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LUBALIN
BRAND IDENTITY:
THE
PEO
PLE’S DAVID AIREY SUPERMARKET
CLIP
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ANDREY KOROTICH
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H
erb Lubalin was two years old when the AIGA awarded its first medal to the individual who, in the judgement of its board of directors and its membership, had distinguished himself in, and contributed significantly to, the field of graphic arts. There has been a lot of history between that moment and the evening in January 1981, when members, directors, friends and admirers gathered in the Great Hall of the New York Chamber of Commerce building to be with Lubalin as he accepted the 62nd AIGA medal.
A lot of that history, at least in the graphic arts, had been written—and designed—by Herb Lubalin. And Lubalin has been recognized, awarded, written about, imitated and emulated for it. There’s hardly anyone better known and more highly regarded in the business. Lubalin’s receipt of AIGA’s highest honor was never a matter of “if,” only “when.” Coming to terms with Herb Lubalin’s work takes you quickly to the heart of a very big subject: the theory of meaning and how meaning is communicated—how an idea is moved, full and resonant, from one mind to another. Not many have been able to do that better than Lubalin. Typography is the key. It is where you start with Lubalin and what you eventually come back to. However, “typography” is not a word Lubalin thought should be applied to his work. “What I do is not really typography, which I think of as an essentially mechanical means of putting characters down on a page. It’s designing with letters. Aaron Burns called it, ‘typographics,’ and since you’ve got to put a name on things to make them memorable, ‘typographics’ is as good a name for what I do as any.” Lubalin was a brilliant, iconoclastic advertising art director—in the 1940s with Reiss Advertising and then for twenty years with Sudler and Hennessey. Recipient of medal after medal, award after award, and in 1962 named Art Director of the Year by the National Society of Art Directors, he has also been a publication designer of great originality and distinction. He designed startling Eros in the early 60s, intellectually and visually astringent Fact in the mid-60s, lush and luscious Avant Garde late in the same decade, and founded U & lc in 1973 and saw it flourish into the 80s. But it is Lubalin and his typographics— words, letters, pieces of letters, additions to letters, connections and combinations, and virtuoso manipulation of letters—to which all must return. The “typographic impresario o f
Herb
Lub
Dorfsman called him, a man who “profoundly influenced and changed our vision and perception of letter forms, words and language.” Lubalin at his best delivers the shock of meaning through his typography-based design. Avant Garde literally moves ahead. The Sarah Vaughn Sings poster does just that. Ice Capades skates. There is a child in Mother & Child, and a family in Families. If words are a way of making meaning, then the shapes of their letters give voice, color, character and individuality to that meaning.
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The shock of meaning, in Lubalin’s artful hands, delivers delight, as well, delight that flows from sight and insight. “Lubalin,” praises Dorfsman, “used his extraordinary talent and taste to transform words and meaning from a medium to an inextricable part of the message? and in so doing, raised typography from the level of craft to art.” And it is in his paper U & lc that a lot of threads in Lubalin’s life and career get pulled together. It is publication dedicated to the joyful, riotous exploration of the complex relationships between words, letters, type and meaning—an ebullient advertisement for himself as art director, editor, publisher and purveyor of the shock and delight of meaning through typography and design. “Right now,” he said, “I have what every designer wants and few have the good fortune to achieve. I’m my own client. Nobody tells me what to do.” And 170,000 subscribers which, with a conservative pass-along estimate, yields 400,000 readers, benefit.
Herb Lubalin’s unique contribution to our times goes well beyond design in much the same way that his typographic innovations go beyond the twenty-six letters, ten numerals and the handful of punctuation marks that comprise our visual, literal vocabulary. Lubalin’s imagination, sight and insight have erased boundaries and pushed back frontiers. As an agency art director, he pushed beyond the established norm of copy-driven advertising and added a new dimension. As a publication designer, he pushed beyond the boundaries that constrained existing magazines—both in form and content. In fact, some said he had pushed beyond the boundaries of “good taste,” though in retrospect that work is more notable today for its graphic excellence than for its purported prurience. Lubalin helped push back the boundaries of the impact and perception of design—from an ill-defined, narrowly recognized craft to a powerful communication medium that could put big, important ideas smack in the public eye. And finally, he pushed back what were believed to be the boundaries of design for entire generations of designers who were to follow. For such a quiet, gentle person to have accomplished so much is testimony indeed to the power of ideas in the hands of a master.
balin Written by David R. Brown
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\BRAND ID For the people, by the people
Set up in Spring 2010 by chef Arthur Potts-Dawson, retailer Kate Wickes-Bull and an army of others, The People’s Supermarket is a community-based shop that’s managed and owned by members and open to all. It’s based just around the corner from Unreal’s studio, on Lamb’s Conduit St, London WC1 and takes its format from the popular co-operative ‘Park Slope’ in Brooklyn, NYC. In addition to the membership scheme, much of the produce in the shop is locally sourced, seasonal and sustainable, meaning they stock the best food at the lowest possible prices. The story of the supermarket will be broadcast in its own Channel 4 documentary, due to air in early 2011.
