I have now tied down the brief to be one book dedicated to the match rather than loads of little inserts. It stands to sense to design for a book/publication due to the nature of what the content is going to be. I expect to expand on the brief to include publicity material and packaging.
commentary from ITV's coverage for the Leeds goal by Clive Tyldesley
Berbatov. Seen off by Naylor, who is Leeds through and through. Welbeck won it back momentarily. And it's Howson. Forward towards Beckford. And the balls over Brown. And this is Beckford, it just ran away from here but he'll still get a strike in on goal! And SCORE at the Stretford End for Leeds United! And it doesn't get any better than that for a Leeds centre forward.
Man United
03/01/2010
15:56
Report by Ben Hibbs
Boss shocked by bad display
Sir Alex Ferguson admitted he was "shocked" and "surprised" by United's disappointing performance that led to a third-round FA Cup exit at the hands of fierce rivals Leeds.
The Reds boss had hoped his men would come flying out of the blocks in 2010 after finishing 2009 with a thumping 5-0 win over Wigan. But that just didn’t happen as Sir Alex’s men delivered a frustratingly flat display.
“The preparation for the game was very good, but I’m shocked by the performance,” the boss told MUTV. “We didn’t start right and Leeds did start right. They got their goal and had something to hold onto. They fought like tigers, and we expect that with any team coming to Old Trafford for an FA Cup tie. It’s a disappointment.”
Jermaine Beckford gave the visitors the lead and merely exacerbated the manager’s frustration at the first-half display. “We did speak about Beckford’s pace up front,” he said. “We were caught napping really, it was a bad goal for us to lose. The whole performance in the first half was bad. We never got going and the quality of the passing… the whole performance was just bad.
“It’s one of these things. We’re only human and sometimes you have performances that surprise you. But we didn’t expect that today.”
United’s second-half response provided a glimmer of hope, but even that wasn’t enough to break Leeds’ hold on the game. “I don’t think any of the players can say they had a good day. Maybe only [Antonio] Valencia, when he came on, can say that. Even then it took us about ten minutes to get the ball to him.
“You expect us to get a goal at Old Trafford, and the intensity of our game improved a little bit in the second half. We had a lot of chances in the box, but on the day we didn’t take them.”
Several players were rested ahead of Wednesday’s Carling Cup semi-final against Manchester City, but this poor performance may force the boss to rethink his selection as United will not want to lose consecutive cup ties against local rivals.
“We have to get this result out of our system as quickly as possible,” added Sir Alex. “We have a semi-final on Wednesday and a lot of these players won’t be playing. You have to view this performance in the right light. We’ll make sure we’re ready for Wednesday now. We had a team in mind, but there will maybe be a few changes for that.”
That team may not include Nemanja Vidic, however, who pulled out of the starting line-up at the last minute against Leeds.
Leeds United
Grayson - A fantastic day for the club
04/01/2010
Simon Grayson hailed a "fantastic day for this football club" after watching his Leeds United side claim the scalp of Premier League champions Manchester United in the FA Cup third round on Sunday.
Leeds ended a 29-year drought at Old Trafford after Jermaine Beckford's 19th minute goal proved enough to secure a first win at the home of Manchester United since 1981.
"It was a fantastic experience going there," said a delighted Grayson. "We played well, the players did what they were asked, and it was a fantastic day for this football club.
"No one expected us to win on this stage except perhaps 9,000 Leeds fans and the players and us in the dressing room.
"We said that someone could be a hero and Becks came up with the goal. It was a great ball in from Jonny Howson and it was almost slow motion watching it go in.
"Maybe we didn't kill the game off and we rode our luck at times, but you expect that when you are playing against the Premier League champions.
"We've been like that all season, hard to beat, and a threat with the ball.
"We said in the build-up the players would sink or swim and they came out with plenty of credit. They can draw on that now and go on from there.
"Overall it was a great day for the club. We've done something which everyone can be immensely proud of."
Matchday Report
United end 29-year drought at Old Trafford...
MAN UTD 0, LEEDS UNITED 1 (Beckford 19)
Man U: Kuszczak, Neville, Brown, Evans, Da Silva, Welbeck (Valenica 58), Anderson (Owen 69), Obertain (Giggs 58), Gibson, Rooney, Berbatov. Subs: Tosic, Carrick, Da Silva, Amos.
Leeds: Ankergren, Crowe, Naylor, Kisnorbo, Hughes (White 90), Howson (Snodgrass 77), Kilkenny, Doyle, Johnson, Beckford, Becchio (Michalik 89). Subs: Prutton, Grella, Capaldi, Martin.
Referee: C Foy
Booked: Brown, Gibson (Man U), Naylor (Leeds)
Att: 74,526
Leeds United manager Simon Grayson recalled Bradley Johnson and Jonny Howson to his starting line-up for the trip to Manchester United in place of the suspended Leigh Bromby and the injured Robert Snodgrass.
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson paid Leeds the ultimate compliment by naming a strong starting line-up that included Wayne Rooney among others, although he was dealt a last-minute blow when Nemanja Vidic picked up an injury during the pre-match warm-up. Wes Brown was the late replacement.
JB scores at Man U
Unsurprisingly, the game attracted a full-house with a spiky atmosphere, and with almost 9,000 Leeds fans present. It was a moment both sets of fans had waited for since Leeds' relegation from the Premiership six years ago, and the atmosphere didn't disappoint.
The home side did have one early shot - Darron Gibson firing wide - but Leeds also started with confidence and Tomasz Kuszczak had to be alert to punch clear a Bradley Johnson corner. Jermaine Beckford also turned a Jonny Howson cross over the top.
At the other end, a teasing cross from Danny Welbeck drifted across the face of goal, and Gabriel Obertan also looked to find Welbeck with a pull-back, but the England man couldn't connect.
But on 20 minutes Leeds were in dreamland. Howson played a long ball forward and Beckford stripped Brown for pace before slipping the ball beyond Kuszczak to give Leeds the lead. The goal sparked jubilant scenes among both the players and the vast travelling support.
Moments later, Luciano Becchio headed over a Neil Kilkenny cross as United threatened again.
