THE WEEK IN DESIGN 10

Talking this week about appropriate treatment in design.  It's all very well having a housestyle which reinforces the brand of the channel, but if 

this comes at the expense of storytelling, then we fail.

We should always ensure that the treatment, that is the visual styling of any design, fits with the subject we are communicating.  

At the same time, we should be mindful of not taking this too far, so that we lack ownership of the design. 

Channel brand and story need to work in harmony.

For the Oklahoma Tornado our output was predominantly a series of maps and weather explainers, but as always, success was demonstrated by our 

information and storytelling.  When we created what was effectively a public service announcement on tornado survival advice, we stripped away all 

confusing elements, gave the information a focal colour to draw in the viewer and kept the information central.

The sombre, reverential tones stopped this turning into a cartoon and was befitting of the package.

For Dangerous Dogs, the selection was an emotive treatment which portrays fear and anger. The grunge approach still feels like Sky News.  

It is confident, the subject image is a bold cut out, information is to the fore and text is kept in clean space.

We need to be careful this is never taken too far as to suggest editorial comment, in this case, a nod to a seedy underbelly.

Cot Death is a hugely difficult subject to handle from all perspectives and this design steers very close to the wind.  The simple premise is what rescues it. 

A very stripped back approach with bold information concentrates the eye on the avoidance advice and the design is beautiful and emotive.  

However, the funereal, slightly sinister treatment, though it may seem appropriate, is perhaps one step too far.  Always be mindful of where the line lies

and the power that visuals can carry with the viewer.

A potential and very simple rescue is shown below.

Finally, selection is taking place this week for this months Design Excellence Awards.  I'll send a mail with the shortlist later in the week.

CELEBRATE     DESIGN     EXCELLENCE

Chyaz

Chyaz Buffett: Head of News Design: Sky Creative
T:  020 7032 4699
M: 07920 285 132
tw: @Chyaz