Invisible Design

Invisible Design (or Some Jobs are Bigger than Others)

Not every job that I work on has a final output that I can claim creative ownership of – I often work on small jobs where my creative contribution is not immediately apparent and the design decisions that I have made are not immediately visible. This small logo that I designed for DES Talks, Susanna Beaumont’s new design podcast as part of her brilliant ongoing project, Design Exhibition Scotland, is a case in point. As an adaptation of an existing design, a designer would not expect to be credited for their work but, in this post, I hope to reveal the sometimes invisible design processes, thinking and decision making that go in to all design jobs, even the smallest, most humble ones.

The brief was to create a new online logo for the DES Talks podcast, adapting the existing DES logo, and working within a square format of 3000 x 3000 pixels with a maximum file size of 512KB using the orange of the original logo as the key colour.

I developed multiple iterations before arriving at a final design: working with the existing DES logo and colour, I tested several layouts with different settings for ‘DES Talks’ – in upper case, lower case, title case and other variations. Each iteration created a different relationship between the existing logo and the additional words but I was drawn to the connection that happens between the uppercase letters of ‘Design Exhibition Scotland’ and the abbreviation ‘DES’ when it is also set in uppercase – it makes sense of the acronym. This connection is emphasised when the word ‘talks’ is set either in lower case or in title case. I was undecided between these two settings but the client opted for ‘Talks’, which I think settles the meaning of the word as ‘(a series of) talks’ rather than ‘Des speaks’ (though that ambiguity is fun).  

In most of the iterations that I designed, the Design Exhibition Scotland logo is positioned on the left-hand side and runs from the top edge of the square: I found that the logo didn’t feel right – too arbitrary and ‘floating’ – when placed elsewhere. It’s always a challenge working with logos designed by other designers and it’s generally a case of finding the ‘sweet spot’ where the logo feels rooted in the layout (this becomes even more of a challenge when working with multiple logos designed by multiple designers – but that’s another story). In the final design, the letters ‘DES’ are aligned with the bottom edge of the DES logo, further emphasising the connection between ‘Design Exhibition Scotland’ and its acronym.

I’m not sure exactly what typeface the logo was originally designed with as I was given a vector, with outlined letters to work with – it looks to me like the typeface was condensed and angled to create an italic. After looking at lots of similar sans-serif geometric typefaces, I selected Futura as the typeface to sit alongside the DES logo. On closer inspection, the vectors included some stray elements that suggested that the original logo had an inline element – I had to tidy these up and remove them as, when outputted as a PNG, it showed as tiny cracks on the letters, despite the outputs being very small in size. I would have liked to refine the letter spacing of the original logo but as it is already established and widely in use, I thought it best to leave it alone.

The logo was designed with two colourways: with an orange background with white lettering and with a white background with orange lettering. It’s clear that in the two examples of the logo in use online, shown below, that the orange background version is the strongest, particularly on the desktop version of Apple’s podcast browser which has a white background that contrasts nicely with the orange logo.

As a further development, I introduced gradient backgrounds, using the shift from white to orange with contrasting coloured elements to create movement, depth and visual interest in the design. I felt that this was something that I might explore further but, in the second round of presentations to Susanna, she decided that the flat background was more suitable and I made that version ready for use. Given that the logo will be usually viewed on a small scale and not always at the optimum resolution I think this was the right decision for maximum legibility.

The DES Talks podcast can be found on various platforms including Apple Podcasts – or by searching for ‘DES Talks podcast’. www.designexhibitionscotland.co.uk

Work in Progress with Genevieve Draper

Work in progress with the artist Genevieve Draper on her publication, Slow painting, to be published to coincide with her exhibition at the Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh in July 2025. This is the first time that the artist has made a publication so I have been working very closely with her, guiding her through the various stages of making a book. Originally titled Genevieve Draper: A Retrospective, the title has changed several times to become Genevieve Draper: Slow painting, to reference the artist’s identity as a Slow artist and her carefully considered approach to painting. It has been a pleasure working on this book with Genevieve, not least because of the many interesting conversations that we have had about painting, art school education, and maintaining an art practice. The book is currently being printed by Gomer in Wales and I look forward to seeing the finished book which includes photography by Antonia Reeve, and essays by Penelope Curtis and Erlend Clouston.

www.genevievedraper.com

Surface Echoes

Surface Echoes is a resource that was developed over three years with input from creative professionals, arts and health researchers, working in partnership with individuals affected by eczema. Led by Professor Sara Brown and Beverley Hood, Surface Echoes brings to life the everyday challenges and emotional impact of eczema. Using verbatim quotes of people affected by eczema, a text collage was produced by artists Beverley Hood and Catherine Street. The collage was then transformed in to two downloadable resources – a printable PDF script of the collage and an audio version – developed to create empathy, spark conversation, and deepen understanding of the realities of living with eczema.

