My main side job is designing for the local swing dance groups. Consequently, I constantly look through vintage and vintage inspired posters for inspiration. Today, I ran across these two posters for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

The poster on the left caught my eye while I was searching for cabaret posters on Google Images. The hand-drawn typography is beautiful and the illustration is eye-catching, fun and simple. It reminds me of one of my favorite vintage prints: Le Frou Frou by Lucien-Henri Weiluc created in 1900.

The 2007 Nothing Like a Dame poster visually benefits from a lack of clutter adding information like location, date, time and sponsors might have caused. However, I wonder how beneficial it is to have a poster about an event when it excludes all of the details. I don’t even see a mention of a way to contact them for more information.

I’m not as drawn to the 2006 version, but I do think it is a good design in its own right. It also has interesting typography and a beautiful illustration. However, the thin font weight, overlapping shapes and white background makes it slightly more challenging for the eye to decipher what is going on (not hard, just slightly harder). That said, unlike the 2007 version, it is nice they found a way to include all the important information.

Nothing Like a Dame is an annual star-studded gala performance and event. Net proceeds from this one night event benefit the Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative of the Actors’ Fund of America. You can read more about the 2006 and 2007 events on broadwaycares.org.

Unfortunately, I can’t find a mention anywhere about who designed these two posters. I am always a fan of giving credit where credit is due, so if you know that information, please share it with me.

What do you think of these posters? Do you enjoy hand-drawn typography like I do?

Filed under: Critiques || Leave Your Thoughts

If you visit Eugene, Oregon’s City Council website, you are greeted with “Welcome to the City of Eugene World’s Greatest City of the Arts & Outdoors.” That slogan makes me laugh for several reasons. A declaration of being the “World’s Greatest” anything is absurd and subjective, but most of all because the slogan is supposed to be “World’s Greatest City FOR the Arts and Outdoors.” If you dig deeper in the website they actually get it right.

I agree that Eugene can be described as a city for the arts and outdoors. During the five years I have been living in the area I have observed a general goal of the city and its residents to help and support these two items in particular. However, the “World’s Greatest” makes me question the arrogance of the Eugene City Council. I would prefer: “Eugene: A City for the Arts and Outdoors.”

Even though downtown Eugene has more arts and entertainment opportunities than anywhere else in the area, it has also been a concern of many of the residents that downtown Eugene has been losing its draw. Pan handlers hang out on Broadway, more and more store fronts are sitting vacant and several revitalization initiatives have failed to please the tax payers. A few buildings have been knocked down leaving giant holes and no one has even begun to show any sign of filling in any of them. During the rainy season I like to refer to them as swimming pools.

In 2003, Downtown Eugene Inc. (DEI) worked with Funk/Levis and Associates, a local design firm, to create a downtown brand identity and marketing campaign. DEI’s website had this to say about it.

In the case of downtown, we need to change a perceived personality that is largely negative. According to Funk/Levis CEO David Funk, “Branding takes what is true and makes it more true.”

What is true about downtown is that arts, culture and entertainment are flourishing. DEI believes that as an economic development strategy, a growing arts and entertainment sector makes sense.

There are several components of the Branding that need to occur. First, DEI will look at the physical appearance of downtown and make it brighter, cleaner and more colorful. For instance, regional marketing programs will help make downtown Eugene a destination for those interested in arts, entertainment and the outdoors. Branding downtown’s personality and character can also be accomplished through retail and restaurant promotions, downtown parking programs and consistent representation of the Downtown Brand through visual graphics and the use of the tag line “Surprise Yourself.”

From what I have read, my understanding is that they want to highlight the liveliness of downtown Eugene and make it more appealing to the senses. I really like the logo Funk/Levis put together for them. It captures the qualities of the branding initiative in a fun way.

I wonder though if the campaign is working. I have noticed flower baskets and colorful banners downtown. I have also noticed restaurants and clubs piping their music to outside speakers. However, I do not recall ever seeing this logo anywhere except on the DEI website. That does not mean it is not out there, it just did not burn itself in my memory. I read all 27 pages of their branding plan and continually thought to myself, “I wonder when they will implement this portion of the plan?” I even asked a few of my coworkers if they had ever heard of the “Surprise Yourself” tagline before. None had. One of them made the joke, “Come to downtown. Find out how you will react when approached by a shady stranger on the street. Surprise yourself!”

What to you think? Does your city have similar marketing campaigns? How do you feel about applying a brand identity to a city? The Big Easy? Sin City? Do you think it helps cities attract more people?

