n o i t a c i l b Pu Design New York Times Article
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Table of Contents 8-11 12-17 18-27 28-35 36-41 42-43 44-49 50-51 51-52
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Monday, Nov 1 Wednesday, Nov 3 Monday, Nov 8 Wednesday, Nov 10 Monday, Nov 15 Wednesday, Nov 17 Monday, Nov 22 Monday, Nov 29 Wednesday, Dec 1
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Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Description The goal of this project was to create a multi-spread print version of an online article from the New York Times Magazine website.
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This project required the use of a leading grid to control the visual organization of the pages, force order onto the layouts, and neatly organize the layouts. The final product was meant to be typographically beautiful, have a clear hierarchy, and have clear attention to detail. The spreads should be interesting, inviting, dynamic. The end product should contain four preads total (opening spread and 3 following spreads), with a front and back cover. The pages should be 9” wide by 13.5” tall. The colors were restricted to black + 3 color tints. Fonts were restricted to One sans serif and one serif family can be used from By Classification. There should be 2-3 callouts throughout the design and 6-8 images. The design should be set up with a grid of 6-9 columns and should be on a 4pt baseline grid.
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VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
Overview This project expanded my concept of how different the mediums of print and digital are. Overall I enjoyed this project thoroughly, and enjoyed how much I was able to create with just six photos and a large block of copy.
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I think the idea of taking a story originally meant to be read from one column, and trying to organize it in a way that leads an audience through it was a nice challenge. The project called on me to use almost all of the skills that I have learned this year in one way or another, and was a great way to show how we would actually apply the ideas we have learned about. I feel like this project was a little slow at times, it got to a point where I was just making revisions on my work for the sake of making revisions, and not because my critique from the previous class told me to. We could have had one less day of refinement, however, in the end I do think it payed off.
What lessons from this semester impacted the work I did on this project: The modular grid taught us how to work with a strict grid and create layouts that had a clear hierarchy and flow. It helped us learn how to work with strict guidelines and taught the basics of typographic color. We learned how to use a system of elements to create a cohesive design. The modular font followed that and taught us the breakdown of fonts, showed us a general idea of their construction, and helped teach us more about the grid and the concept of modules. In the modular font, we learned skills that included— creation of a toolkit (a set of graphics and elements that convey mood, tone and feeling that will be implemented throughout a design to create a cohesive piece), basic animation with photoshop, and presentation via Behance. Sam’s Amtrak poster project reinforced the concept of a layout that utilized hierarchy. It also pushed us to create a visual identity for an existing company through the use of research. What is your role as a graphic designer: Our role as graphic designers is to create content with a set of information and a set of systems to make said information clear and concise. We have to display information in a way to grab interest from an audience and send a message.
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Nov. 1
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
Notes In ClassWatching artist videos Creating type with photos Introduction to project For HomeworkFind an article Create a “basics” document Watch and relect on “Behind the Cover”
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Andrew Bryom “If H is a Chair”: -Began to see letters in everything -Searching for typographic faces in everything, taking them and digitizing them -He saw a chair as the letter h, then thought “what would the rest of this face look like” -Once you have an idea and come up with a system, it makes itself -Looking for constraints in typography and applying them to something else -He was not dealing with just typography, but with product design -Modern design functionality -Created temporary letter forms in 3D -Someone asked a question and he realized he was looking at his work the wrong way -Kept working on this project and it kept becoming new things -“I make something and somewhere along the line someone needs it” Five words to describe Andrew Bryom: -Solving type problems somewhat backwards -Man makes letters with objects -Finding art in everyday objects -Environment influences collaborative type design Stefan Sagmeister “Things I have learned”: -All of the work is commissioned, would never have enough money to pay for all his work, they have clients -“Money does not make me happy”Casino wrap -Writing in steam on a window -Keeping a diary supports personal development
-Yellowing newsprint project Five words to describe Stefan Sagmeister: -Making ironic statements with design -Being commissioned to make statements -Listen to yourself when creating -Learning is half the battle Marian Banjes: -Typography made with objects -“The appeal of what I do may be connected to why I love it” -The things that interest her when she’s working, visual structure, surprise, anything that takes figuring out -Created abstract patterns and words with tiles, puzzling for the audience, but not impossible -Interested with working with uncommon materials- find unexpected properties and bend them to her will -Working with sugar, freehanded and manipulating to create words for Stefan -To experience wonder is to experience awe, wants to explore grand design, the world of graphic design is not filled with wonder -Use of visual wonder to deliver a message Five words to describe Marian Banjes: -Using wonder in graphic design -Using imagination in visual works -Graphic design can be personal -Innate properties create new ideas -Resonate with work for success John Maeda “Designing for Simplicity”: -“There is a sort of business about being stupid” -What is simplicity? Good? Bad? -The world keeps using this word simple as a buzzword, but do not back it up with
