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Publishers Note
Graphic Design News
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Urgent Subscription Message
In our nearly half century of existence, GDUSA built an affinity with designers for traditional media like print and packaging and broadcast, but we were slow to recognize and cover creative work being done online. That may explain why we had no dedicated web design competition among our national awards programs until last year, an addition that was painfully overdue. Thankfully, web designers forgave us — or simply have short memories — and they made our 2009 competition a wonderful and surprising success. This year's GDUSA web awards entries have already exceeded last year's, and the deadline is still weeks away. The goal of the 2010 program is to celebrate the power of well-designed websites and online communications to attract audiences, generate engagement and response, and promote products, services, brands, causes and ideas. Winners will be recognized in a special enewsletter in May to our 40,000 e-subscribers, listed in the May GDUSA magazine, and the winning pieces will be posted, along with full creative credits, on our popular website. It's unusual to promote our own activities in a publishers letter but we have a lot of catching up to do — fast — to give online design the same respect we have always tried to bring to other graphic design disciplines.
— Gordon Kaye
PS. April 30 is the deadline
for the American Web Design Awards; the exclusive sponsor is
The Creative Group specialized staffing firm; and entry forms can
be downloaded at...
http://www.gdusa.com/contests/awda.php
GRAPHICTime Flies
To recognize its 10th anniversary, Real Simple is offering “the
gift of time” to its harried readers. Inside the April issue,
that means time-saving tips such as quick-cook dinners, while the
cover addresses the issue conceptually. “Time is a very intangible
thing — there isn't a picture of time, and there isn't a
particular image that comes to mind,” says the magazine's
creative director, Janet Froelich. She decided to commission clocks
from industrial designers; shown here is one of the outcomes, Harry
Allen's yellow clock with one hand, which reads “Past”
on the top and “Future” below.
Five Join AIGA Board
AIGA, the professional association for design, announced this week
that five new individuals will assume positions on its national board
of directors beginning in July. They are Gaby Brink of Tomorrow
Partners; Phil Hamlett, Academy of Art University; Deanna
Kuhlmann-Leavitt of Kuhlmann Leavitt; Santiago Piedrafita of North
Carolina State University; and Robin Tooms of Savage. Current members
continuing their service are: Julie Beeler, Stanley Hainsworth, Zia
Khan, James Koval, Debbie Millman, Elva Rubio, Louise Sandhaus, Angela
Shen-Hsieh, Brad Weed, and Pam Williams. To round out the picture,
current members who complete their terms in June include Shelly Evanson,
Kenna Kay, Vernon Lockhart, Laura Shore and Lynda Weinman.
Sagmeister's Trophy
Stefan Sagmeister has designed the new trophy for winners of the
The Vilcek Foundation, which dedicated to honoring the contributions
of immigrants in the arts and sciences. It is a particular point of
pride for Sagmeister, an immigrant from Austria himself who has made
such a striking impact on American graphic design. Placed on its base,
the trophy forms a pyramid, evocative of the upward opportunities
available to immigrants in America. When placed on its side, however,
the base reveals the individual name of the honoree and the way the
name directly shapes the four sides of the pyramid, celebrating the
individuality of each immigrant's achievements and the diversity
they bring.
On The Menu
The 2010 James Beard Foundation awards include categories for
Restaurant Design and Restaurant Graphics. In the former, nominess
are Evan Douglis Studio for Choice Market in Brooklyn NY, Project
M and John Bielenberg for PieLab in Greensboro AL, and Andre Kikoski
Architect for The Wright in NY, NY. In the latter, Korn Design for
Mercat a Lanxa, Chicago, Pandiscio Co. for The Standard Grill, NY,
NY, and Steven Solomon for Terroir, NY, NY. The winners are to
announced May 3; we'll be back to you as soon as we hear.
BRIDGEMAN NEWSCheck out Bridgeman Art Library's current top imagery trends. Need inspiration for product and packaging designs? Bridgeman can help get you started with these great ideas. Also, Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd - spark your imagination with over 100 great conceptual images. Follow Bridgeman on Twitter to keep up on new collections, current events and art industry news.
