Yo YO! the post is up. I'm sorry that you have to turn your head to see the sketches, but I scanned them out of my wide sketchbook and didn't rotate them cause it looked right on my computer. Anyway. View them as a slideshow and it looks pretty good. ta ta for now. -mike-

Wow its been a while

Hey everyone! Been workin hard and tonight your can see some of the fruits. I will have uploaded the bulk of my sketches for multiple ideas as well as a few finished (90%) examples via my flickr account.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/strizak/

There is the link to my photostream which I'll be updating tonight. Hope everything is moving forward with everyone else. I know its been a tough couple of weeks. lata -mike-

Summary for pages 67-95 woo!

Communications:
Well the chapter begins by discussing communication in respect to the transportation of messages as well as semiotics of how it is recieved. They first define three levels of problems with communication as how accurately, precisely, and effectively convey the meaning. They then break down the semantic level of marks and talk about the differences and changes in logos as they go from country to country in order to be sensetive to religion and such. They give examples-Montblanc pens, the Red Cross...etc All of that discusses the question, "How is this recieved by the target audience?". The chapter then turns to channels, media, and formats to discuss ways in which a logo can be streamlined to your sight. It is definately a challenge to get your logo to hit a person the exact way you want it to and at the right time. There are so many venues for display. They discuss the positive and negative advantages to print, digital, three dimensional, and so much more. I never really thought about how something is recieved is aspect to what happens to a logo in a given enviroment, ex. a neon sign glowing over a wet street. I never thought of how many varying ways a logo is read every day. Linguistic functions take stage just after that. Each of the functions ex. emotive, conative, poetic,phatic, metalingual, referential, are discussed in lieu of how they each effect a given viewer, which helps to clarify to me how many levels something has to work on to achieve the reception I talked about earlier.
The chapter then turns to signs. There are a whole bunch of different styles of signs and varying sizes and this portion discusses the technical aspects of a good or bad sign in respect to how it portrays and id. This is when I really felt that the chapter was starting to touch base the most with what we are doing. Signs have to be effective and have to stand the test of time because their out there with your name and ideas 24/7 so that the whole world can see what your about. There is so much time and money that goes into an idea before a sign and It really makes the pressure evident as to how well your logo must be. I liked the showing of the old Marlboro sign which reminded me of Arby's old signage and Long John Silvers. Those signs especially have to do well because of there added cost and specific placement to a demographic. Putting up alchahol or cigarette signs in Las Vegas is a great idea becuase people go there to cut lose and use those products.
Symbols, icons, and trademarks close out the chapter. I gained alot of understanding from this because it really put an emphasis on an icon making sense. I like to illustrate, but this portion of the chapter discussed where alot of icons come from and the criteria they have to meet to really stand the test of time. In a small logo illustration, you only really get one shot to make the viewer see what your trying to say, and then you can only hope that they like it after that. I liked the peak into how logos and icons have been done for years and the transformation of symbols into modern icons. There are just so many facets to building a logo I hadn't realized I haven't considered. There was ALOT of information in this chapter and I understand why we were told to read it several times, because I understood most of it, but those models for communication and it's reception just threw me a little. With all the many ways to comunicate any given mark I just hadn't realized the environment you have to build one from. With so many things to consider, I'm going to try to apply some of this to my final logo which I think will be my summit one. See everyone in class!


Wow I guess I should have made it web safe color. the colors are way off lol. Either way....All images strict copyright of Michael Strizak. Usage or manipulation of any images seen on this blog is strictly prohibited and punishable by law and the utter manliness of Mike Strizak.


