Atomic Fitness (or "How I Stopped Exercizing and Learned to Love the Bomb")

Evolve Fitness Club is found in the downtown Champaign area.  I like their logo because it is a good amalgamation of picture and type.  The "e" acts for the nucleus of the atom and the rest of the word flows off of the "e."  It is a simple design that fits the name very well without being to cumbersome or too focused on the gimmick of the name.  In my mind, it is a good example of graphic design.

Simplicity in Name and Form

There are several gas stations around town, a few of which are Circle Ks.  Their logo is a terrific example of Graphic Design, simply because the name doesn't need to be written out below the logo.  The logo speaks for itself.  It's a simple, easy, and fun design.

Oh...and happy Talk Like a Pirate Day. :)

[Insert Clever Title Here]

 

I was heading to downtown Champaign to do a little light shopping at Dallas & Co. when I saw this sign on the side of a building on Lincoln.  At first, I thought it was a really good example of integration of image and type, however when I looked at it up close, I saw that the lines of the house and the type lines weren't...well...lined up.  I still think it is a good example, but maybe it is an example of how little details make a big difference.  For me, once I saw that the elements didn't line up, that was all I saw.  It made the whole logo look sort of cheap and rushed.  I am not innocent in cutting corners here and there, but seeing this made me wonder whether cutting corners is ever really a good idea when it comes to the commercial world.

I Parked by the Bunny

About a month ago, I got the chance to go to Indianapolis, IN with a couple of friends of mine and attend Gen-Con, which is a national gamers convention.  It was a nerd and geek convention.  It was awesome!  Anyway, being that we were in a strange town and might not remember where we had parked in the very vast parking garage we had chosen, we decided that it would be wise to take a picture of the sign close by as a landmark.  This is the level and section we were in...and the interesting thing was, each section had a different animal attached to it, and each level a different color.  Each animal was designed very simply, using only enough contour and shape to make it recognizable as the animal it was.  The brilliant part about this method is how well it sticks in your mind.  You may not remember a number and a letter, but you will most certainly remember a color and animal.  Turns out that later in the evening when we went back to the car, we were able to remember where without looking at the picture.  I would say this is an amazing example of successful graphic design.

A Fond Farewell to Another School Year Gone By... (a note to my GDS 120 class)

4/28/11 TeeFury shirt of the day

shirt.woot  #1 shirt on the charts as of 4/28/11

Well, here we all are again.  The end of the semester, the end of the school year...maybe, for some, the end of Parkland.  It's never more apparent to you the things you enjoy and the things you have grown to look forward to, until you feel them slipping away.  As it turns out, this class has been the highlight of my week.  Each and every one of you in there has been amazing in your attitudes and work production.  I have never more felt outclassed, nor have I ever been more okay with getting outclassed, than I was in this class.  One of my regrets in this class is that I wasn't able to work with everyone.  I wish I could take time and right something sappy and insightful about every individual, but, sadly, my attention span will not allow for that.  I feel like I have really grown over the semester, both in my artistic ability, my creativity, and that whole "getting work done on time" responsibility factor thing.  My appreciation goes out to all y'all, especially Larry, for allowing me to try and do whatever my little ADD brain would spit out.  If I gave you the impression this semester that I'm impulsive, weird, and just slightly off my nut, it's because I am.  Any impression of normalcy that you perceived was erroneous and should be discounted.  I'll be taking Larry's Graphic Design History class in the fall, and I would hope to see some of you there.  I plan on keeping this blog going with postings of all the cool stuff I find on the internet and other places, and I might even start posting stuff I make.  I invite you all to follow along, keep your ear to the door of the padded cell, and check in now and then.

As this is my last post, I leave you with two t-shirt designs.  I started the semester with t-shirt designs, so it only seems fitting I should end with them.  I also leave you with a song that, to me, has come to be associated with the ending of something grand and fun that has in one way or another impacted my life to its bettering.  Some of you may recognize it (those of you who don't REALLY need to spend more time on the internet and video games) as the ending song from the game Portal.  Enjoy.

Back to the shirts...

Hello, once again, and welcome back to my weekly graphic design blog.  So this week I was having some trouble coming up with a very profound lesson, as I have produced the last two weeks, and so I am back to the old standard of t-shirt critique.  This little beauty is a reference to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, but all you cool people knew that already, right?  It's designed with the feeling of an old flyer or billboard, or maybe even an advert in the paper.  It's a simple and fun design that leaves no real ambiguity as to what it is referring to.  Also, if you haven't seen this movie, I would heartily suggest doing so.

Batman: Past to Present

So, I was randomly browsing YouTube (as I often do when I have homework or other important matters to attend to) and I stumbled across this little bit of awesome.  While this might qualify as more of multimedia than graphic design, it is a prime example of how a logo or an image can drastically change form and yet still be readily recognizable.  Some of these versions of the symbol are so different, but each one is instantly identified with the same character.  I suppose the lesson here is that if you feel like a project you are working on has only one view and the lines must go just so, or else it's not going to be what it's supposed to be, just take a break and rethink it.  Decide on two or three elements that make the design what it is, but play around with everything else.  In every symbol the ears are pointy and the wings go out to the side, always the flying bat silhouette, but every other aspect is toyed with, and, in the end, it still looks like Batman.  Never be afraid to open your mind to new possibilities.

Also, I used this because Batman is flippin' SWEEEEEEET!