Farewell Grafik

This was a shock. Studio was saddened to hear the news of the closure of Grafik magazine. And in this era for instant communication, I feel the last to know.

Discreetly announced in late June, (I stumbled upon the news on the Process Journal web site) Grafik's publisher had gone into liquidation. Previously funded and published by its editors, Grafik had been recently bought by an ambitious private investor with desire for rapid growth. All looked to be rosy, especially as their last issue was devoted to their successful Grafik awards.



I've enjoyed it ever since its days as Graphics International. It re-launched itself as Grafik in 2003, and continued to be the champion of small design studios and individual designers – each issue richly designed and printed to a high standard. Sometimes more arty than industry leader Creative Review but unmistakably passionate about graphic design and its practitioners.

I do hope it returns in the future, but as yet there is no news regarding it being saved. Like other well loved magazines, such as The Face, it will be missed. Below, is the front cover of what would have been the latest issue.



Please raise a Mad Men glass of whiskey and toast a fine magazine. Grafik – rest in print.

Ad Break

There is a current trend in TV advertising to use vintage names from the music industry.

Some are more palatable than others, I still struggle with Iggy Pop selling car insurance, but these commercials must be successful as new scripts are commissioned building on the original theme. Famously, John Lydon (ex-sex pistol) boosted the sales of Country Life butter by 85%. The reason why is that they simply make great telly, each being superbly scripted and enhanced by John's personality. And it has worked for him too, recently revealing that his payment fee has been invested into the reformation of his post-punk band Public Image Limited, who had previously been held in financial limbo by their uninterested record company.

And now Gary Numan has entered the arena – this american ad for Die Hard batteries has a unique twist, and I love the expression on his face throughout.



I like that.

Many of us find the thought of our favourite pop stars in advertising abhorrent , which I guess has its root in the fear of 'selling out'. I think if the resulting film is creative and entertaining, then the participating pop star can retain some credibility but as album sales decline and a tour needs funding, we could be seeing many more pop stars during the ad break.

But let's not get too carried away – I don't want to see Morrissey selling veggie friendly cat food.

2. The Project – UEA Annual Report

Pitching a charitable direction for the UEA Annual Report was a daring proposition. Studio was buzzing to win the opportunity to design this project, so it was interesting to see how our clients would meet this challenge.

Their response was very exciting – to further the awareness of the University's international work and its achievement of the Queen's Anniversary Prize, the UEA Africa PhD Scholarship Programme would be established. Its objective to raise at least £120,000 to fund four african students for a three-year course – providing them with a life-changing opportunity they would not other wise have. It was brilliant to hear this level of ambition. Now to make it happen.



In comparison, Studio's role was simple – creating an Annual Report with a prestigious feel, befitting of the University and announcing this new programme. Its visual theme features landscape imagery from Rwanda, from a region known as the Thousand Hills in Nyungwe an area worked in by the University's School of International Development. Faculty members were then revealed in the inside front of the Report – positioned opposite, the Queen's Anniversary Prize logo which can be used by the University for the next four years.







Additional views of the Thousand Hills (or 'Darren's Hills' as they became known by a few clients) were also applied to UEA Court, the event which launches the Annual Report and celebrates its achievements.

For Studio, this year's Annual Report was not only a victory for the idea, but a design which genuinely makes a difference for an educational programme which could potentially change lives. Nice, eh?

Please visit www.uea.ac.uk for more details on the University of East Anglia Africa PhD Scholarship Programme. And if you know anyone wealthy, please tell them too.

With thanks to Anne-Marie Triggs, Suzy Gook and David Street.

1. The Pitch – UEA Annual Report

The prospect of a pitch for any designer is a challenge, testing our creativity to win new business.

Earlier this year, Studio pitched for University of East Anglia's Annual Report for 2008–09. It's a prestigious project to work upon, but firstly there's a competitive selection process where the effectiveness of your work is measured alongside your peers (nine agencies on this occasion). I've worked on many pitches and it's always exciting but it doesn't get any easier.

For new clients, it's building trust in your abilities and your service – but more importantly, the chemistry between client and designer is vital to the process which creates exciting work.

Studio enjoyed its presentation, putting forward three great ideas – but we were keen to present just one, because it felt right. The University had recently won the Queen's Anniversary Prize for their international research work, helping communities to address poverty and climate change. Taking their work in post-conflict Rwanda as a visual theme, Studio pitched an idea of how the Annual Report could be a charitable booklet and raise money for african charities. After all, it would be good for the soul and not just another corporate document.



After the presentation, there's a huge sense of relief – you've met the challenge – but then you wait, and wait a bit more. Until the phone rings.

Thankfully, Studio were successful, later meeting an excited client with ambitious ideas. More to follow in the next post (with pics!).

Geoffrey Lefever Exhibition Catalogue

Studio have recently created the exhibition catalogue for artist Geoffrey Lefever of the Norwich 20 Group.

Designed by Darren and Scott and printed on two contrasting stocks - text pages were set upon a textured uncoated stock, sitting nicely alongside the image pages, printed on an absolute white Naturalis. Ideal for Geoffrey's equally textural art. All this and perfect bound too.



Geoffrey Lefever's Selected Works 2000–2010 is being shown at The 'Stew' Gallery, Fishergate in Norwich until June 15th. Catalogues available at the show.

What a Load of Rubbish!

Studio recently took a short break in Amsterdam and when we arrived, it was bin day. Or so we thought.

Turns out there had been a ten day strike by the dustmen and this beautiful city had been turned into a rubbish tip. I love the nine streets area which borders the Jordaan and on every corner and each picturesque bridge – piles of the rotting stuff. Plus, there had been some opportunistic fly-tipping with an arm chair, sofas and even a washing machine being dumped in the nearby Noordermarket.







Hopefully the striking bin men got their settlement and Amsterdam and its visitors re-claimed the streets.

More pics from this visit over on the Studio Flickr site.

A Riot of Our Own – Mick Jones Rock & Roll Archive at NUCA

When I first heard that the Mick Jones Rock and Roll Archive was coming to Norwich, I was gob smacked. I'd missed it last year when it had been first staged in London. What made it doubly sweet was that it was being hosted by Norwich University College of the Arts.



It's a unique collection of ephemera that Mick Jones of The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite has obsessed over for, well, since he was a kid. And it's not all music related - my favourite part of the show are some of his childhood toys, in particular the tin soldiers which recreate Rorke's Drift from the film Zulu. But the Clash memorabilia is inspiring – featuring stage outfits and guitars all placed next to graphics and fanzines from the punk era - as you can tell from the pictures featuring my son Billy, the organisers are not precious about this stuff being handled.





A few NUCA students helped to put the show together – apparently wherever the archive is staged, it is always bespoke to the space. So their judgement for display was crucial to how you enjoy and navigate the show.



Mick recently visited the art school to thank the students personally. It was a treat to meet him too. A very nice guy and very pleasing to see that he had 'english' teeth - you know what I mean - not the perfect X Factor ultra-white kind.



More pics over at the Studio Flickr site.
Now I must go and play the first B.A.D. LP very loud.