Monday, March 1, 2010

T4 Experimental Typography | The End...

Looking back on the start of this project, as it now comes to a close, I am truly amazed at my progress as well as the different discoveries and directions I took. Beginning with basic individual letterform design to ending with patterns, and vertical/horizontal flows that push legibility. The basic concept from the beginning was how to define type by pure visual form, focusing on abstraction. The question that I generated, which I felt raised the most interests, was how this idea can be applied in a way that letterforms are defined by their surrounding negative space. Along the way, however, my question began to turn in to multiple questions with many different directions. This really demonstrates the depth of my initial question and the numerous forms it can take. From negative space it evolved to:

How can line coutour be integrated into this study?

What are the effects that are successful and unsuccessful when chracter designs are applied to sets of words or phrases?

How does the shape defining the letter affect the look and feel or personality of the piece; rigid, angular, geometric versus organic, loose curves?

A strong horizontal flow is developed, can a vertical flow be established simultaneously?

What if this flow were established by pattern design?

How can one letter read as another through reflection; relating to patterns?

What if vertical flow can also be defined through definition and interaction through baselines of text?


Through out this entire process I found that most of my questions were evoked while writing and blogging about my discovers and experiences of what may or may not be working. It was also very beneficial to work with Tom and establishing out collaboration blog. Although I did not steel ideas from his thought process and production, his work did bring to life the formulaic aspect of some of my work, as well as, really pushing legibility, maybe even too far just to see what is there and what isn't. On another note, most of my actual discoveries were more easily and freely created in the analog realm working with foundation type and tracing paper; this gave me the chance to not let the digital restrictions limit my experimentation, here I could create as freely as possible. With this journey from all aspects, I have made some great growth as this whole idea of experimentation is rather new to me; uncharted territory, so I definitely built upon my knowledge of form as well as the interaction and intertwining ideas of type and image.

There is really an incredible amount that I will take away from this project, especially the notion that anything is possible and there are so many ways of doing it. I am sure if I were to keep going with this project that questions would continue to be raised and new avenues will be explored. I feel I have come out of this project with an entirely different perspective and appreciation for typography and its multiple dimensions.

A look at my final crit presented work: