Job No:01077 Title:The fundamentals og Graphic Design
2ND
Proof Page:78
78 The Fundamentals of Graphic Design The graphic design process
Sources of inspiration
Design is a discipline shaped by a varied
and eclectic set of influences from both the past
and present, which inform the choices and decisions
made during the design process. Influences may
be profound or partial and may influence the overall
structure and content of a job, or appear as a
subtle twist.
Culture
The majority of designs are produced to serve a
present need so the existing culture becomes a
common reference or influence for a piece of work
aiming to appeal to its target audience. Designers
use the elements of popular culture such as colours,
typefaces and accepted social norms or taboos in
their work to reflect the times they live in and to
appeal to the communal mind of the population. At
the cutting edge, this may include the use of street
culture’s vernacular to create designs with elements
from the constantly moving pulse of society.
Urban environment
Designers may be influenced by the vernacular
language of the urban environment to produce a piece
that is current and modern, or work with classical
ideas when dealing with spacing and proportion.
Art
Art has always influenced design. The principles that
have defined and guided art movements have readily
been adapted and brought into design, particularly
those relating to page layout and composition. For
example, the rule of thirds is used to define the focal
point within a piece of work, while the rule of odds is
used to make more interesting compositions.
Movies
The immediacy of motion pictures and the striking
image sequences often produced can inspire
designers to structure layouts and publications in
similar ways. For example, this book discusses the
importance of pace and narrative in a piece of work,
aspects that can be structured like a movie. Pace and
intensity could be changed and manipulated through
the use of different treatments for layouts, images
and text.
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Job No:01077 Title:The fundamentals og Graphic Design
2ND
Proof Page:79
Articulating design < Sources of inspiration > Design as problem solving 79
Magazines
There are many publications for and about the design
industry. These are not only useful for viewing works
of other designers, but for keeping abreast with
movements, trends and technologies within the
industry in general.
Industry publications also allow a designer to
build a contact book and keep track of who is working
where, which may be useful in the future. These
publications often also provide relevant information
on the administrative side of the design business,
such as legal issues, tax advice and copyright, in
addition to details of various organisational bodies
and associations.
Music
Design and music appear to have a symbiotic
relationship as a designer can follow musical
principles to inject pace or rhythm into a project.
A designer can mimic the beats that music has
through the use of large-scale images or text-free
pages – interludes within the content flow, creating
different beats in how page content is split between
image and text pages.
Objects
Collections of objects and found items can
also provide an eclectic and exciting set of
influences. Designers actively seek inspiration for
their work in various locations, even in their
respective cities. At other times, inspiration may
come from objects within their studio. These
influences can creep into design decisions. Many
designers like to surround themselves with
interesting objects, pictures, posters and other
stimuli in order to be constantly inspired.
Other areas of design
Graphic designers draw inspiration from all creative
fields including other fields of design, such as
furniture and interiors. Indeed, many creative people
do not see themselves as being limited to one
discipline. For example, the De Stijl and Bauhaus
schools were involved in painting, furniture and
graphic design, using common principles to guide
their work across different disciplines and media.
Designs are produced based on a variety
of influences including art, music,
magazines, collections of objects or
paintings such as Composition by
Russian modernist abstract painter
Wassily Kandinsky (left). Magazines, in
particular, tend to appropriate from a
wide range of influences to produce
visually dynamic covers and spreads
(right). Designers also glean inspiration
from random objects and items such as
these Russian dolls (below).
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