Baskerville

Baskerville is a serif typeface, which is 'transitional', a refinement of the 'old style' by John Baskerville and cut by John Handy. Tapered serifs mean that the axis is shifted and the letters seem more upright. John Baskerville was a wealthy industrialist and wanted to offer a high-quality method of printing books as in the 1700s books were made of poor quality.

Corresponding to the typeface three kinds of  posters were produced.

One variation (type size and thickness) :

a) 

For poster a), using one font of the typeface Baskerville, it was challenging trying to choose a font that will give sufficient boldness whilst still fitting the larger words on the page. I wanted a simplistic traditional aesthetic combined with a manipulation with the way I have arranged letters, subverting conventional layouts to make it more playful.

Alternate lines contain indents so that the rows of texts sit comfortably, also the indents create irregular spacing that alludes to the layout of text produced from a typewriter. Considering that Baskerville demanded for books to be printed in high quality, a semantic field of books within the posters would be relevant.

By altering the way the date can be read, positioning in a right angle, this not only frames the block of text but encourages viewers to read at a different angle.

Some may say the leading and spacing needs to be made more consistent so it is neater and easier to read but I wanted to explore a liberated and fluid approach as well as the conventional.

b)

Two variations:

c)

d)

 

Poster d), applying two sizes/thicknesses to create a sense of juxtaposition and striking impact.

Taking the plunge by dissecting a large word in half and combining the two parts of the word to create an abstract hybrid. After noticing that the ‘e’ from the first part ‘Basker’ can be matched with the ‘e’ from ‘ville.’ Although after doing this I have realised that the leading should have been kept the same throughout, by piecing the ‘e’ together closer than the rest of the letters makes the composition more random and messy than intended.

To counteract the hectic focal point, I left and right aligned my text accordingly with the larger characters of the hybrid to balance the weight.

e)

In poster e) I thought of another way fragmented lettering can be arranged on a page and it is the solution for words that are too large for a thick font. Treating the letters like puzzle pieces, glyphs/characters that should sit nicely or have a comfortable relationship between them.  Through my arrangement the form that the letters dictated reminded me of smoke coming out of a chimney, correlating to the fact that Baskerville was a successful industrialist and creator. Left aligning the rest of the text strengthens the base of the illustrative form above, providing the layout with stability. I found that by using ‘em’ spaces to separate to groups of text makes it easier for people to read and is also decorative to the page.

f) 

Three variations:

g) 

Poster g) demonstrates another way of positioning fragmented text to display movement and draws attention to important information that is situated in the centre.

Using three different thicknesses enabled me to do multiple ways of the hierarchy of text, especially integrated within blocks of text. ‘Em’ dashes here have been used for their function, which is using them as a bullet point, however the one I used was very thick and heavy so I balanced this by attaching an ‘em’ dash of a different thickness and size to close the block of information and balance the distribution of typeface weight.

The more sizes and thicknesses used makes it easier to arrange text as I became less restricted, rather than being committed to one font. Using one font type requires consideration so it is compatible with the typeface.and that with type hierarchy certain words can be read as bold without having to use different thicknesses/sizes. Diversely using one font focuses on display and the accuracy within the alignment that allows a crisp portrayal. However when using so many fonts combined there needs to be a thickness and size balance so that the weight and negative space is evenly distributed on the page. Moreover when using multiple sizes it is recommended to use two or more complete different ones so that the drastic change means a clearer and more confident juxtaposition, fonts too similar can make the aesthetic look accidental otherwise. Most people found that using two font sizes was the best but I found that three works even better. I can understand that three or more can overcrowd the page, making it inaccessible and convoluted but using an intermediate font that can blend with the two contrasting fonts creates a smoother line of read.

Type

It is not easy drawing out letters and copying typefaces because extra observation and analysis is required to document the weight distribution, angle, form and proportion of the letter. Most of the outline slopes and curves, making it difficult to ensure straight lines as a ruler could not be used, the best solution was one swift arm movement with the pen/pencil. This typeface in particular seems to be energetic in the way that the letter form leans on the right hand side as the left hand side is heavier in thickness, which makes the right hand side look like a branch from a tree. Also the letter contains prominent serifs, contributing to the portrayal of its dynamism. The letterform is generally light in weight, defining the form as delicate, ornamental and feminine. Intriguingly when the letterform is turned upside down it looks like a wishbone.

This image presents letters as geometric motifs arranged in three rows. The exercise visually treats letterforms as shapes, when positioning them on a page the negative space needs to be considered as well as the letterforms themselves. In terms of layout and accessible visual language, the aim is making any text as easily readable as possible. In order to do this there needs to be a balance with the weight of the tracking and kerning spaces, importantly the space left depends on the relationship between the shapes that are next to each other. Consequently letterforms can be treated like puzzle pieces or blocks or glyphs or symbols when aligning them on a page layout/poster.

EAT

Most of my ideas relating to 'eat' were generated by the most common food struggles.

