Here’s another set of design inspiration for you, and this time, I have a mixture of humour and design work. Check out the Cookie Monster cartoon and the paper art sculptures. Here goes…
Here’s something new that I am going to try out on Design Soak Magazine. Every so often, I plan to have a post with just a great collection of stunning… Read More →
These secret and intricate Fore-Edge Paintings are from the Special Collections & University Archives at the University of Iowa, which were provided by Colleen Theisen. She shared stunning gif animations that show fore-edge painting. The technique used shows painting on the sides of old books, that can only be seen when the pages are spread out (as shown in the images below). The Fore-Edge Paintings shown are based upon the four seasons:
All images and Gif animations displayed within this post are copyright © University of Iowa. Found via Thisiscolossal.
Like this post? Then see Realistic Oil Paintings of Wet Windows.
Here are some wonderful pencil sculptures by Jennifer Maestre. As can be seen, the artworks are made entirely from coloured pencil-ends. I really love the “Luna Pencil Sculpture” shown above. Here are some more:
If you’re designing a brand identity, keep in mind that a brand mark or logo works best when it stands out and is memorable. Great logos don’t just suit the personality and style of the company – they also do a good job of grabbing your attention and being remarkable. Of course, this can be incredibly difficult to achieve – as it’s a lot to keep in mind when designing a logo that often needs to look good in a variety of sizes and still remain clear and easy to see.
There are few design challenges more complex, interesting and creative than designing a movie poster. There are so many different angles, styles and design decisions to make that it’s incredibly difficult to start, but can be remarkably rewarding. This is especially true for designers who are used to working with constraints. If you choose to create your own unsolicited movie poster design for one of your favourite films, you won’t have a boss giving you design feedback or a client giving you a brief of how they want it to look – you have complete creative control. This is where it can be challenging – when you start with a blank canvas, you could go in absolutely any direction.
The design of a product is complimented enormously by the design of the packaging it comes in. This is something that Apple, who value design more than any of their rivals, appreciate – and it explains the huge number of “unboxing” videos that appear with each new MacBook, iPad and iPhone launch. But it’s not just the high tech companies that appreciate the art of presenting the product well. Product packaging design has become a highly prized artform over the years, helping to draw attention to new products and helping others to stand out on the shelves.
There are few limitations when it comes to product packaging design. A design that stands out and is both remarkable and memorable can be the difference between a product that gets sold and a product that sits on the shelf gathering dust – so creativity and ingenuity are highly prized. We’ve brought together a collection of beautifully designed, creative & unusual product packaging designs. Some are for genuine commercial products, others are student designs and concepts – but all of them have that spark of creativity that makes them stand out from the rest. We hope you find them a useful source of inspiration for your next project.
Designing a gig poster is one of the most creatively challenging types of commercial design. There is good reason for this. Posters advertising events have been around for as long as writing has been, but poster design really blossomed in the late nineteenth century when chromolithography allowed posters to be printed with vivid, full-colour images. The technology intrigued artists including Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Jules Chéret, who came to be considered the father of advertising placards.
That fine art tradition was still going strong when gig posters became popular in the 1960s, and with the modern rise of indie bands as well as cheaper and easier printing techniques, designing gig posters has become even more prestigious.
This guest post was written by Tara Hornor.
All professional websites include a logo, and sometimes that logo is also a character. Yet, this logo character is not necessarily what we would label a “mascot.” With a graphic logo, you will find that graphic everywhere, including in designs for brochure and business card printing. However, website mascots may only land online, especially if the character is too detailed or large-scale to fit onto smaller print materials.
More and more we are seeing a trend in web design to include both a logo and a character or mascot. Sometimes, website mascots are used to help guide visitors through the website. Other times, the little guy, gal, or animal remains solely on the home page. No matter how often the mascot is incorporated into the site, it is always clear that this character is more than just a logo. Website mascots are there to help get you excited about or endear you to the company, just as a mascot for a sports team does.
In this collection, we found 30 sites with mascots – and couldn’t help but notice the monkey theme. As you check out these pages, ask yourself whether or not the website mascots distract from the brand or build upon it. In some cases, the character is a useful, personalizing agent that helps you connect with the brand better. In other cases, the mascot seems to be some 3rd entity injecting itself into the design.
Which of the website mascots below work to build and which distract? Do you think website mascots help improve brand recognition or not? Does it all depend on the brand in the end?
