OUDG403// Studio Brief 02- Further Developments

With the idea in mind that something can only be immense by comparing it to something smaller, I have adapted Bodoni with a juxtaposition in mind. I tried to modify the widths to make the heavier bowls heavier, and the adjoining lines skinnier. By doing this, my intention was to create a immense quality within the thicker aspects of the letter form. 

I do feel this is effective, but not what I envisioned with my Manifesto. This style maybe more effective for softer publications or even in response to a 'Broadway' theme. 

By creating this piece through manipulating Anchor Points on Illustrator, it has been a good opportunity for me to get to grips with the software in different ways- despite still not being a perfect finish.

Another idea I had was to extend certain points of the letterform to connote infinity and elongation, referencing immenseness. As Helvetica was designed to 'have no meaning' I thought this would be the most appropriate typeface from Muller-Brockman to use for this particular experiment. I do not feel it has been successful as there are more obvious and innovative ways to suggest immensity. As the previous interim critique had feedback saying a Serif would be the most appropriate, I tried to adapt Helvetica to have subtle Serif qualities. Despite this intention I feel this has come across too 'sci-fy' and unfuffilling of my intentions, possibly due to weight and use of lines. 

After looking to the meanings and connotations of my given word I thought I would explore the use of antonyms to flip the task on its head and hopefully induce creativity.
I wanted to portray each letterform looking meek and closing into themselves, basically the exact opposite of 'Immense'. I personally really like this experiment but cannot engage with it fully as it is not really sticking to the brief. 

Continuing from my rough sketches, I started to play around with the idea that the large dips in the letters (M and N) is meant to represent immensity. I also tried to keep the blocky cubic stye with tight kerning so at a glance it just looks like a line of dark shapes. This was partly inspired by the geometric piece of typography (Artist Unknown) I previously blogged about, alongside the intention of creating consistency within the 

X-Height. I started to really like this typeface until it started reminding me of Soviet Propaganda, which instantly resinated negative connotations. 

Inspired from a consistent X-Height and the use of Slab-Serifs combined with a heavy weight, so far this is the typeface I feel says 'immense' the most. With this I really wanted to showcase a gallant masculine quality, designed to be shown at large scale.
The oversized slab's are intended to emphasise the bold quality, whilst planing the letters firmly on the page. In addition, the 'C' is designed to look like a magnet on its side- suggesting strength and a pulling force. However, the way the C and D are sitting together looks awkward and un-cubic, meaning I'd need to manipulate the letter dimensions further to create a more relevant aesthetic. 

After seeking some informal feedback from peers and tutors, I decided to pursue the Slab-Serif and see how it would work in different ways. By creating each letter to look tight and robust, it was more effective to showcase them as white on black as this showed the smaller line qualities at a greater depth. The red asterisks* are the letters I want to adjust and improve on in further developments.