thinklookdofall2019

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Yahya - Make-up Reviews

Due Oct 29 - Website Reviews from Syllabus

Review #1 - BrandNew (underconsideration.com/brandnew)

Brandnew is a website that posts reviews of logos, branding, and visual identity refreshes. They cover all different types of logos, from small consumer products, startups, and large corporations, and post short reviews along with images of new and old logos side by side. I think their website has a unique look that almost reminds me of a note pad or a bulletin board, and the images are very easy to skim through. They also have a few gifs here and there which adds to the presentation without overdoing it.

Review #2 - Studio.Build (www.studio.build)

Studio.Build is a branding and design studio that designs across multiple mediums including brand identity, websites, book and print design, interior design, packaging, and more. They have a very minimal website with large images that scroll in the background, but the UI and presentation is very unique and represents the character of the studio very well. The UX is a little convoluted and the navigation on each page is inconsistent, but each page is visually appealing enough to hold my attention. I really like a lot of their work, especially for brand identities, and they use a lot of really bold colors and strong typography. There is a recurring style and a lot of their work looks similar however.

Oct 8 - Signs/Storefronts

Review #3 - New York Artistries

This is a hand-painted sign for New York Artistries, which was boutique consignment store for clothing and accessories and which I believe is now longer in business. This sign really caught my eye while I was passing by because there are no extruding signs for this so I didn’t see it from far away, but it came into view as I came closer. The hand-painted style gives it a very unique feeling and made me interested to find out what it was for. It is relatively large and easy to read, but visibility and readability are a problem from a distance because it is just a flat wall and the typeface is hard to read. It does give off the artisanal, vintage vibe they are going for.

Review #4 - Bareburger 

Bareburger, put plainly, is a millennial-friendly burger chain with options like gluten free buns and vegan/beyond meat burgers. Their signage often consists of extruded metal letters and lights laid on top of a wooden plank panel or a brick wall. It has a very “under construction”, “organic”, “urban” vibe that is very popular with hipsters nowadays and carries across their natural and organic food style very well. The wordmark sign itself is very very eye-catching thanks to the unique shape, bright colors and lights, and the contrast it creates with the dull background.  

Sep 24 - Propaganda Posters

Review #5 - Remixed War Propaganda by Micah Ian Wright

This is the cover of a book by Micah Ian Wright in which he created a series of satirical posters mocking war propaganda around the time of the Iraq war based on classic war posters. They use similar artwork and stylization but shift the message completely and it has a great effect. The posters are all very attention grabbing but subvert your expectations once you start to read them.

Review #6 - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Campaign Poster

The poster for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s congress election campaign is one of my favorite posters in recent memory. It features a very bold and loud design, utilizing bright colors and bold fonts and typography, along with a flat/minimal aesthetic. It helps portray her young/hip factor, and the diagonal effect makes it feel dynamic and as if she is looking up to the future.

Due Sep 10 - Website Reviews from Syllabus

Review #7 - Irma Boom (irmaboom.nl)

This website is super minimal and has very little information on it. There is only one link at the top which refreshes the page with a different image each time. The rest is some contact information and an address, and nothing else. Through the different images, I got the idea that this was some sort of publishing/printing/book design firm, and when I search it up I found out that it is a website for a dutch designer who specializes in book making. The website could use a little more information (at the very least, one line explaining what it is for) but the images used are very strong and do give the right idea about printing and book design.

Review #8 - Milton Glaser (miltonglaser.com)

Milton Glaser is of course one of the most influential graphic designers of all time. This website is for Milton Glaser Inc. the company started by and named after his person, so it has a bit more of a “corporate” vibe, with a marketplace and other things. one thing this website does well is have an extensive amount of information and work, including case studies, biography about Glaser, and more. The design is relatively simple and nothing crazy, but the navigation can be confusing sometimes and the layout of all the information could be a little more streamlined. 

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Makeup Review - De’Shawn

2x4

          This design is a sign advertising the new home of Fondazione Prada done by 2x4. I think it really innovative in terms of branding and marketing because the title of the establishment takes up two billboards side by side, which is uncommon in advertising. This creates a form of closure between the two billboards. I also love how simplistic this sign is. The title is in a nice bold font with the website displayed twice. I love how 2x4 is consistent with the simplistic signage across all  platforms, both digital and physical, making minor changes. I think this allows for the Fondazione Prada team to build a flexible brand identity while still linking the foundation’s diverse activities across locations.

