Typography & Graphic Design Blog
The principles of design are simple guidelines used to organize the various elements of design (line, texture, color, etc.) in a composition. Five basic principles that we illustrate here are: balance, unity, rhythm, proportion and emphasis. Good art has both elements AND principles of design cooperating well together creating a composition aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Below we show examples of fun wine bottle designs where several of these principles have been applied…. [Read More]
To save you time and help shorten your list of wedding t0-do’s, we’ve collected a list of resources for DIY wedding invitations and wedding blogs. (It’s just a fun little precursor as we get ready to release our upcoming book–The Big Book of Free Wedding Font Combinations!)
As we all know, weddings are not cheap! A few ways to cut back on your expenses is by creating your own wedding invitations and wedding blogs. But where in the world do you begin? Below we’ve whittled down and compiled some of the TOP resources for these two fun DIY projects, that when outsourced to local artists, can be costly.… [Read More]
After researching some of the classic to modern fonts, we’ve combined a sampling of just a few of our favorites. The font combos include both a decorative font, as well as a more readable print font–so you can include a variety of information on your invites. Go ahead and Print the PDF’s! And be sure to keep an eye out for our upcoming book–The Big Book of Free Wedding Font Combinations, coming soon!
Just to get your creative juices flowing, here’s a few sites that showcase beautiful avant-garde and minimalist style invitations. Enjoy!
Creative energies stagnant? Need to mix things up or gain a fresh perspective? Here’s a little poster design inspiration for your upcoming projects, articles or blogs.
We all get stuck from time to time and when this happens, nothing is more valuable than investing your time “stealing” ideas from wherever you can get them. Scanning beautiful portfolios, clever illustrations, typographic styles and good use of design elements (in addition to stepping outside or grabbing a coffee) are all effective ways to build upon and improve your work…. [Read More]
If you’re looking for a quick smattering of popular free wedding fonts, look no further. Here’s a collection of favorites from fellow bloggers. Of course you’ll see the best fonts overlap. Most posts have the links for download. Happy Browsing–
We like to recognize featured artists from time to time not only as a plug for them, but a benefit for graphic designers everywhere. There’s never too much competition and it’s always awesome to spread the great work of talented artists! Cheers!
By all means break the rules, and break them beautifully, deliberately, and well. That is one of the ends for which they exist.
– Robert Bringhurst
Lovely work from Ginger Monkey, Lettering Artist, Designer, Art Director and illustrator from Bristol, United Kingdom.
… [Read More]
Have you lost your passion and purpose as an artist? From time to time we get bogged down in the daily grind of life and lose site of the bigger picture of what we’re all about–which inevitably leads to loss of passion and energy. We wanted to share a few inspiring talks not only as a help to confirm your calling as an artist, but as a boost in your confidence and long-term creative vision as well.
Listen to Elle, as she tells her story of reclaiming her passion of art, changing her life work and is now living with focus and authenticity. Just recently CreativeMornings featured designer, painter, and writer Elle Luna. “Elle Luna describes her path from designer to artist, following her dreams and choosing ‘must’ over ‘should’.”
Are you losing your passion for design? Is your drive, or personal vision in your work lacking?Here are some great books to help rekindle your creativity, or help you re-evaluate your life purpose. We all go through dry periods when we lose site of our vision and languish in our inspiration–whether in our life, career, or just the next project. Every now and then, we need a kick in the pants–or at least a little encouragement from other like-minded, and very human artists! If you’re in need of a creative reboot, consider a few of these books written by those who through sheer determination traveled upstream to follow their inner calling…. [Read More]
Tarkovsky could sum up his life’s work as one of integrating creativity and truth. He strongly believed life was about finding your calling (in his case, an artist) and living it out fully. After a long and arduous journey of his own self-discovery, he points others to do the same. To be true to yourself, you must discover who you are and live for a higher purpose authentically.
This inspiring cinematic memoir is essential for anyone who’s interest is in the Visual Arts. Whether or not you are studying film or even familiar with the work of Tarkovsky, this book will enlighten you as an artist and help you rethink the purpose of your own work. Tarkovsky not only sets out methods for film making, he writes profoundly on the philosophy of aesthetics–pointing out the power visual poetry has in helping the audience transcend what we ordinarily call real–into a much more potent world of spirituality. He doesn’t believe in art as an outlet of “self expression”, so much as a duty of self-sacrifice, to love and enrich the lives of others. He says when the artist creates authentically, they communicate from a higher level of existence, ultimately linking us to Absolute Truth–the Source of all creation.
In this very personal book, Tarkovsky writes honestly about his own mistakes and hard lessons learned along the way. He shares his inspirations, thoughts and techniques in his films–Ivan’s Childhood, Andrey Rublyov, Solaris, The Mirror, Stalker, Nostalgia, and The Sacrifice.
From his book–Sculpting in Time, Tarkovsky writes:
“Masterpieces are born of the artists’s struggle to express his ethical ideals. If he loves life, has an overwhelming need to know it, change it, try to make it better, -in short, if he aims to cooperate in enhancing the value of life, then there is no danger in the fact that the picture of reality will have passed through filter of his subjective concepts, through his states of mind. For his work will always be a spiritual endeavor which aspires to make man more perfect: an image of the world that captivates us by its harmony of feeling and thought, its nobility and restraint.”
“In artistic creation the personality does not assert itself, it serves another, higher and communal idea. The artist is always a servant, and is perpetually trying to pay for the fit that has been given to him as if by a miracle. Modern man, however, does not want to make any sacrifice, even though true affirmation of self can only be expressed in sacrifice. We are gradually forgetting about this, and at the same time, inevitably, losing all sense of our human calling.”
“The great function of art is communication, since mutual understanding is a force to unite people, and the spirit of communion is one of the most important aspects of artistic creativity.” –A. Tarkovsky