BattleStar Galactica font

The Battlestar Galactica font looks like the old school Atari font. There, I said it. The font uses the multiple lines moving in the same shape to create the larger letter. I'm not a big fan of it, since it uses 70s styled font, which wasn't as classy as 60s style and it's a bit more garish. It's interesting to note that the font is so aged looking yet the show is cutting edge.

The Star Trek Font

The Star Trek font is a mixture of 60s style and futurism. With sharp angles like most futuristic fonts, and an angle reminiscent of most 60s font, it's a perfect font for the era the series began in and the futuristic era the show takes place in, and it hasn't aged a day. I like the high upwards angles of the horizontal lines in the font and the S especially. The S could work upside down in the same way, and it's my favorite letter in the whole font.

The Star Trek Logo

Also, since Star Trek Into Darkness is coming out soon, I decided to take a closer look at the logo of the Starfleet.

The larger, yellow symbol is pointed upwards, and creates a feeling of upward mobility and speed, since the point of starfleet is to boldly go where no man has gone before, and to explore and make connections with alien races. Not only is the logo about literally going upwards into space, but also bringing humanity and universe as a whole up through connectivity and helping each other.

Inside this symbol is a star with an elongated top point, which also takes the upwards motion idea.

The star wars font

The Star Wars font is one of the most easily recognizable fonts in the history of fonts. With the connecting letters and all caps, it has easily gained popularity due to it's uniqueness and it's versatility is renowned. The run on of the letters suggests that they continue further than the font goes, as though they are connecting to something else. This would make sense since in the narrative of Star Wars, many things are connected to each other over the years, and these connections thrust the Star Wars galaxy into the future. The shape of the font overall is that of an octagon as well, which is a futuristic shape, since in most sc i fi the architecture and machinery are hard angles.

The Shining

In honor of Saul Bass' birthday, I decided to revisit his work and take a look at a poster that I love for 1980's The Shining. It's interesting how different this poster looks compared to today's horror movie posters, which almost entirely use red and black in their design schemes but the minimalism has continued. I actually like the choice of the color yellow, since it catches the eye more than red, and since yellow is most of the poster it makes you feel energized creates nervous energy.

The face that appears to come out of the darkness of the letters is haunting, and it suggests that the words are more of a window into a dark place than just words. The slanting of the letters also suggest that something isn't quite right.

Adiddas originals

I'm also a big fan of the adidas originals logos, that are a branch of adidas shoes that are reminiscent of the designs of shoes in the 60s and 70s.

The logo also uses the 3 stripes motif, but it's quite a bit different. 

The logo creates a leaf using 3 ovals and it contains the 3 stripes running through it. With simplicity and an evenly parallel design, the logo is not just a leaf but a collection of 3's.

The Adidas logo

The brand with the 3 stripes. All day I dream about (insert something that begins with "s"). Adidas has long lived in the shadow of Nike, but it's always been my favorite sports show, partly because they treat their workers more fairly in the countries where they make the shoes, and also because I prefer the overall design of the shoes. They may not be the most flashy of shoes like Nikes, and they don't draw as much attention, but I like that. The simple use of 3 stripes is enough for someone to know which brand your shoe is. The logo for the adidas brand is reminiscent of the design on the shoe, with three stripes in ascending order.

I really enjoy the movement of the design, and the simplicity that creates the movement.

Daft Punk deserves better than this

What the heck is going on in this design?
Daft Punk are my favorite DJ's. They've got the style, the sound, and freaking robot heads. It's a really cool look that gets my creative juices a'flowin. Their style demands a more refined and "classy" design aesthetic. This is not that kind of a design.
It reminds me of an ad for an 18+ club paint party advertisement, using neon tinted colors and electricity for some odd reason. The font is also a detriment, going along with the paint party look with a dripping looking design. The splatter also looks odd in the background, as though they weren't custom made but rather downloaded and made larger, giving the pink one an awkward clipped look. Overall this is not a great way to represent Daft Punk. This makes them look more like an LMFAO kind of group.

