Herman Miller asked Thesis to develop a unique kit of tools and materials for the launch of Yves Béhar’s SAYL chair line. The custom box was designed to contain everything that architects and interior designers need to understand the products: promotional sales literature, physical samples of the proprietary chair material, and a USB drive containing electronic presentations and specification files.

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Thesis created a grant assisting students in their pursuit of a BFA or MFA in graphic design. Each year two grants are given—one in the amount of $1,000 and one in the amount of $500. A poster announcing the grant opportunity and letterpressed certificates were created in support of this effort.

FPO Award Winning Project
How Self-Promotion Award Winning Project

View Kids Glass on Skyline’s Website

Kids Glass combines color and imagination to address the need for positive distraction within children’s healthcare, education, library, and museum environments.The whimsical Kids Glass collection encourages interactivity and creative play for kids of all ages—in any environment. Thesis designed six glass patterns to provide a broad range of solutions. Children can ‘try on’ a mustache or different hair styles, complete a maze, practice their penmanship, or play connect the dots. The panels are made from tempered glass; the products can be produced in a variety of sizes and applied to both vertical and horizontal surfaces.

How International Award Winning Project
Best of NeoCon, Gold

I recently acquired a bottle of Method hand soap. I spent $2.00 more than I would have on the generic brand—why?—because I liked it. I liked the bottle shape, the minimalist design aesthetic, the embossed brandmark, and the color palette. The fact that Method produces a responsibly made product was a perk, but (please don’t judge me) this wasn’t the foremost factor in my decision to make the purchase; I simply wanted something I liked. As you might have guessed, this decision was driven primarily by formal design considerations.

Historically, graphic designers have been commissioned to communicate messages in an attractive and desirable way using a combination of type and image. While this is still very much a part of what we do, the role of ‘graphic designer’ has become increasingly strategic, resulting in a conscious move away from anything that could be perceived as simply decorative. We have worked hard to hold a seat at the table, and fear that recognizing the persuasion of aesthetics will relegate our professional contributions to that of a technician adorning someone else’s thinking. But perhaps the pendulum has swung too far the other direction.

My Teacher Made Me Do It

Academia has made a significant contribution to this way of thinking. During both my undergraduate and graduate tenures the word “like” was never to be verbalized during a critical review. However, it was not uncommon for a young student to temporarily lapse and speak the forbidden “L” word only to find themselves swiftly reprimanded by a professor stating, “I don’t care if you like it. Why is it successful and how does it solve the problem?” Students quickly discovered the best way out of this uncomfortable situation was to utter something intelligent about the typography, find a way to include the phrase “brand position”, and if at all possible make a reference to the Bauhaus. However, a much better response might have been to simply state, “it solves the problem by causing the viewer to like it.” Because let’s face it—that’s often one of the most challenging problems to solve. But how do you know if the aesthetic will be ‘likable’ by the targeted audience?

Objective Beauty

A significant challenge to producing successful graphic design solutions that use attractiveness as a metric is navigating the muddy landscape of inherent subjectivity. A designer that only creates work that he finds beautiful will only ever succeed when the client looks and thinks like him. To transition into an objective assessment the designer must gain a clear understanding of what will resonate with the target audience by conducting qualitative and/or quantitative research. From a macro perspective this is accomplished in one of two ways.

Project Basis
At the onset of a project the designer will gather as much information from the client as possible regarding the target audience, conduct additional primary research if necessary, and internalize the data. This approach works fine assuming the client is wiling to make the necessary monetary/time investment in this phase of the project.

Ongoing Basis
A second method—and the one implemented by my studio—is to consult with a narrowly defined clientele so the process of conducting research, internalizing the results, and refining the conclusions is ongoing. Our client-base is primarily composed of product designers and manufacturers wishing to connect with the architecture and interior design trade. Because of this specific position, we spend a significant amount of time speaking with individuals from the A&D community, reading trade publications/blogs/newsletters that target this audience, and attending industry conferences/workshops/trade shows. The resulting depth of knowledge allows us to objectively evaluate the level of attractiveness in any given design solution with a relatively high level of accuracy.

Both/And not Either/Or

Before you go thinking I’m not a proponent of sound strategic design thinking let me reassure you this is my default position. I have always liked appreciated my professor’s stance in this regard because it enabled me to evaluate the success of a concept using objective criteria. I also believe a repeatable design process that is based in research will result in a clear understanding of the problem to be solved, and is critical to maintaining successful design solutions. However, strategic thinking and formal beauty should not be mutually exclusive. It’s time designers become comfortable justifying their solutions—in part—by verbalizing the inherent value in crafting an artifact the target audience will like. Generally, designers invest a significant amount of time consuming articles/images/videos that reflect and define popular culture. In our studio this is an ongoing exercise so the opinions we offer in support of what is “likable” are largely informed.

