creative alphabets: yay!

The other day, I stumbled upon a blog from a dude named Reuben Miller featuring 22 of the world’s creative alphabets. And indeed, these are some seriously creative ways to create letterforms. I was so inspired by the packed meat type, I recreated some of my own for the Student Addy poster for AAF this year. Here are some of my favorites from the list. And you can check out the rest here.

"How to Be Creative"

One of my professors, the honorable Judith Sweeney-Obryan, shared this article with my Special Topics: Advertising Campaigns class.
I wanted to share some of the key points that stood out to me, and how helpful they were. I often struggle with finding the "perfect" solution and kick myself in the head until it comes. It's often such a struggle for the good ideas to come. It was a nice reminder to hear that creativity is a process and you have to get through all the crappy, cliche ideas before the good stuff can come out. Remember, the best solutions take work.

1. Create a routine.
Establish working routines that follow your mental instincts.

2. Let the assignment set some boundaries.
The specifics of your problem will help center your thinking. How you think about a project comes from it's true nature.
3. Start with basic thinking techniques.

"I always write a thing first and think about it afterwards, which is not a bad procedure, because the easiest way to have consecutive thoughts is to start putting them down."
-E.B.White, essayist

4. Suspend judgment.
"Be fearless around bad ideas. There is no such thing as a bad idea when concepting. Often the worst ideas are your tour guide to the best ones. It wouldn't be a cliche if it weren't so damned true. My ratio of bad to good is probably 50 to 1. I fill pages with bad. I build a monument to good on a trash heap of crap."
-David Baldwin, executive creative director, McKinney & Silver

5. Use both lateral and vertical thinking.
Be abundant and uncritical while also being analytical.

6. Hang tough.
A good idea is tricky. Learn to suspend yourself in a problem without being panicked by the sense of weightlessness that comes with no-idea-yet.

7. Find more than one solution.
"You cannot dig a hole in a different place by digging the same hole deeper."
-Edward de Bono, Lateral Thinking

8. Consider multiple points of view.
Every situation has more points of view than you are currently considering.

9. Restate the problem.
Adopt the perspective of a first-time user or someone who doesn't speak the language.

10. Read, stay curious, try to know at least a little about a lot.

clients, gotta love em

Seeing as how I'll be heading in the workforce in the near future, I've been thinking often about how to best work with clients. I came across this article on smashingmagazine.com on how to work with clients. It's called "How to Explain to Clients That They Are Wrong" and I wanted to share it here. Check it out, the information is quite helpful.

inspired by: BUNCH

Lately I've been inspired by unusual typography and wanted to share a design group in the UK called Bunch. I recently have come across their limited edition design of 300 books entitled “TEN” after Milton Glaser’s essay “Ten Things I Have Learned.” The beautiful publication showcases a cross section of paper stocks available from the represented paper merchant with beautifully illustrated statements enveloping the pages including typography using among other items, toothpaste and pieces of toast.
According to their profile, “Bunch was established in 2002, by Denis Kovac and Paulo Silva. It spread organically from London to Zagreb and then to Singapore. Talented friends joined, and the union formed the multi-disciplinary design agency that is the Bunch of today. We use our wide range of specializations to create intelligent and consistent brands for our diverse clients. And believe that creativity, clarity and consistency are the keys to successful design.” They do work for well known clients including Nike, McDonalds, Nissan, Diesel, Mulletover (awesome name right?), and an endless array of companies worldwide.

I discovered the firm awhile ago and was quite impressed by the extent of their talents: they produced the elegant identity for the Insitut Parfumeur Flores and applied it to signage, bags, stickers, pencils, ribbons and labels along with various promotional applications to both the interior and exterior of the store. A palate of flowers, designed for the company’s identity (which can be used in isolation or all together to communicate the brand), kept it sweetly playful and diverse.

Another very unique project from the bunch team includes Bastardised, a book they created from a request to artists and designers to recreate their logo. From 750 contributions, they selected 289 that showcases the wealth of creativity, beauty and humor found within the submitted works. View all the submissions here: http://www.madeinbunch.com/

I am not going to be able to do this agency justice in one single post. Please, please, please go visit their website and check out their impressive portfolio. I have been studying their work and they truly embody their belief that creativity, clarity and consistency are the keys to successful design. Everything they create is unique to the brand they are working with and they always present something fresh that is impeccably designed. They respect the conventions of classic design but maintain an element of experimentation in their works which I hope to do in my own designs.

