*This is in no way a guide or a "how to". This is simply an article describing my process and what I feel matters in thoughtful graphic design.
What makes good graphic design? Visually it looks great. Complimentary colors, fun font, fancy little symbol. Yeah, these are all great things and part of the process. But, what makes GREAT graphic design? This is the question that takes some time to formulate an answer too.
Conceptualize -
When I take the time to conceptualize a design, I like to formulate an idea of how I want to represent the vibe of the company. The flow of the design, hard or soft edges, bubbly or edgy typeface, bright loud colors, muted soft colors, analytical or creative, logo graphic or just text, typeface and font mixing, opacity of graphic elements, witty or "straight-to-the-point" brand name. All of these are just a small list of questions I ask myself with every graphic I produce. The conceptualization stage in producing high-quality, thoughtful graphics is critical to the process. This can take hours if not days to create multiple variations that need to be whittled down to a winner. When the process is followed correctly, you can guarantee that a sound and thoughtful design will be produced as the end result.
Familiarity -
The logo, or symbol, needs to appropriately portray some type of familiarity with the brands name as it is enhancing what is already written on the screen. This is very important, and actually utilizes some psychology. According to Sam N. of the Psychology Dictionary [1] , the definition of familiarity is as follows;
"a generic feeling in which a situation, event, place, person or object directly provokes a subjective feeling of recognition which we then believe to be a memory. As a result, we recognize "it".
Knowing how the process of familiarity works will give me an extra edge when producing thoughtful graphics. A simple example would be a paintbrush as a symbol for an art store, or a vehicle to represent a car dealership. Taking that information is the first layer to creating some sort of familiarity inside of the entire graphic. That first layer is crucial, but I like to dig a little deeper. What makes your brand different from others? How can you add in just the right amount of personalization while still holding true to the brand design? These are important questions that are part of the process.
Completion -
The final stage to producing a high-quality, thoughtful, intentional, and creative graphic design package. I started by conceptualizing how I wanted the design to feel. Thoughtfully analyzing every aspect of the design to produce a starting project to build upon. I visualized how the design would represent the company, how the consumer would feel when looking at the design. Painstakingly scrubbing design after design until BAM.. I finally produce a design package that accurately represents the company. I made sure to view the psychological side of the project. Creating a design that sparks a level of familiarity with the consumer that represents the brand. This is the completion phase. The next step is to create cohesive graphic assets that stay on brand which includes colors, typeface, font, shapes, and layout.
Put it all together -
Let's analyze an example design I have created for my portfolio. I chose to create a design package for a Research Organization called "AMRI" - Advanced Molecular Research Institute.
The first step was deciding the colors and typeface of the main text in the logo. I wanted to have a tri-color palate that incorporates blue, the color for Nitrogen. After some research, I found the color matching convention known as CPK [2].
"The CPK part comes from the initials of the scientists who first used the colors to match the elements. Corey, Pauling, and Koltun. In 1952, Robert Corey and Linus Pauling used a basic color code with their models. This color scheme covers the atoms in a great majority of basic organic chemistry molecules, but obviously not all of them. Walter Koltun applied for a patent for a molecule set in 1962 to extend the color list to more elements."
With this information in mind I chose the three colors I wanted to work with. This included a blue, a light gray, and a dark gray. Perfect striking color balance. But what about the typeface? The feel I want is bold, tight, blocky, and symmetrical for the "AMRI". I landed on Decalotype Bold, which accurately represents the look I was wanted to achieve. For the alternate logo image, I wanted to write out the entire name of the organization. For this part of the design package I still wanted something slightly bold, but with a bit more room the breath. But, I wanted to stay away from any typefaces that looked too brittle or slim. I found that Sarabun Semibold accented the Decalotype Bold very well. Alright, things are going very well it seems. Lastly, I need an image that creates familiarity with the consumer. Molecular is our strong keyword here, followed by research, institute, then advanced. Based on that, I want to get a simplistic asset of a DNA string, or a molecule.
Now that I have all of the pieces together, I can start to combine them to create a logo that represents the organization I am creating for. I want to be conscious of how I plan to stack the elements together. Whether that be side by side or one on top of the other, each method will produce a different outcome.
The first variation of the logo is the icon stacked on top of the abbreviated organization name;
Now, I want to create a second variation that can be used for print or other professional reasons where having the name completely typed out is appropriate;
That completes the development from conceptualization to completion. Each step is thoughtfully curated for the brand that I am creating for. From colors and typeface, to shapes and layout, it all plays a significant role in the end result. If you made it this far, I hope you found some insight into my world of graphic design. I appreciate you for reading. Have a great evening, and be on the lookout for my next blog post.
-Devon
Sources:
[1] - N., Sam M.S., "FAMILIARITY," in PsychologyDictionary.org, May 11, 2013, https://psychologydictionary.org/familiarity/ (accessed April 4, 2023).
[2] - Corey and Pauling’s original model description
Robert B. CoreyandLinus Pauling
Review of Scientific Instruments 24:8, 621-627
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