During the workshop this week I followed an instructional document on how to create vector graphics in Adobe Illustrator. Having not used illustrator much before it wasn’t a familiar platform, however the results achieved from it were second to none and the quality of the vectors are far superior to other raster graphics I always created prior.
Overall I feel a lot more comfortable with the software and will make use of it for further experimentation before making my final design
When the module brief for the first semester was given to me, I knew straight away what area of typography stood out the most to me, using this I decided to start doing research on what I found to be interesting.
The main areas of intrigue for me are: old English/Latin scripture, Stone Engravings and traditional typography (traditional as in: old, clear and sleek in terms of its design).
The reason I love Latin and old script stems from countless movies and video games I’ve seen/played, the intrigue of civilisations and an era that has passed still stands out to me, hence my love for old script.
As mentioned prior, films and games were where my initial intrigue for Latin came from, as such, things like Indiana Jones, and the Uncharted franchise along with other fantasy films/TV Series.
The quote “Sic Parvis Magna” is used in Uncharted and was supposedly engraved into a ring by Sir Francis Drake, whether it be fiction or not the idea really stood out to me which is why I chose to research it. The Latin used stands for ‘Greatness from small beginnings’ and it holds a place very close to me. The typography itself is a type of serif, which has a nice handwritten/hand engraved look and aesthetic to it.
Another piece of media which has inspired my love for history/historical texts is Indiana Jones, in particular the last crusade. Although my love for this area of typography purely comes from fiction, I still feel as though I’m passionate enough to want to pursue it hence my research.
The grail tablet is a fictional historical artefact from Indiana Jones, and is written in Latin Psalms. these are just a couple of examples of text and scripture which appeals to me, as I further update my blog I’ll post more of my findings and examples of my own work towards a similar effect like this.
During my second workshop I took a step back from technology and the usage of digital design, instead I was taught how stencils and traditional graphic design methods can still be used to give a variety of different effects. During this workshop I used a basic stencil and decided to modify it slightly. The original stencil was a flat bold cut out of the word “TYPE” instead of keeping it as that I decided to cut minor slithers of paper out from the ‘P’ and ‘E’ overall I was quite pleased with the outcome. Another method I applied to the image was a crumpled image effect, to do this I took the original stencilled piece, screwed up the image, and then photocopied the image. This process made the final result a lot better than previous iterations and is something I’m pleased with.
Another piece of work I created during the workshop was again stencil based, but this time I wanted a simple effect, something which I knew from the start wouldn’t need many iterations if any at all. For this piece I decided to use a different template, one which simply reads “Typography” For this stencil I wanted to have a descending opacity per individual letter. For the effect I wanted, I simply scribbled lightly over the individual letters with a pencil and used my finger to smudge the lead, each letter I gradually reduced the amount of pencil I applied to give a descending opacity effect.
During the first workshop I was tasked with creating a mood board with different typography that appeals to me. I used pinterest to narrow down my search and find specific fonts which I liked. The general theme I went for was: old caligraphy, latin, historic fonts and engravings.
After creating the mood board I was put into a group with two others and we were asked to take pictures of interesting fonts used around Lincoln, in keeping with my own theme and personal preference towards old fonts, I decided to take photo’s of old plaques and engraved stone.
Overall this workshop summarised our module for semester A, but also allowed for some experimentation with font and typography.