“You! Be Informed! #0004 – Adobe Muse, AIGA/NY 30th Anniversary, and Maurice Sendak” plus 1 more

You! Be Informed! #0004 – Adobe Muse, AIGA/NY 30th Anniversary, and Maurice Sendak Posted: 11 May 2012 02:02 AM PDT This week's about to end and we'd like to close it out with some interesting design news. We've heard some disheartening news, but there's some good news out there, too. We've compiled some interesting projects, events, and news about design and designers. Graphic designers often look at pictures to draw inspiration for their projects. But looking for the perfect muse can be tricky. You can check Piccsy, they've recently re-launched their site and is now offering an improved image search, related image search, and high quality images. If you're looking for an alternative source of inspiration, check their site out. Before entering the corporate side of graphic designing, I was once a freelancer, too. I've experienced the joy and freedom of being a freelancer. But being happy doesn't always mean it's rewarding. We've received an email recently about the Freelancer Payment Protection Act. It aims to help freelancers – designers, writers, consultants – to get paid for their work and avoid deadbeats. Check out their site to know more about the act. AIGA NY will celebrate their 30th anniversary this year, and they're commemorating it through 30 posters designed by 30 different artists. They'll also host an event that will take you back, through 30 years of creativity, in AIGA NY's humble beginning. Check out their AIGA NY's site for more information. If you miss the old Polaroid and the vintage feel of the prints it produces, you don't have to be nostalgic forever. Recently, ADR Studio released a concept design for a real-world camera for the famed Instagram. They've called it the Instagram Socialmatic Project; check out their site for the specs and how to make it possible! If you're looking for a new medium to work with, you can try designing skateboards for lvsk8. They'll be hosting a hand-painted skateboard show at Get Up Gallery inside Emergency Arts in Las Vegas, NV. You can check out the details at their website. An interesting boom in recent years is the rise of smart phones. The flexibility and the availability of the internet on-the-go, makes it an efficient tool for both casual and corporate cases. But what's more interesting in these phones are the apps that can be used in them. If you're interested in logos, branding, or interface design you might want to check out The Art of Apps exhibit in New York. Adobe launches a software that aids designers to create professional HTML5 websites without writing the code. Adobe Muse is now available as a standalone subscription or as part of the Adobe Creative Cloud. Last May 8, 2012 the legendary and creative Maurice Sendak has passed away. Known as the illustrator and writer behind the children's book "Where the Wild Things Are", Mr. Sendak passed away due to a complication of a stroke. I wasn't able to read the book he wrote and illustrated, but I was able to watch the film that was based on his story. Mr. Sendak's creativity and brilliance will be missed. If you’re hungry for more design news and updates, or if you want to feature your work or project with us hit us up on Facebook or Twitter. That all folks, if you’re hungry for more design news and inspiration make sure to subscribe to our RSS Feed.

The Art of Rock: Design Trends in Gig Posters Posted: 10 May 2012 07:53 PM PDT Since I've talked about album covers in a previous post, I've decided you still need a second serving of creativity care of our rock and roll gods. In this second serving, we won't be talking about the people who created album covers or gig posters (there's too many good artists out there, today). Instead, we’ll discuss some fascinating trends in designing the proverbial rock poster, as well as processes that most graphic designers use today. Here we go! Before starting this piece, I've had my team scour Google images and Flickr.com for different poster designs. Through the designs we found in those two sites, here's what we came up: Trends in Technique There are multiple techniques in publishing and producing prints of gig posters, and graphic designers have their own way to express their creativity. Some mix and match influences, while some experiment with new media. When it comes to technique preferences here is what designers often choose to do, today: Hand-drawn/-painted There are designers who choose to go old school, they draw and paint their designs. Then they'll have their designs scanned and reproduced digitally. This style gives the poster a rough and sketchy look that serves as its defining trait. Here are some examples: (Source)  (Source) Screen- Printed The process may be arduous, but the end product is fulfilling and is always an achievement for both seasoned and newbie printmakers. Different designers explore this option to find their niche or, sometimes, to move away from their usual digital works and move to a more "human" approach to making prints. Here are some examples: (Source) (Source)Digital Art This is the most common way to create art for gig posters. It's a streamlined process that allows graphic designers to edit and produce their work anytime they want. Digital art is possibly the cheapest and most practical way for graphic designers to produce their poster prints. Here are some examples: (Source) (Source) Trends in Style There are various styles out on the web. But, as it seems, designers are a bit torn between being modernist and post-modernist. The styles that we've seen so far are a mix-up of different influences, but here's what stands out among them: Typographic A lot of designers prefer to use typography in their design. There's no arguing about typography's functionality – it's direct to the point and minimalist. It's the best choice for designers who want to develop their skills in creating, or familiarizing themselves with typefaces. (Source) (Source) Hand-drawn I know I've mentioned hand-drawn earlier. But here it's about the feel of the artwork, regardless of being digital, raw sketch, or screen printed. The most common style we've seen is crosshatching. Here are some examples to give you an idea: (Source) (Source) Geometric The trend of creating outer space-themed and geometry-inspired poster designs is ubiquitous on the web. It's a hipster thing, I guess. This style is commonly accompanied by typography and some hand-drawn characters. Here are some examples: (Source) (Source) Trends in Inspiration There are different inspirations when it comes to creating gig posters. There's your usual popular-band-inspired design, the musicfest-focused theme, and the usual band-name-only designs. These are the regulars in gig poster prints, but there are designers who go the extra mile to create their designs. Pop Culture Pop culture seems to recreate itself in most graphic designers' work. Some artists use famous characters from our favorite shows to create a scene that's appropriate to the event or gig. It's also nice to see almost-forgotten characters come back to life in well-made gig posters. (Source) (Source) Music Genre Some designers utilize the elements that are normally associated within the genre of the band or the music production. It lets first-timers and regulars know what to expect from a music production or music festival. (Source) (Source) That's it fellas, that concludes our Art of Rock posts. If you've got ideas or anything you want to add in this list just give us a comment bellow, or just hit us up on Twitter or Facebook. If you're hungry for more design news or inspiration, subscribe to our RSS Feed and be satisfied!