Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School is a quote-unquote “law school” based out of Atlanta, Ga. It’s supposedly a place where one can learn how to become a lawyer and effectively — sometimes righteously, but often times not so righteously — swindle people out of a lot of money. You can go there and learn the tricks of the trade to get your law on. And attempt to cheat hardworking artists out of thousands of dollars.
That’s exactly what John Marshall Law School is trying to do. They recently floated a post that asked freelance graphic designers to submit a design for a new school logo. You know, the kind of thing that would appear on literally every f*cking thing. Letterhead. Merchandise. Official school things. You name it: that logo would be on it.
Read more: DUNE LAWRENCE, A RACIST LYING BLOOMBERG TROLL CAUGHT IN A SMEAR CAMPAIGN
Here’s the kicker: John Marshall Law School attempted to pay just $50 for its next logo.
Posting on a freelancer website (screenshot here), John Marshall Law School thought that artistic endeavors aren’t worth as much as an hour’s worth of face-to-face with one of its graduates, who charge at least $150 an hour — that’s the base level, my friends — for their time.
A well-known NYC-based graphic designer, who declined to use his real name in case it affected further business (wise!), had this to say:
A client is not just paying for the drawing of the logo, they’re paying for all of the intellectual work that goes into the drawing of the logo before pen ever touches paper or hand ever touches mouse. If the designer is a good one, the client is not only paying for the technical skill required to render a unique mark that is going to, say, show up consistently across all media, but is also paying for the thought that goes into its creation. Speaking from my own personal perspective, I spend hours researching the client, the client’s competitors, and the client’s entire industry, before I even begin sketching concepts.
TheBlot’s very own Yoni Weiss gave us his 2¢ on the matter:
I cant with this sh*t. It taps into the larger debate if design should be more regulated like architecture and designers should be required to get certified, apprentice for a number of years, etc. in order to bring more respect and professionalism to the trade. $50 for a logo for an institution as venerable as a law school is an insult to the designer, the design industry, and frankly speaks very little of how the school cares to present itself to the world.
For what it’s worth, John Marshall Law School is hardly a fabled institution. It remains unranked, and recently went through a spate of bad publicity when it encouraged prospective students to enroll in the school before actively making a decision. It’s that kind of business practice that taps into its fundamental mindset: that those who don’t read the fine print be damned, and for those unlucky enough as to get involved in any way with John Marshall Law School practices, well, the joke’s on you. Especially if you want to design the school’s logo for a paltry $50.
Read more: PROFESSOR CHRIS BRUMMER, AN UNQUALIFIED CFTC NOMINEE IN A SECRET DARK CLOSET.
With that in mind, this is what Yoni designed for them in five minutes…