The marketplace for magazines and books is incredibly overcrowded – go into any newsagent or bookstore and you’ll see racks upon racks of covers that look almost identical. Especially with magazines you’ll find no matter what the topic; music, fashion, fitness, sports – most have a similar structure, typically a grinning celebrity peeking out from an army of cover lines. Magazines weren’t always like this though.

In what many consider the golden age of magazines, the 30′s – 60′s, the cover was designed to be a canvas summing up the whole theme of the magazine. Covers were commissioned from the most famous artists and illustrators with the brief to be as different from the competitors as possible – a very different world from what we see out there today.

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COVER IMAGES
A celebrity head shot, photoshopped to remove unsightly realism, eyes open and iris expanded (a sign of attraction), mouth slightly open, white teeth, faces not centered on the nose but on one of the eyes – these are the covers of our time. Why?

Dick Stolley, the founding editor of People magazine in the US
is well known for his mantra of popular covers:

“Young is better than old.
Pretty is better than ugly.
Rich is better than poor.
Movies are better than music.
Music is better than television.
Television is better than sports.
Anything is better than politics,
and dead is better than living.”

Thus he is also credited as ruining the cover industry, as everyone clambered to copy People’s success. The last line was added at a later date after their previous best selling cover (a tribute to John Lennon) was beaten by a tribute to Diana.

Thankfully there seems to be some wish to move away from these hard & fast rules of blandness – although try and tell that to some of the editors and distributors out there and you’ll wonder if it’s true. In the creative culture areas there is a real push to turn back the clock, a k.i.s.s. approach and if we’re honest, it’s the sort of target market that is interested in a little mystery – but then what target markets aren’t? Are the cover designers and editors not giving their audience enough credit?
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COVER LINES – Part 2

Most magazines seem to think of coverlines as an extension of the contents, and try to jam 10-15 of them on the cover. The result is a mess, with far too much jostling for attention. As is often the case, less is more when it comes to the front cover.

Writing cover lines can be deceptively difficult. Practice and research pay off obviously and there are even university courses where you can study it.

The area has been hugely researched, and there is much written on it (good technique, bad technique) that you can find on the web. One thing has been proven though, good cover lines not only sell more copies, but increase brand ownership of magazines.

The first thing to remember when writing a cover line, is to keep it simple. We must remember that most people only spend a second or two browsing the newsagent stands, before choosing their purchase. They need to be able to read, understand, and associate with the magazine in that short time.

Key words, such as new, free, now, always work well. Sandra J. Blum is known for her research into reactionary words, specifically in relation to cover lines. She created a list that also includes introducing, guarantee, save, love, discover, advice, sex, proven, how to, results, money, secrets, health, easy, safety, and ’10 (or any specific number) ways to…’ They demand immediacy and attention from the viewer. Another good technique is to appeal to the viewers emotions and senses. If the reader can almost taste, hear or smell it, you’ve sold the issue.

Similar to when we went through the naming process, there are a number of tests you should do on your cover lines.

1. Is it exciting, does it promise excitement about the editorial?
2. Is it personal? Does it use the word ‘you’ or another word that links directly to the viewer.
3. Can it be made more passionate or positive? Emotional? Motivational?
4. Does it have drama? Does it leave the audience wanting more?
5. Is it as short as it can be without losing clarity?

Knowing why your magazine exists, it’s mission statement, it’s purpose is always going to help you build a theme and create cover lines that match that. If you don’t know it’s value you should probably sit down and write a short mission statement (in 25 words or less.)
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CASE STUDY – Monster Children
Who stole my cover lines? Again, Monster Children go against the grain and break the rules – at least for the first 5 or so issues – at which point they started selling the mag in a paper bag carrying the cover lines. What would seem like the wrong thing to do (hiding your cover) turned out to be the right thing as people got excited by the mystery of it all – especially when they started selling alternative covers. You didn’t know what you were going to get until you ripped open the bag – it was like Christmas every issue!

There is rumors though the reason they started selling in paper bags was because of the trouble they got into over the alternative cover they produced for issue 4.

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WHERE TO PUT COVER LINES
Header Hugging – This is a technique of placing all the text in one easy to find area, normally at the top allowing the image to breath and have space.

Boxed – In the past printers faced difficulties in placing text on top of an image, unless they made a separate run through the press after the first run was dry. To get around this, knockouts were used to create boxes inside an image, into which type could be placed. Some magazines began using cover lines in more than one position – often causing many an illustrator to complain as they competed for cover space with such innovations as knockouts for cover lines.

Column – Another solution, which has appeared in many forms over the decades, is to create a colored vertical column for cover lines alone. Magazines have used considerable ingenuity in creating a column on their covers with images frequently overlapping the column that held the cover lines, making the cover more of an integrated whole.


Zoned – The simplest method for combining pictures with cover lines is to keep them in separate areas of the cover, zones. This solution is common and can be traced all the way back to 1890. Many magazines still use highly segmented covers: A zone contains the title, another zone contains the picture, a third zone contains cover lines or other publication data. Keeping text and pictures separate simplifies the printing process and it eliminates the difficulties that can arise from printing type over a picture.


Banners & Corners – Banners seem to belong to attention-grabbing loud covers, and have been used little, or in restrained ways, by successful, mainstream publications. Corners are often used to get that ‘Hold The Press’ feel.

Unplanned Space – It is useful to distinguish several ways of placing text inside a cover picture. In the simplest approach, text might be described as being fitted into spaces that seem almost accidentally left blank by the background image. Often the cover lines seem to be squeezed into awkward spaces around the cover model.


Planned Space – This is a way of combining pictures with cover lines where the interplay is planned beforehand by the illustrator or photographer. Many, many images are created with spaces especially for the display of cover lines, on elements inside the illustrations–such as walls, sails, columns, doorways, open windows, and other uniformly colored spaces against which type could be placed.

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INSPIRATION & EXTRAS
Each week I throw up things I find that relate to what we’ve been discussing or working on that week. Sometimes it might be things that relate to your major assessment and sometimes just stuff I thought was worth seeing. If you find something you think we should be showing or something we just have to see let us know in class or throw an email over to me at matt@billyblue.com.au and I’ll get it up here or on the Bluni inspiration site.
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WHEN THERE IS NOTHING TO SAY – September 11th kills coverlines.
The September 11th terrorist attacks in New York left many editors with nothing to say on the covers allowing for some interesting artistic interpretations. With barely noticeable black rectangles, the New Yorker embodied the tragedy of September 11 and stated their opinion by having the antenna of the north tower split the letter W in the logo magazine.

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THE 50 CENT COVER
Designing Magazines covers a story on Wired’s designer Scott Dadich and his budget covers. No photographers, no models, no assistants, no hair stylists, make-up, set builders or fashion. Just good old fashioned type and a little stock occasionally. It’s not only Wired that sneaks out a 50cent cover now and then.

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ATLANTIC REDESIGN
Pentagram has posted a great piece about their process for the Atlantic redesign. They go right through their research, past redesigns and rejected options. Well worth a read.

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MORE RADAR MAGAZINE COVERS
I love the Radar covers, always unique and always interesting.

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BEople COVERS
A Magazine About a certain Belgium – reads the tagline. Designed by Base from New York. Base wrote a short description for AIGA Design Archives which I’ve stolen and placed below for educational reasons – please don’t sue me.

BEople was launched in one of the most difficult magazine markets of the last two decades. We therefore made design decisions to attempt to have it attract attention in a crowded newsstand: first, the dot on the cover, a simple idea to place emphasis on the magazine’s title; second, an indeterminate grid that shifts according to the subject matter. But perhaps most importantly, we strove for an overall aesthetic that blends classicism and modernism, allowing the magazine to appear rich but uncluttered and to evolve with every new issue – Base NY

I wonder whether the thinking was similar for CONTRASTe magazine?

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LUCIRE REDESIGN
Lucire redesign has taken a generally old fashioned magazine and brought it into the future. Does it work? Founder and publisher Jack Yan had this to say:

‘We needed greater visibility on newsstands, and the new masthead is a logical evolution of our traditional one. But really it is to signal the arrival of Lucire TV and our new mobile edition—musts as we head toward a new decade. The release across so many media of new Lucire editions points to how the magazine, unique in having started on the web before extending into print, successfully reaches audiences on the web, in print, and on mobile devices. Our strategy has always been to use every medium possible, and this will become more apparent to the industry as things develop.’

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COVER LINES GONE WRONG – Cosmo Spoof
If men wrote cover lines for Cosmo.

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Look & OK! GET SUED!
An interesting story about Woman’s weeklies getting in trouble over misleading cover lines. Click on pic to go to link.

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THEN & NOW – Pop Cult Mag
A nice little article comparing the differences of magazines covers from the past with ones of today. Click on the image for full article.

As you know this week is production week so there is no classes. I had offered to come in and have one on one meetings with a couple of you, but am unwell so unable to come in.

