Am I hard to read??

Hi guys,

I'm putting the final touches on my book and I want to know what you think about the typeface I chose.

So… am I hard to read?

or should i stick with something boring?

A declaration of war

What do you do when your computer and printer team up with the forces of evil in an attempt to sabotage the hours of work you put into a single project??

You pitch a fit and except your impending doom? No, you turn your emotions off and prepare for a psychological battle. You must outsmart the very technology you’ve grown to depend on in an artistic crisis. You must outsmart the enemy the same way you cheat 5 minutes out of the remote by switching the batteries around.

I am here to say that all is not lost. There is still room left to fight!

… However, if I happen to light my printer on fire with information from Justin’s how-to book at 3 o’clock in the morning, please know that I had no other choice.

~A solider on the brink of insanity  

One focus

Websites that are dedicated to individual movies have always been interesting to me. Fans and future fans get the opportunity to learn about the film, the characters, and any other tidbits they can pick up before they see the movie. I’m using the Avengers movie website as an example, partly because I’m desperate to see it, and partly because the website is awesome both visually and organizationally. 

This site has a basic menu bar that easily allows viewers to navigate from one page to the next. In this instance the menu bar enables people to learn about the characters, the music, see pictures, and pick up on any updates before the movie comes out. The site is also full of movement, color, and intensity. The information is eye catching, while the music puts the viewer on edge.

All of the effects are meant to compel audiences to watch the film. If sites like this are impressive enough, they hold the power to sway the undecided, reaffirm the need to watch from the devoted, and pull in new faces.

Promotional websites are powerful marketing tools.  

Sometimes you shouldn't do it yourself

When attempting to put a piece of Ikea furniture together, things can either go very well, or horribly, horribly, HORRIBLY wrong. The directions appear to be simple and straight to the point. Unfortunately, halfway through the process it feels like the instructions have switched to a different language. Frustration takes over shortly after, and anger is the only outcome.

I found this parody of the Ikea building experience, and I think it sums things up nicely.

Excluding the final two steps, I believe many people have been in the same boat. I don’t think that there is anything Ikea can do as a company to make the directions clearer. It has to do with the people buying the furniture. Not everyone is meant to build things on his or her own. The sooner people come to terms with that the better. 

Buitoni tells a story...

Buitoni, a company best known for its extraordinary pasta selection, uses a story to identify with customers. Buitoni products are “artfully prepared,” and that is the greatest point emphasized in all advertising stemming from this establishment.

In the commercial above, the pasta is compared to a rich opera voice, priceless art, and historic monuments. A price cannot be put on those things. Buitoni products have just as much culture, history, tradition, AND they can be purchased at your local grocery store.

The comparison is ingenious. The use of a giant scanner adds an element of humor while making a clear point. Furthermore, even if you don’t know of the opera singer, the name of the painting in the museum, or the significance of the statue, you understand that it is art. Based on this advertisement, Buitoni is considered to be on the same level.

I have a question...

When I was a senior at McDaniel College, Chakaia Booker came to give an Artist Talk. Her work is unique, interesting, and I identified with her. She does sculpture with an unusual material and that was my focus at the time.

When she explained her process, she talked about the hours of work she used to put into projects, when she first started. Now that the demand for her work has picked up, she oversees.

Is she still the artist if she’s not doing all the work??

It’s a question that has continued to bother me for some time now. It’s her idea, her concept, but a team of assistants are physically putting the pieces together… not her.

Researchers/Scientists do the same thing. An undergrad on their team will break the code, but because the researcher is advising their name goes on it.

Do you think that is fair?

I’m truly perplexed. As a cosmetologist I know what it is to be an assistant. When I was still in school for cosmetology, I was a shampoo assistant for a few months. The assistant does literally all the work. The stylist only touches up the head at the end; plucks a few curls out here and there, and sends the person on their way. Here’s the clincher, the assistant gets maybe a five dollar tip, but the stylist $65 and the recognition.

Having been in that position I don’t think you should get to call something your work (exclusively) if you only oversee. I don’t care how busy you are, or how large the demand for your work is.

I’m too big of a control freak to ever let that happen. As a stylist, I rarely use the assistants I have access to. If I’m able, I’ll do it. As an artist, I’ve never even dreamed about having another person assist me in anything other than an opinion. Art is too personal for extra hands.

What do you guys think?

Bath and Body Works Presents: Warm Vanilla Sugar... over the years.

“Warm Vanilla Sugar,”(of Bath and Body Works) has been my fragrance of choice since high school, where you weren’t a girl unless you had at least a mini lotion captured in hodgepodge of nonsense at the bottom of your oversized purse.

This is the original branding that I used to hold dear to my heart. This is also the same container I carried in the bag I was burdened with in high school. I recognize it as the classic, but based on all the changes I’ve found, I can only assume that this was not the first face of Warm Vanilla sugar.

I first stumbled onto these covers on a winter break home from school. I was Christmas shopping for the “friend but not really, acquaintance person.” Everyone knows the deal. If ever you are forced to buy a gift for that someone that you don’t know too well, or care enough about to research, Bath and Body Works has the perfect go-to gift. The problem was, I couldn’t find Warm Vanilla anywhere; it was there, it was just unrecognizable. Even the shape of the bottle had changed.

My guess, this was around the time when celebrity fragrances were at large. Bath and Body Works wanted to compete with big name brands, so they created look that would appeal to even the most sophisticated shopper. Crazy thing, there’s no brand recognition. You can’t find the words “Bath and Body Works,” anywhere.

Recently, I decided that my car needs to smell pretty, like a girl owns it. I went to Bath and Body Works and was stunned yet again. This is the newest transformation I’ve witnessed.

Every time I get comfortable with a design, they change it. It drives me crazy because it appears as if their name is just an afterthought. I thought that the brand (Bath and Body Works) is supposed to be on the top of the imaginary pyramid of informational hierarchy. The flavors are more dominant than the brand name. I have to wonder why that is. Perhaps, they think that B+BW’s is so popular that the flavors and the company name have become synonymous. To me, I guess that assumption is a correct one. However, I can’t speak for everyone else out there.

By constantly changing the packaging I can guess that Bath and Body Works wants to refresh buyers and appeal to a larger demographic. I personally don’t think the changes add any value to the product. It just makes me angry and confused. They have been selling the same smells for as long as I’ve known what Bath and Body Works is. By appearing in different containers it could make the patron feel like they’re getting something new.

I can’t decide whether the branding decisions are more powerful in the grand scope of things. If the process really does offer a larger scale of readership, then it’s successful. The changes disturb me as a semi regular customer, but not enough to deter me from shopping.

Okay, commercially they win… but I wish they’d stop. It’s annoying.