Space the final frontier

MC Escher's 'Another World II"

Space is the distance or area between, around, above, below, or within lines, colours and shapes. It can be positive or negative, two dimensional or three dimensional.

Space, often referred to as “white space,” but it doesn’t have to be white. It can be blue, yellow or even pink. White space is really referring to a place for the eyes to rest, for the design to breathe. It relieves tension.

Space is at a premium with business cards because of their size, so how it is used must be carefully considered. Don’t feel the need to fill all the space on a design. Look at the Google web site, it’s practically a blank page. The fact that the search bar appears to be the only thing on the page make you focus on it.

Once again, I have post three logos from other people with a good use of space.

Space makes two

There is no shape

The space is the shape

For more on space and design, try these sites;

• 35 Logos brilliantly using Negative Space
• Art Lessons
• 15 brilliant portfolios

Soundwave Typography

The problem with this course? Let me tell you a little story. There I was at the best Soundwave festival yet, and what was I doing? Studying the typography all the bands’ logo. Why can’t I just listen to the music? Because I study design. Is that fair?

All logos were scanned in from this booklet

My favourite Logo of the Day

Cut at the line, this is still readable

Great use of line

Sometimes breaking the rules is a good thing

Old school metal lettering

Looks dangerous

Shape and motion

Colour is an Illusion

There is no colour in the natural world. Colour occurs when light in different wavelengths strikes our eyes. Objects have no color of their own, only the ability to reflect a certain wavelength of light back to our eyes. Colour is a figment of our imagination.

Great effects with colour

That being said, colour is a pretty big part of our perception of the world around us. Colour can be used to identify, unify, and communicate. When you go to a rock concert, you can count all the non-black t-shirts without talking off your shoes. There are many product, such as Cadbury chocolates, that people can identify by colour alone.

Colour can be expressed in three ways;

• Hue – what proportions of red, blue and green make up the colour
• Value or Tone – the play of light and dark
• Saturation – the intensity of the colour.

Other ways to manipulate colour are luminosity and opacity.

Everyone relates different thing with different colours and when designing, you must keep in mind the cultural significance of the colours you are using. Colour is one of the first things people notice.

Below are some examples of what other people have done with colour in logo design.

Colour can create a mood.

Colour can draw attention

Colour can create patterns

For more information on colour check out;

• 2D Design Notes
• Elements of Design
• Write Design Online

Further Education

After finishing the Advance Diploma options available at the University of SA that I could go after include;

• Bachelor of Visual Communication
• Master of Design

But I don’t have to continue full time study to advance my skills. TAFE offers many useful short courses in art and drawing as well as the use of design programs like Illustrator and Photoshop.

Other place also offer part time and short course in multimedia, such as SAE, Mad Academy and WEA.

The Kind of Job I’m Looking For.

Junior Animator
s2m Digital | Melbourne

$50000 – 60000 (pa)
Melbourne, VIC

Joining a multi award winning, Melbourne based marketing agency and you will get the opportunity to work with some of the world’s brightest brands. They’re looking for a talented Junior Animator with bucket loads of potential that can grow and be nurtured. Your portfolio should already demonstrate strong flash/animation skills but most importantly it will give us glimpses of your future brilliance.

Collaborating with some of the best Flash gurus around to bring awesome ideas to life, you should have a natural enthusiasm that makes people want to work with you and most of all you will want to learn everything you can whilst doing it.

In return your CV/portfolio will need to highlight the following:

• A degree in design (preferably interactive or multimedia design)

combined with creative flair and plenty of ideas.

• Experience creating highly engaging and effective websites, media

creative and games

• Enthusiasm and a good sense of humour
• Good knowledge of the usual creative tools, especially Flash
• A good portfolio of Flash design and animation that demonstrates potential as much as actual work
• A strong desire to learn and develop

You will be joining a bunch of passionate, talented and enthusiastic people who thrive on producing award winning Interactive campaigns in an environment they truly love to be involved in.

_____________________________________________________

I believe I have most of what they are asking for already. If this course gives me a great portfolio, these are the types of jobs I’ll be going for by next year. Extra skills I might need for this work are an understanding of motion and film.

Upcoming Events in 2010

Talk: Bigfish (Qld)
Venue: Rooftop Terrace – Brisbane Powerhouse
When: 30th March

Motion Graphics Festival (Int)
Venue: Boston
When: 1st – 5th April

The Designer Scavenger Hunt (TAS)
When: 11th April

Young Lions Seminar – (NSW)
Venue: Surry Hills Neighbourhood Centre
When: 19th April

Design Currency: Icograda Design Week (Int)
Venue: Vancouver
When: 26th – 30th April

Growing Business by Design (SA)
Free event for AGDA and Business SA members only.
Venue: Business SA, Enterprise House
When: 2nd June

Optimism: Icograda Design Week in Brisbane 2010  (Qld)
Venue: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
When: 11th Oct – 17th Oct

INFOCOMEX (SA)
Venue : Adelaide Convention Centre
When: 20 Oct – 22 Oct

Good sites to check out to stay up to date with Art and Design Events;

• ABC Arts
• ADGA
• AIMIA

re-Form-ed

Form – three-dimensional geometrical figure as opposed to a shape, which is two-dimensional, or flat. This does not require the production of a 3-dimensional object, the composition need only create the feel of existing in 3-dimensional space.

