Reading Responses
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Doyald
Young
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW This week’s documentary continued to surprise me. My first reaction was astonishment at his humble beginnings. Young declares (on more than one occasion and without even a hint of embarassment) that he never completed the tenth grade. Determination and a love for learning have brought him enormous success. Secondly, I was surprised by his desire to teach, as well his aptitude for teaching. It is wonderful to see such a talented individual willing to share his knowledge and encourage developing artists. During a somewhat contrived conversation between Young and a friend of his, the name Marian Bantjes was mentioned. The friend suggested that a collaboration between the two was long overdue and inquired as to why it had not been done. Curious, I looked up Bantjes and found that her work is some of the most beautiful I have seen. To my surprise, this documentary introduced me to not one, but two, amazing artists.
Logotype Designer
“Determination and a love of learning have brought him enormous success.” 3
Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica Helvetica (2007)
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Directed by Gary Hustwit
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW In today’s world, the role of the designer is to fight “visual disease”. It is the job of the designer to identify problems (both small and large) and to create solutions. These solutions should be visually appealing, but more importantly, they must be easy to understand. The role of a typeface in Graphic Design is one of great debate. Some argue that a typeface should add nothing to the text. In other words, let the words speak entirely for themselves. Some argue that we shouldn’t be aware of the typeface, but we should be affected by it. Yet others believe that it is the job of the typeface to create meaning. Personally, I think there is a time and place
for everything- yes, that even includes Helvetica. Helvetica is has been used worldwide by companies such as Nestle, Verizon, and Fendi. While it has been the target of much ridicule for its overuse, Helvetica can be used usually as effectively as any other “good” typeface when its advantages and disadvantages are acknowledged. Helvetica is praised for being modern, clean, readable, neutral, efficient, and human. It has “no improvements left to make” and is designed to stand the test of time leaving us with a feeling of finality. However, it is
also described as a nightmare, a looming presence. It may have been good, had it not turned into a default- used everywhere by everyone without a thought. This documentary has made me think more about why typefaces are considered bad. Aesthetics, proportion, and commonality all come into play. A typeface can be hated just as much for being overused as being poorly constructed. Is it better then to have one good typeface overused or multitudes of mediocre ones?
“There is a time and place for everything- even Helvetica.” 5
Good Design in the Digital Age
“Design is not just for selling socks.� James Victore 6
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW The concept of good design can be traced back to a series of exhibitions and educational programs produced by the Museum of Modern Art (along with the Merchandise Mart of Chicago) from 1949 to 1955. The program was successful in that it forced companies to pay attention to the quality of their products; however, it was controversial because it represented a small selection favored by a small, elite group. Today, good design involves less focus on simply form, function, materials, and the manner of industrial production and more on the usefulness, usability, desirability, and balance of these three qualities. The design of a product must first be useful. Good design cannot exist without function. Secondly, it must be user-friendly. A functional design is not good if it is too difficult to be quickly understood. It must also be desirable, being more so than similarly functioning designs. In the Artist Series documentary, a variety of artists are showcased sharing their views, processes, and methodologies regarding graphic design. David Carson, a self-taught designer, argues that as technology develops, design must become increasingly personal. Many of the articles designed for his magazine “Ray Gun” push text readability to the background in favor of more expressive visual interpretation. Milton Glaser, a designer and teacher, places the role of the
designer somewhere between the businessman and the artist. He believes that art and design serve a pacifying role in our culture by giving us something to unite us. Pentagram, a collective of designers working in different mediums, finds common interest in doing great work for great people. Based on a socialist capital model, the collective has no managing partner and no home office.
As said by James Victore, design is not just for selling socks. While it may have been more so in the past, the rise of technology has brought usefulness, usability, and desirability to the forefront. Design is less about the product itself and more about its interaction with the user. Good design creates solutions.
“Good design cannot exist without function.” 7
Marian Bantjes The Art is in the Details 8
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW After leaving art school and being fired from many kitchen jobs, Bantjes found inspiration working at a print shop. Since then she has come a long way. She left her company behind to explore her own unique style. It took a while for her to catch the attention of the design world, but once she did, designers could not look away. Bantjes believes that many designers underestimate the audience’s curiosity. Ignoring the trend of bigger, brighter, bolder, Bantjes revels
in laborious detail. The love and care put into each project os apparent. Bantjes discovered that everything she does, she does for love. She desires for her work to evoke a wonder, curiosity, and joy, causing the viewer to do a double take and spend more time looking at the art piece. Banjes’ designs fulfill the needs of each client, but unlike most designers, her personal style shines through. She resists the idea of going on autopilot and simply doing what has worked in the past; thus, her
style is constantly evolving. Banjtes likes that typography has a right and a wrong way (though she admits that this is subject to personal taste). Bantjes says she is something more and less than an illustrator. She hopes that there will be more corssover between graphic design and fine arts in the future. I agree, the way Bantjes melds graphic design and the fine arts is stunning, and I would love to see more like it.
