Space at the Atomic Level

Here is a quick illustration / design I did after watching a cool science video called "The Power of Ten." Our everyday lives tend distract or make us overlook the reaches of our human understanding of the universe. Even though it is dated, from 1977, I think everyone should watch the video once a year to contemplate the intriguing nature of our universe.

"Power of Ten" video link

The concept of the design is that elements in our universe, vast and small, tend to repeat themselves. It uses images of our own solar system to make a play on the idea that solar systems, galaxies, and atoms all display similar properties. All photos used are public domain of the NASA.

Since Threadless tends to like scientific, or nerdy, designs, I submitted it there. I would wear it, so maybe I am a nerd too. Please go check it out if you get a chance:

"T" Time: IF (Tall)

Click Image to see a little bigger

Finally, I am finished with the epic undertaking. See earlier post below to get an idea of how much I lagged on getting this together. When I do something for myself, and put the full effort forward, sometimes it takes a very long time.

Closer Detail

Logos: You Win Some, You Lose Some

I decided to post some of my favorite logos I did over the past year not to show them off, but to make a point. The point being that the client sometimes gets in the way of good design. As a designer I try to put my foot down by explaining imagery and good design principles, which usually works, but sometimes that is not enough. Many times there are extenuating circumstances that drive a logo.

Since I like to end on a high note I will start with the loses.

Starting with a design I did for a friend of mine. In the first draft phase I wanted to make a simple / classy design that said high-end yet personified the company name. The client / friend nixed all my first drafts and decided to have a logo that incorporated actual telephone poles from a photo he took. I advised against this but it was his vision. He ended up with a scene, that incorporated a font treatment, that looked good on business cards, stickers, t-shirts, and a van but it was not what I would call an actual logo or identity.

Colt Ford was a client I did some spec work for though a promo merchandise vendor. I saw his t-shirts, slapped together this logo, and thought I could make something cleaner and more classy. The look I was going for fed off the identities for Colt (.45) and Ford Motor Company. In the end his merch style was gritty and dirty looking which probably lead to the demise of this logo.

Perpetual Groove was an odd situation. The client loved the logo and I really liked it too. It was a new clean, more thoughtful direction for their identity. The band Perpetual Groove was ready to move with this when they had a sudden management change and we never heard from them again.

I did this one for my current employer. This was the best design from my draft one phase. I believe the company may have changed names or decided they weren't ready to move forward. I am not sure but I am not always in the loop when such things happen.

Now we arrive at Skoob Press, one of my favorite recent identity designs. This is one where the client trusted my direction and we ran with it. We both agreed that an owl is a great symbol of knowledge and an eye catching element. Since Skoob is "books" spelled backwards we also played of that concept. We both liked the final product.

In the end my job is make clients visions a reality and that is what I do. From a design perspective, you win some and you lose some.

Keep On Keeping On

Update: 4/3/2014

I finished this a while back and I thought I would add the art here. It went in a little bit of a different direction than I it would. In the end, I was happy with the results. I hope it would make Crumb proud.

This one is available at my Society6 store (See sidebar)

Here is the original drawing.

A while back a friend of mine mentioned that she would love a reproduction of a classic retro t-shirt design that she loved that was called "Keep On Truckin'." I like the concept and feel but I felt the art could use some updating, and some of my style, to make it even more awesome. I like the idea of the character looking more care-free and more hippie-like. I haven't heard the phrase "truckin'" in a long time so I thought "keep on Keeping on" might sound better contemporarily speaking. The original "Truckin'" design is below.

I am not sure how many colors to make the design yet. I also might change the text style and even the actual phrase is something better comes up; I considered a the recent pop-culture phrase "Haters gonna hate." If you have any thoughts or ideas to add I would be much obliged.

Thanks for looking.

Looking Back

I was recently compelled to look back through my blog and see how far I have come. Here is a complex vector illustration that was the first piece of my own art I posted. Back in the day, I used to do a lot of realistic vector conversions but I am glad I have moved on from this style. While I feel this is a good illustration I don't feel it has nearly as much life as my more recent work. Keep in mind this is one of my better pieces from 5 years ago; if you saw my other work you would truly recognize how far I come.

Smoke Stacks

Here is an update on an older design. I added texture and entwined money symbols of the world into the smoke. Click on the image, right click, view image, to see the detail better.