We’ve written previously about “Negative Space”, and the highly-anticipated stop motion animation short is now available in its entirety on Vimeo. Co-directors Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata explore a character’s relationship with his father over his life, from fanciful childhood memories to the somber realities of aging and adulthood. “Negative Space” is adapted from a poem of the same name by Ron Koertge, which centers on the rituals of packing one’s possessions, passed from father to son.
You can step behind the scenes in a making-of video to see how the heartstring-tugging, Oscar-nominated film was created. Porter and Kuwahata share more of their animated films, including personal and commercial projects, on Vimeo.
Dial M for… Murder because this Identity is Killing It
At the end of September we Noted the new logo for Mural Arts Philadelphia by J2 Design and it received a highly positive response, not so much in the poll, but in the comments, including polite demands for more applications, which brings us to today's post: Applications!
A reminder of the before/after and a larger view.
A quick reminder of the logo change and my original opinion of it (more for reference than for the pleasure of hearing my own voice): "There is something so simple, effective, and energetic about the vectorized graffiti stroke 'M' that makes it instantly evocative. I love that it can be rotated 180 degrees and it reads the exact same way. It has the right angle, the right spacing, the right abstraction... just, very right."
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Some of the variations.
Here is an interesting point of discussion: how come the variations for Mural Arts feel and look so good and appropriate but the variations for Pandora did not feel nor look so good, even though it's arguably the same concept and approach? The question is somewhat rhetorical as the variations for Mural Arts feel more genuine and relevant, further establishing a link between the variety of artists and styles that the organization collaborates with and, although you could say the same thing about Pandora, the link they are trying to establish is more abstract by attempting to give a visual representation to different music genres and it feels more like a veneer rather than an integral part of the project. Anyway... back to Mural Arts...
Business cards.Brochures.Program.Banners.T-shirts.
The "corporate" applications are quite restrained and do a great job in making sure the identity doesn't turn too cartoonish by using the logo variations on, for example, the business cards. (By the way, those are some dense information business cards!). The combination of the logo broken apart, the blocks of typography, the fields of color, and the mural artwork in the backgrounds strike a strong balance of all those elements and yield very convincing brochures.
Mural Arts Month program and specific branding.
For Mural Arts Month -- and possibly for other events and initiatives -- there is a nice introduction of a serif that in other cases would be far too many things but here, and not to keep adding praise for praise's sake, it's the right dose and right way of mixing the ingredients.
This and all images below are from an event that took place last week, "Mural Arts & J2 Design | A First Look at a Fresh Look". All photos by Redfield Photography.Sculpture.Pins and caps.Drawing stations for attendees to draw their own logo.Some of the contributions.
The event photos clearly capture that both the organization and the design firm are proud of the work. Producing a small sculpture, hats, pins -- those pins! -- and setting up that whole wall with the process was probably unnecessary but it's the kind of things that, when done genuinely, can help existing and potential audiences feel a stronger connection to the organization.
Contributed by Aimee Emerson of London-based & SMITH.
The brief
We teamed up with YO! Sushi to refine their brand strategy and refresh their look and feel.
The idea
YO! Sushi is a place where people can experience a true taste of modern Tokyo. The brand idea and menu launch campaign centred around ‘This is Tokyo’ as a concept. So this meant…
We hero-ed the authenticity of the dishes on the menu. All YO’s food is inspired by Japanese classics, street food or home dishes.
The design should take cues from anime / manga culture (but translated in a modern way).
We didn’t have to dumb anything down. We introduced Kanji script to the menu and made sure all sections were named as they would be in Tokyo. The launch campaign leads with Japanese dish names so everyone can learn the difference between Takoyaki (octopus filled dough balls) and Okonomiyaki (street food pancakes).
YO! are the ears to the ground for what’s going on in Tokyo right now.
As soon as our director Dan Bernstein interviewed Mike Lewis (the executive chef) on day one, he knew our idea had to be centred around authenticity. Mike told Dan his tales of searching the streets, homes and restaurants of Tokyo hunting down the best recipes and ingredients to bring back to the UK. From then on it was obvious this was something we had to shout about.
We wanted to give everyone a taste of what’s going on in Tokyo right now. That’s where the zine/newspaper menu idea came from. It gave us the chance to show some nice snippets of art, fashion and music alongside their food. The idea is that the editorial content will change four or five times a year.
Other bits:
The new design was rolled out across all 70+ sites in the UK over the last two weeks and is about to launch on all sites in the US later in the month.
All illustrations were created in-house.
As well as new menus, we created the launch campaign, A-boards, menu boards, interior graphics, and window wraps as a part of the refresh. There’s more to come over the next few months.
