Blogs Posted Under July, 2010

A long-time client of Design 7 Studio recently requested a guys’ and gals’ t-shirt design to help brand one of their big selling wines.  Chateau Lettau Winery released their 2007 “Rockstar” bordeaux-blend a while back, but due to its success, they desired to launch a line of wine-wear that would help continue to make one of their flagship wines and even bigger success. Owner and musician Ron Nodder wanted shirts with a bit of attitude and a very non-traditional.. || Continue Reading →

Mixed media fine artist James Hopkins has a unique gift. He can take what seem like ordinary objects and arrange them on a shelf in such a manner as to convince the eye that it is looking into the eyes of death… or more specifically a subtle image of a skull. Below are a series of images from his Vanitas series.  For more of this inspiring contemporary artist, view the rest of his work here. “Black Still Life” “Consumption” “Design For Life” “Last.. || Continue Reading →

The year is 1978.  For some reason it was the Year of Horror Movies in the realm of good movie poster design.  Good concepts and good execution. Let the list begin.  Below are the eight that I found to be worthy of mention… The Chosen (1978) First off, the organic brushwork of the title is great and the bright orange against the black help to really make this title “pop”. Follow that with the stark black and white silhouette and you have a great symmetrical.. || Continue Reading →

Chris and Patty Connelly of Les Deux Chats Cellars recently contracted Design 7 Studio to create the branding and wine label design for their new premiere releases of their Cabernet Sauvignon and Roussanne wines. Desiring a clean, high-contrasting, and sophisticated label, the client requested that the focal point of the wine label be the basis for their name – “Two Cats” in English. After creating a series of hand-drawn illustrations and exploring various type.. || Continue Reading →

Massachusetts-based artist Jennifer Maestre has a use for colored pencils other than drawing with them.  She uses 100′s of 1 inch sections of colored pencils to create her three-dimensional works of art.  Inspired by sea urchins, her creations are very unique in nature and I love coming across fine artists that fine a new use for a common item and allow us to see it in a new and unique way.  You can view her other works at her website: www.jennifermaestre.com

The brilliant minds and talents over at Church On The Move out in Tulsa came up with a fantastically hilarious music video tribute for Father’s Day. What’s scary is that there is a lot of gray areas in this video as to how much of it is true.  Have I really gotten that old?  That I would trade up my young renegade lifestyle for a life of devoted to family and common sense?  Heck YES and I would do it all over again.  My family is worth it.  But this is still great.. || Continue Reading →

The good ole’ designers over at BLT & Associates have done a great job of designing the series of striking movie posters for the new Bruce Willis movie “Red“, based on the DC Comic of the same name. The stark black and gorgeous red and orange hues really draw your eye, but it is the strong horizontal bars with type that contrast beautifully with the title treatments vertical orientation.  Great execution of combining the title and a character image. Whether.. || Continue Reading →

Time for another trip into the past to review and post the movie posters that, in my opinion, showcased creative and inventive strides in the area of graphic design.  The year in review? 1977. Now I need to preface that I found 1977 very disappointing in terms of poster designs that were exceptional.  Most were true to the design styles of that time, but there were not many that pushed the envelope or really did the movie justice in enticing and calling the audience to view.. || Continue Reading →

Design 7 Studio was recently contracted to design a postcard announcing Zenaida Cellars‘ upcoming pick-up party for their Wine Club members.  The party was to have a vintage carnival theme, so it was only befitting that the postcard followed suit.

I love to see how all typographical solutions come together.  I came across this contest submission by Boston graphic designer Scott Nicolson and loved it’s simplicity. Sure, it would have been easy to fill the whole page, have the different statements be in different fonts, sizes, and angles, but I think it would have ended up a mess. Instead, Scott leads the viewer down a logic path of reading and I love the connectivity of the pieces.  The muted hues are gorgeous and.. || Continue Reading →