I read an interesting question and answer earlier today from a relatively famous graphic designer and wanted to post it here.
Stefan Sagmeister's website has a pretty unique interface and has posted several questions that were sent to him from students. Here's the one I found intriguing:
Q:Do you think you could defeat a politic campaign trough a design campaign? Can a design campaign decide an election? Is a politic campaign a design campaign?
A: No I actually think not. Now I know that Saatchi always claimed he put Margret Thatcher into office and he is full of shit. We have the annoying habit to constantly overestimate our power.
Design and advertising has a huge impact where the consumer cannot possible see a difference between products or services (say: Vodka) but is surprisingly less powerful when the average person does see that difference (say: cars or politics).
I manage the following blogs:
1. Alex Rozko Portfolio [RD+A]
- This is my architectural design portfolio created to illustrate my proficiencies and contribution to society.
2. We Kill Design
- We Kill Design is a blog dedicated to elements of (or related to) architecture, design, social and environmental issues.
Dear Friends
President Obama gave a long speech on his economic strategies; he explained the recent past -reasons of downturn, the present scenario - the recovery plans implemented to tackle the recession and the vision of future -Changing the base of economy from sand to rock; everything in great details. The speech was titled ‘Glimmers of Hope’ by media. I think this was his first ‘major’ speech in the midst of recovery plan. It was more than usual poetry of hope and change; it was prose to make common people understand the design of his recovery plan and tag them along in the path. It was a lecture in ‘Recovery Strategy and Vision 101’.
Obama administration’s Honeymoon period will start getting over fast after completion of 100 days. Change and Hope were often described as ‘intangibles’ by opponents of his presidential campaign , now with governance in his hands they can be explained better. What I learnt for yesterday’s speech was: Till the results are seen on ground, the great communication machine has to be built like it was built never before in history of politics. If people do not feel the recovery, at least they should be made to understand and feel the processes before they start really participating. We need to see a new breed of communicators within Obama movement to be showcased on CNNs, Foxes and MSNBCs, talking to people in terms of several granules, several modules and several scenarios of recovery process. Why enterprising Americans have not yet started recovery TV channel? I think even on the internet and new media, the link between recovery.gov and barackobama.com is still missing from action. Are the power points of recovery debate flowing through emails? I doubt that enough is being done.
People always want to see glimpse of ‘radical’ structural change in society after any major shock; the incremental gains in money do not satisfy them politically. And structural change is not just about ‘Punishing the guilty in AIG or GM’; it is about projecting the leaders of changing America who can be representative of Obama vision that America is a place ‘Where common man does uncommon things.” We need Green start ups publicly showcased, change entrepreneur in education publicly rewarded on the platform of recovery machinery itself.
CNN.com showcased seven leaders responsible for economic recovery plan in single presentation, we require 8th leader who will convert Obama Presidential campaign in a social movement for real change and hence the economic recovery.
Love, Harsha
Our Introduction and our team
André de Sà Pessoa – Born in Portugal. Graduated of fine Art School of Lisbon in 1989 – Jewellery master class.Than at FIT-Fashion Institute of Tecnologiy - New York in 1990. Before joining on aura tout vu he worked as jeweller,and as cristal designer in Portugal and at Dome France. He created also hat collections.
Yassen Samouilov - Born is Bulgaria Graduated at Applied Arts School of Sofia in 1991 –Master class textile design and toys design.Than Fine Arts School of Versailles in 1994. Before joining on aura tout vu he worked in consulting trends agency and develope accessories, ready to wear collections.
Livia Stoianova -Born in Bulgaria. Graduated at Fine Arts School of Sofia in 1992 – master class Graphic Arts.Than Fine Arts School of Paris in 1996 Before joining on aura tout vu in 1998 she present her art works in France and collaborate in contemporary art galeries in Paris.
