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Objective

To develop conceptual thinking skills. To communicate ideas visually and verbally. To become familiar with marketing principles. To explore illustration and photography styles. To apply design principles to real-world visual communication problems.

 

Secondary objectives

To utilize the Adobe Creative Suite as design and production tools.

 

Description

Design a menu for a local restaurant. The print specifications for this project is completely open, but the finished menu must be appropriate for the restaurant. Consider:

• Eat-in menus vs. take-out menus
• 4C process vs PMS
• Traditional offset vs. digital printing
• Paper stock, size limitations, waste
• Number of pages, folds, binding methods

Your design must show an understanding of unity, emphasis, balance and color theory. When appropriate, utilize rhythm and depth as well.

Note: High resolution stock photos and illustrations are now available from Photospin. Contact your instructor for more information.

 

Procedure

1. RESEARCH FOR INSPIRATION: Research existing menus. Look specifically for creative concepts and creative use of photography or illustration. Take photographs or scan your favorite examples and publish your research on your personal projects page for critique (be sure to caption each scan and cite the source). Be prepared to explain why these examples are successful.

2. MARKETING RESEARCH: Research the restaurant you will be designing the ads for (you may wish to visit the business). What is the history of the business? Are there any unique selling points for this business? Who is the target audience? Who is the competition? Acquire a reproduction quality logo of the business. Analyze your data and write a written statement of objectives in the form of a memo (see sample brief). Email your brief as an attached Word document to pyoung.parkland.edu@gmail.com.

3. INCUBATION: Absorb the information you have gathered and sleep on it. Allow your unconscious mind to make connections for you.

4. DEVELOP THE CONCEPT: In your sketchbook begin to conceptualize ideas for this project (see sample thumbnail sketches). Make at least 100 sketches of all possible directions you might take this project. Edit your concepts down to your best three ideas and redraw them on 8.5 x 11 white paper (3-up, one series per page) using a felt tip pen. Scan your concepts and publish them on your personal projects page for critique. Test how successful your concepts are by presenting them in class for critique. Be prepared to talk about your message as well as how your message fulfills your objectives.

5. PROOF: Based on the critique of the above, use the computer to execute your best idea. Generate web-ready JPEGs (no wider than 800px) and publish your design on your personal projects page for critique. Be prepared to talk what design principles are utilized in your design. 

6. PORTFOLIO PREPARATION: Based on the critique of the above, revise your design (if needed). Produce a fully conceived "comp" of the finished design printed on the paper stock(s) of your choice. Generate web-ready JPEGs (no wider than 800px) and publish your design on your personal projects page for critique. Be prepared to talk about how your solution fulfills the marketing objectives outlined in your brief. If necessary, make refinements until you are 100% satisfied with the project. Be sure to save all your files for future editing.

7. GRADING: Submit two fully conceived "comps" for grading. One proof will be returned to you after grading. File the graded proof in your Process Book for individual review along with all the preliminary work you did for the project (research, brief, sketches, preliminary proofs, final proof). You will not receive credit for this project if any of the above elements are missing.

8. STUDENT GALLERY ARCHIVES: Once you are 100% satisfied with your project, prepare a low resolution PDF (smallest file size) of your project and drop it in Angel's drop box. Your project may be published in a showcase of student work on Parkland's website.