Studio Brief 4: Design Development 2

After researching Critical Graphic Design, I realised that my new combined design approach does not need to be so rule specific. Instead of focusing the different design principles on just one of the two initial design approaches, I can intertwine the different elements from both of the approaches and create my own 'critical' piece of design.

To do this, I focused on typography, and the combination of typically clean and typically ugly typefaces. For the 'clean' typeface I decided to use Helvetica Light, this was because Helvetica is well-renowned for it's vast application within graphic design works, and is also neutral which provides a good foundation for the juxtaposition to come. For the 'ugly' typeface, I looked into a small variety of fonts found on free font websites online. I did this because I wanted the secondary typeface to be ridiculous and humorous, something that I would never use anywhere else, and that could clearly communicate a sense of purposefully bad design.

These designs instantly felt more intriguing and exciting, as the addition of a secondary 'ugly' typeface elevated the overall visual impact of the label design. Only the words 'Graphic Design' had been applied with the secondary typeface, this is because although the use of the typeface is to give the design more excitement, it is still considered a 'cheap' typeface which if overused would ruin the delicate line between 'good' and 'bad' design. To further enhance the secondary typeface and it's meaning, it is placed on a slight 5 degree angle. This breaks the grid slightly and hints back to cheap packaging design that has no rules. 

I also explored how the secondary typeface should be presented, whether it should be just outline, black and white outline, or solid colours. I had decided upon just outlined, because I thought it to be the clearest and the most legible. It also limits the use of colours I would have to screen-print and brings the time and cost of the production down.

The final secondary typeface I had chosen was the pixelated typeface called 'Humanoid'. I chose this  because the pixels hold a reference to digital, which is what Graphic Design is dominantly based around. Also, I believed it to be the most balanced and comfortable when placed alongside 'Helvetica Light', as well as being an appropriate size and weight that fills the empty space sufficiently. 

Having chosen my final design, I created a positive for it that could then be printed and exposed on a screen, to allow me to put my design through the screen-printing process.