Everyone knows that they need one for their company. But why? What exactly is a logo and what is it supposed to accomplish for you?

A logo is a) a graphic symbol or image, b) a carefully designed word or name in a specifically chosen typeface, or c) a combination of both a and b.

There is a list of job requirements for a good logo.
• It must have a simple, strong, memorable design
• It must be clearly recognizable so that it can stand for the organization on its own
• It must work at very small and very large sizes, in all kinds of contexts from billboards to t-shirt printing
• It must communicate something or project a sense of purpose about the company or organization

Well, that still leaves the definition pretty vague. Perhaps we should look at what a logo is NOT.

Continue »

As Rajett pointed out in a comment to my last post, it’s all very fine to theorize about the craftsmanship and beauty that lasts forever, but what about designing websites? They are hardly likely to last more than a few years, no matter how much sweat and tears you pour into them. That’s the problem, isn’t it? Even as a print designer, I am well aware that the majority of projects I work on will never be lasting works of art. How many invitations or brochures have I painstakingly designed, only to be glanced at once and tossed in the trash?

What then? It’s a demoralizing thought indeed for a designer. Is there any way we can redeem this digitized, information age, networked, speed-of-light craft of ours?

I believe there is a way – of course I’d have to believe that, or give up being a designer. But Pher made an excellent point in his comment last week, that there is historical and philosophical precedent for the idea that work is ennobled by offering one’s best.

What does that mean, exactly? Continue »

What is it about old things that attracts people?

I’m no antique-hunter, and I don’t know the first thing about the values of china. But I love old tools and books and little useful everyday objects. I like to touch their worn surfaces. I like the ingenious way they were often put together by hand. I like their uneven textures and imperfections. And I like to imagine them being used by generations of people in their daily work.

Part of the attraction is a sense of history, no doubt; holding an antique is a tangible way to understand our roots. Part of it is the way we like to collect material things. But part of it, my friends, is DESIGN.

Continue »

Let’s say you’re trying to pick an interesting typeface to jazz up your latest newsletter project. You tried everything you could think of, and you keep striking out: buying a new font is too expensive for your budget, and none of the other choices available seem quite right. Now you’re stuck with boring ol’ Garamond and you need a way to make your typography look visually interesting, or no one will want to read your newsletter.

Here are five cool things you can do with an ordinary-looking typeface. Whether you can use all of these techniques depends to some extent on the software you have, but hopefully they will give you some ideas even if you’re using *gasp*Microsoft Word.

1. Use all the weights and styles available to you. Professional typefaces contain many options to change the look of the type you’re using. For instance, Adobe Garamond Pro contains Regular, Italic, Semibold, Semibold Italic, Bold, and Bold Italic as options you can select. Continue »

So, if Papyrus is out of the question, how do you pick a unique font, or put the fonts you have to better use?

That’s a topic that’s really beyond my ability to fully explain. I could study typography for years and not know everything there is know about it. But here are five tips that may help.

1. Pick a classic. There are some typefaces that are almost universally recognized as being classics of their genre; like the little black dress of typography, these fonts are always appropriate and elegant. Some good choices are Garamond, Baskerville, or Caslon for serifs; Helvetica, Futura, or my personal favorite, Myriad, are good standard sans serifs.

Continue »

It was suggested to me that I should write about what Ugly Design isn’t—which is a great idea, but a huge topic. So let’s take it a little at a time.

Do you pay attention to packaging design? It’s probably the most unavoidable and omnipresent kind of design—maybe even more than advertising. You can not watch tv, but it’s very difficult to avoid any packaging unless you’re Amish. Do you think packaging changes the way you perceive food, household products and other items that come in packaging? What about cheap things versus luxury things? Do you notice that the design of the packaging can attract you just as much to the bargains as to the high-end items? Continue »

I don’t think there’s any need for me to rant about the revolting putrescence that is the font Papyrus – how it spreads pestilently across the brochures, advertisements, package design, and even book covers of the world. Nothing can stop it, apparently! It has long since passed up Comic Sans as The Most Overused Font in the Universe. Off the top of my head, I can name at least six product lines at the local grocery store that use Papyrus on their packaging and I have a little game I play with myself called “Spot Papyrus” whenever I am out shopping, or even in surfing the web.

But as I said, that’s all been said many many times before.

Instead, I was wondering, why Papyrus? What is it about this font that makes it so versatile and so appealing to so many people? I’ve had more than one design client request Papyrus by name – when has anyone ever put in a specific request for Adobe Jenson Pro or Myriad Semibold?

Continue »

A couple weeks ago I read this interesting post at Design Observer. I understand the author (as much as I ever understand the posts at DO) to be saying that “Ugly Design” is nothing new. Sure, it’s edgy and in-your-face and pushing the… something or other, but it’s just a turn in the cycle, a swing of the pendulum. It’s all been done before. So at least Michael Bierut isn’t completely endorsing this trend, even if he doesn’t completely condemn it, either.

What’s “Ugly Design”? Continue »

Make you healthy, wealthy, and wise? Not really. Actually, that’s exactly the point. I’ve noticed that there seems to be a common misunderstanding about graphic design and what it can do for you.

You may debate all you like about Art for Art’s Sake, but one thing is definitely true: Design for Design’s Sake makes absolutely no sense at all. Design is a tool—a communication tool. It can communicate almost anything, but it must communicate something. It’s never just there to look pretty. Nor, on the other hand, can it save the world and your business all by itself.

Continue »