Seventy-nine Short Essays on Design is the latest collection of writings by Michael Bierut of Pentagram, and published by Princeton Architectural Press on 29th February 2012. The book is a 272-page hardcover publication which comprises of two decades of essays ranging from “New York’s faulty “Push for Walk Signal” buttons, to the disappearance of the AT&T logo, to the implications of Vladimir Nabokov’s Pale Fire for interaction designers” (via Pentagram). The book is described by cultural website A Very... CONTINUE READING

After almost ten years working as freelance graphic and web designer, there are many things I miss about my time in graphic design school. First, the environment was excellent to become better at designing; no constraints, lots of creative freedom, passionate conversations about design between classmates, interesting teachers, and much more. However, I must say that although studying graphic design taught me some solid basics about graphic design, there are areas that I did not cover in graphic design... CONTINUE READING

Color Management 101 Color management is the term used to describe an integrated system of computer hardware, software and workflow techniques all working together to translate color from one device to another in a controlled way. Color management is of great importance in graphic design; if you want your designs to look their best you should follow a color-managed workflow. Gamut: Range of Colors Available Various devices (monitors, printers, cameras, scanners, etc.) all handle color differently. Each device has... CONTINUE READING

Developing a website, even a small one, can easily turn into a daunting task without some sort of documented process in place. There are those sites that require little more than a designer sitting in front of their monitor tapping out some html and css. Other sites can involve an army of team members from graphic designers to coders, photographers to writers and a host of others in between. What they share, or at least should, is a process... CONTINUE READING

Life as a graphic design student is quite enjoyable. You get to work on interesting projects, without the constraints of picky clients and tight budgets. Your teachers push you to be creative, giving you great (if your teacher is good) advice to become a better designer. But what happens once you graduate? Once you have your diploma in hands, things become more real. You have to find a way to make money with your new skills, which means to... CONTINUE READING

Finding good photographic imagery to use in your designs for print, web and video projects is one of the most common and important tasks for graphic designers and art directors. It can also be challenging and sometimes frustrating. There are several things to consider when you’re sourcing photography, including where to get the photos, image file quality and specifications, licensing and usage terms, and cost. Starting out, you have two basic options: buy pre-existing images (referred to as “stock”... CONTINUE READING

What is organic design? There are “organic foods” (even though there’s no such thing as inorganic food) and an “organic” movement that’s tied to ecological concerns. Organic food is free from chemicals, pesticides and other artificial additives. Organic design is similar; it avoids the “artificial” look of work that appears to have been created by software instead of by a caring, human artist. How often do you look at design work that clearly broadcasts the “footprint” of whatever software... CONTINUE READING

Ask any design firm what the most tedious aspects of their daily routines are- you’ll probably be surprised by the answer. Although a few will complain about dealing with customers, creating cool InfoGraphics, or even last-minute project changes; their major frustration has always been within the realm of time management. Things like holding creative sessions, gaining approval from clients and starting new projects all take up a considerable amount of time and money.  Up until recently, these types of... CONTINUE READING

One of the major challenges for any graphic designer is balancing the notion of “the customer is always right” with providing a fair and reasonable quality service/product that represents you well. For instance, if they hire you for a standard movie poster, but demand a billboard of epic proportions, that isn’t reasonable. But what if they ask you to violate your design sensibilities, what then? The Dilemma Without a doubt, it can’t be argued that a good graphic designer... CONTINUE READING

For anyone involved in the creative arts, the process of creation can often be a challenging one. There are times when it flows, but many times when it doesn’t. It can arrive at the least suspecting moment, but not necessarily when you are on deadline. Those elusive moments when creativity flows are like ecstasy as you see things with a clarity and imagination that escapes you in your everyday world. Your aim is to apply our talent, vision, and... CONTINUE READING