TEDTalks about design

I am a big fan of TEDTalks. They are a collection of presentations of ideas, research and theories from the TED conferences(Technology, Entertainment, Design). I wanted to share those that were related to design. They are truly informative, inspirational and if nothing else, interesting! The best part is that they are anywhere from 3 minutes to 20 minutes long. I watch one a day while I cook or eat. Perfect amount of time.

P.S.

I dream of one day going to TED to attend and present my own idea worth sharing.

Check it out >>>

-Kwame Amuleru 

The Comic Book Scene in Atlanta and surrounding areas.

I did some research on all the comic book stores and anime stores I could find online in the Atlanta area and got a decent overview of what is offered and what customers want.

- Most offer online sale

-Most offer subscription services for comic books that come out regularly

-Most comic book stores sell a small selection of trading card games and figurines

-Most slightly cater to the manga and anime industries

-Most use comic book like visuals for their limited branding

-Most have undeveloped branding

-All that I know of are "mom and pop" businesses not having more than 3 locations tops.

-Prices vary

-Most cater to a comic book lover target audience. Male, between 15 to 40



What customers tend to want:

-Large collection of series and graphic novels

-Related merchandise such as appearal

-Large collection of back issues for collecters

-Well informed employees for comic book ratings, advice and help finding certain issues

-A place to play their board and trading card games (tournaments, etc.)

-A well organized, easy to navigate, pleasant store with almost library precision

-Friendly environment, positive customer service

-The ability to read in store

-Always a plus to have a broad collection of merchandise. Patrons tend to be impressed by the diversity and amount

-Events prove to be pleasing so that patrons have something else to do besides simply picking up the next issue of the comic book they are following

-Free issues to to sample stories or franchises they are not familiar with

-A sense of comradery, unity and belonging with those that share the hobby.

-Kwame Amuleru

Rethinking the Desert Boot

Since I was a kid my dad had a collection of desert boots. I love them. I love the way they look. While searching for them I found these two variations of them. It is almost as though my fathers shoes had a son and a daughter.

Original Clark Desert Boots >>>

The "son" Fred Perry Suede Trainers >>>

The "daughter" Clark Women's Indigo Water Row Boots >>>

I am a big fan of mixing retro fashion with contemporary elements. I love how it is executed in these versions. They all have the same primary design but subtle differences in the soles and shapes make this a very interesting family to study. If I had the capital I would deffinatly add the Trainers to my collection.

Redesign Series >> My Logo ( Grd 3000)

My logo was the first project I did as in a design class. I worked very hard on it and I am still open to renovations to it.

These were my first round of final designs. I had a million more sketches but I settled on these to develop digitally and pursue. I wanted my logo to communicate something uplifting because of my passion for improvement. 

Those on the left were derived from my own handwriting. I quickly wrote the letters trying to capture my natural handwriting. Then i took that and refined it to come up with these variations. The idea was to capture myself in my logo organically. I stacked the A on the K for uplifting and the exchange of stacking for support and uplifting through collaboration.

Those on the right were my more clean, stable variation that i designed through playing with the forms of K and A. I loved this combination because it made the K and the A similar in form and when united they make an M which is cool since my full name is Kwame Amuleru-Marshall. I was stuck on having wings in my logo since the year before when I saw my friend Mario designing his logo for Intro. So designed some that used elements from my type design.

These were what I initially turned in for critique. I went crazy with extra graphic elements. I shed the wings since they made it look like an air force logo badge. I tried to turn it into an upward pointing arrow using shapes that had duality like the two letters. The top shape was designed after a crown and the lower was designed after a smiley face with the letters being the eyes sort of like one of the exaggerated expressions in anime which I am a big fan of. I wanted them to show positivity. I chose the darker blue because it is a royal color and and the lighter blue to communicate the sky. The fact that my favorite color is blue had nothing to do with it! I also like how the lighter color seems like a kind of water mark version of the darker blue. Like a hazy back drop since the A is behind the K.

This is the redesign. Much more simple and to the point with a small up arrow "pointing to the skys".

This is the most recent design. I knocked out the stem on the arrow to make it very flush and corporate. I brought in the space between the two strokes of the K and widened the space between the K and A to help show that it is two letters, rather than one giant fancy M. One thing I love about this logo is that it can be read even when made to be very small. It has a cool modern type feel to it that I made myself but even so, it is mostly rounded and intimidating. It's triangular shape is simple and memorable and it shows stability. It still points to the sky, just much more subtle. The colors are cool and relaxed my I am most of the time but still represent royalty and the sky. 