And when Man United came forward on 25 minutes, Dimitar Berbatov releasing Rooney, Jason Crowe made a goal-line clearance to keep the score at 1-0 when an equaliser looked certain.
But Leeds were showing no fear, Johnson heading a Crowe cross wide of the mark after another good attack from Grayson's men. On 35 minutes, Brown went in the book for Man U after a foul on Becchio as the striker looked to set United on another break.
As the game headed towards half-time, there was a short stoppage as Johnson received treatment, following a challenge by Brown.
The home side started the second half on the front foot and they had appeals for a penalty waved away when Howson clashed with Welbeck. As the ball was returned forward, there was a more serious clash involving Howson, Brown, and Gibson after an over-zealous challenge on Micky Doyle saw tempers flare.
Moments later, Gibson was booked for a challenge on Johnson while Richard Naylor saw yellow for a foul on Rooney. In between, the challenges, Casper Ankergren reacted well to deny both Welbeck and Berbatov.
The double arrival of Ryan Giggs and Antonio Valencia was designed to give the home side more of a cutting edge, but as the game edged past the hour-mark, Leeds were looking dogged and resilient.
When Leeds threatened again, Johnson curled a free-kick into the arms of Kuszczak. With 21 minutes to go, Ferguson made his final change, Michael Owen coming on as the home side looked to force an equaliser. But, when the chance presented itself to a combination of Owen and Berbatov, Paddy Kisnorbo cleared as far as Rooney who blasted high over the bar.
Rooney also fired over, following a Valenica cross, on 77 minutes.
And moments later, United had a chance to wrap the game up when Beckford seized upon a Doyle pass and his finish shaved the wrong side of the upright. Next, Robert Snodgrass rattled the woodwork with a free-kick which left Kuszczak with no chance.
It was a real credit to Leeds that as the game headed towards its final stages, the home side were unable to offer too much in the way of an attacking threat, and the near 9,000 travelling fans were roaring their heroes towards what would be a famous victory.
The 9,000 even chimed with chants of "Fergie Time" when five minutes were added on at the end of the 90. There was a moment of panic in the fourth minute, United scrambled the ball clear after Ankergren made a superb save, and when it was returned Rooney fired wide following a last-gasp corner.
And that proved to be the last meaningful action as Leeds recorded a first win for 29 years at Old Trafford, and the celebrations started.
Leeds United travel to Manchester United for a Sunday lunchtime kick off against their old rivals in the FA Cup.
Form
Manchester United
Prior to their game against Wigan Athletic on Wednesday night at Old Trafford they won their previous game 3-1 at Hull City.
In their last home game they defeated Wolverhampton Wanderers reserves 3-0.
Recent home form: WLWLWD
Leeds United
The Whites continue to set the pace in League One and are unbeaten in the league since October at Millwall.
They have only lost two games all season, the other coming in the Carling Cup against Liverpool when they was unfortunate to lose.
Last time out away from home they beat Stockport County 4-2.
Recent away form: WdWDWW
History
The two clubs have met 49 times at Old Trafford over the years with the home side winning 24 to Leeds 8.
It`s something of a bogey ground for Leeds and they have not won their since 1981 (17 games) when a Brian Flynn goal gave them a 1-0 victory.
The last time they met was in the 2003/04 Premiership when an Alan Smith goal was enough to earn Leeds a point in a 1-1 draw.
The two sides have met on nine occasions in the FA Cup with Leeds winning two to Manchester United`s four.
Manchester United have won both clashes at Old Trafford, the last one was during the 1994/95 season when Brian McClair and Steve Bruce put the home side 2-0 up inside five minutes. Leeds pulled a goal back in the second half through Tony Yeboah (his first for the club) but Mark Hughes stopped any thoughts of a replay when he scored the third.
Six of the games have been in FA Cup semi finals played at neutral venues, Leeds have won two, Manchester United one and three have been drawn.
History of FA Cup meetings
1950/51 Man Utd 1-0 Leeds
1964/65 Man Utd 0-0 Leeds Hillsborough
1964/65 Man Utd 0-1 Leeds City Ground
1969/70 Man Utd 0-0 Leeds Hillsborough
1969/70 Man Utd 0-0 Leeds Villa Park
1969/70 Man Utd 0-1 Leeds Burnden Park
1976/77 Man Utd 2-1 Leeds Hillsborough
1991/92 Leeds 0-1 Man Utd
1994/95 Man Utd 3-1 Leeds
Betting (Odds supplied by Betfair.com)
Match Betting
Man Utd 1/4
Draw 11/2
Leeds Between 13/1 & 14/1
To win FA Cup outright
Man Utd 9/2
Leeds 249/1
Man Utd
Vava
03-01-2010 13:19
Great goal, everyone relax..... we'll still win with ease, this will wake us up if anything.
Daffs
03-01-2010 13:20
YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
Comments posted on forums by fans of both teams
Matty Davidson
03-01-2010 22:32
It is hard to take that we had £60 million pounds worth off talent and they could not stick the ball into the net. But you have to hand it to Leeds they were brillant.
Jay007
03-01-2010 23:11
Shocking performance, Leeds deserved it and in all honesty should have won by more.
NoxiousD
04-01-2010 18:32
A draw was what we deserved, we lost on pure luck, goaline clearances and kamikaze defending...
Keano!
03-01-2010 15:06
Its sick.....can't explain how I feel.
Not robbed, not outplayed, not deservedly beaten.....just...............beaten. And its sick!
Jeffaz
03-01-2010 15:36
what's the difference between man u and a tea bag..... Tea bag stays in the cup longer marching on together leeds leeds leeds
ILoveBeckford
03-01-2010 20:31
unlike some, im always proud to be a leeds fan, but im just extra proud to be one today
This one should see me through to May. Got a lot to do and I hope I can get to work on that Giant Killer brief finally.
I remember reading these forum posts before the game which gave a good screen shot of how the fans feel about one another. I can publish some of these comments in the book to get a flavour of what atmosphere.
Both sets of fans were up for it, but the Manchester United fans made me laugh due to hindsight.
I plan to set these comments out in speech bubble conversational style aesthetic with opinion and general abuse from both sets of fans.
Manutdtalk.com
Sownak27
30-11-2009 13:13
Oh yes.
