“Wallpaper Calendar Freebie for May 2012: Sea Turtle by Geno Arguelles” plus 1 more

We’re giving our freebie calendar for May 2012 earlier than usual so you can prep up your PC, Mac, or iPad for the next month. Our in-house designer Geno Arguelles turned his summer-themed artwork SEA TURTLE into a wallpaper to warm-up your work area. You can download the wallpaper calendar in sizes from 640 x 480 up to 2560 x 1440. Share it with your friends and enjoy!

Dieter Rams’ 10 Principles of Good Design and How to Apply Them in Graphic Design After discussing the Vignelli Canon, we're going to delve more into design principles applied in the different fields of design today. One designer that I’ve always admired is the industrial designer, Dieter Rams. His works within different industries have become classic standards of simple, elegant, and lasting design. Yet though his principles of design have spread throughout the world, there are still far more thoughtlessly-designed products out in the market. Industrial Design for Graphic Design Industrial design is the process of creating a product that combines the best of aesthetics, ergonomics, and usability. These three can be compared to typographic design’s form, legibility, and readability. Design in general can be treated as a form of communication; it informs and allows people to easily identify a product or concept based on its associated color and form. (Source) As Vignelli would say, design is a language. Designers may have different specializations, but all of them use design as a form of communication. Almost every principle made for a specific design discipline can be used in another, and vice versa. Or we can just say, all these principles are taken from one root – human experience and its improvement. Combining all the design principles we have today is an impossible task, but what we can do is apply these principles into our chosen field of design. A great example of a set of design principles that can be easily transferred and used in various fields of design is Dieter Rams’ Ten Principles of Good Design. The Ten Principles of Good Design Dieter Ram’s principles can be compared to Massimo Vignelli’s canon. The only difference between them is that the latter’s principles were made particularly for typography. On the other hand, Dieter Rams’ ten principles are about creating good product design, but can be applied to any design field. Now, if we were to skilfully apply Dieter Ram’s principles to graphic design (and maybe even infuse it with the spirit of Vignelli’s canon), we would have an ideal design that not only caters to the human need, but also helps improve human life along the way. Below I’ve condensed Dieter Rams’ ten principles to eight. I’ve decided to combine some principles that I think either need to work with one another (i.e., honest design, product understandability, and usefulness) or will be understood better when paired together (i.e., unobtrusive and thorough design). Here’s how I think you can apply these principles in graphic design: Graphic Design… Is Innovative As Austin Kleon would put it, steal like an artist. How do we innovate in graphic design? We steal or borrow ideas, improve on it AND make it our own. Many, if not most, artists are inspired by other artists. If people from the 14th to the 17th century didn’t think of a Renaissance, we’d never see the world as we see it today. (Source) Is Aesthetic Graphic design is more than a visualized idea. It must tap into the senses of the people and act as catalyst for further interaction. Much like in advertising, it must tap into a customer’s experience and emulate it, then provoke a longing for that experience. The smart execution of design based on aesthetics can also be seen in classic magazine covers like Esquire, National Lampoon, etc., as they portray a culture’s current affairs and invite people to take part in it by at least being updated and informed. (Source) Is Unobtrusive and Thoroughly-Designed A graphic design’s function is to disseminate information or an idea. It must not, by any means, annoy or be visual pollution. The design must be well-thought of and appropriate. Elements and details of the design must also be considered; these may become restraining and obtrusive if overused or left unconsidered. (Source) Is Honest As a form of communication, graphic design must be presented directly – no flash, no tricks, no obstructions. It must be highlighted or be given emphasis for the audience. This is especially important in advertising; honesty and the capability to deliver is what drives an active and loyal market. (Source) Is long-lasting Graphic design as a form of visual communication must be able to create a lasting message that is either relevant or needed during his time. It is also upon the designer to be conscious of his surroundings and ask we questions such as "Do we need this?", "Is this relevant today?", or "Will this change someone’s life?" (Source) Is as Little Design as Possible As an element in advertising, graphic design must be straightforward and concise. It must focus on information that is relevant to the market or audience. Graphic design streamlines information and makes it easier for people to understand, and it must do it in a functional yet aesthetic method. (Source) Good design is not a mere standard in creating a product or an advertisement. It’s a way of life, a belief that better things can be provided to the public. It’s one way of saying that design has a lot to do with life and they way we live it. Each designer has his own standard and principle when working on projects. As mentioned earlier, people have different mileages regarding a lot of things. I cooked this up for beginners and experienced designers who wish to find inspiration from other professionals. Please let me know your thoughts about Dieter Rams’ principles of good design and my presentation of them in this post, as well as how you think these can be applied to graphic design or to any discipline!

