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It goes without saying that the most important thing to do to achieve originality is to avoid imitating clichés and design trends in your work. However, this is easier said than done when the internet is crammed full of design tutorials and inspiration posts that suggest we should base our work on pieces already created. Although these types of posts are essential for our growth and development as a designer, and of course inspiration is essential for any artist, it is important to ensure that whilst we are being inspired by other pieces, we are interpreting and developing them into our own style, rather than merely imitating them. To do this, we must steer clear of particular design trends that have been reproduced continuously across the net, and attempt to create new trends ourselves. After all, even the most reproduced and worn out design trends had to start out as original designs at some point. For example, take the Avatar franchise that started out as original designs and have now been imitated and reproduced by thousands of today’s designers. So what are the most common design clichés and how can we avoid them? Well if we see it on the net, then it’s been done, and admittedly I am guilty of some of the following clichés, but it is important to distinguish whether your work is for experimental uses or for the purpose of creating an original design. Here is a list of just a few of the most overused design trends seen today:
Floral and Swirly Brushes
All too often do I see pieces of art lazily finished off and vamped up with free brushes found across the net. The most common being the dreaded floral and swirly brushes! Admittedly these can achieve nice effects, and can instantly add that extra something to your artwork, but it is ridiculously overdone! These brushes are free to download and available for anyone to use, and should only really be used when experimenting, in order to save time - but not when creating original pieces of design!
Eye Photo Manipulations
In ‘photo manipulation’ or ‘photo montage’ designs, several themes and symbols are frequently repeated across the net. One of which is the eye manipulation, again the effect achieved can be beautiful, but whether it’s a hand crawling out of the eye lid or flames, moons or water for pupils - it’s all been done!
Mystical and Futuristic Female Characters
Another overused design in photo manipulation is the use of mystical female (and sometimes male) characters. They are often placed in the design with no purpose other than being aesthetically pleasing, and serve no contribution to the overall message of the design. Obviously sometimes it is important to have human characters in your art to express certain emotions or create a connectivity with the viewer, but please ensure they serve a purpose rather than just being there for the sake of a focal point of the design!
Splashing/Fragmented Skin Manipulations
The third photo manipulation cliché seemed very popular throughout 2009 and I am constantly still seeing it across tutorials and pieces of design. This is the distortion of the skin with a splash/fragment effect where the skin looks like it is breaking apart. Visually stunning when it was first achieved, but again, constantly overdone.
Grunge Textures
The use of grunge textures is something that has been used for years now, and sometimes it can be used in innovative ways to achieve great effects. However, all too often I see it being used as a heavy, dark overlay to cover up the unprofessionalism of the work underneath it.
Background Gradients
Similar to overused brushes and textures, gradients are often overused as backgrounds for designs when the artist cannot think of anything else to put there. Photoshop gradients have many functional uses, beyond the aesthetic use, and should generally be avoided to cover space in designs.
In Web Design:
Similar to the clichés found across illustrations and photo manipulations, there are many overused trends that can be seen everywhere across the net in the form of web design.
Drop Shadows
Drop shadows are used in all sorts of areas of design to create a three-dimensional effect and make pieces ‘pop’. However, there are far more innovative ways to achieve this effect, as drop shadows often look amateur and lazy.
Rounded Corners
Rounded corners on boxes in websites are often used to create a ‘soft’, ‘friendly’ feel, but again it is way overdone and can sometimes look amateur.
Glossy Buttons
Glossy Buttons are famously connected with the apple merchandise, and instantly give an elegant, professional feel to a website. However, they have been imitated so much by websites that they now offer nothing creative and original, and even make the website seem cliché and boring.
This list is just a few of the hundreds of overused trends that can be seen across designer’s work. Sometimes they can be recycled to create new, innovative designs, but the general rule of thumb is to stay well clear of these clichés if you want to stand out from the crowd in the design industry. Check out the following design cliché parody by the guys over at makemylogobiggercream.com!
By definition, to be ‘original’, you must create something that is individual and unique to you as a designer. By creating a style that is instantly recognisable and connected to you, you are not only bringing a new area into graphic design, but you are making yourself recognisable as a product to the client. If they like your particular style and feel it would fit well with their campaign, they are going to choose you because the product you are offering is unique and they will not find that style anywhere else. If you are merely repeating styles and techniques used by top designers, then you are offering no more than the other hundreds of designers that are trying to do the same. Some styles may not be a huge success at first, but it is important to have a style connected to your name - proof of this success can be seen everywhere in art. For example, once you are familiar with the work of Salvador Dali, a piece of his work that you haven’t seen before is easily recognisable as belonging to him. It is exactly the same concept in graphic design, and many of the top designers have a distinct design style to offer. Here are my personal favourite top three successful designers with distinct styles:
Alberto is my personal favourite example of how an artist can create a distinct style. His beautiful skin manipulations in his portraits and illustrations are both visually stunning and sexually suggestive, creating a bold design statement across his works. His use of colourful vectors against monotonic portraits has become so distinct that the style has been coined as ‘sperm shaping’. It is this style and technique that has lead to Alberto’s success, where he has worked on several magazine covers and been noticed by companies such as Nikon who have wanted him to transfer his style onto their campaigns. View more of his designs on his Flickr or Behance.
