GSM

Mhairi Flett

  2. Mhairi Flett (Page 11)

Incorporating Te Ao Maori in our Creative Work…

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GSM13

Ma Te Mohio Ka Marama - Through Awareness Comes Understanding For graphic designers in New Zealand, when a client requests a ‘kiwi theme’, it’s only natural to reference Te Ao Māori, the Māori world. But, what if, without realising it, we misappropriate the culture? To feel more confident about incorporating Te Ao Māori into our creative work and to better understand the cultural significance of what we do, GSM13 talks to three Māori who specialise in bringing their culture into the world of design. JOHNSON WITIHERA Johnson has a Ph.D in Māori Art & Design and is co-founder of Indigenous...

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Alan Fletcher Leading A Life of Graphic Design…

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Alan Fletcher

‘Design is not a thing you do. It’s a way of life.’ Alan Fletcher lived and breathed design. Upon his death in 2006, obituaries appeared in newspapers around the world including The Independent, The Telegraph, The Guardian, The New York Times and The Times. Described as "the most highly regarded graphic designer of his generation, and probably one of the most prolific", GSM15 takes a look at co-founder of Pentagram and one of the most influential figures in British graphic design, Alan Fletcher... Early Years Born in the 1930s in Kenya, Alan Fletcher rose to prominence in the 1960's &...

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BJ Ball Swatch Books – Paper Glorious Paper!

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paper selector

Recently, BJ Ball launched brand new swatch books to replace the older fan-apart system. No simple task when you need to accommodate and showcase more than 360 individual paper stock/weight combinations. In GSM14, we talk to Alf Walker, Creative Director at Zoo Creative, about the unique challenges and nuances of this complex project. The team at Zoo produced the original fan-apart swatches for BJ Ball back in 2014. It was an enormous project in itself, but we always felt there was room for improvement. Having the opportunity to design the BJ Ball swatch books a second time was very exciting....

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Intellectual Property – What does it mean?

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Intellectual Property

Intellectual property, Copyright and all that legal stuff... What does it mean to you as a graphic designer? What should you know?... As designers, we love to create. In fact, we get so engrossed with creating, we sometimes forget the importance of establishing who owns the work we create. So, who does own the work? And why should you care? GSM Re-Edit delved into the legal world of Intellectual Property... Intellectual Property Let's start with a brief overview of Intellectual Property (IP) Law as it applies in New Zealand. IP Law is covered by the Copyright Act (1994). At it’s...

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How to Create Off-the-Shelf Impact with your Label

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Wausau Self Adhesive Labelling

Self adhesive labels are often used in the beverage market - a highly competitive environment. To make your product stand out on the shelf, BJ Ball have recently introduced Wausau's innovative self adhesive labels. GSM15 takes a look... Recently, BJ Ball announced the sole distributorship of Wausau self-adhesive labels in New Zealand. This follows on from Ball & Doggetts, who have carried this range for a number of years in Australia. These new products, manufactured in the USA by Wausau Coated, open a whole new world of creative possibilities when it comes to ‘off-the-shelf’ impact. Based on Wausau’s long history...

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Digital Print Embellishments – Look what you can create…

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GSM13

Digital print technology has evolved rapidly over the last five years. To the point that you can now create embellishment effects that, previously, could only be produced with offset or letterpress. This opens a whole new world of possibilities for designers when working on short-run print projects. In GSM13, we took a look at some of the latest finishes and print effects that can be achieved using digital print systems. Specialty Toners & Varnishes Some digital print systems have the capacity to use toners beyond standard CMYK. Depending on the system, these can include other supplementary colours such as white...

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Print Embellishments – Find out the Difference between Embossing, Debossing & Foiling

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Print Embellishments

Colour is not the only option to drawing the reader's attention. Embossing, Debossing & Foiling are three of the more commonly used print embellishments used in conjunction with, or instead of, ink. GSM takes a look at them... Embossing & Debossing. Embossing & debossing are fundamentally the same process.  A die-block is stamped onto a sheet of paper/board to create either a raised (embossed) or recessed (debossed) impression. Typically, the height or depth of the impression is between 0.15—0.5 of a millimetre (15—50uM). Die-blocks can be made in either stepped depths; single- or multi-level blocks, or as continuous 3-D forms....

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Your Business Card – How well does it represent you?

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Business card

First impressions count - research shows that within the first few seconds of meeting, decisions will be made on who you are! Appearance affects how professional, trustworthy and powerful a person thinks you are. And it's not just how you present yourself - Think of your business card as an extension of you. In GSM we take a look at your business card. Interestingly,  you don't have to take out a small mortgage to create a good impression. Take, for example, the BJ Ball range of business cards. They range from the ordinary to the sublime! The role of a...

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Paper, Pixels & The Brain – Onscreen Text vs Printed Text

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Onscreen Text vs Printed Text

Compared with printed text, it appears that reading onscreen text may drain more of our mental resources and make it a little harder to remember what we have read. Here at GSM we do a lot of reading, so we thought it would be interesting to check this theory out... Research indicates that modern screens and e-readers fail to adequately recreate certain tactile experiences of reading on paper. They also prevent people from navigating long texts in an intuitive and satisfying way. This, in turn, affects reading comprehension. There are two reasons for this. one based on the physiological aspects...

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Direct Mail Campaigns exploring the Senses

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Open Up To Mail

The Open Up to Mail campaign explores all things mail and beyond. GSM talks with Kellie Northwood, Chief Executive Officer of The Real Media Collective, about how this campaign looks for ways to achieve a creative vision with Direct Mail. GSM: Mail is often seen to be 'old school'. Why does Direct mail still work? Kellie: The power of the letterbox is creative, wide-reaching and engaging. The physical attributes of mail continue to achieve incredible cut-through and deliver great results. Did you know over 92% of recipients open direct mail?! And it remains in the home for some 38 days...

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