Louise Fili

          This is a design for the Society of Publication Designers calling for entries created by Louise Fili. Analyzing the design of this poster more, it can easily seen that the goal was to mock an eye chart. I love how this poster is all in one font but in different sizes creating a hierarchy. Not only does it further mock an eye chart through this strategy, but it makes the poster cohesive. I love the use of red throughout the poster; it is not too much but just enough. The line that is under the title adds a nice touch to differentiate it from the rest of the words that are on the poster. I really like their logo and the spacing is excellent through this poster. This poster is very creative and well designed.

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Michelle - Review Makeup (Packaging Design)

Glossier’s Generation G

One of Glossier’s most popular products, this sheer matte lipstick Generation G is packaged in a simple white casing. This white, simple design of the packing it meant to contrast with the brights pinks and reds of the lipstick and bring more focus onto it. Although the packing itself is minimal, Glossier still does a great job of giving their brand name a presence within the package.

BUXOM (Full-On Plumping Lip Polish)

BUXOM’s iconic product, the Full-On Plumping Lip Polish, also known as FOLP, has a clear packaging to make their unique mauve, pink, red color of the product shine through. The first thing that consumers what to observe and notice is the color of the lip products, so to design a successful packaging for a lip product, it is important to make the colors clearly visible. As for the applicator of the lip polish, due to its soft deer-toe shaped tip allows for the product to glide on and hug the color onto the lips for the perfect pout.

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Michelle - Review Makeup (Logo Design)

Shiseido 

Shiseido is one of the leaders of the beauty industry. As a global beauty conglomerate, Shiseido also owns its own makeup and skincare line, Shiseido Skincare and Shiseido Makeup. As a brand, it’s goal is to merge the concept of innovation and nature. For this purpose, the brand produces products made up of natural ingredients, while also constantly developing new ways to implement such ingredients to produce beauty products of the future. Its logo design clearly captures its natural essence as well as its clean innovative aesthetic. It utilizes a san-serif type with the brand name bolded. The ‘S’ are italicized to highlight its elegant facade as well. 

BareMinerals

BareMinerals is a brand that is owned by Shiseido group as well. Its brand goal is to produce clean, cruelty-free beauty products. For that reason its motto is “The Power of Good,” and it is included within the brand logo as well. To support the clean aesthetic of the brand, the logo is a simple black and white logo with a serif typeface. By also capitalizing the ‘M’ of the logo, the brand is able to bring more attention to its core word “minerals,” to once again emphasize that it is a clean, natural brand. 

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Michelle Choi - Website Review

Pepemack 

Pepemack is a fashion Creative Director who became a popular fashion influencer through Instagram. Her website is all about showcasing her daily outfits for various occasions. Her personal blog / website reflects her instagram account (@pepemack) as she shares with her followers details on what brands and fashions pieces she has been loving. Her website is very minimalistic with the usage of a san-serif type. It utilizes a mixture of bold, italic, and original version of the san-serif family. The navigation of her website is very straightforward and simple, contrasting with her bold, modern sense of fashion. The user can easily scroll down, and find the source of her fashion pieces by simply clicking. 

Linh Niller Huynh

Linh is another fashion influencer / blogger who became famous through Instagram as well. Her website follows a minimalistic grid format with her name bolded at the very top. The vibe of her website mirrors her neutral, often monochromatic fashion choices, as she utilizes a mixture of white, black, and neutrals as her color palette for her web design. The navigation of her website is also very straightforward. She has a menu bar at the top that neatly organizes her blog into specific topics. 

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Sainthoax is an anonymous graphic designer highly popular on social media. A lot of their work has gone viral as they use pop culture and memes as subject matter. The home page of their portfolio is very simple and direct. Sainthoax’s word mark and logo are both in the center with only the tabs underneath. The viewer immediately has a strong association to Sainthoax’s brand and style. Each of the tabs is organized in a simple grid system, letting the work speak for itself with little distraction.

