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[katymorrison]

This coaster is using red and green as complementary colors to make the woman the focal point of the piece. Red and green make each other pop, but red is a more striking color than green, which is most likely why she is in a red dress, not vice versa. The color red represents passion, sex, femininity, and power, so it makes sense to have this very feminine woman in red. If her red dress was a “no-brainer” for the artist, then green may have been a “no brainer” as well because red and green are the most compatible, complementary colors each of them have. 

In this company name, blue and green are used to make the name more prominent than black. The bright blue and green easily stand out against the black dumpster, but they are easy on the eyes. Blue and green naturally look effortless together, as they are analogous colors, but they still can stand out from the crowd.

These Detroit Lions jerseys and crewneck all use some shade of the same cool toned blue. Details in the jersey use some shade of the same cool gray hue. This use of cool colors creates a cohesiveness for the Lions community. The city of Detroit has an extremely loyal fan base, and the color blue is often associated with loyalty, consistency, and trustworthiness.

The use of golden yellow used in the University of Southern California’s logo brings a warm essence to the university’s brand, reflecting the hot climate in Southern California and its reputation as the “Golden Coast”. The bright red used in their logos gives the school a powerful, passionate essence to reflect their extreme school spirit and fighting Trojan mascot. 

The contrast in complementary colors creates the text on this parking sign stand out. The contrast between the brighter, more saturated red and green against the white background also helps the text stand out for the viewer. Most parking signs use contrast in colors (hues, values, saturation) to stand out and catch the eye.

This hotel sign and logo reads “Motel Caramelo'' with a cursive, decorative “C” graphic below. The sign is a blush pink color, while the word “Motel” is a slightly darker shade. The word “Motel” appears in a simple, capitalized sans font, while the word “Caramelo” uses a flirty, cursive font. The “C” emblem’s curly decorative font and design comes to a full circle, satisfying the eye.

This logo uses the space in the circle behind the unicorn to actually create the unicorn's shape. This white or negative space is actively being used to create the unicorn, while the colorful, striped background helps the white space to stand out and hold its own. The active white space behind the logo circle and company name also allows the fine lined text used  to stand out without being too bold or overbearing. 

This piece of graphic design uses the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci to advertise Red Bull energy drinks as a historical product. Red Bull is fairly universally recognized across the globe, so their use of the Mona Lisa, satirically compares their energy drink to one of the most influential art works of human history. 

[katymorrison]

Find a piece of design and use your caption to describe its denotative meaning.

This book cover that reads “The Guest List” with a stormy castle behind it sets the physical scene for the book. When reading the book which takes place in Ireland, the reader can use the cover to imagine the weather and environment of the story. The title lets the reader know that some sort of event or party will most likely center this story.

Use the same piece of design (can be the same photo or a different photo of the same object) and use your caption to describe its connotative meaning. 

This book cover uses dark colors and stormy, mysterious imagery to foreshadow danger and conflict to come in the book. The note under the title which reads “You’d kill to be on it” adds to the spookiness and elusivity of the book. The use of the word “kill” adds another layer of danger to the book, and foreshadows some type of violence or even murder to come in the book. 

Find a piece of design and describe its iconic function (remember icon/index/symbol from the lecture).

The Spartan head in its iconic function is now mostly used for marketing and branding. The Sparty head is easy to shrink and expand, it can be white and stand out against a dark green background, or vice versa. It is on virtually every piece of University property from sticky notes to sweatshirts. The Sparty head is a recognizable icon that has lasted and will last for so many years to come due to its amazing versatility and flexibility in the marketing space.

Find a piece of design and describe its indexical function.

Sparty himself acts as representation for our school. He is at football games, career fairs, and club meetings always showing up with an incredible energy that represents Michigan State’s spirit. Sparty himself is not as versatile and flexible when it comes to being used as a marketing tool because of his small details and intricacy. Shrinking or expanding Sparty to find different materials is less functional and logical than using the Sparty head. 

Find a piece of design and describe its symbolic function.

The structured, bold sans serif “S '' that represents Michigan State in its symbolic form. The “S '' can not only be a symbol for the State, but it can also be a symbol for Sparty himself. This symbol represents Sparta and Spartans without actually being a graphic of a fighting spartan. This “S” is also commonly used on marketing and advertising materials because of its simplicity and ability to fit many different formats, just like the Spartan head. 

Find a piece of design that references a past “style” and in your caption say what you think the design is trying to signify by its reference to that style (think about the Stubb’s BBQ sauce example).

This bar is Irish-themed, hence the name Dublin Square. They use quintessential gaelic-inspired typeface to embody the medieval highland brand. Inside, there is Guinness decor, old Irish sayings all over the place, and an Irish-themed menu. The brand uses hints of green here and there, as well as traditional clan crests and clover motifs to signify the luck of the Irish. Drinking beer and dancing while having a good time is one of the most Irish pastimes, so this bar tries to create a fun-loving atmosphere that starts with its brand typeface and imagery.

