The Man with the Golden Arm

Who is Saul Bass?

Saul Bass was born on 8 May 1920 in New York City. He was died on 25 April 1996. Saul Bass is a great graphic designer. However, he is best known as a motion picture title sequences designer. He has collaborated with Hollywood's greatest filmmakers such as: Alfred Hitchcock, Otto Preminger, Stanley Kubrick and Martin Scorsese. During his career, he has collaborated with a lot of filmmakers and had created about 50 title sequences such as: title sequence for The Man with the Golden Arm in 1955, Psycho in 1960, Casino in 1995 and so on.

Saul Bass designed a lot of posters and motion picture title sequences. However, I like The Man with the Golden Arm’s poster and title sequence the most.

The Man with the Golden Arm:

The Man with the Golden Arm was made by Otto Preminger in 1955. This film was about a jazz musician who has tried to give up heroin. Saul Bass was very success when he designed poster for The Man with the Golden Arm. He made viewers have sensation with animated features.

About poster, it was designed simply by an arm of heroin addict and black papers that are cut out. Firstly, Saul Bass applied primary color (black color) for the background. However, around the arm, he applied white color. As a result, the contrast between colors makes the arm more dominant. Secondly, he usually places the main object at the center that helps viewer focus on image easily and made poster more balanced. Thirdly, Saul Bass used shape in his design. For example, black papers that are cut out are rectangle. Moreover, about typography, he not only use san-serif font that look strong, but also apply black color for text that contrast with white area around the arm. In addition, texts were put around the arm that helps viewer focus on the arm. All of them make the texts and the arm look stronger and more dominant. Finally, this poster had a lot of white-spaces that helps viewer take a rest for their vision and think about content of poster.

About motion picture title sequences, it also designed simply by lines and text. It was a good design about motion and sequence. Like the poster, Saul Bass also applied primary and contrast color (black and white) that is his style. He applied black color for background and white color for lines and text that made line and texts more dominant. Moreover, lines and texts were usually placed in the center that helps viewer focus on texts easily and made scene more balance. Furthermore, about typography, Saul Bass also use san-serif font that look strong and apply contrast color (black and white) for text and background. Finally, he use lines and move them that attract viewers. These lines guide viewers to follow the text.

References:
http://www.designmuseum.org/design/saul-bass
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Bass
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Saul_bass_goldenarm.jpg

Graffiti - Art or Design???

What is Graffiti?

Graffiti has existed thousands year. It has changed over time and known as "modern graffiti". Graffiti are images or letters that are drawn in the publicly viewable surfaces such as walls or bridges. For drawing, people use spray paint, markers and so on. Moreover, Graffiti is used as a form of advertising, communicate social and political messages and so on. However, it is not allowed and can be punishable by law in most countries because it is considered vandalism, defaces the public surface.

Is Graffiti Art or Design?

Graffiti is art because it has a long development from thousands year until now. Ancient graffiti referred to figure drawings, inscriptions that engraved in the stone or other materials. Modern graffiti intertwined with Hip-Hop culture. However, with predating hip hop by almost a decade, modern graffiti also has own culture that is unique style and slang. Graffiti is a modern art form. Moreover, Graffiti term is applied in art history to art works. In addition, with expressing about personalization of Graffiti artists by using spray paint or marker and write a Tag that is their name, we can say that Graffiti is art.

These are some example about Graffiti Art:

References:
http://www.graffiti.org/priz_stan/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graffiti

Flowers

I really like to take photographs and shot video. I have taken a lot of photographs about beach, mountain, flower and so on. However, in this post, I like to show some favorite flower photographs that have taken by themselves.

It is difficult to take photographs about flowers because we need to take very sharp. Moreover, the light also affects to photographs color. In different time, we will have photographs with different color. Therefore, we need to choose suitable time or set white balance for your photographs.

This is comparison between flowers that are taken in different time.

This is some beautiful photographs that I took in afternoon today.

Logo

This is a logo that is designed by myself. My father has a printing company that is named “Hoa Mai” (Mai flower). “Mai” is a name of flower. Therefore, I design a logo look like a “Mai” that represent for name of father’s company. Moreover, I also place a text “Print” in the center of flower. It is easy to see, more dominant and so on.

This is Mai flower.

http://www.mystclair.com/private/oldsite/restaurant/images/hoamai4.jpg

Art Nouveau vs Psychedelic art

Art Nouveau (c.1880 to 1910):

Art nouveau was show first in Paris and then in London. It was the first 20th century modern style. It was a “new art” that stop looking backward to the historical ideas. Art nouveau’s style was taken inspiration from natural world and was carried out with multiform, multicolor and multi-line. Moreover, it was applied in architecture, decorative art and so on. There were two distinct looks about the style of Art nouveau: curvy lines and the more austere.

Style:

-Sinuous, elongated, curvy lines
-The whiplash line
-Vertical lines and height
-Stylized flowers, leaves, roots, buds and seedpods
-The female form - in a pre-Raphaelite pose with long, flowing hair
-Exotic woods, marquetry, iridescent glass, silver and semi-precious stones

“A favorite Art Nouveau theme was a nymph with flowers in her abundant streaming hair”

Color schemes:

Art Nouveau was applied in architecture, decorative art with muted tones (whites, greens and lilac blues, purples and blacks) for rooms and stronger colours for fabrics and wallpapers.

Font:

Art Nouveau fonts are both artistic and functional. It is a collection of impressive fonts (over 30 unique fonts, including text, title faces and even decorative initials)

Psychedelic art (1960’s):

Drugs usually make people feel psychedelic. Psychedelic art is art that inspired from that. Psychedelic Art applied in all the art movement of the 1960s counterculture that reacted against the conservatism. Therefore, “Concert posters, album covers, lightshows, murals, comic books, underground newspapers and more reflected not only the kaleidoscopically swirling patterns of LSD hallucinations, but also revolutionary political, social and spiritual sentiments”

Style:

Kaleidoscopic, fractal or paisley patterns.
Extreme depth of detail or stylization of detail.
Morphing of objects and/or themes and sometimes collage.
Inclusion of phosphenes and other entoptic motifs.
Repetition of motifs.

Color schemes:

Bright and/or highly contrasting colors.

Font:

“The lettering was often manipulated and distorted from its base forms. Fonts by their nature work most practically when they have a simple, horizontal base and characters have regular size and positioning.”

References:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/design/period_artnouveau.shtml
http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/Art/nouveau.shtml
http://www.bricksandbrass.co.uk/deselem/colour/colouran.htm
http://www.fontcraft.com/scriptorium/anmain.html
http://www.tile-heaven.co.uk/art-noo-01.htm
http://www.siena.edu/boswell/Drug%20Projects/Susan/1960s.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychedelic_art
http://www.fontcraft.com/scriptorium/psychedelic.html