Hemispheric Defense

Illustrator CS5; font: Melbourne

Not a gradient, bevel, or crappy stock photo in sight, just the way I like it.

Bright Ideas, &c.

 Adobe Illustrator; fonts: Melbourne & Gotham 

Guess who's still alive (and making posters)?

Fly Plumair

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; fonts: Remarcle & Chaparral Pro;
dimensions: 48" x 36"

This flier ended up significantly larger than I had originally intended. I decided to increase its width to accommodate the idea of travel, though I could have achieved the same effect by changing the orientation of the canvas. Regardless, it gets the point across, which, in the last analysis, is what matters.

The Neverending Gallery of Gravity: Nuclear Incineration Edition

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; fonts: Gotham & Rockwell
Dimensions: 5.65" x 8" x 0.5"

I surmise that someone else has already used the trifoil pattern for a book on nuclear security, but not for Waltz & Sagan's relatively slim volume on proliferation, which, I would add, is requisite reading for several international relations classes at the University, all of which recommend themselves as engaging, generally well-taught courses. In any event, any resemblance to my redesign for Pape's Bombing to Win is pure coincidence, though the motif would probably serve admirably for a series on politics and security studies, perhaps as a counterpart to the "blue books" on philosophy and other such weighty topics.

I'm beginning to think that I can scrape together a living designing book covers for political science professors. "T^2: Freelance Book Designer"--I like it.

Front cover

Spine

Back cover

Drawn in Adobe Photoshop CS3

It's been a while since I did an illustration by hand, so here's some assorted sketches of soldiers, a topic only slightly less apocalyptic tha nuclear annihilation.

From the Lands of Nether, a Redesign!

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; fonts: Gotham & Museo
Dimensions: 6.125" x 8.75" x 0.5"

Fact: I do not read a lot of "fun" books. Many a grave tome on organization theory, political philosophy, and other equally weighty (read: boring) topics adorn my bookshelves, and the few volumes of fiction that are up there are usually just as depressing (thank you, Dostoevsky & Tolstoy!). Still, this does not mean that I do not read "fun" books at all, nor does it dictate a strictly serious literary life.

For instance, charitable, wonderfully kind individuals dear to me take it upon themselves to save me from my perennial gravity, for which I am eternally grateful. Consider this redesign of Joseph O'Neill's Netherland as a repayment of such magnanimous gestures.

Front cover

Spine

Back cover

Bombing to Win a New Design

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3;
fonts: Gotham (for the poster); Chaparral (for the book)
Dimensions: 6.125" x 9.75" x 1.5"

Sadly, most course readings at the University are not well-designed. Let this be an effort to rectify that. I wonder if the University of Chicago Press is willing to print an updated edition of Pape's book; if so, I might just actually volunteer this design (for a fee, of course).

Larger copies of the design of record can be found below.

Front cover

Spine

Back cover

By Its Cover

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Univers (for the book design), Gotham (poster); Dimensions: 4.75" x 8" x 1.125"

I might do graphic design, but that doesn't mean that I have to be some vacuous hipster. Quite the contrary, I am a political science concentrator first and foremost, and my interest for political economic theory is certainly not inferior to my love of visual arts. On the rare occasions when they do intersect, the results can certainly be entertaining, as the (three) fans of my editorial cartoons will attest.

At any rate, yes, I am in fact reading Galbraith's The New Industrial State at the moment, which I picked up after finishing Power and the Idealists, a brisk read that recommends itself to those curious about the philosophical history of the European New Left. I'm enjoying the former title despite having not read it immediately after I had purchased it two years ago, and imagine that it'll be an edifying read. In the meantime, it occurred to me that the extant cover design for the book of record did not accord it the proper feeling, and so I'm taking a stab at redesigning one that, in my estimation, does. It's simply a coincidence that my design will be published by Plumtree's Potted Press, which, I remind you, is not a real business entity.

You will find below enlarged copies of the various components of the book, as taken from the poster above.

Inside cover: Front

Front cover

Spine

Back cover

Inside cover: Back

Aerospace!

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; Font: Quicksand

Disclaimer: The Farnborough Airshow is not sponsored by Plumtree's Amalgamated Potted Goods Co., which is a fictitious entity. Still, I am amused by an aeroplane called the "Lightning Finch," which Plumtree's would probably manufacture.

In hindsight, I really wished that the lines were evenly spaced, though as it is the "radiating" quality may lead one to the copy more conveniently.

