Week 4 - Journal Entry 4 - Six-Letter Word

I have finally found time to finish this assignment after getting a cutting mat and fresh x-acto knife blades. Despite the clean blades, it was still difficult to get a clean cut on the letters. I distorted the characters in illustrator, which is why they do not appear to be Myriad Pro anymore. Overall, it was difficult to align and cut them properly.

The message that I was trying to convey is simply that while there are people who generally associate hunger with the lack of food, there are those who are also "hungry" for knowledge. Similarly to how some people cannot attain food, there are those who cannot attain the proper textbooks or supplies for a sound education.

Continue reading →

Week 4 - Journal Entry 3

Because I did not include examples of good and bad typography, I am doing so now in this single post to make up for the last two entries. Below are two examples of good type and two examples of bad type.

---

Good:

The type above is good, because it is unique. Although the two terms aren't synonymous, in this case, the uniqueness comes from the spray-painted look of the letters, especially in "DMC". It adds a rebellious and punk feeling to the design, which complements the style of the game and the protagonist's personality. The type balances the rest of the design well through color, size, and placement. It remains legible while retaining a rougher/edgier appeal.

The type above is from a cologne bottle. It is slick, clean, and legible. The script type for the words "light blue" creates a sense of elegance, which contrasts well against the sans-serif. The contrast is not so dramatic to the point of hindering the design, because there are only two lines of type. It creates a sense of separation between the brand name and kind of cologne, despite both typefaces being similar point-sizes.

---

Bad:

There are too many different typefaces in the ad above. The colors do not match well. The biggest problem occurs where it says "10 for $10". It almost looks as though it says "10 dollars for 10," assuming that a person does not know that the dollar sign should appear before the numerical value. In that case, it would not make sense. Fixing the spacing or kerning between the characters could help to solve the possible confusion.

While the typefaces are consistent, they aren't entirely legible. The biggest problem occurs from the choice of color. Although not as evident in this close-up, the dark green letters blend in with the color of the aloe vera, making it difficult to read. The weight of line that reads "with pure aloe vera" should maybe be a bit bolder, because it's so light that it also becomes more difficult to read when paired with the green background.

Continue reading →

Week 4 - Journal Entry 2

In class on Thursday, the 18th, we went over illustrator and how to scan images into the computer. We also got our notepads back and continued to work on our t-shirt designs.

---

I was actually pretty excited to get our name pads back, because it was a fun experience letter pressing them. I especially like the imprint on the page that is left from the pressure.

---

Above are a few more sketches that I did after I decided on the concept of dealing with black shapes against a white background, inspired by a quote from Twombly. However, I couldn't reach the 50 required sketches for the concept, and I also do not know if I'll be sticking with any of the ideas.

Continue reading →

Week 4 - Journal Entry 1

Below are some examples of my t-shirt ideas for Carol Twombly in consideration of her life and accomplishments.

---

Continue reading →

Week 3 - Journal Entry 2

We have begun to cover the anatomy of type, and the two best circle type projects in the class were voted on. Mike Pfeffer and Erica Gramm got the most votes, so congratulations to them! Their designs were very unique, and equally importantly, they were also balanced.

We were fortunate to get the opportunity to experience how to use a letterpress at Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology. We went through the process of individually picking out the letters for our names, spacing, and properly securing them in place. We then inked them onto separate sheets of paper which will be glued together to create a notepad. I will be posting pictures of it later when it is completed. Overall, it was an interesting and fun experience. Being able to see the imprint from the letterpress onto the paper is truly a wonderful and artistic detail that unfortunately is no longer evident with ink and laser jet printers.

---

Good:

The type above is from a cereal box that my brother designed years ago when he was still in school studying Graphic Design. Perhaps I am being biased in saying that it is good type, considering the fact that my brother did design it. However, I do honestly find the type to be good and successful. The typeface for the brand name is colorful and matches the cereal as well as the box's background. It is both legible and readable. They especially pair well against the rays of light beaming from the background, and the star-shaped counters in the letters are a subtle but effective detail in consideration of the cereal's name.

---

Bad:

The type on the Clorox wipes appears too cluttered. Having all three primary colors of print on one design grouped with the orange and white colors is simply too much to create a sense of harmony in the overall design. The type size conflicts with the most important aspect of the container, which is the brand name. Overall there are too many different typefaces that are too cluttered together to create a good design.

Continue reading →

Week 3 - Journal Entry 1 - Carol Twombly Biography & Typography Examples

As a part of documenting our progress towards the t-shirt design project, we needed to research and create a 3-5 paragraph summary on our topic. The person I picked was Carol Twombly.

---

Carol Twombly was born on June 13, 1959 in Concord, Massachusetts. She later moved to New England where she spent a majority of her childhood. Having her architect brother as an inspiration, she decided to study sculpture at the Rhode Island School of Design. She eventually decided to study graphic design instead. It was there that she met one of her greatest influences in the graphic design field, her professor Chuck Bigelow and Kris Holmes. As stated by Twombly, “I discovered that communicating through graphics – by placing black shapes on a white page – offered a welcome balance between freedom and structure.”

During Twombly's time in college, she edited letters numerically. She would outline the letters on vellum, ink them, and then inspect them through a magnifying glass. The process was done manually by hand rather than digitally, because technology was not as advanced as it is today. After successfully graduating from college, she continued her career by working at a graphic design studio in Boston. She was eventually invited by Chuck Bigelow to join a group of individuals for a typography program that was digital at Stanford University. After two years and an unfortunate termination of the program, Twombly, along with her fellow colleagues, earned Masters of Science degrees in computer science and typographic design. Her next four years were spent working for the Bigelow and Holmes studio, during which time she entered into an international type design competition sponsored by Morisawa Limited. Having gained first place in the competition, she subsequently had her type design licensed by the Japanese typesetting manufacturer. It was then marketed under the name "Mirarae".

