This book looks into how type design is a conflict between classical approaches and modern influences. “Typography today exists in conflict with classical font design and contemporary influences such as analogue distortion, screen applications, street culture, deconstruction and hand lettering.”
It looks into how typefaces in modern day are created by starting from an existing typeface and arguments between whether it is true design or not. It presents the diversity in today’s type designs and also looks into the conventions of type design that have become mainstream.
Includes images of experimental font design as sources for inspiration. I was particularly inspired by these two design spreads as they convey typefaces that are inspired by handicraft such as sewing or knitting patterns but are used to represent something very modern such as the game console and computer or pixelated type. The game console and computer are very old machines which suggests that the pixelated style inspired by knitted patterns is to connote how these are representing vintage and retro images.
I am really inspired by the David Lamelos exhibition poster design as it merges pixel type with traditional crafts such as knitting which I want to explore.
Anni Albers
Anni Albers was a modern artist in the Bauhaus who instead of approached art and design in a very digitally and mechanically experimental way chose to focus on textile art and was “credited with blurring the lines between traditional craft and art” which is really interesting to me as I want to explore blurring the line between digital type and craft. The way she blurred the lines was by composing textile pieces that combined properties that isn’t often considered by textile designers such as light reflection and sound absorption that allows it to become an design piece as there’s conscious decisions on how these textiles would communicate with people.
These two pieces are my main sources of inspiration out of all of Albers’ work as they convey her distinction between just normal textile design and artistic textile design. The first image has a strong contrast between the yarn and patterns is one of the few she’s done that looks like yarn which is what I want to use. Her pattern is really interesting as with the colour scheme makes the figure/ground relationship ambiguous which may be interesting to explore. The grey scale textile rug looks very modernised through its use of blocked patterns and monochrome colour scheme which also has digital themes through its distinct use of grids. It also looks like a an optical illusion which brings in the element of design and artistry.
Julien Priez - Type Life 3 Zine
Julien Priez, like Anni Albers, always blurs the line between modern day conventional approaches to design and craft as his digital work takes inspiration from handicrafts and his work that appears digitally made is crafted. The first two images are my main inspiration for my project as they introduce the idea of digitalised knit which is really interesting as it challenges modern conventions of type design. He uses vibrant colour schemes that connote its digitalisation however the pattern itself, even though quite contemporary, takes clear inspiration from traditional knitted designs on scarves or sweaters. The use of knitted pattern to create angles and shapes is also interested as these exact lines and illusions aren’t common through knit which may either be due to its traditional design aesthetics or because it’s difficult to translate into knit as yarn is very thick and can be unpredictable.
His work where he draws out a type design with white on a black background is really interesting as it follows contemporary and digital approaches to design and is meant to appear like it’s been digitally drawn however was created by hand which challenges the need for digital software. It also appears as though he pens taped together to create this multiple layering effect which is often created through Illustrator.
Lance Wyman 1978 USA Bicentennial Identity proposal
This design proposal by Wyman reminds me of the layering effect Priez uses and instead of creating knitted type I could explore more physical pen/marker based ideas to create my typeface. Possibly over a grid such as Julien Priez's knit.
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