Little Boxes
Package design has come a long way in the last 50 years. In the past the usual difference between one product packaging and another was simply the graphics and color schemes of the design.

Today’s walk down the many aisles of a modern supermarket or department store literally offers thousands of uniquely designed packages with amazing looking graphics or container shapes.

If you are currently attending a graphic design school or are already a graphic designer you may have been intrigued with this particular subset of graphic design work. In this article we’ll explore what this interesting field is all about and what you can do to prepare for a career as a package designer.

School First
As it is in any career area you want to pursue the usual route for obtaining proper career training is through proper education. For any field in graphic design there are many qualified graphic design colleges that can help you to earn your degree.

Generally speaking a bachelor’s degree is necessary to qualify for most entry-level positions.

If you are targeting package design as your specialty, you will need to take courses that are focused for this design field. In addition you should have a good grasp of spacial relations as it relates to designing packaging.

You can qualify for some entry-level jobs with an associate’s degree or certificate of completion earned at community colleges or two-year junior colleges. Various online education centers also offer these degrees in addition to bachelor’s degrees in graphic design.

Be sure to thoroughly investigate the graphic design schools you are considering as each one differs in its approach and curriculum. Choose the one that best matches your career and education goals.

What a Package Designer Does
A package designer has the responsibility of creating designs for various forms of packaging such as bottles, containers, cartons, boxes, and other packaging needs. The packaging design can be as simple as a logo on a beverage container or as complex as a multi-DVD case for a movie series. In each case the design must meet the specifications of the client.

Package design must be eye-catching and have the ability to entice consumers to pick up and buy the product.

A package designer should not only be well acquainted with the use of traditional design tools such as pens, paints, and pencils but must be well versed with the various graphic design/image editing software and CAD (computer assisted design) software that are commonly used in the industry.

The design process usually starts with meetings with the client and design team in order to understand and agree upon a concept. After the design is approved a number of sketches, computer generated images and a formal mock-up of the packaging is created. During the period of time between concept and final production, there are usually many changes and alterations during the design process.

These frequent changes in design concepts require an individual who is flexible and has good communication skills.

The Job Situation
Package designers usually work for manufacturing companies in the graphics departments, independent graphic design studios or companies that specialize in packaging.

While a typical workweek of 40 hours can be expected, overtime and weekend work is usually required during “crunch time” or when deadlines are shortened.

The job outlook for graphic design positions is expected to grow approximately 13% during the decade 2008-2018. Competition for available job positions will be extremely high.

The mean annual wage for professionals in the graphic design fields (including package designers) is $46,750, according to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2008).

Tate Art Galleries, with four locations in the United Kingdom, and cultureLabel.com–an unique culture store that offer items from over 70 museum shops, artists, galleries and institutions are announcing an open call to all graphic artists and designers to enter the 2010 Release Contest.

Contest Details
The sponsors of this contest are seeking, “…two outstanding product designs that will be produced and sold in Tate shops, through Tate Online and at CultureLabel.com.”

According to the contest guidelines, the winning product design could:

* Capture the experience of Tate visitors, be they young or old, from the UK or from across the …globe
* Capture the impact that Tate has had on the public’s experience of galleries and its influence on …the arts
* Be inspired by the architecture of the buildings, such as the iconic Tate Modern, which is 10 years …old in 2010
* Be inspired by any of Tate galleries, which include Tate Modern, Tate Britain, Tate St Ives, Tate …Liverpool and also Tate Online

There are two product design categories - products that fall into a retail price range of up to £10 (15 USD) and the second with a retail price of up to £100 (150 USD).

Product Design Guidelines
For a product that will be sold for up to £10 (15 USD) the sponsors state:

“This product will become a much-loved and widely recognized souvenir of any visit to a Tate gallery - the object that anyone visitor will want to take home.

“You might want to focus on London and Tate Modern or Tate Britain and seek to create an iconic tourist souvenir that rivals the ‘Mind the Gap T-shirt’. Or, perhaps you are more inspired by the idyllic coastal setting of Tate St Ives or the post-industrial gallery spaces of Tate Liverpool?

“We want to capture the experience of someone visiting Tate - whether the magic of the first visit or the allure that keeps people coming back. Alternatively, you might seek to capture the impact that Tate has had on the public’s experience of art - transforming galleries into experiential, interactive and lifestyle spaces attracting incredibly diverse audiences.”

For example, some ideas for the sub £10 class of products could be things such as key fobs, cups, posters, t-shirts, folios, pens or other small items.

For product designs that will be sold for up to £100 (150 USD) the guidelines state:

“This more premium product might be the collector’s item that captures the human experience held in Tate.

“We still want to capture the spirit of Tate described above but this product could be a much sought after limited edition, object or accessory and would have the creative flair, artistic and design values reflecting Tate brand and the higher price point.”

Ideas for products in this pricing tier could be, but not limited to, items such as special edition posters or prints, ceramic pieces, jewelry or lithography prints.

Prizes
The winner will receive a cash award of £500 (750 USD) plus royalty payments for the first 6 months of the sales of the design.

Other information
There is an entry fee of £5 (7.50 USD). For the complete rules and guidelines for this contest, click here. To submit your product design idea, click here. All questions regarding this contest should be sent to release [at] culturelabel.com.  The deadline for this contest is March 22, 2010.

What Is NewActon Nishi?
NewActon Nishi is a new apartment complex with over 280 residential units located in Australia’s NewActon Precinct. The development offers cutting-edge green rating systems and is geared towards sustainable operations.

