GypsyGraphics
New Member
the hell we don't!
me being politically incorrect, at every opportunity for a laugh and you saying "you can't say that" is still kind of a discussion
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How do I make this look less like clip art.
- Thread starter nikdoobs
- Start date
me being politically incorrect, at every opportunity for a laugh and you saying "you can't say that" is still kind of a discussion
In this office, our shop dog Lola is often discussed and usually looked to for divine intervention with problem customers. LOL
GypsyGraphics
New Member
you got me listening to this
[video=youtube;-g5YNPzr8NM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-g5YNPzr8NM[/video]
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
Yeah, hmmmm since Los Angeles was part of Mexico a couple of
hundred years ago, I don't think that was forgotten or applies...
I was sorta making the same point but...
Thing is, not all ethnic restaurants are typical. At some point,
stereotypical colors, typefaces and graphics become the marking tool
for tourist's, non-foodies or typical ethic fare (bland) (where no
"insert ethnicity" would be caught dead in) Some restaurants are
actually serving "cuisine" and though a chile may be appropriate
it should not be the go to thing... too many people do it.
This really should not be a signshop thing... this should be a
design/marketing thing The sign/logo as important as it is, is
only a small part of what a successful marketing plan has... the interior,
menus, swag, website... the list goes on and on...
Now I tend to stay away from Mexican restaurants... why? Well being mexican
I can visit my mom, and the other thing is, everything my mom made taste
like mexican food, even spaghetti so the charm has worn off, well unless
it's buche, cabeza, tripas and menudo....
I played with this... not my artwork but easily done...
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GypsyGraphics
New Member
w(R)icked cool!
eats her words "no sombreros"
eats her words "no sombreros"
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
Marlene
New Member
good point, the colors/overall look is more a marketing than real. I think it all goes back to when most people couldn't read so they would put a tooth on a dentist sign, a hammer on a hardware sign and so on. we get used to seeing that stuff and know what to expect. it's like that damn drippy paint brush on a ton of sign shops signs. I wouldn't be sad to see that go either. so what it really comes down to is what kind of Mexican restaurant is this? sit down, real food or an order by the number kind of place. to me, telling the public which could be done better thru the choice of fonts and less with guys in big hats
Gino
Premium Subscriber
I think most of you [except maybe Rick] are missing my point.
Not trying to drive my point home to y'all, but why do we here..... in THIS country have to use certain type styles for the Mexican restaurants, regardless of what's inside ?? Whether you use a pepper on a stick, a picture of a taco or some guy playing a guitar, why do we think we should dictate the type styles when they have nothing to do with that country, other than what we've assigned to them ?? That's where the font stereotyping comes into play. The Chinese all get that Oriental style looking lettering, the pizza shops get another..... but a store, shop or establishment from this country gets stellar fonts, pictures, kerning, coloring, balance and whatever else goes into it, but not them. I mean, down in Mexico, the places, which can afford it, like here, get well made signs and they don't use the type styles posted earlier..... and yes, it was mainly geared towards Tim. You posted, so you got blasted, but nicely.
Other than some ghetto place in our country, the layouts and designs are well thought out. This, not more than 5 fonts are gonna be considered, let alone 3 or 4 kinds of pictures ?? Sounds a little snobbish if ya ask me.
Regardless of what the Mexican place is selling from food to a bar to hair dressing to dog grooming, it's gonna get one of those five fonts and maybe a chihuahua.
As for the pictures or emblems..... isn't a picture worth a 1,000 words mean anything ?? Isn't that why these big @ss printers came to be, so we could do artwork ??
People can't read..... ?? Seriously ?? If you can catch and grasp someone's eye in an instant, it's a whole lot better than trying to read some of the garbage you guys are talking about. It's just a shame, y'all think of peppers, vaqueros or a guitar strumming guy in a band. Are your minds that small ??
And yes, colors do play a part, but does everything have to be red, green and white ?? Is every sign in this country red, white and blue ?? Are all of Canada's sign red and white ?? That means they might be confused with Poland, Japan, Peru, Switzerland........ ??
I simply pointed out how you people are grouping all these different countries and taking their cultures and deciding for them how they are to be represented in our country.
This whole scenario is true when deciding a type style for a particular kind of business or trade. You wouldn't use a type style for a jewelry store that you would for a hamburger joint..... or a school for a nail salon....... or even a construction company for a computer repair shop. There are styles that fit the nature of the business, but you're all fitting a culture into 5 fonts. How nice of you to make it so easy...... and let's give 'em about 3 or 4 silly caricatures from which to choose.
