Own Machine

Initial ideas for a machine that generate a typeface

5 machine ideas:

1. Large sheets of fabric with shredded areas, revealing negative space that creates the letterform when air is pushed behind. Can be used for as super graphics for signage.
2. Foam shape that create a letterform if stacked in a certain way. intended for educational use.
3. Magnet shapes that are designed so that some sides of each shape repeal the sides of other shapes.
4. Cut out shapes with reflective sides that when placed in certain way, creates a letter from reflection.
5. Shoes that have shapes cut into the shoe, when printed in a certain way, creates letterform.

 

I have chosen the shoe idea because it has the strongest use. I plan to use shoes and cut out the shapes into the sole.

Full uppercase alphabet:

 

Process of making machine:

After acquiring shoes to alter I realised cutting the shapes from the shoe would be too difficult and instead chose to use Lino material to cut the shapes and attach them to the shoes.

I attached the shapes to the bottom of the shoe using glue, however after doing this I realised it would be much more effective if I had attached straps to the shapes so that they can be used on any shoes. They would be much more accessible to all audiences as they wouldn't need to select the right size of shoe and the costs would be lower. It also would be easier to reproduce and they design of the shoe itself wouldn't be of concern, which is an element of the design I wasn't able to control due to costs and skills involved.

Type Specimen

Must include in type specimen:

-Rationale

-Instructions

-Testing & development photos

-Personality words

-Full uppercase alphabet

-Example sentences

Specimen examples:

Swerving V.02

-Simple design
-Uses colour of paper stock to divide
-Shows development

Bespoke 1, Colophon Foundry

-Typeface is displayed on a larger scale

-Bound like a newspaper

-Illustrated

Ideas for contents of specimen:

1. Name with shapes

2. Full uppercase alphabet filled

3. Full uppercase alphabet outline

4. Name

5. Rationale

6. Words

7. Example sentence

8. Close up of sentence

9. Each letter with outline of shapes as a guide for user

10. Sketches of typeface

11. Original ideas
12. Prints from the shoe as examples
13. Images of shoes in context

Design:

- A4 to fit into shoe box

- Fluorescent yellow paper stock to imitate road workers workwear as intended use for shoes is for road signage

- Brown rice paper stock to work with cardboard shoe box

- Separate letters could fit into the specimen A5
- Some pages could be inverted, create more interest
- Bound with bolts, linking road works
- Bound with silver tape or red and white striped tape, linking to road works

Images of final specimen design to be printed on fluorescent yellow paper stock A4:

Separate letters to be printed on brown newspaper stock A5:

Final Type Specimen