Use this time together to run through your presentations for next week. If you want to run designs or layouts past me, I’m more than happy to send suggestions, just email a PDF to frances.ratford@gmail.com. Try and do this on wednesday so I can get a response back to you.

Just to recap, this presentation is the same as Week 3 only longer, between 15-20 minutes. Cover off similar headings as your North Sydney presentation, but add in more interesting unique points (for example, if your doing vertical gardens research other vertical gardens and talk us through what works and what doesn’t. The more visual the better).

Keep colour and graphics to a minimum and let the content have priority. Re read the comments from the first presentations too and take them on board. If you need inspiration with the re design images, check out the blog, Week 4.

This is set up as a presentation - YOU ARE NOT PRESENTING YOUR PUBLICATION! We also want to see how your publication is coming along, but will not be marking it. If you want to make the most of class time, print out in black and white what you have and we can mark it up…

Be ready to go at 8.30am next week. Team Leshe, you’re up first!

Naming is one of the first steps in branding and these days is a business in itself. A good name is important if you wish to be remembered, especially if you want to take advantage of the best marketing strategy: word of mouth.

In today’s online marketplace it is essential to have a name that stands out from the increasing clutter. Books and magazines especially are a dime a dozen, just look around a bookstore or newsagent – this makes a good name even more important. A name must resonate with the consumer and relate to the cause you’re doing it for.

So why don’t we just name it the same as our space?

1. Think about how much more powerful your cause sounds if you have ‘brought to you by…’
2. It is hard to shake off the newsletter association.
3. Your publication target market might differ from your regular target.

As with most things, deciding on a name is a process. Of course occasionally you do get lucky and the name appears to you straight away. This is rare and most of the time you will have to take steps in order to discover the perfect name. This doesn’t mean its any less creative, it just means you’ll have a solid base from which to build on.
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NAMING PROCESS
The first thing to do is start listing potential names? Not necessarily. Don’t run before you can walk. It’s time to exercise those creative muscles and go through the process, a little bit of time spent here could pay off big time later.

What I’ve included below is a method for creating names that’s used in the industry. It’s all pretty obvious but it’s important you go through the steps. Get a big piece of paper, a couple of pens and make a mess. Use whatever technique you are fond of; mind maps, association lists etc. just start getting words down and make sure you don’t critique as you go – do that later.

Step 1 – Brainstorming
Begin by finding words that:

1. Describe your product category. What does your cause hope to do? If you had to describe your cause in one word – what would it be?
2. Describe the differences between you and your competition. Is there someone doing something similar out there already? What’s your U.S.P?
3. Describe other benefits of your product. These benefits may include product history, customer points of view, the target market. The list could go on and on. It’s important to look at all angles of your product.

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WORD-MARKS
A word-mark uses the company name with proprietary letterforms. In other words, it uses the whole name but does so in a company associated typeface. That typeface could be bought, modified or created, but should normally only be used when displayed as a logo. To overuse the typeface elsewhere minimizes the power it should have.

Quite often when using a word-mark the designer will try to convey some of what the company does. If the company is involved in liquids, they may add the sense of waves flowing through the letters. The focus remains on the word/name but there is a secondary element, which helps suggest more about the brand.

Advantages
The proliferation of logos in the world has made recognition of symbols very difficult. Using the entire name sidesteps the problem with recognition. When asked if the Mobil logo belongs to Mobil, most people would agree that it does.

Disadvantages
If not handled skilfully, a word-mark alone may be generic and lack mnemonic value. It is also limited to words that can be spoken phonetically, no silent letters or exotic ways of pronouncing etc.




Shelter – Designed by Johnson Banks, in 2003.

Families – Designed by Herb Lubalin, in 1980.

Mother & Child – Also designed by Herb Lubalin

Democrazy – designed by Plan B
Sydney Dance Company by Vince Frost. So simple but so effective – typical Frost, he has a knack of finding the truth in simplicity.

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CASE STUDY – i-D Magazine
i-D is a British magazine dedicated to fashion, music, art and youth culture. i-D was founded by designer and former Vogue art director Terry Jones in 1980. The first issue was published in the form of a hand-stapled fanzine with text produced on a typewriter. Over the years the magazine evolved into a mature glossy but it has kept street style and youth central to every issue.

The magazine has always been known for it’s fashion (street) and typography (letterpress) and for doing things it’s own way. In 2005 it celebrated it’s silver anniversary with a sell out exhibition called i-Dentity. The wink of the i-D tipped on it’s side is credited by some as starting the smiley craze and has continued through cover photography on every single issue from #1 even when the masthead reverted back to normal.


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Back to naming – TOOLS
Use a dictionary and a thesaurus and write down all the extra words that they give you, these are some of the strongest tools you’ll have available at this point. Remember this is not a test; don’t be pedantic about the words you write down, it’s more important that you get all the stuff out of your head and onto the paper.

You should be writing down one word, looking it up in/on the thesaurus, checking it’s meaning in the dictionary, writing down any other words that present themselves to you, checking the encyclopedia, seeing what else that leads on to. In an essence this is just another way of creating a mind map. You are going from one thought to the next, constantly evolving and delving deeper into the core of your company. It should be a time of learning and discovery; it should feel like a mental game of ping-pong.

Step 2 – Putting things together
Sometimes just one word will work by itself, other times you might start to see interesting combinations that work better. This is when you can start using:

1. Affiliations – Two or more words put together that link in a positive way. Our brains are remarkable when it comes to drawing connections between things. By finding associations our minds learn and increase their memory (see more about this in the inspiration bit below.)
2. Acronyms – A name formed by combining initial letters or parts of words, such as NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation), laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) and IBM (International Business Machines). Using the initial letter of words (or word parts) in a phrase or name they are publicly known as this abbreviation rather than the full forms for which they stand. They are usually pronounced in a way that is distinctive from the full forms: as the names of individual letters (IBM), as a word (NATO), or as a combination (IUPAC).

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CASE STUDY – Mastheads







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Step 3 – Test against some rules
When you begin to think you have some possible names you should decide on some rules you will follow. Here are some rules to test your names against:

1. Is it sensory, meaningful and easy to remember – this may be a customer’s first introduction to the company/product/magazine so it should resonate a meaning with them. Lush soaps?
2. Is it spelt as it sounds and easily pronounced – people need to be able to write down the name and pass it on to others. Remember people may have to write you cheques or publicise you in other media – what happens if they spell or say your name wrong? Does anyone know the company called GOOGOL?
3. Does it require too much explanation – Do people get it or do you need to provide a detailed 20-page document to explain how creative you have been by choosing that name. It’s good to be creative but remember the K.I.S.S. mantra.
4. Does it evoke a positive mental image with the target market – ‘Death to Capitalist Pigs’ might work for a punk fanzine but probably not for a computer magazine. Think about how the audience will view it; does it describe benefits over negatives?
5. Will it grow and stay relevant - the company may want to market completely different products in the future so limiting a name to it’s current range could prove detrimental. Also don’t attach yourself to any trends or fads (having ‘groovy’ in your name might’ve worked 20 years ago but not now. What words do we use now that will date badly in the future?)
6. Does the meaning always stay the same – Does the name have any negative connotations in other languages or countries?
7. Does it have limited syllables – the lower the syllables the more punch your name has.
8. Does each syllable start with a strong consonant - (B, C, D, G, K, P, Q, T)
9. Does it begin with letters early in the alphabet – with the amount of things listed in alphabetical order (phone books, trade shows, business papers etc.) it makes sense to be at the front. Or does it?

These last three are a few other things that branding experts suggest – I don’t know whether I agree with all of these as it seems to be narrowing the selection too much (at risk of all names becoming the same.)

Of course, in the real world, after you’ve thought about all this you need to make sure the name is available. Check the web to see if there is another company out there already with the same name. More importantly you should check to see if the URL is vacant.

Conclusion
While this might seem like a lot of trouble to go to it is a worthwhile process and one that will ultimately serve you and the client best. Having a good name to base a publication on will make every step after this easier. It will also take you a long way with 1st impressions, an important thing when you want to stand out in the crowded newsagent or book store.
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CASE STUDY – Changing heads
Why do all following mastheads have to look the same? Couldn’t they evolve over time and change to keep the reader and designer interested? Apart from losing recognition it’s not a bad idea – but I would suggest not doing this straight from issue 1 – build awareness and then, providing your audience is creative enough, start changing it up. STAB did it from issue 1, but then they already had a large existing audience. Below is the first three issue’s mastheads.

Monster Children also did it straight from issue 1 but then it could be argued that both books have a target market that feels comfortable with change.


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COVER LINES – Part 1
To get your attention, magazines feature cover lines. They are designed to reassure regular readers and tempt new ones into purchasing a magazine. These cover titles ebb and flow from a design point of view – sometimes lots of them, sometimes just one; sometimes different font sizes, sometimes the same; sometimes the big story goes above the magazine title, sometimes right through it – depending on the selling of that issue’s stories.

