In Your {type} Face

Brooke Featherston

In Your

{type} Face

Brooke FeatherstonVisual Communications DesignDepartment of Art & DesignSchool of Visual & Performing ArtsPurdue UniversityWest Lafayette, Indiana

A publication of the School of Visual & Performing Arts

All content is copyright in the name of Brooke Featherston, November, 2014

To Piper Hottell for being a wonderful teacher, mentor, and friend.

There for my first {year}book; here for my latest book.

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Table of Contents

Introduction 2

Rough {Handed} Life 4

{Font} Family Affair 18

{Type} Face Off 22

Mouse {Take} Over 32

Repetition {Repetition} 40

Final {Type} Round 48

Intro

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Introduction

The goal of this book was to document the creative process that led to a new typographic design. I was to create a unique letterform design through the

manipulation of two randomly assigned letters while maintaining a sense of balance. I needed to be conscious of readability as well as respecting the

integrity of each letter throughout the entire process. My final design should strive to question which letter was “first” in terms of visual hierarchy.

Adding to that list of requirements, I learned that I was only to use ten specified fonts. I initially thought that this was confining my creativity by

limiting my font choices, but I still had multiple variations within those ten fonts. Style, size, and the letters in their various forms proved to be sufficient enough for me to see the fonts as helpful guidelines rather than a restriction.

hapter 1

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Rough {Handed} Life

I had never viewed nor declared myself an artistic drawer of sorts. These sketches further proved that hand rendering does not enable me to fulfill the

ideas in my head. They did however make me see other options I had not thought of previously. The ability to let your hand decipher what your brain is

trying to convey is an experiment in itself.

Starting out, I sketched rather obvious combinations of the letters “a” and “c.” Getting the basic shape of the letters was my priority. I also tried creating other shapes and forms out of my letters.

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I switched my focus from the capital “A” to the capital “C.” I saw a lot of other designs being either

very static or the complete opposite. I tried to find a happy

medium by using one letter as an anchor and allowing the other to

reach out in dynamic ways.

I experimented with the idea of both letters being askew, but the

combination turned out wobbly and unstable.I also used the “A” to

fill the “C,” but this eliminated the open part of the “C” that made it

distinct.

In an attempt to reach a balance utilizing the negative space, I tried replacing the bowl of the “a” with a “c” to create a larger design of another “a.” I really liked this idea until I realized that the “a” was far more dominant, and the combination of letters looked like it could be an “a,” “c,” and “l.”

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I played with the idea of making the two letters into one object. The

flaw in this idea was that we naturally read left to right.

Following that principle,I was reading these designs where the

left was dominant, essentially missing a key point of this project.

I tried the idea of positive and negative space by overlapping the

two to create interesting shapes. While the shapes created were

interesting, they were mostly distracting.

In an attempt to improve the previous sketch, I elongated the stem of the “a” and empahsized the terminal and finial. The idea of it still intrigued me, but the sketching itself slowly pulled apart the design and I realized I was not meeting as many of the points as I wanted.

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The letterforms progressed from creating a lowercase “a” to

morphing the two letters by filling the “c” with the bowl of the “a.”

In an effort to move away from the last idea, I attempted to

manipulate the curvilinear aspects both of my letters contained.

However the design had a focal point that was neither letters, thus

defeating the purpose.

After I eliminated the circle in the dead center, I tried to highlight the hook effect by letting the letter “a” hang from the “c.” This would work in theory, except our eyes read from left to right as well as top to bottom. This made the “c” dominant, and then the composition was unbalanced.

One of my favorite ideas in the begining was filling the “c” with the “a.” The solidity and stability of the design thrilled me. Upon closer inspection, I saw the “@” instead. This was problematic because I lost any sense of uniqueness due to a known association with another symbol.

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This idea was attempted in pencil, but I couldn’t get the consistency

I wanted. I liked the curvilinear exterior that the two letters made, but something was still missing. I

couldn’t commit to the form because it lacked excitement for

me.

One thing I wanted to test was a series with dramatic scale. Situating the curvilinear “c” within or alongside the features of “a” created this tension that I found interesting. However, this did not produce a balanced end product for me.

Thinking abstractly, I began to take away various pieces of the letter structure. Removing the bar, completely or partially, only seemed to distract from the scale ratio in general.

Still thinking abstractly, I created shapes out of the silhouette of my letters. This produced mostly triangle and circle combinations which took away the readability of the original letters.

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The next set of sketches was trying to capture the hooked and

hanging effect I drew earlier.While the cohesiveness was present,

the individual letter contrast was definitely lacking.

I revisited the notion that the “A” should be inside of or hanging from the “C.” This was beginning to look tired to me. The “A” in uppercase and centered drew the focal point away from the overall design.

Even though I lack depth percep-tion, I really wanted to at least attempt a shadow effect. Whether or not it was executed properly, the “A” is dominant. I also began to use the stroke of the “C” to replace the stem and bar of the “A.” Both of these ideas seemed like they had a lot of potential I would be willing to pursue.

