Tough-Style Graphics

This book focuses on the edgy "tough-style" designs that have risen to prominence in recent years, and introduces various examples of these designs from fields such as advertising, products, corporate identities, and store branding. More companies today require universal branding for their worldwide endeavors. The quest for design styles that work regardless of gender or nationality, and the expanding male market with an increasing appetite for consumption may be one of the reasons the number of "tough" design styles is on the increase. Asked for a comment on strong designs, Kenjiro Sano, art director, principal of MR_DESIGN, who submitted his works to this book, comments: "Design is not about ornamentation, it is about creating an ‘identity’ that is easy for anyone to comprehend." Alexander Gelman, a guest professor at Yale University and MIT Media Lab, whose poster full of black and white geometric motifs is included in this book, comments on how effectively black color is used in his designs, "Black communicates confidence and—when used correctly—is the most luxurious color." He also continues, "Even the most intricate communication must appear as effortless. More like a happy accident than a result of painful process of trial and error." In this book, four subcategories "Tough," "Active," "Chic," and "Avant-garde," embody even clearer views of tough style-designs, and help readers recognize its qualities.