All About the O

I usually don't like to vent but can't seem to leave this one alone. I just love logos, especially good clean logos that send a quick message and provoke strong feelings. I also love reading about how a logo is created. The thought process and color choices and branding...its all very fascinating. But I have a bit of a rebuttal about Obama's logo. Yes, it's good design but am I the only one that thinks it looks like the Bank of America logo??
And then I came across the site of the people who did the logo and what they had to say about it. see here and was really disappointed. I am so fascinated by those who can do clean clear logos that have a real punch but to say "borrowing a trick from the Nike playbook. The shoe company’s famous swoosh means nothing," really is annoying! I did a lot of studding of logos while at art school and everyone knows that the "swoosh" in question is a wing from Nike the Greek goddess of strength, speed, and victory. So maybe those who did the work on the logo can do great clean design, borrowing more from a bank logo than anything else, but I would have rather they made educated statements in the process. Anyone who has read about art, propaganda, and government knows that a strong logos, slogans, and imagery can really be affective to any campaign so why not stick to that instead of Harley Davidson, or Nike. I would have loved to here about successes with great Swiss government billboards, or Russian military recruitment's that would have been much closer link to what Obama's campaign did than that of a shoe company.

Tuesday Book Review

This is one of my all time favorite books. This book was the inspiration for me to get my degree in graphic design and it was the book that inspired my move to London (oh how I miss London).

This book takes you through some of the most amazing fashion designers and how they paired up with the best graphic designers and the amazing package design, logos, and presentations that evolved by their unique unions.

It starts off with Antoni and Alison (which I love and my Emma has the most wonderful little dress by them) and how important packaging and predestination is for their clothing. How Giorgio Armani oversees the graphic prestiontation and identity of his fasion house from every logo, t-shirt label, and fragrance bottle. The thought provoking advertisments of Comme Des Garcons is amazing. The thrill of how John Galliano's logo and packaging was brought together so cleverly. Alexander McQueen and Paul Smith's logo redesings. And loads of other desingers and how they work with graphic artists to accomlish such wonderful and powerful fashion brands, like Vivenne Westwood, You Must Create, and Anna Sui to name just a few more.

Each fashion desinger has it's own section and story to tell. Most (with out much suprise) come out of Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design in London. The layout is clean with wonerful product shots and photography to help tell each story.

Even though my path has taken a huge change in direction from the original (be a graphic designer for a fashion house) this book is still a huge inspiration for me. There are loads of wonderful creative stories that will inspire anyone with an artistic mind.

My art will start taking new life once again, but with my love for fahion in the forfront and will poor out in each new illustration as I move forward. I have a lot to thank to this book. And hopefully soon I too will be back living in London where I belong with all things creative.