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__BACK STORY__

I have been a substitute teacher at 10 schools and my assignments have ranged from math to art and everything in between. I have taught in elementary, middle, and one high school as well.

Last Friday, the teacher who provided my materials had a gap in her cirriculum. I offered to fill that gap.

I was asked to introduce logo design to 5th grade students.

__MINIMALISM DEFINED__

Minimalism is the spirit and theory behind logo design.

If minimalism is defined as _a style that uses pared-down design elements_, logos are the bones and the flesh of the minimal soul.

__MASTERS__

I refer to the following artists and works at the end. This list is by no means exhaustive, but one consistent quality is found in the works I've seen and selected. Their work is simple enough to be inviting. It is as continuous and bare as a glass of wine, that needs to be sipped many times to be appreciated. These works must be seen over multiple days to allow the ideas and concepts to live with you and speak.

Name | Cited Work
--------|----------
<a href="https://www.artsy.net/artist/frank-stella">Frank Stella</a> | Damascus Gate (Stretch Variation III)
<a href="http://art.daimler.com/en/artwork/on-average-present-day-humans-are-one-inch-shorter-than-they-were-8000-years-b-c-julian-opie-1991-2">Julian Opie </a> | "On average..."
<a href="https://www.artsy.net/artist/ellsworth-kelly">Ellsworth Kelly</a> | Cité
<a href="https://www.artsy.net/search?q=eva%20hesse">Eva Hesse</a> | Untitiled Construction
<a href="http://www.jobaer.net">Jo Baer</a> | Black Mass
<a href="http://artistsspace.org/exhibitions/charlotte-posenenske">Charlotte Posenenske</a> | Series D Vierkantrohre

__STORY AND LOGO DESIGN__

Logo design often needs a story to guide the design. Some narrative needs to be heard or give value and then an image can be distilled that is very bare bones, yet still retains the vital elements of the artists, company, or groups story.

The narrative is how people can easily share the values of an artist, music band, or non-profit, and the logo is a cue to help trigger the memory of the story.

In my examples below, I have the luxury of working with art that is almost a story unto itself. 

If there is any repetition, I take the original pattern. If there is any color, I remove all but the essential colors. In the back of my head I am thinking, "If I had a piece of metal and needed to bend it to be a brand, what shapes would I make?"

__A CHALENGE EXCERCISE IN MINIMALISM AND LOGO DESIGN__

With my students, I presented Andy Warhol to them the day before, and they were a little bored with the material and the application, where other classes loved it. I knew I had to approach the application of minimalism and logos fun and challenging at the same time.

I came up with two challenges.

1) Draw 4 pictures of each of these items in 3 seconds (cow, star, cookie, car)

2) Draw 4 pictures of each of these items in 5 seconds without lifting your marker/pen (cow, star, cookie, car)

<h2>These challenges are much harder than they seem, and if you get a chance, please post pictures or videos of yourself trying the challenge.</h2>

Here is a video showing what the 3 sec challenge looks like.

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The idea is that the brain will try it's best to include more detail. When it gives up, it will sacrifice detail for drawing a true representation of the image. One may not have time for the tail and the body, but they will skip that to make sure the cow head (easier way to identify a cow) has more detail.

I wanted the students to use this technique to practice drawing symbols that quickly represent the essential items to their assignment like _music_ , _band_ , or _instrument_.

At the end of the class, they succeeded in getting several basic symbols and images drawn and are well on their way to having a logo before their deadline arrives.

__MAKING LOGOS FROM MINIMALIST ART__

I have included the steps I took to make logos based on the minimlist art in my presentation along with the final result. There are extra examples here that I came up with due to the difficulty in tracking down who made which piece of art. 

The format for the following images starts with the minimalist work, then shows how I construct the new logo. I then take the logo and show it in a few colors.
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1z4rUCcz8BEst9qJZzZX9NpVyqb1KtfRSUf3rmTGakic/edit?usp=sharing">Presentation Link</a>