Can't imagine how happy I am to get those bunch of c***s in a game after so long
There may not be as much rivalry between the players now, but its as strong as ever between the fans and should lead to a great atmosphere.
Piazza
29-11-2009 18:41
The reaction in another thread was shamefully muted. I for one, do not care about any other fixture this year half as much as this one.
TFIA
29-11-2009 20:50
**** Leeds and their vermin fanbase. I hope United ******* crush them!
TFIA
02-01-2010 06:32
It wouldn't matter what competition it was, it's Leeds. If we lost against those bottom feeding scumbags especially when they're a LEAGUE 1 side it would be beyond humiliating. That team and their vermin fanbase have been rotting away for a good reason. Need to beat those dirty ******** and beat them well.
Matthew McDowell
30-12-2009 06:42
note to sir alex
do not rest any 1st team players for this cup tie
6-0 demolition of vile scum is on the menu as the dish of the day
Red Devil
30-12-2009 22:18
Leeds will run their asses off in this one and I hope we really crush them as I know a Leeds fan I REALLY want to rub this in big style!!
Haggler
31-12-2009 18:47
Bloody sunday for the woolybacks.
I want us to demoralise them and remind them how crap they are
Joluafc4eva
28-12-2009 19:29
We havent got a cat in hells chance of winning but will be a good day out anyway.
Twiggster
28-12-2009 19:49
Main thing is that our team plays well, like against the scousers and if we lose, then we do it FIGHTING.
8ballali
29-12-2009 14:53
There's always a chance no matter who we play.
The cup gives unexpected results every year.
Gurj
30-11-2009 20:04
wouldnt it be great eh....turning them over, how I would love to see Fergie's face when we knock em out
ManUtd.com
29/11/2009
16:12,
Report by Steve Bartram
United Face Cup Minnows
United have been drawn at home to Kettering Town or Leeds United in the FA Cup third round.
Conference side Kettering held League One high-flyers Leeds to a 1-1 draw at Rockingham Road on Sunday, and a replay will be required on December 8 to determine which side travels to Old Trafford on January 2 or 3.
The Reds have only twice before faced Kettering - winning FA Cup first round ties in 1896 and 1897 under the club's initial moniker of Newton Heath - but share a deep rooted rivalry with the Whites, despite their absence from the Premier League since 2004.
Speaking after their deadlock at Rockingham Road, Leeds manager Simon Grayson and his Kettering counterpart Lee Harper were both in agreement about the incentive of travelling to Old Trafford.
"It's a fantastic draw for either us or Kettering and a fantastic incentive to get through," Grayson told ITV Sport. "Obviously the rivalry's there for Leeds and Manchester United, but we've got to get through Kettering first. It's a tie both teams will be looking forward to. That's what the FA Cup's all about."
Harper concedes his side will be underdogs to oust the League One leaders on their own turf, and thus is focusing solely on the looming replay at Elland Road.
"It's going to be extremely difficult to go to Elland Road and get a result," he said. "It'll be hard for us, but we'll give it our best shot. We've got an enormous task ahead of us before we start thinking about getting there (Old Trafford) yet. We're going to go to Elland Road, have a great time, do our best and you never know what'll happen."
LeedsUnited.com
Grayson's Men Set For Sunday Screen Test
09 Dec 2009
Leeds United's trip to Manchester United in the third round of the FA Cup will take place on Sunday January 3 (1pm).
United progressed through to the third round after beating Kettering Town in a second round replay on Tuesday, and manager Simon Grayson is looking forward to a tie "the fans deserve".
"This is what the club deserves and the fans deserve," said the boss.
"We've had a lot of negative times over the past few years, and this is a great tie for the club, and something for the fans to look forward to.
"But as a group we have to concentrate on Brentford at the weekend and the games before then. We have a lot bigger games before the Man United game."
ManUtd.com
01/01/2010
17:00,
Report by James Tuck
Sir Alex relishing Leeds' return
Sir Alex Ferguson is looking forward to renewing rivalries with an old foe when Leeds United come to Old Trafford in the FA Cup on Sunday.
Leeds' fall from the Barclays Premier League to League One obscurity began six seasons ago and the Reds' manager admits he's missed the derby-like intensity – on and off the pitch – of clashes with the men from over the Pennines.
"I don’t need to spell out to Manchester United fans and players what Leeds games have meant over the years," said Sir Alex, at a press conference to preview the first meeting between the sides since February 2004.
"They were fantastic, feisty occasions every time we met, there was always a tinge of hostility hovering around the game and we always told the players to behave themselves on the pitch.
"I used to enjoy the games – they made us perform. We had some great games at Leeds because the atmosphere was always electric and our record was good – I think we only lost once there. They were two competitive teams then, but it’s a different United team now, and we just have to make sure we play our normal game.
"They’re bringing 9,000 fans, so it will be a brilliant atmosphere and a fantastic cup tie."
Sir Alex has been impressed with the job Simon Grayson has done as manager of Leeds, who are eight points clear at the top of League
After messing about with this brief I have finally got something concrete to start with. This brief will take the form of a book driven by typography and layout. It will be my final brief which I hope to make significant. I will continue to develop layouts based on the content I have found and the other content I wish to generate.
The book will feature experimental layout designs alongside hard nose copy. It will give an all round view of the days events leading up to the game as well as the reaction after it. All being well I will get this book printed at Lulu.com and I will be able to package it and do some promotional stuff before the deadline.
I really do have my work cut out here but I want to push myself to achieve the best I can.
After getting some feedback from Anna, I went ahead and wanted to experiment with some different stock. I had the idea that I wanted to make use of materials she used everyday in her practice to form business cards and other promotional material.
I also wanted to continue this communication by referring back to her name. I loved the idea of the 'Hello. I am Anna.' copy on the business card so I continued to expand on this with a postcard design which could be sent to clients as well as potential employers or maybe even accompanying work she had done.
The postcards are A5, which feel a little on the large side so I may drop them down to A6. However, I love the way the grey board type stock is working. I may even try a foil on this stuff.
I've picked out a couple of questions which could work great as quotes which sum up my use of typography within my practice. I don't see myself as a typographer, I just like to use type.
How important is typography in your work?
