Visual Language - Back To Basics

We started by defining vital aspects of the English language:

Verb - A doing word.
Adverb - Describing a verb.
Noun - A place, name, thing or idea.
Pronoun - A function word in place of a noun.
Subjective Personal Pronoun - A pronoun that relates to people.
Adjective - A describing word.

Defining a Noun:
Late last year, our neighbours bought a goat. (3)
Fred Bates is a tutor. (2)

A sentence that includes all language techniques:
I worked quickly with Lewis, he was very ambitious.

We received an article in which we had to reduce it to 140 characters:
The oldest contestant, Wagner Carillho, has moved out of the X Factor house after complaining of a 'funny smell' and 'personal bad habits'.

We then had to reduce another article to 160 characters, for a quick post on an online site such as Twitter:
Fergie stays silent bout Rooney's future @ Man U, after not signing a new deal.  Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea & Man C are possible buyers if Man U decide to cash in.


These exercises, and a refreshing recap on the English language, have taught me how to shorten copy effectively to a short and precise statement.  This will be useful when shortening to key points when making room for imagery, or creating powerful captions.

Visual Language - Visual Vocabulary

Our first task was to communicate a word in a five-square sequence, using just one letterform.  I communicated slip (top) and snap (bottom).  We would then move around the room and assess another person's sequence with our interpretation of what is being communicated.

The top sequence is slipping like someone would on ice, starting upright and ending up on its side.  I thought this word was fairly straightforward to communicate, and the person responding to this had no trouble working out what it was.

The bottom sequence, snap, was a little harder.  I started with a whole letterform and broke bits off gradually as the sequence moved on.  I had to keep it as legible as possible, whilst distorting the letter to reflect 'snap'.  As I chose a complex way of solving the visual problem, the person responding chose the wrong word: I didn't keep it clear and simple.

Working in groups of four, we had to communicate the opposite to a selected word.  Our word was 'stop', so we opted to respond with the word 'go'.  After much thought, we decided to display our twenty-square sequence to look like a marathon - a lot of people starting and not many finishing.

Alphabet Soup Typeface Evaluation

Final A1 Piece

Further Experimentation

Initial Ideas For Ryan

My ideas were to combine the reserved and ambitious traits to create a hybrid font, shown in my initial experimentation.

Using Existing Letterforms

Using one of the adjectives for Ryan, various, I experimented with different fonts as one letterform.  The concept of this was using two contrasting fonts (for example Hobo Std and Helvetica) creates a new font with various characteristics.  These include both curved and straight lines, a psychedelic yet neatened look which responds to the main word: various.

Research into my Partner

After the briefing, I was paired with Ryan McCormick.  We were asked to fill in a series of questions that gave each other a general outline of what our partner's tastes and interests were.  We then had to compile a list of 5 adjectives that best describe our partner.  This is what I came up with:

• Ambitious
• Artistic
• Musical
• Reserved
• Varied

After exchanging sheets and identifying the adjectives, I proceeded to create a mind map to get a broader outlook of what I was dealing with. 

Getting the Brief

This shows how I took apart the brief and completed a rationale that gave me an idea of how to go forward, before I knew who my partner was.

Alphabet Soup 10 Letterforms Evaluation

Final 10 Letterforms

My final 10 letterforms for the 'Alphabet Soup' brief. I used a range of styes and techniques to get to my outcomes; I believe the ink work was the most effective. It related to the word 'shake' and is a good mix of both traditional and digital methods.