29 September 2006

Gold directory adapts typepic-gallery




The Typepic gallery ended up in the cpluv Golddirectory recently. You can either visit the site on the typo-project ( typepic.be ), which is to be extended very soon by the way, or you can go and view the gallery on my personal cpluv-account.

Scope on tomorrow, or better, the near future:
I'm finishing some bisniss for some very ambitious advertisers.
I'm planning to publish some galleries containing handdrawn illustrations.
I intend to finish my typeface, and update the typepic website.
Since the typepic-gallery was such a success I'll efford to add some more compositions.

And next week is Outlandish week..

27 September 2006

E-commerce on fertility

http://www.deverdwaaldeooievaar.be

So, one thinks there's nothing else to do as a designer than to "do special and weird, but goodlooking" stuff... But yet, false as stated. Specially here, at the agency, it is clear that a designer is not at all the mastercomposer. As a designer you must bend your mind, creativity and thoughts so to sort and fit them with all others on the floor. And most of the times even if you're right, you're not, ther's always someone around who's older more experienced.. thus knows better how and what (uhu right)

But anyway, you're young, dynamic, (ya wanna kill'em all but yow) you just move onto the next case and hope that.. You keep quiet and go home, where there's more work for you.. freelance yeah!! Those're the jobs a designer can do whatever the **** he wants to do... party >> and WRONG again. Forgot about that client huh, after all it's he's money.

So bending again, making sacrifices.. keep it cool and make the best of it. *sigh
I've been working with "De verdwaalde ooievaar" on their site on fertility. It's a website where people can go and get some info on what to do when you, or somebody you know can get some kids on 'natural' ways. For all the good purposes!

Now it's testing week, so please go and visit, read and bleed.. and notify me, please, about the design, usability and possible bugs in the coding. (And favor me, it's very serious business so please be polite)

http://www.deverdwaaldeooievaar.be

25 September 2006

Dutch women show off



Finally someone found how to blend voyeurism and advertising. And yes it's someone I worked for here at the agency. Creative director of LG&F Amsterdam, Joeri Jansen, almost shocked a nation that is about to get ready for Pink Ribbon Month (october) During that period there will be advertised about breast-attention, in order to prevent and notify people (women) to take extra care for their breasts. Pink Ribbon is LG&F A'dam's second client, and together they were teasing Holland and it's audience for several weeks. All around in the media, breasts were popping up and out.. out of control.

And happy customers we are.. let's just hope people really do have more "positive" attention for a breastcancer.

Conflict is good for business

What do 50 Cent, Hugo Chavez, and Steve Jobs have in common?

They realize the value of a good rivalry.
- Hip-hop artists like 50 cent use “beefs” as a source for publicity and promotion all the time.
- Chavez is getting lots of mileage out of casting himself as the Anti-Bush. You may disagree with his views but he’s certainly been effective at getting himself on the world stage (how many other South American presidents can you name?).
- Apple’s Get a Mac campaign uses the Mac-PC rivalry as a frame for defining the advantages of going Mac.

Conflict gets attention
Want people to empty a bar? Tell ‘em there’s a fight going on outside.
It’s a fact of life: Conflict gets people’s attention.
That’s why the right kind of conflict can be a good tool for business. When you have an enemy or disagree with someone else’s ideas, people notice. It helps define you. It shows you stand for something. It clarifes what’s different about you. Just be sure to go for a healthy debate of ideas — not name-calling, flaming, cheap shots, etc. (There’s enough of that crap in the web world already.)

> read more ...

- Conflict attracts people, hossip > publicity and attention
- People have to choose sides, they're either with you or against you, nothing much in between.
- Title also counts in a social network environment, in dutch we call it "zalven en genezen". Kick your boss in the balls, get ready (better study teh case before striking and hold strong arguments ready for backfire!), don't wait to long to give an apology, but firmly mention why and how... If you handled that kick well, didn't kick too hard and firmly called the excuse you'll have gained at least a notifier and maybe just maybe some respect and earning a more and specific place assignment next time. It places you out of the context of ignorance, and hey it's mighty fun sometimes too.

