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Concept Branding for the Anaheim Ducks #nhlducks #empiricaldesigns #graphicdesign #branding #concept #logo #identity #sportsbranding #creative #nhl #hockey #designer #indieart #statenisland #customart #customlogo (at Empirical Designs)
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Buonofide Logo. Contact Empirical Designs for your next project.
http://www.empiricaldesigns.net for a full portfolio
Empirical Designs - Staten Island, New York - Graphic & Website Design
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(via Imminence Records | Logo Design) by Empirical Designs
Looking for a graphic designer? Logos / Branding / T-Shirts / Posters / Web Design - contact Empirical Designs - link in bio (at Empirical Designs)
New addition to the Legendary Apparel collection š„ You can shop for this t-shirt and more by visiting legendaryapparel.net (at Empirical Designs)
An interview with Empirical Designs
Could you please introduce yourself to the readers? My name is Nick DePalo, Iām a graphic designer and the owner of Empirical Designs.
Was there any particular art pieces that made you want to start your own graphic design company? Iām not sure thereās a specific piece of work that made me want to be a designer. I really had no idea what graphic design was as a kid. I just loved to draw, and sketch, and doodle on notebooks. I was never very good at that, but I loved the process of making art. I love the feeling of taking ideas from your head and making them into tangible, physical products. So Iād say itās more the process of creating art that influenced me over specific pieces I admired or artists I looked up to.
Empirical Designs has seen large commercial success; professional sport teams, beer companies, etc. in your portfolio. When first starting, did you ever think it would reach this level? When I first started designing, I was just doing really amateurish stuff for my own band to cut corners and save some money. I had no idea it would turn into a business, never mind a successful one.
When a band comes to you for merchandise, do they usually have their own ideas about a design or is it your own original ideas you deliver? Itās a bit of a mixed bag. Some bands will approach me with well thought out ideas with sketches or specific concepts they want me to bring to life. Other bands are more indecisive and arenāt sure what theyāre looking for, so I develop the concepts for them and tailor the artwork to their taste.
How do you get in the mindset to create these designs? For the most part, I get myself in the right frame of mind before I ever sit down at my computer. I spend a lot of time thinking about a design and sketching crude ideas before I ever āstartā the design. So for me, that process usually starts when the job is proposed. I try to make sure I have a clear path to a design solution before I agree to take on a job, but sometimes something better comes while sketching, sometimes it comes while revising or coloring. Every design becomes itās own adventure. Iām less ritualistic that other designers, because in my honest reflection Iām still trying to find my voice through design. I donāt want to be stuck in one frame of mind, doing one style of art. Great artists can be the best in the world at a particular style. But to me, the best artists are well-rounded and can develop solutions for anyone, not just bands, breweries or sports teams.
When coming up with a new band logo, how do you get a feel of the them and their style? I ask bands a series of questions that help me understand their taste. I also ask them to send me visual references of designs they like. Often itās best to just glance over the written directions, because everyone uses different jargon and vocabulary to describe art and music that might not align with my own. So for instance if a band says they want a āboldā design, I have to figure out what their definition of āboldā is, because itās safe to assume we do not attribute the same values to that word. Thatās why visual references are so helpful. I can look at the pictures and analyze what about them the band perceives to be āboldā and use that visual cue when developing my own concepts. I often listen to their music and reflect on the aesthetic of bands similar to their sound. Even if the band asks me to design something similar to a popular band they look up to I try not to borrow too much influence from it, because ultimately I want the band Iām working with to be successful. Maybe one day my client will get a chance to play alongside their heroes. It would look pretty silly if their logo was a toned down version of the original logo on the same show flyer.
On your website, you mentioned working with Silent Planet. Which art did you create for them? Just a show flyer, nothing too important.
Recently, you released a blog post about music promotion and Ā it got over a 1,000 hits in a couple of days. When bands come to you, what recourse do you give them to help them thrive and take the next step? Most bands are pretty terrible at marketing themselves, so I just try to provide them simple solutions to help boost their profile a bit. My partner John Sottile wrote a great article outlining some simple ways you can effectively promote your band in the current market. I would encourage anyone interested to give it a read, it has some really helpful information. LINK: http://www.empiricaldesigns.net/blog/2017/2/13/five-effective-ways-to-promote-your-band
Browsing your āfor saleā section, I see a piece called āThink of the Radio.ā What was the inspiration behind it? I did an art series called Oblique Strategies, where I would create artwork based on special instructions and prompts. Hereās an except from an in-depth blog post I wrote about the piece.