While the visceral reaction, “I like it” may not be a satisfactory answer in the classroom, it very well may be the reason someone decides to purchase a product, or educate themself on a specific topic, or volunteer their time promoting a cause. The influence of “like” is not easily measured, but there’s no question it exists—I’d be willing to bet my hard earned money on it.

Union College was in need of an enrollment marketing piece introducing the institution to a diverse audience of prospective students. Thesis created a booklet highlighting the unique aspects of the college and ensured it was inexpensive to produce and distribute.

Johnson & Johnson worked with Thesis to create a system of icons for Lubriderm that would be applied to packaging and other marketing efforts. The end result quickly communicates key features and reinforces the unique selling point that Lubriderm is a brand that works closely with dermatologists when developing the product.

Andrews University worked with Thesis to define the institution’s brand architecture and create graphic standards in support of this strategic vision. Official lockups were created for every aspect of the university and clear guidelines were established to ensure every member of the organization would know how to apply the logos across a wide variety of applications.

Thesis worked with Herman Miller marketing and sales leaders to better understand the basic information the A+D audience needs in order to recommend products to clients. This product binder is a compendium of every Herman Miller product available for specification by architects and interior designers.

Thesis worked closely with Skyline Design—an architectural glass designer and manufacturer—to design a series of boxes containing product samples for A&D libraries.

Thesis has worked with Herman Miller to create and support a number of events surrounding the company’s commitment to design. Design Retreats are invitational gatherings of firm principals and leaders within the architecture and design community. Participants travel to Herman Miller’s headqurters in West Michigan where they have the opportunity to meet with company executives, review new product concepts, and participate in behind-the-scene facility tours.

Every June Herman Miller hosts an event in Chicago for Architects and Interior Designers who are attending the NeoCon Trade Show. The event theme for 2010 was ‘Bottom’s Up’—highlighting the opportunity for designers to toast cocktails and share stories. The theme was translated visually by photographing iconic Herman Miller seating from the bottom; then applying the images in unexpected places (i.e. walls, windows, and the dance floor).

Thesis has worked with Herman Miller to create and support a number of events surrounding the company’s commitment to design. Design Discussions is a series of ongoing gatherings of decision makers from architectural and interior design firms. These gatherings happen North America; in the form of casual lunches or dinners with the VP of Herman Miller’s A+D group. The structure and tone is established through concerns, issues, or questions that the attendees may have for the product maker. Herman Miller organizes the outreach to solicit invaluable feedback and criticism, and to strengthen ties with the community they serve.

HOW International Design Award Winner

Innovation Park at Notre Dame assists companies through the process of research and commercialization. During the park’s inception it was in need of a marketing piece to help tell the story and generate interest in prospective tenants. Thesis designed a modular form that could be adapted and expanded based on need as the organization developed.

UltraCamp needed a promotional brochure to explain the benefits of its camp registration management services, and to illustrate the company’s advantages over larger more established competitors. Thesis produced a clean, concise design that reflects the company’s playful attitude and their promise to provide registration management services that are easy to use and understand.

Thesis worked with Herman Miller to design and develop the launch materials for a new seating line. The global marketing initiative required photoshoots for european, asian, and north american markets, as well as advertising, brochures, presell environment graphics, A+D and Dealer promotions, and email marketing campaigns.

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Herman Miller posed several questions: Can an electronic message convey something with sincerity? How can we (Herman Miller) show appreciation and empathy for architect and design clients that are struggling during the economic downturn? How can we achieve our goals without incurring significant financial and ecological expenses?

Thesis objective was to provide a gentle, cascading reminder of Herman Miller’s appreciation and support. Thesis developed a poetic visual message that instills tranquility and conveys hope during the hectic holiday season.

There, I’ve said it. And I’m a graphic designer, no less. Anathema! No Moleskines with pages of 2B pencil shadings and smart perspective drawings of publication designs or wonderfully organic forms for a new identity system. They’re not there. I can’t do it.

For my design peers, this is a rather irreconcilable position. Beginning in undergraduate study, professors extoll the virtue of sketching, sketching, and sketching. Keep a sketchbook with you. Put ideas to paper. Start there. Explore there. Refine there. And then when you’re done, keep the sketches. Use them in your portfolio. Your creative process and problem solving will shine like a spotlight down the corridors of success. This is the message that was pitched to me as an undergraduate when rolls of tracing paper were the medium. The torch is then passed to the mentors in professional practice, and the new medium is the hip Moleskine that comes out of a holster at a moment’s, or idea’s, notice. Dutifully, I have a small stack of faux leather and chipboard notebooks for various tasks, though I can’t help but think that my professors and mentors, well… they’re only half right.

As a designer, it seems there’s a certain amount of pressure to keep and maintain a sketchbook. It’s commonly assumed that sketching is the best way to start the design process. But, what are we really after when we sketch? Naturally, there are a variety of answers. But there’s likely a thread of consistency in those answers that sketching is a way for designers to explore potential formal executions for a design solution. This exploration is a crucial, and widely accepted, part of the design process. But there are two problems with this role of the sketchbook. First, sketching potential solutions to a design problem should not be the first step for any designer. Second, sketching is only one way to explore potential solutions.

