Gordon Kaye has been editor and publisher of GDUSA (Graphic Design USA) for more than three decades. He is a graduate of Hamilton College, Princeton University’s SPIA, and Columbia Law School. This comment, connected to our 61st annual print design reader survey and our 2024 digital design awards competition and showcase, first appeared in our June 2024 print and digital magazines. He is shown here with Website and Social Media Editor Sasha Kaye-Walsh, herself a Hamilton graduate and Rutgers University MFA. GDUSA is celebrating its 61st year of publication as a news and information source for the graphic design and related creative community.
Print and Digital Are Additive
2024 cliches can be tiresome. My candidate for most overused: “Is the juice worth the squeeze?” Second place is any phrase with the word “Weaponization” in it. And given the election matchup foisted on us, an honorable mention goes to the ever popular “choice between the lesser of two evils.”
But even the most annoying cliche can be revealing and here is an example — “Two things can be true at the same time” — that I am leaning upon to help make sense of a seeming inconsistency in our June 2024 edition: first, online design is showing dazzling exponential growth and carrying our GDUSA Digital Design Awards along with it while, second, GDUSA readers participating in our 61st annual print survey adamantly and obdurately assert their belief in the power — and the future — of print.
This year’s digital design showcase is the story of a medium’s sheer potency to reach, engage and communicate. Our awards competition, formerly known as ‘web design,’ was broadened last year to include not only websites, but also social media and email marketing, digital ads and publications, video and animation, UX and UI design, and more. Thousands of entries were receive this year — more than twice that of two years ago — and only a select handful are featured today. The trajectory is steep but no credit to us. Rather, it reflects the fact that digital communication, and those who create and produce it, are in a virtuous cycle: burgeoning demand, richer tools, more stable technologies and infrastructure, and an increasingly sophisticated appreciation for how sound graphic design principals contribute to ultimate success.
Meanwhile, our traditional print and paper reader survey has a somewhat different story to tell. Reduced to its essence, the poll finds that print remains crucial in how professional graphic designers earn a living — fully 96% work in print as part of their mix and 62% of projects have a print component. And it reaffirms that print and paper remain relevant because they have classic strengths and inherent qualities that can forge a human connection and an intimacy often missing from modern life. The message: print has authenticity and impact because it feels real and present.
In the face of these editorial features running in tandem — and the possibly conflicting tales they tell — I find comfort in the “two things can be true” mantra. And I am reminded of a few wise utterances captured by our poll. One such comment: “In marketing and advertising, all channels are additive; they do not replace each other.” A second: “When it comes to media decisions and creative solutions that work, the design mind thinks about ‘AND’ rather than ‘OR’.” And yet a third: “We are at a point where digital and print are synchronizing.” Possible future cliches, but right now they feel fresh and meaningful.
Reading The Tea Leaves
Though I haven’t left much room, I would be remiss not to note Bill Gardner’s annual LogoLounge trend report or his graciousness in allowing us to publish it for the 22nd straight year. The incomparable Mr. Gardner is heading toward half a million logos compiled and reviewed through LogoLounge.com, an endless source of information and inspiration.
More than ever, he commands attention with a sweeping overview of the past year’s logo designs — the context and culture from which they arise — the patterns he gleans — and the sagacity he shares along the way. The changing role ofthe logo? The impact of AI and technology? The rise of stickers? The softening of edges? The meaning of ‘Corner Chop’ and ‘Pixel Drop’? The answers are all here and more.
And, yes, the juice is worth the squeeze.
— GK