Brand history
The company ” ASP “was founded in 1995 and in 1998 under “on aura tout vu” as a brand /a French expression in translation : You think you v’seen it all / and made its name at first by creating and producing exclusive fashion accessories, embroideries, buttons and garments for the famous Haute Couture Brands before starting its own collections of ready-to-wear, accessories and couture clothes.
Since January 20th 2009 Barack Obama is the 44th president of the United States of America, a very historic inauguration day. Think back to 1963, when Martin Luther King held his famous speech, saying "I have a dream...", and see what a positive change has allready been made since then. With Barack Obama the first African American president in US history is in the White House, Martin Luther King`s dream is about to come true and that´s really great ! - Shop America supports Barack Obama and wishes him all the best for his future, hoping that he can really perform the "Change" for America and the world ! - Visit our Barack Obama section and check out "Yes We Can" and other political designs on t-shirts, buttons, stickers and more: BARACK OBAMA DESIGNS - YES WE CAN
BARACK OBAMA DESIGNS - YES WE CAN
With the hope, unity and excitement of Barack Obama's victory, many have commented that we're feeling a sense of both national and spiritual renewal that's almost like a revival.
To that end, please take a look at a design I created:
www.cafepress.com/teachers4peace
I VOTED!I LIVE IN COLORADO!I VOTED FOR OBAMA LAST WEEK!
GO OBAMA!!
OUR TIME FOR CHANGE HAS COME!
There has been a lot of noise this election, but for me one single word still stands out.
I've been wanting to discuss the Obama Design since day one. Many people have agreed that the design behind the Obama campaign has been stellar and reaching people unlike previous elections. What is behind this?
The Symbol
So, never before have I seen such a flawlessly run design campaign.
Politics aside, the mobilization of the logos, the diverse options, and the inspiring mottoes and - dare I say - typeface have people eager to put stickers on their bumpers.
Seriously, never before have I been thinking about putting a bumpersticker on my car. Bumpersticker activism isn't how I want to change the world.
But the simple circle with the new day dawning over the striped fields...something about that image just gets into the core of me. It doesn't just represent Obama - it represents something deeper, something organic and powerful that connects us all to the earth beneath our feet and the people on the street.
Even if Obama didn't win, I really think this logo could be something people across the country could unite under. It represents the best of us, the intrinsic American spirit that is about community and roots, as well as change and growth.
You have to admit, it's fabulous design that manages to take one symbol and tweak it to fit so many different people. It gives credence to the underlying statement: that we are all equally important and united, despite our individual differences. (For a sample of the logos as made individualized for each voting group, you can check the BarackObama website, or you can read this blog that includes a sample of each. )
Designbay did a study of winning presidents and their logos, and then compared this year's candidates. The Obama logo is designed to win.
Designers Review the Branding
K-Co, my top-notch designer friend, and I have discussed the Obama branding and what makes it so alluring. The branding has a lot of designers talking. One designer and critic, Michael Beirut, was asked to give his opinions of the Obama branding and the effort that has gone into it. His views seem somewhat amazed at the level of detail put into the branding, and his tone sounds a bit conflicted. But he says it clearly - the design and branding are impeccable.
The website is part of the branding technique, and people definitely have opinions about that. Friends I've talked to find it simultaneously helpful and beautiful, but expansive and overwhelming. Back in 2007, the Bivings Report took a look at the Obama campaign site. They gave it pretty high reviews, although some issues were noted. Additionally, Brian Yerkes provided his own review in June of '08, which goes through some detail as to why the Obama website is superior.
In January '08, the Boston Globe put together a review of fonts by The Font Bureau, Inc. focusing on which fonts in the campaigns really speak of change.
The Website and the Store
Have you been to the BarackObama store? Not just your typical cheesy election stuff. The designs are quality and make you feel inspired and happy to be a part of the experience. In addition, if you're looking for something higher end, there are the Runway to Change and Artists for Obama lines. SwissMiss featured the newest art poster in a blog post a few days ago, referring to it as a "typographic waterfall" as lovingly as any designer might.