I am a graphic designer who uses type. I am not a typographer. I happen to use type a lot. But to me ‘communication’ is more important. Typography is only a means to aid communication, not and end in itself.
Well yes of course. But I realise that they were working in a very special environment at a different time. I think we can learn more from their approach to visual communication and design problem-solving in general than we can from looking only at the finished work out of context.
Who or what turned you on to graphic design?
The work of Michael C. Place and The Designers Republic really gave the inspiration to go on designing for print. I was very attracted by the modern and shiny way of TDR’s design and also the power of the simplicity in Build’s work.
My early print work was really influenced by Build and TDR. Now my design is very grid and type oriented. I admire the swiss graphic design and pioneers like Müller-Brockmann, Max Bill, Max Hubert, Wim Crouwel… today I try to get rid off all this history to find my own way.
Helvetica
Black & white, sometimes grey and pink.
When a new project comes to us, the first step, of course, is to understand the brief but then try to conceptualize the project as a whole. I take the time to try all of the ideas I have and experiment with different ways of executing them, before I put them on paper. Sometimes my first idea is the good one, sometimes it is not… our design is very grid-oriented so the grid helps to organize all of the elements of the design, in a way that is easy to understand.
Grid is my way of design. For me it’s a fundamental basis for all my design from poster to business card and books. In a sense it’s a very safe environment but also very rough path. It’s always challenging to design using a grid because the need to accept to be free. For me form needs to serve the message.
Andreas Pihlström is a Lead Art Director at North Kingdom and specializes in graphic design and typography for print and interactive design. His work has been featured in Computer Arts and is the founder of the type foundry Typisc and co-founder of the design portal Reform & Revolution.
How long have you been designing?
I’ve been in the industry since 1996. Started at a traditional advertising agency as junior designer. About a years later, the agency converted me from print to interactive design. They started a web-related company in Stockholm, Sweden and soon after launch, they sent me to New York hoping to get international clients. That’s how it all started.
Graffiti. Big colorful letters and shapes. I just love it. And, to be honest, I love the feeling of rush in the body — adrenaline.
I miss it.
Creative and like minded people. And by like minded people, I mean, people who understand my way of choosing directions. I just love people who do their own thing, who’s not afraid of doing something wrong or bad. I envy people who can see thru what’s important or not, in relationships, choices, life etc. I have no one in particular in mind, but I have tons of people I like because of different reasons.
There are so many, way too many. But, Helvetica Neue is there, in my font collection all the time.
Differs from time to time, from day to day. But I love pale colors together with darker earthy colors.
All depends on the project. But here at North Kingdom, we use pen and paper very often. Have meetings several times per day.
Working non-stop until we’re 100% satisfied with the results. We usually on one major project instead of several, which makes it easier to make the result perfect.
I ALWAYS use grids. I love it. My type of graphic design without grids is like shooting yourself in the head. My latest font Quart is made using my own grid software “Quartype”. The software is basically a drawing tool where you have a bunch of different shapes to play around with. Then when you’re satisfied with the result, you export the shapes as an Adobe Illustrator file and viola’ — you can start making a font out of it.
Interview with Duncan Forbes and Elaina Hamilton of Experimenta, now known as The International Office
How long have you been designing?
As Experimenta we have been designing for about a year and a half now. So we havn’t been designing for very long and we are conscious of this but have a lot of confidence in our work. Simply put – we are learning as we go. Although one year in this business isn’t long we have been lucky enough that people have really liked and taken notice of what we are doing and this has led to us doing some nice work for great clients. We work regularly with a local art gallery who we are really starting to do some good work for now. We try to be pretty strict with clients, only giving one option with little to no compromise and reiterate that we are the designers and we make the design decisions. It’s a matter of the client trusting you and of course that needs to be earned. Doing this in such a small country and being a niche studio can sometimes be difficult. Our client base is so small here, for the type of work we are interested in doing, along with the budgets. You really have to be in it for the love.
We both started out studying as visual artists, and sort of fell into design. Art school was a very confusing time and you really have to find your style and not be afraid of that. Carson and grunge was very ‘in’ at this time so it was hard to escape, some of it was so bad. This probably helped in forming the way we work which is very structured and neat. In saying that we have a lot of appreciation for types of design we could never do, the post-modernists, the new brutalists and are influenced by these and other movements.
Locally a few people at the moment. Our good friend Kris Sowersby from KLIM is a big one. Although our work is very different from each other we both appreciate good honest design. Sort of by proxy we critique each others work, sending screenshots via iChat just to show what we have been working on. He will send through a typeface design he is working on, and we send through different designs we have been doing that day. Critique is good; I think we both have good eyes for what works and we don’t really lie to each other. If it doesn’t work for us then we say so. Part of it is having the confidence to take it or leave it, not just get upset or have a ‘tanty’. Sometimes when Kris really doesn’t like something we have done, I know it’s perfect and we have hit our mark. Sometimes it’s the other way around.
Our other friends The National Grid are an influence, even if not a seemingly aesthetic one, Luke and Jonty do some great work and like us they are obsessed with design. Their work is so careful and thoughtful, we really like that. Luke said once that a lot of the best work happens on the design fringe. I completely agree.
Other designers we really admire are Catherine Griffiths who is a really organized, ‘go forth’ designer (she is organising a New Zealand design conference TypeSHED11 for next year that’s going to be pretty amazing), Neil Pardington: a legendary New Zealand book designer and we really like Inhouse’s stuff from Auckland.
Looking abroad we are very interested in Design history and are always reading about different movements and their reactionaries. The humanist Dutch type evolution interested us greatly and still does. Our work is more humanist than strict so we thought it was appropriate to name ourselves after Dutch designer Willem Sandberg’s Experimenta typographica. A publication that ran from 1943 – 1945 and started to break free of the modernist perfectionism.