The help of a holepunch
In researching and developing ideas for the branding, we stumbled upon a potential icon that we felt was instantly recognisable, basic, honest and utilitarian. The ‘Euroslot’ is the hole punched at the top of numerous packaged products around the world. This handy little device goes un-noticed in day-to-day life despite being synonymous with retail. We decided it was time for the slot to have its day and purchased the holepunch below. Euroslot hole-punch Purchased from eBay for £12.50. The slot can be easily cut through anything from letterheads to in-store packaging, creating a simple, clever and cost-effective branding device that can be consistently applied across all communications. It has the ability to evolve from a decorative feature on letterheads and business cards through to forming the handle of bags, or a tab device in in-store signage.
The People’s Brand
After approaching the Supermarket to design some launch posters, we were tasked with developing the brand, which needed to reflect the co-op’s core values of being communal, affordable and democratic without appearing too virtuous or elitist. A full identity programme was required including logo, stationery suite, advertising, packaging and brand guidelines. As the organisation is not-for-profit and production budgets are consistently low, the designs needed to be simple to implement. As a result, much of the packaging and print material needed to be produced in-house.
The People’s Colour
The completed project is friendly in its look and utilitarian in approach, being applied in a bold, straightforward manner and always appearing in two colour. The strong use of yellow represents the colour of t-shirts which members are given when they join.
The People’s Kitchen
Brand guidelines Printed in-house at Unreal on GF Smith Colorplan Pristine White 120gsm. Packaged in brown paper bags handmade at Unreal.
Finally, in recent weeks the supermarket has also opened its own in-store kitchen — The People’s Kitchen. This serves up food cooked by chef PottsDawson, using ingredients from the supermarket itself. Unreal were tasked with creating a sub-brand identity for this, whilst retaining much of the features of the original logo. A range of kitchen utensils was added along the lower bar, and the fonts tweaked to form the mark seen below.
Basic in-store signage Printed in-house at Unreal on GF Smith Pristine White, 120gsm.
The People’s Kitchen Window decal printed digitally on clear self-adhesive vinyl, by c3imaging.
Stationery suite Short run, laser printed in-house at Unreal on GF Smith Colorplan Pristine White.
The People’s Produce
The supermarket has its own range of products made by sourced suppliers, such as The People’s Loaf and The People’s Wine. These items needed consistent labelling and the Euroslot device allowed this to happen easily. The People’s Produce Labels printed in-house at Unreal on GF Smith Colorplan Pristine White, 120gsm.
All photography shot on location at The People’s Supermarket by supermarket members Liz and Max of Haarala Hamilton photography.
DENTITY\ Unreal, a London based branding and advertising agency have recently completed the identity for a brand new co-operative supermarket;
The People’s Supermarket.
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Davi d Ai r ey \10 QUESTIONS *David Airey is a very talented graphic designer and logo designer and he recently published a book Logo Design Love that is “a guide to creating iconic brand identities.” I’ve followed David through his blog for a few years now and I’ve always had a great deal of respect for his work. I recently had a chance to take a look at his book (I haven’t had the chance to read the whole thing yet, but what I have read is very good), and I thought it would be interesting to interview David about his work and the process of writing the book. If you’re interested in logo design, I recommend that you check out David’s book Logo Design Love.**
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?
I was born in 1979, in Bangor, Northern Ireland (a few miles outside the capital city, Belfast). I began studying graphic design in 1995, and finished my formal design education in 2003, with a number of qualifications behind me, and an internship in Pittsburgh, USA. After extensive travel and a stint teaching English as a second language I landed a job in advertising sales for The Scotsman, Scotland’s national newspaper. Design jobs weren’t readily available, and I considered the ad sales a temporary role until I found design-related employment. Working at The Scotsman put me in contact with an old friend who told me about a print management opening at a nearby cancer charity. I applied, and got the job. My responsibilities were for the organization’s gamut of print design, print buying, and web management. Around May 2006 I chose to become self-employed, taking on my former employer as my first client. I worked with them for a couple of years on a part-time basis (two or three days per week), sending monthly invoices for the work completed. The rest of my time was spent building a web presence and attracting new clients.
