Brightwurks Debuts 'Here's to the Crazy Ones' Letterpress Poster for Charity [Update: Pulled]

[rmwebs]

Along with the horrid typography, the quote mark and Steve Jobs' name at the bottom give the impression that he wrote this - which he did not (though he did provide input).

My thoughts exactly. When I first saw it I liked it. Then I opened the bigger preview and hated it.

This is very 'un-Apple'. Too much going on. You can see that the designer has tried to be creative by creating an old-style poster but he's lost it completely and IMO some of the typography looks pretty poor.

I'd rather see it in Apple's own style...Myriad Pro, bold.

Also, I'm all for giving to charity but $95 is a huge misstep if they were aiming to make money for the charity as the price will just put people off, myself included.

$45 + shipping would be a more acceptable price IMO.

 

[nick_elt]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

Why dont they offer a $50 hi res download that goes straight to charity if they wont ship worldwide???

 

[Canubis]

I like it. Even and especially after the first thought, and the next one…

The "mess" of fonts reminded me to Steve's love for typography, which eventually was the reason why the Mac got awesome fonts and was designed with typography always in mind. So except for the fact, that this fonts orgasms are very popular theses days, it really fits the topic here for me. It makes it different once again. Different than what many commenters here would've expected.

(PS: Helvetica is a good font, just using it doesn't make you a designer. Pls keep in mind, overusing can kill even the best font.)

 

[axcurtis]

The Grinch

I see Mr. Grinch is alive and well among the MacRumors readers. The three words that best describe y'all are as follows, and I quote: "stink, stank, stunk!"

 

[Kid A]

and I quote: "stink, stank, stunk!"

that's what i said when i saw the poster.



(except i said it in all caps, with 3 different old-timey fonts).

 

[theLimit]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

All it's missing is some Monty Python pointing fingers.

 

[Printdevil]

Here's my tribute to the great man...

Steve Jobs 1955-2011

 

[AbSoluTc]

Worst poster ever. Not worth the $95 dollars either.

 

[yongren]

this is really bad typography...

 

[catalystwork]

Exactly what I thought. My initial impression was that I liked this, but the more I look at it, the more I think it's just lazy typography.

To all the people criticizing the typography, I would love to know what your type credentials are. As a practicing professional and typography instructor, I can say it is fine. Maybe not totally great, but not bad at all. And there is plenty of well placed punctuation. Anyone who can't recognize this knows very little about typography.

Furthermore, to all of those referring to it as unoriginal, it is clearly not meant to be. It is a historical revival style, being printed as a letterpress imprint. It's not Steve Jobs tombstone, or the very essence of the man himself. But I can tell you with certainty, with his typographic and calligraphic background, he'd know exactly what it was referencing and playing with.

It's a quote, nicely typeset. To anyone who thinks it is lazy, sloppy, or easy typography, I challenge you to typeset something at the same quality.

 

[cshearer]

To all the people criticizing the typography, I would love to know what your type credentials are. As a practicing professional and typography instructor, I can say it is fine. Maybe not totally great, but not bad at all. And there is plenty of well placed punctuation. Anyone who can't recognize this knows very little about typography.

Furthermore, to all of those referring to it as unoriginal, it is clearly not meant to be. It is a historical revival style, being printed as a letterpress imprint. It's not Steve Jobs tombstone, or the very essence of the man himself. But I can tell you with certainty, with his typographic and calligraphic background, he'd know exactly what it was referencing and playing with.

It's a quote, nicely typeset. To anyone who thinks it is lazy, sloppy, or easy typography, I challenge you to typeset something at the same quality.

As much as I respect your credentials, you don't need a doctorate to have good taste. This is tacky, and I don't need to explain why, nor does anyone in this thread.

In all honesty, I've been using image manipulation software and enjoying art since I was 12, but again, credentials are meaningless here.

 

[SuperCachetes]

It's a quote, nicely typeset. To anyone who thinks it is lazy, sloppy, or easy typography, I challenge you to typeset something at the same quality.

Something can be both professionally and competently performed, but still be tasteless and tacky.

None of us can know for sure, but Jobs might very well have criticized this presentation of the quote as trying too hard, trendy, and lowest-common-denominator ad agency drivel. ...Whatever level of "quality" it may represent.

 

[Ron Adair]

Riiiiiiiight....

All this talk of crap typography coming from a bunch of computer geeks who frequent a forum boasting a template that looks more or less like the internet in 1998.

As one who has a fair amount of experience in the design field, I challenge any single person on here to design a poster as clean and good looking as the one posted here, if it's so easy. Please, prove me wrong and show us your amazing design skills.