We only use a handful of typefaces at the studio. It might seem we are more akin to Sans, but this is not the case. We will usually use a sans for our the majority of design work, but when it comes to designing books we like to be more classical and depending on length will use a serif or mixed. We used Newzald on a catalogue a while ago and loved it. The Book and the Black weights gave fantastic contrast to the page. We recently acquired Graphik from Christian and it’s a beauty. I really love National and I’m wanting to put the Book weight to good use ASAP. Some typefaces that we don’t have that we really like are Brunel from Christian and Paul Barnes, Dada from Optimo is interesting, I wasn’t sure about it at first but now it has grown on me, Neutral from Kai Bernau, another I wasn’t so sure about, but after seeing it in print used well and reading about it, it is good to be wrong, Unica looks really interesting, I would like to see it in print. Lexicon and Trinite are also some of my favorites and although some type designers will hate me I just have a fondness for Helvetica. It can look good when used nicely. An updated modern version would be great though. Basically we take a lot of time to choose the right typeface for the job. This is a really exciting part of the design process for us, we love the stage where you get to try out different typefaces for the job.
We usually work in black and if necessary will add colour. We have been finding lately we have been using primary colours a lot, but getting things looking good in black is important to us. We recently had an informal lecture about Frutiger/Roissy from a old Swiss designer Erich Alb, who gave us the formula for ‘Swiss’ black: 100% K, 60% B, 20% R. He was a crazy guy but he made us smile with his enthusiasm. There are a lot of different subtleties that can be achieved in the one colour, we like to think the same about our work.
The start of our process is research. This usually starts with going to book stores, libraries, reading through our studio library, talking, maybe a visit to some galleries if we feel the need. All the obvious steps. We then get really stuck into drawing. We are real advocates of this, not just a few sketches, but really exploring ideas on the page. Everything changes when you take it to the computer anyway but by working an idea through on paper it helps the work to retain a sort of tangible integrity right through to the production of the object which is hard to develop solely onscreen. We usually figure out a rough grid on paper, then work it out on the computer, which gives us more freedom to make it more complex/simple if needed. We only ever present the client with one solution. If the client doesn’t like the solution, we don’t just re-jig it, we start over with a new concept. We are pretty strict with this. We feel that the designer should be making the design decisions and not the client – after all that’s what we are getting paid to do. We would never show the client two options, then have them mash the two together, or show them 10 designs based on the same theme so they can choose, that’s just wrong.
Our work always ends up with a tight grid underneath it. It just makes sense to us to do this. We usually work out some sort of grid in the drawing stage then really flesh it out on the computer. We have a couple of really good grid books (rather than a whole lot of bad ones) that we have learnt a lot from. However, it is no use having a ‘grid for grids sake’ – it has to help the idea and remain as a subtle undertone. In our work we don’t like to overstate the grid rather give clues and hints to it when appropriate.
How long have you been designing?
I graduated form art college in Montr̩al a bit over three years ago Рwas in school for two, so in total about five years.
Probably my parents of all people – even though they thoroughly discouraged me from entering the arts, they instilled in me a hardcore work ethic and curiosity for life – both of which have been more pivotal to my design practise than any other personality characteristics.
More varied than I care to name, but here’s a go: love, black/white, politics, talent, sleeping pills, restrictions, These New Puritans, loss and failure, Littl’ans, computational origami & EE, passion, Lundun’s slate gray skies, William Blake, how moving your mouse helps speed up computer functions, Byron, graphite sheen, Foals, how sadness can be joyful…
At the moment Akkurat – but I only use the bold weight – no less than 13 pt for body text — for me it’s the only true sans-serif successor to Helvetica.
Black to white, and Victorian Rose.
Boredom – Motivation – Idea – Thinking – Questioning – Doubting – Self-Loathing – Momentary Elation – Emptiness – Iteration – Trying Too Hard – Iteration – Flow – Flow – Fortuitous Circumstance – Denial – Determination – Capitulation – A Momentary Sense of Satisfaction.
Grids are great – particularly when you design all elements to fit into them and then make countless optical adjustments off the grid.
Khoi Vinh is the Design Director for NYTimes.com, where he leads the in-house design team in user experience innovation. He is also the author of the popular design weblog Subtraction.com, where he writes extensively on design, technology and user experience matters of all kinds. Previously, Khoi was the co-founder of the award-winning New York design studio Behavior, LLC. He studied communication design at Otis School of Art and Design in Los Angeles, and practiced branding and graphic design in print for several years in Washington, D.C., before moving to New York.
You’re considered one of the recent pioneers of bringing grid systems to interactive design. Could you tell us how you were first introduced to grid systems, how long you’ve been using them, and what was your first experience like in using grid systems on the web?
I’m the kind of person who looks for order in everything — and the grid is such a useful, functional way of finding or creating order in many, many design problems that it was only a matter of time before I found it, or it found me. As well, I was only partially trained in graphic design; I really studied to be an illustrator, originally, and over time came to teach myself most of what I know about graphic design.
So for many years I winged it, and started intuitively using a grid in my designs, though not always consistently or well. Over the years, I gradually became aware of the idea that lining things up on a consistent framework of vertical and horizontal lines — and using math to do it — was something other designers had done before. Little by little, I did the reading that I missed out on during my art school career, and learned the finer points of working with the grid.
As for when I first started using them online, it’s really hard to say. In some ways, since the very beginning, but again, a lot of that was pure improvisation. Probably the first fully-fleshed instance where I was able to put a grid into practice was for the redesign of TheOnion.com about four years ago.
Also, I should say that I think the idea of being a “pioneer” of grid systems in interactive design is probably overstating my contribution. To me, using grids is very much like alphabetizing things… sooner or later, you realize that the alphabet is an incredibly useful organizing principle. So there was a certain amount of inevitability to it.
Oh yeah, certainly. It’s probably true that using a grid gives you an immediate benefit in terms of your designs looking better and, crucially for interaction design, imparting a sense of order and more intuitive behavior.
But I think the true benefit of using a grid is that as you learn how to use a grid, you start to think systemically about the solutions you design. You start to try and see how various details can echo one another, how different regions of the canvas can be reused or used for similar things, how like elements can be grouped together.
So in one sense, mastering grids is a very low-level, roll-up-your-sleeves kind of thing. But I think in a larger sense, it’s an important part in every designer’s growth because it trains you to see and think about context, how smaller parts fit into a larger whole. Once you begin ordering elements with a grid, then you inevitably apply similar logic to the entirety of a document or site or what have you, and then to the process and workflow that drive your design brief, and then perhaps to the organization as a whole. Rigorous thinking about small details can effect meaningful changes in the big picture.