any real meaning -Humans love complex things and complex relationships -Designing things to be more simple while using complex relationship -Creating art with a clementine peel then moving on to computer graphics with food as a base -Simplicity is about living life with more enjoyment and less pain Five words to describe John Maeda: -Human and complexity are intertwined -Making art with computer programs -Reject simplicity and embrace complexity -Always comparing simplicity and complexity Gail Bichler: -Design director of the New York Times Magazine -They make a lot of magazines, which means a lot of covers, with a lot of varied topics -Tasked with modernizing the New York Times logo while keeping the base similar -How do you maintain a connection while creating something new? -They created a modern typeface based of Stymie with a modernized feel -There was a lot of gave and push in the process, which is what made it work -You should call attention to the story, not the design -Take risks when it can add something to the experience Five words to describe Gail Bichler: -Creating a cohesive brand identity -Maintaining a well branded magazine -Typography can create recognizable brands
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Nov. 1
In ClassWatching artist videos Creating type with photos Introduction to project For HomeworkFind an article Create a “basics” document Watch and relect on “Behind the Cover”
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Basics
Behind the Cover
Headline: Barbie Wants to Get to Know Your Child Subhead: With the help of A.I., America’s most famous doll tries to fulfill a timeless dream — convincing little girls that she’s a real friend. What will happen if they believe her? Summary: In 2016, Mattel was in the process of creating “Hello Barbie”, an AI backed Barbie doll that could actually listen to children and respond to them. The article covers the voice actress for the doll, the writers, the mechanics, and the ethical/ psychological dilemmas surrounding the project.
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Why I Chose it: I did not want to pick something overly political or something based on current events. The news currently is so saturated with that kind of content, so I was looking for something less heavy. A lot of the pop culture stories did not meet the requirements of the project, or were about stories I had little to no connection to, but this story was super interesting. I’m not particularly a huge Barbie fan or anything, but the actual ideas behind the creation of the toy are so intriguing to me and the psychological aspect of it is so interesting. Additionally, Barbie just has such an iconic look and feel that I felt could help guide me throughout the project.
Six Descriptive words and Synonyms: Inventive- imaginative, ingenious, innovative, original, resourceful, avantgarde Unsettling- troubling, unpleasant, worrisome, worrying, ominous, creepy Technological- high-tech, industrial, professional, scholarly, scientific, mechanical Campy- nonsensical, goofy, illogical, ironic, laughable, ludicrous Controversial- contentious, questionable, arguable, argumentative, contended, contestable Intriguing- curious, fascinating, gripping, stimulating, stirring, provoking Ways to Visualize: This story has fun undertones while also dealing with the inherent ethical issues that come along with both artificial intelligence and children. A serious typeface would make sense, as this isn’t a story that should be taken lightly, and the headline on its own should catch a parents attention. The entirety of the design should have some fun elements to it, as overall, there is some lighthearted elements to the story, but the type should find a nice mix of the concerns and joy. Favorite photo from article:
Five Descriptive Words: A.I. helps reinvent classic doll Word Combonations: Creepy-innovation Youthful-corporation Robotic-playtime Playtime-dystopia
In Mattel’s Barbie design area in El Segundo, Calif.- Angie Smith
What Is Owed: This story is an essay making a case for reparations. It explains how centuries of violence and government policies prevented Black Americans from being able to build wealth in this country. This essay was seen as bold and important, so they chose to go in a direction that felt current bold as well. They chose to go in a typographic approach. They attempted to use statistics at first, but moved toward something that resembled the painting in the streets from the Black Lives Matter movements. They figured that something less designed feels more forceful when you have an important message. I think this cover totally achieves what it is going for, it wants to catch your eye and get you interested, because it has something important to say. Choosing to go with simple yellow text on black makes it stand out and get the readership it is looking for. Tech and Design: This story was their annual tech and design issue, this year covering Covid-19. It was a roundtable discussion about what it will take to move past this virus and how to get effective treatment. They wanted to do a conceptual design, because they were worried about being able to encapsulate this idea in just one image. After a lot of different types of illustrations, they chose one that was a vaccine syringe wrapping around itself, to represent taking the instrument used to administer a vaccine and making it really complicated. They chose to put the text directly under the needle, as if it was receiving the shot, a subtle way to bring that type in and make it feel like a part of the image. I think that this is a great conceptual cover that gets the idea out right away. You can look at this and know exactly what it is about, especially in the environment we are in right now and the large discussions surrounding this topic.
