Photo by: cocoro no akari

I spend a lot of time looking at things. No really, A LOT OF TIME. It makes sense, seeing as I’m a designer by profession. Aside from the obvious, inspiration, I find looking at things is meditative (or maybe it’s the seduction of drone, for me). In any case, it’s something I thoroughly enjoy. So I thought I’d share with you, a few of the places that have been calling my droning gaze.

This time, I’ll share with you some of the great things I’ve been looking at, in the world of print design and packaging design.

Algorithmia: An exhibition about problem solving

Algorithmia Opening Reception: Saturday March 14, 2009 at 7:00pm. Object Adjective’s own Lauren Scime curates an exhibition that explores the relationship between math, science, programming, and the effect these have on our relationship to the changing world.

Unlike many math oriented shows of the past, this exhibition does not draw the line at simply defining algorithm as the use of a mathematical equation, but rather opens up the door to a broad array of artistic interpretations, both literally and conceptually referential.

Just as the algorithms of nature constantly work in flux to solve and create problems, so does the human use of algorithmic processes towards advancement. The science fictions of yesterday are rapidly becoming the realities that shape our everyday. From iPods shuffling our favorite songs and videos, to web applications that allow us to do everything remotely online, to the “smart bombs” that target enemies of the corporate world, we are surrounded by the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of computational progress.

Algorithmia consists of both physical and web-based work, presenting diverse procedures for problem solving, and explores the ways these methods, in turn, program us.

Curated By: Lauren Scime, Bryan Hewitt, Vita Mei Hewitt.

Preparing for a “redesign,” is a discussion topic we feel is long overdue. It’s something we deal with every day at Object Adjective and it’s something we grapple with when consulting clients all the time.

In this, the first of a two part series on brand evolution, I walk through a hypothetical and provide some basic, helpful check points to get you through a successful website redesign.

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I’ve been thinking redesign for quite some time. It’s not that I’m unhappy with my current design. It is because I’m unhappy with my current design. Well, at least with the limitations it presents and how it influences how and what I write. So, I’m thinking it’s high time to take action.

Approach

Approaching a blog redesign can be a complicated process, so I started with two lists: one, a list of the problems the current design presents and two, a list of the design and branding considerations I wanted to preserve. The result, is a somewhat general requirements document and a somewhat more focused strategic plan. Yes, even for my own blog, I commit to some strategic planning.

I won’t publish these lists in their entirety, but the basic problems I would like to address in the new design, are centered around drawing more focus to the content of the articles, in other words, implementing a better use of white space, reducing superfluous clutter and providing greater expanse for the types of content on the site. The complicated part of redesigning a blog, is what to do with the archives. Do you port them over to the new design? Or, do you let them stay in their original environment and risk incongruity with the new design?

This question relates to the concerns in both of my lists, but at the same time, could be restricting in my design process, if taken as a primary concern. So, for the time being, I think I’ll put it aside. Instead, I want to focus on architecture, UI and branding.

To assist in this process, I thought it would be helpful to look at a few of the blogs that I read regularly, that have undergone recent redesigns.

Recent Redesigns

jasonsantamaria.com

I recently had the opportunity to sit down and talk to Jason Santa Maria about his new blog redesign, at An Event Apart San Francisco. The particular problem he was aiming to address in his redesign, had to do with the challenge of story telling by design.

Jason said he was interested in solving the problem of disassociation between design and content, that is often found on the web. Primarily, the design you find on the web can be starkly contrasted to that found in print, wherein print design tends to be much more contextual, in that it supports content it relates to. The biggest factor responsible for the divide between print and Web, is arguably that of technology and convenience. That is, until recently.

It may not be appropriate in all situations, but Jason has embarked on an experiment of sorts, with his blog. His goal was to bring a contextual relevance to his design, specific to the article or post. By taking advantage of the flexibility of Expression Engines’ tag structure and some smart coding, Jason is able to easily customize his design to suit each particular post. He writes more about this, on his blog.

While I’m fascinated by the idea, I think this could also be restrictive or even commanding over what and how I write, since I am both author and designer, and primarily because I have a hard enough time making time to write, as it is. However, I do think there is a lot to be gained by Jason’s experiment and always look forward to his next post.

Departing from Jason’s emphasis on telling stories through design, I have found that there is a strong trend in minimalism among recent blog redesigns. I mention redesigned blogs, as apposed to new blogs specifically, as an issue of authority. Decisions made in a redesign are usually made to address certain problems that the previous design presented. For this reason, I find recent trends in redesigns to be informative on a level new designs are not.

www.emilychang.com

Among the blogs setting this trend in declutterfied redesigns, is Emily Chang’s well known blog. Factors that led her to return to a cleaner presentation, were centered around content and her relationship to the site.

…changes in the works have to do with the content, focus, and my relationship with the site. It’s been feeling a bit stale for me so I’d like to shake it up and start lifeblogging.

~ Emily Chang

For me, this was an interesting insight, as it sums up quite nicely how I’ve been feeling about my own site and what I suspect to be the underlying motivation for other designers and organizations who embark on redesigns. A redesign is a unique opportunity to reassess the direction you have taken and evaluate which aspects are working and which are not. A redesign, like a soft revolution, is a valuable step in the evolution of a site and integral to maintaining a healthy web presence.

