Holiday Fonts

Holiday fonts?

This is what I was talking about in my earlier posts when mentioning BAD and UNREADABLE fonts. It is obvious to see with this example that some fonts are just not supposed to be used. It is not easy for some people to understand what is and is not understandable when it comes to typefaces (and colour/background can and should be also included in this topic). However, with this topic I will try to explain in a very clear way.

First of all let’s forget about ‘our favourite colours’ and ‘favourite shapes’. Let’s make it simple and see what is actually in front of us. Free font websites have all types of fonts and it is our job to distinguish what can and cannot be used. Fonts like the ones I have posted on the top are not readable because of the amount of information around them. The secret is to relate the typography and the motif in a way everyone can understand both. Regarding colour and background, it is very simple if attention is given. Light colour typography over light colour background will not be as clear as a dark typography over a light background (the other way around is also suitable but not recommended as it is easier than the first option but not as readable as the second one). Subtle colours are also recommended, as bright colours distract the eye attention.

Hope this was helpful in some way.

TURNINGstyle

Turnstyle is innovative and creative. Aims to turn it around and develop a bound between brand and costumer. Looking for new ideas and ways to move people and feelings is number one priority to this studio. Exclusive character and identity are the consequence of their main concern. At this studio, you may find innovative solutions for any client, no matter what background or size.

The design created to the snowboards is simply amazing and original. Typography together with illustration and colour gave birth to these five snowboards. All different but with the same line of creativity and design, it satisfies all tastes. The red board with a Swiss look, a cross and the size. Cool colour tones to keep it fresh and simple. Triangles and lines, which creates new shapes and the wooden pattern in ‘brown-wood’ and white colour. The Japanese style with a dark background and a wooden robot with a very subtle Japanese typography.

All beautiful and fun, is a very original work from turnstyle studio.

Martin Parr in Machu Picchu

Martin Parr is a social documentary photographer from the UK. His reputation grew along the years, becoming a great photographer. Parr is recognised internationally and his photos document in a very specific way. He has a very original imagery and documents ‘culture’ not only in the UK but all around the world. Parr is not only interested in photography but also in film-making, which extends his work to a winder perspective.

One of my favourite works from Parr is his photographs about the tourism in Machu Picchu. The Inca ruins are now generating a huge tourism industry, affecting the lives of the locals. People from around the world go to Machu Picchu looking for the ancient world in a place with organised touristic attractions.

Two pictures I found very interesting are the woman pretending to be a dromedary while her partner takes a snap shot and the tourist guide showing the area around. It definitely shows how comfortable and ‘natural’ it is to be there, no matter where from you are.

(please note I can't post the direct link to his particular work: Martin Parr > Recent > Machu Picchu)

EXPLORING THE ARAB CIVILIZATIONS

Tarek is young but his work and experience is very wide.

He studied in Lebanon, The Netherlands, Qatar, Dubai and the United States where he did his MFA, taught by influenced people like Steven Heller and Sagmeister. His work has been exhibited in museums like Guggenheim, NY and the Affiche Museum in The Netherlands. Awards are also part of his life and won several. He is the founder of arabictypography.com and he a guest to numerous seminars and is now teaching in Utrecht School of the Arts (The Netherlands). Tarek has his own studio where he develops graphic work for national and international, small or big companies. He became a Dutch citizen in 2007, being both Dutch and Lebanese.

One of my favourite projects developed by Tarek is the Rahala Boardgame. It is a bilingual trivia board-game where the players are invited to travel through the history of Arab Civilizations. To find the design was the first step. Most games are usually imported from overseas, loosing the ‘style’ of the Arab culture. Tarek wanted this one to be as ‘national’ as possible. The design integrated specs like information, packaging, graphics, 3D design, visual identity, illustration and usability. Designing the image was not easy, and the actual logo for the game came later.

The map combines six eras of the Arab civilizations so Tarek had to search for the visual identity of each one. The colour coding was also very important and each era was labelled by one colour. All the process was taken very carefully and step by step, as it is possible to see in his case study.

Explores is a very interesting project and is definitely worth to take a look at.

FINGER BOARD LOVE

I am not a finger boarder.

Even though my father used to skateboard when he was young and my boyfriend loves it too, I have no connection whatsoever with wheels and boards (together). Apart from it, I had to post something about the work of one good friend of mine: André Coral. André and another group of guys started the brand LOW PRO and have been developing boards, contests and events all around Europe. I don’t know much about the specs of this practice and I never tried to do any tricks with low pro decks. Nevertheless, one thing I love about it is the fact they have a brilliant design and the family develops really nice videos, where it is possible to see how much fun they are.

Because I am a graphic designer, for this post I wanted to show one image, which I found incredibly special: ‘Finger Board Love’. It is a clean and colourful image at the same time, where we can see the different designs created for the boards. The text is very subtle and organised. The words ‘Finger Board’ appear in a boldish block but in white with a light grey background, which minimises the impact of the thick letters. Next to it we see the word ‘Love’ integrating the logo ‘Low Pro’.

I really like this image and I believe it to be a very good example of great graphic design.

Mago's STRONG.

Magomed Dovjenko is a freelance illustrator, graphic designer and art

director, originally from Russia but now living in Germany. He is the

member of The Keystone Design Union and he developed an amazing work

until now. Mago has very big clients; clients like NIKE Footbal, Ecko, Diesel,

Urb Magazine, Computer Arts, JWT Dubai, Toyota, Advanced Photoshop,

Saatchi Saatchi Düsseldorf.

Besides his amazing clientel, Mago has been invited to German’s top late-night talkshows TV Total on Pro 7 and Stern TV on RTL. He also worked in Amsterdam with the Dutch soccer player Edgar Davids, creating graphics to Edgar’s brand ‘Monta Soccer’.

Even though he has all this amazing history and biography, I wanted to talk about his ‘Born Stronger Athletics’ for The KDU. The illustration is very strong and certainly reflects the power of an athlete. But if we take a deeper look into the typography Mago created we see it is not readable. As it was shown before, one of the most important features of a typeface is that it can be read. In this specific case, and I am not trying to imply the image is not good, as I previously said it definitely stresses the impact it is supposed to have. Simply there should have been a little bit more care with the readability of the text.

Fake Too Fake

Fake Too Fake is a series of photographs developed by Giovanni Bortolani and Marcorea Malià using the human body as a main subject. Beautiful human bodies are shown as deeply wounded, and freshly scarred people are there to communicate about the feebleness of our exterior. This work has the aim of demystify the idea of an eternal beauty that does not exist and the battles people fight against time and age.

Insanity takes place when people search for infinity beauty and use their bodies to acquire an age that is not real. And where is the human spirit after all? Where the inner beauty and the soul-age? Somewhere hidden behind injuries and ‘nip tucks’.

In times like this, artworks like these are extremely necessary to show to people what is truly necessary and what it should be taken seriously.