PPP 5 artists zine development

Further developments/ experiments

Today I decided to focus on developing my 5 designer zines further through playing more with text and colours. I decided to do so by printing out sheets of text (that will eventually contain my own writing) and experimented with how I could involve the images. 

I thought it would be interesting to cut out sections of the photocopied images to show some aspects of the text; I felt like this was effective in introducing some shapes to the design, as well as adding a interactive and playful element. I want the zines to have this sense of fun, and have a multilayered nature that is shared with the 5 artists work. 

These zines definitely had a more toned down colour scheme compared to last week, as I wanted to try out subtler colours such as whites and pale blues/pinks. I don't think that colour wise these really fit into the 5 artists' style, as I want the zines to pop with colour and have a nostalgic atmosphere. The white and blue contrast isn't really strong enough for what I want to achieve. 

The biggest development today was the introduction of a sleeve to the zines, which I think could work for the final thing; I think I want to have 5 separate zines for each topic, so this would be useful in collecting them all together. However, I feel like I could collect all the 5 zines in a more exciting and clever way; for instance maybe a bubble wrap design? Or a plastic bag. 

Next week I think I need to focus more on the content of the zines to build more stuff to work with and add into these zines, as at the moment it is purely image based design. 

Initial zine design for CoP publication

Playing with photocopying illustrations

I wanted to start the process of the CoP publication through redrawing and revisualising Garfield Minus Garfield in a style that didn't take itself seriously, through quite an intimate illustrative approach; I did this by hand drawing the comic strips and text, not focusing on the precision of the cartoons. I quite like this style as it allows the comic zine to have that handmade quality, which is discussed within my essay.  

I experimented with overlaying images and text for the cover, as well as playing with singular colours. I think that this looks a bit too busy and chaotic for the cover - maybe I could try something similar to fit the tone of voice of the blog. Also, I'm not sure whether it is appropriate for me to feature Garfield as he isn't meant to be in the comic initially. 

I think I definitely need to develop these designs further, by doing the following:

• play with different paper stocks to create an exclusive experience (plain white A4 is boring)
• Play with how I could manipulate and alter typical comic book conventions; make it fit with a contemporary audience 
• create more actual comic strips- I want the zine to be bigger 
• Consider sticker design?

Colour/ texture experiments

Playing with the texture of bananas

After my crit I wanted to play with manipulating images and textures to create a single visual; I decided that I could initially start with an image of a banana, as it has an interesting texture and links to the book itself. 

I manipulated the image by adding grain and playing with different colours; I decided to invert the image and develop a juxtaposition of colours with this design. I also wanted to add some negative space by positioning the image in the corner; the only issue with this is that it somewhat has an unbalanced composition. As well as this, I'm not sure if these designs are appropriately playful enough for the tone that I want to set; they fit in with the contemporary atmosphere, but have a slightly formal tone to some extent. 

This design features primary colours to have more of a playful atmosphere, and uses yellows attribute to a banana. I quite like the juxtapositions in this design, and the impact of the negative space; it adds more depth to the design which is an improvement from the flatness of my past cover concepts.  

This cover design focuses more on the idea of earth and a natural colour scheme, yet taken from the texture of a banana; this creates quite a subtle reference, which covers two aspects of the book itself. As well as this, I added some text; I don't really like the effect of this text, as it doesn't have much of a contrast with the background, and looks quite flat. I need to consider how I could involve text with these visuals, and possibly develop the visuals further - there is a certain element of the designs being too abstract, which might not be appropriate for the audience. 

Crit Feedback

Crit Feedback

Today I had my initial group crit for suggestions on how I can push my designs further and which areas to focus on. Here are the key points that were picked up on during the crit:

Develop the banana sticker concept

At the moment it looks too obvious e.g. the banana illustration/ cartoon. I need to simplify this design by focusing on the sticker aspect of the design, as well as experimenting with featuring the texture a banana as the background. As well a this, I thought it could be interesting to play with the texture of a banana to create an abstracted image. 

Take more inspiration from the kids science kit visuals

In my crit people liked the vintage advertisements for the science kits, and thought it would be interesting to explore these further. For example, I could take pictures of diagrams and overlay them, or photocopy some science text books and play around with collaging? 

Photograph/ make the balloon concept in real life

It was mentioned that the balloon concept looked a bit too photoshopped and flat, so I could try taking photos of a real balloon with vinyl sticker text on it. This would make it more immersive and 3D. I thought I could also try having the back cover a deflated/ popped balloon. 

Make the science kits physically

To push this concept further, it was suggested that I design the cover in more of the style of a vintage science kit, and possibly add a plastic wrap effect on it to make it look more 3D. Also, this would help me develop a wrap around design, which is what I would like to aim to create.

Now that I've received some feedback, I need to start looking into more visual research to inform my ideas and help push them further; I could experiment more with hijacking objects like the banana or science kit object, and test out ways in which I could communicate these ideas. I think at the moment, my designs look a bit too flat and need extra editing and development for a more immersive user experience. I want to also experiment more with adding texture and abstracting images, for example with the texture of a banana; I think I need to visually explore ways of creating images, as well as developing a more striking outcome, yet I need to consider my audiences - will it be too abstract?

