Project 3: Type & Hierarchy
For this project in Communication Design Fundamentals, we explored the effects of type and hierarchy on a design. We then created posters of typefaces that we were assigned. My typeface was Futura, and I explored the history of the font to gain a better understanding as I worked through my poster. The main constraints of this project were that we could only use basic shapes, have one or two accent colors, and display at least three levels of visual hierarchy with text. We were also required to have the font name, year, and creator on the poster.
Background
Futura was designed by Paul Renner in 1927. The main idea behind the design of the font was to implement simple geometries with consistent weights and shape forms to portray modernity. Renner accomplished this by using almost entirely triangles, squares, and near-circles for the shapes. There is little to no stress contrast, the ascenders are long, and the capitals closely resemble classic Roman letters.
Futura has been used in multiple designs, including but not limited to the Apollo Moon Landing Plaque, the color of 2001: A Space Odyssey, the Calvin Klein logo, and the Dolce & Gabbana logo.
Source: https://www.sessions.edu/notes-on-design/type-in-history-futura/
One quote that I feel would work well with Futura is a saying that I found on a poster online as I was looking at inspirations. The slogan was “The type of today and tomorrow.” I think that it fits Futura well because of the font’s use in modern and futuristic contexts.
Sketches
I began by making sketches of posters for Futura, first looking at inspirations to help with ideas and then slowly referring to fewer of them as I went along. All throughout the sketches, I wanted to emphasize the geometric aspects of the font. I especially played with rectangles, triangles, and circles since those were the shapes that were prevalent in the font.
Digital Iterations
I decided to attempt to iterate the first, second, fourth, and eighth sketches on Illustrator to check for their feasibility, and I ultimately settled on the latter as the main design of my poster. At this point, I hadn’t realized that I didn’t need to use a long block of text for anything. The first iterated poster, while it was a sleek design, was too similar to an inspiration online. In the second one, I had difficulty creating the triangle for the geometric “R.” It also looked empty without the block of text. The third had a similar problem to the second: it did not seem to work very well if there was less text on the page. I chose the last one because it was one that I had come up with mostly on my own and because it would still look complete without a block of text.
By October 2, I had modified the poster to the point where it was ready for an interim criticism. I had integrated more of the shape ideas from the other iterations onto this poster, added bars near the side text, and added the quote that I had liked earlier on. However, I was still deciding on a color scheme at the time. Much of the criticism I had received related to the triangles on the sides and the triangle behind the “A.” Since the triangles on the sides did not exactly correspond with the shapes used in the actual font, most people suggested to get rid of them. I also received a suggestion to make the triangle behind the “A” have the same angle as the letter. Lastly, there were also minor criticisms to fine-tune the piece by making the spacing between the long bars equal on both sides and slightly moving around shapes.
After the criticism, I decided to use teal as my main accent color with black in the background. This is because I wanted the colors to look futuristic, almost like the colors common in science fiction movies. I made the text that was not the font name a pale teal so that the greatest contrast in colors would come from the near-black background and the white “FUTURA.” I removed the triangles on the sides and the circle near the “R” because I realized that they took away from the more minimalistic feel of the poster. I also took the advice given about the triangle behind the “A,” fixing the angle and moving it to the side to help with the composition. With a few more slight shifts in the positions of shapes, the poster was finished.
I test-printed the poster to make sure that the colors showed up correctly on paper, and finally I was able to print the final version on cardstock for a presentation. The feedback this time was much more positive: people especially liked the color scheme and the removal of extraneous elements. The poster was easy to read, and they mostly agreed that I had displayed both the minimalistic and geometric elements of Futura.
By the end of this process, I was able to gain more knowledge about the nuances of fonts in general. The process also made me appreciate how purposeful the designs of posters are. Each item should be in the composition for a reason, rather than just for decorative flair. This is especially true for a more simplistic font like Futura. Putting in more elements than necessary or deviating too much from the shapes used in Futura would have less effectively highlighted the font’s signature aspects.
