The article made me think more deeply into the design of logos and ads that I often see. I started to compare the two fashion brands Chanel and Anna Sui. They are both high-end fashion brands but their styles and direction are opposites and are reflected in their graphic designs. Because Chanel represents high-class simplicity, its logotype and graphics are quite simple in style and color, yet elegant. Anna Sui is a more eccentric brand, so its logotype is purple and black with a bolded font, and its graphics are brighter and bolder in color. This article made me understand that the text-based design is just as important as the image-based design when communicating ideas through graphic design.

We are surrounded by advertisements, whether it be in the subway, magazines, or billboards. How does a graphic designer know his or her design will be noticed and remembered by the audience in a sea of advertisements? I suppose he would try to differentiate his designs from everyone else’s by not following the trends. If the trend of graphic design today is simple and sleek, the graphic designer should create more exciting and vivid designs.

What this article really helped me in understanding was the designers role as a bridge between a client with an idea and their audience. A good designer can play both roles, understanding the message that the creator is trying to convey, and creating the best way for the audience to receive this message as accurately as possible. What is interesting about type-based design from a designer’s perspective is that it has to be considered both from it’s role simply as an image as well as how it communicates as letters, words, sentences, etc. For a writer, the font doesn’t change the story they are trying to tell; for a designer, the font could change everything.

As a novice to graphic design, my first question to the author would be when is it best to use images vs. text, or vice versa. My best guess would be that it depends. With images, messages may be more likely to be lost in translation, but could also attract more viewers to the message itself. Images could also be used for a brand that is already well-established, and doesn’t need further explanation. Text, on the other hand, can provide more clarity to a message.