South African Metal Subculture

In this post I will be talking about the South African Metal Subculture. Its a subculture directly related and revolving around the music genre Metal. This is a subculture I can specifically relate to as I am part of it and have experienced it throughout my teenage life up until now. Unfortunately as far as I can tell it is a subculture that's in decline rather than one that's growing. Below are some images to give a feel and idea about the it:

As you can see its a subculture that is comprised of many different people regardless of race, age or nationality. The subculture tends to go against most things that in some way control people. There is no strict dress code and although wearing black is popular within the subculture its not binding. The subculture values uniqueness and strength in character. Although there will always be exceptions to the above mentioned general information.

Some things go hand in hand with the subculture as well, these are just some things besides for the music which one will often find people within the subculture like:

• Leather clothes
• Anime
• Gaming
• Art
• Anarchy
• Atheism
• Motorbikes
• Instruments

It is also worth being said that although personally most of the metal heads (this is a term commonly used to describe people of the subculture) I've met are atheist there are a lot that are still interested in their religion. There are in fact christian metal bands as well. There is also a stereotype that (although this is quickly fading as people have become less ignorant of the subculture) a lot of metal heads are satanist, this however is not true in anyway. In truth all the years that I've been exposed to people of the subculture I have yet to meet a satanist metal head although as with any other subculture I am sure there are some.

Art within the subculture is mostly reserved for album covers and bands although there is an ongoing style of grunge and illustrated artwork that is inspired by metal as a whole.

As far as what epitomizes the subculture it would obviously have to be the music. Metal is the foundation of what the subculture is. So long as the genre exists so will the subculture regardless of what trends come and go. 

The Digital Age

In this post I just wanted to create an interesting mood board that both tells a story and gives the viewer an idea and feeling of what this Digital Age we live in feels like:

An analysis of Konik, I. 2007

For this post I'll attempt to put Konik, I. 2007."Thematising the ugly side of sublime technological development in Sonzero's Pulse (2006) as an inadvertent critique of the 'technocentricism' of postmodernity" into my own words.

From what I can understand Konik seems to be explaining (in some rather overly complicated terms) how technology and the advancement there of in our postmodern society has changed us as a people. According to the article we have become so reliant on technology that we've changed and become both less social and less self sufficient and thus lost our soul in a sense.

The article also states that capitalism and technocentricism are directly linked in this post modern age we live in. Due to people being so reliant on technology we've allowed consumerism and thus promoting capitalism.

Lastly the article makes reference to the movie Pulse in which the director intended for the ghosts in the story who were caused by an advancement in technology who eventually destroyed society was in fact a metaphor for how technology in reality is inevitably ruining our lives and society as a whole.

Differences in Modernism and Postmodernism

This was just a brief table I made with the some brief differences in Modernism and Postmodernism

I got some of my information here:

http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/politics/ideology-politics/difference-between-modernism-and-postmodernism/

http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/engl_258/Lecture%20Notes/modernism_vs_postmodernism.htm

http://www.critcrim.org/critpapers/milovanovic_postmod.htm

The United Colors of Benetton Campaigns

In this post I will be documenting the United Colors of Benetton campaigns from 1980's to 2000's. Throughout I will also comment on the changes and so on of the Benetton brand.

Firstly there's:

This was one of their earlier campaigns done for Spring/Summer 1982. While nothing may seem particularly peculiar about this image of an ordinary white man in some casual clothes with a simple green logo the actual changes will be more apparent as we go on.

Secondly there's:

This was one of their earlier campaigns done for Autumn/Winter 1982. Here the idea to cater is made clear by both the childish fonts below as well as the over all playful nature of the image of children being children. Lastly the skew logo also goes a way into completing the playful nature of the ad.

Thirdly there's:

This is another their earlier campaigns done for Autumn/Winter 1983-84. In this again they are simply advertising their clothing. They continued to use the playful skew logo however.

Fourthly there's:




This was an interesting campaign they did in 1989. In this campaign it seems to be less about selling their clothes line and more about promoting equality and there by promoting the brand itself. Here two men one African and the other Caucasian are cuffed to one another. The idea seems to be that both can be guilty of a crime regardless of race. The theme of racial equality seems to play through much of their following campaigns.

Fifthly there's:




This was another campaign done in 1990. Again the theme of racial equality comes into play once again in this one. Here two women of different race seem to be taking care of a child of yet another race implying that while people may have a different race or sexuality they will always be able to take care of one another.

Sixth there's:



This was a campaign done during the year of 1994. Here the subtle image of the word aids can be made out of a collage of images of people. The idea here seems to not only racial equality but also the fact that anyone regardless of race or creed can be infected with aids.

