OUGD403 - Studio Brief 02 - Typeface Design

For this task I was given a word to base a typeface design on. Using one of Müeller-Brockmanns classic and lead typefaces I had to design my own typeface. The word I received was grotesque.

To begin with I researched into the word grotesque, which means ‘ugly or distorted in a comical or repulsive way’ or ‘a very ugly or comically distorted figure or image’. With this definition I started to think about how I could create an ugly looking typeface. I started by tracing over the 9 Müeller-Brockmann classics trying different ways of distorting the letterforms. After manually experimenting with this style I tried to apply it to every letter on Illustrator but soon found myself uncomfortable with the outcome. I found that producing this style of typeface didn’t look professional and I wanted to design a typeface that would suit many applications and not just be decorative.

After going through this process I conducted more research into my word: grotesque. I looked into many synonyms of the word and in doing this stumbled upon the grotesque typeface. Grotesque is actually a classification of a typeface. A grotesque typeface is sans serif and started to develop in the 19^th century and became increasingly popular even through to the 20^th century. The early sans serif designs were solid and bold making them suitable for headlines. Another kind of grotesque type is neo grotesque. This type was developed in the postmodern era during the time when Swiss design was becoming increasingly popular during the 1950’s. This is when Akzidenz-Grotesk and Neue Haas Grotesk, which was developed into Helvetica, started to appear.

Of the 9 Müeller-Brockmann classics, three of them fall under the grotesque classification; Helvetica, Univers and Akzidenz-Grotesk. The difference between grotesque and serif type is that grotesque is humanist in design and has functionality. Serif has more of a flourish, and extra stroke of bracket. So when thinking about the concept of grotesque type I thought about how I could possibly turn a serif type into a grotesque type by removing the serif.

After the first week of this brief I received feedback on what I had done so far. The majority of my critique group liked the idea of removing the serif from serif typefaces however felt it was a little too simple. They recommended I look into making an ugly, distorted typeface again and brainstormed synonyms for the word grotesque with me. Bulbous, inappropriate, unsettling, mutation: these are all words that I could take forward into my next stage of the development process. I was recommended to make the serifs on the type more random and inconsistent, not to follow the usual type grid, to add to letters instead of reduce them. These comments were helpful however it was still difficult to produce a typeface when making it ugly.

At this stage I had to write a manifesto for my typeface and think about giving it a name. I decided to call my typeface Inquieto Grotesque. Inquieto is Spanish for ‘uneasy’, which is a word I thought was appropriate for the word grotesque. This was my manifesto:

“Inquieto Grotesque was designed in a time where the possibilities of fonts were endless. Inquieto is uneasy, distorted, unsettling and incomplete. However it is this combination that gives it its humanist functionality and stands out from all the other fonts.The sans-serif type holds a traditional style, which brings elegance and versatility. It follows the grotesque classification but in a very different way.This type is functional in headers and signage as well as text. Its functionality is genuinely infinite and it’s confidence clean.”

This manifesto is not set in stone as the overall design will adapt and change throughout the process.

Once again, I researched into my word when I was short of ideas. When researching my word I found that grotesque comes from the Italian word grottesco, which means ‘of the cave’. With this I tried to make the letterforms look like caves. I sketched some rough ideas and even tried to include elements of stalagmites and stalactites. The shapes were similar to that of serif types, in particular Bodoni.

After going through all of the different design processes I decided to go back to removing the serifs and turning a serif type into a sans serif, however this time, making the stroke of the letter consistent instead of contrasting. I analysed in depth the serif typefaces and looked at what made them different to sans serif typefaces and how I could alter this.

 

Using the shape of Bodoni, and basing this new design on the outcome of experimenting with the shape of a cave, I produced an entire type by making the weight of the stroke in each letter the same weight. I then moved the paths of the letterforms close together so they are consistent and of the same weight throughout the entire typeface. In doing this I have still kept the elegant shape of Bodoni but I have turned it into a grotesque, sans serif typeface. I have kept some of the elements of Bodoni, such as the terminals on the letters a, c, f, g, j, r and y and some of the letters do not connect correctly which makes this typeface inconsistent and physically grotesque to look at.

When I was happy with my final typeface I designed a specimen focusing on the word grotesque. Once again I looked into secondary meanings of the word grotesque and found synonyms such as decadent and ludicrous which I thought suited my typeface. I found quotes by two famous artists that suited my typeface and based on other typeface specimens that I looked into created one for myself.

My Manifesto also changed to this:

“Inquieto Grotesque was designed in a time where the possibilities of fonts were endless. Inquieto is ludicrous and decadent in the most grotesque of ways. However, It is for this reason that it stands out from all the other fonts.The humanist type holds a traditional, old style, in a contemporary way, which brings elegance and versatility. It follows the grotesque classification in a very different way.It will work functionally in headers and signage as well as text. Its functionality is genuinely infinite and it’s confidence clean.”

At the end of the project I received feedback on my final design where I received these comments: “works well because the idea of grotesque is different and stands out”, “I feel this fits the theme well and seems very unique and useful because it could work for many functions”. This feedback was positive and it shows that I have achieved what I wanted my typeface to do, to be functional but still have an edge of looking unattractive.