The problem? Everything I want (or can afford) is sold out! (Perhaps I should check out the Democratic Stuff website.)
Next Post: Capitalism, Artists and DIY Speak Up For Obama
(originally posted at Exponential)
Welcome to our brave new post-Capitalistic world.
Today our leaders in Washington announced (all the details to come later) that the Federal Government is going to rescue the financial system from total collapse.
You can read the story as reported by The NY Times here and, of course, more details of this plan will come out in the hours and days ahead. But I want to address the very first part of The NY Times' report: the reaction of the markets around the world...
Stocks shot wildly upward Friday morning after the federal government moved to try to restore confidence in the financial markets. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 400 points only moments after the opening, and later settled up more than 300 points. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 was up nearly 3.5 percent. Markets in Europe and Asia also traded significantly higher, with stocks in London and Paris up more than 8 percent.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 400 points only moments after the opening, and later settled up more than 300 points. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 was up nearly 3.5 percent. Markets in Europe and Asia also traded significantly higher, with stocks in London and Paris up more than 8 percent.
There is a celebration going on. This doesn't surprise me. But I'd like to raise the following point from the world of Systems Thinking:
Just because you stop something old that is bad, doesn't mean you will automatically start something new that's good.
Our government has stopped something it considers to be bad. It saw the collapse of the economic system coming. The action it has taken has - and this is me talking, not our government, of course - ended Capitalism here in America.
Actually, its not just me talking. Here's a report from The NY Times on what financial leaders in the rest of the world think about what we are doing here. They know America is no longer a Capitalistic society either. From this September 18th report...
"I fear the government has passed the point of no return," said Ron Chernow, a leading American financial historian. "We have the irony of a free-market administration doing things that the most liberal Democratic administration would never have been doing in its wildest dreams." The bailout package for A.I.G., on top of earlier government support for Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has stunned even European policy makers accustomed to government intervention -- even as they acknowledge the shock of the collapse of Lehman Brothers. "For opponents of free markets in Europe and elsewhere, this is a wonderful opportunity to invoke the American example," said Mario Monti, the former antitrust chief at the European Commission. "They will say that even the standard-bearer of the market economy, the United States, negates its fundamental principles in its behavior." Mr. Monti said that past financial crises in Asia, Russia and Mexico brought government to the fore, "but this is the first time it's in the heart of capitalism, which is enormously more damaging in terms of the credibility of the market economy."
The bailout package for A.I.G., on top of earlier government support for Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has stunned even European policy makers accustomed to government intervention -- even as they acknowledge the shock of the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
"For opponents of free markets in Europe and elsewhere, this is a wonderful opportunity to invoke the American example," said Mario Monti, the former antitrust chief at the European Commission. "They will say that even the standard-bearer of the market economy, the United States, negates its fundamental principles in its behavior."
Mr. Monti said that past financial crises in Asia, Russia and Mexico brought government to the fore, "but this is the first time it's in the heart of capitalism, which is enormously more damaging in terms of the credibility of the market economy."
We no longer have a "market economy" here in America. Capitalism is dead.
But what are the people on Wall Street and other financial centers celebrating? The end of something bad. But - I assert - not the start of something new that is good.
Our government literally sees that the Titanic is sinking. And it is using its extraordinary power to raise the Titanic out of the ocean, shake all the water out of it (literally bailing it out), and place it back in the ocean hoping it will then sail on.
But the Titanic cannot sail on.
That's because the Titanic that is our global economic system is fundamentally flawed. It is based on a belief that we are still sailing in a zero-sum world, a world of scarcity, a world where there will always be too many people chasing too few resources. The sustainability scientists... and those schooled in advance social and managerial sciences as well... know this is no longer true. They know an abundance-based world is what we live in now, from an objective reality point of view. They know that the only thing in the way of that becoming the reality we all live in is the design of our political-economic system.. because it is still a scarcity-based design.
