Design Evaluation

Murder by Death Tour Posters

Good example: The illustration in this example is sort of imitating an old suspense movie. A shadowy figure looming over a beautiful woman. The use of red and black looks bold and and catches the eye and plays on the name of the band. The name "Murder by Death" is also in a bold red and all caps. The text is large enough to to present itself immediately as the most important text on the page, the headlining act. If you don't care about the band then you won't feel the need to look over to the details of the show, which aren't as bold. I feel like the eyes go exactly where they need to, its bold but not overbearing and accomplishes what it needs to with style.

Bad example: There's a lot going on in this poster. All the text is using two colors for whatever reason. It's also mirrored at the bottom of the page over the top of some cut out pictures of men running. It's a very busy design. It feels very heavy at the bottom, which distracts from where the bands are listed. Everything above the headlining act is basically illegible. Anything that I have to squint at and spend time trying to figure out what it is means it is probably not doing it's job. The colors are all very boring, the illustration looks like they just picked a random theme, but I have no idea what it's trying to communicate.

Another bad example:

Contrast, Balance and Harmony

This is a picture of Chris Cole, a pro skateboarder, at the Street League competition. I like contrast of the black and white, him being dressed darkly and set against a white background, but also the contrast of context. This is a major skateboarding event with screaming fans, and often the skateboarders themselves are shouting or sweating or making a scene. Chris Cole looks perfectly calm and collected, and alone.
Chris isn't directly centered either, but the picture is balanced out by the one small black microphone on the opposite side. Two black objects on a white background, one waiting for sound and one waiting to make a sound.
Again, contextual harmony is important here, because at an intense sporting event, in a stadium full of screaming fans, for a moment he is totally alone. No other skateboarders, no cameramen, no fans. Just a skateboard and an idea of what to do with it. Feeling alone in his mind, he also appears alone, momentarily, in the arena.

Law of Continuity

Toad River Valley 

This river exemplefies the law of continuity in how it flows through the valley, taking whatever path is easiest. The mountains extend from one side of the frame to another, giving us the idea that they continue on forever. 

Visceral Response

I was walking in the Forum Shops in Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas sometime in 2011. There was a two story watch store filled with Rolexes and Breightlings and Audemars, all of which were impressive timepieces to behold and all of which I wouldn't mind owning myself. I was perusing the many glass cases filled with 2,000 or 3,000 or 10,000 dollar watches when I came across this - the Devon Tread 1.

 

This was a watch like nothing I had ever seen before. Among the rows of circular faced, 3 hand, rotating diving bezeled, golden and platinum pieces surrounding it, this piece truly stood out because it had none of those things. 

Instead, the Tread features rotating belts for the hours, minutes and seconds - each converging in the center to display the time. I loved the parallel lines of the hour and second belts, and how they are placed equidistant from the parallel lines at the top and  bottom of the watch. The minute belt, although not quit perpendicular, is still perfectly spaced from the sides and creates the perfect contrast to help the other belts stand out above it, while still standing out itself. Myriad gears, springs, screws, and even a small microprocessor come together underneath to create a somewhat busy background that serves almost as empty space compared to how strongly the belts catch the eyes. The movement is enclosed in a curved glass shield that allows you to see every moving part. The parts are mounted on a special chassis that gives the "illusion that the parts are floating within the case." If you polished it, you may not even know there was glass there at all, save for the slight refraction of light on the gentle curves. 

I started to get sweaty just looking at it. I love neutral colors and the watch was only flat black and white with polished silver accents. Neutral colors are elegant. They go with every other color, but they go best by themselves. I happened to be wearing all black as well, as I peered into the case. It would really tie the ensemble together. 

The sales associate at the store could see my shallow breathing and glossy eyes, I'm sure, so he approached and implored me to try it on. I agreed and as he unlocked the case I asked how much the watch cost. 

$17,500.

I quickly stopped him. I was looking for something "more expensive." That was a lie, but a watch of that caliber and beauty was like a woman who was out of my league. I may have the chance to hold her once for a fleeting moment, but I could never truly have her. The thrilling moment would only make the pain worse after it was all over. 

Someday I'll be back for her.