One thing never changes however; rather like advertising headlines, cover lines must be short and punchy.

If you look at this issue of The New Yorker you’ll see the main story “Obama’s Cabinet!” exclamation point and all, running partly through the title. Then in large type, RACING TO SAVE THE ECONOMY with a sub head on what the story is about, smaller type sizes follow for a two GAY RIGHTS REVISITED heading which covers two gay issue stories, LUXURY REHAB on celebrity addicts, BLACK FAMILY STORIES on ancestry and at the bottom, James Wood writes on author V.S. Naipaul and the weekly fiction story is highlighted.

The New Yorker is famous for its illustrated covers so prints its title page as a wraparound which while expensive allows for extra advertising space. All these stories are targeted at the AB demographic of New York and the main world cities – people who are involved, have higher incomes and a Democratic or liberal view. Such people are few and far between in Texas.

Vanity Fair has a similar but wider target group but like The New Yorker appeals to the luxury market. Above the title, a story on a leading villain in the global financial crisis; note white reversed out of red and caps san serif. Now the fonts go up and down but the big story is HEATH LEDGER’S DEATH twelve months later plus assorted references to what the story covers. Scattered round the page, stories on politics and movie stars which besides business are the main areas covered by the magazine.

Country Life is a British publication which appeals also to the high-end market but in a jaunty way. Besides rural Britain, it’s market is city people with country connections and wannabees . It’s cover has a main feature on the changing ways of agriculture but the words APPLE TURNOVER give it an entertaining twist. Likewise BAROQUE TO THE FUTURE – a look at the architectural revival of an Eighteenth Century house. Country Life is a good example of selling dreams – many of its readers wouldn’t be able to afford a house in the country with 7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, 3 reception rooms, a wine cellar, pool, tennis court and formal gardens but they may well dream of it and buy something the magazine advertises to feel part of it all.

Men’s Health targets young males 18-30 who work and play but have an interest beyond FHM readers; responsibility. All stories therefore have a health angle but they’re short (and curly) and echo the title’s slogan “The Magazine Men Live By” which sits above the title. Various fonts in various sizes give the magazine a look of excitement, once again for the target market. Stories cover Sex and food, losing weight, health again with the MONKEY BRAINS story although with a humorous angle, sex and drinking and exercise, food and career – everything for the young male who though career-oriented, sees himself as a dude.

WIRED magazine bills itself above the title as Ideas/Technology/Culture/Business which is where most higher end magazines lie. It’s targeting young tech savvy career oriented males with money to spend. The current issue has a huge title and a cool font and goes for a high tech style. The featured articles are scattered across the bottom – each with it’s own interest to the TM – a leaked-memo site, why placebos don’t help the pharmaceutical industry and how to fake your own death – cool stories for adventurous guys. Cover finishes with more promise HOW TO/hack a corporation, live off-grid, unlock your music.

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A WORD ABOUT TYPE – The widow and the orphan
In typesetting, widows refers to the uncomfortably short (e.g. a single word or two very short words) final line of a paragraph. This brings far too much emphasis to the final word and can change the intended meaning of the paragraph. The final word can become stressed, therefore having more/un-needed importance.

A related term, orphan, refers to the first line of a paragraph appearing on its own at the bottom of a column with the remaining portion of the paragraph appearing on the following column; in other words the first line of the paragraph has been ‘left’ by the remaining portion of text. It also occurs when one line from a paragraph is left to start a new column. Orphans halt communication. The first example leads the reader to believe it’s the end. The second just looks wrong and gives an un-needed pause between the first and second line of the paragraph, slowing down the information intake of the reader.

One easy way to remember the difference between and an orphan and a widow is to remember that orphans “have no past, but a future”, while widows “have a past but no future.” Widows and orphans are considered sloppy typography and should be avoided.
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HOMEWORK
You should aim to have three different names for next week, try to get a one word name, an affiliation and an acronym. To each of these names you should attribute a rationale (explanation of what it means, where it comes from.) In class we’ll discuss them and work out which one works best.

Just to go through the steps again:
Step 1 – Brainstorming
Step 2 – Putting things together
Step 3 – Test against some rules
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INSPIRATION & EXTRAS
Each week I throw up things I find that relate to what we’ve been discussing or working on that week. Sometimes it might be things that relate to your major assessment and sometimes just stuff I thought was worth seeing. If you find something you think we should be showing or something we just have to see let us know in class or throw an email over to me at matt@billyblue.com.au and I’ll get it up here or on the Bluni inspiration site.
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WHAT DOES A DESK CLOUD LOOK LIKE?
John Kounios, a scientist at the Cognitive Science Research Institute in Pennsylvania, tested people on how they associated two words that held unrelated concepts. His famous example was the ‘desk cloud’ – a cloud shaped as a desk, or a particular type of cloud that desks sit on. Just by thinking about the desk cloud we have stimulated the areas of our brain that process meanings, memory, and language. The most exciting thing about this is we can get better at it, like a muscle we can make this part of our brains stronger.

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THE MAN WHO KNOWS
More Al Ries, because I can never get enough of his enthusiasm.
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WHEN THE NEWS-AGENTS TELL YOU HOW TO DESIGN
EMPTY (always named in caps) went through a real learn on the job process. The first one we we did as we saw fit and it did really well on Oxford St – unfortunately we had a lot of returns when they realised it was just an art magazine. Issue 2 did well because of the scoop on the Incredibles. Issue 3 saw us fall into a more comfortable rhythm focusing on the art not the distribution house.


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RULE #6. DOES THE MEANING ALWAYS STAY THE SAME
HSBC has been running a campaign for the last few years that demonstrates rule 6 of naming very well. Does the name have any negative connotations or other meanings in other languages or countries?

Back in semester one we talked about how many typefaces you would use in a proposal, magazine, book etc. Everyone will most likely give you different opinions but I think (my opinion) that as long as each typeface has a job and it sticks to that job you can have as many typefaces as you have jobs.

The different types of jobs could include; masthead, headings, sub heads, pull out quotes, pull out articles, body copy, pic descriptors, lead ins and so on. If you haven’t started thinking about these things then you might wanna start.

Keep in mind as well that some families of fonts are huge. If you are planning on using one of them bear in mind that a heavy version will appear drastically different to a thin version. These become separate fonts and should be used as separate fonts.

TITLES & LEAD-INS
Titles and lead-ins effectively do the same thing, catch the readers attention and reel them in. If you think of the title as the hook then you can think of the lead-in as the line(s) that connects the hook to the rod.

A title should grab the readers curiosity, halt them in their tracks and stop them from flicking to the next article. It can be a different font style from the body copy and should try to simulate the stories intention.

The two titles below try to do this. On the left we have Movement Magazine with an article talking about the size of the waves at a particular coral break. The title incorporates the height looking down, at the top of the falls, bringing a little danger and caution to the story. On the right, a story from Stab, looks at the trouble you can get in if you drop in on certain board-riders at the pipeline. The distressed beaten type, plus the words, leaves nothing to the imagination.

The titles can be consistent throughout the magazine if the theme is similar. The stories themselves will lose a little attention but the book as a whole will gain.

Peer Magazine, designed by Paul Fox, is a fashion and lifestyle monthly from London. Aimed at 18-30 year olds it has strong themes of typography and full bleed images. It also has a heavy focus on it’s titles and lead-ins with all of them being completely unique and suited to the article they introduce.



A lead-in (sometimes called a kicker) is used to draw the reader into the story. Sometimes jumping straight into the body copy after the title (and/or subhead) might still be too much for a reader. This is especially true on large, heavy text articles.

The lead-in can appear in a number of different ways but is normally in contrast somehow to the rest of the article. It may be a bolder weight, a different font, an alternative colour, a larger size – anything that will set it aside and provide an easier entry point for the reader.

This is precisely what we are trying to do, provide an easier entry point for the casual reader. They’ve read the headline, they were interested enough to read on but still aren’t sure whether they want to go all the way and read the whole article. In the lead-in we give them a sentence/paragraph of interesting intro to hook them in. Once they’ve read this they are going to have to read the rest (or so we hope.)

The re-design of Prestige House by SuperSuper often provides whole spreads for the title and lead-in. In other cases where the story doesn’t warrant that much attention they have developed a style that works with body copy.


Chris Ashworth regularly breaks all the rules with his layouts. These are some spreads from Raygun and it’s sister publication Blah, Blah, Blah.


STEP Magazine has two lead-ins with the 2nd being compiled of capitals. Caps are normally not easy to read over large areas.

RUSSH with your typical fashion shoot lead-in.

WIRED Magazine with a lavish lead-in spread.

Fast Company with a very long lead-in. They also incorporate extra lead-ins on the longer stories to keep the reader’s interest.