So I've been working on alot of things lately. Mainly my illustrations and some car stuff lol. work cut me to 21 hours for this week only so I'm spending some time with my lovely girlfriend and trying to bring my corporate Id stuff up to snuff as well as my biology posts. I'm glad its raining this week cause I haven't seen this weather in awhile and its nice to get sweaters out. This picture is of the sweet hat I got as a gag gift on our six month anniversary a while back. Everyone should drop a little something about their life on here. And howcome we dont all talk more with these things? See everyone in class. Ill post a pic up of one of my illustrations i've done. Its very vintage feeling to me. lata -mike-

Summary of pages in Marks of Excellence


First off, My apologies for the delay in this post. I will be posting a blog on the main class page as soon as possible on a thought i've been having about something super interesting :) But I'm in the process of stepping everything up, not just my homework, but everything I produce and a little bit of my lifestyle which could use a bit of irregularity ( I work five days a week and have class six days a week lol ). But anyways, about the book... I love it!
I've had to read so many boring design books where I cant be more against, but this one rocks. I learn so much from it in logos alone. The break down when it discusses like the BP logo and coat of arms stylings being used to say "GT" or to establish the power vibe. I never understood like the heraldry part of it either. I guess I just was't looking at the old versus the new, but just thinking to myself that everything should be fresh as possible. Thinking about the competition as well as the history is something I'm definately working on. I feel like I could produce a good Halmark though. I sketch and illustrate in a style thats very antique, but to some logos and designs It really looks classy :) I will say that I know this thing is jumping around, but I have alot of different tangejnts I could run with from just the first sixty pages. I like how it discusses how some logos are designed to be run next to each other to make them look stronger and more direct. I agree with how the usage can be just as effective as the design. Alas I shall write more on this later, but so far... Im liking this book alot. Time to study for Bio - peace -

Hey Everyone!


Its a little past midnight. I just finished watching GroundHog Day lol. The blogs are all up and cracking with my comparisons. Ill have some new stuff available soon on flickr as I continue to work out what Im gonna do. I got a pretty sweet recycled paper sketchbook from pat catans next to the paper machete' animals. Hope everyone is having a good weekend and if anyone wants to hit me up for advice or leave some more direct feedback, I should be on aim every now and again under the name -mikestrizak- Anyway...Im off to bed soon. tra la la!-mike-

Logo Comparisons (manufacturing)

The Good
Lockheed Martin
Wordmark/symbol
Military and Govt. Manufacturing

Lockheed Martin is an Akron based manufacture of high end military vehicles, some all terrain equipment, government supplies and machinery, and so much more. They work on big projects and alot of faith goes into the companies clean and consistent work. The logo they have defines there precision and even has a little bit of a “for country” feel to it which makes it trustable and puts it at the front of our memory.


The Bad
Diamond Brands
Wordmark over graphic
Match + Toothpick Manufacture


Diamond Brands was and Akron based manufacture that moved to Barberton in the early 1900’s. They have a history of being an American company as they were one of the largest match and toothpick manufatures in the united states. They are the pioneers of strike anywhere matches and now they have new products emerging in the plastic and paper dinnerware department. Their logo doesnt work for me because of their attempt to be modern without updated the wordmark. The diamond symbol they use doesn’t speak at all for the products they produce. It looks like a window to me and the color scheme they have adapted to is vibrant but a little christmasy. This company has a vast history to draw from and really could have put forth something better than what they have.

Logo Comparisons (nonprofit)


The Good
The World Wide Foundation For Animals
Wordmark/symbol-mostly
Non Profit for animal care













The WWF is a company that operates fund raisers and charity events to sponser the preservation and protection of endangered and uncared for species around the world. They operate with television commercials and radio advertisements and sell t-shirts and bags online to promote their cause as well as to raise money for the effort. The logo is straight forward and successful which is neccessary because of the WWF name and how it is already trademarked to wrestling. The panda symbol they use is instantly recognizable and works in various colors and formats.

