Ceci's Design Journal

The conjoining theme of these is as follows: Blair (my boarding school) and my house; the two places where I have found the most joy and beauty in the world. I love these photos because whenever I look at them I can feel that very moment. I can feel the last rays of sunlight hitting my face as I smile at my best friend in the whole world, I can hear the stream gushing as my dog tries her best to cross without getting too wet, I can smell the flowering bushes outside of the Health Center, I can taste the horrible food at the prom where I got to dance with my friends one last time. I’ve also noticed now looking at all of theme there is an overwhelming presence of green; which really sums up why I feel most connected to these photos in another way. I love nature, I love sitting outside and feeling the breeze or letting rain drench me, and these photos and the overall color scheme I think conveys that as well. 

I have been extremely into a very distinct genre of fashion recently and I don’t know exactly what to call it but maybe something like Rococo?? I love the super ornate and over the top beading and detailing, which mirrors the Rococo ideals where aesthetics overtook any and all practicality. I absolutely adore the A-line silhouettes that all fall just right and compliment the beautiful floral or gold inlays and I can’t get enough. I’ve been watching a lot of Renaissance/Baroque era movies lately and I literally love the dresses so much, and when modern ideals are combined with that kind of look, all of these dresses are created. Its a perfect mixture of those old aesthetics and a modern acceptance of other styles and I just adore everything about it. Out of all of these examples I love the second to last gown the most because of the unique and antiquated silhouette/cut while its also layered in a very modern and the choice of where the mesh is to show some skin is just everything I love. 

The overall experience was very enlightening because even though the library isn’t necessarily meant to be a place where you look for exhibitions, it did an amazing job of catching my attention and keeping it until I saw all the cases. I thought it was very impressive that the design team was so successful in catching my eye even if I was there just to check out a book. That truly shows the power of good design. 

This website does a great job of being professional, as its more of a museum than an attraction persey, while still playing into the magic that all Harry Potter fans still want to feel no matter their age. The titles are straight to the point, but also keep the theme with events like Celebration of Slytherin and Gringotts Wizarding Bank. I also appreciate that the cite offers a very simple map of how easy it is to get to the site from the airport, which is can be a very appealing detail for some families. 

Tobias Hall is a 35 year old illustrator, letterer, designer and mural artist. He has a almost whimsical style to all his work that truly makes his pieces recognizable though they are all SO different. He somehow manages to find balance in the most minimal and busy pieces and I couldn’t find a single design or logo that I didn’t enjoy immensely, The fact he’s only 35 and has worked for brands like YouTube, TIME, Netflix and Rolling Stone just makes me so hopeful as a young graphic designer. His works are bright and insanely detailed, and every word and font is painstakingly chosen and rendered to its absolute peak aesthetic. 

Saul Bass was a very unique designer who had an over 60 year career that sadly ended with his death in 1996. He was an icon for his dozens of recognizable film posters and many film festival posters. I was drawn to his work because I haven’t seen anything quite like his style done so well. There is a sense of almost child-like wonder in the design and execution, but you know that every detail was deliberate and measured because of how pleasing all of his posters are to look at. He’s definitely known more for his posters and not typography, but he also has his own unique fonts that he seems to draw himself. The colors are always striking and bright, which do wonders to keep your attention and make you remember what you saw on his posters.

So for our design exploration assignment, Cheryl, Yuki and I went to Fishtown. Gen is also in our group but unfortunately had a family emergency and couldn’t come, but thanks to her recommendation we still knew where we wanted to go when we got to Fishtown. We went to the Milkcrate Cafe and got a delicious brunch, and got to explore the underground record storage of the cafe too. There were maybe hundreds of different records all from different genres and artists of all ages. It was awesome. Then we got to go to a shop called Mothership and I bought three mystery boxes, two for me and one for my friend. The one I loved the most was the little pig pictured, and I love him with all my heart and soul. After we caught the subway back to campus, we then got bubble tea before we parted ways to start our other homework. It was an awesome day and I would love to do it again with them sometime. 

I used my own photos for all but one of these examples, (I think which one is obvious) and I’ve noticed I really like cool toned color schemes that have some pops. I really enjoy diluted blues and greens, mixed with neutral browns and grays with a pop of a red or yellow to contrast. Out of all of these, I think I love the close up picture of my dog, Bella, the most. She’s a naturally red colored dog in real life, and the saturation and lighting make her look like she’s glowing. The neutral and faded reds of the bricks behind her frame her and make the background interesting but not distracting. And finally, the slivers of bright blue sky peaking out above her and reflected onto the windows make the whole picture make me feel all warm and fuzzy. Plus she also looks like a model pup, which is what she deserves. 

