Filed under: Art, Color, Design, Inspiration, Typography | Tags: 1970's television, adult swim, big time watching, graphic design, retro, television, youtube
Without a doubt this is one of my favorite commericals of all time. This is a spot on Adult Swim that I’ve been seeing for the last few weeks. I love the simple yet artistic and rendition of 1970’s television. So good it’s almost creepy.
Filed under: Color, Design, Marketing, Photos, Writing | Tags: branding, bright future, children's education, graphic design, identity, letterhead, logo, stationary, sun
Bright Future letterhead, envelope, and business card
A branding and identity system for a
children’s educational program. Includes
a logo design,correspondence materials, and a notebook as a promotional product.
Bright Future aims to get high school and college level students who are interested in working with children to volunteer in classrooms and teach fundamental education. My goal was to create a professional, yet playful identiy using warm, cheerful colors that appeal to both children and adults.
Bright Future promotional product notebook
Filed under: Books, Color, Design, Photos, Writing | Tags: Amy Tan, book, book cover, book cover design, graphic design, The Hundred Secret Senses
The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan. Design by me.
Photo by me
A conceptual cover proposal for the book The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan.
For this design, I emulated a Chinese motif by using a red and yellow color palette along with a background textured with Chinese characters and an elegant serif font. The cover image focusses on one of the main charcters, Kwan who has “yin eyes” meaning she can see ghosts. My approach to this design reflects the tone of the novel; mysterious, slightly sinister,
reflective, historical, and romantic.
Filed under: Color, Design, Marketing, Packaging, Photos, Writing | Tags: cacao, chocolate, cocoa, graphic design, Issuu, logo design, Mexican chocolate, Mexico, packaging design, publication design, The World Cocoa Foundation
Fiera Chocolate products and packaging design
This project is the conceptualization, creation, branding, and promotion of a fictitious cocoa company from Mexico that is also a part of the World Cocoa Foundation and practices ecological and sustainable cacao farming.
The first phase of this project included creating a name, logo, company profile, and designing product packaging for three sample chocolate products.
Click to see the entire book on Issuu
The second phase involved creating a 26 page booklet with information about Fiera Chocolate, their products, the country of origin (Mexico), the World Cocoa Foundation, and my creative process including logo creation, color palettes, and mood boards.
Filed under: Books, Color, Home Decor, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Movies, Photos | Tags: Alice in Wonderland, caterpillar, collection, cookie jar, Disney, figurines, kitchen, Lewis Carroll, mushrooms, salt and pepper shakers
Photo by me
I enjoy collecting things, not that its a time consuming hobby of mine, but I do like finding obscure items that appeal to my tastes specifically. My Alice in Wonderland kitchen items collection is one of those instances. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has always been one of my favorite books and films since I was little. I even got a chance to be in an Alice in Wonderland play – I was the caterpillar.
My mom started the figurine obsession when she found me the coolest cookie jar in the world somewhere online. I will never sell or get rid of it. After that I found these salt and pepper shakers, yes that’s what those are and I use them every day. The Drink Me bottle holds my salt and the mushroom Nibble holds the pepper. Don’t be fooled into thinking these are my only figurines. I have many Alice items sprinkled throughout my little apartment. I also have an Alice teapot, a stuffed Cheshire cat, little stash boxes, Alice art posters (2 in my living room), coloring book featuring illustrations from the original story, a t-shirt and hoodie. and Cheshire and Alice figurines in my windowsill hiding in the ivy. And sometimes I wonder how I accumulate so much stuff….
Filed under: Art, Color, Inspiration, Local artists, Oregon, Portland | Tags: abstract, Art, art gallery, art walk, celestial, First Thursday, paintings, Portland, Sarah Cosman
Image credit Sarah Cosman
I first saw Sarah Cosman’s work just this last Thursday during the First Thursday art walk in the Pearl District here in Portland. I’ve mentioned Last Thursday, and First Thursday is very similar in theory, except that instead of having streets lined with art and community canvases, you get to walk inside a myriad of more prestigious art galleries downtown and partake in some wine and cheese tasting (yum!).
This artist’s work caught my attention right away. Her art is heavily influenced by celestial subject matter, form, and color. Her cosmos paintings swirl and twirl in some of my favorite hues of blue, purple, and green. She also does portraits of a more surreal, exaggerated reality or dream state style, and some abstract works as well. Her abstract paintings are very beautiful and methodical, as if each color, line, and shape was placed with a purpose. Check out the work she has posted on her website. Some of the gallery links don’t work, but you can see her famous Cosmos paintings as well as her abstract work. If you get a chance, check her out every first Thursday of the month at 634 NW Flanders #238.
