Having been given a list of New York studios, the next step was to research them.
1. Pentagram - pentagram.com
Pentagram is a studio not only in New York, but also in 4 other locations: San Francisco, Austin, Berlin & London. They would be a fantastic studio to visit, because if I was to visit the studio in New York, I could also possibly go to the one in London, my hometown.
Pentagram are a HUGE agency, that do not specialise in any areas of design in particular. They have a vast, international client list, stretching from banking (eg. Citi, Bloomberg & Bank United) to art (the Whitney and MoMa galleries).
Examples of Work
2. StudioLin - studiolin.org
StudioLin work through a variety of platforms, but focus mainly on print. Their work seems to have a unique yet modernist aesthetic, and plays on the use of typography. Overall the work itself seems quite exciting and experimental, something I would love to get involved with.
Examples of Work:
3. 2 x 4 - 2x4.org
2x4 is a global design consultancy headquartered in New York, with studios in Beijing and Madrid. The focus of their work is brand strategy for commercial clients. The agency seem extremely large, with clients including Tiffany & Prada, and even rapper Kanye West.
Examples of Work
4. Red Antler - redantler.com
Red Antler are a large agency, that focus mainly on digital design. Red Antler believe 'the distinction between online and offline is increasingly irrelevant. Every brand needs to express itself digitally, and ideally every brand finds a way to connect with people in the real world.'
The agency works with big commercial clients, such as the Global Channel VIVA. The overall feel I get from the work produced here is a polished aesthetic, that is intended to work on a mass scale.
Examples of Work
Landor is a huge agency, established in the 1960's. By now there are 25 offices in 19 countries, stretching worldwide. I like the fact that there is a London studio too, meaning if I was to visit Landor in New York, I could possibly visit the studio in London too. They specialise in branding, an area of design I find most interesting.
Examples of Work
6. Wolff Olins - wolffolins.com
Wolff Olins is a studio that promotes themselves as brand strategists.
'We combine technology, design and brand in everything we do.
We aim to give you the first useful things in days, not months.
And we aim constantly for the best kind of social impact. Brands that
are good for people are best for business.'
We aim to give you the first useful things in days, not months.
And we aim constantly for the best kind of social impact. Brands that
are good for people are best for business.'
Similarly to Red Antler, Wolff Olins seems to work with big international clients (as seen below with work done for Tesco). However, Wolff Olins seem to focus more on print, whereas Red Antler focus more on digital.
Examples of Work
7. Droga5 - droga5.com
Described as 'The world's most exciting agency' by The Guardian, Droga 5 focus more on advertising. This is of course, an area I may see as too big and commercial to work for, but it would be interesting to see how the company works internally, and with work at such a large scale.
The company promotes a heavily strategic approach, which would be interesting to find out about further.
Examples of Work
Unfortunately all the work I could find were videos which could not be embedded onto Blogger, but here is a link to a promotional campaign for Puma:
8. R/GA - rga.com
R/GA focus strictly on digital. They work with huge international clients, that work on a global scale, such as Google, 02, Unilever & Microsoft.
This is not something I know much about, and have absolutely no clue how to develop software or work with programming. However, this could be a perfect reason to gain an incite into an area completely new to me. They also have a London studio, meaning I could possibly organise a second visit at home!
Examples of Work
I could only get a video of the work they produce, but the following project for Windows 8 is really interesting, and a very flashy use of Times Square in New York!
9. Chermayeff, Geismar & Haviv - cgstudionyc.com
Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv is a brand design firm which has been going since 1958. behind many of the world’s most recognizable trademarks. The firm design across every discipline, specializing in brand identities, exhibitions, print and motion graphics, and art in architecture.
The firm has a global reach, with projects in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East as well as throughout the United States. It is led by its founding partners, designers Ivan Chermayeff and Tom Geismar, and recent partner Sagi Haviv.
The firm has a global reach, with projects in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East as well as throughout the United States. It is led by its founding partners, designers Ivan Chermayeff and Tom Geismar, and recent partner Sagi Haviv.
Examples of Work
10. Studio Newwork - studionewwork.com
STUDIO NEWWORK was formed in 2007 by Ryotatsu Tanaka, Ryo Kumazaki and Hitomi
Ishigaki in New York. All graduated from Fashion Institute of Technology.
Ishigaki in New York. All graduated from Fashion Institute of Technology.
'Study and practice in typography is integrated into projects from beginning to end.'
In December 2007, the first issue of NEWWORK MAGAZINE was published.
It’s a large-format art publication, designed twice a year. Each issue features new work from a wide range of artists and creators in the worlds of fine art, design, and fashion.
It’s a large-format art publication, designed twice a year. Each issue features new work from a wide range of artists and creators in the worlds of fine art, design, and fashion.
Editorial is an another area I would like to consider working in. STUDIO NEWWORK produce iconic work that is known from all around the world. I would love to see the process from beginning to end, and maybe learnt more about grid and layout.
Examples of Work
11. Sagmeister & Walsh - sagmeisterwalsh.com
Sagmeister & Walsh is a NYC based design firm that creates identities, commercials,
websites, apps, films, books and objects for clients, audiences and ourselves.
The studio itself is tiny (as you can see above), however the duo are very well known in the design world, and have won multiple awards for their work.
Studio Visits: The studio hosts “Salon Nights”, where five designers can visit to the studio and share their work and get feedback on portfolios. This could be perfect for me to visit, and to meet Stefan Sagmeister and Jessica Walsh would make me feel starstruck.
12. VSA Partners - vsapartners.com
VSA is another large agency positioned in New York, and have been for over 30 years. VSA are well known for their collaborative approach, and have worked with global clients such as Facebook, IBM and Harley - Davidson.
Examples of Work
MGMT design is an agency based in Brooklyn. Their clients include the New York Times, Al Gore and even the Royal Family of Thailand. MGMT design lots of books about art & architecture. MGMT are a much smaller agency than some of the above studios I have looked at. They mainly work with US clients.
The studio works a lot with print, which I favour more than digital. They also seem big on info graphics which I haven't seen with any other studio.
Examples of Work
Possibly the most unique studio I have researched. The studio seems to be extremely experimental with the work they produce. They also seem to work with the 'Pretty Ugly' aesthetic, which is a recent aesthetic, where the idea is to design something so clashing and ugly that it works. Their work reminded me of this article in Creative Review:
I think this studio would be very interesting to visit, and even more interesting to gain an incite on their design process.
Examples of Work
15. Memo - memo-ny.com
This studio is possibly the smallest I have looked at. They specialise with work just in New York City, which would help to gain an incite as to how working in New York can be. I am unfamiliar of most of the clients, but most seem to relate to restaurants, an area I know very little about. I think visiting this studio would be much more likely than say, Pentagram or Sagmeister & Walsh. They would probably have more time to spend with me and give me much more information.
Examples of Work