1) Imagine retrieving a whole heap of bubblegum without having to spend a single penny! Simply by turning the doorknob or pulling on the door handle will eject hundreds of bubblegum in many different colours that will essentially pop out of the door handle. Where did they all come from? It could be magic, or maybe there is a lifetime supply stacked within the door. I feel like the rotations when turning a door handle is similar to the gumballs travelling down the spiral of a gumball machine after the money has been inserted.

2) Spare ribs are another very messy food where the hands and the face are guaranteed to get smothered in BBQ sauce. There should be a device where this activity of eating spare ribs can be made hands-free. Two hand stands built to hold a spare rib, one hand pinching one end and one end of the baby finger from the other hand touching the other end of the spare rib. By simply pressing on the nails of the hands you can adjust the speed of the rotation of the rib, enabling you to reach all areas of the rib. The hand stands (not the somersault) would be designed to lock the rib in place with minimal contact with the fingers, demonstrating the gesture of how people hold spare ribs- using the fingertips. The hand holding the rib with the end of the baby finger would be positioned in this way so that the palm of the hand is exposed and the palm would contain a built-in compartment for lemon scented wipes so that when the rib eating is complete the mouth can be wiped.

3) Don't you find it terribly frustrating how jam doughnuts bleed with a pool of jam after one bite and the jam goes everywhere? Conversely there could be a ridiculously small blob of jam where you keep biting and biting and waiting for more jam to ooze out but it just doesn't. Jam is always so unevenly distributed in jam doughnuts, it's either going to be too intense or way too little and so nobody is ever satisfied. To solve this within the dough there should be small droplets of jam dotted inside like how chocolate chips or blueberries are positioned in muffins. No mess. And the jam is gently and consistently incorporated.

4) Muffins have issues too! After biting the top off the base of the muffin gets so crumbly to the point where you are having to bury your face in the muffin case. After pressing the base of the muffin case, from underneath, the base should elevate to your mouth like a little plate so that it is easier to consume all that muffin debris.

5) I find that I am constantly eating random spoonsful of Nutella on its own. What if Nutella was packed in a lip-gloss style jar but instead of having the lip applicator there would be a little tiny spoon at the end.  Hence whenever you are craving a bit of Nutella you could apply some to your tongue and let it melt away, this could also be your 'emergency Nutella'. The aesthetics of the lip-gloss bottle would be identical to the original Nutella jar; the white corrugated screw top, the transparent glass revealing the hazelnut goodness and the classic label.

6) Nut allergy sufferers must be so cautious when eating out because the contamination of food means that there could be traces of nuts in anything, especially with foods in foreign countries or unknown food labels sometimes it is difficult to trust certain foods. A nut detector would be so helpful. A bit like the system of a metal detector however the detector would be a pistachio nut where the shell would open if the food contains nuts and would remain closed if the food was nut-free.

The World's Biggest Hammock Made Out of Duct Tape

The giant hammock is the ultimate social spot for gatherings with multiple people. The hammock tests the durability of duct tape as visually the hammock can theoretically hold many people but it could be that the weaknesses within the nature of duct tape that could hinder that. Duct tape is strong but how strong? Can it physically hold people? Which is why it would be fascinating to keep adding people to the hammock until the duct tape breaks or tears or until the hammock falls down. Furthermore the stickiness of duct tape is an emblem for metaphorically bonding people together as they interact on the monstrous piece of furniture.

I found that the hammock swung too low when people got on it as a result of the weight adding pressure on to the tape, however I feel that because of the hammock's size the height of its suspension had to be proportional to that. Otherwise instead of the swift sway of a hammock it ended up dropping people to the ground, consequently not making it functional hammock.

Whilst making the hammock every passer-by had a sly stare and lots of people from the public could not believe how big we were making the hammock from scratch. Sadly a group of teenage boys savagely pounced on the hammock and broke the wooden beams (supporting structure,) so it had to be mended with more duct tape. Although it seemed like a devastating tragedy at the time, the hammock must have looked extremely appealing and tempting to be jumped on, which is a good thing because that means that the hammock had a fun aesthetic that was accessible to everyone. Not to mention that the whole purpose of duct tape is being able to mend something that is broken, a brilliant quick-fix and excellent for improvisation. Once you know you have duct tape in the house you know you can relax because you know everything will be alright.

Building Hierarchy

With the weekly briefs I discovered that it is not testing skill on Adobe programmes, but it is merely generating experimentation, encouraging interactive communication and idea generation.

Nutella is a popular and favourable hazelnut spread that people put on everything!

Everyone also loves Nutella sandwiches, therefore to me hierarchy is one of the biggest Nutella sandwiches in the world!

In a cohort it is getting each person to add a slice of bread and a blob of Nutella that will eventually amount to a really large sandwich.

If everyone does this...

It will lead to this.

All Hail Nonno

COMPLETELY NATURAL- I DIDN'T HAVE TO REQUEST FOR MY GRANDFATHER TO BE POSITIONED IN A CERTAIN WAY.

