Signs

                                       

Signs can be used for all different reasons, whatever the reason is, signs all have one common objective which is to tell us something. Signs can be used to tell us what the traffic rules are, or they can advertise something to us, they can also tell us where we are or where we need to be going. Whatever way we look at it, signs are a part of all of our daily lives. When we get in our car and drive anywhere we have to pay attention to the signs all around, without them it would be mayhem on the roads and impossible to drive. In order for these road signs for example to be effective they most of all need to grab your attention. If you cant see or notice a road sign then it would be ineffective and very dangerous. But they do stand out to us and tell us weather to stop, go, yield, or so on, because of the design of the signs. Road signs are bright in color, for instance the stop sign is red because red sticks out to the human eye more than any other color. The words that they choose for signs is always very clear, bold and clean, with easy to read font types like Helvetica and Arial. One major point I am trying to get to is that graphic design is all around us on a daily basis. These road signs that I was speaking of were not just created by some kid and thrown up on all the interstates in the country. These signs are thought out pieces of artwork made by graphic designers who needed to create the safest possible driving experience people can have while on the roads. 

Business's also use signs to advertise or show the name of a particular store. The creators of these signs need to make sure that people can see the words from far away, and that the sign is in some way inviting, either if its physically inviting you into a store, or inviting you to buy a product. If I am driving down a main road looking for a drug store, I can have my eyes fully peeled on either side of the road looking for a store because I would get into an accident. Yet, with signs like CVS being in my mind for my entire life, I would see the letters CVS out of the corner of my eye and automatically associate either the shapes or the colors that I quickly saw with the drug store that I need. To me this is a great example of an effective sign.