According to the NewActon Nishi developers, the new apartment complex will be a:

“…building that causes people to stop and take notice… to change minds… that we are no longer in the age of glass towers, but in the age of living, breathing buildings, and ecological rejuvenation. Nishi is a building that relies less on technology, and more on a passive solution, to deliver an incredible environmental outcome.”

The Contest
The developers are asking graphic artists to develop a logo and “visual language” that depicts the concept and brand name of NewActon Nishi.

The contest sponsors state:

“The key is the message. Your design must respond to Nishi‘s core values of sustainability, affordability and design excellence. How you choose to interpret those words is up to you but like Nishi itself, the answer is bound to be both progressive and flexible, using creative thinking to arrive at a smart solution.

“We don’t want to buckle you down too much, but you will need to bring a fresh color palette and use sympathetic typography to tell the story. You might want to compose a slogan or use random words to convey Nishi‘s inner beauty. Photography and illustration will also help bring your ideas to life.”

“…think about the ways in which your design will be used. There will be brochures, posters, construction hoardings and a website as well. Maybe we’ll make wallpaper for our display suite or project light onto the building itself.”

How to Enter
The first step in entering this contest is to register. This can be done by clicking here. After your form is accepted, you will be sent registration information, details about the contest, and other information about the competition.

Once registered you must submit an overview of your logo idea in 500 words or less. Your brief should include details regarding the creative process of your design and how your submission meets the contest guidelines.

Awards
The winner will have his/her design used for the promotion of the NewActon Nishi development.

There are two categories for prizes in this contest:

Popular Choice
The most popular choice through the online public vote will receive a Mac Book Air valued at $1800. This is Apple’s Greenest laptop to date. Using highly recyclable materials and meets the EPA and U.S Department of Energy 5.0 Energy Star rating.

Judges Choice
The judges choice winner will receive a $2,500 cash prize

Other Information
For the complete rules to this contest, click here. The contest deadline is March 15, 2010. The winner will be announced on April 19, 2010. See the video below for more information:

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The job of an interior designer incorporates a thorough knowledge of color palette integration, furniture styles and placement, lighting, use of textures, and a good eye for aesthetics and spatial relations. In some instances, the job has advanced to a level where some interior designers are involved in architectural design elements such as the layout of building floor plans, window placement, stairways, escalators, and walkways.

But with public awareness recognizing the need to become more green and energy efficient in today’s society, interior designers are beginning to understand the advantages of becoming familiar with environmentally friendly design materials, techniques, and renewable energy sources.

To acknowledge the importance of green design, the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) released a set of suggestions for greener home remodeling called REGREEN. The set of guidelines were written to help interior design professionals and homeowners evaluate green products and energy systems for typical homes.

The REGREEN document shows 10 case studies based upon several common remodeling plans that involve the kitchen, bathroom, basement, and other home projects. Many tips and suggestions are given on how to remodel with a green emphasis. The REGREEN guidelines are not hard and fast rules to follow, but act as a starting point to develop a customized plan.

Suggestions for greening a home can be as simple as installing natural linoleum flooring and replacing an old refrigerator with an Energy Star efficient unit to more ambitious green projects for solar panel conversion and solar heating.

If you are an interior design student, or a professional who has been in the business for many years, an understanding of how to go green is definitely a color that should be in your palette of skills.

MAPA created Design 09 to honor architects and students who employ precast concrete to achieve the design and performance objectives of in-design or completed projects. The Design 09 awards program, the first of many to come, showcases innovative and effective use of precast concrete in the mid-Atlantic region.

There is NO COST for submitting a nomination. Anyone may nominate any project that meets the eligibility requirements. Nominees may be completed buildings or projects in design. Design 09 includes two separate competitions: one for projects designed by professional architects and one for students. MAPA created a simple and FREE nomination process that enables all materials to be submitted online in a matter of minutes.

Categories include (but are not limited to): Commercial, institutional, houseing, parking structures, bridges, sustainable design and more. Students at any architecture or design school in the states served by MAPA are eligible for nomination in the Design 09 student competition. Faculty and staff may nominate student designs, or students may nominate their own designs. The categories remain the same in the student competition, but the honorees will be limited to six overall with two first place winners receiving cash prizes of $500 each, two second place winners $250 each, and two third place winners $100 each.

Deadline is 4 September 2009. Visit the site to learn more.

The 6th competition in a series, Re:Vision DALLAS is an opportunity to transform an existing city block in Dallas into a model of cutting-edge sustainable practices. Re:Vision invites you to be part of this ground-breaking effort and help lay the foundation for sustainable urban design. Together we can change the future of urban America, one block at a time.

Re:Vision Dallas is a chance to propel design beyond the typical, beyond the norm and to lay the foundation for a future of sustainable development we all hope is inevitable. It’s a chance to create a block that does no harm, to people or place. A chance to encourage and value relationships, while fostering respect for nature and our neighbors, privacy and resources, economy and consumption. It’s a chance to change how we live and connect, how we interact and collaborate - how we live in a space throughout our life and the lifecycle of the space.

This is more than something to aspire to. Re:Vision Dallas is real. The land is purchased. The Mayor of Dallas has granted his support. Thousands of hours have been devoted to setting up this competition. We’ve consulted experts like RMI. Led conceptual charettes with industry experts. Brainstormed with local officials on essential issues to consider. This block will happen.

The competition jury will award three cash prizes, and three honorable mentions. The prize for each of the three finalists is $25,000. The prize for each of the honorable mentions will be $1,000.

Registration Deadline: April 15, 2009; Entry Deadline:April 30, 2009 by 11:59pm pdt. Visit the site to learn more.