This design was inspired by the life and work of graphic designer Saul Bass. The project called for a calendar designed in the style of a famous graphic designer. After researching Bass and his work, I was inspired by his use of color as well as his arrangement of casual shapes.
My approach to the design began with the decision to format my final product like a weekly planner. Just as Saul Bass’ work celebrate’s the artist’s touch evident in his design, this planner allows the user the opportunity to showcase their own hand as they write in events and important dates in each space. Every page equates to one week, and each shape represents a single day of the week. This design takes the academic year beginning in August and contains in total one calendar year. Each spread gradually changes in color as time passes. One month is assigned its own color palette that changes to reflect the weather during that given month of the year, ranging from warmer August colors to cooler December and January ones.
In the spirit of Saul Bass, I included several handmade touches to this design. National holidays are distinguished by hand-drawn radial lines that appear on the box containing that day. Similarly, I designed each letterform in the style of letterforms typically seen on Bass’ design work. Other interesting features of this solution include facts about Saul Bass and his work as well as space for the user to write notes.
Example spread showcasing space for notes
Example spread depicting fact about Saul Bass as well as space for notes