The Sagmeister & Walsh portfolio opens to an animated “B” spinning in a circle. At first a bit confusing, as it’s not the ampersand logo associated with Sagmeister & Walsh. Once scrolling down, you find out it’s the logo for a museum installation the pair have worked on titled “Beauty.” The “work” tab is the home page, diving right into Sagmeister & Walsh’s art.  There are two fonts on the portfolio, both san serif but of different styles. They are a bit conflicting. The Press page has more of a sense of organization by having cover images that click into different press pieces about the designers.

Amun Chaudhary

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Website Design Review - 10/29  (Maximilian)

Dexter Sinister

This website seems to be a personal blog site made by a father. The pages on the site include a Travelogue, family tree, and other people who share his name on the internet. The design of the website is very heavily influenced by 1990’s web design, with pixelated clip art and default typefaces. The link to the site containing people who share his name has a few broken links, as this website doesn’t appear to be updated very often. Although I enjoy some of the graphics used, they don’t really seem to relate to the purpose of the website however, I might just be unfamiliar with the connection. Navigation is not very functional, as the only way to move between pages is to go back to the home page using my browser’s back button. The color scheme of the site is not very accessible, as the colors don’t contrast very well. There doesn’t appear to be a design theme throughout the site. The travelogue page is poorly formatted, the grid displaying the posts could take up more of the page. The family tree page is more functional, with a more consistent color scheme and a better selection of typefaces and a more effective hierarchy.

2x4.org

This site hosts work done by the 2x4 global design consultancy based in NYC. This website is very beautiful in its simplicity. All in black and white, except for the thumbnails and content of the articles, there a museum-quality presentation on this site. The home page features a two-columned feed of articles, with black and white headings and links in a bold san-serif font, which I believe is Helvetica. It appears to be a very effective space for that font –clean and modern. However, it lacks a bit of personality, which is possibly made up for by the animation in the top heading and the article thumbnails. Altogether, the site does what it intends to do: display work, and only work.

Maximilian

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Portfolio Design Review (Maximilian)

Stefan Kaltenegger

This portfolio was created by Stefan Kaltenegger, a creative technologist who came to talk during one of my Web Development classes. The portfolio relies on minimalism and a very modern and tech-inspired aesthetic. There are animated elements that add life to the website, and the few areas of color are used to highlight titles and links. I would say this portfolio is done very well and is effective in communicating where the viewer should be looking and navigating towards. There is a central feed, which the viewer scrolls through to see different projects. Any supplemental information on the specific projects can be viewed by clicking on the work. Each project is also themed, so the text color for certain headings stay consistent with each individual project. 

http://www.stk.works 

Paul Rand

For my second portfolio review I took a look at Paul Rand’s website. This site is very interesting, with dynamic elements, such as the moving images and headings. I find the moving parts to be a bit buggy–they don't always move very smoothly. However it does add energy to the portfolio and makes it enjoyable to scroll through. The large white text headings make the site look a lot larger, and I can feel the impact of Rand’s work through them. To view his projects, you can click on the “Work” heading and scroll through a huge list of pieces. I like the dark background, it makes for a fresh take on portfolios sites, which I feel like to use lighter color themes.

-Maximilian

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Homework: Due December 3

Your final project is a mock portfolio. We’re calling it a mock portfolio because this assignment is actually only a step toward your actual portfolio, which would include several examples of your work, as well as a sort of design history. For the purposes of this assignment, we’re just concerned with establishing the overall look and feel. Your job is to create a visual identity for a client — and you are the client. The default for this assignment is to build a portfolio around you and your name, however you may want to design for another one of your classes, or one of your side projects. For example, you might want to begin promoting your own magazine, or your own freelance business, or a political group you belong to, or your friend's band. Your real work here is to go all the steps of the final assignment. Ask if you need clarification or permission to adapt the assignment to a particular project. Your final project will be submitted as a PDF. Feel free to use either Illustrator or Indesign. You must also print at least one item — preferably your business card or sticker. Here are the requirements for your final: * A color palate with five colors that will be used throughout your portfolio. * Type. Choose one font, two complements, or an extended type family that will be used throughout your portfolio. Plan for hierarchy and use in separate contexts. * A personal tagline. What are you promoting? Who are you? * An original graphic. Can be a photo, a drawing, collage, or avatar that helps you tell the story of you. * A logo or wordmark. The cornerstone of your identity. * A facebook cover, twitter header, or custom tumblr image. * A website portfolio home page at 1024×768. This does not have to be a working web page, but rather a design that could be translated to a Wordpress-style site. * A mobile portfolio home page demonstrating a responsive design grid. * A business card or sticker. This item must be printed. Bring a copy for each of your classmates. Here is the breakdown for due dates: November 26: Two reviews of portfolios by other designers (anyone, doesn't have to be someone from our syllabus) posted to Tumblr; two potential color palates and two potential type families with your name. December 3: Print out mock-ups for the entire project. December 10: Final presentations. Bring printed objects to class — one for everyone in the class. Final Project Deliverables: color palate type tagline original graphic logo or wordmark facebook cover or twitter header or custom tumblr image portfolio for web home page portfolio for mobile home page business card or sticker

