The Design Process

1. The Design Process

2. Good morning! Many of you may have, at some point, had me tell you to work on some sketches of ideas before you begin a project to get your ideas out. We are going to use that now! The point of this new �project� is to help you better work through your ideas, develop them, and get them down on paper!

3. In order to do that, we have to learn about� THE DESIGN PROCESS Please take NOTES and ask any questions that you may have! We�re going to go through the steps, from brainstorming to sketching to reworking final ideas!

4. The Process! The same basic process is used to design EVERYTHING�..it all has to do with: CONCEPT or INTENT �the Idea� � what you want to do PROCESS the steps you go thru to create something PRODUCT Does your final product fulfill what your original concept was?

5. #1 � The CONCEPT This is YOUR BASIC IDEA The concept is the most important part of the design process. The results are only as good as the ideas that originate them

6. #2 � The PROCESS This is where you give form to your concept and the work gets done. You can never tell what might happen along the way. Flexibility and pushing yourself are as important as artistic skills. There should be changes made and reworking of ideas at this stage. It is VERY rare that you will use your first idea as your final product.

7. # 3 - PRODUCT Only when the end result of the process meets the expectations of the concept is the project successful 

8. In class� This project is planned so you will use all of the design steps to introduce you to this new process. In subsequent projects, all of the steps may not be used. But you WILL be using parts of this process for all subsequent work done in this class. The process is flexible enough to be used in almost any situation, NOT limited to ART.

9. Your assignment...(in a nutshell!) You are going to represent a new fictional �company�. You are to determine WHAT this company does/what they create or do You are going to compile a list of things that describe this company � who it�s target customer is, what �look� they are going for, etc You are going to recruit a �graphic designer� to create a LOGO for your new company. Let them know what your VISION is, colors you�d like to work with, imagery you�d like to use.....write down as much info as you can to help the artist! Do not be TOO specific...you still want the artist to have some creative freedom!

10. Next Your company�s wishes will be randomly assigned to a designer. Each of YOU will also be a designer! You will receive a company�s COMMISSION and work to create something as close as possible to what they are looking for. You will be required by your �client� to brainstorm, to do sketches, and to come up with a rough sketch of the logo that incorporates some color experimentation. You will then meet with your client and have them evaluate how close you got to their VISION. At this stage, you will make revisions to your logo based on the client�s wishes, and create a FINAL PRODUCT.

11. LOGOs Represents the brand Graphic, simple, eye catching MUST incorporate color Try to STAY AWAY from TEXT! Focus on the image/shapes/colors!!

13. SYMBOLs What is a SYMBOL? A SYMBOL is simple, clear and does not contain extraneous information (excessive detail, etc) It REPRESENTS what you imagine as the characteristics of that particular object or thing, maybe what it means to you. It can STAND FOR something, such as peace, love, etc�. CAN BE USED AS A LOGO!

14. Some symbols�

15. Symbols� What is the difference between a SYMBOL and a PICTURE? A PICTURE contains detail, background, lots of information. It is realistic and may not have much �personality� or show certain characteristics of the object/thing

16. SYMBOL vs PICTURE

17. Why do we need to know this? You are creating LOGOS using simple shapes, bold colors, and possibly symbols. You are NOT drawing a picture, creating a scene or environment, or going to be using a lot of detail.

18. Sample Process

19. BRAINSTORMING : Start by making a list of words that describe the company & its vision to you both physically and emotionally. The more words you list, the deeper you need to go into yourself. The best ideas are not always the most obvious. You are welcome to brainstorm with those around you � they may have different experiences and ideas than you! Concept

20. Editing: Your list will contain some terms that are more important than others. Go through the list and rate the words as most important, useful, useless, etc.. Establishing a hierarchy will help you make a more meaningful symbol Circle the words that you feel are going to help the most! Concept

21. THUMBNAIL SKETCHES These are SMALL, simple drawings You can fit 6 -10 of them on a piece of paper. It is important that they be drawn quickly since you want to record your ideas while they are fresh in your mind Do not make them detailed, finished sketches!!! Each image can suggest different versions of the same idea OR a new idea. You need to put them all down on paper as quick as you can in a stream-of-consciousness style. Process

25. Process Typically, a series of thumbnails will start "fishing" for an idea with a series of mostly unrelated ideas. As you get into the process, you will find certain ideas that you like more than others. Take these ideas and modify and change them until you get some sketches that you really like and think you may want to use as your final idea.

27. FORMATTING (composition) Decide which sketch you are most likely to develop and draw a rectangle around it. This is a lot like cropping in that you will decide how the image will fit onto the paper. Will it be more to the right, or left, or�..? It will help you decide how large to make the image and where to put it on the page. Experiment with how the image will fit on the page in the thumbnail stage. THIS IS JUST LIKE COMPOSITION!!!! Process

28. COLOR Your thumbnails are the best place to experiment with value and color relationships. It is much faster to color in a thumbnail than a full size drawing. Choose color(s) for contrast and impact. Also remember that colors evoke emotional and physical responses from people! THINK about your choices! Keep color to a MINIMUM; you can use THREE colors, max!

29. The ROUGH The first full-sized sketch of the image is called a rough because it is just that � a rough outline of an idea!!! Think about COMPOSITION! The first rough is a sketch that enlarges the thumbnail to the full size you�d like it to be. The image is then refined through a series of steps until all of the design problems are solved. Process

30. REFINING the IMAGE Simply drawing the thumbnail larger is usually not enough. As the image gets larger it also must be refined. More information often needs to be added and some parts may need to be adjusted or reconsidered. Try adding color here Process

33. You are going to create ONE initial rough sketch Your will then make modifications and try color schemes. 2nd rough will be DIFFERENT somehow from your 1st. You CAN do more roughs if you feel you need to modify more!! You then will again modify this rough and make changes and turn it into your FINAL after you meet with your �client�. Process

34. During all of the preceding operations it is important that the results of each step be checked against the concept, or original idea. You may need to make changes in the form to meet the expectations of the concept

37. Lastly, CRAFTSMANSHIP Are there any extra marks, guide lines, smears, finger prints or dirty spots that can be erased to make the composition cleaner? Fix these! Is the logo placed in the most appropriate place on the page? Is there too much space around the image making it look lost or unimportant? COMPOSITION!

38. Your Assignment for this Week - Design! You are using black, white and max of THREE colors. SIZE - The finished product will be (at least) either 10 x 10 (square) or 8 x 12 (rectangle). Can be bigger.

39. MATERIALS The logo can be made out of construction paper or drawn with pen/marker and ink. It must be NEAT! NO colored pencils or paint or crayons. We want BOLD, solid & consistent color here!

40. Make sure� All of the parts of the process for this project are completed AND TURNED IN, starting with the thumbnail sketches and including all of your rough drawings These will ALL be part of your grade

41. Tuesday Determine what type of company you are part of, what they do/make Create a �vision� and a list that will loosely guide the artist in making a logo tailored to this vision DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THIS When you are done, bring it up to me & I will give you your new client to create a logo for. BRAINSTORM a written list of ideas � work on thumbnail sketches

42. Wednesday - 1 � Make sure you do your FULL PAGE of brainstorming. Write WORDS�.min of 15, but more is better! Circle the best words that you think will help you 2 � Start your thumbnail sketches Minimum of 8 Use your words to help with your sketches! Some must have color experiments on them Choose your best sketch and FORMAT it 3 � Start on your FIRST ROUGH�only black & white