Old flag, new flag, red flag, blue flag (only the first two make sense)
Design is the method of putting form and content together. Design, just as art, has multiple definitions; there is no single definition. Design can be art. Design can be aesthetics. Design is so simple, that’s why it is so complicated. – Paul Rand
A paper’s nameplate is its identity. A design-conscious newspaper updates its flag every so often to keep up with the times. I find it funny when print journalism experts decry the nature of the distracted, uninterested young reader while feeding them nameplates in old english type. We can’t help it if your paper looks boring before you even get your foot in the door.
Nameplates are a big center of discussion in and out of the newsroom, as everyone, from the design director to Joe Blow and his trans fat-laden doughnut, is aware of its size and look. Everyone has an opinion of the nameplate. If you’ve thought about The Battalion’s nameplate in any capacity, you likely have an opinion too, and with the most soothing marriage counselor voice I can muster, that’s okay.
Ever wondered how the independent student voice at A&M went from this:
To this:
For better or worse, I’m responsible for this change. I knew when I took over as editor-in-chief in the summer of 2008, one of the first major changes I wanted to make was to update the flag design. I played with it for several days before arriving to the new look, and even though I’m sure the general manager here – Robert Wegener – wanted to burn me in effigy at first, he eventually came around.
Before I explain my reasoning behind the shift, I want to credit the previous designer who worked on the older flag. It takes a daring designer to mess with the nameplate, and the previous design had been around for several years – in short, it was a successful design. Times change though, and so do nameplates. I am sure one day after I’m long gone, some upstart designer will consider this design so throughly offensive that it too will need an update. I’m not just sure, I’m positive really. And that’s okay.
Anyway, I thought the major problem with the old design was that it contained several unnecessary marks and rules. I thought the word “the” was placed in a pretty snazzy way, but I also thought it was lost way up there. A new reader wouldn’t see it, and might walk around thinking we speak in one-word gutturals around here. Which is only kinda true.
Also, the typeface needed a serious facelift – it is close to impossible to make a serif type look good in all-caps. Though the old design was a pretty good attempt a making it work, I thought it was trying to be bold while not being bold at all – the negative space in the type overpowered the straight letter stems, making it seem unintentionally airy.
Sandwiching the flag with smaller type is also something I don’t like. I believe the name of the paper should be at the very top. It keeps readers from getting distracted by the flag, and the flag should never, ever distract a reader without reason. The T-star had to go and the maroon underline was crowding the type.
Creating a clear, two-level hierarchy between the flag and its supplement type was rule one for the new design. Most of the small type is inconsequential – it shouldn’t be pulling the reader to it. By making it small and uniform, it stays well out of the way.
Rule two was finding a typeface that was still bold – we are a military-style school after all – but modern and not so stuffy. Avenir was a perfect fit. It’s curvy but not wimpy. Perfect combination.
The third major design stroke was adding enough contrast between “The” and “Battalion” without inserting trapped white space. Changing the type weight accomplishes this well, and with a little kearning between the words, it looks packaged and clean at once.
The overlording concept was one of cleanliness. I am a big proponent of being sharp and clear in design, unless you are trying to achieve a particular emotion or feeling in the spread.
Hope this was informative, and feel free to rant. The very nature of design is to feel.
Posted by Kevin Alexander