READ THIS OR DIE.
If you’re creating a story that needs to be read, you have to attract attention. There are a few ways to do this; a great picture or graphic and a great headline certainly help. A well written sub-head is good because it amplifies what the headline offers. Pull quotes can be a great too. But what’s next most important is the lead-in paragraph. This should tantalise by giving the reader a taste of what’s to come and by offering an encouragement to read-on.

Here are a few lead-ins of varying types.
Sam de Brito writes a column called ALL MEN ARE LIARS in the Sun-Herald. A recent column started thus:

“You know what acrylic nails are? False hopes for ugly chicks. Seriously, does any sane woman really think getting a lightning bolt or a few diamantes encrusted on a plastic fingernail is going to increase their attractiveness?”

A regular reader of his column will know that he attacks everything including the society wanker photographs that surround his column. He is provocative on purpose but he zeros in on human traits we all know and wonder about.

A feature on the new Pixar comedy “UP” in Spectrum by Garry Maddox started:

“As a flagbearer for a new era in cinema, Carl Fredricksen could hardly be more unlikely. He’s a 78 year old curmudgeon who uses a walking frame, wears a tweedy old suit and eats dinner at 3.30pm.”

This is very much a puff piece to promote a new movie but the lead-in makes you smile. Good enough reason to read on.

This is by Elizabeth Farrelly who wrote a story on heroism in the Herald.

“ A wooden cross and stone cairn stand together in the desert, a short drive from William Creek, South Australia, a town without tarmac, population 10. Roadside memorials are as common now in the outback as everywhere else but this one stops you. The words are few, black-on-white, red earth, blue sky: “Caroline Grossmueller, 11 Dec 1988. Perished.”

This sets up an ominous feeling. “wooden cross” and “stone cairn” sound unsettling especially when encountered in the outback. A brief but powerful description of a godforsaken place with a population of 10. And then a humble sign magnified by the intensity of the vast earth and huge sky with a foreign name and the unusual word “Perished” Not dead but “perished” – what’s this about? “Perished” sounds worse that just dying. Farrelly writes in a clipped way too, encouraging the reader not to rush, to stop and ponder what she’s saying.

The New Yorker is famed for long, well researched stories. This is by Paul Goldberger about science & jazz and a father & son.

“When Harold Varmus, the president of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre gives a lecture, he usually talks to a scientific audience about health, or government policy, or the discovery that won him the Nobel Prize in 1989 – the protoncogene, which enhanced our understanding of cancer. But last week he filled the auditorium at the Guggenheim Museum two nights in a row for a presentation entitled “Genes & Jazz,” in which he offered a primer on cell biology, all to the accompaniment of a jazz quintet under the direction of his son Jacob, a thirty five year old trumpeter and composer.”

This leads in to a very typical short piece into for the magazine. It has a relaxed & slightly quirky feeling about it which goes with the magazine’s style. It might be the big city but it has a very human scale.

In contrast to this, a story in New York magazine which is also a weekly publication reveals a very different house style.

“The economy is crap all over, but why does New York feel so much gloomier than the rest of the country? Escape the banking hot-house of New York for a spell and you’ll discover something weird; People in the rest of the country, whatever their own problems might be, aren’t as perpetually freaked out as we are here.”

Lots of swear words and a general feeling of New Yorkers as suffering even though this is where the whole melt-down began. Once again though, the lead in provides a need-to-read.

In Men’s Health, Mikel Jollett writes about the closeness between man and the ape.

“Being alone with a monkey is very strange. They do very human things – yawn, stretch and scratch. You feel like you’re with a distant cousin or a smaller, more basic, more lovable version of yourself. Evolution is an easy concept to accept when it’s just you and a monkey.”

Stories in this magazine are short and must grab the attention-conflicted male reader. This lead in does.

NEXT WEEK
We want to see a packaged InDesign document and marvel at your delicate but intelligent selection of grid and choice of typefaces. Ideally we’d like to see a opening spread that shows a lead-in and a title. The rest of the body copy can be dummy text (not Loren Ipsum – never use this) for now – you can swap it with the real text once you’ve written it.

INSPIRATION & EXTRAS
Each week I throw up things I find that relate to what we’ve been discussing or working on that week. Sometimes it might be things that relate to your major assessment and sometimes just stuff I thought was worth seeing. If you find something you think we should be showing or something we just have to see let us know in class or throw an email over to me at matt@billyblue.com.au and I’ll get it up here or on the Bluni inspiration site.
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PREVIOUS EXAMPLES – AFTER DARK


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PREVIOUS EXAMPLES – MINT



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PREVIOUS EXAMPLES – GATEWAY

This class will be used to assess where you are at and what still needs to be done for your Research.

By start of class Week 7, you need to have;

Monogram
- monogram hand drawn sketches (at least one A4 page full per person in your team)
- 4 ‘buzz’ words that sum up your space. eg Water, Urban, Modern, Community etc…
- to have brainstormed the visuals and incorporated them into you monogram so the initials of your space have a secondary meaning that relates back to the personality of the space
- to ‘own’ one design each and to have developed it further
- an A3 printed page of your choosen monogram in Illustrator or InDesign with at least 15 variations of design development. We will be checking this!

Research
- LOCK IN YOUR SPACES!!! We want final names and intials of your space
- please bring everything you have researched so far. We will be checking this! By now, you should be two thirds through the research stage and be ready to move into the Analysis stage.

Try and do as many as possible!

- History of your space and where the name originates from
- History of the suburb (put in in context!) including quirky stories
- Maps and google earth/screen shots
- Photographs, drawings, imagery
- A ‘local’ identity interview - dead or alive!
- Interview users of the space, try to a range of target markets
- Council or Library research/interview
- Local business owners/employees
- A survey

Think about the presentations in Week 3, what you felt worked and what didn’t!

At this point you have decided on the space you want to bring back to life. You would’ve also started doing some research on the area and will be starting to understand what’s making it not work and what might be done. Now the team, or at least part of it, should be starting to think about giving it an identity.

Why give a space an identity? Firstly it’s a good way to start fostering some worth in the space. It will bring an inherent value to the spot and stimulate some pride in it. It is attractive for investors you may want to interest in the future and it gives a solid base from which you will build the new idea.

For this brief we are going to construct a Letter-mark logo for our space.
LETTER-MARK (Monogram)
A design of one or more letters, usually the initials of a name, used to identify a company, publication, person, object, or idea. Also known as a monogram. A monogram usually refers to the use of two or more letters from a name. A monogram may have signed the artistic products (sculptures, pieces of furniture, artwork etc) of craftsmen, especially when the guilds were involved. Kings and Queens used monograms as a way of showing the depth of their ownership, just as companies could be said to be doing that now.

Advantages
The letter-mark solves both mnemonic and legibility issues. It also remains easier to fit to a design than using the whole name or word-mark.
Disadvantages
Letter-marks are often masquerading as logos. Generic initials, treated in clever ways may look better on towels and glasses than on a corporate business card. Initials woven together have very little meaning. Most letter-marks depend on large-scale audience contact, high advertising spend and repeated viewing for recognition.

Designers using letter-marks often try to make the letters form a pictorial association with the product or service, thus suggesting more about the company and giving it a secondary meaning. Paul Rand’s Westinghouse design symbolises the origins of the appliances company that started out in the kitchen, namely stoves – also gives a crown to the company. Kodak is a flash and LG a smiling face? United Airlines created by Saul Bass in 1973. Nicknamed the tulip it was created to convey leadership and innovation.





BUILDING LETTER-MARKS
Like when we start designing anything, especially logos, we don’t want to start on the computer, a nice big empty page is perfect, and remember – thumbnails are as big as we need at this point.

Try using a black art-liner of 0.2 or 0.4 nib, it will mean that what ever you do will be set in stone and not able to be rubbed out. I like to use a 0.2 nib as it has more flex, unfortunately it also means that it breaks easy so have some spares ready.

Start with exploring the letters of your abbreviated name. The name in this case will most likely come from the original name of the space. What different ways can you draw the letters? Get all your ideas down; draw them in capital form, heavily styled, heavily simplified, script, block etc. What we are looking for is an understanding of the letters and their uniqueness.

Secondly we should start to play with the letters and how they interact with each other. How do they relate, can they fit together, overlap in some interesting and aesthetic way? At this point we are still playing with the letters and should not necessarily think the logo will just appear.

Lastly we should try to incorporate the visual ideas that resemble something the space represents. Could the letters correlate to form a visual representation in some way? Could we get the letters to mimic a belief or mission we hope for the space, or is it something more literal, for instance an old fishing dock in the shape of a fish?

Lets look at an example:

CASE STUDY – HANDSPRING (1998-2003)
Handspring was a company that produced software and hardware for personal digital assistants. It was founded by the makers of the original Palm Pilot who had become unhappy with the direction in which 3Com was taking the Palm industry.

