An interesting article I came across via Design Observer:

• “No More Posters! Let’s See More Action!” by Eric Hieman

I think this image, taken from the page, might sum up a lot of what it’s about:

Somehow related, but a considerable tangent to Heiman’s article:

I recently had a quick chat with a former classmate of mine, Jonathan Fajardo, who is currently taking a Graphic Arts course at ECU. He wanted to talk about the design process with me and a few of his friends to gather content for his current assignment.

It was interesting because we got to talking about the subculture or the conventions within the design field. Granted, neither of us are particularly experienced, but there was mention of design that works, and design that is, in so many words, “good.” While there are pieces of design that may win awards and nods of design celebrities, there still is the question of context, and perhaps just how successful it is when taken out of the AIGAs and the Salazars, etc.

Unfortunately, sometimes it isn’t always a hand-in-hand scenario. Sometimes an award-winning campaign (judged on photos and inter-design community buzz) could totally flop once launched in its environment. While graphic designers can write all they want about terrible graphics and typography, what I recently learned (with Chloe) was that sometimes, the standards kind of get blown out of the water—and not in the avant-garde super-exciting way.

More like, “This graphic is not the most sophisticated piece of graphic design, and will probably never win any accolades or nominations. However, the company saw a growth of 2% since we went with the talking cartoon turd.”

The world doesn’t run on who thinks what is an example of good typography, and neither does it run on how many magazines and blogs publish that one photo of your work. At least at the moment, it runs on how well the client does with your work, and their own measures of success. In this, I guess I’m comparing the “action” part of Heiman’s article to the action that takes place after the design, as well as our responsibility to consider what we are designing and what we are doing.

Perhaps “Good Design” doesn’t translate 100% to the outside world, but “Effective Design” might. I don’t know. I’ve begun to ramble. Any thoughts?

So long since we’ve written. Sorry about that. Chloe & I have been prancing about and we’ve been lucky enough to get a couple of new projects. Pardon us, as we’re still at the point where the smaller things are exciting. Such as…

…binding a mock-up book for Rethink Communications! Yes! Rethink! The firm!

It’s pretty cool having Lisa Nakamura in the studio talking to us about Neil from Centennial Bookbinding. They probably don’t even think twice about these sorts of things, but it’s quite nice to be able to welcome others into our small studio. It makes the community feel just a little bit smaller, in that despite Rethink’s size and reputation, they basically know the same people we do—and, in a sense, “We’re not so different, Rethink and I…”

Same goes for my quick chat with Jeff Harrison today, who is probably one of the most personable characters I’ve come across so far. I’m excited that Tea Party is starting to get to know other places and people, and that it is much less scary to dive right into the local design pool. I feel much less of a small-fry, trembling at the doors of established design firms, and more like the new guy at the bar that all the bros want to go fishing with. Terrible analogy, but I hope it will suffice.

I look forward to seeing how else perceptions of ourselves can change as we grow out of being students and into young professionals.