Adobe later hired her, and by 1988, Twombly had become a full-time employee for type design of the Adobe Originals program. She spent over eleven years with Adobe, and during her time with them, she created some significant typefaces. Major typeface contributions include but are not limited to: Trajan, Lithos, Nueva, Viva, Mirarae, Myriad Pro, Chapparal, Charlemagne, Adobe Caslon, and Pepperwood. In 1994, she became the first woman and second American ever to have received the Prix Charles Peignot award - a significant feat. It was awarded by the Association Typographique Internationale in San Francisco for her contributions to type design.

Carol Twombly eventually left Adobe, and although she has since then discontinued her work with type design, she still continues practicing other arts such as painting, sculpture, and weaving. She now resides in the foothills of Sierra, where she also works with jewelry and textiles.

---

Pictures of Carol Twombly are included above, along with pictures that have been impacted by her contributions to type. Her typeface Trajan is the official type used by many universities including The Pennsylvania State University and Columbia University. It is also used on many movie posters including the Titanic.

---

Resources:
http://www.adobe.com/products/type/font-designers/carol-twombly.html
http://www.linotype.com/606/caroltwombly.html
https://www.myfonts.com/person/Carol_Twombly/
http://www.studymode.com/essays/Typographer-Carol-Twombly-484846.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-71iwMmSyc&list=UU4gToof2AMx9VYU5Z4YzdIw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGMcar4oNcY
http://history-of-type.wikispaces.com/file/view/carol_Twombly.jpg/167237345/carol_Twombly.jpg
http://blog-cache4.webink.com/assets/Carol-last-day-solo.png
http://image.linotype.com/cms/twombly_portrait_d13104i45.jpg
http://custodianfilmcritic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/titanic-poster-3.jpeg
http://www.campusexplorer.com/media/560x420/Pennsylvania-State-University-Shenango-B3778DE7.jpg
http://www.columbia.edu/files/columbia/content/template-ppt2.png

---

Good:

The type for the above three books is from the trilogy of The Hunger Games. Although the type is simple and quite ordinary, it is successful and balanced. It is crisp, clean, and legible. The size and position of the type balances the logos, while the color choice adds harmony. Interestingly enough, the typeface used in the new book designs is Trajan, which of course, was originally designed by Carol Twombly.

---

Bad:

The biggest problem with the type above is the imbalance between the left and right. The large ampersand and its placement makes the sign appear to read "MU & Art Design" rather than "MU Art & Design". Perhaps if the ampersand were in the same typeface as the words "Art Design," then that confusion could be avoided. The "MU" also appears unnecessary, because "Millersville University" already appears at the bottom. It is redundant, and could easily be fixed by switching the university's name to the top of the entire design and placing "Art & Design" directly below it. The four words on the right should be spaced apart more to add more balance to the entire design. Its font size is also quite large in comparison to the university's name.

Continue reading →

Circle Project

My four-letter word is "Real". The first, second, and third pictures are in uppercase, lowercase, and a hybrid of upper and lowercase, respectively. I tried to maintain the look of serifs in many of the characters.

---

Continue reading →

Week 2 - Journal Entry 2

In class today we continued lecture on the history of type and covered some examples. I learned about the importance of counters within letters and how they can change visually when italicized. For my t-shirt project, I randomly picked "Carol Twombly," who coincidentally through a brief search, appears to have created the official typeface for the Pennsylvania University, where I used to attend. She also created the typeface Trajan, which I considered using for my nametag. I look forward to learning more about her this weekend. I have started reading the article entries assigned in class. We also started our 4-letter word project, for which I will post pictures later after I complete it. I will post a couple more examples of type later.

---

Good:

The type above is balanced, despite the poor cropping on my part. The red color of the typeface was a good choice, because the blue and yellow colors are repeated already repeated in areas other than the type, which brings harmony to the entire design. The typeface is also modern and engaging, adding a clean look that is not clustered.

---

Bad:

The type is cliche, boring, and not organized well. The word "friends" appears to be tilting upwards. The slight connection between the 'r' and 'i' can be confusing, because it creates the look of an unidentifiable character. All of the other characters in the title are not connected to each other in the same way. The words "all welcome" should be placed elsewhere, between the portion at the bottom should be isolated for time and date information only. A change in font size could be beneficial.

Continue reading →

Week 2 - Journal Entry 1 - More Examples

In class on Tuesday, September 2, 2014, we had a lecture on the history of type and its development. Our name tags were checked for completeness. We shared links to our blogs on which we viewed and briefly critiqued each other's 6-letter word assignment. Below are a couple more examples of type that I found around the Millersville art building.

---

Good:

The type here utilizes positive and negative space well. It is legible, and for its purpose as a poster, it is also sized well in comparison to the picture plane. Color choice and character placement play a significant role in isolating his first name and last name as well as creating balance. His first name's repetition adds harmony, while his last adds variety. When paired with the colors of the poster, the typeface appears modern. Although not legible from the picture, the small type at the bottom is informative and does not deter from the poster's main attraction. Overall, it is a unique and attractive design.

---

Bad:

The type here is not terrible. It is clear and fairly legible from a far distance and its size appears appropriate. The biggest problem appears in the word "Fire". The kerning between the "F" and "I" are in such close proximity that together they appear to be a sprayed in stencil cut-out of the letter "A." Obviously, distinguishing (no pun intended) between "Are Door" and "Fire Door" could make the difference between survival or death. There is also an unnecessary smudge below the "S," but that may be a manufacturing error.

Continue reading →