Typography Task 3A: Type Design and Communication

08.10.2021 - 22.10.2021 (Week 7 - Week 10)

Seojeong Kim / 0350085

Typography / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media

Task 3A: Type Design and Communication

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Week 7: 

In this lesson, we will do a new task. This is the study of work using shapes and typefaces. What we need to do is, firstly 'Do research about type design', next, 'Do sketches (approx. 5) with Different options (sans serif/serif, uppercase/lowercase)'. Also 'Identify our sketches with the 10 typefaces (the closest) that have been provided'. Finally do 'Deconstruct 3 references'. 

After identifying references to the chosen design, I need to analyze the three letters. The purpose of analyzing is to learn how the letters are formed with shapes. Also observe slight differences in detail and thickness due to optical and technical reasons.

Font design is following the basics of Typography:

- Capital height

- Ascended height

- Baseline

- Mean,median line

- Descender line 

Make sure when you digitize:

- The art board 1000 pt x 1000 pt

- The x-height 500 pt

- The descender line is always higher than the capital line

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Instructions

1. To begin, choose an existing font design that adheres to the direction that you would like to head in. Study the font carefully by analyzing its anatomical parts. 

2. Start with rough sketches and upon approval begin digitization of the drawings—software for digitization shall be determined in class. Artworks shall be printed out for critique sessions followed by refinements. If time permits we shall generate the font for actual use. 

3. You will endeavour to create a typeface that has the hallmarks of a good typeface; subtlety, character, presence, legibility and readability. Below are the letters you will design: a i m e p y t g d o b ! , .

4. Software: Adobe Illustrator and Font Lab 7 or 5

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Task: 

- ALL your letters and punctuation in adobe illustrator placed on a baseline, with x-height, ascender, descender and cap lines visible (see attached image). Font Lab (5 preferable, if not 7) Demo (or *ahem*) downloaded.

- Check for consistency in strokes thickness, for character consistency and ensure to prioritise subtly over complexity. If you did not attend the one-hour ILW session (week 8 ), make sure to watch and listen to the feedback, explanations and demonstrations here: https://youtu.be/GMG9YeEeTtU

- The bench-mark e-portfolio post in terms of research, progression, final output and overall documentation of the process for Task 3(A), is contained in Hsiao's post https://trxssah.blogspot.com/.../typography-task-3-type... — that said, different approaches in presentation is acceptable (you are all different), as long as the process consists of the major elements:

- Research (other typefaces, deconstruction 3 letters from 10)

- Exploration (sketches minimum 5, good variety)

- Digitization (document your progression)

- FontLab progression

- Font generation and basic B&W poster

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Task 3A: Type Design and Communication

Research: font design has to adhere to the typography guidelines such as baseline, median, ascender and descender, as well as typography basics on my research. 

These pictures are my font references from the font web site. My concept that just came out of my head is a 'simple' font and a 'angled shape' font. 

Sketches:

- After doing a lot of research, I thought deeply and sketched out my typography in my notebook. I now realize just how difficult it is to make typos by myself. It was very difficult to make a simple but attractive typography, but I found this to be even more attractive. 

- When I first started sketching typography, I was a little bit dazed. I've seen a lot of different typography fonts, but it was a very difficult task to make my own special typography that different with them.

- So I came up with 'thick', 'thin' and 'curved' fonts. At first, I liked the 'curved' font, but the more I thought about it, the more intense and attractive the 'thick' font was.

- So I sketched this out in more detail to fit the size. When I went into a little more detail, the 'thick' font was very simple, but when I put small horns on the side, I thought this was a better design idea.

Digitalize: 

- First, as I learned, I completed the guidelines because the size and length had to be matched before I made the typography. 

- This is the first 'A' I made, but Mr. Vinod saw this and said it didn't match the other alphabets. I didn't understand it at first, but after listening to his explanation, I could understand what he was talking about. So I thought I'd get rid of the pointed part above the 'A' later on.

- This is my finished example. And Mr. Vinod saw this and said it was ok, but he said it was a bit awkward. The 'E, O, G, B, !, ., ,' of this is fine, but he told me to make the rest of the shape according to the 'O'.

After Feedback:

- As he said, I first tried to match the size of my fonts as much as possible. After matching the size and length, I decided to try making 'A' again.

More editing:

- After all that, I remade 'A' and 'M'. It was definitely a remake after hearing all the feedback, so 'A' and 'M' were my favorite typography. It looked cleaner, simpler, and more attractive.

FontLab 7 Progression:

- At first, it was very difficult to use FontLab. However, after slowly using it and learning it, it was a very enjoyable task. 

- Firstly, I copied the shapes in Adobe Illustrator and paste it as a vector file in FontLab. I adjusted the fontLab guide lines to fit the design, and clicked again to match the fonts of the wrong size. 

- After adjusting everything, I was able to see fonts that were just the right size.

- I want to name it 'sharpen SJ'. The first word describes the sharply horns that are the point of this font, and the back 'SJ' is my name.

Poster:

- After thinking deeply about how to make a poster, I first applied my font. I was very happy with the result that turned out better than I expected. I thought this task was very enjoyable.

- And since I had to make a black and white poster, I decided to try using a black font on a white background first, and then a white font on a black background.

My outcome were by like this,

- I looked at various black and white posters. Their idea was simple but gave a very strong feeling, and I have to think a lot more to make a poster that matches my font. 

- So, I first tried to make a white background as simple as possible. The next poster used a white font on a black background, and mixed some shadows with the font. Finally, I thought it would be a very nice poster if my fonts were slightly opaque on a black background and large. So I liked the last poster the most. 

Final Outcome with PDF

1:

2:

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Feedback:

Week 8: He told me I was a little slow, so I'm trying to do my assignments faster. And he said that my fonts are fine, but that all fonts should work a little more uniformly, and I thought that after accepting this, I could make a better font. He asked me what kind of font it was, and I said I wanted to make a font with a slightly angular feel. He said yes to me and wished I could close the gap on my typeface a bit.

Week 9: Seeing my digital typeface, he gave me feedback that some alphabets were not consistent with my typography. After accepting this, I started all over again except for a few letters. This was a difficult process, but it seems that the font is much better than before because of the feedback. And it was very interesting and fun to make a poster with my typography.

Reflection:

Experience: Typography is definitely the most basic thing about design, but it seems to be a difficult field with a lot to learn. It requires a lot of common sense to understand the typeface. While learning and learning like that, typography is still very difficult, but it's fun to be able to learn a lot more. Through this project, I learned how fonts are completed and how many details have to be put in, which I have never seen before.

Observations: In this project, I realized that line, stroke, and size matching are important for fonts. There are many details involved, and it is important to use them properly. I have come to realize once again that even a simple task takes a lot of time and effort.

Findings: While carrying out this project, I found that making a typo by myself takes a lot of effort, but it produces great and proud results, and I found that creating something from nothing is a very enjoyable but difficult task. In addition, I discovered that it takes a lot of research to make a font, and there is no difficulty in making a typeface only if you have an accurate sense of balance.