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David Airey is a very talen graphic designer and logo designer and he recently published a book Logo D Love that is “a guide to cr iconic brand identities.” I’ followed David through h blog for a few years now I’ve always had a great de respect for his work. I rec had a chance to take a lo at his book (I haven’t had chance to read the whole yet, but what I have read good), and I thought it w be interesting to interview David about his work and process of writing the bo
**If you’re interested in logo design, I recommend thatout youDavid’s check book Logo WITH:\Design Love.
Why have you chosen to specialize in logo How influential has your blog been design rather than some other aspect of to your own personal branding and graphic design? the development of your career?
Identity design projects are relatively short in time frame (i.e. one or two month\s, times longer). This means I’m working with a widely varied client base in order to and as such, I learn an incredible amount about how different industries operate. n’t think I’d be anywhere near as motivated if I was always working with the same design limitations (i.e., as an in-house designer with strict brand guidelines).
Without my blog, you’d not be reading these answers. I doubt you’d want to interview me, and I doubt you’d know about my work. The Internet can open so many doors, and it’s up to each one of us to tread our own path. Seth Godin published a relevant post, Seven years gone.
at are some of the most common mistakes that you see being made in logo gn?
ck of imagination. The most obvious solution can sometimes be the most effective, but obvious does not equate to dull. nce, look at Landor’s 2009 identity design for the City of Melbourne. The solution is based upon the first letter of the city’s name, the ‘M’, and is probably the vious idea possible. But Landor took it, pushed boundaries, and created a stunning visual system to match any I’ve seen elsewhere.
nted o y Design reating ’ve his weal and of cently ook dethe thing d is very would w d the ook.*
What would you say are some of the most important characteristics for a successful logo or identity? An effective logo should be distinctive, memorable, original, and relevant to the industry within which the identified company operates. It’s the tip of the branding iceberg, and should be consistent with the entire visual identity system.
Can you explain to us the typical process that you would take with a client for a logo design?
The first step is choosing the client, and I’m sure many of your readers will agree that not all potential clients are a good fit. Over the years I’ve been able to pre-determine a healthy working relationship by asking the right questions before a project begins, and I outline these questions in my new book, Logo Design Love: A Guide to Creating Iconic Brand Identities. In fact, the whole book is based upon the design process I carry out, and you can download a free chapter here. You’ll find a less-detailed, online overview of my identity design process here.
How long was the process to write the Logo Design Love book and to get it published?
Almost one year to the day. I first chatted with my publisher, Peachpit, in December 2008, and it was December 2009 when I finally held a tangible copy of the book.
Publishing a book on a specific topic certainly goes a long way towards demonstrating your expertise to potential clients. Was this a factor in deciding to write the book? It was. Another factor was how I find myself being asked more and more questions about the process of design, so I think there’s a gap in the market for a book such as mine.
How did you go about finding a publisher for the book?
Peachpit found me through my design blogs, which is another reason why I place so much emphasis on the importance of a strong online presence. I wasn’t planning to write a book last year, but when asked, I thought, “Why not?”
After your experience with the book, is it something that you would consider doing again in the future? My publisher asked me to think of another project for 2010, but I’m not sure I want to tackle one just yet. I’ll consider it in future, though. We’ll see how it goes.
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Current Residence: Kiev Favourite movie: Last life in the universe, Tony Takitani, Lost in Translation, Oasis, Bin-Jip, Gattaca, Ploy, Tetsuo Favourite band or musician: Die Form, Collide, Robert, MF, MM, Theatre of Tragedy, Hanzel und Grettyl, Akira Yamaoka, Fleur Favourite genre of music: http://www.last.fm/user/ psychiatrique Favourite artist: Beksinski Favourite poet or writer: H. Murakami Operating System: 7 MP3 player of choice: ipod Favourite game: Dreamfall, Silent Hill, Beyond Good & Evil Tools of the Trade: Kiev-88cm, 80/2.8, Nikon D80, 50/1.8, Bamboo A5, PS CS5 ICQ: 156053160 Skype: andrew.korotych
Website:
http://www.andreykorotich.com Email:
eatownleg@gmail.com
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\PHOTOGRAPHER\ ANDREY KOROTICH
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Clip is a display typeface inspired by the shape of a paperclip, but it’s not designed with the usual minimalistic modular approach. Instead, Clip mimics the construction, proportions and contrast of classic bold text typefaces and has one unique characteristic: each of its characters is drawn with only one single line. Clip family consists of 3 fonts, Hair, Light and Regular, each with 745 glyphs (supporting more than 70 latin based languages), 4 stylistic sets and advanced OpenType features. When Stylistic set 1 is activated, the overlapping loops contract, giving the text a whole new character. Moreover, every uppercase character is also available in an ornamental swash variant, which means most of the capitals have four different versions. Learn more about the OpenType features in Clip fonts at:
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http://www.urtd.net/clip
3 STYLE + 4 STYLISTIC VARIANTS
About this font family
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