::: Toko. Concept. Design. ::: +61 (0)4 136 133 81 ::: Helvetica and Alternatives to Helvetica Helvetica and Alternatives to Helvetica Helvetica is a classic. Helvetica is played out. Each of these statements is true to an extent. There are many reasons why Helvetica is so widespread. But invisibility isn’t always appropriate, particularly in advertising or branding where individuality is key. Cool, Crisp, Clean Much of Helvetica’s appeal comes from its cold, almost clinical modernity. Univers™ — Univers is widely considered Adrian Frutiger’s masterpiece. Why it’s not Helv: In some ways, even more spare (no beards or tails). Heldustry™ — In 1978, prolific photo type designer Phil Martin added “just the right touch of Eurostile‘s squareness” to Helvetica and created a new font for a cable TV news network. Why it’s not Helv: You’ve probably never seen it. FF Schulbuch™ — A series of fonts based on the historical textbook types used in Northern and Southern Germany, and Bavaria. Why it’s not Helv: A single-story ‘a’ and tailed ‘l’. Neuzeit S™ — Wilhelm C. Getting Warmer Further Afield
bleed eye | opinion Admiring Cooper Black is like being the most popular kid in school and falling in love with the ugliest person in the class. Sharing this secret, telling people – your friends – about it is hard, and must be done gradually, little by little, until you are comfortable enough to be seen in public together – holding hands, laughing, kissing, using Cooper Black. At the beginning there will be guilt and shame. How then, can a typeface with so much against it be so popular? Cooper Black typeface, designed by Oswald Bruce Cooper of Bertsch & Cooper, Chicago. With help from Herman: www.underconsideration.com/cooper fonts, typefaces and all things typographical — I love Typography (ILT)
No Layout Nicholas Felton | Feltron.com Calling cards. How 76 graphic designers have art-directed their own identities How 76 graphic designers have art-directed their own identities Logos, business cards, letterheads, brochures, websites, packaging: designers spend a lot of time creating other people’s identities, but what about their own? Liz Farrelly’s new book, Designers’s Identities, examines the way 76 practices from around the world have approached their own branding. Packing in 1048 colour illustrations, the book sets an introduction to each studio on a copy of their letterhead, followed by examples of their printed and virtual presentation. Top: NB: Studio make each New Year mailer a collectable. Below: NB: Studio’s pack of cards – this mini portfolio contains images from favourite projects over the decade, packaged in an embossed box. Above: Marc&Anna customise business cards and correspondence with their collection of rubber stamp ampersands (below). Above: Fourpack’s letterhead: icons that match the nature of the letter are taken from the company’s massive library and added to the grid.
Alpha-ville Festival 2011 | Festival of Post-Digital Culture New Channel 4 branding by Rudd Studio Five years on from their rebranding work for the channel, Rudd Studio updates the Channel 4 splintering logo in a series of new on-air graphics packages... Keeping the famous logo centre stage – the original multi-barred "4" was the creation of Martin Lambie-Nairn in 1982 – Rudd Studio has created a series of new animations of the graphic, with this new work attempting a more "oblique" and "cubist" feel, they say. The studio's Matt Rudd worked with animation director Oscar Gonzalez to develop a way of viewing the logo from two angles at once. "It seemed appropriate for the channel to see things in an unusual way," he says. "We were surprised at how the logo remained recognisable, even with only small details of it revealed. "We made many of the on air elements five years ago so that they would incorporate video or photographic images," Rudd continues. The new graphics package includes 100 one-second stings and several animating textures which contain photography. 48 Comments
35+ Sites for Web Savvy Families Families have collectively jumped on the Web with gusto. Online tools have given them the ability to do everything from track the family schedule to keep in touch with distant relatives, monitor their children's browsing, and more. Many of these services are even becoming available on mobile platforms, which is critical for those parents on the go. Here's a rundown of some of the sites available for you and your family. Tell us in the comments about which services you and your family use. Family-Friendly Browsing Glubble - Provides much more than a safe browsing environment for the kiddies. Kidzui - Offers a safe browser for kids, along with a slew of games, videos and websites that are kid-friendly. KidRocket - Another safe browsing platform for your kids. Pikluk - Not only provides safe browsing but also safe email. BuddyBrowser - A safe browser for kids with an appealing look for the younger child. Totlol - Almost like a safe YouTube for children. Content Sharing Schedule Management
Own A Colour And Help Save A Child's Life See The Difference, online fundraising and charity donations, non profit organization UK Show me the difference Back in 2008 every piece of research we looked at (over 10 years worth), national consumer surveys and our own focus groups and our friends, colleagues and families told us the same story. Givers first concerns were constant: where does my money go, what difference does it make? Show givers where their money was going and the difference it was making and they’d give more the theory went (and maybe arrest the decline in the percentage of the population giving too). Simples. SeeTheDifference: crowdfunding pioneer BBC TV producer Dominic Vallely quit his job and started assembling an awesome team to develop the vision and raise the money to get it started. The vision was a state of the art site packed with amazing charity projects brought to life in video, where you could browse and choose the differences you wanted to make. We wanted to make what you gave to part of who you are and it was designed to be social, shareable and repeatable from the start. I’m in .. Pivot or die