Blog Post 1 [Hanna H]


Reading through this chapter has introduced me to a bunch of designs that I knew of but didn't know the official name for. Information design such as the isotype pioneered by Otto Nurath, stands for International System of Typographic Pictorial Evidence. The rules of an Isostype is that the greater number should be represented by the greater number of signs instead of a larger sign. The second being the presentation is free of perspective where the distance would require signs to be smaller and thus confuse the value.This design is used for getting around Chicago with the CTA showing the different colored lines and the stations, where we can transfer and such which was really interesting to learn as CTA is my main transportation.
 Looking at the different designs made by the Nature by Design web page amazes me as the botanical section is so beautiful yet they aren’t real flowers but instead mixed media. I specifically looks at Rosa Canina design as it looks so delicate. It looks very small and as if you can lean in and smell the flower but it will just be mixed media, which amazes me because it has so much detail.
As a video game player as myself I have played one of these games and it has helped me decipher what fonts are what. For me personally I learn with repetition and interest. I have to have a certain interest where I can focus and enjoy what I’m doing, so a video game that matches with my major is quite interesting and I can try out more of these games while I’m at it.






Hollis, Richard. Graphic Design: a Concise History. Thames & Hudson, 2016.“Nature By Design.” Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, https://www.cooperhewitt.org/channel/nature-by-design/.Westbrook, ByKaitlin. “Why You Should Stop Working and Play These Graphic Design Games Instead.” Bittbox, 14 Aug. 2017, https://www.bittbox.com/inspiration/graphic-design-game

Comments

  1. Lauren LewisJanuary 14, 2020 at 1:50 PM

    That video game seems like a really interesting way to learn about fonts! I also agree with you on the fact that the book showed me a lot of designs I have seen before but did not know the history or names for them! Nice post!

    ReplyDelete
  2. MatthewJanuary 14, 2020 at 4:29 PM

    I'm also constantly on the CTA, and I'm always looking at the posters that display all the different lines and where they go. I never thought about it as graphic design, but it makes sense that a map must be treated as more than just a technical document if it is to be easily understood in a quick glance. Graphic design is a way to streamline communication, as evidenced by train maps. I also know a few people who have taken those CTA posters right out of their little display holders and have them displayed in their apartments. This map is almost like a symbol of identity, which is clearly an indication of its ability to communicate Chicago and all it has to offer.

    ReplyDelete
  3. RyceJanuary 14, 2020 at 9:46 PM

    I appreciate the breakdown of signs like the London Underground and the CTA. These are just things I've always looked at and understood clearly but never really knew why. I like how they knew it would be confusing to put signs in perspective when dealing with a graph that has to show such an expansive setting like Chicago or London. How they went about getting rid of the actual land space between the stops is interesting as well.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gabrielle StephaniJanuary 15, 2020 at 1:22 PM

    First, I found it so interesting that the flowers were mixed media. Anyway, I have always been interested in maps, to the point that I have 3 different maps framed in my room as we speak (New York, Chicago, and the world). Each of them are unique in their own way and I love comparing the designs and colors. The coloring on my world map is SO very different from the coloring on my New York map and I love them both equally. The world map has more of a sepia feel, while the New York map is full of bright, intense colors.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Elizabeth JacobsJanuary 15, 2020 at 2:37 PM

    I love the maps discussion, I also have many friends with the cta map sign hanging in their apartments! I also just think that the cta map, and the New York transit map, have really great effective designs and are super easy to follow. The maps not only show you which line goes to which parts of the city through easily identifiable colors, but they have little signs and symbols next to the stop showing which have handicap/wheelchair access, etc. The map is not only effective, but it's pleasing to look at, hence why so many people put it in their homes! And things that are both practical and also beautiful are the best designs.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dolores WilberJanuary 19, 2020 at 1:59 PM

    Terrific post that generated terrific dialog!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blog Post 1 (Matthew Donald)

Image
One of the pieces that really caught my eye during the reading was Alphonse Mucha's Job  cigarette papers advertisement. There was something very intriguing about the way he created a background texture using an element from the foreground. "JOB" is written in big letters at the very top of the poster and its accented by "job" written in little letters evenly throughout the background. I think it does a good job at creating an interesting composition while maintaining the central focus around the brand. The big "JOB" flows on top of a large ring where a woman sits. I think the overall shape of the illustration was executed very well because of its emphasis on curves. The curves of the hair and the woman are all reinforced by the circle in the center of the page. Mucha, A. (1898). "Job" poster for cigarette papers. Retrieved from  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JOB_(rolling_papers)  on January 1st, 2020. In this piece of typography created ...
Read more

Post 3 - Sam Weible

Image
From the experimentation and norm-breaking designs of the avant garde movement came some of my favorite European designs predating 1940s. From this period, I particularly love the posters advertising the London Underground. I first saw some of these posters at the Art Institute over the summer and was immediately intrigued by their design, how they managed somehow be both artistically beautiful and utilitarian. The elements of each poster followed suit, text and imagery being generally separate from one another on the page yet communicating a since of uniformity. While that was the case for most of the poster I got to see, it wasn't for every Underground poster. There are actually a great variance of design and style between these mass-produced posters. This poster, "Power", from the textbook, for example, hardly has any visual unity. What it's trying to communicate is unclear and the visual ties the artist tries to make between each element isn't as unifying as...
Read more

2/5 in class reflection

I liked learning a bit of back story on Bert Stern. I like learning a more in depth about a designers history. Its interesting to see where these designers are coming from however, I know that the time frame of this class doesn't really allow for too much of that. I didn't really like watching the ted talk at the beginning because, while the message is good, this is the fourth class I have had to watch that talk in.
Read more