Christopher Haines is a young designer from Australia who’s blend between 3D modeling and photo manipulation is second to none. It is through this beautiful blend of mediums that Chris has created some truly outstanding works that have set him apart from the rest, allowing him to be the king of his own style. He is proof that it is possible to have your own style whilst still being versatile, as his work covers several areas of design. Here are just a few of his beautiful pieces, you can view more on his Behance.
I have included Jerico here because he is a good example of the correct way to be influenced by another artist’s style. You can see from his works below that he is highly influenced by the works of Salvador Dali, but at the same time he has transferred Dali into a new medium, whilst incorporating his own thoughts and style into the pieces. His use of fluidity in textures and his abstract take on portraits show characteristics and origins of Dali’s style, but develop rather than imitate it. More of his works can be seen via Behance
From all three of the above designers, it is clear how they have achieved a distinct style and made it unique to them. However, when creating your own individual style, it is important that you do not limit yourself to one particular area of design. Practice ways in which you can transfer your style to other areas of design, such as illustration, 3D, photo manipulation, typography and web design. Whilst it is good to present yourself as a unique product, it is also important to display a diverse range of works to prove to your client that you are versatile. Originality and success is finding the balance between your own style and a variety of works that display this. You can only achieve a style you are comfortable with by experimenting, which brings us on to tip three.
Tutorials are a big part of the graphic design world. They can be found on pretty much any graphic design blog, and new ones are continuously being produced. In fact, the majority of the skills I have learnt as a designer have developed from tutorials I have read on the net. However, once these basic skills have been learnt it is important to try and break free from producing effects presented in tuts. By creating works based on tutorials we are merely imitating a popular style that has gained enough attention to be taught to designers. So how can we achieve effects that are original and therefore create this unique style that I have been talking about? By experimenting. So often when I am scouring the net, I come across the work of the designer that instantly makes me say ‘wow’, as it is something that I have not seen before. This leads me to wonder how they achieved these effects, and the answer is through experimenting. By experimenting with our work we can achieve great effects and develop them into our own personal style. But we have all at some point sat at Photoshop attempting to experiment with the features and ending up with something looking like it’s been created by an infant. So how can we experiment correctly and use it to our advantage? Well this brings me back to those ‘wow’ factor pieces of unique work that we often come across. When you come across an interesting effect from another designer, try and achieve this yourself without the use of any tutorials. Now I know this idea of copying another artist’s work goes against everything this article stands for, but remember it is for experimental purposes rather than publication. By playing around with Photoshop and attempting to achieve other artist’s effects, we can then develop this into our own style, and learn how to achieve a unique effect of our own.
A further use of experimenting is to combine the techniques that you have already learnt from tutorials and various sources and experiment to achieve something new. When doing this, try and break from typical conventions of graphic design. More and more often we are seeing pieces that incorporate techniques from more than one area of design, for example my previous reference to Chris Haines’s blend of 3D and photo manipulation. This is being taken further on all levels, with illustration, typography and even sketches being incorporated into artwork. For example take a look at these Clubmaster ads for Ray Bans that recycle an 80’s retro feel by collaborating several different techniques into one.
All of these stunning effects were achieved through the artist’s experimentation, and can be developed further into endless possibilities. At times as a designer we lack inspiration and it feels as if every theme and area of design has been covered by other artists. However, there is always room for development and expansion. Art has been around since the beginning of time in several different forms, and will never cease to stop growing, as long as individuals continue to bring originality and unique perspectives to the field.
I hope that my 3 tips have helped inspire your own originality in your designs. I think the main importance is to impart a part of yourself, as no two people are the same, and if this can be translated into design then you will have achieved your own style. This can be difficult when working for a client who will obviously have set ideas about what they want you to express, but when creating pieces for the sake of art, never be constrained by the conventions and trends of the design world. Always try and manipulate your own style out of your work, and most of all be happy with what you have created and the message it portrays. If you are not happy with your art yourself, then it will be even harder for anyone else to be.
Let me know your thoughts on how you ensure your pieces are original, and follow me on twitter, or view more posts on design and style on my new blog!
Hello Anthony! Thanks for taking the time out to answer questions for the rest of the design community, could you start off by telling us how you initially got started in the graphic design field?
