"There can be only one..."

ITC Highlander

ITC Highlander was designed by David Farey and released in 1993. Highlander is a tribute to the Cooper typeface, designed by early 20^th century American typeface designer and lettering artist Oswald Cooper. Farey, a long time fan of Cooper, modeled this sans-serif typeface in the handlettering style of the Cooper typeface. While Oswald Cooper never released a sans-serif typeface, there were sans-serif letterforms used in a number of lettering exercises that he produced, which Farey also drew upon in his designing of ITC Highlander.   

Oh, Canada...

I seriously love this logo because it has almost no right to be as brilliant as it is.  The logo was made by the MacLaren McCann firm, which is based out of Calgary, a providence of Alberta, Canada.  The logo was created for Murray Piano Services.  It has no right to be this brilliant because it is so simple.  It's not flashy or innovative or groundbreaking.  It is, quite simply, five piano keys from a point of view that you rarely see them, and they resemble an M.  I love this logo because it has no right to be this brilliant.  Gotta love Canadian ingenuity. 

The photo is courtesy of the Graphis website.

BAM! POW! WOW!

This magazine cover caught my eye...which is exactly what it was supposed to do.  Like the Psychedelic design style it is modeled after, its purpose is to grab your attention violently by the throat.  The jagged edges and vibrating colors grab the eye and almost force it to look.  While I am not saying that this is a spot-on reference to the Psychedelic style of graphic design, it definitely shares a similar desire to be noticed and seen.

On the road again...again...

It used to be that the weekends were made up of mom and dad announcing an impromptu road trip, huge smiles on faces and picnic baskets in hand...or at least that's how the ads portrayed it.  According to my dad, there were times like that for him, but they weren't all that often.  However, in today's world of fast-paced living, having to be able to be reached wherever you are via cellphone, and hectic schedules, the weekend road trip is almost non-existent.  The Dodge Journey will change all that...or so they are claiming with this ad.  The design of the ad is American Kitsch, mostly because of the casual hand-written font.  Kitsch was the time period of those bygone road trips.  It is a call back to those simpler times, and is appealing to the children who remember those trips so well.  Clever.

Welcome...to Jurassic Park! [insert theme music]

Just a few days ago, I got the chance to see Jurassic Park on the big screen.  It's kind of sad how I keep forgetting how incredibly amazing that movie is!  In addition to remembering how awesome the movie is, I realized the colossal amount of graphic design that is found in it.  Jurassic Park is not a real place (more is the pity) or a real business.  For this theme park to feel real and for the movie to work, an entire corporate identity package had to be made up.  Logos, pamphlets, fliers, t-shirts, and an entire gift shop worth of merchandise all had to be designed!  The best part about it is that I never would have noticed had I not taken Graphic Design History, which is honestly the way it should be.  The identity of Jurassic Park is so solid and believable that it goes unnoticed.  In addition to being a successful element of the movie, I would even venture to say that the Jurassic Park corporate identity is successful in the real world too.  In any corporate identity package, the ultimate goal has to be overall recognition.  People see your logo, and they recognize it as yours.  Jurassic Park is recognizable the world over, not only because of the proliferation of the movie franchise, but also because it is a unique and recognizable brand.  Now if only they could perfect the park itself...

Takes a Lickin' and Keeps On Tickin'

Many people don't realize that graphic design is around us everyday, and oftentimes we take it for granted.  This is my watch.  It's a Timex.  The weird shape is because it clips onto my belt-loop instead of going around my wrist.  The purpose of a watch is to tell you the time and to do so in a clear manner that allows you to glance at it and immediately know the time.  The typeface of the numbers has to be clear enough for that.  The numbers and the writing around the edge are all written in a way that allows for instant readability.

In case of fire, read sign.

The Swiss movement gave birth to a new concept of simplicity in design.  Even now, we still see examples of the Swiss mentality in modern day design.  I tried researching the history of this fire extinguisher sign (yes it is technically a sticker, but I'm calling it a sign), but I was unable to come up with much aside of a major distributor.  While I am unsure of whether or not this sign (which I found in a gas station, by the by) was designed during the height of the Swiss movement, I do think it is a very good example of the Swiss style.  Clean, straight lines and angles and the use of a modified Helvetica typeface are all characteristic of the Swiss style.  The design works really well because, although stacked type is usually a no-no in the graphic design world, it makes your eye follow the arrow down to the extinguisher below.  In an emergency, simplicity is what you will want in order to communicate with someone in a state of panic.  This works and, doubtless, has saved lives.  My hat is off to the designer, whoever you are.