RobSog

London lines

I'm a sucker for overprinting in primary colours, so here's some typo+graphic play on the word LONDON. You know, the big smoke...

Fortune Drive | My Girlfriend’s an Arsonist

Logo design | Curve Interactive

The lovely folk over at Curve Interactive commissioned Malcolm and I to have a pop at their logotype. Here’s the winning entry based on Nobel. Clean, simple and curvaceous.

Radiohead | In Rainbows

For Jon Hicks’s recent coverflow request, here’s a rough and ready attempt. To rise above the (FF)DIN, I've used the rather lovely Stratum which has a certain austere look that I hope compliments the oil painting (oil slick more like) in the background. Which is one of mine BTW. [update 12.11.07. This album is a crackin' album. You really must download it].

Typeface classification systems

From the ATypI member discussion list, a post from the irrepressible John Hudson caught my eye and I thought it should be posted herewith:

“On the subject of typeface classification systems, this seems a good opportunity to republish my homage to Jorge Luis Borges: According to ‘a certain Chinese Encyclopaedia’, The Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge, typefaces are divided into the following categories:

1. those used to typeset the words of the Emperor,
2. no longer available ones,
3. those that are good for ‘the small print’,
4. the ones you used last week,
5. those that remind you of former lovers,
6. fabulous ones,
7. those in unknown formats,
8. those included in the present classification,
9. those you have forgotten,
10. innumerable ones,
11. those that are too light to be used for the present job,
12. others,
13. those in which the g ‘just looks wrong’,
14. those that will be used to typeset this list.”

He also notes in a previous post that typeface classification systems are part of a fascinating thread over at Typophile.

What should it mean to be British?

‘You should hate liars and cheats and those who won’t play the game. You should be able to take a joke. You should dislike extremes. You should be bad at dancing and sex and incapable of either without being drunk. You should resist invasion of your personal or national space. You should ignore what you dislike but give to charity. You should protect the countryside. You should respect the sovereign. You should say what you think. You should be classical on the outside and romantic within. You should put religion in the back seat and make sure it bloody well stays there. You should acknowledge your amazingly good fortune.’ Duncan Fallowell in Prospect via 3 Quarks Daily.

New logo design

Malcolm and I – AKA OptaDesign – have been tinkering, mulling, scratching (don't ask) and generally pondering on the design of two new identities. The first is for a new architectural practice in Bristol (105 West Architects who we also came up with the name for) and LAVA-i (a specialist consultancy focusing on lighting, audio, video and acoustics integration). Here are the 'approved' logotypes. Websites etc. on there way...watch this space ;-)

Chops