Friday, 6 March 2009

Helvetica v Rockwell: battle of the fonts!

We are currently trying to design the logotype to represent our forum.  The method we are working on is to develop ideas ourselves to see what we can come up with, and then come back together as a group to see what works well.  We are going for strong, bold type.  Initially I had thought a solid sans serif would work well, but after trying out different fonts I am quite keen on Rockwell.  Helvetica neue is just a bit plain, but is my second favourite.  The group is divided as to which font to choose, so we will all do more experimentation and developments of the logo to see what will work best.

We had a very positive tutorial with Sarah, which lifted all our hopes and revived our excitement for the project.

Wednesday, 4 March 2009

group work

It was interesting to hear, during a talk by Steve from ico design consultancy how people work within a team at his studio.  He described how in a recent job, four people had worked together and he had managed them.  They brainstormed and researched in a group to begin with, then went off individually to develop the research and initial ideas.  They then came back together to share further developments and work towards the final outcome as a group.  All this was overseen by Steve, who decided which angles to take and what ideas were working well.  

Last week I attended a presentation and talk by Jack Renwick from The Partners.  They work in the same way.  Multiple heads are better than one it seems.  She stressed the importance of not struggling alone.  In her studio, they post ideas up on the wall and then people can come and add to them, or alter them.  I think this is when interesting things can start to happen.

I am finding this is happening in our group now too.  If I suggest an idea, it is exciting to see how the other group members put their spin on it.  It is refreshing, if I get stuck I can talk to the guys and we help each other to develop our ideas.  I already feel I have progressed much further with my ideas than if I was working alone like in the past.