Note; allways remind yourself that "you don't need them", and never be sorry to get fired :D

“A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.”
- Oscar Wilde

21 September 2006

On hold..

Not all days look a like, one day you find yourself behind the desk barely breathing. One morning you're so anxious of working.. nobody responds.. harsh. That's the point where my spontaneous enthousiasm (alias ADD) starts to strike..running around the agency bothering everybody on the floor.

But hey I found a minute or five to update my CpLuv Account with 2 new galleries. Jeuiy!!

Oh by the way, I didn't know a Junior Designer is not in the right position to advice his ceo..?!

18 September 2006

No rules, great design.

1. Find inspiration in everything.
Graphic designers can't operate in a vacuum any more. Gone are the days when you could sit in your room creating beautiful layouts in wonderful isolation. So collaborate; meet illustrators, ad agencies and film makers. Make friends with a copy writer. Visit an architect. Listen to product designers. The more interesting people you meet, the more interesting you'll become. Hopefully.

2. Present passion not perfection.
20 years of Mac means we've lost a lot of energy from graphic design, so let's try and get it back. Turn the computer off, get up from the desk, draw, sketch, make roughs, present your roughs. Always remember a sketch sells an idea better than a finished visual, because the client uses their imagination to buy into the idea. We recently did a whole presentation on post it notes. Present passion not perfection.

3. Create and understand content.
Everyone is talking about content these days, from ad agencies to brands. In fact they've been talking about it for ages and it's starting to filter down to graphic designers. Communication is getting more complex and more varied and looking less like sales pitches and more like stories, so you're going to have to understand great content. Or at least know where to find it.

4. Understand your clients and their clients.
Read lots and read everything. Understand your audience and how society consumes media and design. Never forget that not everyone likes Big Brother or the World Cup. Think about the end user, which leads me nicely into...

5. Understand usability.
Great usability is the ultimate in good design. This is so obvious, but we're only just starting to talk about it. There are so many examples around us everyday, the Underground map, the BBC News website, almost all Apple products. As David Ogilvy said, "You can't save souls in an empty church".

6. Realise that design is the new management consultancy.
An odd one this, but it's an idea that's starting to get a lot of airtime. Who better have an impact on a business than the problem solvers? The ones who can generate ideas from a blank sheet of paper? The ones who create new ideas all day, every day. The designers. You will hear a lot more about this, trust me.

7. Remember that ideas will always transcend stuff.
The world of communication is changing as I write this. Who know what it will look like in 10 years time? Maybe one day you'll be designing an animation for a 1 pixel square screen? Maybe you'll be putting a logo on the roof of a building so it's visible on Google Earth. Whatever happens you'll still need ideas.

**
Many thanks to Snow, Mr.Maeda and the Ad's (anonymous designers)
Blog on corporate changes and more
Maeda on SimplicityBlog

**
Check the latest Snow project :: ontsnapaanmigraine.be
A clock? Timing ideas.. now!

08 September 2006

LG&F NL launched



So it's finally there, the first finished project. LG&F, the company group of Snow, has settled a new company in Amsterdam. My first task here at Snow was to design their little space on this web. Of course the site had to be inline with the existing company site (made by my heroes at Milk). I had to stick with the font and the color, but that left me still enough to move my own design around. It's finally published and launched.

Check it out, click here, my first Snowpublishment.
Credits: Multimedia Develoment by Valley, Art direction: Carl De Mey and Jonathan Detavernier, Design and concept by Grapplica

01 September 2006

Dirtbags

Because some assholes are stupid and dumb, and because Stijn is my hero just little bit too emotional and sensative.. I state the truth and nothing but the truth; Soulwax is made by milk and cookies and nobody but milk and cookies!! And ll kill anyone who dares to go against that.

Note:
I'm a board with Snow for the next 6 months.
JippieCayEha, let it Snow let it Snow let it Snow...