Latest Blogs

Scanning Around With Gene: Best in the West Graphics, 1970

When advertising people judge their own, the results are always interesting. The 27th Annual Portfolio of the Art Directors Club of Los Angeles, published in 1970, revealed four trends of the time.

TypeTalk: The Anatomy of a Character

You've known the names of letters and numbers since you were a little kid. But did you realize that every part of those characters have names, too? Knowing this terminology will help you better understand typefaces and communicate about design.

Scanning Around With Gene: Colorful Produce Crate Labels

For almost 70 years, fruit and vegetable growers used colorful labels to distinguish their brands and show off their point of origin.

Scanning Around With Gene: More on Children’s Safety

A follow-up to last week’s entry with more dramatically tragic (and sometimes unintentionally funny) scenarios intended to scare kids safe.

Scanning Around With Gene: The Dire Consequences of Careless Bike Riding

Riding a bicycle is not for the faint of heart, at least not according to this safety pamphlet from the 1940s, which highlights the death and destruction possible from simple missteps.

TypeTalk: Hand-Drawn Type

When you want your work to stand out, swap a font for hand-drawn letters.

Scanning Around With Gene: A Visit to the Sunshine State

Florida’s climate makes for very "sunny" promotional images. Don some shades and enjoy this vintage tourist literature, 1939 to 1963, from the Sunshine State.

Scanning Around With Gene: Painting With Air

Before there was software to create illustrations and retouch photos, there was the airbrush, which uses compressed air to create a fine spray of paint. Here’s a 1947 look at airbrush technique from the Paasche Airbrush Company.

Scanning Around With Gene: Winter Wonderland

Of all the seasons, winter is the most dramatic, and through the eyes of children one of the most fun. Here's a 1948 look at the season, courtesy of an educational guide for kids.

Scanning Around With Gene: Faded Holiday Memories

Christmas is a time for taking even more photos than usual. But in 40 or 50 years, will today’s images evoke the same nostalgia, smiles, and sadness that these old, faded photos do?

TypeTalk: The Dos and Don'ts of Type in Motion

Type has gone multimedia, appearing in many forms beyond its traditional role. Now it's in motion on websites, commercials, movie titles, video games, and more. These tips will help you create type in motion that will attract and hold your viewers' attention.

Scanning Around With Gene: Clever Things to Make at Home

Some industrious or crafty people choose to make gifts instead of buy them from a store. This DIY mentality is nothing new, as these plans from "Popular Mechanics" issues of 1939 to 1954 show.

Scanning Around With Gene: Would You Like Collector Cards With Your Tea?

One of the most popular tea brands in the UK included sets of collector cards in each package, designed to educate children and adults alike. Here’s a look at just some of the more than 10,000 educational cards the company produced over five decades.

Scanning Around With Gene: Viva la Révolution!

Before Facebook, Twitter, and text messaging, how did protesters spread the word? With posters like these from a significant period of French civil unrest in May 1968.

Scanning Around With Gene: How Dated is Your Kitchen?

Of all the rooms in the modern home, the kitchen tends to show its age most quickly. That’s especially true if you purchased a pre-fabricated Hotpoint electric kitchen in 1944.

TypeTalk: Font Games Galore

It's OK to play with your type; in fact, it's fun! Just don't assume that professional typographers agree with all of the supposedly correct answers to these font games.

Scanning Around With Gene: Animals in Advertising

A series of paper company ads from 1946 showcased cute animal illustrations. Can you say, "Awww"?

Scanning Around With Gene: When Halftones Were an Art Form

We take photographic reproduction for granted these days, but in 1929 the process of photo engraving was a multi-step art form involving chemistry, machining, and significant craftsmanship.

Scanning Around With Gene: When Hollywood Went Schwinn

Schwinn bicycles were the most popular American brand for several decades. This 1941 brochure featured Hollywood stars and their Schwinn-riding families.

TypeTalk: Smart Punctuation on the Web

Is it acceptable to lower your print design standards when your type appears on the Web?