I was involved with making the collage of the Surface Echoes script available digitally as a PDF, manipulating the scanned version in Photoshop to make it easier to read and understand while still maintaining the scratchy, disruptive aesthetic of the original. I worked closely with Beverley Hood and Catherine Street, reading through the script to analyse how the degraded collaged form slows down the reader to create a more thoughtful reading experience and how that engagement can be improved with subtle typographic interventions.

In addition, I was involved in recording the audio version of the script, adding my voice alongside Elicia Daly, Claire Doyle, Dyfan Dwfor, Pauline Goldsmith and Sarah Rose Graber in a sound design by Liam Russell. 

The printable PDF script and audio version of Surface Echoes can be downloaded here. 

Restoration!

Lady and the Fan is a sculpture by Gareth Fisher, created in 1983. The work was originally exhibited at the Fruitmarket Gallery in 1986, and has subsequently been held in a private collection. The artist was very keen to include the work in the catalogue that I designed for his exhibition at Summerhall Lab Gallery, 8 March – 6 April 2025 but, because of the delicate fragility of the sculpture, the owner was (understandably) hesitant about lending the work to be photographed or included in the exhibition. 

Above is a scan of a large format negative of the sculpture, photographed by Duncan MacQueen, sometime in the 1980s – the negative is scratched in places and the background is discoloured, possibly due to the scanning process. Gareth wanted to use this image on the back of the catalogue and asked me to attempt to restore it. All the other photographs in the catalogue are by John McKenzie and were photographed at the same time, in the same space and light for consistency. 

To match this photograph with the others, I removed the background from the image then replaced it with a background taken from one of John’s photographs. Once the edges of the cut-out image of the sculpture had been tidied up and softened in places, and the scratches and blotches on the scanned image had been removed, I was surprised and pleased with the result – an image that doesn’t look too out of place alongside the excellent photographs taken by John McKenzie in the catalogue.

The owner of the sculpture finally agreed to the Lady and the Fan being included in the exhibition (in one of the glass cabinets of the Lab gallery) and it is interesting to see how the sculpture has changed over the last twenty-two years: the plaster has darkened, and the paper fan has yellowed and decayed. Unfortunately, there is no Photoshop filter that can restore the ravages of time in real life! 

Below is the restored photograph on the back of the catalogue along with the exhibition caption for the sculpture that I designed.

Gareth Fisher Sculpture in Plaster 1980–2024 Catalogue

Gareth Fisher

Sculpture in Plaster 

1980–2024

Designed by James Brook for the exhibition Gareth Fisher Sculpture in Plaster 1980–2024 at Summerhall Lab Gallery, Edinburgh, 8 March – 6 April 2025

Photography by John McKenzie

Paperback with flaps | 205 x 160 mm | 32 pages | Printed by Gomer Print, Wales, on 150 gsm Munken Lynx Rough with cover printed on 300 gsm Munken Lynx Rough

It was an absolute pleasure to work with the artist (and President of the Royal Scottish Academy), Gareth Fisher, on the design of this catalogue for his exhibition at Summerhall – the former Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies of the University of Edinburgh. The exhibition is a retrospective of wonderful sculptures that span a practice of more than 50 years; working in plaster has been a continuous thread throughout it. 

Collaborating closely with Gareth from the very start of the project, I suggested that he commission the brilliant photographer John McKenzie to take images of his work, as I thought the book would feel more cohesive if all the sculptures were photographed consistently, in the same space, and with the same light. The sculptures were photographed against a grey background, painted by Gareth, and are beautifully lit to reveal the delicate detail of each work.

The book is designed with a generous amount of white space and the typography is pared back, with discreet captions and no page numbers or other distracting details. It is typeset in Skolar Latin, a classic book typeface that has some subtle twists that reveal a human touch, echoing the hand of the artist in these plaster sculptures. These quirky, typographic details become more apparent at a larger scale – such as on the exhibition posters that I also designed, based on the design of the cover of the book.

