Thursday, November 25, 2010

Pentagram - Design Studio Review


Pentagram was founded on a system of equal owned firms; collaborating together independently with no CEO, CFO or any group of entirety. Pentagram was founded in 1972 by Alan Fletcher, Theo Crosby, Colin Forbes, Kenneth Grange and Mervyn Kurlansky in Needham Road, West London, UK.
The firm is a mix of graphic design, identity, architecture, product design and interiors. The firm currently included 17 partner firms in five cities; London, New York, San Francisco, Austin and Berlin. Many influential designers have been members of Pentagram, influential designers have also been made through the almost 40yrs pentagram has been in action.


 

The mix of disciplines lends to a more creative way of thinking, also a concept that branches out to broader applications.

A Little Lesson - Identify Design Styles

Victorian (1840-1900)

Arts & Craft (Late 1840-1900)

Art Nouveau ( 1890-1910)

Early Modern (1910-1930)


Expressionism (1910-1935)
 

Modern (1910-1935)

Art Deco (Late 1920-1940)

Dada (1910-1935)


Heroic Realism (1910-1940)

Late Modern (1945-1970)


CONTEMPORARY PERIOD (1980-Today)

Postmodern (1985-1990)

Digital (1995-Today)

Desktop Mag - Mag Review

Desktop Magazine features current design and designers, interviews, research topics, events, and agency profiles. TAFE subscribes and lends to students, if your interested in having a look at any of the editions.
The website also includes design links, events, career topics, directory, news, competitions, features, blog, inspirational wall and insight into features in the current issue.
This month Desktop had made a challenge to six top creative industry experts to make some predictions for the year ahead. You can also subscribe and receive freebies!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

A Little Lesson - Retro Design, Finders Keepers

Victorian
Notice the symmetry and the story telling.

Art Deco
Use of air brushed spot lights / ray bans, objects reduced to minimum colours and shapes.

American Kitch
Relaxed type & reproduction of grainy images/print.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Everything in Fiji is 'bought to you by Digicel'

I recently went on a cruise around Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Fiji. Not after long in some of those places you realise the two most popular telecommunication companies. Digicel and TVL advertising is every where, the consistent look really makes their advertising work.




Everywhere from billboards, radio, large offices in small towns to golf course shelters in the middle of no where, I found their advertising, it was quite amusing. Where we would have on billboards perhaps people in an office talking on phones, most of there billboards depicted Islanders with leis on a beach chatting on their mobile phone. It shows how design impacts everywhere and how it has to match the audience and make an instant and lasting effect on people.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Ken Cato - Graphic Designer

20th Century Designer
Ken Cato is a pioneer in Australian design, world renowned he is the principle of Cato designs; the biggest design company in the southern hemisphere. Today Cato designs has offices as far away as Tokyo and London. Since the 1960’s Cato has continually challenged and has engaged the design field winning numerous awards and honours. Cato also has work on display in museums and galleries around the world. Cato is a member of numerous Australian associations including;  Australian Marketing Institute, Design Institute of Australia, Industrial Design Council of Australia, he is also a Patron of the Australian Academy of Design.
He has transformed the traditional graphic design focusing on a new dimension to create experimental and concept driven methods of communication. Cato has worked with a multitude of clients including Grace Brothers, Coles, Bank West,  Macquari Bank and Qantas. He has worked in areas from graphic design, packaging to creating major business identities and branding. Cato’s stunning visual communication has become world renown, evidenced by positive tangible results. Cato has worked on forms of visual communication that stretches everyday design to experimental idea-driven methods of communication.
In 1970, after working on solo projects (while still challenging himself professionally), he started Cato-Hibbert Design inc, with Himself and Terry Hibbert. Money was tight, but work did come in steadily to the relief of the pair. When in 1972 Cato got his first taste of internationalism when he visited studios in the US and Europe. Cato recognised his own company base lied in the Pacific basin and his own company today has since grown with offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Buenos Ares, Sydney, Perth ,London and Taipei.  In 1982 Cato felt that the business had grown substantially but had hit a wall, as Cato wanted to seriously delve into the international market of design. So after 12 years he cast out into Aisa and he gained 25 design jobs from 25 countries. Cato’s design clientele spans internationally but he prefers to live in Australia. His head office reflects his dedicated and passionate nature and continues to dedicated himself to Australian design profession. Cato Partners today in the Australasia have 50 employees including specialists in branding & corporate  identity, print & multimedia.