Seventh there's:



Here is a campaign from 1996. Here is another campaign on racial equality. The idea here is simply that all races have the same hearts.

Eighth there's:



This was a campaign done in 2001. This campaign seems to be more about promoting the good deeds of Nelson Gomez which the company finds admirable.

All images can be found here: http://www.benettongroup.com/40years-press/img_our_campaigns.html

Conceptual Design

In this post I will be taking three South African examples of conceptual design and discussing them.

The first is:

The infamous painting "The Spear". It created quite a bit of controversy back when it was first revealed to the public. It depicts our South African president Jacob Zuma with his penis very clearly displayed. The painting caused outrage among his supporters while others believed it was like most artworks simply an expression of the artist. It is a metaphor for power, greed and patriarchy. It was eventually defaced with black paint however the image will now forever exist thanks to the internet. (http://alextmgihistory3.blogspot.com/2012/08/south-african-conceptual-image-exercise.html)

The second is:



This was a conceptual piece done for the Save the Rhino campaign under the name Nothing Will Ever Bring Them Back. The message in this image is clear. Simply the zebra is being made to wear a false rhino horn in an attempt to bring back a false image of a rhino. The truth behind this image is that once we loose the rhino nothing will bring them back. (http://historyofgraphicdesigniii.wordpress.com/2013/04/08/south-african-conceptual-design-3/)

The third is:




This was a design created for the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence in order to bring the message that alcoholism during pregnancy can effect the child far into their life and in some cases lead to a life of crime. (http://historyofgraphicdesigniii.wordpress.com/2013/04/08/south-african-conceptual-design-3/)

Personally I like conceptual design over that of commercial because it has a deeper meaning and often helps people to look at something in a different way rather than just attempting to mindlessly sell products and promote brands. There is a depth in it that makes it more of an artistic expression than just an ad campaign.

The Importance of a manifesto

For this post I'm going to discuss the importance of a manifesto. Firstly I'll be discussing two well know ones:

First Things First Manifesto 2000:
http://www.emigre.com/Editorial.php?sect=1&id=14

Incomplete Manifesto for Growth (Bruce Mau): https://wiki.umn.edu/pub/DF2TA/Tutorials/MAU_Incomplete-Manifesto-for-Growth.pdf

Both of these manifestos seem to have have an underlining theme among other things. It is to take responsibility as both a person and a designer for the work we do and the things we create and design. It seems to be against the current role society has placed on Graphic Designers. That role being a cog in the machine that is commercialism. In other words designing for companies and people regardless of whether the over all message goes against our beliefs or not. Both manifestos enforce responsibility above this.

I can understand their message and personally it makes sense although I have to say that there are still times that as designers we all need to make an income. But that is still possible while refusing some less apealling jobs handed to us. I for one would never design something that promotes capitalism or the destruction of a natural environment and these manifestos only enforce that. I would hope that employers and or clients can come to an understanding of something like this, after all one does not go to a priest and ask him to sin or a doctor and ask him to inflict injury.

Below are some other manifestos I went through, I'll briefly discuss them.

http://www.holstee.com/pages/manifesto
http://expertenough.com/538/the-expert-enough-manifesto
http://www.karimrashid.com/manifesto_fr.html
http://www.core77.com/reactor/04.07_chochinov.asp

All of the above has good advice on both life and design and while it also encourages responsible design it also gives some good advise on how to grow as a designer. It is because of all of this that I believe formulating a manifesto for oneself is as important as reading those that others have. It allows you to clearly state goals, opinions and beliefs all in one clearly defined document/ poster etc.

Three brands I admire and desire as a designer.

Hi all

This time I'll be discussing three brands that I admire and desire as a designer. Being a graphic designer there is no easy answer in this but if I really have to choose then it would likely be these three for the moment:

In third place we have:

Microsoft Windows:

Windows is a brand that's been around since I was a child. It's been synonymous with a an introduction to a multinational tool and a dynamic new way of doing things. I remember first using a PC back when they were not as common as they are now and playing some simple 2D games and watching a screen saver of a creepy house just to hear the sound of a grandfather clock once the moon reached the end. So really this is a brand I've grown up with and because of that it has an almost sentimental part in my life. I've seen their logo change with almost every new windows release and from what I can remember the brands logo seemed to keep up with the times. For instance the one above which was seen in the windows 7 package was very bright and it glowed with silhouettes of different sights where as the Windows 8 logo is very flat with a single flat colour all round. Both work for designs of the time there's no arguing that but if I must be honest the four colored window is such a classic logo and I don't think that should have changed with the arrival of Windows 8. Flat color if perfect for the time (as can be seen by many current website designs) but in my opinion don't fix what isn't broken, the four color logo was a classic aspect of the brand that should not have been changed.

