Beautifully-designed buildings can be destroyed by bad branding, but the architects must take some responsibility, Kellie Campbell tells Gemma Battenbough.
September 23rd, 2010
It’s hard not to cringe when you see a beautifully-designed building topped with an ugly neon sign, but the architects must take some responsibility, graphic design’s latest hot shot, Kellie Campbell, said.
Conventionally one of the last steps in the design process, branding is not about using a logo as a rubber stamp, said Campbell, the only Australian to make the winners’ list for this year’s Art Directors Club Young Guns Competition.
“No one can under estimate the idea of consistency in a brand. When you walk into a building, it should be about the whole experience. Graphic design is much more than a logo, more than a medium. Graphics is not 2D any more – it’s 3D!”
While graphic designers need to stop looking at buildings as giant billboards, architects also need to make a mental shift. Graphics should be integrated from the beginning and not shunned by designers of the built environment, Campbell said.
“Graphic designers and architects should meet in the middle. Graphic designers need to understand that buildings change the cityscape … But equally architects need to understand that clients often want to sell a product.”
Whereas graphic design has previously been considered the full stop and the finishing touch to the built environment, Campbell is calling for the discipline to be part of the initial discussion.
You only have to look at Grocon’s Pixel Building designed by Studio 505 to see how graphic design and architecture can be united.
And with architects, such as Michael Bryce, Life Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects, proving that it’s possible to work in both disciplines (he is also a graphic and industrial designer, personally styling the ‘Opera House’ Olympic bid logo), there’s scope for more assimilation between the professions.
Campbell, a senior designer from Parallax Design in Adelaide, has just been announced as President of the Australian Graphic Design Association’s South Australian chapter and, as part of her role, she will try to forge stronger links across the creative communities.
“I’m looking forward to getting out and meeting people, listening to what inspires them, and seeing what they plan for their future careers,” she said.
Parallax Design
parallaxdesign.com.au
INDESIGN is on instagram
Follow @indesignlive
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
BLANCOCULINA-S II Sensor promotes water efficiency and reduces waste, representing a leap forward in faucet technology.
Schneider Electric’s new range are making bulky outlets a thing of the past with the new UNICA X collection.
The new range features slabs with warm, earthy palettes that lend a sense of organic luxury to every space.
How can design empower the individual in a workplace transforming from a place to an activity? Here, Design Director Joel Sampson reveals how prioritising human needs – including agency, privacy, pause and connection – and leveraging responsive spatial solutions like the Herman Miller Bay Work Pod is key to crafting engaging and radically inclusive hybrid environments.
Pulse is an innovative new conference table with a range of hidden features.
Andrew van der Westhuyzen, one of Australia’s pre-eminent creatives, has launched his debut book Cabal, the first in a series of illustrated science-fiction short story works.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
A longstanding partnership turns a historic city into a hub for emerging talent
Davenport Campbell’s Neill Johanson shares insights from WORKTECH25 and the impact of AI on the workplace experience.