Yes, absolutely. To be honest, the pages of NYTimes.com use an imperfect grid system that we inherited, for lack of a better term. It’s not a true grid, with some columns having no rational/mathematical relation to others. But the site is so complex and there are so many content elements — and so much workflow driving each element — that we won’t be able to change it for some time, unfortunately. Still, that doesn’t prevent us from following some grid-like rules of order when we design. We strive for consistency and logic, and the range of expression that we need for those pages is fairly narrow anyway, so maintaining order is a pretty straightforward affair. However, when it comes to creating new kinds of applications or content areas, when we’re essentially starting from scratch, we believe strongly in developing a proper, comprehensive and rational grid system at the outset.
Well, in addition to everything I outlined above, I think a solution that’s founded on a well-considered grid opens the door to a higher level of design thinking.
In my view, the central challenge of any graphic design problem is determining the constraints. Constraints — rules, frameworks, limitations — are so often the spark that ignites an ingenious solution. A grid system is not just a set of rules to follow then, but it’s also a set of rules to play off of — to break, even. Given the right grid — the right system of constraints — very good designers can create solutions that are both orderly and unexpected. That’s when you’ve gone from using the grid as a style and moved into using the grid as a real tool for creativity.
The first step, again, is always determining what the constraints of the project are — usually the advertising units that a page must accommodate, or the particular width that the design will work within. After that, I use Photoshop to mock up potential column widths and margins, and just see how well they play with the ad units or other common elements that I plan to use on the page. I do this quickly and without a lot of care, as I’m trying to see how various column combinations look. I also tend not to use the many grid calculators and automated grid generation tools out there; I’m sure they’re useful for other folks, but I find that there’s something more satisfying about developing the right grid columns manually, intuitively.
Everyone worship Josef Müller-Brockmann’s “Grid Systems in Graphic Design,” and I think it’s a worthy tome. To be honest, the vast majority of what I know about grids I learned from poring over “Design: Vignelli,” Massimo Vignelli’s gorgeous monograph from nearly two decades ago. It’s out of print, but there’s a smaller version that contains much of the same material from a few years ago: “Vignelli from A to Z.” For those starting out learning about this, I honestly don’t think there’s any one book that can give you a comprehensive education in a single sitting or a finite amount of sittings. Learning how to use this tool requires an immersion and a willingness to examine and re-examine everything in one’s environment through a particular kind of worldview. It takes time, lots of time. And then, once you learn it, you have to remember that it really isn’t the point at all; the thinking and problem-solving are the point.
How long have you been designing?
Professionally around 9 / 10 years — Since I was 19 / 20
From school I did 2 years at Batley School of Art & Design (ND in Graphic Design), then 4 Years at Huddersfield University (Creative Imaging). I was lucky enough to jump straight into a Multimedia job straight after that.
To be honest, I wasn’t turned on by any Graphic Design. I started to draw things out of comics and magazines at a very early age; I was “turned on” by drawing and (recreating) attention to detail, a passion I took right through to High School. I wasn’t interested in any of the other subjects at school to be honest, they all felt like a chore, so it was inevitable that I would continue a creative path through further education, whatever that may be. I was encouraged towards an ND in Graphic Design, so that’s what I did, not really knowing what to expect. It’s quite unsettling to think what I would have done instead. I would have been pretty lost, however I feel that I had the necessary support in order to see it through and carve out my own opportunities from it. It was either that or be a fishmonger!
I don’t really have any die hard graphic icons or heroes. I took a mixed path to where I am now, so I grab influence from different creative circles and other walks of life. As I’ve got older, I have grown to admire people for their personal attributes, rather than a narrowed focus towards the work they produce. I admire people with determination, dedication and a real passion for what they do, what ever that maybe; These people I respect and I feel motivated to do the same in my Career/Work. I know that sounds a bit flouncy, but working in a heavily materialistic industry, often makes me want to cling onto something a bit more substantial.
The majority of my work is for the web, but I try and draw my influence from print work, with the aim to bring similar attributes and finishes to the screen. So I’m as likely to be influenced by a print sample, as I am by an element in the latest micro-site for Sony or Nike.
I think it’s unhealthy to have one to be honest. I go through phases of picking the same font as a starting point for every project, but I usually deviate away from it as the creative concepts progress. I’m working increasingly on more corporate work, with personal work taking a bit of a back seat, so I’m picking fonts that I think are right for the brand and not the current flavour of the month in Grafik and the like. But if you insist…
Fonts I have used recently or want to use soon:
– Variable
– Cooper Light
– Apex
– Century Gothic
– Didot
– Hoefler (Family)
– Brauer
and, of course the unavoidable
– Helvetica
A muted pastel shade with a fluorescent or special.
Read brief — Drink tea — Research competitors — Drink tea — Decide on “Look & Feel” — Drink tea — Have office debate — Sing different lyrics to a perfectly good song (Spoil that song for everyone, forever)— Play frisbee — Browse some books on the shelf — Quietly put off all the technical requirements it might involve — Drink tea — Work on concepts — Swear — Work on concepts — Drink tea — Discuss ideas with the team — Upload for client approval — Drink tea — Pray to God the client likes it — Annoy everyone else in the office, in that waiting period.
Finish Job — Go off it — Look at it in 3 months and think actually it wasn’t that bad — Add to Portfolio.
This will probably be my longest answer. I don’t use a grid in the traditional sense. My creative education consisted of traditional methods of Illustration, Photography and Art History (Yes one was a GD course, don’t ask!). My style thrived on chaos, distortion and irregularity, a cut and paste style that was influenced by people like David Carson and in some ways elements of Neville Brody’s early work. I didn’t know what a grid was, I wasn’t on the right course to be taught about print and all the rules and regulations that came with it (Kerning, Leading, Tracking, X-Height, eh, what? ); and to be honest I probably wouldn’t have taken that well to it, it wasn’t what I was passionate about at the time; Naively, I just wanted to create pretty pictures — A 6 year path that wasn’t your traditional route into Multimedia.