[katymorrison]

This infographic’s agenda is to get people to realize the significance of income inequality in Europe. This infographic is trying to get its audience to care about income inequality. The snake-like graphic that maps countries in Europe from the least to most income inequality. This organization draws the viewer's eye across the page, making the lead up to the country with the most income inequality more dramatic. Although infographics like this are intended to raise awareness to important subjects, it is impossible to accurately represent complex and nuanced information in one simple graphic

2. This piece of design is part of Michigan State’s larger identity system or brand reputation. Consistency Michigan State’s marketing and communication brand utilizes a simple color scheme of green, white, gray, and black to create unity and consistency. The even spacing, bold yet simple sans typefaces, and heavy use of capital letters create an organized, strong, put-together look for our school. The use of the traditional design grid aligns each design block to create flow and balance in the piece, helping Michigan State maintain a cohesive, bold, fresh identity system.  

[katymorrison]

1. This coffee table book uses the rhythm and movement of the red ribbon to move the viewers’ eye across the page. At first glance, I thought the ribbon connected cleverly to the garland in the image on the right. Although it doesn't, the parallel between the whimsical ribbon and draped garland helps the eye move seamlessly across the page.

2. The phrase “WHEN MORE IS MORE” is centered on this page in bolded and capitalized serif font. This combined with its extreme size make this whitty hook the center of attention for the viewer. The chapter number at the top of the page and the chapter’s table of contents at the bottom of the page are barely even noticed due to the extreme size contrast that places the chapter's title on the top of the typographic hierarchy of this page

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3. The word “safe” highlighted in blue at the bottom of the glue bottom includes the letter “f” that is a letter with an ascender. This means that the “f” extends above the letters' mean line where most other letters stop.

4. This image includes the descender letter “p” in the word “Spartan”. A letter with a descender is a letter that extends below the base line of a word.

5. The “O” in “Victoria” in simple, serif font is a letter with a counter. This “O” is an example of a fully closed counter, whereas the “U” in “Queen” is a partially closed counter.

6. The “A” in the word “party” has a crossbar. The uneven line weight of this typeface throws each “A” off centered, making the crossbar and left leg of the “A” seem weak compared to the right leg.

7. This use of a large or regular X-height makes the rest of the world stand out. All of the lower case letters in this word do not look too small compared to the uppercase letter. This allows the word to seamlessly display its content without drawing too much attention to the text itself.

8. This font uses a small X-height to make its upper case letter stand out and catch the eye more. It highlights the first letter of each word by making them significantly bigger than the following letters in each word. The more drastic contrast with small X-heights allow the words to pop and stand out against the crowd.

9. This sign that says “XOXO” is modernist based on my understanding of the film Helvetica. The Xs and Os are extremely simple, serif letters. They have zero flare, are perfectly spaced, and are all the same height and weight. This sign follows traditional spacing principles, and was designed based on its intended use which is to be easily hung up. If the sign was more postmodernism, it may have the letters spaced differently and more whimsically, making the sign difficult to hang and decorate with.

10. This font is trying to connote feelings of nature using its text. The extremely ornate leaf detailing of each letter connotes a feeling of care, patience, and creativity. No other building sign uses this style of decorative text, or any other style of purely decorative text to represent what building it is. Each letter is unique to the next, and represents the gentleness and attention to detail of nature, which forestry studies.

#module4

[katymorrison]

(top left) This photo is of MSU building signage for the Farrall Agricultural Hall. The point of building signage is to effectively and clearly point out landmarks for people walking/driving around. Each day, students, professors, and tour groups walk around school and use building signage to get from point A to point B. The thicker/heavier weight of the text allows passerbyers to easily read the hall’s name. The shape of the sans serif font makes it easier for the letter to stand out. The hall’s information is centered and shifted slightly to the right, creating a perfect balance of negative space on each side. To the left of the words, there is an arrow pointing towards the hall. It also is perfectly  centered in its surrounding negative space. This balance of positive and negative space created an aesthetically satisfying and effective sign design.

(top right) This sign is a call to action about bike and road safety. The sans serif font has enough weight contrast to be seen from far away, while also maintaining an aesthetic, and proportionally balanced sign. Each word is centered and has an equal amount of negative space around them. The bike visual has the same perfect weight as the letters. It is simple, yet detailed enough to come across immediately as a bicycle. This sign uses simple letters, and font weight contrast that successfully get its safety message across from up close and far away.

(middle) The words on this decorative tote bag give it a whimsical and fun feel. The blue sans serif letters read “ I HAVE THIS FRIEND - a lifestyle directory at your service”. The first four words are all centered differently around the bag. The use of negative space to create a staggered look for the quote helps the message contrast against the bag. The font weight is fairly heavy and easily contrasts the bag to display its message. Although the font-weight is on the heavier side, it doesn't look too clunky because the letters are a perfect balance of vertical and horizontal stretch.