Otherwise, keep it to yourselves. The poster may not be the most amazing piece of design on the planet, but you guys honestly sound like a bunch of pretentious know-nothing jerks.

Full disclosure: Being one of the biggest Apple fanboy's you'll likely ever meet who also has less than nothing to do with the creation of this poster or the people that created it, I couldn't help but speak up. Oh, I also dabbble in design here and there.

 

[paulvee]

It's always easy to criticize something and tear something down - especially if you're doing it anonymously online. Far more difficult to create something.

Nothing wrong with this poster or the cause it's benefiting. Go and make something yourself before you go and put in your caustic two bits.

 

[cshearer]

This is a little subtle wall decor item I've been messing around with for a few days. I mean, it is a "draft" so to speak, but you don't always have to use a formula to make attractive art. I just tinker, and continue to tinker, until I get something I really like. This I find more appealing, but to each their own.

Edit: oops, too large

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

who wrote it then?

"Think Different" is an advertising slogan created for Apple Computer in 1997 by the Los Angeles office of advertising agency TBWA\Chiat\Day[1]. It was used in a television commercial, several print advertisements and a number of TV promos for Apple products. [...]
Significantly shortened versions of the text were used in two television commercials, known as "Crazy Ones", directed by Chiat/Day's Jennifer Golub who also shared the art director credit with Jessica Schulman and Yvonne Smith. The voiceover was by Richard Dreyfuss. An unaired version featured the voice of Steve Jobs.

I agree with someone a few posts back that said the only way they want to experience this quote anymore is via the recording of Steve Jobs reading it. I feel like he put a little more into it than Richard Dreyfuss did (not that his was bad, just Steve Jobs was better.)

I have a tribute badge thing I made for a charity fundraiser thing a few years ago using the line "Here's to the Crazy Ones..." no one bought it... I can't remember if I gave it away or kept it... all I know is I don't know where it is anymore... I really wish I knew where it was...

 

[ps45]

All this talk of crap typography coming from a bunch of computer geeks who frequent a forum boasting a template that looks more or less like the internet in 1998.

As one who has a fair amount of experience in the design field, I challenge any single person on here to design a poster as clean and good looking as the one posted here, if it's so easy. Please, prove me wrong and show us your amazing design skills.

Otherwise, keep it to yourselves. The poster may not be the most amazing piece of design on the planet, but you guys honestly sound like a bunch of pretentious know-nothing jerks.

Full disclosure: Being one of the biggest Apple fanboy's you'll likely ever meet who also has less than nothing to do with the creation of this poster or the people that created it, I couldn't help but speak up. Oh, I also dabbble in design here and there.

You might be forgetting: this is not a site to do with hacking linux or something. It is frequented by Mac users, and historically at least, this means a high proportion of people in the creative industries. You can bet that there are people who have commented negatively about this poster who are extremely well versed in design.

But regardless of that, mastery is not a prerequisite for criticism. The producers of this poster opened themselves up for review (by peers and by the wider community) by publishing this work.

Quite frankly the 'yeah well you couldn't do any better' line of defense is lazy and weak (and in many cases false), and doesn't detract from this poster being crap and inappropriate for the message.

 

[Ron Adair]

You might be forgetting: this is not a site to do with hacking linux or something. It is frequented by Mac users, and historically at least, this means a high proportion of people in the creative industries. You can bet that there are people who have commented negatively about this poster who are extremely well versed in design.

But regardless of that, mastery is not a prerequisite for criticism. The producers of this poster opened themselves up for review (by peers and by the wider community) by publishing this work.

Quite frankly the 'yeah well you couldn't do any better' line of defense is lazy and weak (and in many cases false), and doesn't detract from this poster being crap and inappropriate for the message.

Ok, then let's digress. How about you spell out in terms specifically which elements of the typography qualify for the term 'crap' or 'inappropriate'?

If you think this is crap (and likely find the above picture in a gaudy gold frame attractive) then you clearly are no design critic, nor should you feign to be one.

Just as the original poster designers have opened themselves up for critique, so have you and everyone else here who think they know something about something they know nothing about.

 

[cshearer]

you guys honestly sound like a bunch of pretentious know-nothing jerks.

Just as the original poster designers have opened themselves up for critique, so have you and everyone else here who think they know something about something they know nothing about.

You, "Ron Adair", are the real pretentious know-nothing jerk here. Please, the stuff on your site is mediocre at best. Sometimes it does pay off to go to more than a career institute.

