Pop Culture

A Game Made for Graphic Designers

By Delphine Hirasuna | January 23, 2015January 27, 2015

1000_Colours_Puzzle

Years ago last century when I was communications manager at a forest products company, my boss used to call Kit Hinrichs “that gray designer” because he always managed to use 402 Gray in every job he designed for us. Then Kit outgrew his gray period and developed a fondness for 032 Red, which to him is the most wonderful red he’s ever seen. He didn’t use it on everything, but you knew he loved it. Now he is passionate about 123 Yellow. Never try to engage Kit in a discussion about using 035 Red instead of 032, or try to sneak it by him. He’ll know. The guy’s color perception is like a dog’s sense of hearing. Very keen and nuanced.

Architecture

Iconic Styles of Renowned Architects From A to Z

By Delphine Hirasuna | January 11, 2013September 4, 2014

Argentine architect Andrea Stinga and Colombian graphic designer Federico Gonzalez put together this animated video of globally renowned architects and their most notable work. The minute-and-a-half long video manages to squeeze in a lot of information, including architects and landmarks from around the world. Still, art director Gonzalez apologizes that some legends had to be left out because they only needed one architect per letter of the alphabet. Stinga is a principal in Ombu Architecture, based in Barcelona, Spain. The music soundtrack is “The Butterfly” by Eugene C. Rose and George Ruble.

Packaging

Alternative Organic Packaging

By Delphine Hirasuna | July 6, 2012September 5, 2014

Sydney-based design agency, The Creative Method, says “give us a great story and we’ll give you a great brand.” So when Alternative Organic Wine asked them to design the packaging for a premium limited edition of its organic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, they focused on the product’s naturalness and not on the traditional way that luxury wines are presented. Creative Method explains that the “concept shows a vine, from the leaves to the bark to the wine.” Every aspect of the packaging was natural, from the outer wrapping paper with the grape leaf pattern printed using organic inks, to the laser-cut balsa wood label, to the string and the wax seal used to affix the label. Just by looking at the packaging, it communicates unique and organic.

Brand Logos

Cricket World Cup Logo – Rich with Cultural Meaning

By Delphine Hirasuna | September 6, 2011September 4, 2014

There is more than eye-catching design to the ICC Cricket World Cup logo created for the matches to be held in Australia and New Zealand in 2015. When invited to produce the logo for the 2015 match, the international agency, FutureBrand, turned to the Australian graphic consultancy, Jumbana Group, Balarinji, to imbue it with cultural motifs significant to the indigenous people of the two neighboring countries. The result was the player’s torso made of the Maori Infinity Twist pattern representing the joining together of peoples and cultures in bonds of friendship and loyalty, and the legs and bat incorporating a familiar Aboriginal motif. Together the logo design is meant to symbolize toughness, glory, resilience and connection. And it was meant to be memorable, which it is.

Brand Logos

Peru Brands Itself

By Delphine Hirasuna | March 11, 2011September 4, 2014

On Friday, Peru officially launched a brand for the country, by stringing its new logo across the front entrance of the New York Stock Exchange. Gone are the old logo and slogan, “Land of the Incas.” In its place is a new identity developed by the British firm, FutureBrand, which also created Australia’s country brand in 2003.

The adoption of the spiral letter “P” wordmark represents the country’s bold move toward raising its identity internationally, not just as a tourist destination, but as the source of a broad line of export goods.