Eh-nstagram

I may be the first to say it, but I'm not a big fan of the Instragram logo. Most other social networking type sites or applications have an incredibly simple design. Facebook has the white F. Twitter has a bird, and heck even myspace was simple with 3 stick figure humans. Instagram is going to be that hipster social networking site by going against the grain and making a logo with way too much going on.

We get that the whole gist of the app is about picture taking. You don't have to put what you actually do in the logo, for god's sake. Twitter's logo isn't a girl complaining about the weather, or a giant hashtag. Facebook's logo isn't a "share this or this baby dies" post. Neither or they giant computer screens. I believe a more effective logo for instagram is just "Insta" and the colors over top of it. It's similar to the polaroid logo for those old cameras, since instagram is basically a 21st century global polaroid camera. It would stand out in the wall of apps on most people's ipods more than the current logo.

Hanshin Tigers

The design for the Hanshin Tigers cap is very similar to the american baseball caps. For instance

Much like this dodgers cap, the Hanshin Tigers cap logo consists of two letters intertwined to create an identity that's easily recognizable. While it's not the most creative of ideas...it doesn't really have to be. What better way to represent your city than with a baseball cap that contains the initials of the team or the city? Logos like these are well liked by many due to the accessibility of the branding and the easy recognizability. It may be bold, but I'd say I enjoy the Hanshin Tigers logo much more than I enjoy the Western baseball teams logos. The H and T are perfectly symmetrical, and the type of the letters is based off uniquely eastern design aesthetics. The H will remind some of the arching top of the Osaka Castle, or the curved blade of a samurai sword. The top of the T also looks like a bridge, which osaka has a couple of (represented by the two arches on the top of the T). The logo is deceptively simple yet you can take many meanings from it. And even if you aren't trying to find a deeper meaning, the symmetry and the classic baseball design is pleasing the see and to wear as you represent your team.

Kitchen Dog Theater poster by Rob Wilson

Rob Wilson designed this poster for one of the productions put on by Kitchen Dog Theater. I think it was Oklahoma, but I'm not too sure. I love how the grain that would be in the fields is incorporated into the woman's dress as a pattern, and the top  of her dress are flowers that could be blooming off in the distance. the sun also doubles as her hat/bonnet, and the buildings fade into the field, with one on either side to give the poster a good balance, allowing the weight to be evenly distributed.

Austin Beerworks

I'm a big fan of this vintage styling that Austin Beerworks utilizes. It gives the cans a gas station type of vibe; it's something you can drink out in the desert sun while filling up your car (provided you aren't driving of course). It;s similar design wise to Intuition ale works by the way that they differentiate the types of brews without sacrificing the overall brand. Many craft beers are like this, and it's interesting to note that most macro breweries do the opposite, making their light beers seem like an entirely different brand and using different branding designs. Miller and Miller Lite and Budweiser and Bud Light are the biggest offenders of this, while Coors keeps a good job of leaving the company brand image alone and making sure it's known that they are the same brand.

Intuition ale works- creating unique identities for each kind of beer

Intuition Ale Works, a brewery based out of Jacksonville, FL, are able to make their beer stand out from the rest on the shelves with unique branding that creates an identity unlike other beers out there. Different colors for the different brews helps differentiate the ales and convey different emotions. The red colored canned pale ale is based on russian propaganda posters, the kolsch design is based off of signs you'd see down by the docks, with a nautical typography, and the west coasts ipa design brings to mind summer road trips looking for the perfect surf, with a woodie car as the object that the type is placed on. Even the 12 fluid ounces on the bottom of the cans change styles for the different cans to further the individual identities. The sameness of the Intuition logo and the placement of the colors on the cans help to keep the individual identities yet keep them under the one: Intuition Ale Works.

Yume Ume Bag

Kelly Dorsey has designed a simple and effective bag for Yume Ume, a sushi chain. Utilizing the excellent pun (I jump for soy) and using the handles in an out of the box way, it creates a bag design that will have you looking twice at it as it lays on your kitchen counter. The added arms and legs to the fish help with the jumping illusion, and it's as if the fish is saying it himself, like "put some soy sauce on me sir!" I really love this design and the fun idea.