Over time I learnt the basics and settled into my own method of working, developing my own definition of working with a grid. It’s not a grid in terms of Ratios and Fixed Column widths — in its simplest form, it’s “lining things up” from a given start point or area, which is then adopted through the whole site; A chosen key element within a site structure that then determines the first column Width or Height. This could be seen as a crude and an unprofessional way of working, but there is a science to it and the most important thing is that “It works for me”. I never start with a fixed grid, personally I find it extremely restrictive (Most would oppose this obviously, grids are there to help). Every site starts differently, some with a font, some with a colour, some with a particular client requirement in mind; From there each site will grow organically, slowly forming its own individual grid system for me to adopt and follow through the rest of the visuals. Sometimes it takes hours, sometimes it takes days. Once it’s in place though, I’m pretty disciplined in sticking to it.
The example shows some of the preliminary steps I took in forming the grid for grooveeffect.com. The Red Lines are the first and most important lines, which form the initial column widths. The Green Lines are the start of the rest of the Grid. The top banner was the primary dictator of the overall 2/3 column width area; The image then dictated the width of column 2, thus also column 3, whilst setting the height for the left menu and right feature box areas.
The web has its own “Championed” ratio and column width standards; As with everyone else in my field, I’ve read the various books and articles preaching about them. To be honest I’ve never been able to relate to most of it. I think like a Designer, not like a traditional Web Developer. Navigation and Usability are key, however it doesn’t mean that every site has to look the same. Brands want differentiation, not uniformity…and to be honest so do I. My job would be very dull otherwise. Over the years I’ve worked around these regulations, bending the rules to create bespoke brand sites that still deliver essential usability but are tailored to a given audience rather than a generic internet user and age catchall.
Obviously there have been mistakes along the way, but things need to be tried out in the pursuit to stand out in an extremely saturated market, the majority I feel have been a success however.
Do I use a Grid…erm Yes and No.
How did you become interested in typography?
I discovered typography as an art student in the early 1980s. I had played around with lettering in an amateur way as a teenager, but I had no notion of typography until I was exposed to it in a typography course taught by George Sadek and William Bevington at Cooper Union. I was stunned.
Typography is the convergence of art and language. This makes it hugely powerful as a tool and a means of expression. As someone who had always been interested in writing yet had identified herself as an “artist,” this was a huge personal discovery.
I am inspired by magazines and newspapers, by movies and television, by reading, by looking at what designers are doing. I’m inspired by my students. I love art and painting.
Spell check.
Newcomers to design do things like mixing larger capital letters with lowercase, supposedly for emphasis, resulting in ugly mismatched weights. My students avoid printing out their work, to save time and money, but then they are disappointed that it doesn’t look good. I explain to them that everything looks good on the screen, because of the glowing light and the way we are constantly adjusting the scale of the image to suit ourselves. The same layout may die on the printed page.
Do you have favourite type designers and typefaces?
I am a huge fan of Martin Majoor, who created Scala, Seria, and other typefaces. I also love Lucas de Groot, and I have been using his typeface Thesis for many projects. It’s a slab serif that comes in many wonderful weights as well as a sans version—wonderful for book design.
I have luckily had replies from 3 studios in response to the questionnaire I sent out before easter. My focus has switched from production to typography and layout so these question and answers may or may not be relevant to my context book but it is research I am happy with.
Craig Oldham
Music
Graphic Designer
What are your experiences of the way print for graphic design has evolved over the last five years?
Graphic Design has changed, but Graphic Designers haven't. The term is redundant and needs redefinition in order to encapsulate the industry. The news can be 'graphic'. Graphic is the wrong term. Its about communication. About the transference of messages and of thinking.
Not the role, but the consumption. Design hasn't driven a change or dictated anything, the technology has. Design is a solution to a problem.
The split is dictated by the relevance of the medium to the project. Nothing is ever set out to be a certain medium, it is done in a medium because that is deemed the relevant and right way to communicate that idea or message. You don't split the work, you get the idea and the medium presents itself.
Production is undervalued in design. The way a piece of print is produced can elevate the idea or even be the idea itself. Making it a crucial part of the process.
Design isn't exempt from the economy so of course it has been affected. It affects every aspect of every business.
interestingly we all thought print would be obsolete with the rise of the internet and the invention of smart gadgets such as the ipad, however, our experience has been that books and printed materials that can be held in the hand still hold much gravity in the world of luxury. people desire tactile experiences and if anything printed materials and the processes are being pushed to their limits in order to provide a totally unique experience.
yes, we've seen unfortunately a lot of large printing companies fall by the wayside in the last few years. however, it has shaken up the print industry and provided a streamlined set of printers to us who are now specialising in supreme production techniques. there is a rise in retro print processes as their is a strong search for the authentic and rare craft based print production to meet designers ideas. letterpress has never been so popular.
yes we do. we look at a brand's identity and ensure that our solution works practically and beautifully across both print and digital.
many of our clients immediately see the benefit when we show mock-ups of packaging/printed items at concept stage. we only recommend print where appropriate and fully embrace the environmentally efficient alternatives of using smarter alternatives such as digital.
i can but i'm running out of the door. they are enormously important and we always do a stocks/materials/finishes mood board for every concept
not for us luckily but we did reduce rates at the dire times. we are now on full rate.
It's got tougher to sell print to clients. Mainly down to cost of paper and the fact that people in marketing are fearing for their jobs so they don't want to risk signing anything off that costs 12k. 70% of my career has been in a recession so its just part of the norm for me. I find if the concept is good enough and you can 'guarentee' results, they'll pay for it.
It's totally dependent on the clients needs. For instance it could be 20% digital, 20% print and 60% performing art! depending on what we think will be the best way for the client to raise awareness of his 'product'. In other words, the medium is dictated by the idea.
I think its less about persuasion and more about education. Opening a dialogue with a client well in advance of any creative decisions to find out, what and why, they may want to embrace a particular medium. If they have decided to use a cheaper alternative because its 'cheap' thats their call. It's our job to let them know a cheap approach to their marketing could have detrimental affects on how successful their marketing is.
Stock choices and print finishes can add to a piece as long as they are used with careful consideration. This links heavily with your last question in how to 'persuade' people to spend on print. If they can see the reasoning for using a certain stock/finish they will buy it. In a recent job we worked on for Dalesbred who make and sell luxury bespoke furniture we wanted to use a 400gsm stock for each page of a 20pp brochure. Having a dummy made, and them seeing and feeling this gave the essence of a wood sample, meant it was easier when we had to reveal the price!
