This is my first assignment for the Educational Technology Creative Collective. #edtechcca1 Our task was to create a sign or symbol for our department using a graphics tool of our own choice. (Well it was 2 signs actually but I only managed one 
)
It’s very hard to depict a library with a symbol. Many designers have tried and many have failed! Here’s a selection I gathered together on a Pinterest board.
My own symbol that I created using the Raven Vector editor on the Aviary suite of tools is very abstract and I’d be interested to see what people think it represents and why I’ve chosen to do it this way.
If you want to know what my thought processes were then listen to this audioboo about it.
Pinterest looks like something I would use. I agree that a Library is difficult to sum up in a simple sign without settling for something unsatisfying like a basic book icon or a reading person (as in your Pinterest collection). I like the sense of movement in your design.
colin maxwell
23 Jan 12 at 9:02 pm
[And this 3rd time, I will type the ant-spam word BEFORE I hit submit comment!]
Really useful to *listen* to the mental process you brought to bear on resolving the conundrum of portraying a library through an abstract representation Nicola. Thanks.
As to the hours spent grappling with Raven, don’t blame the application. We all went through similar experiences when coming to graphics software for the first time. The principles are very different from those in the more commonly encountered applications … but it does get easier!
Ian
23 Jan 12 at 9:49 pm
I enjoyed listening to your experience – and agree with Ian – it does get easier and quicker with practice. Very satisfying to create a nice image from scratch. The key for me it to have a project that I can learn with – so that I can focus on learning how to do something for a specific purpose. This activity was ideal for that I think.
Joan Walker
24 Jan 12 at 9:31 am
I like this, a lot. I love symbols that don’t yield up their meaning too easily (I hope you take that the right way!). It looks as though there are some parallels between the way you and I were thinking, though I ended up trying (and failing) to be a bit more literal.
Ant Heald
25 Jan 12 at 9:16 pm