Yupo Synthetic Paper Magazine Ad

While flipping through an issue of CMYK, I ran across this ad. With the ripped fellow challenging me to rip a simple page in a magazine, I was inclined to give it a try (and to possibly face the wrath of the librarians.) And I'll be damned if that isn't some of the toughest paper I've laid hands on, and the ad has a profound effect on the consumer. You've been challenged to do something that could damage the brand's reputation (durability) and when you aren't able to rip it, you want to look at the fine print and find out more about this company that just handed you your butt. It's like one of those salesman at the kiosks of the mall, except it's not annoying and what they're selling fits in a magazine and actually works.

In Like Flint by Bob Peak

Bob Peak is an artist well known for his art in James Bond posters and for really accentuating the 60s design aesthetic in his work. Bright gaudy colors and perfect hair. Suits and go-go boots. The 60s style was fun and psychedelic, using detail for the main characters of design and assigning shades of unnatural color to the people in the background; they are accessories to the main focuses of the piece. I love how the hair of what appears to be the main villainess is grasping for Flint, yet also creates arrows pointing towards him, showing that he is the target of the attacks.

DIE GERMS DIE

This Dial Complete anti-bacterial sanitation ad highlights the power of the hand purifier. THIS THING KILLS GERMS. THE POWER OF THIS STUFF MAKES THEM CRY, AND THAT'S WHAT YOU FEEL ON YOUR HANDS WHEN YOU USE THIS.
It's not subtle, and that's what makes it efective. The design is incredibly simple, with the drop of hand purifier also symbolizing the germ tears, and highlighting the purity of the products by how see through it is.  And the crying aspects of the text are larger font then the rest.

Good ol' fashioned MERICA

Americana is making a comeback, now when it's needed more than ever. We've been told we aren't number one anymore, and all the evidence of this is becoming more and more widely accepted. It's actually frowned upon by some to be even remotely patriotic. But you know what? This ad campaign is telling you to love it or leave it, and regarding that attitude, I love it. It's the classic world according to America, where our country is highlighted and everything else falls into the background as "those other countries to go to." The victorious handyman raising a USA made duct tape roll is propaganda-ish in a good way. Propaganda art is some of my favorite. It's not unsure or subtle; it's stone-faced, loud and sure. The slogan is not only a call to action on how to use the duct tape, but also a call for America. "Repair. Restore. Reinforce." I'm not even very patriotic and I want to wrap myself in an American flag  and watch some John Wayne movies.

Breaking the news in the best way possible

THIS AD CAMPAIGN KICKS VARIOUS AMOUNTS OF BUTT.
But really, I'm a big fan of these ads. I've only got once posted here, but feel free to check out the others, which range from "you've been audited" to "you knocked me up." These ads showcase the cake making skills of this bakery (I mean, just look at how readable "divorce" is! That's skill.) and how even bad news can taste delicious. No matter what message you want to send, we'll make it to the best of our abilities to deliver the bad news in the most delicious possible way. It's total irony, really. Also the tropes of cakedom that are parodies in these ads cracks me up to. The husband and wife on top of every wedding cake known to man being seperated like that catches the attention and draws the eyes down to the text/icing. I've got a sweet tooth for stuff like this.

Firestarter- good use of a circle aesthetic.

Firestarter is a fictional design firm created by Renee Dunn. this design is another good example of simplicity being the key to a good design. Sometimes with an idea like fire, it's very easy to go overboard and adding as many elements of fire as you can, and then before you know it, you have a design that is cluttered and has too much going on in it. This isn't the case with this design.

Using the x conveys the ideas that they could either be firewood or matches without being too explicit as to what it is. My only gripe is that the flame isn't dynamic enough, but I enjoy it a lot nonetheless. Something I've noticed with logos and design aesthetics is the use of the circle and if the area in the circle is equally distributed by the elements within, it's effective and pleasing to the eye.