-Kwame Amuleru

The New Direction of Identity - 3200 HW

I noticed that a lot of logos and identities for well known companies are changing from a more free design to a more simple futuristic and sometimes chrome like or minimalist design. The examples I'll use to display this is 7up, Comedy Central and Audi.

 

The old comedy central logo has three colors and cartoon like buildings with warped type. They dramtically simplified their logo to a much more simple, minimal and a subtle clever upside down element to communicate comedy.

Audi made some very subtle changes but the font has changed to become less illustrated and smaller and left justified. It reminds me of the trend of one word sentences. For example "Verizon. IPhone. It Begins." The rings have become more shiny like chrome. A new trend of more flat and contrasted gradients.

Seven Up changed from a more free late 90's "cool" look to a much more standard simple version of a 7 and the up was moved into the red circle which has also undergone the more contrasted flat gradient look. Lastly the border was thinned out to become more subtle and the green was darkened. It seems more stable and less fleeting.

The general movement seems to be to become more solid and minimal with some trending visual aesthetics. I like the trend but I feel as though it will become old and unoriginal very soon.

- Kwame Amuleru

List of Businesses that I might attempt to Re-brand- 3200 HW

1> Silver Delight All Natural Caribbean Restaurant

This is a place in my neighborhood that has good food that takes me back to the Caribbean where I went to high school. I would love to dive into my c'bean heritage for design inspiration.

Check it out >>>
This too >>> 

2> 2 6 Productions

This is a small production company of two black women who are directors here in Atlanta. One of them just so happens to be my sister! Movies are a big past time in my family and it is an industry I might like to work in. I would enjoy being able to come up with something fresh for a production company. Especially if it can assist my older sister with her endeavor.

Check it out >>> 

 This too >>>

3> Atlanta's Best Karate

This is a business run by a very decorated martial artist here in Atlanta. All my life I have been interested in martial arts and would love to research the visual communication of the industry in order to promote this business.

Check it out >>> 

4> Poor Little Rich Girl Vintage Clothing Store

This is another small business run in my neighborhood with a great selection of vintage clothes for a great price. I'd love to see this business grow. I am also interested in fashion and I personally enjoy the vintage look. There is so much to research in this field and I love the name of the business.

Check it out >>>

This too >>>

5> Dragon's Horde Comic Book and Collectibles

This is one of the very few comic book stores in Atlanta. I also have am a big fan of comics, super heroes, anime, hobbiest games and all of the great art they include. I think this is a field where one could get really creative with the visuals for a business that serves all these industries together.

Check it out >>> 

All in all I have a very hard decision. I love all these places and they are all in need of some visual revamping. Any advice?

-Kwame Amuleru

5 Best Logos - 3200 HW

This is a list of logos that I personally enjoy and admire for various reasons.

1 > Netflix

I love how so much is communicated in this simple design of the name of the company. Everything from the font, to the black emboss effect to the subtle arc at the bottom of the word to the colors and the rectangular background box. It quietly exudes the feeling of the movies. It reminds me of a modern rendition of old movie theater visuals but yet so clear and so simple.

2 > Coca-Cola Bottle Logo

More so than just the clean up to date representation of this variation of cokes logo, I love how usable it is in the application of various advertisements and motion graphics. The two flat colors are so well done and recognizable and somehow they have found a way to make a person desire a drink with only two colors. No ice, or water pigments, no gradients, just flat simple iconic shapes of the bottle and the inclusion of bubbles.

3 > Firefox/Thunderbird

I love how these two logos compliment each other in the use of these elemental animals that interact with the image of the globe and an envelope. They are well rendered and work great as computer icons. They both are round and clearly display what this service and software does. Thunderbird sends mail in the air to locations and protects them...fast. Firefox travels the world to retrieve information for you...fast. They way they both absorb and dominate their subject matter visually was just well done.

4 > World Wildlife Fund

A very popular logo. Two colors, sometimes just one. Flat yet implied dimension. Very minimal but still a very well rendered panda. The font width matches the panda width. Somehow the panda is a great representation of animals, still made to be cute even though minimal which makes people empathetic for the cause and it is an endangered species that is a good example of why this fund is necessary. Genius. A lot of valuable information in a very simple form.

5 > Lupe Fiasco's Logo

I might be biased with this one because this is the logo of my favorite rapper. However it is still a very good one. He is an american Muslim so he has his named written in English in a font that looks like it is Arabic. At first glance one assumes they cant read it but after further inspection it is obviously "Lupe Fiasco". I love the way the circular border is included in the font design. It also has a hip hop feel because it is reminiscent of graffiti. Being a big fan, I think this logo represents him, his trade as a rapper and his content in a clever aesthetically pleasing way.