I do not know if this is what I would have gone with from the first drafts that the designer came up with, however, I think it is still a good cover no matter what. Quarantine Journal: This issue was a package of contributions from writers, artists, and photographers that talked about the experience of quarantine. They wanted to talk about what we have learned about ourselves and others. They chose to work with an illustrator and aim for a specific unified visual style. Since the topic could get dark at times, they wanted to work with someone who could bring some lightness and humor to it. The simple illustration style could feel lonely and show what the story talks about while at the same time making a joke. They wanted to capture the passage of time, as being quarantined makes time pass in a way that it does not normally. From the sketches the illustrator created, they chose one with a snail making concentric lines around a person. As they pushed that, they created an image that was a representation of the physical and psychological constraints of quarantine. I think the idea of having one illustrator create images for the entire magazine and then trying to capture the idea of the entire story in one image for the cover is really smart and ties the issue together. The choice to do simple hand illustrations helps to make everyone looking at it feel like they could relate to it, as it doesn’t look like any one type of person and the activity of drawing a line is interesting enough to make you pick up the issue.
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Nov. 3
In ClassDiscussing article choices Looking through magazines Typography lecture Recieve typeface packet For HomeworkLook at type classifications Make at least 25 type tests Look up artists and reflect
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Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Notes
25 Type Tests
Typography Lecture: Learning about type classifications, why do they fit where they are. Serif- Old Style (Geralde, Humanist), Transitional, Modern (Didone), Slab Serif (Square, Egyptian) Sans- Humanist, Geometric, Grotesque (Transition) Serif Classifications: Old Style- began with designs of a punchcutter, Francesco Griffo, worked for famous Venetian scholar-printer, Aldus Manutius in 1940. Evolved from early Italian type, based on carved Roman capitals, fifteenth century humanistic writing styles for lowercase, Carolingian minuscules. Have weight stress of rounded forms at angles, like handwriting. Bracketed serif, (unified with tapered, curved line), top serifs on lowercase are at angle. Medium contrast of thin/thick strokes. Developed in 1470’s. Diagonal stress (O & E), Jenson Garamond,
Modern- From late in the 1700’s. Modern evolved from Transitional styles. Extreme contrasts between thick and thin strokes. Strong geometric quality from rigorous horizontal, vertical and circular forms. Wide letters are condensed, P & T are expanded. Serifs are hairline, join stems at right angle with no bracketing. Uppercase width is regularized. Weight stress of rounded characters is vertical. 17401813. Do not use for body text. Slab Serif- In 1815 Vincent Figgins introduced this under the name “Antique”. People were crazy for Egypt at the time. These have heavy square or rectangle serifs. Less stress on curved strokes. In some faces, all strokes are the same weight. Sturdy. Low contrast, very constructed. 13
Transitional- 1700’s, evolved from Old style to Modern, these are the typefaces from the middle of the 18th century. Contrast between thick and thin strokes is greater than Old Style, Lowercase serifs are more horizontal, stress in rounded forms shifts to a less diagonal axis. Usually wider than Old Style. Vertical stress. Industrial revolution. Bracketed serifs.
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Nov. 3
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
25 Type Tests (Cont.) In ClassDiscussing article choices Looking through magazines Typography lecture Recieve typeface packet For HomeworkLook at type classifications Make at least 25 type tests Look up artists and reflect
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Nov. 3
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
Artist Research In ClassDiscussing article choices Looking through magazines Typography lecture Recieve typeface packet
Gail Anderson- Lots of work in cover design, lot of work in using illustrative and expressive type. Often splits spread straight down the middle, type on one side, image on the other.
For HomeworkLook at type classifications Make at least 25 type tests Look up artists and reflect
Tina Smith- Works extensively in typographic design. Makes use of elegant and classic style fonts, though, she does work in expressive and modern type when the design calls for it. Chloe Scheffe- Very intentional in the exploration between type and image. Great relationships between the two that help to tell a story.