(bottom left)  The reason for this design is to draw attention to a business and successfully advertise its products. The font used for the name of this flower shop, “B/A Florist” is a bolder whimsical yet elegant serif font. It then uses a thinner, simpler sans serif font for the words “& plant house”. I enjoy the contrast between the more playful font of the florist’s name and the plain font used to describe the business. This design uses font style and weight contrast to express the business “personality” while also describing their speciality (flowers). The cute eye-catching phrase “My favorite color is October” is printed in heavy sans serif font. It is thicker and bolder than “& plant house”. This design catches your attention using thick, dark letters and a fun seasonal quote. Once the eye is drawn to the sign, the logo and business description come off clearly and effectively,

(bottom right) This playful, fun drink menu uses the contrast of positive and negative space, as well as font style and weight contrast to achieve its goal. This design uses a bold, decorative font to introduce the menu name “From the Hair of the Cat Bar''. The five drink names show up in simple, light weight sans serif font. The pictures below each drink use negative space and positive space to create contrast in the drawings For example, negative space is used in this instance to create a glare in one of the glasses. The menu is divided into six event sections, making it easy to read and aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

#module2

[katymorrison]

(top left) The first image is of a coffee shop's outdoor signage. They use a sans-serif geometric type, and the second two words on the sign are bolded and in different colors. The first "o" in the word "house" has a diagonal stroke. The second "e" in "coffee" is lowercase, unlike the rest of the letters. These details give a whimsical, quirky, and fun feeling to the coffee shop. The letters are clear, big, and easy to read which is important when advertising what your business sells. Overall, the design is modern, yet inviting and unique.

(top right) The second image is of a graphic t-shirt that says "Guinness - Gaelic for Genius". It is a serif typewritten in bold yellow letters, contrasting the black fabric it lies on. The word "Guinness" is significantly bigger and bolder than the rest of the lettering. It also has a heavier contrast weight compared to the rest of the shirt. This draws attention and makes the word "Guinness" the center of attention. The stems of the letters are much lighter in contrast weight. I don't know if this shirt is made by Guinness, or if it is just a funny shirt for Guinness fans. Either way, the meaning of this shirt is to make a statement and represent its fans' appreciation for a product or company. Branded alcohol merchandise/advertisements either glorify the brand or make it seem fun. For example, the design of original Anheuser-Busch Budweiser shirts makes the brand seem classic, traditional, and slightly vintage using its signature formal type and the Clydesdales. This "Guinness" shirt makes the brand seem fun, and clever and also appeals to the origin of the word, which is Gaelic.

(middle) The third image is an art installation showing a bunch of people drawn with bright, bold colors with the caption "We are all crazy beautiful!". The statement is all uppercase, each letter a different color, and some word groups on diagonal strokes. Each letter looks different from the next, giving us the impression of a handwritten, imperfect, and human-type style. This installation that combines art and graphic design is a societal statement piece. The artist has drawn/painted dozens of different colorful, cartoon styles like people using every color of the rainbow. The message or meaning behind this installation is to show people that every person is beautiful because we are each so different and unique. If they all looked the same and all had the same colors, this drawing would be serious and dull. The variety and imperfection within each of us is what makes life good, and that's what this installation is explaining through art and graphic design.

(bottom left) This photo is of a prayer in a vintage magazine about the nature, art, culture, and history of New Mexico. I love the type of the title which reads, "A Prayer at Eastertide". The whole magazine has a very natural, soft, and garden-inspired theme, in support of its nature and culture content. There is a great contrast in size between uppercase letters and lowercase letters, although there is no difference in weight contrast. This title almost looks like a brush script, which makes it slightly formal. The graphic of flowers on the cross which splits up the words in the title adds to the elegant beauty of the page. The religious imagery, alongside the graceful, yet whimsical, long lines of the letters sets up a refined, delightful, and spiritual feeling for the Easter prayer.

(bottom right) The fifth photo is a greeting card stand at a vintage shop. The cards in the picture are to celebrate birthdays, and each has a different astrological sign portrayed through design. The style of each card is the same, it just uses drawings, graphics, and colors to differentiate each sign. Each astrological sign name is displayed using an edgy, funky decorative type. To me, it feels like a hand-drawn type. Some letters are randomly uppercase, while others are lowercase. The vertical stems of each letter are bolder in weight than the horizontal lines in the font. Each sign name is accompanied by an object that represents one of its qualities. For example, the "Libra" card has a scale on it because they are believed to be balanced. Both the letters and the graphics are drawn to look imperfect and fun. Each card also uses a variety of different bright colors. The intention of this design and type is to celebrate someone's birthday. But, it also is meant to appeal to people who enjoy astrology and similar activities. Astrology tends to have a carefree, eclectic audience. This card appeals to the taste of people who have those interests and styles. These cards fit the style and brand of the vintage, resell shop that it was being sold at.