 1)

2)

Both photographs have been taken to satirise the power within hierarchy. The enhanced complementary hues and the surrounding space filled with a strong synthetic aqua, giving a painterly atmosphere, defines themes of luxury and power and implies how it is a dream for most to be at the top of that hierarchal scale. As a result very real images of my grandfather in his garden have been dramatized to express the lush life of someone in that league of authority. Or in more of a general sense, since my grandfather is 94 being the eldest out of the family, the top of the family tree, he is essentially someone with a high status and the entire family have lots of respect for him too.

Image 1) has been taken from behind, in a laying position, to expose the view from his perspective that he is looking down on. With his prop, such as the walking stick, and raised legs presents his comfort and relaxed attitude- typical for someone with authority as they have nothing to worry about. The painterly blues and the luscious green foliage demonstrates a setting that has been designed and crafted, seemingly by my grandfather, where they are the vivid jubilant views he desires to see of the world. Personal but empowering because if he were to run the world I'm sure he would make it as bright as this.

Image 2) is my grandfather in the same position but taken at a different angle to express hierarchy at a different perspective. Instead the image was taken through the reflection of the small side mirror located in the garden. Through the way the photo has been manipulated with colour the mirror looks like a magnifying glass. With the principles of a magnifying glass, when you hover over something important they increase in size. Furthermore the bleeding of the colour through the mirror gives the impression that my grandfather is floating mid-page, the fact that he is not at ground level suggests his superiority towards everything else around him.

Drifting type : in Italian,  'born in 1923'

The type is personalising the image to my grandfather, a) he is fluently Italian and only speaks and understands Italian and b) the 'born in 1923' accentuates how old my grandfather is and it is his exceptional health and mindset that is inspiring. Drifting type in rows suggests that with age one gradually deteriorates (physically) but as you're getting older you gain more experience and maturity that is admirable and powerful.

Higher 'R key'

Instead of approaching hierarchy in the contextual manner, I had thought of looking at the literal break down of the word. The higher 'R key', as in the letter on the computer/laptop keyboard.

First I examined the positioning and interpreted 'higher' as in the positioning on the page and accentuated the higher key by making that larger than the other 'R key'. But I thought that the monochrome and the lack of a background made the foreground rather uninteresting and 2D.

Developing from the first composition I had then stacked the R keys, treating them like blocks, to build a tower where the R keys at the top were more defined. However the block shapes did not associate with the keys on a keyboard so the thickness and perspective had to be altered. In order to ensure that the keys at the top were accentuated I had to create a gradient, whether that be the depth of three-dimension within the lettering or the intensity of the pixilation so that the key at the top of the tower had the highest quality of clarity. Then I thought that the arrangement of the keys looked slightly artificial and the form looked too similar to Great Britain, as it appears on the map.

Hence instead of the R key stack, I considered where the R key is positioned on the keyboard. To amplify the appearance of the R key I could increase the height and darken the tone so it is heavier and draws more attention. By putting the surrounding keys in the composition it puts more emphasis on the height contrast. Using the 'perspective tool' on Illustrator this helped orientating the vanishing point so that the letters sit comfortably on the 3D keys. Not only this is a play on words but that the 'high R key' is at a higher level than the rest, which signifies a higher ranking.

 By pixelating the background, the visual becomes more aligned with the digital, technology and computers/laptops.

 By pixelating everything apart from the R key, the R key is then more dominant.

The fragmented visual expresses a desire to break the norms of hierarchy and how a class system shouldn't exist.

 By converting the image to monochrome and revealing nothing but the letter R, the viewer becomes fully focussed on the R key without the distraction of other colours. Monochrome also stylises the image to something that is considered as old fashioned, which devotes the value of hierarchy and social class to as old as the 19th century more than modern day society.

The addition of digital-serif typography enhances the action and movement within the image, creating more levels and encouraging the viewer to read the image as opposed to just look at it. Different thicknesses of each word improves its accessibility and legibility as each different thickness is an indicator as to where the word stops and starts.

Words and typographic mediums were introduced in the coloured version however I preferred the lettering to be superimposed so that it seems softer and natural against the speckled background. The diagonal 'line of best fit' neatly groups all the visuals together but also uses the graph as an emblem for hierarchy and the gradient of power relationships.

Hierarchy is personal, in that I don't think that nowadays it is a completely rigid system. The subject that is in power is up to you, and what people find more important depends on that person. So it varies due to choice. The thing that is more important, in your opinion, tends to have more power as it is viewed as something with the higher value.

It is as simple as picking something up, before anything everything is of equal status until you notice the subject you desire. The subject you desire would metaphorically have an orb around it because it has more importance to you it is more powerful as it has possessed you to select it and that subject has the privilege of being chosen. As you are picking it up you are drawing that subject away from the others you haven't chosen, creating a proximity. That distance is that gradient from high to low power as the important item is dragged away from the least important. The hierarchy is only restored until that item has been returned to its original position where the items are then of the same value again.

Likewise when typing, for a short period of time, the letter you wish to type has a few seconds of power. Metaphorically that letter is raised higher than all the other letters, where the other letters are out of your line of vision and become insignificant. Once typed, that specific key no longer has importance and the power is restored until the next letter is typed 'raised'.