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Absolute insanity
May 31, 2011
I don’t know if it’s the weather or the onset of spring or what, but things are crazy, hence the lack of posts. Art Patrol will resume later this week.
For now, here’s a Swatch face from 1986 I rebuilt for a project I’m working on.
(Which reminds me. Anyone know where you can buy a Swatch these days, other than online?)
Art Patrol – Davis Optical
May 25, 2011
Before (click to enlarge):
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 41 minutes
Notes: As a challenge, I opted to use the same basic colors, the same text, and not add or subtract any elements. Just rearrange them on the page. The problem I have with the before (other than the fact that it’s ugly) is that the main tagline gets lost. It’s smaller than “mow the lawn,” for cryin’ out loud! Also, the letter spacing is inconsistent and just, well, off.
My solution was to give the headline obvious presence based on size, and to make the questions consistent in their weight, since each is of equal importance (at least, that’s the implication I got). Making the question font thinner (in weight) and lighter (in color) pushes it into the background without making it invisible, and really draws attention to the headline. Plus, I like how “just good vision” rests on one line, just above the logo and URL.
Art Patrol – A Personal Invitation
May 24, 2011
Time spent: 32 minutes
Notes: So, I know there’s no “before” here, but today I’m offering an Art Patrol public service. This is a personal invitation that can be handed to your children to do their chores. It’s snarky, and more than a little passive-agressive, but it’s beautifully designed, appropriately formal, and apparently the world needs such a thing. Or at least the world of children does. At least sometimes.
Download a 4-up Adobe PDF version of the invitation here, which you can print out on your inkjet or laser and cut to suit your family’s needs. And you’re welcome 
Art Patrol – Adult Fast Food
May 23, 2011
Before (click to enlarge):
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 51 minutes
Notes: Wow. The before is a mess, isn’t it? Where do I start? I hate the name. Calling something “adult” immediately makes it sound tawdry, not like a place I would want to take my kids. I’m also not a fan of Betty Boop in anything other than Betty Boop cartoons, but especially as a logo element for any restaurant not called “Betty Boop’s.” And what does “new way lunch” even mean? I have no idea.
So, I started from scratch and ended up doing logo work (which, dangit, I said I wasn’t going to do). I like the friendliness of the hot dog (it looks like it’s smiling, doesn’t it?), and the overall roundness of the letterforms on “adult,” so Avant Garde (the typeface) works pretty well here. Also, it’s hard to see but the bullets in the blue bar are a hot dog and a hamburger. Fun.
The after design does look like a place I would eat at and take my kids to. Provided the food is good.
Art Patrol – Track meet ribbon
May 19, 2011
— 1 Comment
Before:
After:
Time spent: 24 minutes
Notes: While there is nothing seriously wrong with the “before” ribbon (it’s an elementary school track meet award), it’s kind of boring. Adding some playful type and speed lines makes it a little more fun.
Art Patrol – wa-probate.com
May 18, 2011
Before (click to enlarge):
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 49 minutes
Notes: The lawyer who sent this in to me said that the information on this site is great, but the layout is iffy. I can’t speak for the info, but I agree on the layout. I added a header and flipped the information (more important) with the testimonials (less important). It still looks bloggy, but it should make it easier to find the information you’re looking for.
Running late
May 18, 2011
I’m working on a project right now that I’m very excited about, which is good. Accordingly, today’s Art Patrol will be up later this afternoon.
Art Patrol – Lynnwood Cleaning Services
May 17, 2011
— 1 Comment
Before (click to enlarge):
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 52 minutes
Notes: As I mentioned on Friday last week, there’s no excuse for a postcard that looks like it was printed on a laser or inkjet printer. So I won’t get into that again.
This postcard showed up in my mailbox yesterday just begging to be redesigned. I upgraded the typography (too many fonts!) right away, added a headline (“Janitorial Service” may say what you do, but it isn’t particularly memorable or exciting) and substituted the photo of the hand (in rubber glove, no less) for the word “hand.” Little touches like this add an element of quirky to a layout and make me happy.
Art Patrol – snappitz.com
May 16, 2011
Before (click to enlarge):
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 1 hour
Notes: Another instance of the clock running out before I was finished. I still hate the way this site looks under the header, though I did manage to get rid of the hideous “Additional information” box and move that up with the rest of the navigation. Most of the time was spent doing logo cleanup (which I know is against the rules, but it was SO BAD! I couldn’t let it stay). The after (I can’t call it “finished”) still has flaws (with more time I would remove the chrome look on the “Snappitz” text, as it detracts from the lightning bolt), but at least it doesn’t look like it was drawn in Microsoft Paint.
One other note: The original uses three different fonts (one in the tagline, one for the subject header and a third for body copy). That’s at least one font too many, especially when the tagline and subject header say basically the same thing. Pick a font (or two) and stick with it. If you differentiate with font weight (bold, light, etc) instead of a lot of different fonts, your work will automatically look better—so long as that font isn’t Comic Sans.
Art Patrol – Cholesterol
May 13, 2011
Before:
After (click to enlarge):
Time spent: 46 minutes
Notes: First of all, I should comment that the original postcard looks like it was printed on a digital printer (color laser), which makes no sense to me. There are online printers that will print 5,000 postcards (full color, UV coated, one side) for under $100. This relatively modest expense gets you a superior looking product—at least from a print quality standpoint.
As for the design, if your pitch question starts with “are you concerned…”, then using photographs of smiling, happy people is counter-productive. If you’re going to market the emotion fear (which is exactly what “are you concerned…” is designed to do), then show me concern. The other marketing option would be to market hope (as in “after treatment, these people’s problems went away! Look at how happy they are now! This could be you!”). In that instance, the pictures would work, but the copy is all wrong. I chose to go the fear/concern route (it is Friday the 13th, after all), and spent the bulk of my time looking for the right image to present that.
As a rule, pictures and words should compliment and support one another. They didn’t. Now they do.