Filed under: Critiques, Marketing || 3 Excellent Comments

No, this is not a tutorial. As a designer, I am concerned about what the general masses are learning about “design.” Free clipart. Free fonts. Free “design” software. Ugh, it is no wonder I constantly find myself cringing.

I recently attended a “Photoshop CS3 Power Tour” by Kelby Training. Overall, the seminar was useful — CS3 has some great new features. However, part of the way through the third class, I glanced at my coworker who was looking back at me with the same horrified expression that I imagine I had on my face.

“Customized Type Treatments for Logos”

You can imagine the quality of logo design tips taught in a Photoshop seminar. I do not think Photoshop is a good tool for dealing with vector art or type. I am also not a fan of three-dimensional logos in general. As a result, it makes me sad when somebody teaches a room of 300-400 people how to set type, deform it and then make it look like it was chiseled out of gold in Photoshop as a “customized type treatment for logos.”

Okay, I admit it, somewhere down the line I MAY come up with a need for such an effect. However, I do not see a need for it when designing a logo. I wonder how many people walked out of that class thinking, “Cool, I finally know what I’m going to do for my personal logo.”

If you do not understand why this bugs me so much, here you go:

• Creating a logo in Photoshop can bite you in the ass later. I am not a fan of logos built in pixel-based software. What if you need to make the logo really big for a sign, banner or billboard? When you increase the size, the logo will become pixelated. If you start with a vector logo, resizing issues should never be a problem.
• A logo should look good in black and white. At some point, you will print it that way. Maybe you will need to fax it to somebody, maybe you cannot afford to pay for full-color printing all the time or maybe somebody wants to make a copy of a letter you wrote on your company letterhead.
• A logo should look good really small. If you think you can make the above image one-inch wide and still understand the gold effect, I can tell you right now, you are wrong.
• You should not deface a font without a good reason. If you were paying attention, you probably noticed I stretched the ascenders and some of the serifs in the Gold logo. I only did it because it was one of the steps he showed us in the seminar. When I see stuff like this, I find myself wondering why the designer did it. Sometimes it is necessary to help with kerning. Sometimes it helps the design, but doing it just because you can really irks me.
• Beveling, embossing and drop shadows are my nemeses. Instances do exist where these treatments make sense. However, every wanna be designer seems to believe these are the coolest things ever invented when it comes to “design.”

These are just a few of my design pet peeves. What are some of yours? Have you successfully used the above technique in one of your designs? If so, I hope you will share.

Filed under: Critiques, Graphic Design || 8 Excellent Comments

Print’s 2007 Regional Design Annual had several gems of its own. I admit that I’m partial to this particular design because I have a black lab myself. He exhibits all of the below behaviors and some unique ones of his own — like licking bare feet and snacking on bobby pins.

My love of labs aside, I think this piece is very well-done. Designer/Illustrator, Jorge Lamora, cleanly represents the lab and his relationship with the things around him. I love how the lab breaks out of the circles while everything else is contained. However, it was the story that captured my attention. Dogs get away with behavior people never would. Just try making friends with somebody by sticking your nose in their crotch.

The one thing that doesn’t quite make sense to me is the last part of the sequence. I think the lab’s butt should be the one being sniffed rather than the other way around. It looks to me like the lab is getting to know that other dog and all the other dog is learning about the lab is how forward he is.

To give credit where credit is due, according to Print, Jorge Lamora designed/illustrated this piece under the art direction of Ellen Bruss of Ellen Bruss Design in Denver, CO.

In case you are curious The Lab “combines elements of an art museum, think tank and public forum.” Do you think this design matches an organization like that?

Filed under: Critiques || Leave Your Thoughts

I recently received the latest Communication Arts Design Annual. I am sure I am not the only designer that feels like a kid in a candy store when I get these annuals. This year several designs caught my eye, but this particular one made me laugh too.

Now if only I didn’t have to gain 50 pounds and experience 9 months of mood swings to lose those 10 pounds….

According to CA, this was a birth announcement designed by Ben Harman under the creative direction of Suzanne Harman with Ben Harman Design in Austin, TX. I tried to find a website, but I don’t think the Ben Harman I found is the same person.

Unfortunately, I scanned this out of the CA 2007 Design Annual, Issue 356 (page 151), so the quality is not as good as the original. That does not change my opinion of it though. The concept is brilliant and memorable. I even love the details in the illustration — the way the “before” lady is holding her belly and how the “after” lady’s hair is perfectly styled. However, I think the baby’s name should stand out more. After all, the real point of this announcement is the baby. Ultimately, friends and family (my presumed target audience) care about that part the most.

What do you all think? Did you enjoy this announcement as much as I did? Is there anything you would change about it?

Filed under: Critiques || 3 Excellent Comments