PPP initial zine experiments

Initial zines

Today I wanted to experiment with how I could collect and present the visuals for my 5 artists and how these could be formatted into individual zines. I wanted to create quite a collective and messy effect, as most of the designers I like don't take themselves seriously in the sense of clean and ruled design. I created the zines below by collaging and layering images of the artists work on the photocopier, which provided a nice grain. 

I wanted to play with primary colours as they communicated a sense of playfulness that coincided with the 5 designers' work; these zines are vibrant yet feature the juxtaposition between bright colours and black and white photocopies. 

I also decided to draw and doodle on top of the scans in order to reference elements of the designs; I thought that this would allow me to add my own twist and style to the zine itself, as well as bringing in a motif of cartoons seen within the designs. This helped me to make the zines have consistence, which could be important if I decide to have a 5 zine collection. 

For a reference to Seapunchs' work drawn onto tissue paper, I used a thick permanent marker which bled onto the other side of the paper; this created a nice visual, and complimented the stronger illustrations that I added. 

Overall, for the first experiment in the design process, I think I can take a lot from these zines; they all share the same atmosphere and aesthetic, which helps communicate my style as a designer and the collective inspiration I have. As well as this, I think the colours work really nicely in developing a fun personality, which mirrors the styles of the 5 designers. I now need to consider how I can push these designs further; I could look into how I could involve the text, and how I will divide each zine. As well as this, I could even choose not to make zines, and look at other ways of presenting ideas - e.g. stickers, t shirts, posters?

Vintage science kits

Vintage science experiment kits

I wanted to carry out some visual research into vintage science kits, as I thought it could be a potentially strong book cover to create a spoof of their packaging and design; it would create a link to Bill Brysons playful curiosity, and would avoid the book looking like it took itself seriously, which seems to be common in its previous designs. 

I really like the primary colours and type design in this, as it looks super vibrant and playful - I think I will test out this colour scheme as it links to the tone I want to portray in my design. I also like the little cartoon design in the centre of this design, which could be an interesting way of introducing illustration into my cover design. 

I thought the graphics in this vintage advertisement were pretty interesting, as I liked their juxtaposition by the solid black background. I could try mimicking these images myself, yet the only challenge would be to make them look intentionally ironic, which audiences might not understand. 

Vintage science kits design development

Initial sketches

I decided to take inspiration from vintage science kits for kids to create some sketches for a cover design; the idea played with the playfulness of the book, and creating a sense of humour - this related to how Bill Bryson doesn't take himself seriously in his writing.  

Here is the initial sketch; I wanted to type Bill Bryson in the format of a vintage logo/ sticker; I feel like this would look really nice with a worn effect, to give that vintage aesthetic. As well as this, I thought adding a cartoon banana could add a humorous atmosphere as it relates to the fact of humans sharing the same DNA as bananas, as well as creating a childish undertone to the cover. The only issue with the initial sketch was that the type looked slightly too childish and lacked a sense of formality, which the book still needed - I think that Helvetica would probably work the best. Also, in my digital versions, I needed to consider colour too. 

Digital development

I created some sticker concepts to be dotted around on the cover, to create a reference to vintage packaging; especially referenced in the stickers shapes and primary colour schemes. This primary colour scheme worked quite nicely in communicating a fun atmosphere. I felt like yellow should be dominant, as it related to the idea of a banana, yet in a subtle way. 

This was the initial digital design that featured the stickers above; I wanted the stickers/ illustrations to kind of frame and block out parts of the text in order to convey the idea of the book cramming information in one small space. I feel like this design could have done with more texture as it looked slightly too flat; I could decided to experiment with ways of adding rips and crumpling up the paper. 

Physical manipulation

I decided to produce some texture to the design by printing it out and crumpling it up; I really like the effect that this provided, as it gave the design a worn effect which links to the inspiration from vintage packaging. I thought that I could develop this further by photocopying this and then having the image used for the actual design. However, I felt like the plain Helvetica text made it look a bit flat still, so chose to further manipulate the type. 

Trying different type styles

I created this type by printing out text and ripping it up to created a stacked/ harsh edged effect; this helped add more texture to a simple Helvetica font, without being over complicated.

 I then added the sticker/ illustrations to the manipulated type in order to create a more textured designs; I really like the direction that this concept is heading in, as I feel like with further feedback and design development, the vintage packaging design could work for the final thing. The only issue is - what will I do for the back page? How can I make it cleverly wrap around? 

Design development

Periodic table concept

Today I decided to develop some new ideas; focusing on the concept of a periodic table. I wanted to select parts of the title and manipulate them to form elements of the periodic table, in order to communicate links to the content of them book/ themes of science non fiction in general.

I decided to use Helvetica for this book cover, as I researched that the periodic table is written in this font. The only problem with this is that it looked slightly too formal, and lacked the playfulness that I wanted to convey. Additionally, I felt like these designs looked too flat and lacked any focal point for the audience; the concept of using elements is arguably too obvious as well as this, which lacks the allusiveness I want to create. 

