Design books

Graphic Design That Works

Templates

YCN 08/09

David Shrigley

The Adventures Anual (classic graphic stories)

Latin American Graphic Design

Protest T-shirts

Protest T-shirts is a book full of T-shirt designs created to provoke reaction. Many are a created to fight political and social issues. There are many aimed at the problems surrounding America and the involvement in the wars in Iraq, Iran, and Afganistan. There are also great examples of designs to fight consumerism and pollution.

'An anthology of graphic fiction, cartoons & true stories'

'An anthology of graphic fiction, cartoons & true stories'. I bought early this year to help me construct successful narratives. It was a visual influence to see the different style other artists and Illustrators have used to tell there stories. I particularly like the work of Robert Crumb, his dark and sometime provocative work is still so noticeable and distinctive. He displays a confident style, bold and heavy. Displayed in a block grid formation.

The Mighty Book of Boosh

I purchased 'The Mighty Book of Boosh' early this year. It was so inspiring, making me obsessed with illustrating my own ideas, stories and characters. It is a jumble of work the Mighty Boosh team have worked on since they began. It is a great publication full of ideas and is a stunning example of alternative self promotion.

Hand Job

Hand Job, I purchased recently to support my typeface project. It is an inspiring catalog of hand drawn type. There are some beautiful typefaces, some practical and usable and others purely decorative, pieces of illustration. The book has inspired the creation of many typefaces of my own. It is worth a look.

Lucy Vigrass

Lucy Vigrass is another member of the 'Peepshow Collective' who's work I admire greatly. She is a freelance illustrator working in London. Her work is beautifully bold and shows a minimal amount of detail. Working with shape and colour to communicate her ideas, creating stunning compositions with a her signature style. I have been looking through the work from the Peepshow recently and as this is the sort of group I would love to be apart of when I leave university. Check out www.lucyvigrass.co.uk and www.peepshow.org.uk for more work.

Alex Ostrowski talked to us

On Friday we had the privilege of having a talk from Alex Ostrowiski. A young designer doing exactly what we all would love to be doing. He gave some crucial advice as someone who has been approaching people for work and making contacts in the design industry. He mentioned how it is important to build a rapport, a conversation rather than a request for a job or a placement. Other than his advice on getting work when we leave he showed us a collection of his work which has got him where he is now. A mix of fantastic ideas and well executed design solutions. The 'NOTE TO SELF' book was a great piece of work. It was designed to fulfill a competition brief which insisted it was to be A3 size and have only 16 pages. He created a book of reminders, beautifully illustrated little messages to inspire. He is currently working for YCN doing some great work which I hope to one day be doing.

Was a great time to have the talk from Alex and will definitely put us in a good frame of mind on the run-in to the end of our time at uni.

Non-format design

I have been aware of Non-format for a while and thought I would share them with you. They are a creative team consisting of Kjell Ekhorn (Norwegian) and Jon Forss (British). Based in London and Minneapolis (USA). They are an inredibally creative design team with clients across the world, including Nike, LG, The New York Times, Channel 4 etc.
In a recent lecture from all round creative guru Adrian Shaughnessy mentioned how he worked with them on the design publication 'Varoom'. They show and amazing creative flair with type design seen on the work they have done for Nike. I have chose to look at them now as I am in need of some direction and inspiration with a advertising project I am working on. The simple choices they have made are probably the most effective. The choice of colour and type are important.

Adrian Shaughnessy

We had the pleasure of having a lecture from self taught all round creative Adrian Shaughnessy. It was more of a talk than a showcase of his work. He discussed what his book was about, which is what it takes to be a Graphic Designer. My attention was kept constantly throughout the lecture as it is an issue I am dealing with during my final stage of third year. He broke down the criteria he feels are what defines a good designer. These were cultural awareness, integrity and communication. He went into each subject with great detail, explaining what he meant by these three catorgories. He also mentioned you without question need talent, something expected on a design degree course.
The lecture made me question what my abilities were like in these areas. I can sometimes struggle with expressing my idea, whilst in my head I know exactly what I am trying to say. Practice makes perfect. It is vital to have this ability as the client needs to understand every aspect of your work.

This was a different lecture to previous but in no way less valuable, more academic and informative. Vital information for me to know when approaching agencies and studios.

George Mitchell

I was introduced to the work of illustrator George Mitchell. He is still a student studying Illustration at Lincoln University. He shows a great ability to use texture and pattern to create a stunning style which is fresh and contemporary. I was interested in his range of ideas. The random and alternative seem to be his preferred choice. It seems he enjoys to illustrate the weird characters he thinks up similar to how I like to work. Picking things from the world we live and creating an alternate world of the weird and wonderful. It is nice to know I am not the only one.