In second place we have:

Alienware:

To be honest I don't own a lot of Alienware products but as a brand I've always liked their style which is that their hardware/PCs etc. has always not only looked good but seemed to be worth the high prices. Products they offer always have a type of razor sharp, dark and futuristic feel to them which is a great change to the overly simplified clean cut feel most brands are going for these days (Apple). I think their logo works well as their target market is PC gamers such as myself who find a PC with all the latest hardware all put together with a nice look and feel appealing. They may not be as important as windows but as a gamer I love both their logo and brand. As to what I'd change I cant say much other than that old school looking gradient they've got going on their typography of their logo. I would go for 3D animation to give their logo a more futuristic feel since I doubt they're going for an old school feel.

And finally in first place we have:

Google

Perhaps its a cliche but I love the look, feel, style and everything else that goes with this brand. Googles all for creativity which I love. I think their colorful yet simple logo works brilliantly. Even the word google which if you aren't aware is a word for an immense number (which I will not go into right now). The word works because as we all now simply putting in a single word in the search engine gives the user a huge number of results in seconds. Its playful, creative in a way that can still be taken seriously. The colors and font choice are evident of this. I'd like to say that there's something that needs changing but I honestly can't. That's not to say that its perfect (nothing is) but it comes down to the fact that it's just a nice brand with nice ideas and I simply can't think of any better solution than they have already. It just works, what more can be said?

The Cult of Celebrity and its Influence on Media.

Hi all.

This time I'll be discussing the influence of celebrities on the media. We all know that some celebrities have become something of a brand name in some cases. Often simply putting their name in front of something is enough to sell an otherwise ordinary product. Celebrity endorsement campaigns are also similar to this just that here its a simple matter of them saying, "I like it and therefore so should you." Lastly there's the approach where by a celebrity will simply make an appearance on the advertisement of the product.

Celebrities undoubtedly have a great amount of power when it comes to western culture, this is something that the media is very aware of. Perhaps its their lavish lifestyles, sometimes eccentric behavior or just the fact that they have so much influence that gives them influence (if that makes sense). There's a blog I was reading (http://celebritycultureandtheamericandream.wordpress.com/page/2/) which goes more in depth with this but if I have to sum it up myself I'd say that I think people are mainly interested because we like to see how the other half lives. We cling onto what they do and say because it holds influence and while it may not always directly effect our lifestyle (unless your a fan boy/girl with an unhealthy obsession) its nice to be able to sit back and see what effects those who hold influence and power. I think its also the fact that part of us wants to be them and be in the situations they are in. Being able to say something small and have it listened to by millions is has a certain appeal. It is odd to think that part of the reason they influence people is because they have influence but in a sense that seems to be how people work. We want a figure to aspire to and want a figure to lead us on a path that could bring us as much success as said figure. Lastly here are some two books I found that goes into depth with the topic of celebrity influence if you're interested:

Celebrity and Power by P.David Marshall: http://books.google.co.za/books?id=OMzCDi292OwC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

Hedgehog Review: http://www.virginia.edu/sociology/publications/milner%20articles%20for%20web/celebritycultureasastatussystem.pdf

Starting with Conde Nast I'm going to trace the history of celebrity endorsement until present day through ten examples (most of these can be found here: http://www.condenast.com/):

1.  For those who don't know, Conde Nast publishes the well known and still going magazines known as Vogue and Glamour. The name says it all, so here are just some examples. The cover of this 1939 October issue owes its cover picture to the well known Vivien Leigh.



2. Another example of glamour, the October 1968 issue



3. Vogue has always included articles on fashion and celebrities of the time. Here is one example of just that. Its the cover of the 1971 November issue of Vogue and as seen already entails some celebrity gossip as one of the headlines.



4. As seen with GQ magazines began to cater for a male audience in this December 1983 issue. The magazine also had earlier releases however it was only aquired by Conde Nast in 1979.

 

5. Vanity Fair is another notable magazine that focused on the celebrities of the time. Here is a July 1984 cover of the popular magazine.

 

6. Here is another issue of Vanity Fair, the October 1992 issue. It features the well known pop Madonna wearing pigtails (and not much else) on the cover. Madonna was both a sex symbol and a pop icon so its not hard to see why they selected her for the cover shoot and article.



7. Here's another more recent issue of GQ featuring Brad Pitt on a June 2005 issue of the popular men's magazine. Brad being a man I imagine a lot of men aspire to.