I did a degree in Design & Communication. It was a pretty open course where I managed to experiment with whatever I was interested in the time. Looking back it was a bit Mickey Mouse but I got enough out of it despite almost being thrown off the course twice.
In addition to your degree, were some of your skills self-taught?
I tend to teach my self through trial and error. I used Photoshop for weeks and weeks before I really knew what I was doing. I think it's best to make your own mistakes on the way to creating a look or style. Following tutorials can sometimes be insightful but often all they do is show you how to recreate a particular image that is already out of fashion.
Recently I've been looking at VideoCo-Pilot.net and greyscalegorilla.com to learn more about After-Effects and animation. As it's such a vast field you just have to absorb as much as possible
Is there a particular area of graphic design that you feel most comfortable in? Do you plan on extending your skills to any additional fields in the future?
I'm interested in too many things: I started professionally in print but did as much digital work as possible, often learning software (like flash) during a brief. A bit scary when you're winging it but sometimes the only way to get the job. In recent years I was a full-time digital designer working on websites, screensavers, flash games, banners etc. I've also spent alot of spare time on illustration based work (Editorial, educational etc). I've dabbled with bits of animation alot of the years and I'm spending alot of time pushing myself in After-Effects.
You have a vast portfolio showing excellent talent, but is there a piece in particular that you would claim as your favourite?
Recently I've been proud of a postcard set I did inspired by H.P Lovecraft and tourist photographs, titled Holidaying Horrors: HP Lovecraft Influence:
Anthony’s Process:
Anthony’s final products:
If you could describe ‘the purpose of art’ in one sentence, what would it be?
I’m not sure what Art is but if I can be a little creative everyday I tend to sleep better.
Who would you say is your biggest inspiration?
I tend to be inspired by creative people from any and all fields. It doesn't matter whether it's still image, moving image or music based it's always the idea and how it's expressed that interests me. I'm an avid fan of Dave Mckean, Terry Gilliam, The Beatles, Radiohead, David Lynch, Super Furry Animals, Bob Staake... The list goes on and on.
Can you take us through what you consider a ‘normal process’ when embarking on a new piece of work?
It's different every-time. Sometimes I'll just know in a instant what I want to do. Sometimes I just have to do something, anything until it looks finished. Sometimes the initial idea seems too easy and I'll waste hours to justify the initial and simple response. It's never the same and I have the back ache to show for it. If I do storyboards or sketches I usually end up following them pretty closely, at least for the composition. I'll usually find that I'll add details as I go that I'd not thought of previously.
Sometimes I'll just start with a blank page with nothing in mind though this can be difficult without a well stocked library of fresh photography, drawings and textures. I try to source new stuff myself as often as possible.
Case Study! - ‘Prison’
Here we can see the process Anthony went through in order to achieve his stick-men inspired piece set in a prison cell.
Initial Sketches:
Illustration Process:
Final Product:
Many members of the community work hard to get their works noticed, how do you promote your own works?
I have a website but haven't really promoted it much recently. At the moment I send targeted emails to individuals, and I also have Flickr and Behance accounts that are great for receiving constructive criticism from other members of the graphic design community.
Where do you see your relationship with graphic design in 5 years time?
I'd like to have produced a short film of illustration that I'm proud of and be a little more sure of myself. And hopefully supporting myself as a freelancer (As I am currently).
You’ve already talked about music being a big inspiration to you, are there any songs in particular, or any other mediums that help get those creative juices flowing?
I listen to alot of podcasts and watch alot of movies on BBC iPlayer. Podcast wise, I don't listen to much that's related to Art & Design. I try to find as much good comedy as I possibly can like the following. Laughing when you have a ridiculous deadline to deal with is important!:• The Adam & Joe Podcast
• The Ricky Gervais show
• Radio Spirit world
The VFX show is a fantastic show about visual effects. People working in the field discuss new and classic movies from a visual point of view.
I also listen to alot of original movie soundtracks - Clint Mansell (The Fountain, Moon) is fantastic. I have eclectic tastes. At the moment my songs include 'Depth charge Ethel' by Grinderman, 'Father Lucifer' by Tori Amos and 'Ohio Heat' by Super Furry Animals.
Ohio Heat - Super Furry Animals:
If Photoshop was a deserted island and you could only take one PS tool with you, which would it be and why?
The transform tool. I guess distorting imagery is where all the fun is in Photoshop. Retouching and colour correcting is important but you can't beat warping texture onto a drawing of tentacle for that warm feeling of a job well done!
Finally, do you have any advice or quick tips to share with other members of the design community?
Learn as many keyboard shortcuts as you can and stay off the beer!
If you would like to see more of Anthony’s work, head over to his Flickr and Behance pages, or visit his blogspot!
For your chance to be the next featured viewer, or if you have any questions that you want to be seen asked, follow me on twitter or my new blog!
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