Not trying to drive my point home to y'all, but why do we here..... in THIS country have to use certain type styles for the Mexican restaurants, regardless of what's inside ?? Whether you use a pepper on a stick, a picture of a taco or some guy playing a guitar, why do we think we should dictate the type styles when they have nothing to do with that country, other than what we've assigned to them ?? That's where the font stereotyping comes into play. The Chinese all get that Oriental style looking lettering, the pizza shops get another..... but a store, shop or establishment from this country gets stellar fonts, pictures, kerning, coloring, balance and whatever else goes into it, but not them. I mean, down in Mexico, the places, which can afford it, like here, get well made signs and they don't use the type styles posted earlier..... and yes, it was mainly geared towards Tim. You posted, so you got blasted, but nicely.
Other than some ghetto place in our country, the layouts and designs are well thought out. This, not more than 5 fonts are gonna be considered, let alone 3 or 4 kinds of pictures ?? Sounds a little snobbish if ya ask me.
Regardless of what the Mexican place is selling from food to a bar to hair dressing to dog grooming, it's gonna get one of those five fonts and maybe a chihuahua.
As for the pictures or emblems..... isn't a picture worth a 1,000 words mean anything ?? Isn't that why these big @ss printers came to be, so we could do artwork ??
People can't read..... ?? Seriously ?? If you can catch and grasp someone's eye in an instant, it's a whole lot better than trying to read some of the garbage you guys are talking about. It's just a shame, y'all think of peppers, vaqueros or a guitar strumming guy in a band. Are your minds that small ??
And yes, colors do play a part, but does everything have to be red, green and white ?? Is every sign in this country red, white and blue ?? Are all of Canada's sign red and white ?? That means they might be confused with Poland, Japan, Peru, Switzerland........ ??
I simply pointed out how you people are grouping all these different countries and taking their cultures and deciding for them how they are to be represented in our country.
This whole scenario is true when deciding a type style for a particular kind of business or trade. You wouldn't use a type style for a jewelry store that you would for a hamburger joint..... or a school for a nail salon....... or even a construction company for a computer repair shop. There are styles that fit the nature of the business, but you're all fitting a culture into 5 fonts. How nice of you to make it so easy...... and let's give 'em about 3 or 4 silly caricatures from which to choose.
GAC05
Quit buggin' me
If you run out of good ideas from the forum here you might try outsourcing to an Asian designer........
http://kotaku.com/meet-chinas-photoshop-trolls-509984532
or not
wayne k
guam usa
http://kotaku.com/meet-chinas-photoshop-trolls-509984532
or not
wayne k
guam usa
Marlene
New Member
what are you doing Jill? you actually answered the OP's request for input instead of going off on a tangent:Big Laugh
John in Cali
New Member
Here's one I did a few years ago (not my design). I thought the colors, typestyle and layout represented the establishment well.
This is a sign I did last year. I had nothing to do with the building color scheme and my client INSISTED that a band of mariachis be used. I gave him six options of mariachis to choose from, each graphic choice weighted by what I thought was the most effectiveness and best eye appeal. He chose the fifth from last.
He also wanted the background lime green with tomato red text. After much arm twisting and using all of my graphic design powers of persuasion, we managed to do this VERY unstereotypical sign to the best of our ability.
This is a more recent one we did, and the customer was even more stubborn and desirous of having the sign reflect HIS vision of how it should be good design be damned. He didn't care if it wouldn't read well or if his must have "stalks of maize" diminished the actual name of the business. You can lead a customer to good design, but you can't always make them drink.
I'm not so sure its always US signmakers doing the stereotyping when it comes to ethnic pride and strict adherence to stereotypical colors, fonts, graphics, etc... Most of us do our best regardless of a customer's ethnicity to design effective, compelling but the customers themselves bear some responsibility for the perpetuation of the kind of stereotypes Gino is concerned about.
As far as his statement about always using the same five fonts, I'll say this as a true font junkie. I could EASILY find, utilize and incorporate at least 20 or more dignified, well constructed, durable, appealing fonts for any ethnicity that most viewers would NOT view as a negative like Gino seems to do.
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phototec
New Member
Yep, exactly what I was thinking! You can't even make out what it is, and in the photo you posted it would be just like what a customer would see if they were in front of the building.
I see a guitar and what looks like a HOT DOG above it and maybe some lettuce on the right, to be HONES, it is BAD!
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
GAC05
Quit buggin' me
Yup. I tried my best to convince that client that instead of the out of proportion 4'x6' he INSISTED on getting, a 3'x8' would fit better and my revised design once I couldn't talk him out of his choice of illegible mariachis included a much bigger cutout graphic of them rising over the top of the sign. I don't know how many hours any of us are expected to waste when a client is completely set on "having it their way" but for a $650.00 job, we had maxxed out on trying with this one.
You did see the part of my last post about him choosing the 5th out of 6 mariachi graphics I offered him in terms of effectiveness and legibility?