In addition to our objectives to refocus information architecture, broaden the scope of content and strengthen the personal relationship between the author/publisher and the blog, we find that the purveyance of brand recognition becomes a strong component in a redesign.

clagnut.com

Richard Rutter’s recent redesign of Clagnut is a shining example of persistent brand evolution, through redesign. What makes Richard’s redesign of Clagnut interesting, is that he was able to both give his site a complete redesign, from layout to color palette, and yet still retain, if not strengthen the overall branding. In a sense, this is the true test of good branding. When it’s done correctly, it gives you a feeling that this is how it’s always been, how it needs to be.

This kind of brand retention is weighing in pretty heavily on me as I consider redesigning Repeat Penguin. While I certainly want to allow myself the freedom to rethink the site as a whole, the intuitive carryover in brand is a big factor. I think all three of these sites have handled this very well and they have all given me a lot to think about when working my own redesign.

I’m looking forward to making the time.

Years ago, before I ever got into Web design, I was a sign maker. For about 3 years, I studied this craft. At it’s best, the art of sign making is a demonstration of both the purity of information design and subtlety typography. At it’s worst, it’s the loud example of why these two disciplines are so important.

the art of sign making

The art of sign making has changed a lot with the digital era. The romance seems to have been washed away. Digital plotters and laser routers have made things too easy for the sign maker and the craft has suffered. Recently, Jason Santa Maria recapped on a typography walking tour he went on, through the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Sifting through his flickr stream, stirred up in me, the enthusiasm that first lead me to pick up the sign makers tools.

Granted, the reality of the work was not that satisfying at all. I was hard pressed to find, in colleague and client alike, anyone who seemed to recognize the term typographer. Of course, that’s a bit of an exaggeration. It was not that the term escaped this particular industry. It was more like the meaning slipped out the door when no one was looking.

In the midst of all of this that lacked what I can only call character, I did find in my experience, a wonderful thread to the heart of sign making and typography. It came from a 90 year old man who still practiced the art of hand painting letters.

I’m not talking about the pasty, cracked letters you see on bakery windows. I’m talking about the massive lettering you find on the sides of buildings. You can still see traces of this fine craft, on some of our older buildings. Jason provided some stellar examples from his tour.

In case you don’t appreciate the complexity of this kind of typography, let walk through the process. There was no projections or digital tracings or charts to follow. In some case, letters could be as high as a four story building. But often in my own experience, they scaled around twenty feet in height.

The really good sign painters would meticulously measure out the area and calculate a grid for the letters and spaces between. The experts would eyeball it. Don’t believe me? I’ve seen it. And the letters were perfect. It’s a dying art, if not a dead art. No one teaches sign painting anymore and thusly, an important school in typography is lost to us.

Understanding type comes in many different forms. Sign painting is one form, that requires a very unique understanding of type. So thank you Jason, for bringing back some good memories.

It is a rare thing, working as a designer, to have the opportunity to brand a friend. It’s a strange concept in of itself. The idea of branding a friend is an odd one, without doubt, not to mention a challenging one. None-the-less, it can be a rewarding experience and a true test for the designer.

the little MONSTER in all of us

Faced with the challenge of branding a friend, I suddenly recalled a post by Mark Bixby, that articulated the underlying essence behind brand, in one short, sweet sentence.

Just being something specific can sometimes be a powerful brand differentiator.Mark Bixby

Be something specific. A no brainer, right? There was no doubt about it, Mici is something specific. My task, was to try and capture that “something” and make it a brand?.

Branding a person, in of itself, is an odd concept, but giving yourself 3 days to do it, is absurd. At the same time, it was for me, a fantastic window, through which to explore my wonderful, witty and terribly loving friend, Mici. I am very please to introduce littlest MONSTER.

Earlier this month I posted a short Photoshop tutorial about the ever changing header on this site. It’s a quip study into the nature of evolutionary branding, from an absurdist’s point of view – in my opinion, the backbone for viral marketing. The tutorial was not designed to actually help anyone who wants to learn Photoshop, so much as it was to manhandle this message.

This morning, however, I woke to find this lovely message in my inbox:

Hello Jeremy,I’m Julia Agnes from Tutorial Kit.There are some nice tutorials on your Repeatpenguin.com website, so we dared to create your author account at Tutorial kit and submit it (www.tutorialkit.com)…I hope you won’t mind listing your tutorial at Tutorial Kit. Please let me know what you think about that.

So I had to check and there it was.

Is the virus spreading? It’s a brilliant tactic in viral marketing, if I don’t say so myself. A tutorial teaching others to create your logo. Spread virus, spread. I can’t help but wonder if there might just be one kid out there, making a ‘penguin’ turkey card for Grandma this Thanksgiving.

Bon-Appétit:repeat

Every so often you come across something that conveys a point so well, you have to stop what you are doing and take note. So when we received this months WIRED and supplemental Geekipedia, I was very excited.

So what’s wrong with this picture?

I wouldn’t say one way or the other, if this was poor editing on the part of the WIRED editors or clever designing on the part of the designer. Maybe just a case in point, for me to exploit.

The imagery is very striking. It effectively communicates what the title declares. But wait, something is not quite right. Sloppy Photoshopping?

Offsetting as that might be, that wasn’t it. After all, we’re not looking for perfection, only the conveying of a concept. Then it hit me. That’s not an encyclopedia!

Why use a dictionary instead of an encyclopedia? Laziness? There happened to be one right there, next to the digital camera? I highly doubt it. The reason is obvious to a visual communicator. An encyclopedia has no distinguishable markings when it’s open, as a dictionary does with the in-cut tabs. Sure a plain book with no markings, you see the title, you get it. But with the dictionary, you see the image and make that association without even realizing you’ve taken the title of the magazine in.

This is a great example of effective communication that isn’t altogether, technically correct. The difference between the designer and the editor, perhaps.