The American government's effort is very impressive in scope... but not in sophistication. It is an 800 pound gorilla approach, involving a huge willingness to throw money at the problem. But, intellectually speaking, it is "the blind leading the blind". It is "experts in the past" attempting to solve a problem whose root cause they cannot see. None of them has ever even heard of - as best I can tell - that scarcity is an objectively obsolete way to view the world. None of them has ever seen what is at the foundation of the work of people such as William McDonough, Amory Lovins, or the late Buckminster Fuller.
It is a tragedy in the making, because they are missing a huge opportunity to truly do the right thing... to take a sophisticated - rather than 800 pound gorilla - approach to this crisis.
A sophisticated approach.... one led by people who know how to work with the fact that the present is different from the past - ie. designers - would address the fundamental fact that our economy is based on a zero-sum mental model in a global reality that is actually an abundance-based world waiting to be born.
As a designer myself, I saw this situation when there was a smaller - but still very visible - challenge to the stability of the global economic system. This was in October of 1998. At that time, BusinessWeek published an editorial called "The Age of Uncertainty". In that October 26, 1998 editorial, BusinessWeek said:
In the blink of a summer's eye, the psychology in America has changed totally. People suddenly don't know what to think about the economy, their investments, or their future. Before July, the U.S. had economic nirvana. Now confusion reigns. Volatility dominates markets. Hedge funds blow up. Deflation looms. The Asian contagion spreads. Russia defaults. The dollar plummets. CEOs worry. And Washington fiddles with impeachment. Yet the economy still feels pretty strong. So what is really going on out there?
In response to that editorial, I wrote a letter which BusinessWeek published on November 16, 1998. Here's what I wrote back then:
IN A GLOBAL ECONOMY, ALL PARTS NEED TO PROSPER 'So, what is really going on out there?'' you ask, in ''The age of uncertainty'' (Editorials, Oct. 26). For a more complete answer, look to the principles of systems thinking. A ''confluence of events'' is not the only thing masking the true fundamentals of the global economy, creating this ''fog'' you refer to. The ''fog'' is being created by the tendency to see globalization from a perspective grounded in our history of living in a world of separate, independent nations. The world's economy has become one interdependent system, yet we continue to view it through independent eyes. What's really going on, from a systems perspective, is that a new, single, global system is struggling to be seen for what it is--a system that can prosper only if all of its parts prosper. It is a single system, one that innately knows that either all of it will make it or none of it will. That's the way healthy systems work. The business world will prosper beyond its wildest imagination once it cuts through this fog and stops viewing the future through ''past-focused eyes.''
'So, what is really going on out there?'' you ask, in ''The age of uncertainty'' (Editorials, Oct. 26). For a more complete answer, look to the principles of systems thinking. A ''confluence of events'' is not the only thing masking the true fundamentals of the global economy, creating this ''fog'' you refer to. The ''fog'' is being created by the tendency to see globalization from a perspective grounded in our history of living in a world of separate, independent nations. The world's economy has become one interdependent system, yet we continue to view it through independent eyes.
What's really going on, from a systems perspective, is that a new, single, global system is struggling to be seen for what it is--a system that can prosper only if all of its parts prosper. It is a single system, one that innately knows that either all of it will make it or none of it will. That's the way healthy systems work. The business world will prosper beyond its wildest imagination once it cuts through this fog and stops viewing the future through ''past-focused eyes.''
I still believe everything I wrote almost ten years ago.
The business world will prosper beyond its wildest imagination once it sees the future for what it can be. Some businesses will have to change more than others to take advantage of this new opportunity, but that's what the best businesses do, right? (Weapons manufacturers will have to change the most, as war is finally seen as the obsolete "international development tool" that it is. But that's okay. The skills of those corporations can easily be used to study, analyze, and produce constructive solutions - especially highly scientific ones - to our sustainable development challenges.)
This business world mindset is why the business strategy book "Blue Ocean Strategy" has been a global best seller since its release in 2005... because business leaders are always looking for the "blue ocean" of "no competition"... the economic landscape where they can operate first.. offering new products and services that do and offer things that no other business is selling.