Bonus > 1996 Olympic Logo

I like how the flame is designed to incorporate the stars and various colors and how the rings and type create the column of the torch. Very good turn out for such a simple vertical assemble of the elements.

I am obviously a fan of logos that communicate in a clever and simple way, a great deal of information about the company or organisation it represents. I like them to subtly show the soul of the content it represents. 

- Kwame Amuleru

5 Worst Logos- 3200 HW

I'm sure there are logos I like less in the world but I compiled a few that I have had issues with in the past.

1> Georgia Power

My problem is with the graphic. I never knew what it was. Is it an awkward lightning bolt or an angular foot? What does it have to do with Georgia? Is it a backwards G maybe? If so its not a very good one in my opinion. I think it should be updated to communicate dependability of keeping Georgians with electricity. Maybe even include an indication of becoming more green for the future. But alas, not in this southern state I call home.

2> General Electric

It was a good logo for its time and it has lasted a very long time but I think its just outdated. No one in corporate uses that kind of font anymore. It looks very circa 50s to me. I think the company is well known enough for an acceptable change of font. Something modern for a new age of energy development.

3> Little Caesers

Once again, out of date. I think the font still works but the character and his border seem very 90s. He looks like clip art. Like a franchise that was branded by Joe Schmo Designs Co. down the street. It's time to render the character better and do something more creative with the border besides that thin black line.

4> AIGA

I might be getting ahead of myself as a designer in training challenging Paul Rands own handy work and the logo of one of the most important design organizations in the country if not world but I am. My issue with it is, once again, the font. It would be a good logo for a corporate company that does something no one is really interested in until they need it but as the image that represents the best and most creative of graphic arts, it is way too conservative. Also the logo does nothing to help communicate what the letters stand for. I find it hard to remember because they are all exactly the same. Maybe some contrast or doing something more creative with the letters would do wonders for showing the masses of creativity the org. represents. I am a fan of how the branding makes use of the solid perfect square though. My only gripe is with the boring letters.

5 > Life's Good

Once again, a common issue of mine. I don't know what the logo is. I see the L and the G very clear but that might be a little redundant with the LG text right next to it. One or the other is unnecessary. I think it might be an abstracted smiley face or just a mouth-less face. Either way, its doesn't do a good job of exposing that or making me feel that life is good. In fact I don't get much of anything from this logo. And the dot in the circle is memorable I must admit but for years I wondered why it was there rather than receiving some information about the company from it. Or any purpose to it at all besides a feeble attempt at an unrecognizable face.

All of these logos are of a certain standard. They are all known all over the country and have stood the test of time. However I would like to see them improve, update and become amazing. 

-Kwame Amuleru

Black Comix: African American Independent Comics, Art and Culture

This book is on my wishlist! I wanted to share it though. I saw it at Barnes and Noble and encourage people to check it out if they are there. It displays independent comic book creators of the African American variety. This is an area I'm interested in and would love to see it grow. One day when I save up 30+ bucks I'll pick this book up and display it on my coffee table!

                                                                                                                     Check it out >>>

Pentagram

Another website with a great portfolio. This is a design consulting firm that has a lot of pieces to display, some of which you probably recognize. They provide in depth creative briefs with the pieces. Once again, good to learn from and gain inspiration from.

                                                                           Check it out >>>

*Random Idea* : Animated Grid

I was looking at various websites and see that most of them are organized in various boxes of information arranged through out the screen. I wondered why? What would happen if we got rid of these boxes. Then I decided that they are probably products of grids and if we got rid of the grids then we would have chaos, the opposite of information design. So then I thought, what if organization was implied by motion rather than boxes, borders and implied lines. What if someone coded an application that allowed designers to create and work with grids that move and thus change live on screen or maybe partial movement. I would imagine the information would look chaotic at first but much like a school of fish or a flock of birds, elements of design and organization could be instilled by motion. Different directions, speeds and patterns could be used to separate one set of information from another. Something I might one day like to experiment with when I get the resources or knowledge to do so.

-Kwame Amuleru

Hagopian Ink

I was reading a forum entry about what to expect in a design career fresh out of college and it had a number of interesting links. I came across a website for a one woman design company in New York City that has won awards. I just wanted to share the website. It in itself was designed well and I found the ink animations to be an interesting backdrop. I'm wondering what about it makes it not too distracting because I was able to easily focus on the text on each page while it played in the background.

Most interesting about the site of course is the work that is posted. A lot of her work are from recognizable businesses. The cool part is that she includes in the details tab, the need and her solution for each displayed piece which is very helpful in understanding and learning from her work as a designer in training.

Check it out >>>

-Kwame Amuleru