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Exercise/Tutorial: Wireframes

Exercise and Tutorial(s): Create a set of rough, lo-res wireframes that you can convert into hi-res wireframes for your portfolio final. You can use any design tool you like, including Illustrator, Indesign, Adobe XD, Adobe Comp, or Balsamiq. You will find some detailed instructions for Illustrator and Indesign below. Here's a general article about wireframes: https://www.creativebloq.com/web-design/jargon-wireframes-mockups-prototypes-51514898 This is what wireframes look like: http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/a-beginners-guide-to-wireframing--webdesign-7399 Lynda tutorial: Print vs. web: Understanding the importance of templates Part 5: http://www.lynda.com/InDesign-tutorials/Print-vs-web-Understanding-importance-templates/105366/115311-4.html Lynda tutorial: Illustrator for Web Design: Wireframing Introduction and Part 1 https://www.lynda.com/Illustrator-tutorials/Illustrator-CC-Web-Design-Wireframing/368388-2.html

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Portfolio Reviews - John

This website is of a member of Glitch City and of a well know game developer. He has an affinity for early internet culture and the style from that era which is common in the collective and the general game dev scene. This makes his website slightly unique but not as exciting as it should be.

This is the website of a moderately famous game developer who relies on his online presentation http://www.teddydief.com/. His website is about himself and the various kinds of cultural work he does. It’s simple and clean and more about the artist than the work, it allows for various different project of different colors thanks to the white and black background and font

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Portfolio Reviews - Yahya Khan

CORY SCHMITZ - FREELANCE GRAPHIC DESIGNER

https://coryschmitz.com/ - Cory Schmitz is a Brooklyn based graphic designer who does projects in branding and packaging design, often for video game related companies. I really like the simplicity of his website because, while it is actually very bare bones, the the way he lays out his work allows it to be front and center and very eye catching, and any pertinent links are at the top. I do wish each project went a little in depth thought, and the first two links at the top both go to the same homepage. 

MOMO MURAKAMI (RRLORRLO) - GRAPHIC DESIGNER / GAME DEV

https://rrlorrlo.com/ - Momo Murakami is a Japanese graphic designer and indie game dev who works mostly on video game related projects, and also uses a lot of pixel art in his work. His website is really simple and straight to the point and presents all of his about information on the left hand side, along with this work that you can scroll on the right. This allows all important information to be viewed immediately without having to go to any other page. 

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Portfolio Review - Callie Patsel

Xavier Cusso is a designer from Barcelona who is famous for his bold colors and “in your face” typography. I chose his portfolio to review because even though the photo shown is just one type of grid, when you move the cursor many different types show up. I also like how creative his logo is but also subtle it can be when he wants to be showing off his work. 

Leslie David is a designer from Paris whose page is pretty straightforward, however I think she offers a lot of variety. Again, I am very intrigued by the creativity of her logo. However, I also like the different typefaces she uses throughout her sight and the animated designs that come along with moving the cursor. For both of these portfolios I don’t see much of a color scheme except for black and white for titles. I do see a clear typeface brand though for both designers. 

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Portfolio Reviews - Michelle

Michelle Monique’s Portfolio (http://www.michellemoniquephoto.com/)

Michelle Monique is a photographer that specializes in cosmetic photoshoots. She has worked with many major brands, the most recent brand being Kylie Skin. The aesthetic of her portfolio can be described as minimalistic and classy. She categorizes her works by Beauty, Advertising, Product, and Still Life. She also utilizes a serif typeface that seems to go well with the geometric, square shapes of how her work is organized. I, personally, love this kind of clean aesthetic. 