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Common threads between designers: In all of these designers, there was a very clear choice to create a relationship between the type and the photography. It was obvious when the type interacted with photography, however even the choice to have strict borders between the type and image creates a relationship as well. At the core, the defining thread that connects all of these artists is making clear choices for their designs. Favorite Design from research:
Matt Willey- Very expressive type and lots of exploration that breaks away from traditional layout and creates unique storytelling designs.
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Claudia Rubin- Clean designs for magazines that are pretty grid-centered and strong. Very straigtforward approach, but when deviating it creates a large draw to the design. Tibor Kalman- Heavy use of shock value in designs. It works to draw attention and catches the eye pretty quick. Explores relationships between type and photo Neville Brody- Heavy use of expressive type. Large typefaces that overlap and vary in size/placement. Creates interestingdesigns that catch the eye. David Carson- Works heavily with grunge themes in his designs. Extreme handmade quality in his work that creates a unified feel. Alexey Brodovitch- Simple and elegant designs. Explores the use of motion with the placement of text and the choice of photography.
This bright, happy cover for the New York Times is one of my favorites from this research. Although the relationship between the type and image is not overly intricate, it still shows off a very intentional choice, and makes it clear that there is thought put into the design. Just the subtle curve of the text between his hands almost feels like it finishes the picture. They could have placed it anywhere on the page, but that is the perfect spot. Overall the choice of photo, the incoorporation of text into the photo, and the interaction between the butterfly and the logo make this cover feel totally complete.
Nov. 8
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Type Specs In ClassCritiquing type solutions Type classifications Start “Type Specs” For HomeworkFinish “Type Specs” Ideate opening spreads
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Nov. 8
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Type Specs In ClassCritiquing type solutions Type classifications Start “Type Specs” For HomeworkFinish “Type Specs” Ideate opening spreads
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Nov. 8
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Opening Spreads In ClassCritiquing type solutions Type classifications Start “Type Specs” For HomeworkFinish “Type Specs” Ideate opening spreads
With the opening spreads, my intention was to show off a couple key elements from the story: -The childlike innocence that inherently comes along with Barbie -The tendency of the doll to glitch and creep children out -The idea of technology and artificial intellegence (and the relationship it has with Barbie in this context) With this in mind, I still did not want to create an opening spread that would inspire fear. Although this is a controversial technology, there is nothing inherently morally wrong with what the Barbie company was doing, so I did not want to villify the doll with the designs.
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I wanted the main focus to be on Barbie, just how the title implies, so for almost every solution, I used a photo of Barbie. The one that popped up the most was a photo of the doll leaning on the table and staring off into space. This photo, especially with secondary photo treatments on it, gave off a very creepy feeling. Her expression in it was just a little bit too weird.
Playing off the same ideas and concepts for choosing photography, I chose fonts I felt could explore the contrast between large coorporations/technology and a classic doll. For some solutions, I chose to use a pairing of a frilly, feminine font and a bold, straightforward all caps typeface. For other solutions, I chose a straightforward font and modified it in some capacity to show off either a playful feeling or technology. Finally, in the rest of the headlines, I chose a childlike method of creating the type (cutting a pasting letters), and applied effects to it that showed off a technological/glitchy feeling. Wherever I used effects on type, I tried to replicate that same effect on the images, or vice versa. I wanted to create a sense of unity between the two parts of the design and make them feel like they were interacting. Some achieved this feeling better than others.
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Nov. 8
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Opening Spreads In ClassCritiquing type solutions Type classifications Start “Type Specs” For HomeworkFinish “Type Specs” Ideate opening spreads
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Nov. 8
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Opening Spreads In ClassCritiquing type solutions Type classifications Start “Type Specs” For HomeworkFinish “Type Specs” Ideate opening spreads
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Nov. 10
In ClassCritiquing opening designs Toolkit demonstration Photoshop lesson For HomeworkWatch “Basics of Typography” Make toolkits Spread thumbnails Refine opening spreads
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Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Basics of Typography
Sketches
Part One: Typography- The art of arranging type. Using letters and words to get the desired visual effect you want. Body Copy- The main bulk of text on a page. Digital or print, anything other than headline or subhead. Display Type- Used to grab your attention. Hierarchy- The way we arrange elements of type in order of importance. Important things need to attract attention quicker. Kerning- Adjusting the space between two characters. Used to make letter pairings more pleasing to the eye. Leading- The amount of space between the lines of text. It can be too tight or too loose.