To them 3Com was becoming too business minded and ignoring the social aspects that the Palm could offer. They wanted something for a younger market that exude youth, vitality and a breaking free of constraints.

In 1998 they turned to Mortensen Design to design something that would express those beliefs. P,J, Nidecker chose letter-marks as the basis for his design.

He begins with the basic letters: H and S but begins to focus more and more on the H alone. Arrows begin to appear to show the forward thinking of the company. He runs the letters together overlapping and joining up to show the integration of design and technology the company wants to promote. Towards the end he starts to incorporate springs in relation to the company’s use of ‘springboard’ models that expand PDA’s capabilities. It’s here that he decides to focus more.

Here we have a ‘H’ springing backwards. It was decided that this might be seen unfavorably as a company doing a back flip is never very good. Especially in the new technology market. Then we go into another spring. A coil unwinding. This was also seen as having negative connotations.

Next brings in some more energy and the idea of a chain reaction, much like a ball bouncing in the way that one idea leads onto the next idea which leads onto the next… The spring was brought back but this time the cross section of the spring was focused on. This was seen as being too abstract.

The final began as a ‘H’ resembling a person jumping in the air. When turned upside down though it became a person doing a cartwheel. This had more energy and more excitement and summed up what the company were trying to get across as their USP. The colours blue, green and yellow were brought in to add vibrancy and the box was removed to make the figure appear even freer.

Interestingly in 2003 they merged with Palm Inc. to become palmOne. Do you think this logo works as well?

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ASSESSMENT BRIEF 02

Course: BAPS

Subject: CD201 Design Research & Ideas Generation

Lecturer: Pete Worthington & Frances Ratford

Title of assessment: Create a Design Program for Presentation (Space Monogram)

Weighting: 20%

Date issued: Week 6

Due date: Week 8

Learning Outcomes/competencies being assessed:

· Integrate research methods with ideas generation (2)

· Analyse and interpret visual metaphors (4)

Description of assessment:

This assessment ties into the overall assessment of dead space. Within this component students are asked to put their research of chosen space and concept of what might be into the design of a monogram.

This monogram will serve as the first re-introduction to the space for the target market. Therefore it should incorporate key characteristics of what the target market needs and expects from the space as found through research.

This assessment is a solo project.

Instructions:

Students should produce a range of monograms based on letters taken from the original name of the space they are redesigning with their group.

Marking criteria:

· Evidence of understanding the importance of design programs.

· Consistency and clarity of message and letters.

· Ability to critically evaluate and analyse target market.

Submission instruction:

Students will present their monograms to the class. Presentations should be in a landscape PDF format and be designed consistently across all slides. Presenters should engage the audience and be prepared and practised without needing to read from the screen. From each group one monogram will be decided upon by the rest of the class in an acting client role. This selected monogram will be used in all future group assessments.

Deadlines

If you miss a class when a brief is delivered, the original deadline for the project will remain unless you apply, and are granted an extension.

In the absence an extension being granted, assessments handed in after the published deadline will not be eligible for feedback or appraisal. Late submission of assessments will incur a penalty of 10% of the total mark per day, including weekends (unless an extension has been granted or if due to illness or extenuating personal circumstances).

Assessments submitted late needs to be accompanied by a Late Submission form, which is available from Administration. The form is to be completed by the student, and signed off by Administration who will record the submission date and time. It is your responsibility to ensure the work is received by the lecturer, which is best done directly. If the lecturer is not available, leave the assessment in the lecturers pigeonhole.

If you hand in an assessment late due to illness or extenuating personal circumstances, the work must be submitted to your lecturer on your first day back at College. The assessment is to be accompanied by a Late Submission form with the required documented evidence attached, such as a doctor’s certificate, death notice, or letter from a legal representative or health professional.

Refer to the Student Handbook for a comprehensive account of assessment policies and procedures

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SPACE TARGET MARKET

Is it more of a night-time space used by kids?
Is it used by shoppers with prams and babies?
Is it full of dogs and their walkers?
Is it used by old people in the day to sit in the sun and chat?
Does it have a different weekend market?

Especially relevant in Sydney is the ethnic influence, does your spaces’ suburb have one; eg: Italians in Haberfield, Vietnamese in Parramatta, Jewish people in Bondi, Lebanese in Auburn, Chinese in Chatswood or Ashfield. This could help you make your design especially relevant.

You’re trying to identify the target market – the people who use it regularly as well as any shops or businesses. Remember when you were re-designing North Sydney and you spoke to park users; you want to do this again because they are a big part of the people you are designing your work for.

INSPIRATION

Some creative uses of space around the world.

The High Line, NYC
(http://www.thehighline.org/)

“When all sections are complete, the High Line will be a mile-and-a-half-long elevated park, running through the West Side neighborhoods of the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea and Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen. It features an integrated landscape, designed by landscape architects James Corner Field Operations, with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, combining meandering concrete pathways with naturalistic plantings. Fixed and movable seating, lighting, and special features are also included in the park.”

I Heart Kings X, Sydney
(http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/artandabout/ExhibitionsEvents/KingsCross/default.asp)

“Local residents and artists have been busy celebrating all facets of this iconic precinct and eclectic community with knitting graffiti, in an exciting project developed by Michelle McCosker and Alasdair Nicol from artist collective Reef Knot. Participants in weekly workshops have captured their Kings Cross in colour and stitch, with knitting as vibrant and diverse as the Cross itself. This fabric has been joined together to cover trees and poles, giving residents and visitors a surprising insight into one of Sydney’s most colourful precincts.”

Camden Bike Seats, London

Forgotten Songs, Angel Place, Sydney
(http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/10/04/1254590909546.html)

“At lunch we stumbled across an art & about installation called ‘Forgotten Songs’ in Angel Place, Sydney (just near Martin Place). The Installation has suspended bird cages plus the sounds of some of the birds which may have lived in the area before the city replaced their native habitats.”

St Pancras Station, London
(http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2007/oct/11/communities.architecture/)

“We wanted to make this something special, something that the rest of the railway network in Britain might aspire to,” says Rob Holden, chief executive of London and Continental Railways, the company that built and runs the British end of the Channel tunnel rail link. “It’s taken an enormous amount of long-term planning, but I think we’ve got a station every bit as glamorous as New York’s Grand Central, with the bonus that here you can see the trains. Now it’s time to think about a high-speed railway from St Pancras to Birmingham, Manchester and Scotland. Given the lack of engineers in Britain, the complexity of the structure of the modern railway business and the ups and downs of long-term investment, that’ll best be built in stages. But this is a pretty good start.”

Sydney Fastival, Sydney
(http://www.sydneyfestival.org.au/2010/Festival-First-Night/About/)

“Festival First Night returns on January 9 with an epic all embracing celebration of our Festival and our city. With the streets cleared of cars, the Festival explodes across the city with major international and local artists. Put on your dancing shoes and catch some of the biggest names in the Festival for FREE. In just two years Festival First Night has become a Sydney tradition! In 2010, the story continues with visionary director Nigel Jamieson creating an epic theatre of music, spectacle and surprise in our city centre.”

Any problems, go and see Peter in the AYC Office next to Cream.

What’s your redesign of a space publication about & who’s going to read it. So you’ve decided on a space which your team wants to redesign. Now comes the hard part.

You have to convince people who live and work in the area that your idea is good and your team is the right one to be commissioned to do the job. You will also have to make it look good enough for the owners/administrators of the space to take you seriously as a design group.

Your magazine must therefore talk to:

Residents – some will rent, some will own and they live in the area so will want to know what’s happening. Talk to them and find out what they would wish for.

Shop-owners – they will want to know how it affects their business. Will your design attract more customers for them. See what they think about the area.

Owners/administrators – there will be restrictions as to what they can do and you’ll need to find out from council or the heritage centre.

The present and the past – what happened before at this site, what was it like 100 years ago, who used the site, find people alive or dead who had some connection to the site and interview them for the mag. Libraries, council, heritage centre are a start but also people working locally of a certain age may be helpful.

Over the 24 or so pages of the mag, cover off:

• Name for space, logo and magazine title.

• Heritage of space. (History using text/pictures)

• Interviews with locals.

• Signature stories with living/dead characters.

• Explaining your idea with words/pictures.

• Technical drawing of space, showing it from a number of different angles.

• Rationale on why this idea is so great.

• Call to action. (we’ll talk more about that in future classes)

Firstly build a better picture of the area and secondly build content for the magazine. Content is a major thing and not something to be forgotten. Without content you can’t have a publication.

You might do interviews with local people, study council records, take photos, and begin some preliminary drawings. Work out who the target market is for your publication. How old are the local people, what sort of businesses are there?

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REVISIT – FACTORS OF LAYOUT

Back in SEMESTER 1 we talked about the factors of layout and things we should be aware of when putting together a publication.

Alignment

How things line up to each other on the single page and the spread.

Proximity and Tension

What sort of tension is created due to the proximity of other elements.

