STUDIO BRIEF 02 - TYPEFACE DESIGN

Based on one of Müeller-Brockmanns classic and lead typefaces, create your own bespoke typeface, which should effectively communicate your given adjective. Garamond, Caslon, Baskerville, Bodoni, Clarendon, Berthold, Times, Helvetica, Univers Essentially you are repurposing individual shapes (letterforms) to work together in endless combinations in a harmonious, consistent sequence.

You should begin by exploring each of Müeller-Brockmanns classic and lead typefaces. Consider what gives each typeface a different personality, what makes one typeface appear bigger or clearer, darker or warmer than another. Explore and evaluate individual letterforms closely to answer these questions. You will be introduced to the technical and conceptual aspects of typographic use and design, alongside a thorough introduction to typographic terminology. You should evidence a thorough and detailed understanding of typographic design and terminology. You must design and produce as a minimum your full typeface A-Z in uppercase or lowercase in a single weight/style (i.e. bold, italic) However you may choose to extend your response further, potentially exploring numerals, punctuation etc. You should write a paragraph, which justifies why you have selected the specific starting typeface, which you have chosen. Each resolved logotype should be supported by a broad range of visual investigation in the form of design sheets and notebooks. A full bespoke typeface. Development sketches. A quantity of visual investigation. Design boards which demonstrate your research, development and design decisions.

"linear and proportional correlations between all parts, each is integrated in the whole, and the result is the optimum arrangement for the task.”

Brockmann created a movement in his typeface design, of constructive design, that defined an arrangement of the pictorial and typographic elements. A master in using the grid as an organisational tool to create harmony between image and type.

   

JMB focused his attention on typography, geometric motifs, and photography to provide an objective to his language. Achieving this through the use of symbolic language. The handling of the elements involved: type, shape, spatial relations, rhythmic proportions, and colour functioned through  employing grid. This 'perfectionist' endorsed functions can be seen throughout his work.

            

            

The French stage of the 1890's and 1900's saw the return of overt gore. The Grand Guignol, a term that once referred to puppets, came to denote short plays full of violence, murder, rape, suicide, and ghostly apparitions. London would eventually host its own less lurid adaptations of these plays, most notably from 1920 to 1922.

Posters for the Grand Guignol Theatre The sans-serif title (for a later restored version) of the classic horror film “Nosferatu” contrasts with the art-nouveau treatment of the film’s promotional poster of the time. The font, Berthold Herold Reklameschrift BQ (digitized version) was created by German typesetter Heinz Hoffman in 1904. You can see the original German version of the title still from Nosferatu here.                         In addition to hiring lettering artists, the biggest film studios began to employ typesetters in the production of title cards. Among the fonts often adopted for titles and inter-title cards were Pastel (BB&S, 1892), National Old Style (ATF, 1916) and Photoplay (Samuel Welo’s Studio, 1927). Regardless of the method followed, we see the emergence of typography that seeks to match letterforms with the subject matter and even the zeitgeist — including typefaces inspired by art movements such as art nouveau, art deco and expressionism — as well as the commercial vocabulary of packaging design and advertising. The sans-serif title (for a later restored version) of the classic horror film “Nosferatu” contrasts with the art-nouveau treatment of the film’s promotional poster of the time. The font, Berthold Herold Reklameschrift BQ (digitized version) was created by German typesetter Heinz Hoffman in 1904. You can see the original German version of the title still from Nosferatu here. Expressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas. 21st century movie posters: