Christopher Kosek graphic design portfolio
I’d like to tell you A Story...
The best part of starting a new project is knowing you’re about to embark on an adventure. It will teach you a few things, be incredibly challenging and at the end you’ll get to create something really cool.
I try to learn something new every day and have broad interests. Pulling inspiration from
all kinds of sources ranging from high to low brow, I feel that as a designer I can be influenced as much from a Picasso painting or a Swiss Modernist poster as a I could from a Batman comic or by watching a baseball game.
Design is best when it is accessible and easily understood and the goal for every one of
my projects is to uncover that story waiting to be told and get it out into the world. I hope you enjoy the stories on the following pages...
Crossroads of the World An Art Deco landmark on Sunset Boulevard. view with the owners, culminating itself in the form of a 220 page book measuring 10” wide by 12.5” tall. Printed in limited edition on a digital press with case-wrap binding and several tip-ins, this robust book tells the complete story of this iconic relic of old Hollywood. A flip through teaser of this project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/crossroads
5 Crossroads of the world
The Crossroads of the World is a very unique and historic office complex on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood. Built in 1936 by the widow of a notorious Los Angeles mobster who was murdered on the site, its seen its fair share of colorful history. Starting off as one of L.A.’s first shopping malls and evolving into an office complex, it has been a witness to and participant in the history of Hollywood. Standing today as one of the last remaining examples of Art Deco Architecture and serving as a living monument to the golden age of Hollywood, this property is a living icon on Sunset Blvd. I mixed historical images and texts pulled from libraries and private collections with my original photography, writing and an in-depth inter-
CROSSROADS OF THE WORLD
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Crossroads of the world
human rights
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Human Rights A lesson from childhood that’s important to remember. to celebrate the sameness of all people using a simple truism we learn as small children: its all about what’s on the inside. I combined victorian medical illustrations with the simple copy, “we’re all made up of the same stuff” and the headlines Anybody, Somebody, Everybody. This project was written about in the February 2009 issue of PRINT Magazine (online) where my work is featured as well as commented on in an article called: Posters That Redeclare Human Rights written by Paul Morris. It is also currently in an exhibition at the famed Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/humanrights
9 human rights
I was fortunate to participate in a sponsored class through Art Center’s Designmatters program , were we created posters celebrating the 60th anniversary of the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 25 posters from our class traveled to the 61st DPI/NGO conference in Paris, France to be exhibited, with a follow up show in Pasadena. I was fortunate enough to have had 6 poster designs chosen by the jury to be included in the exhibitions. It was an amazing experience designing for a global audience while being careful of not offending people across different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. These 3 posters were made as a reaction to the depressing research we were finding on human rights abuses in the world. I wanted
Dracula A letterpressed parable about the infamous dark prince. tells the tale of how ruthless he really was. In addition, I carved a lino cut portrait of Prince Dracula derived from researched images to use on the bookplate. Copies of this collaborative book are currently in public and private book collections such as UCLA, Harvard and Stanford University libraries. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/dracula
11 dracula
Taking advantage of the Art Center letterprss studio, The Archetype Press, I was able to participate in a collaborative letterpressed book called The Notorious. This spread is about Prince Vlad Dracula, the real life Romanian Prince that Bram Stoker used as inspiration for his famous novel, Dracula. This was an interesting exercise in designing outside of the computer, using hand set wood and lead type. The body copy and headlines were hand set in lead type which was extremely labor intensive but rewarding. In the background the word “Dracula� can be seen printed in a clear varnish printed with large wood type. The text was from a traditional Romanian parable describing an interaction Prince Dracula had with two Catholic Monks, which succinctly
Dystopia film festival
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Dystopia Film Festival A not very long time ago, in a theatre not so far away... The Art direction of the posters played up 3 major motifs common to these films and science fiction in general. 1. A futuristic, mysterious city inspired light and shadow. 2. A special effects laden cyber world. 3. A post-apocalyptic world of wrecked and twisted metal. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/dystopia
13 Dystopia film festival
A series of 3 posters for The Dystopia Science Fiction Film Festival at the legendary Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. More than just entertainment for geeks and nerds, Science Fiction has important literary merits to offer. By analyzing the trends and warning signs of today, the filmmakers attempt to show us a bleak warning of what our future could look like if changes aren’t made. I assigned themes to a series of classic films ranging from the silent era to the 20th century. Because it would be impossible to represent 15 distinct films on one poster I found 3 subgenre’s that all the films could fit into.
info magazine
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iNFO Magazine Making daily world news more visual and interactive. see everyday. I designed a sample interactive prototype of how the main interface of the site should function. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/info
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Technology has allowed information to be distributed at a pace never before seen by civilization. We can see images and videos of events on the other side of the world moments after they happen. There is a need for news magazines to take advantage of our growing visual culture and rethink how people experience the news. Looking at news icons such as TIME and LIFE, I created a brand that would speak to the 21st century. It is often said that we live in The Information Age so iNFO was a natural name for such a publication. As an internet based news magazine, there is an ability to give users the opportunity to customize their own browsing habits and digest information visually instead of the traditional text based, 3 column design we
Your Crap, My Home Environmental messaging that can’t be ignored. The biggest challenge of environmental messaging is that it’s often preachy and easy to ignore. I approached it differently, using the voice of the ocean who is verbally mad at us. Behind the large voice type, fade in and out the types of materials that find their way to the ocean every day. Finally I did use some factual information and statistics but the placement is a direct commentary on the viewer. I placed it on the bottom of the frame in a news style ticker. This is the important statistical information that will be ignored by our self-centered society. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/beach
17 your crap, my home
The Los Angeles Storm Drain system is comprised of approximately 1500 miles of underground pipes and 100 miles of open channels that has become one of the largest polluters of the Pacific Ocean. Because the system was never designed to carry garbage it flows directly into the ocean untreated. Every year over 200 tons of garbage and chemicals find their way into these drains thanks to the residents of Southern California. I chose to use a video projection with sound as a cost effective way to create a large visual message. Utilizing motion graphics, and sound accompanied with a static video of the Pacific Ocean washing up on the Southern California coast, I was able to create an intriguing atmosphere that delivers a bold message while installed in the Art Center cafeteria.
Lexus Identity
Elegant Performance
Embracing history to shape a brand.
19 Lexus identity
An identity redesign for the luxury automotive brand, Lexus. The brand has remain unchanged since it first emerged in the 1990’s while the cars, have been industry leaders in design and technology. The Lexus brand is in need of a distinct identity, that gets away from its early days of trying to emulate its European competition. By looking to its nation’s history and culture to shape the brand, a distinct new voice that showcases precision, craftsmanship and culture emerges to go along with some of the exciting vehicles being produced. At right, a sample from the teaser ad campaign introducing the new brand direction that incorporates future Lexus concept cars with historical Japanese woodblock prints by the printmaker Hiroshige. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/lexus
LF-A Coupe Concept Car
LF-S Sedan Concept Car
Penguin Classics Refreshing a classic brand for the 21st Century
Logos (pages 22-23)
The biggest challenge with this project was attempting to update an iconic brand that is recognizable not only in the world of literature but in popular culture. I started sketching dozens of ideas working off of the original Penguin for inspiration. I finally arrived at a zoomed in, redrawn penguin “headshot” that references the past history of the brand while becoming a new, fresh take on a classic.
Covers and Interiors (pages 24-27)
For the covers I collaborated with several different up and coming illustrators. I worked with them closely functioning as art director guiding them along as they worked to interpret these classic stories through fresh, young eyes. This collaboration was extremely valuable to the creative process and helped shape the final outcome of the project. Each book would be fully illustrated having an image for each chapter or section of the book. In addition there would be a foreshadowing pull quote that would help pull the readers into the unfolding story without giving away too much. As an educational tool, making classic novels more visually engaging would be an important component in getting younger generations excited about reading 100 year old stories. The interior typography was updated in a contemporary yet classic style utilizing typefaces drawn by living typographers. This is an important yet subtle detail that would enhance the design and giving book and design lovers an extra bonus.