8. A September 2006 issue of Vogue featuring Kirsten Dunst in her role as Marie Antoinete.



9. GQ going for sex appeal in this October 2008 issue featuring the sought after Megan Fox. Being a men's magazine I imagine the sex sells idea worked well here.



10. Lastly there's the September 2010 issue of Vanity Fair featuring the then very popular Lady Gaga. Here its not hard to see the main subject of the issue.



As a graphic designer myself I do consider magazines to have contributed to design as a whole a great deal. As the years went by typography and well shot photography was used in unison to create some of the most brilliant designs there is. I personally do not read magazines but always catch myself glancing at the interesting designs used on much of their cover pages. To me all the elements of design coming together so well is an artwork in itself.

Finally if I had to choose a celebrity image or brand that interests me most I'd have to say the British comedian and actor Ricky Gervais. I suppose it's mainly because I respect him as a person because he seems to embody a lot of traits I value. His an intelligent man that doesn't take the world too seriously but still stays true to his beliefs. I can't say that his sense of style or taste in things such as food or music influences me however if ever I walk happen upon something such as a documentary (idiot abroad which was amazing) or film that he has anything to do with it often interests me not only because I find his comedy funny but because from what I've seen he is generally an interesting admirable person.

Contemporary logos reflecting the International Typographic Style.

Hi all

This is my first post in which I'll be discussing 10 contemporary logos/brands that reflect ITS principles and style. Firstly here are some ten brands that do just that:

1. Symbiotiq: A web design company that I found.
    Website: http://www.symbiotiq.com/

2. Artem: A special effects designing company.
    Website: http://www.artem.com/

3. Core Dynamics: A technologies company.

    Website: http://www.coredynamics.com/

4. Vibrant Drive: User experience specialists

    Website: http://vibrantdrive.com/

5. Pixlpushr: A logo design (does not seem to be in use but I found it appealing to this to none

    the less)

    Website: http://www.logogallery.net/pixl-pushr

6. Tempatic: Word press themes.

    Website: http://templatic.com/

 7. i hate you: A logo I found that doesn't seem to be in use but is visually appealing.

    Website: http://www.logogallery.net/i-hate-you

8. Danzk: A danish lifestyle blog logo

    Website: http://www.danzk.net/

9. Uniiq: Another logo of which I'm not sure is currently in use.

   Website: http://www.logogallery.net/uniiq

10. John Lauren: Photography website.

      Website: http://johnlauren.com/#/page/54e5/john-lauren-home/

Its worth mentioning that a lot of the logo's I looked at I found at a great site that hosts a gallery of logo and brand designs done by various people: http://www.logogallery.net

Now out of these 10 logos I've chosen my favorite 5 which I'll discuss in further detail with regards to ITS to justify why they are my favorite 5.

Firstly there's 1: Symbiotiq. I chose this logo because of it's simplified forms and typeface. The type is the main focus in this one with the simple blocks of colour making up a q that relates to the brand name even though it is the last letter. The colours used are simple yet vibrant enough to make an impression on the viewer without taking away from the typography.

Secondly there's 4: Vibrant Drive: Just as the prior mentioned Symbiotiq logo design colour use was very important with this one. The colour image in the logo is made of basic coloured geometric shapes similarly to some of the works done by Anton Stankowsi such as his Berlin-Layout (http://www.stankowski06.de/basis/html/kategorien/marken_grafikdesign/marken.html). The rounded corners of the chosen typeface relate it well to the shape created. 

Thirdly there's 8: Danzk. Interestingly this logo won a logo of the month award back in 2010. The typography is the main focus of this logo. It's a simple yet elegant design that was created in simple black and white. The geometric forms that create the silhouette of letters are laid out in a simple grid with all letters seemingly fitting in a square of the same size. Its a good example of how a typeface can be simplified to such a degree but still be perfectly legible.

Fourthly there's 9: Uniiq. The logo is simple, made with just black and white. Again the letter q is emphasized in the design as it is used to creatively create a simple yet stylized character with a hat and pipe. Its an interesting take on the letter Q in the logo which seems to exemplify both sophistication and fun. The overall logo shows hierarchy of type and is all centered with the overall logo conforming to a basic triangular shape.

Fifthly there's 10: John Lauren. This logo is another good example of how a simple design can go a long way. The logo is partly made of simple geometric forms with hard edges and sharp corners that go well with the typography. Focus is also made on the image which represents a simplified yet clear camera shape that's created by linking the two N letters. Lastly there is no personal expression while still conveying a clear message as to the function the logo represents.

Thank you for taking the time to read through my post and I hope you found it interesting.