So, to bring you up to speed (of sorts), here’s a partial list of some of the projects that have been popping around the studio the last month. We’ll be adding all these to the SILENTP.COM portfolio soon enough so we can show some print details and other aspects like how sweet the VINYL record looks…thrilled to see some of our work on a record cover!

Lastly, a HUGE thanks to the awesome clientele that we are super fortunate to get to work with. We never take for granted how amazing it is to work with such awesome people…we got room for more, so send us some email or pick that old telephone up…heck, FAX US your next project.

-Matt / The Silent P

As Gillian says,  ”We debunked everything mechanized”, they letterpressed the hand done illustration, then hand stuffed each package design. Several North Carolina connections too, pretty cool.

Additional: Check out how they stained each design with…COFFEE! “How to stain your album cover in a coffee bath.” Time to go news some coffee…

An account that we as a team (we partnered with another firm we love) really wanted and had a great feeling about. The project went elsewhere, and of course we feel like the decision was not in the best interest of the client, but more in the interest of “banging some stuff out and worrying about the bigger branding aspect later”…(verbatim quote).

Now normally we wouldn’t write about that “great” news in a public blog (“Hey we lost!”), but after we saw this great clip of Saul Bass, one the most respected designers/creative thinkers out there (and movie title sequence king: “The Man with the Golden Arm”, “North by Northwest”, “Vertigo”) it was too fitting not to share. Oh, he also created classic logos for AT&T, United, Minolta and Girl Scouts, to name but a few.

Listen to the master Saul bass speak on making money vs. making quality work. Life, well crafted by Saul Bass.

Saul Bass, Photo credit: © John G. Zimmerman

The art of fine furniture making was really impressive to witness: Hand-rubbed leather in an amazing variety of colors and textures, hand sanded wooden frames, 8-way hand tied spring ups, and on and on and on. Some employees having worked in furniture for over 50 years, others coming from generations of furniture builders.

As you look through the gallery below, it’s a nice reminder that there are still things made in the USA by hand and with pride that comes from generations of skill and expertise. We did a tasty cover stock emboss of the logo and the saying, “From the hands of our family to the hearts of yours.” That’s not just ad copy for this company, THAT is the real deal.

A special thank you to Eckard Photography who helped create the perfect images with the exact tone we were after for this project. Deluxe Printing handled the ink on paper like a boss.

Here’s what we’re thinking: Two color print: White ink // Silver Metallic ink on French Paper Dur-O-Tone Steel Grey. 10″ x 16″ size.

We used the opportunity to do some more hand lettering on this one, see the results and the before and after images below. Always fun to see where ink on paper (towel) takes you. As for the leaf image…we’d like to thank our backyard tree. Once we found the perfect one, we scanned and edited it to work great for this imagery. Thanks Mr. Leaf, you were great to work with.

I recently finished the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson, and besides being an insightful look into the man, it’s full of really interesting stories relating directly to advertising and design. Classics like the “Think Different” campaign are in there, the story behind the best Super Bowl commercial ever, “1984″, and Jobs relationship with Lee Clow, well known creative director who was with Chiat/Day at the time.

But the one story that I laughed out loud at was the one involving Steve Jobs hiring the famous graphic designer Paul Rand to design the logo for NeXT, the company Steve Jobs started after Apple fired him. For any graphic designer that has ever been asked to design a logo, this is a story you’ll appreciate in a way only a designer can.

The Next was to be cube-shaped so Rand suggested the logo be that shape as well. Jobs agreed and asked to see some options. Big mistake. Rand didn’t do options.

“I will solve your problem and you will pay me,” he told Jobs. “You can use what I produce or not, but I will not do options, and either way you will pay me.” And it would cost $100,000.

Two weeks later, Rand flew back and presented his solution in the form of a book (see below for sample) walking Jobs through the rationale. Jobs loved it but asked for the yellow of the ‘e’ to be brighter. According to Isaacson, “Rand banged his fist and declared, ‘I’ve been doing this for fifty years and I know what I’m doing.’ Jobs relented.”

I can’t imagine saying that to a client, but Rand was 71 at the time and a world-renowned expert in his field: not everyone could get away with it. But I think the lesson is that Paul Rand did not respond to Steve Jobs like the average designer does, he had the guts to say something that not only convinced him with the brand’s logo design along with a 100-page brochure detailing the brand, but earned him $100,000.

“I will solve your problem and you will pay me” is how we’re answering the phone now.

Once again, the excellent print was done by our good friends The Half and Half, edition of 170, signed and numbered. Make sure to check out the photo gallery below for some of the process pix and details of the artwork as ink on paper.

Side note: Eric is originally from the Hickory area, at one time he was a struggling artist in Nashville, TN, now his album Chief was announced as a nominee for the 2012 Grammy Awards for Best Country Album.

David Carson is well known for the quote: “Don’t mistake legibility for communication.” He has written about his appreciation for the ripped up and layered paper and partial typography on billboards, the ones awaiting new “perfect” shiny graphics, revealing all the more visually interesting layers and texture, “the ugly underneath”.

We encourage you to take a fresh look at the type around you on any given day…what’s more visually interesting and engaging in this era of “perfect” computer work? Look in any design annual (Print Regional is always good, albeit a LOT thinner lately) and you’ll see the trend among designers for a while now is hand done type and text. It’s great to see in our opinion.

Now, go make some messy yard sale signs and be creative…just don’t make it perfect.
Enjoy the gallery of photographs we’ve taken of typography that caught our eye at one time or another (we have TONS like these we’ll hopefully post later).

All photography © The Silent P // Pfahlert Creative Labs // 2012 //

As Wilco’s site says, it’s “A classic 8.5 oz diner style heavyweight ceramic mug with a two-color design printed on each side. For maximum enjoyment, use fresh Intelligentsia Coffee or Tea. While spinning some Wilco tunes. Something to wake up to.”

Photo of mugs with beans by Eckard Photographic.