Balance

What sort of balance does the spread have and is that the right feeling you want to portray?

Contrast and White space

What’s the white space doing and is it helping or hindering communication.

Hierarchy and Scale

How are people reading the page? Is it the way you want them to?

Grids

Use one or die!

Make sure you are familiar with all of these again. By following the list it will make you more aware of what your layout is really saying and how a reader might interpret it.

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PRELIMINARY CONTENT LIST

To keep us moving along at the correct speed we need to start thinking about what this magazine is going to contain. We need to work out where our holes are, where we need to compress or decompress and find our flow. The best way to do this is to put together a preliminary content list.

The normal content list of a magazine is generally the last thing that gets done so you can go through the nearly completed magazine and check off article by article. The PCL is more of a wish list developing tool. No one is going to hold you to this list but it’s a great device for working out where you are and it’ll give us a good indication of what we still need to get done.

It’s a hard thing to do because you really have to stop and think page by page but it will act as a road map for the publication.

PAGINATION

Now this list can be done on the back of a used piece of paper and it doesn’t mater what it looks like but there is a few conventions you should adhere to. Make sure you include Cover (C), Inside Cover (IC), and their counterparts IBC and BC. Also you should acknowledge spreads as being separate pages but working visually together.

This is worth doing sooner than later. Do it now.

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RESEARCH WRITING

This week we are looking at some examples of writing from Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating’s ex-speechwriter Don Watson and his new book American Journeyswhere he drives and train-travels across the USA in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Specifically we are looking at how research can enrich narrative and the reading experience.

“Trinidad is the last town before the border of New Mexico. You put your credit card in the petrol pump and a sign flashes REMOVE CARD QUICK. On the ATM inside they’ve stuck on a sign that says: REMOVE CARD VERY SLOW. It’s just a little town of about 10,000 people. Bat Masterson was sheriff back in the days of the Sante Fe Trail when people were called Bat. In the 1960s a doctor started performing sex-change operations in Trinidad and the place became known as the “sex-change capital of the world”. It’s a conservative town but the people must have reckoned that being the capital of something was better than the capital of nothing”.

The first excerpt looks at his arrival in a small town and instantly sets up interesting stuff: the paradox of the card signs, Bat Masterson lived there for heaven’s sake and then the sex-change business. 1-2-3 pieces of information which research has revealed in what most travelers would dismiss as a small, boring town.This is a technique to remember when writing your interviews and history piece.

The second except covers observation. The writer speculates on a scene as he drives by a truck with a couple in the front seat.

“Soon after, I passed a big Dutch Star Winnebago with a jeep in tow. Driver and passenger sat in glum silence. It was a Vemeer on wheels. I got the feeling that they hadn’t spoken since they set off six months ago; that he might have been counting their failings, she remembering the hymns they sang as children; that they were silently winding back their lives, sifting through the grievances, the names and faces of other ones they might have married. And then one day they’d go home.”

The writer sets up the scene of the big Winnebago and the couple within as a Vemeer painting; the sadness is already palpable. Then he speculates from observation of his own life and others on how this couple may be relating. In true terms he may be completely wrong but he’s using his skills as a writer and his humanity as an observer to create a memorable vignette which acts as a buffer from the on going journey and allows the reader to reflect. Describing a scene in this way is a good scene setter when writing up an interview.

EXERCISE IN CLASS:

This is to show how to write up an interview, find a catchy headline and write a leadin.

Students break into groups and the chosen writer in the group must interview 1 of the group members and write up a short interview revealing something unusual about them –(60 mins)

Week 8 we’ll look at more Titles and Lead-ins.

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A RECAP ON ASSESSMENT ONE

Have another look at the others in your group, and then check out the other class’ too.

Tuesday 2-6pm

Team Lui – an amazing image! It really captures the mood, plant life, scale, human element, even the shops in the background. When you presented this, you could feel the audience were impressed. Perfect! Well done. We’d like to see more at this level Teams!

Team Glenn – The sketch was a bit small and didn’t show well on screen. Make the most of the space on the page! These benches are lovely though…

Team Jana – A great visual perspective of the space, although colour would give it more of a WOW factor! Am to have (neat!) preliminary sketches in black and white and then impress them with the final image. I’d take the heading off – its very distracting…

Team Kendra – Nice illustration style, although avoid the watermark in the background. Always be aware of the space you are designing for – in this case a landscape page – so the design sits well within it. You could bleed the trees and path off the side to fix this…

Team Louise – great presentation style, very minimal and professional. This drawings are lovely but lacking the WOW factor… Make them BIGGER and add colour/watercolour to really tell the story of your space…

Team Nina – I thought the visual links through the presentation worked well towards your Team ‘brand’ but could be simplified to look more professional. This page should be all about that final image, and nothing else. The pink is overpowering and the circles are distracting – take them off! Also your plan of the space (the sketch at the bottom) needs a lot more work, detail and its own page…

Team Randle – really neat presentation style, unique and professional. Well done! This page was ok, but probably your weakest… For the next one make it BIGGER so we can see it, and make it a bit more emotive… The seating and vent covers are great, I would like to see them in more detail…

Team Sarah – nice scale and works well on the page. The illustration style is lovely, although I would have like to see some more close up. This sat half way between a plan and  a perspective drawing.

Wednesday 8.30am-12.30pm

Team Elena – Great work! These look really professional and convincing. The rock garden looks great.. an achievement in itself! The human element is important as it shows scale and how they interact with your design. Thumbs up! Other teams – we don’t expect you to be able to use the 3D software but if someone in your team can, make the most of that skill.

Team Estee – This wasn’t your overall slide but I wanted to show the other teams how the material side of things can be considered within your sketches. This works really well and communicates yourt ideas perfectly. Well done!

Team Faith – The illustration here is really emotive – well done (Anna!). I like the comparison between the photo and the illustration but I think you still need a WOW page to blow the client away!

Team Leche – I love the simplicity of this drawing, but not as a final selling point. This is a great lead up to a final page, full colour, perspective drawing rendering… I think it would work better on white too, as the boarder is really strong.

Team Matt – What to say! This rendering is great, good energy, love the side walk! As a image its is very impressive. As part of the project, I’m not so sure about budget/practicality/environment/or anything related to the research! (The dogs are covering the uncoverable vents…) It does have the WOW factor though…

Team Mia – Lets make it bigger, full screen. The colour seems a bit ‘patchy’ but does communicate the idea. Pump it up a little and it could be great…

Team Shin – Great drawing but it feels like the main colour selling point is on the next page. Don’t get rid of this – its great, but expand on it to get a final image that really knocks your socks off!

Overall, a good job. Have a look at other people’s, what works, what doesn’t and use this to get the next one perfect. If you have any questions, come and grab me after class.

Course: BAPS

Unit: CD201 Design Research & Ideas Generation
Assessment Title: North Sydney Park Group Re-design
Assessment Number: 1 of 3
Weighting: 20%
Due Date: Week 3

Learning outcomes being assessed
•    Discuss the concepts & theories of ideas generation through design research
•    Integrate research methods with ideas generation
•    Develop core representations in visual communications and explain key concepts involved.
*    Apply an understanding of business practices including the ability to implement projects and work productively as a member of a team.
Description:
For this assessment, students work in groups of no more than 5 people and are required to research and re-design a North Sydney park before presenting a design outcome at start of class, Week 3.

Details:
The space chosen is a worn-out area which could be improved. You are required to work within a team to use Primary and Secondary research methods to build a network of constraints to work within. With this research, the group should plan and propose a re-design that will work within the these limits while still offering a fresh design result. During this time, the group must also agree on a space they personally wish to re-design and present their initial ideas on Week 5 backed up by photos and surface research. This unique space does not have to be a park – it could be a T junction, an alleyway, a spare plot of ground – anywhere which is accessible for all team members.

Instructions:
Students should be organised into groups of 5 who should research relevant details about the area and start to build a researched background. To assist in this, students may speak to Paul or John on Security at MLC (M-F after 10am). There is also an archivist at Stanton Library (M-F 1-5pm only) who has photos and historical details of the area, Other research should include people using the park and businesses surrounding the park. Following this research, teams should be prepared to present a 10 minute PDF presentation showing concept drawings for their new design and an overview of the target market gained from research. Sections should include : splash & introduction, primary research, secondary research, re-design concept and conclusion.

Use of non-original material:
In this report you may quote artists and media reports but you MUST reference all material you copy. Written work that is not referenced or quoted is considered your own. If this happens to be copied text, then that will be considered as plagiarism. Plagiarism will receive a FAIL. You may also use outside visual image sources, but again, they must be referenced.

Marking Criteria:
This assessment task is worth 20% of your overall mark. You will be marked on the following:

The creative process (20%):
- Is there evidence of research and readings?
- Have you produced a concept from a clear understanding of the brief?
Communication of ideas (40%):
- Does your idea effectively communicate what is required from the assessment brief?
- Is there enough work to support the brief?