Part Two: Tracking- Similar to kerning. Instead of the distance between two characters, this is the distance between all letters in a block of text. Widows and Orphans- Widow, word or part of a word that sits on the bottom line of a block of text on its own. Orphan, word or part of a word that sits on the top line of a block of text on its own, disjointed from the rest of the body of text. Serif Type- Type with small decorative strokes at the end of each of the horizontal and vertical strokes that make up the letters. More traditional in appearance. Sans Serif Type- Type that removes the small decorations from the letter’s strokes. Easier to read on screens. Script and Cursive Type- Type that emulates the flow of a pen. Highly decorative, can be minimal or over the top. Slab Serif Type- Type with very thick serifs on the ends of letters. Commonly used for headlines.
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Nov. 10
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Toolkits In ClassCritiquing opening designs Toolkit demonstration Photoshop lesson For HomeworkWatch “Basics of Typography” Make toolkits Spread thumbnails Refine opening spreads
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Nov. 10
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Opening Refinements In ClassCritiquing opening designs Toolkit demonstration Photoshop lesson For HomeworkWatch “Basics of Typography” Make toolkits Spread thumbnails Refine opening spreads
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Nov. 10
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Opening Refinements In ClassCritiquing opening designs Toolkit demonstration Photoshop lesson For HomeworkWatch “Basics of Typography” Make toolkits Spread thumbnails Refine opening spreads
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Nov. 15
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Full Spread Designs (1) In ClassCritique opening refinements Answering questions for process book For HomeworkContinue to refine Create 3 versions of the rest of the pages
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Nov. 15
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Full Spread Designs (2) In ClassCritique opening refinements Answering questions for process book For HomeworkContinue to refine Create 3 versions of the rest of the pages
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Nov. 15
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Full Spread Designs (3) In ClassCritique opening refinements Answering questions for process book For HomeworkContinue to refine Create 3 versions of the rest of the pages
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Nov. 17
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
Mac is not a Typewriter In ClassCritique chosen directions Recap on things to remember For HomeworkContinue to refine (8 total) Read “Mac is not a Typewriter”
Mac is not a Typewriter: Use one space in between sentences after periods, since you are not on a monospaced typewriter, there is no need. Make sure you are using quotation marks and apostrophes, not inch and foot marks. Most programs will auto-correct it for you nowadays, but it is important to check. Hyphens are used for hyphenating words or line breaks. En dash is used to indicate a duration. Em dash is used to signal an abrupt change in thought. You can use key commands to get what you are looking for.
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Kerning is the practice of removing small units of space between letters in order to create a visually consistent letter spacing. It does not actually need to be mathematically correct, the percieved appearance is most important. Widows are created when a paragraph ends and leaves less than seven characters on the last line. Orphans are created when the last line of a paragraph ends up at the top of the next column.
When creating a block of text, avoid more than two hyphenations in a row, avoid too many hyphenations in a paragraph. Check hyphenations to make sure they are not “stupid” (make sure they still read correctly even after being broken into two pieces). Never hyphenate a heading. Break lines sensibly. Leading is the amount of space in between the lines of text. It should be consistent throughout a set of text. Only use justified text only if the line is long enough to prevent awkward and inconsistent word spacing. You do not want to create rivers in your type. You can turn a page upside down to look for rivers. Serif type is more readable and is best for text while sans serif type is more legible and is best used for headlines and signage. Never combine two serif fonts or two sans serif fonts on the same page.
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Nov. 22
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Refinements (Option 1) In ClassExplaination of deliverables Discussion on “Mac...Typewriter” Critique refinements For HomeworkRefine Print at full size and tape together
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Nov. 22
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Refinements (Option 2) In ClassExplaination of deliverables Discussion on “Mac...Typewriter” Critique refinements For HomeworkRefine Print at full size and tape together
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Nov. 22
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Refinements (Option 3) In ClassExplaination of deliverables Discussion on “Mac...Typewriter” Critique refinements For HomeworkRefine Print at full size and tape together
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Nov. 29
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Final Critiques In ClassPass around taped refinements Sticky note critique Start behance post For HomeworkFinish all, get ready to turn in
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Critiques: Fix orphans/widows Hang punctuation Adjust captions
Dec. 1
Ethan Schreiber | Project Three
VISC 202 | Andrea Herstowski
Behance Post In ClassTurn in, project done
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