About a year ago when we were really struggling to find a logo that we were happy to represent the club, and appear on the t-shirts, website, membership cards etc, I approached Miles - a friend of my sister - who I knew was studying Graphic Design (and had done work experience with Howies) to help. Fortunately for us he agreed, and we were all saved from my logo ideas that mainly just looked like cucumbers. Below is a short (e-mail generated) interview with him.
Name: Miles Gould
School / Course: BA (Hons) Graphic Design at Brighton University
Website: www.milesgould.com
Favourite Colour: Green
Favourite Typeface: At the moment, Berthold Akzidenz Grotesk condensed or Meta.
Favourite Logo / Brand? My favourite logo would have to be that of Penguin books. Designed by the studio junior Edward Young (1935), and inspired by the penguins at London Zoo. The design is coherent, timeless and fun. I will always stay loyal to howies as a brand. I respect their honesty, high quality products made with care and love, good product performance, functionality and they are conscious about the world we live in.
Favourite Advert? The adverts for Sony BRAVIA. The colours were rich, ideas fresh and looked great fun to be apart of. Particularly the Sony Cyber-shot advert entitled 'Foam city' which involved flooding downtown Miama into a giant bubblebath achieved using the worlds largest foam machine. The project was then documented by asking the local residents of Miami to photograph the event. Brilliant.
When and Why did you choose to pursue Graphic Design as a career? I was massively inspired by a placement I underwent at Radio design in Bath when I was 15. Pete Whitehead who was the company Director, had a lot of energy and passion for design which was really inspiring. I suppose he opened my mind to the potential of design and the endless possibilities that come with it. Ever-since I have been obsessed with function, form and play.
What are your career aspirations? My current aspirations are to continue learning and gaining as much experience as possible whilst at University from everyone around me and work placements. After I graduate I will look to work in the industry for a year and then complete an MA at the Royal College of Art. After that, maybe run my own studio or work for a company who inspires me. I also want to travel as much as possible. The Northern Lights are at the top of my list at the moment.
Who are your heroes? I have too many heroes to name, a few who are involved in the arts world include Chris Cunningham, Charlie Kaufman, Why not associates, Josef Müller-Brockmann, and of course Alan Fletcher.
Hobbies? I skateboard not as frequently as I would like mainly due to the recent weather but it is something I really enjoy doing. My main hobby I'm most passionate about is drumming.
What was the inspiration behind the Black Canon Collective logo? My intention with the BCC logo, was to refine and simplify whilst still capturing momentum and creating impact. The chosen font 'Variable' is a sans-serif typeface family that can be used in a variety of typographic environments. The font was designed by Matt Desmond in 2004 and published by MADtype. The font echos the angles of a bike frame and its curved lines convey a friendliness, which I think is essential when designing an identity.
How do you go about developing an idea once you have one? My working process varies from various projects. With the logo I went through various stages of refining and simplifying until I get to the stage where i believed the design is describable, effective in black and white as well as in colour, scalable to fit all needs, works well in print as well as web and most importantly is memorable and appropriate. I work using both the computer and hand drawing. I always like to submerse myself in a project by doing as much research and development work (play) as possible.
And I thought you guys created the logo yourselves. Great to learn how the progression of the logo came about, and to acknowledge the hard work of those who have helped the Black Canon club!!