Growing up in the age of the Walkman, I didnāt have much of a personal relationship with the radio. When I think of the term āradioā I always picture a golden age, way before my time filled with antiquated broadcasting equipment, and fast talking announcers. The radio always seemed so unique yet ethereal to me. So in this weekās entry I set out to investigate how radios are built and operate, and how they came into the mainstream and morphed how we consume media in the modern day.
I explored the differences between AM and FM signals, as well as the first commercial broadcasts and pirate radio stations. The most enthralling discovery I made was stumbling upon a video detailing the first production FM Transistor Radio, the Sony TFM-151. By all accounts, the radio the was commercially unsuccessful and only approximately 1000 radios were made in 1958. I immediately fell in love with the complexity and craftsmanship of the TFM-151. I simply could not fathom how weād gone from such intricately manufactured radios being on the cutting edge to completely archaic in half a century.
I set out to make the TFM-151 part of a functional apparel design. I was able to purchase a service manual which included schematics, repair instructions and replacement parts for the radio. Based on my limited knowledge of electronics I created my own psudo-diagrams. I used a technique called the Golden Ratio to create a rough layout. I then took a grid simulating the look of schematics and boxed the grid into sections using the golden ratio. I allowed each section of the design to overrun itās allotted space within the layout. This created the feel of a schematic grid which was breaking through another subtle grid in the layout, leaving tension between the structures. I overlaid some copy paper to texture the piece and simulate the feel of an old service manual. I finalized the text and layout, as well as distorted and frayed the edges leaving us with the finished product for āOS02: Think Of The Radioā.
What would you say are the top three reasons bands usually fall short when trying to market themselves? I think bands fall short by lacking understanding of their own sound, their image, and the market their playing in. Thereās so many experiences I have reading bioās and RIYLās where what the band sounds like and what they THINK they sound like are very different. In my opinion, most people are pretty bad at analyzing themselves so I would highly suggest that before you fill out the genres and what-you-sound-like parts of your bio, have someone in the know take a good listen to your music. You need an outside opinion to develop descriptions and comparisons which best explain your band. This will help inform prospective listeners, and encourage them inform their friends if theyāll enjoy your music. Itās easier to market yourself when you take the time to analyze WHAT you are marketing and WHO you are trying to reach.
Is there anything else you would like to tell the readers before we go? You can check out my portfolio at http://www.empiricaldesigns.net/ Drop us a line if youāre looking for apparel designs, album artwork, branding, press kits, lyric videos, or any other type of designs you may need. Weād love to hear from you. Thanks for having me on to talk about design!
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Interviewer: Corey Pena
Check out this interview with I By The Tide PromotionsĀ
Huge shoutout to I By The Tide Promotions & Collective Mind Promotions for having Empirical Designs on their blog to talk about graphic design in the music industry! If your band is looking for quality promotion, be sure to check out @ibttpromotions (at Empirical Designs)
I think that a large group of people on this subreddit are lazy as fuck, and to be honest it kind of bothers me, because a lot of us are nice...
Check out this Streetwear Resource GuideĀ
Our friends at @graneapparel hooked us up with these awesome keychains! Follow their page and stay tuned for their website launching soon. (at Empirical Designs)
New apparel for Arc Of The Sun - If your brand is looking for custom visuals, contact Empirical Designs any time for a free consultation on your project. (at Empirical Designs)
New York City is a hub that houses fashion creatives of all kinds. Nick DePalo, graphic designer and founder of Empirical Designs is among the few known fashion creatives on Staten Island due to his artwork and music talent. When not touring with his band Backslashes and Bad Ideas, he can be
Our lead graphic designer Nick DePalo was recently featured in an interview on MenOfThrift! Check out the full feature here.Ā
Is your band looking for professional graphic design? Hereās some branding for a new hardcore band, Truthbreaker! We love setting our clients up for success! For custom logos, merchandise, album artwork, and more, all you have to do is contact Empirical Designs for your free quote. (Link in bio) (at Empirical Designs)
These Octobusters tees are still available on MerchNow.com ! š¦
We work with record labels / artist management / bands to create the best merchandise for your fans. Contact us by visiting our website for a free quote on your next project. š¼ (at Empirical Designs)
Support Imminence Records and grab an Octobuster tee!Ā