PS. If their portfolio wasn’t enough to blow your mind, their showreel of video and animation work will take you to a whole ‘notha level of awesomeness. View it all here: http://www.bunchdesign.com

is it the end or the beginning?

My final semester of college began today. It's not quite real yet. There is much to be done in the next few months but I know that it is going to speed by and graduation day will suddenly be tomorrow and then today.
I'm feeling good about everything that is happening. I'm jumping back in at redpepper tomorrow and they are kicking off a new intern program, and since I am the senior most intern (I've been there for a year at the end of this month), I'll be an ambassador of sorts. There are two new interns, plus a returning intern from last semester. We'll be making lots of plans and experiementing with new mediums and ways of communicating. I'm getting a lot of ideas from a book I asked for for Christmas: How to Be An Explorer of the World by Keri Smith

The book opens with a quote from T.S. Eliot:
"We shall not cease from exploration
And at the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."

That spoke to me so much, and the book has been wonderful as a jumpstart tool for getting out there, trying new things, looking at things differently.

Smith breaks it down like this:
How to be an Explorer of the World
1. Always be looking.
2. Consider everything alive and animate.
3. Everything is interesting. Look closer.
4. Alter your course often.
5. Observe for long durations (and short ones).
6. Notice the stories going on around you.
7. Notice patterns. Make connections.
8. Document your findings in a variety of ways.
9. Incorporate indeterminacy.
10. Observe movement.
11. Create a personal dialogue with your environment. Talk to it.
12. Trace things back their orgins.
13. Use all of the senses in your investigations.

I intend to take her advice and hope that it brings new lessons and lots of inspiration. I hope the same for you, whoever you are, that this year is filled with eye-opening experiences and opportunities.

show me a story

Illustration II was a class I just finished up this semester and truly enjoyed. Dan Brawner, our professor, makes class so fun complete with field trips and surprise projects (that you actually want to do!)
Our biggest project was based on illustrating narratives, including Alice In Wonderland and then a children's book of our own choosing. We had to focus on character development, create numerous book dummies and complete 3 final pieces along with a full size book dummy. Plus, Dan hooked us up with the opportunity to have a gallery show to feature all our hard work. It was a lot of work and a lot of fun and I wanted to share my final work here, along with some pictures from the show. Enjoy!
I illustrated the classic Grimm's Brother's tale of Rumplestiltskin.
Show me a Story, the name of the exhibition is being kept up for a little while at Lush Gallery, which is next to Watkins, behind Neely's BBQ. I'm not sure when it comes down, but if you have a bit of free time and are in the area, check it out!

ain't it funny...

How do days and months suddenly sneak up on you, when it feels like yesterday they were far, far away? It's Christmas break and I am done with my last Fall semester at Watkins. I feel really good about all that I accomplished in the last few months and I'm looking forward to the Spring.
I'm actually going to...graduate.
It's unreal. I feel like as soon as the first day begins in January, that suddenly it will be May and everything will be over. There's a mix of emotions for me at the moment, excitement, anxiousness, a tinge of sadness...But it is time. I've been blessed to have been able to take extra time to find out what I truly wanted to do with my life and pursue the right program and major. Lately I've been thinking about how funny it is how things end up the way they do.
Six years ago I was a senior in high school and I thought I had it all planned out. I'd finish school in four years and I'd be a therapist and I'd live in Charleston for the rest of my days. I never imagined my life as it is now and god, am I happy it has evolved the way it has.
A word of advice to juniors and seniors in high school: You don't have to have it all figured out yet. It's very (VERY) unlikely that you will know what you want to do with your life at 18. You may be getting pressure from parents or teachers to choose a major, and figure it all out already, but trust me, you're not ready yet. Keep an open mind and try as many new things as possible. You never know what might pique your interests and turn into a new passion that changes your life forever.
And also, don't think that you can plan out your entire life. I thought I could at 17 when I graduated high school and received a rude awakening. Embrace the fact that you don't have complete control over everything. Now I relish in the fact that I could have a completely different life in a few years. Sure, I'd love to stay in Nashville and land a totally killer design job but I may end up in a city or a state or even another country. And man, that is so exciting.
On that note, I'll wrap it up by saying I am so excited for what the next six months will hold. I'll be taking a Special Topics Advertising Campaigns class (which I am extra excited about since gaining so much experience at my internship), Senior Portfolio, and also working as the work study designer for the Graphic Design department. Plus, redpepper is still my internship home, although I'll be working less hours so that I can dedicate more time to polishing my portfolio. It's gonna be great.