You! Be Informed! #0001

With so many of our posts being about visual inspiration, you’d think that that’s all we get inspired from. Not so! And now we want to remedy that. Every day there are so many design-related articles, news, developments and innovations bursting out of our RSS feeds, email inboxes and social media accounts that our team’s creative brains are definitely not lacking in substantially chunky design idea fodder. In case you didn’t know where to look, we’ll share what’s on our plate every week with you too. So sit back, relax and prepare to leisurely but thoroughly digest this meaty, design-savvy awesomeness that is the first issue of the You! Be Informed! series! (This post contains videos and other embedded content which you may not be able to view if you’re reading this post from your RSS reader or email subscription. Click through to the actual post page to see everything!) DASP United is a collective of designers against ACTA, SOPA and PIPA (and nowadays, possibly also CISPA) that express their protest through artistic expression, also in hopes of leaving a cultural heritage through it. This project was created only recently and so does not not have as much attention as it should, but if you support their ideas then help spread the word too. Check out their website for more information. Here are some of the featured artwork you can find on their homepage. (Source) (Source) The Behance Network is launching Behance Portfolio Reviews, in-person critique events organized by members of the community all over the world, as part of their mission to empower creative professionals. At each event, five local creatives will present work & receive feedback from an audience of peers. They will engage in career-boosting conversations, gather creative insights, and discover inspiring work. This is a great opportunity to get real-life, personalized feedback on your work for free! Events are already planned in 200 communities around the world, hosted by some of the most prominent creatives in their region – and this is even before they formally launch, which is on May 14th-21st. Check this page for more information – and this info page if you want to be an organizer! (Rest of the Page) The City of San Francisco is holding a competition to redesign its Municipal Transportation Agency’s identity. Submit a design concept, give feedback on submitted designs, and/or share submissions with others! Check this page and the following video for more information. Art Takes Times Square is a worldwide call for entries searching for inspired works by artists, designers, photographers and all creative talents from across the globe to determine one creative visionary whose artwork – in an opportunity of a lifetime – will receive a radiant presentation on Times Square's digital billboards before millions of viewers this summer. Check this page to learn more, below is the accompanying video. (Additionally, the video is accompanied by the soundtrack that characterizes Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, namely “The Ballade of Puppets”. Good soundtrack choice!) Visual Connections, formerly Picturehouse Marketing US, which organizes events specifically geared to buyers of phtoography, illustration and footage, will have an image expo on April 26, 2012, Thursday, at the Chicago Cultural Center’s Preston Bradley Hall. There will be a Q&A session with distinguished panelists in the morning to address a wide range of issues of interest to image buyers (copyright, fair use, licensing models, etc.) and and 20+ stock photo agencies, artist reps and other organizations to meet in the afternoon – see this gallery of participants. The event is restricted only to image buyers. Check the event page to learn more. (Source) Ponoko is giving away a Silhouette CAMEO, a home printer with a blade that cuts paper, fabric, vinyl and cardstock. They’ve introduced new cardstock to their materials catalog, and all orders made with cardstock from now through April 30, 2012 are eligible to win the CAMEO. See their post to learn more. (Source) Ryan McLeod made a CV guide aimed at creative students and graduates that has hints, tips, and insights into creating a CV that stands out, embedded below. The Creative CV Guide View more documents from equatoragency Off Book is a web series from PBS that explores cutting edge art, the artists that make it and the people that share it online. You can check out their newest episode, “The Art of Film & TV Title Design“, in the embedded video below. FlyingFlips is a footwear start-up based in Vancouver, BC, as well as a crowd-sourced, online community that creates artist-designed FlipFlops with a commitment to giving back. For every pair of FlyingFlips sandals they sell, they give a share of profits to the artist, and give a pair of sandals to a fellow human in need. They’re launching a project on Kickstarter to enlist the help of social consumers to help bring this idea to life; pledgers will be rewared with a first-edition pair of FlyingFlips. Check out their short video below, as well as their website, to learn more. Lastly (for now), the people over at Best PSD Freebies have been designing websites for years, and finally decided to share their best PSD resources with everyone in the interests of making the web a more attractive place. They add new freebies to their collection weekly. Check out their latest post for a Free Blitz PSD Theme – you only pay with a tweet. (Source) I hope you found this post useful, because we’re planning to do this every week! Since this is the first time we’re doing a weekly design news compilation like this, feedback, suggestions, critique, etc. are all welcomed, so feel free to leave comments on this post.

15 Fresh High Quality Free Valentine’s Day Fonts

Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and you would be searching for resources to make something special for your client or your sweetheart. As Valentine’s Day approaches, more and more designers are looking for some high quality fonts to use them in creating their valentine designs.

Here is a list of 15 most romantic and creative fonts for you including links on where to get them. These special fonts are inspired by love and hearts and are ideal for your Valentine Card, Scrapbooks, albums, projects, designs, and arts. Enjoy this excellent collection and surprise your valentine by your own creation using these fonts.

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“Rocker Girl Stock Photos: You The Designer’s Freebie Pack for April 2012!” plus 1 more

Geno had some photos from a rocker girl shoot he didn’t get to use, so we’re giving it away here so this great resource won’t go to waste! We’d love it if you could share with us what you can come up with these photos if you do get to use them, so we can share it with our other readers/followers too. Let us know how you liked it, and if you’d like us to make other kinds of stock photo sets too!

Vintage Vector Vectorian Pack Giveaway

Vintage Vector Vectorian Pack Giveaway The Vectorian Vintage Vector Pack is a mammoth pack including 930 vector ornaments, 465 vintage frame borders, and 92 antique illustrations. Vectorian is giving away 5 packs to 5 lucky Vectips readers! You really need to check out the site to see all the elements. Samples Below are some sample images of the elements included in the pack, but there is a lot more! Ornaments Frames Borders Antique Illustrations