We’ve probably all known, or even played the role of, the designer who attends the kick-off meeting with client and spends half of his or her time listening to the conversation and banter, and the other half with his or her nose in the sketchbook, penciling ideas and brilliant solutions to the identity problem at hand. Paula Scher is famous for—in addition to a few other efforts—sketching the eventual citi logo on a napkin, in a matter of seconds, during the course of an early meeting with her client. This is a kind of “thin slicing” skill (a term brought to the masses by Malcolm Gladwell) that experienced professionals posses and can effectively practice; they understand the problem at hand after only a brief encounter and know, instinctively, what the solution is and needs to be. To be a designer and practicing professional at a high level means we all possess some ability to thin slice. But does this throw us off track? Do we too quickly get wrapped up in our sketches? Do we bypass intellectual thinking for visual thinking? Have you been in a presentation with the aforementioned colleague from your kick-off meeting where the proposed solutions are met with confused looks and questions of appropriateness? And how often does this foster that ever-present opinion and frustration held by both client and designer, respectively, that graphic design isn’t taken seriously?

The potential problem with early sketching is it bypasses the crucial, research-based part of the creative process. We certainly shouldn’t discourage the activity of sketching—it occupies a crucial space in the creative process—but we shouldn’t promote it to the point of forgiving a line of questioning and/or research.

Which brings me to the second problem with sketching, as many of us know it. If sketching is inherently an exploration of potential solutions to a given problem, who says it has to be visual? Aside from its position in the problem solving process, sketching or exploring formal executions is the most direct route for the graphic designer to the accepted design solution. The sketch eventually becomes the design; the design becomes the solution. It is what graphic designers do. Except that it isn’t.

Graphic designers communicate. And in the act of sketching, the primary line of communication is to the person doing the sketching. Unless the sketch is literally the design solution, whatever goes in the notebook is simply there to help facilitate what it will become. For a lot of designers, it is a formal exploration. For me, and I suspect others, it may be notes; explanations of potential formal executions; line after line of questions that help narrow down or broaden the possibilities of the formal aspects of the design; copy that details how an identity is to be produced. I work with a designer who experiments with color combinations and abstract collage as an act of sketching. Further still, a carefully gathered and considered image collection can serve as a useful sketchbook. Isn’t this what interior designers do? Gather images of patterns, lighting, furniture, arrangement, etc.? I certainly wouldn’t expect them to sketch a patten, lighting, furniture, and arrangement at the onset of each new project. This kind of image collecting has the ability to act as a kind of field research as well; what is already out there? What might the competition/others be doing?

My sketching tends not to be nearly as interesting or visually compelling. I occasionally collect but, like I said, I don’t draw well. However, that doesn’t mean that I don’t sketch, don’t find it valuable, or don’t include it as part of my creative process. I consider people adept at drawing extremely talented and equally enviable. However, though my God-given means and creative process, my Moleskine and Pinball notebooks tend to be a bit boring.

One of the many enjoyable aspects to the graphic design profession is the encouragement to sketch, doodle, and draw—an activity that comes naturally to many designers and something we would likely practice regardless of its role in our problem solving process. But our profession also encourages the greater responsibility of inquisitiveness. It doesn’t require good sketchers. First, it demands great thinkers.

Andrews University Press produced a NKJV study Bible and worked closely with Thesis to craft an identity that reflected the academic institution and core values of its members.

Skyline Design Website

Skyline Design needed to update their website to create an online presence that reflected the brand’s position as an industry leader and to implement current web standards ensuring visitors could access the site from a wide range of browsers and platforms. In addition, a content management system was implemented to enable members of the marketing team to quickly update content on an as-needed basis.

Featured in “Brand Identity Essentials”

KitchenAid needed a unique and comprehensive icon library that could be used on products to communicate information about how to perform specific tasks related to cooking, cleaning, and food preparation. Thesis developed a robust library of symbols that communicate clearly, reflect the company’s premium brand, and can be reproduced in a wide variety of media applications (printed, on screen, stamped into metal, etc.). The unique style is proprietary and acts as a unifying element across all product categories and geographic regions.

The Masters of Physician Assistant Studies program at Union College was in need of an updated introductory brochure that reflected the graphic gestures being implemented by the rest of the institution.

The Sense Desking System is a European product line designed for open, benching applications. Thesis designed a kit of tools and materials to help architecture and interior design representatives promote the product in North America. The box was designed to contain an actual Sense leg so that sales people could demonstrate the product’s easy, fast assembly.

The Enrollment Management team at Union College mails thousands of letters for a wide variety of reasons every year. To make this process efficient and meaningful, Thesis designed a dynamic letterhead that can be customized through the application of stickers.

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