Get off your high horse and realize how ridiculous you're sounding. It's a fact that by publishing this poster, the creator(s) of it are opening themselves up for criticism. I find it idiotically redundant for some nobody like you to force people to allow criticism of their criticism. This is wholly a waste of time and energy, so suck it up, and allow people to disagree with you. Grow up; you look like you're thirty, but you're acting like a child.

"My name is Ron. I am a photographer. I love flannl. Designers on Dribbble blow my mind."

El oh el.

 

[marshallld]

In keeping with Job's design ethic?

I would think as a tribute at the very least it should relate to Job's design ethic or at least in the style he seemed to be guided by. At the very least Job seemed to prefer a clean and fairly pure design, this is nearly the opposite. It's like stepping back into the early 70's

It actually reminds me of design circa the first apple logo, the wood cut looking one with the tree

 

[powers74]

Designer

All this talk of crap typography coming from a bunch of computer geeks who frequent a forum boasting a template that looks more or less like the internet in 1998.

As one who has a fair amount of experience in the design field, I challenge any single person on here to design a poster as clean and good looking as the one posted here, if it's so easy. Please, prove me wrong and show us your amazing design skills.

Otherwise, keep it to yourselves. The poster may not be the most amazing piece of design on the planet, but you guys honestly sound like a bunch of pretentious know-nothing jerks.

Full disclosure: Being one of the biggest Apple fanboy's you'll likely ever meet who also has less than nothing to do with the creation of this poster or the people that created it, I couldn't help but speak up. Oh, I also dabbble in design here and there.

I also "dabble in Design". This is the way I would do it (this is just a 5 min exercise using the original text via Wikipedia). I'll be the first to admit it needs about a weeks worth of work, but the concept is what I was shooting for here. I just took a couple minutes out of an actual design project. I love a challenge.

 

[isoMorpheus]

It's too distracting, almost noisily opposed to minimalism.

 

[Ron Adair]

Please, the stuff on your site is mediocre at best. Sometimes it does pay off to go to more than a career institute.

Notice I mentioned I dabble in design? I am not a classically trained designer, nor have I ever purported to be. Nevertheless, I know that my level of design skill is above average, and something I can take pride in continually developing.

And yet I have left my work up for all to see and evaluate, while at the same time you have redacted your example of 'design'. I'm honestly not trying to be offensive to you, but I am justified in attempting to clarify what represents good design vs. poor design in light of all the comments (made by self-aggrandized 'experts' on the ethereal) bashing a very well done piece of typographic work. Your gold framed laser printed 8.5x11 piece of 24lb 94% brightness paper art is not representative of what the majority would deem 'good design'.

The fact that you knock my work as 'mediocre at best' simply reinforces my suspicion that you are one of the many here who do not know how to evaluate layout, design, typography, or UI. Is that bad? No, not until you try to position yourself as an expert critic. Evaluating good design is not to be confused with disliking something you personally don't agree with. Your opinion on a work has no relation to the level of proficiency that was employed in creating it.

"My name is Ron. I am a photographer. I love flannl. Designers on Dribbble blow my mind."

Really? You're going to attack me over my bio? What were you saying about two-year-old behavior again?

----------

I also "dabble in Design". This is the way I would do it (this is just a 5 min exercise using the original text via Wikipedia). I'll be the first to admit it needs about a weeks worth of work, but the concept is what I was shooting for here. I just took a couple minutes out of an actual design project. I love a challenge.

Hey, you've got my respect for giving it a shot instead of knocking something as 'crap' with no real basis to back up your claim other than your personal opinion. I agree that this isn't just a job to be done in a few minutes or even hours. Good design takes time.

 

[flyingkite]

Nice piece of work

This is a nice piece of work - professionally done.

I agree that it may not be the best typography representation for the quote. The designer did not try to make it clean and simple - isn't that obvious. Does everything need to be "clean and simple" because steve likes it? This is what the designer wants it to be based on his own interpretation.

How else would you differentiate the different part of the emotional response punctuated in every line? Use Helvetica Neue from weight 25 to 65? Will your eyes be drawn to the different parts of the text easier if it was just using 1 font?

It is not easy to use different typeface to create cohesive type design and takes alot of time to kern and choose the different types. If you want to judge it professionally, please tell us what fonts, ligatures, font sizes, kerning and empahsis of which parts of the quotes would you have done differently and why?

Both as a design professional and layman, i like this piece of work. I do respect that some wouldn't like it, but to discredit it - to me it seems a bit too much.

Different strokes for different folks - literally.

 

[Ron Adair]

Different strokes for different folks - literally.

Hehe...I usually cringe when I hear that phrase. But that's funny.