The Bad
Akron Summit Public Library
Wordmark w/bad graphics
Non Profit Library


The Akron Summit Public Library logo has bothered me since Ive had a library card. The facilities and services they offer are some of the best free services available. You can rent current dvds, audiobooks, magazines, and much much more completely free! They recently built newer facilities and operate at a high caliber for a library, but the logo they use is so dated and strange. To me their logo begins to look like a lifeline with a sharp edge or a cityline, but not a bookshelf which its supposed to be. The orange and white makes no reference or connotation to anything library related and the whole scheme of it just falls flat. This could really use revisions.

Logo Comparisons (Service)

The Good
H&R BLOCK
Wordmark/symbol
Service: Tax Preperation



H&R BLOCK is a clean and consistent tax preperation service that has
been around for quite a few years now. Though their service is only really used during tax time, when people need their taxes done it gets competitive for where and who to go to. H&R Block’s logo is good because it sticks in your head. The simple green block has a clean and friendly money-colored feel to it. Its simple, yet elegent. A great example of how so little can do so much. Their forms, pamphlets, DVDs and all of their media share the same green glow like the sinage outside the buildings. In my opinion an established brand.


The Bad
Musica
Wordmark w/bad graphics
Service: Music Venue







The Musica is a venue for up and coming artists as well as poetry readers and literary artists alike. They have open mic nights and generally draw pretty steady business because they keep getting better and better bands to play there. The problem with this logo/ identity is that it is everything else that differs from logos like H&R Block. Instead of simplicity and elimination of things that would only clutter the signs; they introduce the name in Papyrus font with lots of cheesey clip art that is very dated and already too old. The colors are not anything you would like to remember and you wind up remembering the bands and not where you saw them.

Logo Comparisons (Retail)


The Good
Fossil
Wordmark/symbol
Retail: accessories






Fossil is getting ready to celebrate their 25th anniversary. They have recently released a whole new line of vintage and aviation products including watches, bags, wallets and jewelry alike. Everything they make is explorative and extremely well made. They take alot of ques from vintage and hand made products and are very professional and appealing. The logo they have I believe represents that very well. It looks like a worn leather or yellowed paper. The colors are quiet but bold. The company does a very good job of building a brand and identity to match their quality products they distribute.



The Bad
Summit Racing
Wordmark
Retail: auto parts




Summit racing has been around for quite a long time and is based right here in Akron. The colors of the logo do play well in to the history of it. This is because Summit sells American auto parts to American people. The red, white, and blue color scheme shows us that. Where the branding goes south is in the content. The logo doesn’t say auto parts or racing, or speed, or anything about automotive parts and accessories. It doesn’t speak well of the quality products and great services the company offers. The type is also some kind of hand made typeface that looks kind of like lightning bolts and pulls you further away from what the company tries to portray as an identity.

Logo Comparisons (Professional)


The Good
Park Acura
Wordmark/symbol
Profession: Dealership





Park Acura is getting ready to celebrate a 50th Anniversary of the Company.
They are a high end Honda and Acura dealer located on Arlington street. Though their located in a competitive area with other dealerships just across and down the street, they shine bright with their very professional facilities and branding. The park logo is just a sleek word-type logo with a leaf graphic next to it, but the colors and movements within the logo make it very attractive. The facility and actions of the dealership as well as the application of their logo on uniforms and accessories make keep the percieved quality of the company at top form.



The Bad
Kenneth Davis, M.D.
Wordmark, Graphic
Profession: Gynocology


Being a member of the Summa health system, Kenneth Davis, M.D. is a
Akron based gynocology clinic operated by Dr. Davis and a helpful staff. They offer a variety of examinations and services, but the brand of the clinic as well as the logo they use to operate is a little bit confusing. The main doctor of the business which bears his name as the clinics office title is male but the logo is a profile of a young woman. I understand that the clinic is mostly for women’s health, but as a brand or identity, The logo doesn’t speak that when you see it. Its just a black and white profile and it doesn’t say anything about health at all. When coupled with the fact that the male Dr.’s name is the only type in the logo, it loses communication and effectiveness and thus is not top notch.

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