The book is printed on Munken Lynx Rough, an uncoated natural white paper with a very tactile feel. Having looked at several options for paper with the artist, we selected this one as the colour and soft texture felt appropriate for a book of plaster sculptures. The cover is printed on the same material with no laminate – although not as durable, the trade-off is that the cover retains the soft texture of the paper. It was printed by Gomer, in Wales, using LE-UV inks – specially formulated inks that dry instantly under ultraviolet light, meaning more of the colour stays on the surface, giving a far superior result to conventional litho printing.

Gareth’s exhibition in the Lab Gallery was conceived as a complete installation, using the original glass display cabinets of the veterinary school to both protect and highlight the delicate and fragile surfaces of the sculptures, and using specially installed lighting to dramatically light them. It was important for the artist to include installation shots as a record of the exhibition – so the bulk of the book was colour proofed ahead of the installation, with placeholder images for the missing installation shots. 

Once the installation was complete, John McKenzie took photographs on Friday 7 March, ahead of the opening on 8 March. The images were processed over the weekend then dropped in to place in the book, with the final artwork sent to the printers on Monday 10 March. Gomer Print did a fantastic job of turning the book around very quickly – LE-UV inks are, thankfully, very fast-drying allowing sheets to be folded as soon as they are printed – and the book arrived as early as was possible in the run of the exhibition.

Gareth Fisher: Designed beautifully by James Brook, who was a sensitive, perceptive and magnificent support in the production of this important publication. James is an excellent designer with sensitivity to your aspirations. A pleasure to work with.

Gareth Fisher Sculpture in Plaster 1980–2024 Printed Material

Printed material – posters, captions and text panels – designed for the exhibition Gareth Fisher Sculpture in Plaster 1980–2024 at Summerhall Lab Gallery, Edinburgh, 8 March – 6 April 2025. 

It has been an absolute pleasure to work with the artist and President of the Royal Scottish Academy, Gareth Fisher, on the design of printed material for his exhibition at Summerhall Lab Gallery. The posters are based on my design for the cover of the catalogue that accompanies the exhibition – it is currently being printed by Gomer in Wales. The poster features a photograph by the brilliant John McKenzie who has also taken the photographs for the catalogue. Below is one of my favourite works in the exhibition, The Hand, along with the caption that accompanies it.

 

The Improbable City

The Improbable City 

Published by Edinburgh Art Festival, 2015 

Edited by Sorcha Carey and Emily Gray 

Designed by James Brook 

ISBN 978 0 9929909 1 6 

48 pages with soft cover with pockets front and back containing a set of 8 postcards Book size 210 x 165 mm; postcard size 105 x 148 mm Printed by Allander, Edinburgh, on Cocoon Preprint 100% recycled paper with Colorplan smoke grey cover; postcards printed on Cocoon Offset 350gsm 

☞ 

The Improbable City is the second book that I designed for the Edinburgh Art Festival. The book accompanied a programme of commissions that ‘celebrate the work of visual artists who vividly conjure alternative imaginary worlds through their work, and considers how it is often the improbable which illuminates the real’. The programme included work by leading and emerging Scottish practitioners and includes new work by three international artists showing in the UK for the first time. The Improbable City ran from 30 July – 30 August 2015.

The cover of the book was printed on Colorplan Smoke Grey with a map of the old town of Edinburgh by Hanna Tuulikki. The book includes a glyph of a pointing hand on the title page to generate the feeling of a guide book or travel guide; I later learned that this symbol is known as a ‘manicule’ (from the Latin root manus for ‘hand’ and manicula for ‘little hand’) or fist. 

The set of postcards was an attempt to include last-minute images of the installations that were being created specially for the Art Festival and that were still being made when the book had to go to print to meet the deadline of the opening of 29 July; as the postcards had a shorter production time we hoped to include images of the finished installations that were not ready in time for the book. The postcards slot in to pockets on the front and back cover.

There are eight postcards in the set with work by the seven artists featured in the exhibition – Charles Avery, Marvin Gaye Chetwynd, Julie Favreau, Emma Finn, Ariel Guzik, Kemang Wa Lehulere, and Hanna Tuulikki – as well as an eighth postcard by Neil Mulholland, which features a text written in response to Marvin Gaye Chetwynd's work. The reverse of the postcards featured another manicule and the legend ‘Postcard from the Improbable City’, further strengthening the idea of a book as a guide for visitors to ‘The Improbable City’.