King+Sons Design :: blog

Kentucky’s “Final Four War of 2012″

Eric — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 19:52:59 +0000

As a follow-up to my NCAA Ohio salute, here’s a vintage Kentucky license plate to honor tomorrow’s “Final Four War of 2012″ in basketball:

“Blue-Red State” replaces “Bluegrass State” and a “ball pass” icon (honoring these teams’ up-tempo offenses and quick outlet passes) replaces the horse icon. Note that Kentucky was involved in basketball’s most famous pass.

Media highlights of the UK-Louisville rivalry and Calipari vs. Pitino:

“It bears stating: This is the single biggest sporting event in the state’s history.” – The Wall Street Journal

“Ah, kings at each other’s throats — flawed, driven, prideful men scheming for power and empire. Theirs is a tale replete with willful violations of rules legal, moral, and ethical. Ghosts move in the shadows. Blood is on everyone’s hands. How delicious that all this is told inside a basketball game this weekend in New Orleans — Kentucky against Louisville, Calipari against Pitino.” – Grantland

“We don’t send each other Christmas cards,” Calipari said recently. Said Pitino of the coming showdown: “There will be people at Kentucky that will have a nervous breakdown if they lose to us.” – The Wall Street Journal

“Outside my home here in Louisville, all hell is breaking loose. Insults and predictions are dropping like bombs. Rational people are fleeing bars and restaurants in search of sanctuary. Offices have become battlegrounds, families are being torn apart, and minor events such as weddings are being reorganized.” – Sports Illustrated

Lastly, a salute to 2012 tourney teams Murray State (for a rare “horse viewed from the front” logo) and Western Kentucky (for their mascot.)

Ohio: The Heart of B-ball!

Eric — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 19:06:53 +0000

A salute to the first state to have four teams in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.
(An old state slogan was “The Heart Of It All.”)

Combining all of the teams (University of Cincinnati Bearcats, Ohio University Bobcats, Ohio State University Buckeyes, and Xavier University Musketeers) on a vintage “smog sunset” Ohio license plate.

T-Bo Knows Prayer

Eric — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 21:57:25 +0000

Bo knows baseball, but T-Bo knows prayer! Based on Nike’s “Bo Knows” ads (from 1990) for their cross-training shoes, here’s a parody update with Tim Tebow praying. Cross-training indeed!

Photo image: Tim Tebow prays right after scoring the dramatic winning touchdown on November 17, 2011. Parody ad bonus: Reebok and Nike logo confusion.

More Tebowing.

World Trade Center 1988 brochure

Eric — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:44:23 +0000

I picked up this brochure in 1988 while working as a college co-op student on Wall Street. I was amazed every day at the WTC Concourse with its shopping mall, hotel, offices, parking garage and subway station.

Click images for full-size. (And for memories, if you were ever there.)

Aside from the history, this brochure is also an interesting design piece because it comes from the end of the pre-digital era. It was at that NYC job that I first used a Macintosh computer and Adobe Illustrator software, then known as Illustrator 88.

Vader Vest t-shirt design

Eric — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 04:11:30 +0000

What a week for Buckeye Nation. After Jim Tressel’s resignation, we now try to figure out if he’s good or bad. This reminds me of another good/bad icon, Darth Vader–whom the younger generation sees as generally good, but the older generation does not.

After the OSU press conference debacle earlier in the year, it was obvious that this whole thing would not end well. Who is this guy behind the vest? I don’t know, but that red vest looks mighty fine on another pop culture icon. Time for a parody. Order t-shirts here.

The variant below addresses Tressel’s replacement, Luke Fickell. T-shirt here.

Keep Calm and Carmen Ohio, Buckeye fans! We can get through this. T-shirt here.

Cincinnati Magazine photo contest

Eric — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 02:33:44 +0000

I submitted three photos for the Cincinnati Magazine photo contest for the American Sign Museum, and one of them was chosen as the winner!

Here are all three of my entries; the first one is my favorite because we drive by it daily.

Battle of the Blue Dogs

Eric — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:00:23 +0000

Tonight’s NCAA Finals between Connecticut and Butler feature two blue dogs as the mascots. The blues are very similar, but UConn’s blue (Pantone 281) is warmer (has more red) than Butler’s blue (Pantone 541) which is cooler (less red). Just remember the in-game personalities of the two coaches–UConn’s Jim Calhoun tends to get “warm” while Butler’s Brad Stevens remains “cool!”

This UConn dog logo dates to 1996; see the previous dog here.

Super Bowl XLV: Packers Gold = Steelers Gold

Eric — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 19:43:44 +0000

The Packers and Steelers share the same yellow gold color, Pantone 1235:

This would make a decent flag…

…for my friends, whose house is divided:

Another flag option, a horizontal tricolor:

Jamaica flag!

KSO 2009 brochure

Eric — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 02:59:32 +0000

Here’s the cover of a brochure I designed for the Kentucky Symphony’s new subscription series. This season the orchestra will be performing in venues all over Northern Kentucky, so the solution for the cover is a “law firm” name of the three counties and a map of the counties with the Ohio River.

A car logo you’ve never seen before

Eric — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 21:44:28 +0000

Alright, it was one that I had never seen before–which is saying something. Steyr-Puch is Austrian and their Pinzgauer is one of the coolest vehicles I’ve seen around here. Thanks to Lee at European Auto Specialists for the tour.