Do you know Paula Scher?

At the beginning of the semester, our first assignment for typography/InDesign class was to research Paula Scher and do an article layout about her. I was so inspired by what I had researched and she is someone I know I will be continuously studying. What makes Paula Scher unique was she took used typography as her art. Instead of words being second to image in design, they became the focus.

Her use of typography throughout the years has changed the world of design and how we use it in our designs.

Below is my layout and I have attached a video from a talk she had done. I hope you find her as inspirational as I had.

Paula Scher Gets Serious

An Update & Paul Rand

It's been a while since I've posted and that's because I've been swamped with a fun load of projects to tackle in preparation for the end of the semester. I have about two to three big projects to tackle per class for the final, on top of the ongoing assignments. It's been a challenge, but great exercise on multitasking and stretching my brain creatively. My days have consisted of waking up extremely early to go to work around 5AM or 6AM and then class and homework afterwards. Some days, my days end around 11PM after spending more than 12 hours on the computer or drawing.

However, as I'm doing all this I am SO happy. I am grateful that I get to go to school to do all this. I can't believe it at times.

There are days where I do feel like I am in a rut creatively, but I take a step back and allow myself to just relax. I do find myself feeling a bit guilty if I feel as though I am sitting idly by, but I remind myself that rest is just as important as working.

 

I haven't posted any work for a while, but here is a layout I had done a few weeks ago on Paul Rand. I chose not to use any of his photos in the layout because so many people had done that in previous classes. Not only was he iconic for his work, but his black glasses, which I thought were synonymous to who he was.

This is my final layout after working with my professor to go over some changes such as the leading, font size, alignment and placement. This professor has engraved GUIDES into my head, and I am actively trying to always use them. Guides are not there to be restrictive, rather it gives order to layout, even ones that look random.

After the tweaks, I was very happy with the layout. I chose to enlarge the glasses even more to have them fall off the page, which made it feel less constrained.

I enjoyed doing my research on Paul Rand. He was a brilliant man who made a huge impact on the design world with all his work. Another fun fact I stumbled upon was that he had worked with Steve Jobs. Very cool. Anyhow, take a read at the article I had put together and maybe you'll discover something new.

Enjoy!

Typography + Motivation

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5QgT3vgIOA] This speech always moves me. I was starting to feel the pressures of all the final projects piling up, but I took a breath and watched this video. Not only does it always motivate and inspire me, coupled with the typography and layout I'm even more determined to push through and excel.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the class of '97:

Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen."

Using Grids For Your Designs

   

 

In this typography exercise (using InDesign), we used modern art pieces as grid for our text layout.  The space between letters and sentences can create shades of black and grey, depending on how tight or far apart they are.I enjoyed this exercise because it allowed me to step away from the familiarity of letters and see them as unique shapes and forms.

Furthermore, grids are a CRUCIAL part to the design process. Before laying down any images or type, the designer should create a grid with consistent spacing. With the grid as the guideline it allow the designer to visualize the finish piece and be able to manipulate images and copy to fit into it. This cuts out time wasted in conceptualizing as they are laying out.

I know I used to free hand a lot of designs, but once I started using grids in all the design programs, it made it a lot easier to align all my text and images. I could see a major difference in my design work.

In the majority of design work you see out there, a grid was used. Everything aligns with one another and that is what makes it so appealing to the eye.

Tell me, do you use grids with your design work, or do you free hand as you go along?

 

 

 

 

 

Expressive Words

In our typography class we had to illustrate expressive words with the layout of letters. This was a really fun assignment, and I'm posting some I've done. I still have a few more words in mind and can't wait to get started on those. I recommend designers doing this exercise if they're ever in a design rut. It gets the wheels turning.

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