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John McWade is a graphic designer, instructor, speaker and, sometimes, a consultant. Most…
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Learning Graphic Design: Things Every Designer Should Know1h 5m
Learning Graphic Design: Things Every Designer Should Know
By: John McWade
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John McWade shared thisGot this note yesterday from a small ceramics shop on Etsy from which I’d ordered a pot two weeks ago: Hello, John, I am here to write you that due to the Russian invasion to my country (I am from Kyiv, Ukraine) I have to update the date when I send your order. I am very sorry about this. I will send the pots as soon as post service starts working. Thank you very much, Anastasiia To which my startled (an understatement) reply was: Omgoodness Anastasiia, are you as calm as you sound? I have no words for what’s happening in your country, but I pray that Ukraine prevail in its resistance. Guard yourself, and don’t even think about my pot, please. All the best to you! 🙏 To which she responded: Dear John, thank you very much for your kind words and your support! I know, it’s been 8 days and I am really surprised how we can forget that these are still the most terrible days of our lifes. We get used to shots, really. I am at outskirts of Kyiv, and constantly listening to how our super heroes do not let Russian columns to enter Kyiv… but it became a part of our life😔 Still I am sure, not for long! They would have to kill all of us if they want this land to be Russian. Thank you very much for your support and prayers, we all really appreciate it, Anastasiia People, I hardly know what to think. Out of a clear blue sky I’m given this unfiltered, un-spun glimpse into the life and mind of a young, everyday Ukrainian in Kyiv as the Russian invasion unfolds around her in real time. I mean, who gets such a thing? What, if anything, can I do with it? I hear in her tone youthful naïveté and life-in-the-balance bravado. But her situation is not theoretical. War is upon her. Here’s a picture and her Etsy shop, which includes a way to message her: https://etsy.me/2JrWzA4 How long the internet will continue to function in Ukraine is of course not known.
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John McWade shared thisWhat makes a compelling design portfolio? Says Pentagram’s Eddie Opara: Craftsmanship, solution, process, next-level-ness, energy, fearlessness. Love this! https://bit.ly/2JoWKxo @CreativeBloq #EddieOpara @pentagram
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John McWade shared thisSweating over a just-right logo? Handsome back-circle logo illustrates how little of a brand is its logo, per se, and how much is the application of concept, type, color, line, form, and spatial relationships system-wide. https://lnkd.in/grMm3Dw
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John McWade shared thisSo enchanted by David Jonathan Ross’s micro type catalog that I mocked up one of my own for my upcoming catalog-design course. Cute, quick read, totally engaging, costs almost nothing. Fun stuff!
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John McWade shared thisApple, Google, and Netflix logos get a Bauhaus makeover. The famous school turns 100. @FastCoDesign @BauhausMovement @bauhaus100 https://bit.ly/2EOc1UQ
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John McWade shared thisI was asked recently how to design things to print with less ink. Omgoodness, what a fun topic—because it will ALMOST ALWAYS improve your design! We’ll be diving in. Stay tuned.
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John McWade shared thisThe experienced designer is likelier than a beginner to make bold moves. This week in "Maki poster, part 2," stronger page proportions and a powerful type line. https://bit.ly/2RRE3C7. At Lynda.com: https://bit.ly/2tiLicI
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John McWade shared thisThere’s a more nourishing way to think of life than as a journey. Alan Watts and David Lindberg illustrate. Beautiful, hopeful, poignant.Alan Watts & David Lindberg - Why Your Life Is Not A JourneyAlan Watts & David Lindberg - Why Your Life Is Not A Journey
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John McWade shared thisOne difference between a beginner and an experienced designer is that the experienced designer is likelier to make bold moves. A concert poster illustrates. https://bit.ly/2UqRcDW
John McWade commented on a post
1y
David Blatner All of us who’ve scrolled on MyFonts through endless pages of black-on-white type specimens know how hard type is to evaluate out of context. I think you have a good example here. The HARRIS face by itself is flat and nondescript, like so many others, but when I saw it in use, I intuitively liked it. Simple, strong, clear, easy to grasp instantly.
Of special interest to me is the nearly black field—so unusual for a campaign button and surprisingly daring—which imparts authority, gravitas and, dare I say it, elegance. Love the textural contrast of the little union bug. And note how easily the same (or similar) face used for COACH! in red and blue on white conveys light, patriotic exuberance! I especially like that it takes a moment to decode—oh! coach Walz! Little discoveries required of the reader tend to stick.
To my eye these show type at its best. Pure type, zero gingerbread, no complexity, no lines, borders, slogans, mug shots, competing typefaces. (To see the contrast, just Google Harris Walz buttons. Oy!)
Whether the ticket can live up to its type remains to be seen, but these are an impressive start.
John McWade commented on a post
2y
Love that you can be editor, writer, cinematographer, voice talent, all that, and AI can fill in with the skills you may lack or don’t have time for. Still the early days, but wow, the fact this can be done on iPhone and iPad and published for the world to see—we’re living in the future!
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John McWade reacted on thisJohn McWade reacted on thisYou always hear about Illions — you know, like million, billion, and trillion. But most people have no idea of what these numbers really mean — they're usually just too big to wrap your head around. Actually, a million isn't that hard: it's a thousand-thousand. (Imagine a group of 1,000… then imagine 1,000 of those groups.) You could print a million dots on a wall poster, and still see each of them. But billions and trillions… Things get out of hand quickly when you start thinking at this scale. ➡️ You could walk a million millimeters in less than an hour, but it takes 10 hours to drive a billion millimeters. A trillion millimeters? That’s 25 times around Earth. ➡️ A million seconds is about a week and a half. A billion seconds is 30 years. A trillion seconds ago, Neanderthals were walking around (30,000 years). ➡️ A million dollars in $100 bills fits into a grocery bag. A billion dollars requires 10 shipping palettes, with bills stacked 6 feet tall. A trillion dollars would fill a fleet of cargo planes. In math notation, a million is 10^6 (a one followed by six zeros). A billion is 10^9, and a trillion is 10^12. But even that pales compared to the 100 trillion (10^14) cells you have in your body, or the almost 10^19 grains of sand on Earth, or approximately 16 x 10^21 stars in the known universe. Illions are fun to play with, but a great challenge to understand.
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John McWade reacted on thisJohn McWade reacted on thisThis decision is a hard one to process. 😮💨😞 Despite what may be published in the media and in Internet comments, many dedicated, hardworking, and passionate engineers, technicians, and scientists put many years of effort into building, testing, and operating Starliner. They’re not “hacks” or “incompetent” people - they care deeply about their work, the people who fly on these spacecraft, and their families and friends. They want the astronauts to come home safe. These same people are now practicing and focused on bringing Calypso home safely and successfully. Please take a moment and think about these people and their families before writing that click-bait headline, or the scathing comment online. Ad astra per aspera 🚀❤️🙏🏼 https://lnkd.in/e6u2G3aM
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John McWade liked thisJohn McWade liked thisThe worst thing I've ever eaten, the best theatre I've ever seen, and a response to violence. All this and more in this week's musings:
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John McWade reacted on thisJohn McWade reacted on thisA message to graduates, how to fix politics, and an important rule to remember each day… all this and more in this week's musings:
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