My working time has been all about design since the summer months. I’ve done hundreds of concepts for some very large projects which will unfold over the next years. Each and every concept is challenging but some are more so. Each day I look over my to-do list to decide what will be next. Inevitably, some projects immediately speak to me with creative ideas at the ready. It’s a simple matter of rapidly sketching these ideas onto paper, then transferring these roughs into the computer for refining. When I’m on a roll I can turn out three or four finished concepts in a work day. But as I work through the long lists the tougher projects seem to gang up, waiting to give me a workout. I’m down to that list now on the current jobs. I woke up early this morning with ‘the perfect solution’ to a project that had defeated me yesterday. By the time I got to my design desk however, this brilliant solution wasn’t that good. I kept at it… and three tries and much of the morning later I was still stumped. Peter and I held a quick brainstorming session and at last an idea popped up that was workable. For the next few hours I was again on a roll. When I was finished I sent the concept off to the client and received an immediate and enthusiastic response. With my forward momentum and a renewed confidence I started the next ‘difficult’ challenge. Twenty minutes of sketching netted another great concept and an hour of drawing time on the computer allowed me to stroke another of the list. Tomorrow it’s time to dig into the tough pile for another exciting challenge. It’s going to be fun!
It is fun to be unpredictable!
Last week as I was designing a new sign for the Wild Rose Dairy I first drew up the classically styled lettering and then began drawing a beautiful wild rose. It looked great but it was predicable. Just then Peter came into the studio. He admired my drawing in progress but then told me - ‘Rose is the cow and she’s WILD!’ I could instantly imagine a fun image and I couldn’t un-see it. I couldn’t undo it when I was done either! It is great fun to be unpredictable!
Silhouettes of metal
We’ve been incorporating plasma cut elements in our signs since we acquired the plasma cutter five years ago. Creating a custom shape from metal plate is a wonderful means of incorporating a cool bracket or element into the theme of the sign. It is less expensive than sculpting a full blown 3D feature but still very effective. The Bishop Farm begs for a number of these kinds of signs and I’ve been having a lot of fun creating these designs!