Filed under: Color, Design, Inspiration, Web Design | Tags: brand identity, brand strategy, Design, Dragon Rouge, innovation, logo design, Marketing, Web Design
I don’t normally click on ads that sit on blogs or websites (unless they’re somewhere I know is credible or relevant) but Dragon Rouge pulled me in with their awesome logo design and I had to click and find out more. Of course the design of their site kept me interested – simple and easy to use with a great color palette (lots of purples and reds, my favorite!) As it turns out, Dragon Rouge is a marketing team with six notable locations around the world, including New York, Paris, London, and Hamburg. They specialize in brand strategy with a focus on design and innovation. I was having fun just browsing the site. I was able to see who they worked for, the projects themselves and several small details of those projects, learn about their team and their principles that drive the work they produce. The site has some great photography and I love their use of organic designs and color throughout. This is one inspiring site that pulled me in and kept me interested from start to finish.
Filed under: Art, Color, Inspiration, Local artists, Oregon, Portland | Tags: acrylic, Art, Color, mask, paintings, Red Parasol Productions, texture, Tricia Beck, varnish
"Hollow Mask" by Tricia Beck
Red Parasol Productions is the art of Portland native Tricia Beck. I first saw her work at the Saturday Market and have been mesmerized ever since. January 2009 marks her third year as a working artist and street vendor. You can also see her work at Last Thursdays on Alberta. The colors and textures she achieves in her paintings are beyond words. Being from the Northwest, she’s constantly inspired by the natural beauty she sees. She retains a very realistic feel with her natural subjects but always with her own special twist. When asked to define her style, she simply states, “glorified reality.” She hopes that her work can inspire others and portray that being alone doesn’t have to mean loneliness. She works with acrylic (my favorite medium) and uses a heavy-bodied gel to texturize her paintings. Here’s what some people have quoted about Tricia and her work:
“There’s an illustrative, surreal quality to Tricia Beck’s paintings that make me think of both Salvador Dali and paper animation pioneer, Lotte Reiniger. Her interpretation of the natural world–clouds, trees, nests–has an edge to it that defies the pretty landscapes. A bit twisted, and beautiful.”
Rachael Taylor Brown, singer/songwriter, & proud owner of a Beck original pastel painting entitled, “Fire In The Hills”.
“Tricia captures the spontaneity of nature with a vivid poetic sense.”
James Faretheewell, singer/songwriter & proud owner of a Beck original print entitled, “Just Before Noon”.
Check out Tricia’s collection at the Red Parasol Productions website.
Filed under: Color, Design, Inspiration, Posters | Tags: colorful, Flickr, Gestalt, graphic design, organic, portrait, poster, splash
Image credit Nico/DG
A great resource for all kinds of creative design work is Flickr, believe it or not. They have a special section you can subscribe to called flickrdesign where designers post all kinds of posters, prints, publications, and other Graphic Design projects.
I was especially impressed by these colorful splash (I’m not sure of another word to call this type of design) posters by Nico/DG as he is known. If you look at his work you can see faces inside all of the colorful splatters. If this is not your cup of tea, don’t worry – there’s plenty more design to look at.
Filed under: Color, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Photos, Style and Fashion | Tags: Color, color psychology, communication, favorite color, personality, purple
Photo by me
I’m going to start out this post with a poll, so please vote for your favorite color before proceeding. Think about not only what color you find the prettiest, but also the one that always creeps into your daily life. Maybe you always buy a certain color notebook or pens or electronic device or maybe it’s a color you’re always wearing.
My favorite color is obvious – Purple. The photograph above is a picture of some of my supplies I always have on hand. My purple binder, purple pencil and pens, my purple pouch to hold them, and yes up there in the corner is my purple stapler. I’ve been told it takes a brave person to sport purple. I often wear purple eyeshadow and lipstick, I’ve dyed my hair purple several times, and I like to buy purple clothing, handbags, and shoes wherever I find them. Color Psychology tells us that colors have certain meanings and the color you choose as your favorite could say something about your personality and character. It can also give you insight as to how to communicate and idea or emotion using color. Below is the list of colors on the poll and some key words associated with them.
- Red – Attention, Stimulate, Energy, Passionate, Exciting, Powerful, Dramatic.
- Orange – Joyful, Daring, Flamboyant, Spontaneous, Bold, Adventurous.
- Yellow – Optimism, Enlightenment, Intelligence, Wisdom.
- Green – Peace, Security, Ecology, Tranquility, Flexibility, Self-control.
- Blue – Trustworthy, Calming, Committed, Cooling.
- Purple – Uplifting, Stately, Humble, Regal, Spirituality, Respected.
- Black – Dignified, Authoritative, Powerful, Mysterious, Sophisticated.
- Brown – Organic, Reliable, Stable, Approachable, Wholesome.
- White – Purity, Cleanliness, Fresh, Neutral.
- Gray – Business-like, Urban, Neutral, Versatile.
Resource: Dutch Boy – Choose Wisely – Colors
Michelle Clark Graphic Design 