as creatives we search for inspiration like the fabled fountain of youth. professionally, though, we have to take that inspiration and interpret and transform the input to make it our own. The line is too easily crossed from an homage to copyright infringement. how do you ensure that the later is avoided? using other branches of the design industry is a nice way to still find great visuals without the risk of literally ripping-off designs.

fall fashion week has consumed new york city, and with it a spring of ideas. here are a few color palettes inspired by the clothes found on the runways.

elie tahari and jeremy scott fall 2012

threeASFOUR and anna sui fall 2012

whether you believe valentine’s day is a legitimate holiday or you are a chocoholic at heart, here is a round-up of chocolate packaging to satisfy both camps.

1 // olive & sinclair chocolate company designed by anderson design group

2 // chocolates with attitude designed by bessermachen design studio

3 // dude, sweet chocolate designed by tractorbeam

4 // the grown up chocolate club designed by toast design

on the 26th, brand new scooped jcpenney’s logo launch. there was plenty of uproar at the time. in light of last year’s gap-gate, judgement has been reserved, awaiting more information. well the information is in. here is some of the new information coming to light:

1 // you can find a brief justification of the design process that got jcpenny from point a to point b here.

2 // penney’s isn’t just changing the logo, they’re rethinking their business model, details outlined by the huffington post and the ny times.

3 // according to breakingcopy the logo was designed by brand advisiors.

4 // here are two examples of a current television ads addressing these impending changes:

5 // and thanks to the usps here is a look at the mailer campaign

drawing conclusions:
so, the logo seems like it’s almost there. we get the red square, but the type in the blue box needs finessing… primarily a visual adjustment to the left to compensate for the roundness of the “p.” the interaction of the blue box and the red square is creating a lot of tension; visually the blue box doesn’t read a quarter of the whole and the juxtaposition of the red and blue shape seems un- or under-considered. the red and the blue are very primary and don’t print or screen well; they also do not play well with other colors [of which their print application is filled with]. the red, white, and blue- the flag, it all seems very literal. there is by no means any subtlety of suggestion or layers of communication to this logo.

the thing that seems to be throwing viewers for a loop is that the applications are pleasing, harkening to an aesthetic akin to real simple magazine. particularly in print, the applications seem fresh and modern, however a solid application is not an identity. try as it might, great photography and graphic elements can’t make up for the lack-luster logo. a great brand comes from all the pieces individually being great; when one is sub-par then the whole brand can only compensate so much. a logo is the base of an identity. the almost-there americana is holding back the whole brand.

this whole situation seems a bit daunting. overall analysis would suggest that jcpenney should note the positive response to the applications and employ that learning to the logo.

with your favorite tv shows returning to the land of the living after their mid-season hiatus, you may find yourself watching a bit more tv. Here are a few commercials we have come across that don’t immediately make us reach for the dvr fast forward.

with the superbowl approaching, hopefully brands will take this cue and bring some wit and charm to the advertising front. any favorite commercials you have seen lately?

saul bass is a graphics legend, bringing us many of the logos of familiar brands

and his work in classic film title design.

it is no wonder that the man combines all of this experience in a design pitch to a client:

in bass’s nearly thirty minute video pitch, much of the time spent isn’t even showing the design updates; it is spent educating the client on why they should change, on how they should change, and how their brand is currently perceived and differentiated in the respective environment. the bell logo was in commission from 1969 to 1984 nationally, and could even be found regionally as late as 2009. so by all means this design was a success, but did the overall success start at the beginning with successfully educating the client on the place of design in respect to their company, and that entity’s goals – present and future? did the broad stroked adoption of this identity system, by regionally marginalized branches, stem from the approach of the pitch?

how much time do you spend with your client sharing your research and educating them on the value of design in your pitch?

a helvetica counter movement has recently taken root. a demand for type and logo design to have more personality and approachability has created a renaissance in the industry and all but saved type design from obscurity. saranna drury is one such designer bringing whimsy to type.

it has been noted in studies that the united states is continually falling behind in math and science education. there has been a lot of speculation as to why this is so, and some limited solutions provided through disconnected efforts. with the ever-presence of tv, computers, the internet, and handheld devices students are programmed to accept information visually and digitally. To overcome the education gap, these mediums could be used to the educator’s advantage.

vi hart has produced a series of raw video shorts that make mathematics concepts interesting and accessible. students can identify with the quirky doodling detailing interesting math facts in vignettes that match their attention span. the positive reception of these videos shows the power of visual communication and infographics in facilitating overall communication and is becoming increasingly necessary as we are conditioned to process facts in more abbreviated forms as opposed to copious amounts of copy, like you find in textbooks. to brush up on your math concepts visit vi’s youtube channel.

this time of year is notorious for being slow, with vacations and budgets winding down, little seems to be going on. so if you are looking for ways to keep yourself occupied and sharpen your design skills, here are a few games to occupy your time:

when you see great design, it can be inspiring. when you see a company consistently making a commitment to great design it really makes you stop and marvel. general electric is one of those companies that habitually offers its consumers great visual communication. there are several partners GE has consistently relied on to bring their designs to life:

BBDO is responsible for GE’s broadcast advertising efforts,

camille kubie notes that GE works with “several different designers on data visualization and infographics. primarily ben fry and his company, fathom.” for more information on data designers you can visit GE’s data visualization blog,

and the GE show is developed by the barbarian group.

we asked camille about GE’s design policy and strategy, and here is what she had to say: “we definitely do seek exceptional design as part of our over-arching brand strategy. the GE brand is all about imagination and innovation that make a real difference in the world. great design is key to communicating those elements of our company. more generally, great design is important in telling any story. people are so inundated with content, if yours isn’t visually compelling, people won’t spend their time with it.”

here are some other links to notable GE projects:
1 // ted installation
2 // GE’s ecomagination site
3 // MOMA talk to me exhibit
4 // VSA partners work with GE

oh what a world it would be, if all brands saw the potential great design can provide.

the creative process seems to mesmerize creators and consumers alike. both demographics, i am sure, have at one time or another been party to the awkwardness of the curious peering over the maker’s shoulder, hypnotized. this blog, called behind the process, removes the discomfort of physically looking over someone’s shoulder and still gets at all of the great behind-the-scenes experience.