Jonathon Barnbrook lectures 21/4/09

Today we had the pleasure of having not one but two lecture/talks from the well established designer Jonathon Barnbrook. He was incredibly captivating and at times hilarious. His 'no bullshit' approach to the lecture made sure the attention of every person in the room was kept. He was full of interesting anecdotes from his time working with the likes Damien Hirst and David Bowie.
What was even more interesting than the big names in his stories was his actual advice. At times going against the advice we are used to hearing, he talked about personal choice, moral obligations and the power of opinion. He reminded me of some of the most important reasons I am in design and love it so much. He talked about how he has a human moral code which determines what clients he will work for. He gave the example he was doing work for adbuster when 'Coke' came calling for his work. As he was at the time making an example of the consumer brands which shape are world with adbusters, he felt it would be hypercritical to work with them even with the tempting large pay checks.
He showed us a sample of his work which showed he clear interest in world issues, human right and other social issues. He has an incredible skill for creating typefaces and graphic compositions. He was extremely inspiring and at times controversial. I loved it.

He second lecture was more personal. He took the chance to take us all back to basics. Teaching us the rules we may have overlooked. He told us you cant create a successful design unless you have fully understood the problem of the brief. He took us threw a power point presentation to look at the stages of breaking down the brief and not just running to the end creating a basic design outcome. The advice was very constructive, I will take it on board and use it to improve my designing skills.

Luke Best

Luke Best is a creative, multi-disciplined illustrator/designer. I came across the work of Luke Best as he has worked with Andrew Rae who has been a strong influence on my work. I was particularly interested in the type work. The hand crafted style is very creative and shows a stunning range of skills and ideas. His work is inspiring and shows a number of similarities to mine. See more of his work at www.lukebest.com 

Dead Man's Shoes

My personal favourite from the Shane Meadows collection. It has an epic performance from Paddy Considine with a truly chilling story of a man coming to terms with the loss of his brother and the revenge of his brothers abusers. It is a great masterpiece. As well as an incredible piece of directing from Shane Meadows and an unforgettable performance from Paddy Considine it is interesting to know the pair share the credit for writing the story of a troubled brother returning to town to get even with those who wronged his deceased brother. Other great performances came from Toby Kebbell and Garry Stretch.

Shane Meadows

I am a huge film geek and feel a sense of pride when I see great work from Britain. The likes of Danny Boyle, Ridley Scott, Tony Kaye to name a few directors which have brought to life some of the most amazing stories. Tony Kaye's 'American History X' has to be one of the greatest films of my generation. Danny Boyle's incredible work on 'trainspotting' and '28 days later' was outstanding and are cemented in my DVD collection. Ridley Scott has made an unbelievable impact on Hollywood with numerous hits such as 'Gladiator', 'Black Hawk Down' and a current favourite of mine 'American Gangster'. All amazing films showing incredible vision and cinematography.

Shane Meadows has had recent success with his work on 'This Is England' from 2006 but its not just his current work which I have found a great inspiration. 'A room for Romeo Brass' from 1999 and 'Dead Man's Shoes' from 2004 were great examples of powerful British cinema. The fact that I can relate to the stories, feeling it could be happening in the town I live makes me have a connection with the film which I cant find in some of the Hollywood pics.

He also has a sharp eye for talent by casting the likes of Paddy Considine and Thomas Turgoose who made the characters they played unforgettable.

Nike Dunk X Cherry

I am a big trainer freak and have a huge love for 'Dunks'. I found this design on Sneakerfreaker.com and thought it was fantastic. Nike have taken one of there most successful trainer models and used the print designs of french textile designer Paule Marrot Editions. The outcome is a thing of beauty. It is part of the summer 09 dunk collection, i could imagine seeing these walking past me on a sunny day and me turning my head and picking up my jaw. The are really fresh and bold, not for everyones taste but are still a beautiful creation.

Henning Wagonbreth

Henning Wagonbreth is a graphic illustrator with experience in comic illustration and graphic novels. I found his work online when researching into graphic novels and really enjoyed his distinct style of illustration. His style is very angular with sharp edges. He has a very bold use of colour which makes his work jump of the page. I especially like the football team characters in the collectible cards they give the impression of having different personalities which I like. Also the way they have been laid out in rows and columns is interesting and is something I like to do with my own work.