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; Font: Univers

This poster started out as a "pencil" thumbnail sketch in Photoshop--I liked the layout, and decided to complete it, which involved a lot of haggling over which colors to use. Speaking of which, making things in "outline" mode (Cmd + Y or Ctrl + Y) is really helpful, as it eliminates color from consideration, thereby allowing you to settle the linear/geometric elements first and worry about colors later.

The Hidden Questions...of Chemistry!

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Univers

This post has absolutely nothing to do with the hidden questions of chemistry. It does have everything to do with fake events for the Div. School (because why not?), which, I hear, produces a prodigious amount of inordinately obnoxious, pretentious students* who would probably attend such an event.

Come to think of it, a seminar regarding Wittgenstein and the mystical would be pretty interesting...

But yes, the design! I was making icons for a totally unrelated project when I noticed the neat little pattern you see above. The faux-event was constructed around the visual motif thereafter.

*By University standards, which means that they, like ninety-nine percent of the student body, have no chance of surviving in civil society. The remaining one percent are Crerar zombies, and therefore forgone conclusions.

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Rockwell

Lo, 't is Chemistry, our dear friend and stalwart companion! I don't know anything about chemistry, so I'll stop there.

The pattern above was produced through liberal application of the "blend" function, which unfortunately precluded recoloring individual picture elements to form a more elaborate image, such as the one in the event poster above.

Up in Smoke

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3 & edited in Adobe Photoshop CS3; fonts: Rockwell & Acropolis

I seldom do "cartoon-ish" illustrations in vector on account of it just being counter-intuitive and non-ergonomic. It doesn't help that I lack the sheer patience necessary to pull off truly astounding vector illustrations, which you can find pretty much everywhere--I also happen to prefer concision to detail, unless it's well-organized.

But the point is: SMOKE! (Please don't smoke; or, if you must, stick with more cigars and pipes, both of which are far more reputable--and civilized--than cigarettes)

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Quicksand

Before SkyNet, there was Plumtree's.

The square with protruding "E" shapes are supposed to be stylized computer chips. The color choice and upward diagonal line suggest progress.

In Which Plumtree's Conquers the World

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; fonts: 04b_03 & Gotham

First and foremost, sorry for the long, unannounced hiatus--I was on holiday in Europe until the twenty-third, and started my internship immediately thereafter. I did not forget about this little blog, mind you, and I hereby present a few designs for hypothetical Plumtree's Amalgamated Potted Meat Co. products.

The flier above was inspired by Dioptical, an experimental typeface that you can find here. The general idea was to create a "dazzle" pattern out of heavy hatching, which, being irritating to behold, would then force the viewer to turn his gaze toward the white-space, which in turn contains the relevant (and appropriate) copy.

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Helvetica Neue

A fairly simple, straightforward composition that emerged from about half-an-hour's worth of dithering and playing. The slight gradient and aeroplane icons direct the viewer to the bottom of the page, while the converging diagonal lines formed by the planes of record points to the tagline.

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Univers & Futura

Did you know that Lockheed Martin actually produced print advertisements for the Polaris SLBM (Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile) in 1963? The nuclear apocalypse: Presenting opportunities for businesses worldwide since 1945.

Plumtree's Amalgamated Potted Products Co., Chemicals Division

Designed in Adobe Illustrator CS3; font: Univers; scaled down from 30" by 60"

I had set out to update The Mark's logo, but ended up with this advertisement for Plumtree's instead. On a somewhat related note, I've always found it easier to advertise a tangible product; services are usually the most irritating, whereas events fall somewhere in between.

The tagline on the bottom reads: What is home without Plumtree's Films and Sheets? Incomplete. With in, an abode of bliss.

Hey, Look: Commercial Art!

Boredom and access to a veritable-treasure trove of vintage advertisements produces predictable results. The following selection of illustrated corporate propaganda pieces are courtesy of Plumtree's Amalgamated Potted Products Co., America's choice for potted goods since 1875 (all drawn in Photoshop CS3 using a Wacom Cintiq 12WX tablet):

And Now, a Message from Plumtree's

"Hullo, Mr. *****,

Thank you for your continued interest in our line of fine potted
meats and potted meat derivatives. As a show of our
appreciation, here is our most recent advertisement, as seen in
newspapers nationwide.

Sincerely,

George H. Hammon
CEO, Plumtree's Amalgamated Potted Products Co.
4810 E. Halsted Street
Chicago, IL, 60637"