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After looking at my peers’ work, I noticed a lot of experimentation with outlined letters. I took some

of that inspiration and applied it to my letters, but the overall appeal

was disconnected. They didn’t mesh seamlessly.

hapter 2

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{Font} Family Affair

As I started to sketch, my letters were childish at best. I had figured that the fonts were either serif or san serif, so there was really no reason in trying to mimic fonts that looked identical to me. However, the monotony of my

sketching led me to study the fonts I had initially disdained. Through careful examination, I was astonished to see the differences between typefaces. The

quirks of each typeface gave them personalities that gave me a better understanding of each font. They were created carefully and meticulously,

enough so that they still exist centuries later. WIth this understanding, I was able to sketch them better and with more clarity than before.

Times New Roman

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Baskerville

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Bodoni

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Caslon

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Garamond

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

{Serif} Typefaces

These types have the ornate “feet” that I typically associate with old fashioned themes. The finials and terminals ended up adding beautiful detail to every design. The variation in strokes created a wide range of tension or flow depending on the positioning. Overall, they added extra design details that could benefit the letterform.

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Univers

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Gill Sans

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Futura

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Helvetica

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

Optima

Aa Aa Aa Cc Cc Cc

{Sans Serif} Typefaces

Most of my sketches had been primarily sans serif because they

are easier to mimick by hand. However, I did not realize the

range of thickness and overall width of the letterforms. This

definitely opened my eyes to the possibilty of figure ground reversal

options and utilizing a large, bold letter with the outline of another.

hapter 3

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{Type} Face Off

With a sense of familiarity, I looked at my letters once more. Analyzing the different typefaces gave me a better appreciation for the small quirks that made each typeface unique. I also had to factor in possibilities like italic,

bold, and a combination of the two. With this knowledge and understanding, I forged ahead with “a” and “c.”

Starting with the basics, I drew the letters connecting by their serifs This was more or less a personal exercise to see the pieces I could lock together.

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Trying to make the two letters create a lowercase “a” worked a

little better with a more refined sketch clearly using serif typefac-

es. The swirling effect did improve with more refined serif applica-

tions, but the contrast it needed was still missing.

The uppercase “A” was so structurally sound that I wanted

to make it work with an outline or negative “c.” The problem was the

dominance of a large, bold “A” in the dead center of the

composition.

Taking bold to an extreme, I persisted with this idea of the “c” making the bowl of the “a.” In the end, the two letters were both bold lowercase serifs which negates the contrast factor.

The bold serif “c” gave me a large black mass to manipulate with the letter “A.” The centered position was ultimately the flaw that turned me away from this.

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It still looked like a lowercase “a” alone, especially without the

terminal feature.

This design is essentially an invert version of the sketch four before

this one. The overall idea was simple almost to a fault. Tension

was apparent between the stem of the “a” and the terminal and finial

of the “c.”

Using lowercase letters, I tried for the shadow effect once more. The

upright letter tends to grab the focus. This meant the overall

design was unbalanced.

The next combination seemed so predictable that I didn’t see any way to make it more unique. Overall, I appreciated the mix of rectilinear and curvilinear. There was just simply no excitement for me. Ultimately, it didn’t stand out.

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Running with the idea of using a large, bold letter as a background, I used a white “A” in front of a “c.”

This was definitely a good combination of contrast, but my sketching lacked the precision I

craved.

One of my biggest contenders was this idea of using the stroke

of the “c” to complere the “A.” I mixed a classic combination of contrasting styles: italic, bold,

uppercase, and overall position. It was defnitely something I wanted

to manipulate digitally.

The progression of this particular design made me excited to see the potential outcomes. The “c” started as an interwined form that eventually worked it’s way down to the base of the stem. Using the “c” as a replacement for the foot of the “A” gave me even more ideas to arrange it.

With the “c” reaching a stable position, I needed to determine the correct style and thickness. Through this experimentation, I understood that my best option-would be omitting the foot with a sans serif “c.”

Initially I eliminated the bar, but then the readability of the “A” came into question.By placing it at different heights, I was able to maintain the integrity. Then it was just a matter of finding the right bar height.

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hapter 4

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Mouse {Take} Over

At last, I was able to use the computer! More importantly, I could undo and erase any mistakes I would inevitably make. Once I reached this stage, I

was able to use the actual fonts themselves as well. With this exactness, my renderings began to produce my final design options.

Using my favorite refined sketch-es, I recreated them digitally. Even with the precision of a computer, I couldn’t quite commit to the white letter combination because I still felt a certain imbalance.

After taking out the white triangle in the counter, I set an off-center “c” in the “A.” This is still a good, solid design, but it wasn’t unique enough to me. It seemed too easy.

I attempted this combination once again. I wanted it to work so badly, but the idea of using one letter to complete another gives dominance to the larger letter.

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Mixing a serif and sans serif did create the contrast I wanted, but

the white triangle averted the attention from the letters.

Even after mixing in two different styles, the overall look

was unbalanced. The thick stem of the “a” gave the right side of the

composition more weight, but not in a dynamic way.

