Mantra of the Week // GO DEEP

Bruce Mau mantra number 5:

Go Deep / / The deeper you go the more likely you will discover something of value

This mantra is especially true when we are in the process of starting a new project. In order to come up with an effective design and concept, it is important to think and sketch until you've exhausted all of your ideas. This will make it easier to move on in the design process because you will have a more definite direction.

Twenty Rules

These rules serve as a good guideline for when I'm not sure what direction to go in. I know I've neglected some of these rules in the past, so it will be nice to have a reference from now on.

The three that I think are most important are having a concept, being decisive, and doing it with less. All three of these can be the keys to good design. In class we always talk about how you should be able to clearly explain what you are trying to do, and if you can't than you don't have a good concept. Similar to that, if you are not decisive about what should be included in your concept, then you will end up with a product that isn't unified.

The three rules I need to work on are treating type as image, distributing light and dark, picking colors with purpose.

The three rules that I want to ignore are ignoring fashion, measuring with my eyes, and static is dull.

GD//01: Toolkit

Who is John Gall?

John Gall is another well-known book cover designer. Gall is known for his strong imagery as well as effective typography. He has done covers for Cormac McCarthy, Haruki Murakami, and Jim Shepard. Gall has also served as art director on several covers.

Gall is important to us because his covers are excellent examples of image and type balance. Rather than over-designing his covers, he chooses one strong image to build off of. His typography is often very subtlem but effective because he understands size and weight relationships.

Who is Chip Kidd?

Chip Kidd is a "rock star" graphic designer who is known for his book jackets. Author James Ellroy called Kidd "the world's greatest book jacket designer." Kidd's most well known work includes book covers for No Country For Old Men, Jurassic Park, and The New Testament.

Kid's work is so important because he was one of the first designers to turn the book cover into and artistic medium. His book covers have been described as creepy, striking and unpredictable. Even with his success, Kidd has a cynical attitude towards his own work. He wants the cover to serve the book, but not sell it. Publishers often expect a good book cover to just sell more books, but Kidd believes the cover should help sell the story.

William Eggleston

Eggleston's photos have a sense of color that almost seems staged, with a very clear color palette. In this photo of a dog, the viewer sees an orange subject set against a mostly blue and green background. This color palette almost seems calculated, the way it would be in a painting. This artistic sense gives color photography a chance to be more "legitimate" in the eyes of critics.