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Margo
Chase
Creative Inspiration BY LIBBY SCHINNOW Margo Chase is the owner of the renowned Chase Design group. Chase got her start in the design world doing work in the music business; something she says allowed her to find her voice. Her project for Cher was her first time using a Mac and Photoshop. She also has done work for stars such as Madonna, Paula Abdul, and bands such as Crowded House and Ten Inch Man. After working in the music industry for close to ten years, she became tired of working on album covers, went on to do more independent work, and finally, created her own design group. The space itself has no cubicles in an attempt to encourage collaboration. Chase believes that it is important to surround
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yourself with talented people and is not afraid to allocate work to others if they are better at the specific task than she is. She also has a large library from which she draws much of her inspiration. Chase has a very distinct gothic style (something influenced by her mother’s calligraphy and a career starting in the 1980’s) which is exemplified in her poster for the original Dracula movie. She says that having a style is good because it gets you work, but
bad when people cannot think you can do anything else. Her work designing style guides for Polly Pocket showcases her ability to work beyond her style, a quality that makes her desirable to clients. Chase has done branding work for Starbucks and Chinese Laundry but her focus, she says, is on consumer packaging. She loves packaging because of its tactile qualities, its longevity, and it’s possible collectability. Chase says that, “Jumping into things you are
not sure you can do is sort of a good philosophy in general in all parts of your life.” This is something she has learned from her hobby flying planes. She enjoys the decision making power of owning her own business. Today Chase describes herself as doing less actual design work and more work researching, talking to the client, and selling the product. We are sure to see much more great work in the future.
“Jumping into things you are not sure you can do is sort of a good philosophy in general in all parts of your life.” 11
Designer, Collector, Businessman
Kit
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW Kit Hinrichs began his illustrious career as a five year old boy drawing cowboys and Indians. He learned to set type in high school as a way of making extra money and went off to attend the Art Center College in San Francisco, California. Taking a year off from college, he worked in a youth home for boys in Germany where he was exposed to other cultures and publications. After finishing college he joined the Marine Corps where he says he learned dedication and to better understand people. Hinrichs was a part of Pentagram for many years; he left a while ago to start his own company. His current office has a huge library and
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even an office dog, a Husky. A large open room allows the entire staff to come together if necessary. The open style of the rest of the office allows to easier collaboration and helps keep everyone up to date. Working as a team is an important element of how he runs his business. Hinrichs says he enjoys his field of work because it is a continually intellectually challenging business. He believes that this constant stimulation is part of what has helped him to remain in a field that is dominated by a younger generation. “I am a young man on the inside,” he says. Hinrichs is known as a successful graphic designer, a obsessive collector of items containing American flags (his collection includes over
5,000 items), and a successful businessman. He realizes that his clients must trust that he will do what is best for them. This is a simple but surprisingly wise word of advice. He also believes that design s not just to make something look pretty- it must make it function better. These beliefs are much of why his FedEx logo is so successful. It may not be the prettiest or most ornate, but it is simple and effective. It even helped save money by reducing the cost of paint. Hinrichs’ design solutions are successful because they appeal both to the designer and the business-oriented mind of the client.
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“It may not be the prettiest or most ornate, but it is simple and effective.” 13
=Stefan G. Bucher= Life, Love, and Graphic Design 14
BY LIBBY SCHINNOW Stefan Bucher has loved drawing since his early childhood. His notes schoolwork was filled with illustrations. He says that his drawings first became real when he had them printed at the small print shop that he found in his neighborhood. In this way, he made Christmas cards for his friends and family. A bit later he created drawings for a satirical magazine that analyzed Donald Duck. This was the first time his drawings were printed by someone else; instead of paying to have them printed on his own, he was being paid for someone else to do so. Bucher, the self described “designated
school weirdo” ended up attending art school where he says “all the other school weirdoes ended up”. Right out of school he accepted a job offer, but he had a hard time knowing what to do. He spent a while at the company but was let go right before Thanksgiving. Luckily, it was not to long before he found employment working for Maverick designing album covers. He was much happier here and enjoyed making art that people keep around for a long time. After dedicating a huge amount of time to one last project, he left the company and started working on his own. He
began a daily monster project that drew way more attention than he thought it would. Bucher finds the monsters (made with markers, ink blobs, and a can of air) to be liberating in that he is free to create without having to have any final image in mind. This is related to why he like illustration more than design- illustration is quick and simplistic while design is much longer and more thought out. Bucher enjoys the satisfaction of having created something that would not have been there otherwise which drawing provides- reversing the chaos of the world within that small rectangle. 15
The End