Mini-Sites and Web Applications (pages 28-29)
Each title in the Penguin Classics line would get its own dedicated mini site. The background of the page would be the full front cover illustration from the accompanying book. The design of the sites are to be visually engaging and would have information about the story, author, historical context and other related things. Additionally there would be a 30 second trailer for each book. While the sites would be open to everyone, the educational market would get the most benefit from these sites. What better way for a high school English teacher to get her students excited about a new class book assignment than to take them to a visually engaging website that is exciting to look at? Physical books are great, but there are a lot of opportunities to enhance the reading and learning experience by fusing it with interactive tools. Each book would have a web app that could be accessed via modest subscription fee, which could be a progressive solution for school districts on tight book buying budgets. There would be a page flip component to retain the experience of a book. Readers could use an integrated highlighter to select and export passages for notes. In addition there is an integrated word processing application so students could write book reports inside of the same interface that they are reading. Also this word processor could upload finished reports directly to their teacher’s grading site of choice. Lastly, there would be an integrated encyclopedia, dictionary and thesaurus that readers could cross reference from the text to enhance their learning. Because the Penguin Classics series deals with stories written decades and centuries ago, there are contexts and language that may not be clear to contemporary readers. This will be an attempt to educate within the book and create an interactive experience that truly takes advantage of the power of the internet.
Advertising (pages 30-31)
One of the great advantages books have over their filmed versions is that the book is most always better. Playing up this common notion, a simple and effective advertising campaign emerges that would encourage reading, and raises awareness for the new Penguin Classics line. Using illustrations from each title screened back with eye-catching colors, virtually any title in the Penguin Classics line could be effectively advertised. These posters would be aimed towards commuters and travelers and would work best in subways, busses, airports etc. This project can be viewed at: www.christopherkosek.com/penguin
21 penguin classics—overview
How do you get people excited about 100 year old stories? You have to make the stories contemporary and reading it has to be a fun experience. I started with a simple question. Why can’t old stories have new pictures? The Penguin Classics line of books has been a mainstay for over 75 years in the literature world, but the brand has become a bit stuffy relying on generic historic stock imagery for cover design and blending in too much with the other books on the shelf. I tackled an ambitious brand refresh of the Classics line to make the brand more accessible to a younger generation who’s interest in reading is steadily declining. These are the books that I would have loved to have in high school english class. The physical books are fully illustrated and become an interesting object worth keeping, which I believe to be a sustainable solution that doesn’t rely on green–washing cliches. I also designed a very robust digital component geared towards the education market. These include, dedicated mini-sites for each title, an eBook web application with integrated cross referencing tools, ad campaigns with bold copy and 30 second film-like trailers that could take advantage of social networking and create viral buzz for literature.
Penguin Orange = Pantone 1508
PENGUINCLASSICS
PENGUINCLASSICS
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penguin classics — covers
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The Jungle Book—Rudyard Kipling
How the Other Half Lives—Jacob Riis
The Red Badge of Courage—Stephen Crane
The Jungle—Upton Sinclair
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The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde—Robert Louis Stevenson
The Diary of A Napoleonic Foot Soldier—Jakob Walter
Dracula—Bram Stoker
The Pearl—John Steinbeck
Project Title Goes Here
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penguin classics — book interiors
penguin classics — Web Apps & Trailers
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penguin classics — Web Apps & Trailers
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31 penguin classics — advertising
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THANKS for your time.
Available for Full-Time of Freelance Work. Christopher Kosek 323.253.1863 christopher.kosek@gmail.com www.christopherkosek.com
www.christopherkosek.com
All work Š christopher kosek, all rights reserved