Well, there is a huge blue ocean available to all the world's businesses now. It is the post-scarcity, post-zero sum Capitalism world that is waiting out there.... just waiting for us to reach out for it.
I hope at least some of our business and political leaders are in enough of a shock that they will look for new ideas and new answers such as those I am talking about here.
We don't have to settle for 800 pound gorilla thinking. We can innovate our way out of this crisis, with our eyes completely open to the true nature of the challenge we face... open to understanding the root cause of the challenge we face. And by understanding the root cause of the crisis we are in - that we literally see fighting as the "first principle" of living when cooperation and collaboration should be the first principle - we can design our way to a better future... to an economic system that will provide all businesses - and all the people on Earth - with more prosperity than they ever believed possible.
We must not just stop something old that is bad. We must start something good that is new.
I made some bumpersticker, shirts & other stuff at cafe press, go to http://www.cafepress.com/dorotheascloset to shop and show your (very fashionable) support!
Fashionistas for Obama!
~Ang
What has always differentiated the US from other industrial powers has not been the # and quality of our engineers, but the cultural environment in which engineers work in (arts & culture that inspire creative thinking as opposed to linear thinking).
I would like to ask Barack to engage the "Design thinking" and other design disciplines/ideas as to how this area (the Creative Class) is probably one of our greatest hopes for maintaining leadership.
== dave
Design I produced for Behance
This was a piece I did for Behance:
http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Audacity/112017
Some friends and I designed some Obama shirts to raise money for the GA Campaign for Change. We would really appreciate it if you could help us spread the word! We just slapped together the site this weekend (it is still a little janky - although you can order shirts with no trouble) so check it out at http://www.ObamaRad.com if you are interested and feel free to spread the word if you dig them.
By the way, we are donating 25% of all money to the campaign and then just covering our supply and operating costs so I promise that this isnt some annoying spam crap. Promise!!! -Ryan
GoTellMama! I'm for Obama art show comes to Los Angeles. This is the second stop on the national general election GOT NEXT TOUR 'o8 Art Series - A traveling art exhibition + installation of Barack Obama inspired art work exhibiting in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Austin, Atlanta, Chicago and New York.
Opening Reception: Friday, August 8th, 2008 5-10PM Show continues through Sunday, August 10th. with DJs JEREMY SOLE (KCRW, Musaics, Afro Funke') ALFRED HAWKINS (Firecraker) Drinks courtesy of STARR African Rum HVW8 Art + Design Gallery 661 N. Spaulding Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036 www.gallery.hvw8.com GoTellMama! Brought to you by CRO www.gotellmama.org
Hi all,
Hope you can guide me.
Q: do I need written permission from Obama campaign to use the logo in my designs (percent of profit donated to campaign)? Did other designers get it before selling work with the logo?
Q: is the old Republican two color elephant under some sort of copyright protection, or is it pubic domain? (Hope someone knows!)
See the design ideas at http://heart4art.blogspot.com
I want to donate to the campaign using my design work sales. But must be legal, etc. Haven't done any promoting till I find the answers.
Comments welcome. Thanks.
How do I obtain permission from the Obama campaign to use the logo in designs I'm creating?
I see tons of people using the logo and creating all sorts of items for sale. I doubt everyone selling their work is asking permission to use the Obama mark.
My intent is to work with the Obama mark, in unique design applications, offering them to the campaign store as creative contributions, OR sell the designed items then donate profits to the campaign.
Suggestions welcome.
THANKS!
Themes so far: 'OBAMA MOM" and "Obamican".
Hi and welcome to WSOD: What Should Obama Do?!
Invitation to Blog. Please add to this list of ideas, opinions and topics so that Obama understands our concerns and can take action when he is in the white house. Please help out by spreading the word so that we can provide him great food for thought and a growing "to do" list!
- Boy will he be busy... TY.
