AIGA published this great little article recounting the tale of how the NYC Subway system went from a labyrinth filled with mosaic and hand-made signs in a variety of colors, sizes, styles, and more–to a highly organized signage system. They made it look so easy!

We’ve all been witness to the efficiency of this system so we don’t even think about it anymore. They made it look so easy! This is on of those articles that you want to print and read offline on a Saturday afternoon. And that’s just one of the design wonders that the 20th century brought into existence.

NYC Subway signs - before

Mosaic subways signs (from the top): 1 train, Rector Street (1918); 1 train, South Ferry (1904); N/R/W, Prince Street (1917); “To 19th,” 1 train, 18th Street (1918); L, Morgan Avenue (1928); “Down town,” 4/5/6, 86th Street (1917); “Up town,” R/W, Whitehall Street (1918); E/F/G/R/V, Grand Avenue, Newtown (1936); M/R, F connection to 9th Street (1915) and BMT, Fourth Avenue (1933). Caption courtesy of AIGA.

NYC Subway signs - after

(top and bottom rows): From the 1970 NYCTA Graphic Standards Manual, Unimark Design Consultants, a page indicating directional information, the cover and and typeface instruction using Standard, not Helvetica; (middle) “Donna” illustration of platform signage by Bob Noorda (c.1966, colorized in 2008). Caption courtesy of AIGA.

National Parks Foundation micro site

Recently I noticed these case studies on the AIGA website. I’ve been reading some when I have a little time to take in a really good example of how to carry out a project and develop really unique solutions to tough challenges. This case study brings us a micro site that design studios Modernista! and FL2 designed and developed for the National Park Foundation. The site was to accompany Modernista!’s broadcast campaign to support Ken Burns’ PBS documentary The National Parks: America’s Best Idea. On the site, users can explore the national park system, contribute to the foundation, and share the site and their experience with others.

Visit the site to read how the project was planned and executed. They’ve shared how they assessed the project’s goal, the methodology, the user experience, the challenges the project presented, and the results.

Design History Primer 1 - Symbols

I recently wanted to read something on Design history since I really enjoy the subject and I find it so fascinating. And while looking for an interesting bit of Design history to read, I found DesignHistory.org. A site originally launched in 1999 by Nancy Stock-Allen as a companion to her lectures on Graphic Design History. The site has 11 pages of essential subjects in Design History. I’ll do a quick post on each after I’ve read them and give you my quick impressions and comments.

Clearly labeled as “not a substitute for attending class”, this first page covers the basics and offers enough to get your feet wet or refresh your memory on symbols and logos. It starts with a primer listing the differences between a pictogram, a rebus, an ideogram, a trademark/brand, a logotype, a printer’s device, a monogram, and a coat of arms & family crest. Today some of these are used or referred to interchangeably and knowing the difference will help knowing when and how to use each and whether to mix one with another when working on a project such as a logo.

Then it moves on to symbol contemporary symbol pioneers from Raymond Lowey and the Shell Oil logo to Paul Rand and the IBM logo to the AIGA and the International Transportation symbols (free for download here!.) Then a quick touch on digital symbols such as the CBS logo by William Golden and the original icon-based Macintosh GUI by Susan Kare. Very good to know about these and how digital symbols have roots in fine arts–where else?

An important section here is the section on Cultural Mismatch. The American Red Cross in the Middle East and the skull and crossbones and its recent evolution. Cultural issues of appropriateness and the ability to convey a message globally are increasingly more important as brands big or small go global. The world is indeed getting smaller.

Lastly it covers a bit of re-branding, citing Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a new logo to be used to promote tourism and trade, and Nike–how the famous swoosh was perceived then and now. And a nice nod to Anti-Branding finishes off this piece with the world’s first global anti-brand created by Adbusters magazine and its Black Spot Sneaker. An eco-friendly, anti-brand sneaker in which the black spot replaces the corporate logo.

AIGA Design Archives Online

Love to look at what others are doing? Looking for inspiration? Love to look at excellent design? Head on over to the AIGA Design Archives, which feature selection from AIGA’s Annual Design Competitions. Covering everything from Brand and Identity Systems Design to Book Design, you’ll find a wealth of resources. With a sleek interface that’s easy to figure out and navigate, it’s a pleasure to browse through. Excellent design? Check. Inspiring? Check.

Works on the archive are selected from these AIGA competitions:

• About 365: AIGA Annual Design Competition
• About 50 Books/50 Covers competition
• Winterhouse Awards for Design Writing & Criticism
• Worldstudio AIGA Scholarships
• INDEX: | AIGA Aspen Design Challenge
• Regional AIGA competitions

I flip through these when I get them in print form every year as part of my AIGA membership, and it’s always a celebration of good design. Not just good looking, but good design. Good design looks good most of the time, but really isn’t it just doing it’s job? It makes us comfortable looking at the information, even inviting us sometimes. Making us feel comfortable (or uncomfortable) with the message. One of my professors told us once that Design is a logical sequence of events. And I agree with him. There’s an audience, a context, and a purpose. These are considered and evaluated, research has focuses our options, and execution and refinement have polish the project to a degree which makes the design exceptional.

Of course, good design often looks easy, and that’s part of the appeal. It looks easy because it’s relating to the viewer. The viewer feels almost like they could have thought of it themselves. And that’s a very good thing if you want to get your message across.