I’ve only seen two movies on this list and have read none of the books, but I really love all of these. I love unique styles and really cant commit to one poster as my favorite, but I especially when they have contrasting colors. I love the Avengers poster because of the old school layering of the heroes’ faces and the super saturated colors. There are so many details hidden in every part of the poster, the background avengers logo and the ship in the far background just to name a few. Out of all of these posters however, I am in LOVE with the Godzilla one; the color choice is so striking, the silhouette is is eye catching and sharp, and the image being shown is dynamic and implies a very dramatic scene that I want to watch. Recently I saw the Richard Jewell movie and really enjoyed it, and the poster is very well done in the way it captures basically the enemy of the movie, the media, sworming the unthreatening Richard, his crying mother and their lawyer behind them. But the other important players in the story are also sharpened, the woman who starts the slander on Jewell, and the FBI agent assigned to convict him. It’s a really well done poster, and especially after watching the movie, it has so many layers. 

https://www.fi.edu/theaters/planetarium

My selections vary greatly as to why the caught my eye. Starting from the top, Steven Springer moreso catches my eye because of how the billboard doesn’t hint as to what the company is whatsoever. The only reason I know what they sell is because my dad gets my mom gilded roses from them every few anniversaries. But I love how a jewelry company just knows that husbands hate it and went with that. Second is an ad for education and action against climate change before its too late. Whenever an ad has a child in potential danger, one feels very drawn to listen to it. Also the water damaged paper ads an eery and seeable outcome. Next is a still from a photoshoot of one of my favorite Youtubers Shane Dawson promoting his makeup palette in collaboration with Jeffree Star. I love seeing Shane embracing the industry of makeup but also keeping true to his weird and unique personality. It made me very happy to see him look so good in an advertisement for his own palette. Next is the leaf, promoting plant for a planet. I really loved the simplicity of this one but also the important message it sends. People may know that plants trap CO2 but highlighting factories’ role in CO2 production is important. Next is China’s FedEx ad, which I strangely love??? I don’t know fully why I love it so much, maybe it’s the simplicity but also the overall warm feeling of the photo, but it really stuck out to me. Next is an ad for Schusov State Museum of Architecture which is absolutely captivating in what other images it sparks in your mind. Something so magical feeling sticks with someone no matter the age. Next is Pedigree’s advertisement for adopting a dog. This one is super cute and heart warming, as it doesn’t say ‘buy’ or ‘get’ it says adopt, which is really what the world needs. And one does see the difference in feeling of the photo with and without the dog. Next is Netflix’s Bandersnatch which I personally loved. I adore the pattern and the eery lighting and the boy’s face. Black Mirror is known for its messed up and thought provoking episodes but this one is especially twisted, and it shows. Second to last we have the #knowvape ad which I think is the right amount of educational and serious. It’s not too preachy so people won’t just turn away from it, but also gives very important info. And lastly, arguably the one that messed with me the most, is the WWC ad drawing attention to the biases and hypocrisy of some people in their caring about the environment. If a creature that isn’t considered as adorable as a panda is going extinct, it should matter just as much to the world because it can and WILL have a catastrophic impact on countless ecosystems. All of these ads stood out to me for a variety of reasons, from climate change, vaping and adoption being some, but all make me think and are some I will remember for a while. 

{that bottom picture is of me passed out on my neighbor’s floor after getting back; yogurt raisins clutched in my hand, half empty}

Typography Entry

I chose the illustration book of Lisa Ruyter called One Million Postcards. Despite the fact that this book was mostly in German, I really didn’t feel like I needed to read to feel these pieces’ impacts. They were all incredibly captivating, as you take time to trace the entire painting with your eyes, seeing every detail and design decision. Some details are small and outlined, while some are line-less and blocked. You feel just as drawn to the small decisions and the larger blocks of color, which is something very hard to do. And while the colors are unnatural in the sense that most of the objects captured were definitely not that color in reality, there is never a disconnect from the subject matter. I really love Lisa’s style and carefree way of coloring scenes and people that make them unique but also attractive and captivating. 

Finding a favorite is painfully hard for me. I would have to go with her Bring in the Noise Bring in the Funk because of how wide spread and recognizable that design is. I want it to be my favorite because I want to give her the recognition she deserves for the wide spread design craze she caused. 

All of the illustrations (except https://www.ncsml.org/exhibit/alphonse-mucha-inspirations-of-art-nouveau/) are found on the artists’ art pages, which are either found on Tumblr, Instagram or both. 

Then there are logos that are more symbolic than literal but are just as recognizable if you partake in certain hobbies; in this case, gaming. The Assassin’s Creed logo, a sharp and almost intimidating logo is known by an entire generation of people who played or still play the games. Then, another extremely popular game, Skyrim. This logo completely drops the letters aspect and just goes full into the game itself, which I appreciate. More elaborate and beautiful logos like Legend of Zelda’s continuously amaze me on how many symbols they managed to squeeze into such a neat logo. Moving onto another more visual but also manages to hide the actual letters in it, we have the logo for the apocalypse survivor group, the Fireflies, in the video game The Last of Us. Even though this logo is for a group within a video game and not even for the game itself, it is just as impactful and beautifully designed that anyone in the know would recognize it immediately. Last but certainly not least, we have a logo for the popular horror indie game Sally Face. This logo has three main draws to it for me; the fact that a character has this logo on their shirt in the game itself but for his favorite metal band, Sanity’s Fall; the fact that it can also be a logo for the main character, Sal Fisher; and the shaky, almost messy style to the strokes that points down ominously. You get a sense of the game just through this alone.