. Gift boxes are needed for the gift shop.
Solution The students perpetually breathe life into the museum by submitting their work. As one class leaves, the mark they leave behind is the inspiration they give to the students they leave behind. The logo is a very abstracted illustration of this concept. The lines and spaces in all of the pieces reflect these stages therefore the work is put into them. The black and orange images will change depending on the subject of each exhibit. The gift box shape was used to show the logo at any angle the viewer was looking at it, again reinforcing the concept of interconnectivity.
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Overview
0 5 K ITSCHEN SIN K Retail Identity
gold addy winner
2010
Kitschen Sink is a kitchen supply store that sells vintage and retro inspired cooking supplies and appliances. They are a distributor of selective items from various companies such as Formica and Knoll selling the boomerang laminate and the tulip table respectively. They also have a stock of vintage supplies handpicked by their buyers.
Challenge The challenge was to create a logo and brand identity that could be followed by the in house designers. Promotional items were needed to ensure customers came in weekly to see the new vintage items that were available. And lastly packaging was needed for the take home items in the store.
Solution The solution was to create a retro feel that was carried throughout the logo and branding. The manual, covered with the signature boomerang pattern Formica, sets out what typeface can be used, spacing, design elements, and misuse examples. A character named Betty accompanies the logo much like the old brands of eras past. She holds a spatula much like Rosie the Riveter so as to represent a strong woman and move away from the gender struggles of the day. A recipe box was made that will give the patrons family secrets of famous chefs once a week. The boomerang was carried through to the bags and used as a handle.
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Overview
0 6 RAUSCHEN B ERG Exhibition Collateral
The Stoned Moon series was Rauschenberg’s spirited affirmation of space exploration in general and, more specifically, the Apollo 11 moon landing mission. Invited by NASA to witness the momentous launch in July 1969, Rauschenberg, with armloads full of NASA documentation and images from popular culture, worked obsessively with the printmakers at Gemini G.E.L. in Los Angeles to create 33 collage prints in 34 days.
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Challenge To design an opening invitation for special patrons and a pamphlet for the upcoming exhibition of these works in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The opening invitation needed to include information on the artist, tickets and event information and also be something that exclusive members would be intrigued by.
Solution The solution was to create a logo that showed the artist’s touch. A letterpress style typeface was used to recreate the printing aspect of Rauschenberg’s work. For the invite, a typographic painting was created using Rauschenberg’s “Retrospective I” painting. As each page is pulled back, copy about the artist and the event is revealed. The tickets are found at the end of the book. The pamphlet doubles as a poster and will be available to museum goers.
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Overview
0 7 T y p o g r a ph y B ox Environmental Design
This is a typographic box made to illustrated the sound that stars make.
Challenge The challenge was to express the words through type and materials. Each panel is connected to those around them to create continuity in the piece.
Solution The box is made of plexiglass and is lit from within. It could easily be scaled larger and placed as an exhibit in a Museum of Science and History. As the viewer moves around the box, they learn about the noise that stars let off in the solar system. The connection between each panel forces the viewer to stay engaged and move around the structure.
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Overview
0 8 HAITI P r o j e c t Poster Design
The Haiti Poster Project is a collaboration of artists and designers from around the world, benefitting the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.
Challenge The challenge was to create a poster that not only shed light on the issue but would be something that a person would want to hang on their wall. It needed to be informative while informative. Those looking to support buy these posters from the Haiti Poster Project website.
Solution The solution was the create a Gestalt effect using the supplies their vary donation would buy to rebuild Haiti. The supplies form the shape of the country reinforcing the concept of putting the country back together again. As a textural element in the background, the various cities are listed. The quote by Anne Frank overlays this stating how easy it is to just lend a helping hand.
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Overview
0 9 Dummies Books Book Series
For Dummies is an extensive series of instructional books which are intended to present non-intimidating guides for readers new to the various topics covered. Despite the title, their publisher takes pains to emphasize that the books are not literally for dummies. The subtitle for every book is “A Reference for the Rest of Us.” To date, over 1,700 For Dummies titles have been published. The series has been a worldwide success with editions in numerous other languages.
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Challenge The challenge was to renew the image of the Dummies book as something more sophisticated. No one thoroughly enjoys buying the Dummies series, but they are relatively inexpensive and reliable. The challenge is to make them something the customer will feel proud buying and keeping on their book shelf instead of being hidden away.
Solution The solution was to abort the yellow and black colors that conjure up a sense of caution for the customer. A bright yet relaxing green was chosen. Not only will it stand out on the shelf but it has a double meaning as in when a person is new at something, they’re called “green.” Each book follows this same pattern: black and white imagery placed over the green background in the Base Nine typeface by Emigre. These are produced just as cheaply, but have a more modern twist.
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Overview
1 0 B EAR REPU B LIC Brewery Identity
Bear Republic has developed award winning, hand-crafted lagers and ales. Located in historic Healdsburg, California, where hop kilns from another era are still visible, their products are brewed and aged using the traditional “art” of the masters. Bear Republic’s family business is unique, from the mother who greets you at the door, to the son who brews the ales, the father who pulls tap and the daughter-in-law who keeps the books.
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Challenge The current logo and packaging for Bear Republic is dated and mismatched. The logo is red, green and yellow: colors that point to Rastafarian influences. The micro brewery is beginning to expand their reach from simply the Northern California area to a wide distribution. They need packaging that sets them apart on the shelf while making them look like they belong there with the more established brews.
Solution The solution was to use the name as inspiration to create a Constructivist styled logo and packaging. The beer carton is modeled after Rodchenko’s famous soviet poster. The label and carton inform each other and easily pop in a sea of tame labels: the bear, dictating you to drink and enjoy!
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