The Music industry was a big pull for me. I remember loving the Dire Straits album Brothers in Arms when I was around 5 years old. Halfway through uni I attended a seminar called 'Print is dead' hosted by Ian Anderson, Saville and Tony Wilson and was told I only had a 3% chance of ever designing for music. I liked those odds! Little did I know I was actually entering a world of tinted psychology and skull crushing business!
Carson may have influenced young designers to ignore it but he knew it inside out before he ignored it. You have to learn the rules before you break them as you can spot it a mile off when its the other way round. As Picasso said "As a child I drew like Raphael, it took the rest of my life to draw like a child."
Major problems with the year book now, that puts us on the back foot. After agreeing deadlines for copy the client has not met their deadline. We still have sections of the book that haven't been explained properly due to contrasting ideas between students and a tutor that has been to two out of the six meetings.
Having to explain a months progress to him shouldn't need to be happening, and now we are worried about how this delay is going to impact. I've sent emails after the meeting and I am told the remaining copy will be with us on Thursday. It remains to be seen what happens but I will be calling on high authorities if this isn't resolved quickly.
This is a copy of the email I sent to Cheryl last night after the meeting
We have left the meeting pretty confused about what is happening, due to students and tutors having conflicting ideas. The newly proposed section devoted to ex-students seems unnecessary and confusing for the user. These images would work as a backdrop to quotes pages, but this inclusion should have been mentioned weeks ago. We are trying to deliver the appropriate outcome that we would all be happy with but with such tight deadlines and other factors, we cannot afford to change the structure so significantly that it puts the whole project in jeopardy.
The profile and introductory spreads are now in progress, and will be delivered on time. However, the delays and confusions surrounding sections and structures ultimately means that we will be left without direction, which means these sections would have little or no context. At this point in the project it is imperative we are all on the same page.
Our deadline to have the whole book designed is the 9th May. That means we have potentially two more weeks of development before we hand it over to the printer.
We still need a significant amount of copy and images from you to complete the book.
- Acknowledgement page copy
- Quotes for 5x spreads
- Student images (To be shot on Thursday)
- Cover photography (To be shot next Tuesday)
- Outstanding copy for students profiles
- Events/ Work in public copy/images (we still need clarification on what this is going to be) (we suggest doing some sort of introduction to this section)
- All contact details for students
This is a massive list, and we are certainly worried. We cannot afford to waste any more time discussing options and page layouts this close to final hand ins, not just for this brief but for our personal work.
We will put together the final spreads for the introduction, contents and profile pages ready next week and we will send Jaclyne a PDF of what we have next Tuesday. We will continue to liaise with Jaclyne on behalf of the students to rectify the issues raised today.
Dan, Luke and Adam
I met with Chloe today to discuss the Marketing Leeds pitch I did for Leeds Loves Creativity. They liked my idea so have decided to use me to create a A6 promotional postcard for them. Its a really short brief that shouldn't take too long but there is quite a lot of copy for such a small card.
I now need to redesign the Leeds Loves Creativity identity to include a new strapline which will be on the reverse side of the card. This postcard will be given out in the weeks leading up to the 3 degree shows at Leeds Met, and Leeds Uni and the college so there is a possibility this will be sent out along side the promotional material for each show.
I need to get initial ideas to Chloe by next Wednesday. I already have ideas in mind and this should take me a couple of hours here and there depending on how the A4 page of copy sits in such a small space.
I have now tied down the brief to be one book dedicated to the match rather than loads of little inserts. It stands to sense to design for a book/publication due to the nature of what the content is going to be. I expect to expand on the brief to include publicity material and packaging.
I have begun sketching quick ideas for the front cover, and inner sections, and thinking about how the page numbering might work.I can't afford to spend too long on this as I have to get cracking.
I want to really have a go at resolving the giant killer brief. This has sat by the way side since the start of the FMP module, and I haven't had any ideas as to what I could do for this brief. I saw it as a slow burner which would effectively develop and build into some sort of tangible product or promotional pack.
Today marks the start of when things could potentially go wrong. The client has promised us the outstanding copy for the remaining profile pages as well as the foreword/introduction, the 5 quotes pages, and the 3 work in public spreads. The front cover photography should be scheduled for next week depending on the availability of the photographer and we should be able to start to design the rest of the pages this week in preparation for next weeks crit.
I recently came across this on the Behance network. I had seen examples like this before and thought the idea of using copy on the business card as well as the essential information would work well for Anna Swingland's business card.
When discussing the posters with Bridget she asked how I would package them and how they would be sold. She suggested a ribbon to put around the rolled print. This seems like a good idea and would be cheap and easy. However, I decided to look at creating a band that would be branded, printed and put around the poster to finish it off.
I could print a range of these and have them ready to be put on each print randomly. I like the idea of putting on personalized messages and I may revisit these later once I find out more about the shop.
I believe these last three weeks have been productive. I have pretty set out and done what I wanted too. I finished the Flatland books, made considerable progress with the identities brief, produce the pop up posters, did some foiling for one of the identities I did.
I am making some small steps on the design context brief, but I feel like I am in a rut with it. I have some more responses to my questionnaires and I conducted an interview with Ben from the Beautiful Meme but I am still struggling with the chapters and how to start. I need to narrow my focus today and start to pull together the context work I have been blogging about all year and also pull in newer resources before I get myself into trouble.
The positive thing is that I am on top of my briefs and I feel like most of the work is coming to a head now. I still need to start my final brief and hopefully pick up some smaller briefs along the way. I am continually updating a bibliography I am using for both research on my briefs and research for the context publication.
No need to panic as of yet because I have worked hard over the past three months but I need to switch my focus slightly so I don't fall behind.
This is the development of the identity plus the business card, compliment slip and letterhead proposals. I am happy with the three final identity proposals, I am now awaiting feedback from the client.
Business Cards
I decided to firstly pick out some fonts that might suit based on the ideas I had about the identity. I decided on Caslon 540 Swash Italic because it had a real curvaceous form which I thought might suit the traditional and handmade feel of the brand that Anna wanted to portray throughout the stationery.