Forms are also recognisable shapes that provoke significant relationships in the minds of the viewer. It brings to mind something they can relate to, or envision existing in 3-dimensional space.

I’ve uploaded three logo, (none created by me), that I believe show three very different ways of creating with form.

3D Object

3D Space

3D by Tone

Ruskin's 'The Grand Canal

“Sculpture is not the mere cutting of the form of anything in stone; it is the cutting of the effect of it.” – John Ruskin

For more on Form and Design;

• Digital Web Magazine
• FORM Gallery
• Art, Design, and Digital Thinking

A list of Professional Associations for Multimedia

ACMA – Australian Communications and Media Authority
A statutory authority within the federal government that is responsible for the regulation of broadcasting, the internet, radiocommunications and, telecommunications.
http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/HOMEPAGE/pc=HOME

ACS – The Australian Computer Society
A recognised association for Information and Communications Technology Industry founded in 1966 to promote the development of IT professionals.
http://www.acs.org.au/

AGDA – The Australian Graphic Design Association
The national organisation for professional graphic designers facilitates a fair and productive working relationships between graphic designers and their clients. Operating through the State councils of Australia, AGDA assist in the development of new designs as well as educates the public on the value of design. They are involved in many industry events and design awards/competitions.
http://www.agda.com.au/

AIAS – The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The academy’s board of directors include representatives from  Sony, EA, Nintendo, Microsoft, THQ, and Ubisoft who volunteer their time to promote awareness of the art and science of interactive games and entertainment.
http://www.interactive.org/

AIMIA – Australian Interactive Media Industry Association
The Australia’s peak industry body, representing the Digital Content and Interactive Media sectors, dedicated to the development of the entire industry. AIMIA provide information and resources on industry news, upcoming events, career and educational opportunities, awards and competitions. As well as legal and ethical advise/assistance.
http://www.aimia.com.au/i-cms?page=1

AMPA – Australian Promotional Marketing Association
A non-profit association for the advertising and marketing industry.
http://www.apma.com/

Australian Screen Editors Guild
Comprised of the best Screen Editors in Australia, the guild aims to promote, improve and protect the role of editor.
http://www.screeneditors.com/

Communications Alliance
The peak body for the Australian communications industry, coordinating the industry’s response to the National Broadband Network implementation.
http://www.commsalliance.com.au/

MAAP – Multimedia Art Asia Pacific
A Brisbane based non-profit organisation that develops exhibition and research initiative. MAAP is dedicated to linking practitioners, curators and organizations to resources, opportunities, and international audiences.  In addition, MAAP supports a community of visual artists with Media Bank equipment loans, online resources including artist and curatorial networks.
http://maap.org.au/

Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance
The Alliance is the union and professional organisation which covers everyone in the media, entertainment, sports and arts industries.
http://www.alliance.org.au/

MFA – The Media Federation of Australia
The MFA recruits over 90 individual volunteers to sit on one our nine internal committees and 20 external committees  to encourage operational excellence in the field of media communication connections and to define and develop best practice standards to support its member and the role it plays in servicing its clients.
http://mediafederation.org.au/

Forgot About This One

This is another project from my studies last year. It’s an A3 poster advertising the course I was studying. The brief was to create a collage that would show prospective students what to expect.

Cert 3 Media Poster

Employment in Multimedia

Much like any other job, opportunities for employment in the multimedia industry can be found in many newspaper such as the Advertiser or the Australian, as well as on-line at job seeking sites like CareerOne and the Australian JobSearch website. But don’t dismiss resources as word of mouth and cold canvasing.

Jobs available at time of posting –

Entry level jobs;

• 2and2 – Flash Developer Junior/Graduate
• Catapult eLearning – Content Developer
• C-Learing – Multimedia/Design Graduate
• Yeahpoint – Jnr Flash Developer

Multimedia opportunities in South Australia;

• cjt designs – Senior Creative
• Fusion – Web/Digital Designer
• elevencross – Graphic Designer
• Clipsal – Web Designer/Developer

More opportunities interstate;

• S2M Digital – Flash Animator/Designer
• Scharp Design – Character Animation Artist
• PEDESTRIAN – Video Editor/Animator
• Neto E-commerce Solutions –Web Designer/Developer
• United Group Infrastructure – Multimedia Designer
• Horizon Consulting – Creative Director

Other than specific requests for software knowledge, (which differs not only between occupations but also design houses), these employers are generally seeking people with:

• Training
• Strong design and artistic skills
• Good communication and time management skills
• An understanding of industry concepts and trends
• Research skills

While most entry-level positions wont be advertised with a salary they can range from $30k – $60k, but usually closer to the $40k mark. Senior Designers can get around $80k or a little over $100k at the bigger corporations. Creative Directors, those that run whole companies, can break the $200k mark. These numbers can change from state to state.

To find out how much you can earn, check out – The Great Australian Pay Check Report

The Jobs posted here were all found using Seek, but other sites post positions available in the multimedia industry;

• AIMIA
• MFA
• S2M
• AGDA
• Freelancer
• artsHub