Instead of enjoying just any juice, why not grab one of these cold-pressed elixirs from Zumería? Using a bit of mysticism to generate an undeniable allure, these juices look like they can heal you from the inside out with their special powers. Designed by Estudio Yeyé, Zumería raw juice bar and their individually packed containers seem almost irresistible.
“In this special collaboration Zumería give us two missions: to design a pop up store in the ‘mercado Roma’ (Mexico City) and a special edition of bottles for its ‘raw juices"; first generate an imaginary around elixirs and potions they produced using as inspiration the illustrative style of Tarot cards and mysticism, a ‘card’ for each potion together with the copper-colored give us a reference to the aesthetics of alchemy of the eighteenth century, and then worked in a space concept grant him an atmosphere of darkness and mystery to the general idea using dark tones and exotic plants.”
With some dark magic inspiration, Zumería plays on the fact that simply natural foods can do wonders for our bodies. Similar to tinctures or other goods obtained from an apothecary, these beverages are ideal for someone interested in something new and delicious to satisfy their palate. Using midnight black, with white and gold spread around as well, gives an air of mystery and plays well with the tarot card concept. While the images on the front primarily help to tell each variety apart, small icons on the front explain what each juice is best used for.
Established in 1969 as the House of Culture and Recreation Saint Étienne in France, the institution hosted shows and art exhibitions as well as theatrical productions, opera, and even dance and symphony in the 1980s. Renamed L'Esplanade in 1994, its main building was burned by arson in 1998, reopening in 2001 and later renamed Opera Theatre of Saint-Etienne in 2006. Now, it's dropping "Theatre" from its name focusing only on opera and highlighting its Symphonic Orchestra and Opera Choir as Opera Saint-Étienne with a new identity designed by Lyon, France-based Graphéine.
An unmissable architectural feature, the roof of the building looks as if it is giving a sign. With its location from the heights of the Jardin des Plantes park, the sign looks over the city. For Saint Etienne's inhabitants it has become part of their landscape.
Perfectly circular, the hall offers exceptional comfort and acoustics.
On the top of the "E", the accent stresses the syllable by increasing the intensity of the voice. It decks the word "opéra" with the image of the building's pagoda.
The shape of the "O" brings to mind an open mouth singing an operatic aria. The "O" is used to show a strong emotion such as surprise, admiration, joy, etc.
In opera, music and dance are intimately linked through "movement". This could be the movement of a body, of musical notes or simply the emotions* triggered by these two art forms. (* The word "emotions" literally means "to make movement" of feelings). The emotion behind this logo comes from the optical framing trick between an "O" and the "accent". The "O" looks as if it's disappearing at the same time as the accent appears.
The old logo was fun, maybe too much fun. It had an interesting approach and clearly someone was having plenty of fun with the typography — I particularly like how they treated the tittles of the "i"s. The diamond shapes, though, and the color palette started to look a little like a casino. Dropping the theatre aspect has helped focus the logo by not having to communicate both opera and theatre. The new logo works so good on so many levels: first, as a visual cue to the roof of the building; as a metaphor for a narrative, with a thing that starts one place and ends in another; and, simply, as a lovely visual puzzle. The execution is great and the design is not heavy-handed, letting the concept shine through. I do have to wonder if a more extended sans serif would have paired better with the wide "O" for Opera?
Logo as musical bars.Stationery.Posters.Posters IRL.
While the stationery has a rather tame approach, the posters remind me of a light version of Studio Dumbar's work, displaying great energy and composition while establishing a consistent visual language.
To inaugurate the new logo's first season, we have come up with a simple and accessible communication campaign which features, in photos, all the staff members who work at the Opera. The logo is there to finish off the smile of the person being photographed, as if a curious spectator had come to peek through the Opera doors, wide-eyed at what they saw. So it's about re-establishing a feeling of closeness between the people of Saint-Etienne and a popular cultural venue. The campaign comes with the slogan "And the magic opera(te)…", is a pun in France between the word "operate" and the word "opera".
Graphéine project page
Season campaign approach.Campaign applications.All campaign faces.Brochure.
Going in another direction are this season's materials that go for more warmth and sense of humor by showcasing the Opera's employees in charming layouts where the bottom of their mouths are completed by the accent of the logo. It's hard not to smile at it but, more importantly, it works perfectly to answer the client's original brief which was for the institution to "re-establish a sense of closeness with the people of Saint-Etienne" and this campaign and brochure create that connection. Overall, from the simplicity and astuteness of the logo to the energy of the posters to the friendliness of the campaign, this is a wonderful project from start to finish where it's clear that both client and designer were in tune.