Playing with handwritten text

These designs played with the banana concept further, as I felt like I could play with composition and colour more. For these designs in particular, I decided to hand draw my text for a playful atmosphere to fit with Bill Brysons' sense of voice. I feel like in some sense, the type looks too chaotic and slightly too childish, as the books audience still will consist of adults.

Crit feedback

• the designs look too flat and dull (periodic table)
• the ripped/ hand drawn type is effective - continue experimenting with this
• try playing with different compositions 
• the messy type looks a bit too childish 

Braulio Amado; playing with image

Braulio Amado

I was suggested to look at Braulio Amado as he often uses unorthodox methods to creating images; finding inspiration in everyday objects, and visualises these interestingly.

For example, this poster concept uses visuals taken from an empty coffee cup; this is then manipulated digitally to a colourful and striking concept which is composed with the juxtaposition of the dull, block colour background. It would be interesting to play with these juxtapositions of textures, and even using objects for such textures - I could try introducing a crumpled paper effect, or even add in the texture of a banana? 

This poster is another example of using everyday objects to form abstract imagery; this design in particular is a high contrast image of some ripped wallpaper. I really like the intense contrast in this design, and the simple shapes that compliment the text. Are there any shapes that I could also abstract from the book/ content in the book?

I looked at this digital illustration as I really liked the nostalgia of it and its playfulness, which relate to the atmosphere I want to create. The colour scheme is dominantly primary colour, which adds a childish nature to the visuals; I could try focusing on using primary colours to also evoke this sense of voice? I also like how the illustrations aren't perfect and don't take themselves seriously, which I could introduce into my cover design. 

I liked the visual simplicity and abstract nature of this design, and the composition is really interesting through a strong use of negative space. The overlapping of illustrations and text celebrate a sense of mistakes, alongside the ripped effect on the right hand side of the design. 

Study task 3 - typesetting

Initial Ideas

This concept played with the fact of how genetically similar we are to bananas, and added a playful element with a colourful colour scheme and a dominant illustration. The only issue is that the cover doesn't use an actual image of a banana, which makes it look quite flat. Also, the illustration covers up a large portion of the text which affects legibility. 

This design focused on type entirely, and explored the idea of the book containing lots of information in one small space; hence the cramped atmosphere and text running off the page. Visually, however, it lacks the fun nature I want to portray, so would need developing further. 

I really don't like this design as it looks super flat and simply navigates the idea of a black hole; the concept is way too literal and the text looks boring. I think I will probably scrap the idea of black holes as I don't want to treat the audience like idiots. 

This experiment tested different ways of manipulating text, so I played a bit with a 3D rendered style on photoshop. I don't think that this design is really strong enough to continue/ develop as it doesn't have a connection to the book itself nor does it have a playful atmosphere. 

These designs explored the idea of the universe expanding - like a balloon. I think the concept itself is very fitting as it has that playful atmosphere I want to create; however, these designs so far don't really work as a double page spread, nor do they have a contemporary style, in my opinion. 

This illustrative concept portrays the fact that Einstein poked himself in the eye with a needle just to simply see what it did; the concept behind this captures the idea of Bill Brysons curiosity and general curiosity within science history. However, the general visuals of this design are very flat and the colour palette is arguably too feminine for the books audience. 

Crit feedback

• try photographing an actual banana to make the design look less flat 
• actually print the type on the balloon to create a more immersive design 
• photograph the needle/eye design instead of illustrating it 
• some of the designs look too childish? 

Initial typesetting notes

Study task 3; type only cover 

• Type can set a mood or an atmosphere 
• What weight typeface will you use? How does it convey what you’re trying to communicate 
• Think about font styles; condensed and extended 
• Information squashed into a tiny space; relates to the title 
• Think about the size and scale; white space - type isn’t about the black spaces 
• Align to a grid? 

Typography do’s:

• Helvetica
• Baskerville 
• DIN 
• Franklin Gothic
• Futura 
• Times New Roman 
• Gill Sans 

• Don’t use skeuomorphism 

• Making items resemble their real world counterparts
• Too easy 
• Anthony Burrill; purist typography using wood type or metal type
• Eike Konig/ Hort Studio 
• Experimental Jetset 
• Combine your text with a symbol/ character
• Repeating things 
• Mix type in with something else

Consider in your designs:

• What are you saying?
• How does it communicate your idea?
• What does it look like?
• What does the layout look like? 

• Line length, between 40 and 75 characters and 7-12 words
• An overly short line length looks ugly 
• Oversized line length decreases legibility 
• It's better to split it into 2 columns if long 
• Consider hierarchy 
• If you can justify doing something wrong, then that's okay 
• Widows and orphans; lines left hanging and separated from a block of text 
• Rivers; gaps in typesetting between two paragraphs 
• Hanging and stacking; could give consistency 
• Hijack an object 
• Make connections between letters 
• Cut up and rearrange 
• Use repetition 
• Extend it to a grid 
• Change direction of the type