Saul Bass

 Saul Bass was around from 1920-1996, during of which he was not only a well renowned graphic designer but also a big shot in the film industry. One of the most famous films of his was the ever so controversial film The Man with the Golden Arm which was about a heroin addict.



 These are the most famous logos designed by Mr.Bass & even I was shocked that I recognised them! These designs are sleek & professional. It shocks me to realise how old some of these designs really are. Of course these appear to be vector.


 This is a film poster Bass designed & is one of the last few he ever did. You can see that the design is mainly typographical which I feel makes sense for someone who designed logos. Simplicity seems to be a speciality for him. The texture of the face appears grainy as if this was screen printed. Black typography creates a strong contrast from the mustard yellow backgroud which creates a stronger impact on the audience.

 His work isn't really influential on my illustrations so I won't take my research any further however he is an interesting figure in the design industry.

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Bass
http://designmuseum.org/design/saul-bass

[All electronically accessed & submitted]

Peter Saville

Peter Saville (born 9 October 1955) is an English art director and graphic designer. During the 1980s, he designed many record sleeves for Factory Records.
Saville attended St Ambrose College. He studied graphic design at Manchester Polytechnic (later Manchester Metropolitan University) from 1975 to 1978.
Saville entered the music scene after meeting Tony Wilson, the journalist and television presenter, whom he approached at a Patti Smith show in 1978. This resulted in Wilson's commissioning the first Factory Records poster (FAC 1). Saville became a partner of Factory Records along with Martin Hannett, Wilson, Rob Gretton and Alan Erasmus.


 By looking at this piece, I can see that his work is quite modern. I love how the piece appears to be a college of american culture (wrappers) however it is sleeky fitted into the type face which allows me to believe that this is a digital piece. If this piece were to be created on the computer I would say it was created in photoshop, despite the fact that typography is best suited to illustrator, the collage gives a texture which doesn't appear to be vector.


References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Saville_(graphic_designer)
http://marketingmanchester.com/original-modern/peter-saville.aspx
http://fishyfarts.blogspot.com

[All electronically submitted & accessed]

John Maeda

In 1966, Seattle, Washington, the Japanese-American, John Maeda was born. Maeda has many careers under his belt such as computer scientist, university proffessor, author but most importantly a graphic designer. Currently he resides as president of the Rhode Island School of Design.

Maeda was originally a software engineering student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, when he became fascinated with the work of Paul Rand and Muriel Cooper. Cooper was a director of MIT's Visual Language Workshop. After completing his bachelors and masters degrees at MIT, Maeda studied in Japan at Tsukuba University's Institute of Art and Design to complete his Ph.D. in design.
In 1999, he was named one of the 21 most important people in the 21st century by Esquire.n 2001, he received the National Design Award for Communication Design in the United States and Japan's Mainichi Design Prize. He is a Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council.
In 2006, Maeda published Laws of Simplicity, his best-selling book to date, based on a research project to find ways for people to simplify their life in the face of growing complexity.


References:
http://designboom.com
http://maedastudio.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Maeda
http://lawsofsimplicity.com

Shirley Hughes

 Shirley Hughes orginated from Cheshire, England & was born in 1927. Currently this artist resides in London working as a freelance writer & illustrator, her speciality being children's books. Hughes studied two degrees, her first being costume design at the Liverpool School of Art, then she progressed to study illustration at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine art in Oxford. It was her were she was encouraged and found her forteit for children's illustrations. Soon after her time studying, she was comissioned by the publishing agency, HarperCollins. This then led to her moving to Nottingham to settle down with family.

 However at first, she illustrated for other novelists rather for her own work which publicised her talent greatly. In the 1950's she illustrated novels such as My Naughty Little Sister by Dorothy Edwards and The Bell Family by Noel Streatfeild. In the next decade, she then progressed to illustrate her first novel Lucy and Tom's Day which actually evolved into a large series of novels. She eventaully ended up writing more than 50 novels, many of which she won awards for.

 From what it appears, she uses watercolours to colour her work. This makes the illsutrations ,much more softer & more child friendly. Because of the softness of the style, I would say this is clearly aimed for a very young generation. You can also tell the age of the illustrator just looking at her dated style & old fashioned technique. However I prefer children's illustrations in this style. It frustrates me how artwork aimed at children is quite artificial these days & lacks that organic vibe that brings more life into the novels. This style has far more quality to the novels which I believe allows the family to treasure it more.

 I feel that her character design is excellent. The way these two characters interact is very realistic & the anatomy is excellent. You can really feel a connection with the postures, expressions & emotions the  characters are displaying & I feel that not only children would appreciate this style, but most certainly adults aswell. The use of black inking on the characters give them great definition which also creates a good contrast from the subtle, watercolour backdrop.

 In conclusion it is inspiring to discover an illustrator from my area, however I do not feel that she could influence my style as I illustrate for an adult audience only. On the otherhand I do find her anatomy brilliant & I wish my skills with watercolours were to her level.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Hughes
http://alfiebooks.co.uk/
http://cambridgeprints.com
[All electronically accessed & submitted]