Elements and craft (20%):
- Is text engaging, clearly readable, using correct grammar and spelling?
- Are images and/or other media relevant to communication, generating learning, emotion or excitement?

Professionalism and presentation (20%):
- Is the work presented clearly named, on time and to the quality expected?
- Have you shown a consistent and positive attitude towards group discussion and class work?

Submission details:
Each presentation is to be for 10 minutes and each member of the group is required to present a section.
Presentations should be in a landscape PDF format and be designed consistently across all slides.
Text should be kept to a minimum and images should be correct resolution.
Presenters should engage the audience and be prepared and practiced without needing to read from the screen.
Assessment Policies and Procedures
•    Deadlines: It is your responsibility to organise your time effectively in order to meet deadlines. If you are absent from class when a brief is delivered, it is your responsibility to obtain a copy of the brief from the lecturer, and the original deadline for the project will remain unless an extension has been approved.
•    Extensions: If you anticipate that you’ll need an extension for a project before the published deadline you must apply for the extension using an Application for Extension form.  These forms are available from Student Services and the Learning Portal.  The extension must be approved by the Program Director at least three days before the deadline.  Extension can only be granted due to compassionate or compelling circumstances that are generally beyond your control and which have an impact upon your course progress or wellbeing.
•    Late assessments: Late assessments are to be submitted at the Resource Centre, and need to be accompanied by a Late Submission form, which is available from the Resource Centre and Learning Portal.  The form is to be completed by the student, and signed off by Resource Centre staff.  If you hand work in late due to illness or compassionate or compelling circumstances, attach documentary evidence to the Late Submission form.  In such cases, the work must be submitted on your first day back at College.  Late work attracts a penalty of 10% per day, unless the lateness is due to compassionate or compelling circumstances.
•    Reassessments: If you do not pass an assessment, and obtain a grade of
45-49%, you can request a reassessment from your lecturer within 5 working days of receiving the result.  Only one reassessment can be offered for each failed assessment.  A successful reassessment can only be awarded a Pass.
•    Academic Integrity: Any form of plagiarism or other type of academic misconduct may endanger your position at the College.  Behaving with academic integrity means valuing honesty in learning and submitting assignments and exams that are all your own work (except for reference material acknowledged appropriately), and you never help others to cheat on assignments and exams.  (Refer to the Think: Colleges Academic Writing Guide in the Student Handbook for appropriate use of other people’s work).

Students should refer to the current student handbook for more detailed information about their participation in Billy Blue courses.

· Evidence of problem solving and project planning.

· Spelling, grammar and basic design skills (pixel use etc.) on final presentation (Wk 3)

· Consistency and clarity on final presentation (Wk 3)

Submission instruction:

Each presentation is to be for 10 minutes and each member of the group is required to present a section. Presentations should be in a landscape PDF format and be designed consistently across all slides. Text should be kept to a minimum and images should be correct resolution. Presenters should engage the audience and be prepared and practised without needing to read from the screen.

Deadlines:
If you miss a class when a brief is delivered, the original deadline for the project will remain unless you apply, and are granted an extension.

In the absence an extension being granted, assessments handed in after the published deadline will not be eligible for feedback or appraisal. Late submission of assessments will incur a penalty of 10% of the total mark per day, including weekends (unless an extension has been granted or if due to illness or extenuating personal circumstances).

Assessments submitted late needs to be accompanied by a Late Submission form, which is available from Administration. The form is to be completed by the student, and signed off by Administration who will record the submission date and time. It is your responsibility to ensure the work is received by the lecturer, which is best done directly. If the lecturer is not available, leave the assessment in the lecturers pigeonhole.

If you hand in an assessment late due to illness or extenuating personal circumstances, the work must be submitted to your lecturer on your first day back at College. The assessment is to be accompanied by a Late Submission form with the required documented evidence attached, such as a doctor’s certificate, death notice, or letter from a legal representative or health professional.

Refer to the Student Handbook for a comprehensive account of assessment policies

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ASSESSMENT BRIEF 02

Course: BAPS

Course    Bachelor of Applied Design (DM)
Session    3
Unit    CD201 Design Research & Ideas Generation
Assessment Title    Create a monogram for your chosen space.
Assessment Number    2 of 3
Weighting    20%
Due Date    Week 8

Learning outcomes being assessed
•    Integrating research  methods with ideas generation.
•    Analyse and interpret visual metaphors.

Description:
For this assessment, you are required to create a monogram for your chosen space. This assessment ties into the overall assessment of a worn-out area. Within this component, students are asked to put their research of a chosen space and concept of what might-be into the design of the monogram.
This monogram will serve as the first re-introduction to the space for the target market. It should therefore incorporate key characteristics of what the target market needs and expects from the space as found through research.

Instructions:
Students should produce a range of monograms based on letters taken from the original name of the space they are redesigning within their group.

Use of non-original material:
In this report you may quote artists and media reports but you MUST reference all material you copy. Written work that is not referenced or quoted is considered your own. If this happens to be copied text, then that will be considered as plagiarism. Plagiarism will receive a FAIL. You may also use outside visual image sources, but again, they must be referenced.

Marking Criteria:
This assessment task is worth 20% of your overall mark. You will be marked on the following:

The creative process (20%):
- Is there evidence of research and readings?
- Have you produced a concept from a clear understanding of the brief?

Communication of ideas (40%):
- Does your idea effectively communicate what is required from the assessment brief?
- Is there enough work to support the brief?

Elements and craft (20%):
- Is text engaging, clearly readable, using correct grammar and spelling?
- Are images and/or other media relevant to communication, generating learning, emotion or excitement?

Professionalism and presentation (20%):
- Is the work presented clearly named, on time and to the quality expected?
- Have you shown a consistent and positive attitude towards group discussion and class work?

Submission details:
Each student will be required to present their ideas for monograms to the class for voting on Week 8. Presentations should be in a landscape PDF format and be designed consistently across all slides. Presenters should engage the audience and be prepared and practised without needing to read from the screen. From each group, one monogram will be decided upon by the rest of the class in an acting client role. This selected monogram will be used in all future group assessments.

Assessment Policies and Procedures
•    Deadlines: It is your responsibility to organise your time effectively in order to meet deadlines. If you are absent from class when a brief is delivered, it is your responsibility to obtain a copy of the brief from the lecturer, and the original deadline for the project will remain unless an extension has been approved.
•    Extensions: If you anticipate that you’ll need an extension for a project before the published deadline you must apply for the extension using an Application for Extension form.  These forms are available from Student Services and the Learning Portal.  The extension must be approved by the Program Director at least three days before the deadline.  Extension can only be granted due to compassionate or compelling circumstances that are generally beyond your control and which have an impact upon your course progress or wellbeing.
•    Late assessments: Late assessments are to be submitted at the Resource Centre, and need to be accompanied by a Late Submission form, which is available from the Resource Centre and Learning Portal.  The form is to be completed by the student, and signed off by Resource Centre staff.  If you hand work in late due to illness or compassionate or compelling circumstances, attach documentary evidence to the Late Submission form.  In such cases, the work must be submitted on your first day back at College.  Late work attracts a penalty of 10% per day, unless the lateness is due to compassionate or compelling circumstances.
•    Reassessments: If you do not pass an assessment, and obtain a grade of
45-49%, you can request a reassessment from your lecturer within 5 working days of receiving the result.  Only one reassessment can be offered for each failed assessment.  A successful reassessment can only be awarded a Pass.
•    Academic Integrity: Any form of plagiarism or other type of academic misconduct may endanger your position at the College.  Behaving with academic integrity means valuing honesty in learning and submitting assignments and exams that are all your own work (except for reference material acknowledged appropriately), and you never help others to cheat on assignments and exams.  (Refer to the Think: Colleges Academic Writing Guide in the Student Handbook for appropriate use of other people’s work).

Students should refer to the current student handbook for more detailed information about their participation in Billy Blue courses.

__

Course    Bachelor of Applied Design (DM)
Session: 3
Unit: CD201 Design Research & Ideas Generation
Assessment Title: Design program refinement. (Redesign of chosen space)
Assessment Number: 3 of 3
Weighting: 60%
Interim presentation: 25%
Print Handin: 35%
Due Date: Week 11/Week 14
Learning outcomes being assessed:
•    Discuss the concepts and theories of ideas generation through design research.
•    Integrate research methods with ideas generation
•    Develop core representations in visual communications and explain key concepts involved
•    Analyse & interpret visual metaphors
•    Apply an understanding of business practices including the ability to implement projects and work productively as a member of a team.

Description:
Your team is requited to put together a 24 page booklet promoting the space you have chosen to redesign. This space does NOT need to be  a park but an area which could work as well if it is an alleyway, T junction or vacant lot. Through researching the space thoroughly, you will give it a new visual identity outlined in the booklet.

