Drawing for Graphic Design Understanding Conceptual Principles and Practical Techniques to Create Unique, Effective Design Solutions

227 Pages·2012·3.48 MB·English

by  Timothy Samara

Drawing
/
for Graphic
Design

Drawing
Understanding
conceptual
principles and
practical
/ for Graphic Design
techniques to
create unique,
effective
design solutions
Timothy Samara
06
Foreword
Thoughts
On Drawing:
In Design
Culture,
Education,
and Practice
218
Index
224
Acknowledgments
Co/
A directory of
designers who
contributed
their work to
this book
appears under
the inside
nt-
back cover flap.
ent:
s –
( )
132
Invention
134
12
Getting Started:
Discovery
Tools and Prep
14
138
Territories of
Exercises
Design Drawing
22
Universal
178
Principles of Artifacts
a Strong A Showcase
Drawing of Drawing-
Based Design
68
Message and Projects
Metaphor: from Around
Creating the World
Narratives
with Drawing
86
Processes
88
The Search:
Ideation
and
Resolution
102
From Pencil to
Mouse—
and Beyond:
Integrating
Drawing
with Other
Image-Making
and Production
110
Selected
Case Studies
06/07
Thoughts
On
Foreword
Drawing:
In Design
Culture,
Education,
and
Practice
A woodcut self-portrait (top) and a gestural
figure sketch (bottom), both drawn by the author
while a high school student in upstate New York.
Drawing is a fundamental part of who I am. From a very early Drawing
/ for Graphic
age, encouraged by my family (all artists of one kind or another),
Design
drawing became the activity I enjoyed most. When I decided
Foreword
to pursue an education in graphic design, I was fortunate to
find a program in which drawing was a core focus; it helped Thoughts
On Drawing:
build a foundation for conceptualiziation that still guides every
In Design
project I do. As I gained professional experience, however, I Culture,
came to realize that this was in marked contrast to many of my Education,
Dating as far back as 35,000 B.C.E., colleagues, who never picked up a pencil if they could avoid it; and
the first drawn images were discov- indeed, most had never had design-based drawing classes in Practice
ered on the walls of caves in the school. And, when I began teaching some years ago—seeing
Ardeche Valley and Lascaux, in my students consistently turn to photographic solutions for
France, and in Altamira, Spain. From their projects—it became clear that drawing was systemically
that time forward, humanity has absent from the discipline of graphic design. Understanding
given visual form to ideas with marks how the profession evolved has provided some insight into
inscribed on a surface—first, with the matter.
the hand itself and, eventually, an
Until the end of the nineteenth century and the invention of
array of tools invented specifically for
photography, all imagery was hand drawn. Simultaneously with
that purpose. This profoundly human
the rise of the graphic design profession, refinements to the
of activities has helped record family
graphic process and experimental drawing approaches afforded
histories, day-to-day experiences,
these visual communicators of the Industrial Revolution strate-
and the edicts of tribal and imperial
gies to support the new, manufacturing-driven marketplace.
leaders alike; provided instruction for
During design’s early phase, practitioners came from the ranks
hunting and building shelter; marked
of fine arts printmakers and painters; and even as photography
the passage of time, the seasons,
evolved into a prevalent form of expression, the primacy of the
and the movement of the stars;
fine artist–cum–designer remained. As recently as the 1970s,
visualized the spirit world and that
it was a given that graphic designers could draw. Following
of the imagination; offered experi-
changes in aesthetics that encouraged neutrality and a visually
ences for contemplation, delight,
clean, journalistic approach—ultimately championed by the
and persuasion; and constructed
International Style design movement of the 1950s—photog-
written language. Drawing has been
raphy became the medium of choice for visualizing concepts.
a part of human communication from
The technological progression of subsequent decades subsumed
the beginnings of civilization and The author’s hand-generated explorations for a visual identity
photography into the cut-and-paste efficiency—and remarkable
informed every aspect of humanity’s (top) and the final mark, implemented in color on a business card
inventive capabilities—offered by the computer. One was no (bottom). Completed while Senior Art Director at Pettistudio
visual life. longer required to draw to be a virtuoso practitioner. (now Pettis Design): Valerie Pettis, Creative Director United States
In one sense, this paradigm shift has been extremely beneficial.
It has democratized a once-insular profession and opened it to a
far greater diversity of visual voices. At the same time, however,
a speeding up of the design process and a fascination with the
glossy, glamorous, sensuous, slick, and luxurious—have all
08/09
A nonpictorial identity symbol drawn by the
author for an IT consulting firm.
catapulted the photograph into a position of even greater impor-
tance. It’s easy to acquire, it’s shiny and seductive, and it gets
the job done quickly: all useful qualities in a practical sense.
What is greatly diminished, it seems, is specificity: A photo-
graph is a photograph; the more successful ones carry the mark
of a particular photographer’s vision, but in many cases any
photograph of a product or a concept may be easily swapped
for another with little loss of effect. The ubiquity of photograph-
ically-driven design solutions has homogenized design in direct
contradiction of one of a graphic designer’s preeminent goals
(and that of visual branding especially): to differentiate and, in
so doing, to clarify and imprint understanding. Of equal concern
is the loss of a design’s humanizing potential: individuality,
powerfully compelling and uniquely constructed visualization, a
viewer’s joy and awe in engaging with an invented image, the
unparalleled visceral connection it creates between designer,
client, and audience.
Given the denigration of drawing in general practice, it comes
as no surprise that its role in education has also diminished.
Beyond the typical foundation-year academic drawing course,
most graphic design programs in the U.S. (and likely elsewhere,
with some exceptions) do not include drawing in their curricu-
lums.Many programs, and their nostalgic or frustrated older
instructors, pay lip service to its value, but few and far between
are those that actively build drawing into the conceptual and
form-making skill-sets of their students (never mind simply
sketching layouts). Clearly, education must keep pace with tech-
nological developments and the transformation of aesthetics
they invariably bring. This necessity, however, need not result in
the extinction of equally valuable methodologies.
Two-page spreads from a private school’s recruiting brochure, featuring
hand-drawn translations; also designed by the author