Shown here is Sagene, 1911 (oil on canvas) by Harald Sohlberg (1869-1935)/ Private Collection/ O.Vaering
Seattle's award-winning Woodland Park Zoo has given an extreme makeover to their Humboldt Penguin Exhibit. The new $6.5 million, 17,000 square foot exhibit presents an authentic view of the home to the penguins. Michael Courtney Design created environmental graphics to persuade visitors they'd stepped into the remote fishing village of Punta San Juan, the largest Humboldt penguin conservation zone in the world. MCD used authentic Peruvian source material to develop murals, donor recognition elements and, in a proud first for the studio, a panel celebrating the merits of guano. MCD was honored to join a stellar design team that included specialists from WPZ and the exhibit designers: Studio Hanson/Roberts. Michael Courtney told GDUSA: “We felt like we were developing the design for a stage set. Interesting challenge as the location in South America is desert-like and Seattle is like...wet!
FREE webinar you won't want to miss! Introduction
to CorelDRAW® Graphics Suite X5 for the Graphic Artist. Every
registrant has the chance to win CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X5 and Painter 11.
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MOREName Partner
After almost a decade of partnership, Belyea has changed its name to
Hansen Belyea, recognizing the contributions of principal Ron Lars
Hansen. Larsen joined Patricia Belyea's award-winning firm as a
graphic designer in 1996, and five years later became a full
principal. Educated at RISD, Hansen returned to his roots in the
Pacific Northwest. Hansen's focus at at the firm has been on
crafting meaningful brands, and he is at the helm of every project
developed in the design studio.
Changing Times
Traditionally given to writers and strategists, the IABC/Las Vegas
Communicator of the Year award goes to graphic designer Victor
Rodriguez. Rodriguez, the head of eurie creative, says that the
break with tradition indicates that “times are changing”
and that graphic design is being more widely understood as a powerful
business communications tool. Rodriguez has been honored in the past
the AIGA Las Vegas “Ambassador of the Arts” and as a
GDUSA “Person To Watch.”
Stop The Sag
Politicians have occasionally attempted to campaign against baggy
pants. Even President Obama, when a candidate, urged young black
men to pull up their pants. Now New York state senator Eric Adams
is putting up billboards in Brooklyn NY in an attempt to “Stop
the sag” as well as a video in which he slots baggy pants into
a chronology of negative racial stereotyping. Adams, a black retired
police captain first elected in 2006, tapped his campaign coffers
for $2,000 to put up the billboards and to make a YouTube video.
Turning The Page
The National Magazine Awards will be presented on April 22. Candidates
to receive the Alexander Calder-created trophy for print design are
Esquire, GQ, Martha Stewart Living, New York and Wired. Last year,
Wired was the winner. The awards are bestowed each year by the American
Society of Magazine Editors. Best photography in print candidates, by
the way, are GQ, National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine,
Vanity Fair and Vogue.
GDUSA subscribers receive $100 Off a
Gold or Main Pass to On Demand Conference & Expo with code A346H
or a FREE Expo Pass! The event is April 20-22 in Philadelphia.
Visit
http://www.ondemandexpo.com for package details.
(*Offer not valid on previously purchased packages.)
TAKEStarting a new job can feel a lot like the first day of school — you just want to fit in. Following are five tips for professionals easing their way back into the workplace:
1. Refresh Your Skills. Determine which software applications and other tools you will be using. To prime yourself for upcoming projects, consider taking courses on any programs you haven't used in a while or that are unfamiliar to you.
2. Get Back In The Swing. Adjust your daily schedule a week before your start date so you're comfortable with the routine by your first day.
3. Make The Rounds. Once you've started a new job, immediately introduce yourself to those you will be working with. To break the ice, invite colleagues to join you for lunch or coffee.
4. Watch and Learn. Pay attention to how others act in the office. Many unwritten rules, such as how and when people communicate, can only be learned through observation.
5. Play It Cool. While it takes time to gain trust in a new environment, try to project confidence in everything you do. If you believe in yourself, others will, too.
The Creative Group is a specialized staffing service placing creative, advertising, marketing and web professionals on a project basis. For more information, please visit www.creativegroup.com. You also can follow us on Twitter @CreativeGroup and Facebook www.facebook.com/thecreativegroup
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