Even after contrasting the styles, I tried to emphasize the “c” since it was being underwhelmed. The

hard white outline only really disrupted the stem of the “a.”

When I pulled away the “c,” it seemed to disconnect the overall design. The letterforms are indi-vidually contrasted perfectly, but when put together, the contrasts clash rather than mesh.

My last shot at this combination acted as a sign that it was time to move on. I hate to admit it, but I hit the end of this road and I had to walk away from it for the sake of my own sanity.

The digital exactness did improve my vision for this combination. The large white space in the center was a dealbreaker for me. It sucked the focus inward, and my new letterform was lost.

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In an attempt to reconnect them, I ended up with my initial problem: the “a” completely takes over the

whole appearance.

Though predictable, I wanted to work on the precision of this idea.

Overall, it worked on a minimal scale. It is balanced and had a

nice flow. But the lack of contrast eventually led me to other options.

By adding outlines, I was able to create an intertwining effect.I liked

the concept of it because it created a hinge on the crossbar

even though it’s gone.

When I saw this on the screen, I liked the concept. I wanted to play with the position of the “A,” but I knew it was definitely worth manipulating.

By pulling the “A” down, I got this wonderful curved ending to the “c.” The piece as a whole looked very dynamic and unique, but the shape created by the letters overlapping was throwing off the focus.

The idea of this composition gave me hope for a dynamic and contrasting letterform. The shapes created were a little distracting, but I wanted to use completely opposite styles of letterforms.

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Pulling the “A” to the right of the composition got rid of the excess

black weight. The bottom was more noticeable at this point,

so I began to trime what I could while still maintaining each letters’

integrity.

In an attempt to eliminate the new shape, I pulled the “A” to

an extreme. A small triangle was still present, and the “c” became

dominant.

Exchanging the use of serifs and sans serifs gave the composition

a whole new look. The different strokes in a serif “A” created a

beautiful range. Putting the “c” on top of that was difficult, because

the bar was not cohesive with the stroke of the “c.”

hapter 5

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Repetition {Repetition}

Once I had decided on my design, I needed to work out the exact details that would maximize my design’s potential and efficiency. Small and ever so slight

adjustments were made to determine the best possible composition.

Even though I was pretty certain I wanted to use a serif “A,” I felt compelled to exhaust all options using the inverse. After a few drafts, I new the stability would be better using a serif “A.”

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I tried repositioning the bar, but I did not come to a working

conclusion. The “A” was so solid and large that the bar connecting

to the stroke of the “c” was not cohesive.

Once I established the decision to use a serif “A,” I experiment-ed with the bar further by taking it away. While I liked the overall form, I did feel that I lost some readability with the “A.” I feared it could be misread as an upside down “V,” thereby taking away from the design.

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Not fully content with the overall form, I decided I should contrast

the two letters even more. By making the “A” italic, It created

this gracefully straight and diagonal path that contrasted well

with the curved stroke of the “c.”

Though happy with the italic style, the shapes created by the closed spaces caused by their connection were drawing the focus. I introduced a more dramatic outline to level the com-position out.

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From there, it was a matter of reaching a balance between

stroke thickness and outline thick-ness. I wanted to mimic the width

of the diagonal stroke of the “A” with the outline of the “c.” It was a matter of trial and error to get the

perfect balance.

hapter 6

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Final {Type} Round

I had my design in mind and the momentum was at an all time high. After meticulously nudging, scaling, and repositioning, I found my answer.

Going through the details of each letter, I knew I had a balanced, yet constrasted letterform. The “A” was uppercase, italic, serif, rectilinear, and large in size. The “c” was lowercase, bold, sans serif, curvilinear, and smaller in size. The two forms are complete opposites, but together they created a new form. This combination was stable and unique because one completes the other in a new, unusual way. At last, I found a combination that covered both ends of the typography spectrum while simultaneously creating something new.

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Kathy Rainey, Xerox ServicesSherry Swank, Xerox ServicesCathy Aper, Xerox ServicesScot Benham, Haywood Printing Co. Inc. Lafayette, IndianaDennis Ichiyama, Purdue University ProfessorWendy Olmstead, Visiting Faculty

Acknowledgements

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Brooke Featherston is a junior studying Visual Communications Design with a minor in English at Purdue University. Her love for design and

especially typography sparked in high school while enrolled in yearbook class. That love has grown to accept all other aspects of design since

then, and she hopes to pursue a career in brand marketing and advertising.

About the Designer

Paper Cougar Natural 80# Cover, 70# Text Type: Baskerville 16-35 pt, Bodoni 16-35 pt, Caslon 16-35 pt, Garamond 16-35 pt, Gill Sans 16-35 pt, Helvetica 8-64 pt, Futura 16-35 pt, Optima 16-35 pt, Times New Roman 16-35 pt, Univers 16-35 pt. Binding: Perfect BoundPrinting: Xerox Services West Lafayette, IndianaBindery: Haywood Printing Co. Inc. Lafayette, IndianaPrinter: IGen4 Diamond EditionEdition: 6 copies

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