Sneak Peek for this Week – Adam Rice!

By Selena Alvarado

For our next meeting this Thursday we will be joined by Adam Rice, Design Director at Wit and Craft!

Let’s take a sneak peek into what we have in store for the meeting and see what we can expect to learn more about. I’m sure you’re familiar with the roles of creative directors, copywriters, and so on, but how about a design director? Unsure? Well then let’s take a look at what a typical day might look like for one. They are responsible for keeping track of an entire design process for a particular campaign, in addition to managing the design itself it is also their job to ensure that progress is made timely and within the client’s budget.

They are often a link between the many roles within the agency. This means they are often working with the creatives and designers to create the many designs of a campaign, while at the same time they are working with account managers to understand what their client needs and that the designs are to their liking. It’s a role that links many of the teams together within the agency and one that heavily focuses on the creative side of advertising.

Now that we know a bit more of what Adam does, let’s see some of his and his team’s work, and hopefully we can start to see just how much art is in advertising!

Rest Haven logo refresh and branding

Just as certain lines of copy can change the meaning of a message, certain kinds of shapes or colors can completely change the message being told to you without even using a single word! This is where art plays a critical role in advertising. Taking a look at this example from Wit and Craft, we can see how they use art to create a message.

By using the rounded yet sharp shape it helps relay the information that the people here will feel safe and cared for by those around them. Rounded edges give a sense of safety and security, as opposed to sharp edges that can often invoke excitement or tenseness.

Color is often used in advertising as certain shades actually have different psychiatric effects on us. Red and Yellow make us hungry, this is why every fast-food chain has those colors in its branding. In this case for Wit and Craft, they use a dull purple color, a shade that is known to invoke feelings of wisdom, spirituality, and dignity. Now we can understand that this shade wasn’t just picked because it looked pretty (although it does), there is a deeper aspect to it that takes into account strategy just like copywriters or media buyers. If you’re a designer in advertising you are not only creating designs that are appealing to the eye, but you’re making works of art that are able to persuade your audience and display a message without being able to use words.

Pretty incredible stuff right? So do you want to learn more from a design director himself? Then come to our next meeting this Thursday at 6pm in Lake Ontario Hall 174! If you are interested in the creative side of advertising you do not want to miss this!