Details:
This report  should be pitched somewhere between a brochure and a magazine. You’ll present a printed black and white rough of the booklet in Week 11 for receive 25% of your total mark and after taking criticism, prepare your final one for submission on Week 14 to gain a further 35% of your total mark. The booklet must be printed, bound and contain 24 pages. Students will be marked on their ability to provide interesting and arresting layouts that are in line with their target market’s needs.
Students are expected to write all their own body copy with all grammar and spelling checked and correct. Students should also write their own headlines and choose their own pull quotes and images. Attention must also be paid to typography and appropriate choice of fonts and style. Packaged Indesign folders are also due and will be market on their ability to be opened on a different computer. The booklet should also contain a plan detailing the new space in an easy to understand format.

Instructions:
Because of the complexity of this brief, you will be working in teams of 5 with one person chosen as Creative Director. Each week the CD will speak to lecturers and pass on feedback to the group. It is essential that all groups remain functional due to the amount of work and need for clear and consistent communication. It is imperative that all team members visit the chosen space as soon as possible.

Presentation:
As well as a printed booklet, team presentations will be a formal affair using PDFs as in Assessments 1 and 2. Each member should be prepared to present a section or part section of the presentation. Sections should include: splash and introduction, primary research, secondary research, the re-design concept and a conclusion.

Use of non-original material:
In this report you may quote artists and media reports but you MUST reference all material you copy. Written work that is not referenced or quoted is considered your own. If this happens to be copied text, then that will be considered as plagiarism. Plagiarism will receive a FAIL. You may also use outside visual image sources, but again, they must be referenced.

Marking Criteria:
This assessment task is worth 60% of your overall mark. You will be marked on the following:

The creative process (20%):
- Is there evidence of research and readings?
- Have you produced a concept from a clear understanding of the brief?

Communication of ideas (40%):
- Does your idea effectively communicate what is required from the assessment brief?
- Is there enough work to support the brief?

Elements and craft (20%):
- Is text engaging, clearly readable, using correct grammar and spelling?
- Are images and/or other media relevant to communication, generating learning, emotion or excitement?

Professionalism and presentation (20%):
- Is the work presented clearly named, on time and to the quality expected?
- Have you shown a consistent and positive attitude towards group discussion and class work?

Submission details
Week 11: Presentation by  team of final idea. Black and white print out to be submitted for discussion and feedback from lecturers. This is work 25% of your total mark.

Week 14: Handin of your final booklet for marking. This is worth 35% of your total mark.

Assessment Policies and Procedures
•    Deadlines: It is your responsibility to organise your time effectively in order to meet deadlines. If you are absent from class when a brief is delivered, it is your responsibility to obtain a copy of the brief from the lecturer, and the original deadline for the project will remain unless an extension has been approved.
•    Extensions: If you anticipate that you’ll need an extension for a project before the published deadline you must apply for the extension using an Application for Extension form.  These forms are available from Student Services and the Learning Portal.  The extension must be approved by the Program Director at least three days before the deadline.  Extension can only be granted due to compassionate or compelling circumstances that are generally beyond your control and which have an impact upon your course progress or wellbeing.
•    Late assessments: Late assessments are to be submitted at the Resource Centre, and need to be accompanied by a Late Submission form, which is available from the Resource Centre and Learning Portal.  The form is to be completed by the student, and signed off by Resource Centre staff.  If you hand work in late due to illness or compassionate or compelling circumstances, attach documentary evidence to the Late Submission form.  In such cases, the work must be submitted on your first day back at College.  Late work attracts a penalty of 10% per day, unless the lateness is due to compassionate or compelling circumstances.
•    Reassessments: If you do not pass an assessment, and obtain a grade of
45-49%, you can request a reassessment from your lecturer within 5 working days of receiving the result.  Only one reassessment can be offered for each failed assessment.  A successful reassessment can only be awarded a Pass.
•    Academic Integrity: Any form of plagiarism or other type of academic misconduct may endanger your position at the College.  Behaving with academic integrity means valuing honesty in learning and submitting assignments and exams that are all your own work (except for reference material acknowledged appropriately), and you never help others to cheat on assignments and exams.  (Refer to the Think: Colleges Academic Writing Guide in the Student Handbook for appropriate use of other people’s work).

Students should refer to the current student handbook for more detailed information about their participation in Billy Blue courses.

–

RECOMMENDED READING

Gill B. (2001) Unspecial Effects for Graphic Designers. Graphis

Kliment S. (1998) Writing for Design Professionals: A Guide to Writing Successful Proposals. W. W. Norton & Company

Tomato (1996) Process. Thames & Hudson

Tomato (2000) Mmm…Skyscraper I Love You. Booth-Clibborn

Venezky M. (2004) It is Beautiful…Then Gone. Princeton Architectural Press

Vrontikis P (2002) Inspiration=Ideas: A Creativity Sourcebook for Graphic Designers. Rockport Publishers

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WEBSITES

www.phirebrush.com/

www.idea-mag.com/home/index_en.shtml

www.tomato.co.uk/home.html

This is your first visual presentation to the client so it’s important you make a good first impression. Albert Mehrabian, a psychologist who focused on how people react to information found that 55% of what is taken in is visual, 38% vocal and only 7% text. So text heavy presentations are out.

Remember what we will be looking for here and what clients will be expecting from you in the future is professionalism. This means that they will want a clear structure to the presentation, understandable images and finally…a first-class idea. So lets break that down:

Structure
1//Splash Page: It’s good to start off with a slide that can stay up there for some time, you never know when the client might want to ask you a random question, or you might have to wait until the clients group is all there before starting, either way it’s good to have something up there for them to look at.

This splash page should be something that sums up the project. Don’t give anything away, but you should take this time to get the client in the right frame of mind for what you’re about to present.

Think of this as working in much the same way a splash page on a website works; intrigues, sets up mood and leaves a good first impression.

2//Introduction slides: Lead the client in slowly (not too slowly) – go over the problem again, show them that you understand what they need to achieve. You may be restating the obvious here so use your common sense to know when you might be overstating.

Like a comedian you need to keep your eye on the audience and judge their reaction. If they look bored then speed this bit up, if they look interested then go into more detail.

3//Research: Talk about what you found out and from what source. This can always be a real eye opener for the client, you may have found out stuff that they didn’t know. Make sure you credit your sources and make sure you keep everything target specific, not too many tangents.

4//The Idea: Start with a bang, this is it, this is what you’ve been paid for, so start this part with an image that will really knock their socks off.

Explain what you are proposing, show your concept drawings, and discuss each aspect so the client fully understands. This might be spread over a few slides where you can go into each little detail and describe how each thing works.

5//Conclusion: Restate all the benefits and show them why they were right to choose your team to work with them on this job.
CONCEPT DRAWINGS
Using pencil drawings is fine if they look professional. If they don’t then use something else that will look better. How obvious is that?!!

Trace buildings that already exist, take photos of the area and trace them. Scan in your photos or drawings and vectorise them. Scan in your drawings in as bitmap and colour them. Add plants, trees, people, dogs… to make it seem more life like. Trace them or stylise them.

No-one is expecting you to be an A-grade free hand penciler. That’s an artist and they go to art school. As a designer you can use all the tricks you can think of, cheat, copy, steal, so you can get your idea looking as good as it can be.
Why would you want to show your idea any other way?

The client is interested in the idea and that’s what you need to show – in its best possible light.

Lets look at some examples:
These two are great examples of how a quick trace from a photo and some new elements can give a great idea of what the finished product might look like.


This next one is a little bit more freestyle but works just as well. Introducing some of your own drawing style is a good way to stand out from the competition.

We are not expecting this – although having said that, if you love using Maya or similar programs – feel free – as long as you meet the deadline and show clearly what you are proposing.

I think we can all do better than the one below. This is a great production drawing for you to work out what is going where but not good enough to impress a client.

ALSO DONT FORGET
At the end of your presentation of North Sydney you need to show us where you intend to redesign next. We’ll need to know why and where.

The why is your groups opinion, but make sure you can back it up with an intelligent argument. Thewhere you can show through Google maps or your own photography – perhaps both. Whichever way you decide to show it, make sure you can give a convincing message as to why this space needs to be redesigned.
TIPS ON FINDING YOUR SPACE
1. Find somewhere which is reasonably easy for the WHOLE team to get to. It’s no good choosing on in Manly when the team lives in the Eastern burbs.
2. Try and find somewhere which is not a public park – it could be a T junction in Newtown or an underused carpark behind shops. Open your eyes to public spaces that are not being used correctly.
3. Once you find a potential space look around and see who is using it or who could potentially use it. What sort of target market are they – is it one you want to work on?

Good luck!

INSPIRATION & EXTRAS
If you find something you think we should be showing or something we just have to see let us know in class or throw an email over to me at frances.ratford@lecturers.billyblue.edu.au.

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