storyboard visuals....

Well I have been working away diligently, yay for me. Got a little stuck though on how to execute my visuals for my storyboard. Drew a complete storyboard- rough and sort of liked what was going on, then I tried to do it properly and didn't know which method to use. I thought about freehand drawings then scanning them in, then I thought about drawing purely in illustrator then eventually went back to one of my original ideas- well round about which was photographic images- where I converted them all to b/w and hand drawn elements on top. My little 'a' character is in yellow which I think acts as a nice contrast. Got the last scene to do then kinder on my way, obviously will be open to constructive criticism on tues with the class etc, but at this stage I think I am quite happy with the progress I have made.

some of gills artwork.....

As we all know from last week in class, Mr Eric Gill is one kooky character. I thought it necessary to have a religious twist throughout my storyboard; he supposedly would express his Christian views any chance he could get. To my alarm though the guy was also a pedophile?? or was very kinky, and even did erotic engravings. I thought to leave this sexual side to him out of my storyboard, but thought why not share it on my blog. I definitely chose an eccentric weirdo. Makes for interesting reading/viewing....

more on sanserif....

Well I am back, spent much of last night scrolling pages on the web, read some really interesting essays on sanserif fonts etc. Thought I need a bit more of a lead up to the characteristics of my font so started to delve into the beginnings of sanserifs. What I can gather is that it was created as a means to compete with the serif fonts. Modernism was a time for change and new,with 2 new forms of typographic communication- poster and the handbill. Sanserif were created for ease of legibility for the viewer- as opposed to the reader. They were also very effective on posters as you could display much more information. Edward Johnston created his own typeface for the London Underground, with a very mathimatical perspective, creating a very even and balanced typeface. Gill came along though and improved on johnstons typeface, by adding varying thick and thins, allowing a more humanist look and feel, thus creating better legibilty. Nothing is ever perfect or perfectly balanced, or so they say, and by stripping back this need for balance our eye tends to view it more effectively....

thurs arvo

Well I thought I better not be a blogger virgin for too long, so here goes! I started the day all ready to go...went for my walk did the washing, bla bla bla. Finally got stuck into my homework, started off by surfing the net again, trying to gain some more info on modernism. Found some really good info- the V& A exhibition in london- all about modernism- designing a new world 1914-1939. Great site, heaps of pics and even a pdf to download with great info. Was feeling on a roll by this stage and started sketching some ideas for my stroy board. I am thinking on the lines of a religious journey- my little 'a' character will be born on the subway- london underground reference, then progress through the city- machines, factories etc. Eric gill had strong opinions on modernism- as I found out, his 'two worlds' theory from his essay.. so all should tie in quite nicely. He was sort of opposed to the 'machines' taking over, and was afraid of the human element being lost. So basically my little 'a' will go through the city on his little journey- and then maybe got out to the country- will show eric gill making the fonts by hand- ie; maybe chiseling them etc, then back into the city- to show on traffic signs and billboards the characteristics of the font. Still contemplating the last 2 frames- need to show the usage. The last frame, I was going to end with a group of people worshipping the font- or about to go to a mass etc. This heavy religious stuff I think is important to show who gill really was. His famous essay he wrote on typography was said to have social and christian doctrine all through it, and at times didn't talk all that much about type, does sound like a fascinating read though. I think at this stage my story board may be quite detailed, but plan on finding photographic images for the background and maybe just sketching the 'a' and some other details over the top- sort of montage/collage thingy??
Although I am finding this subject and particually this assignment challanging I am enjoying it greatly- no guys or dion I promise I am not trying to be a suck. Just great to go behind the scenes of design and broader the intellect etc. Well getting back to it, I said I started, then I got busy tring to play with this blogger- customizing colours and etc- we are graphic design students after all. My progress with my homework has sort of fallen in a heap, I will get back to it after this, I love to procrastinate. I think I also use it for ideas to float around, sometimes it can be benefical to sit on ideas, let them form etc.