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Typography

2014 “365” Typography Calendar Now Available

By Delphine Hirasuna |

When you think of it, words get in the way of appreciating typography. You find yourself reading what’s said and paying scant attention to the characters from which the words are composed. In fact, idiosyncratic typefaces can be distracting and irritating if you are trying to read long passages. Type should affect the reader on a subliminal level, adding to the reader’s enjoyment, not stressing the eyes or competing for the reader’s attention. But as graphic forms, typefaces can be beautiful, elegant, whimsical, futuristic, historic, geometric, sculptural, and even funny, if you count Comic Sans. Used as a design element, quirky fonts can add a lot of spice to a page.

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Advertising

Gist of the Message

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Ottawa-based McMillan Agency got straight to the point in this direct mail piece. Recipients first read how the creative agency would help clients stand out from the crowd, and when they unfolded the sheet, they could read a lengthier discussion about the challenges facing companies today. Attention-grabbing. Succinct. Minimal production costs. Great idea.

Packaging

Ricola Sore Throat Relief With a Twist

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Have a sore throat? Can’t swallow without wincing? Hard to talk, much less sing? The packaging of Ricola Herbal Throat Lozenges understands. The Ricola Music Edition product wrappers, created by Hamburg-based ad agency Jung von Matt, with illustrations by Julian Canaveses, features distressed singers who represent different styles of music, from pop and opera to rap and rock ‘n roll. It’s possible to recognize Luciano Pavarotti and Elvis Presley, but not sure about the others. The tagline “Unwrap Your Voice” implies quick relief. No need to read the small print about what soothing ingredients are inside. One look at the pictures tells consumers that Ricola knows what a sore throat feels like and that relief is just a twist away.

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Packaging

Traditional Folk Art Meets Pop Culture

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Here’s a new twist on an old Japanese folk art – painting kokeshi doll faces on matches. The original kokeshi figures, introduced a couple centuries ago, were inexpensive souvenir items that visitors to the onsen (spa) villages of northern Japan would buy to give to friends back home. (Even in California, we used to have a half dozen kokeshi, along with snow globes from New York, native American trinkets from the Grand Canyon, and seashells from Hawaii – don’t know what happened to any of them.) It’s the kind of gift that would merit a T-shirt that read: “Grandma went to the onsen and all she brought me was this wooden kokeshi.” Kokeshi dolls were distinguished by their simple rectangular torso, lacking arms and legs, and their enlarged round wooden heads, minimally painted to indicate eyes, hair and maybe a mouth or nose. (Think “Hello Kitty,” who is also missing a mouth.)

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Sustainability

Design for the Afterlife

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Designers are not just ordinary consumers in the battle against suffocating the planet with litter. They are the best prevention and the last defense. Aesthetic sensitivity, retail presence, brand positioning, ease-of-use, safety, etc. are critical considerations when designing, and much more fun than thinking about the packing materials used. As important as it is to recycle and minimize waste that goes to landfill, more pressing is what gets blown away as litter. Fast-food takeout boxes probably kill more creatures than the high-fat junk food they hold. Bad typography may be annoying to read, but you never hear about seagulls strangling on overextended serifs, nor about coral reefs stomped to death by insensitive use of graphic standards. There should be life after design. Design for the afterlife. Happy Earth Month.