www.americandesignawards.com, 2008 Winter Semi-Annual Awards
designer: Rene Steiner, book cover
I found this design on the American Design Awards website and was intrigued with the text wrap around the image. It turns out to be not only visually interesting but symbolic as well. The book is about Ola Pawlowska who was born into Polish aristocracy and forced to flee to Canada during World War II. There she entered the Baha'i faith and became a Knight of Bah'u'llah, which is a teacher/missionary of the faith. This led Ola to travel the world and teach her beliefs. The dandelion is symbolic of the Baha'i faith and the the countries listed in the text wrap represent the areas where Ola spread her faith. I love the concept of the dandelion and the way the seeds are disbursed. It does make me pause to think about the association of a dandelion and weeds but I think since the designer is associated with the Baha'i, it is not meant to be taken in a negative connotation.
I believe the yellow color used by the designer is also symbolic. I looked up the definitions of color and found this color represents energy, intellect, optimism, enthusiasm, joy, and determination. All adjectives which seem to describe Ola based on the bio I read of her.
Did you notice the sun shining through in the upper corner which gives the design some depth? Also, the asymmetrical balance and the contrast of the rectangular block of text surrounded by circular elements add to the design appeal.
The text is an old-style serif used for publication purposes. The designer did a beautiful job of tracking the title and adjusting the leading to solidify the title. The designer is Rene Steiner from Switzerland/Canada. He has a superb portfolio and it seems that a lot of his work is designed around very detailed imagery, probably since he is also a distinguished photographer. His website links to other interesting design-oriented sites. Steinergraphics.com
1 comment:
Thanks for this post. Beautiful images, ideas, and analysis. The text wrap is key to the greatness of this design and I love that you let me know that the word of the text represent the different countries where she has sown seeds of her belief/ideas.
BTW, I didn't personally feel any negative connotation with the "weed-ness" of dandelions. I think of their lightness, how often I've blown off the seeds or watched the wind do the same. I also got a sense of energy from the yellow color.
Thanks again for sharing.
Post a Comment