Visibility: Graphics

For this Graphics example I was really limiting myself to entries that contained text in some way. When I first great Graphic Design: The New Basics, I was really drawn to this creation and I even used it an as example for our exam on this book.

Surface Manipulation The textural physicality of these type studies artfully reflects the active processes featured in the words. The crisscrossing lines of an artist’s cutting board resemble an urban street grid.

It really irritates me that the author says that the cutting board resembles an urban street grid (not sure where she was going with that one). Regardless, this piece really does bring life to the creative process. Just as I believe that the pen is the emblem if a writer is trying to bring life to words, I believe that the EX-ACTO knife would be the emblem for an artist who is trying to bring life into a design project such as this. My sister is an architect so when she was in college she would make many miniature sized models of buildings. Wielding her EX-ACTO knife she would cut the balsa wood into various different shapes and sizes and there would be a decent amount of spray painting involved with her projects. Looking at this project it is easy for me to image the artist in his/her creative process. This is something we should strive for as writers: we want a reader to be transplanted into our vision so that they can experience it for themselves; we want to achieve the quality of visibility.

Lightness: Graphics

 

I was surprised at how quickly I was able to find a good example of Calvino’s Lightness within Graphic Design: The New Basics, by Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips. I was looking for something that reminded me of my Lightness Emblem (an iMac); clean lines, simplistic, lightly tinted hues. I decided I would include two different images because I think they both do a really good job of demonstrating Lightness.

This first image has the following caption:

Artful Reduction A minimal stack of carefully shaped forms, in concert with exacting intervals of spaces, instantly evokes this sculptural landmark. Malcolm Greer, Malcolm Greer Designers.

Although I’ve never been to the Guggenheim Museum, I found this photograph of it:

Looking at the two representations of the building, they look very similar. The artist Malcolm Greer has stripped the Guggenheim down to it’s simplest and most essential facet. He has removed the weight from the Guggenheim. The busy city streets and even the artwork inside the building have been removed from the design so that it becomes light. Also, the bright yellow color provides a good canvas for use of negative space with the rectangular shapes and sans-serif typeface. This is a good example of thoughtful lightness: the spaces between the rectangles are even and the lack of framing reminds me of the black and white photograph I included above. In the black and white image the white facade seems to melt into the sky around it; there is no clear distinction between where the building ends and where the sky begins.

I also wanted to include this entry from Graphic Design:

Inverted Hierarchy This package design project asks students to redirect a product line to an unexpected audience. This design for cleaning products reorders the hierarchy and voice to spark the interest of young, progressive consumers who may be new to housekeeping. The brand name is subtle and sits back, while the offending soil takes center stage. Oliver Munday, Advanced Design. Jennifer Cole Phillips, faculty.

On an unrelated note, I would totally buy this product! It is an example of thoughtful lightness. The terms “laundry detergent” or “bleach” are actually a pretty abstract concepts if you don’t already know the definitions. This product takes the nature of the cleaning product and brings it down to its simplest form. The remove spots, stains, germs and scum, so why not make that the focal point of the product design? Also, the blue and white color scheme combined with the clean lines and empty space convey a sense of cleanliness.