Jordan Liberty’s Portfolio

Jordan Liberty is a famous makeup artist that has worked with many well-known cosmetic brands such as NARS Cosmetics and MAC Cosmetics. Although both artists work within the cosmetics industry, their portfolio design is evidently very contrasting. Unlike Monique’s portfolio design, Liberty’s portfolio uses a horizontal framework (with navigation arrows) to organize his work. Although he also utilizes a classy serif typeface, his color palette is more dark and has a bit more grungy vibe to it. 

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Portfolio Reviews - De’Shawn Cain

Alex Coven 

          Alex Coven is a freelance graphic designer, letterer, and front end developer. His portfolio is successful at displaying all three of his roles by using simple strategies. Through these strategies he is able to show his experience and field in the industries. His use of color overlay in his portfolio is an excellent way of keeping things distinctive but interesting. I love how he uses every pixel of his screen, leaving now room for distraction. That said, his portfolio is well balanced through the use of a clean interactive logo/ menu navigation on the left, also converting nicely into a mobile design. In addition to this, the work displayed is elaborate and colorful, providing an extra chance of leaving a good impression about his work.

Rafael Kfouri 

          In comparison Alex Coven, Rafael uses a one page portfolio site, something that does not seen common and can be assumed as tricky. Rafael Kfouri is an award winning graphic designer currently working AlmapBBDO. I think Kfouri’s portfolio is successful using this one page strategy because of his colorful and effective works displayed, including both single images and collages. His work takes up almost the entire width of the screen, allowing his audience to take it all in at a full scope. There is not that much text displayed about each work individually, however I think that adds to his portfolio and denotes his personality. I think this is a perfect way of showing eye grabbing work with barely any clicks or navigation, and overall, offers a lot of inspiration.

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Portfolio Reviews - Milly Cai

http://buzzworthystudio.com/

1.  Buzzworthy studio   http://buzzworthystudio.com/

This is the portfolio of Buzzworthy Studio, which shows off their creative skills from the distinct homepage design. I really like their way of the large header centralized layout with clean color, which also takes the advantage of web interaction that reveals full-width-images when the mouse is hovering the headers. It smartly communicates their studio's identity — modern styled design and great ability of technology as well as creativity. After clicking through to project detail, the same bold and centralized fonts create great consistency with the previous page, while the location of icons and menu stays in the same place but adjusting the color to match the switch of the topic of the project. Instead of showing all the information immediately, this portfolio encouraging the users to keep scrolling down the page to let the information gradually appear on the screen with a properly managed and simple grid.

2. Denys Nevo Zhai

 http://dnevozhai.com/

Denys Nevozhai is a world traveler designer, thus,  in his portfolio, he chooses to use the simple and clean grid of layout of the information of himself, which properly emphasizes his cleanness of thoughts and good logic of management. It is easy to notice that his portfolio follows a light pink-purple color pattern which creates better consistency of theme in his portfolio and gives a sense of modernity and exciting life. And he also utilizes the interaction of the web that when hovering the project picture, a layer of the brief information including location, time and title of the particular project would appear. In this way, the viewer could easily get to know the work of him and find the information they need instead of paying much time looking through all of the pages. Besides, it also avoids showing too many words on the page that might make it looks crowded and unbalanced.

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Portfolio Review - Allie Yu

Made Thought is a design house that provides design solutions for brands all over the world. The portfolio's main page is a series of videos that showcase their recent projects. I part I like the most is how they present the videos in a slow and delicate manner: it provides motion and really attracts my attention. The still objects and the details of the video make me believe that the design house is very dedicated to detail and very delicate. I also love how concise and modern the explore page is. There is not a single thing that is excessive. Very clear and sharp. Also, the design works they made for brands are so mindblowing that I could not stop viewing the website...

https://www.madethought.com/

Malika Favre is an illusionist and artist. She loves using bold colors, various shapes and great contrasts in her works. It is also reflected in her website as she uses large blocks of high saturation colors as the basis of her design of the portfolio. I love how she represents her style of art using the design of her website. I also think it is a thoughtful idea about the mousing moving to reveal the details of the work since it arouses curiosity and makes the website more interactive and fun to look at.

https://www.malikafavre.com/