Bailey MeCey

When it comes to visual design, typography feels like the least appreciated yet one of the most important aspects of design. A lot of the design can be communicated by the simplest of typography changes, whether that be what font is selected or how the text is spaced out on the page. Without a proper font and plan to go along with the typography, it can throw off the entire design.

Given that it’s the winter and we have dealt with constant snowstorms, I wanted a word to welcome the coming spring. For this, I choose to use the word “grow”. To go along with the word, I wanted a small flower to be coming out of one of the letters as the first to bloom. For this, I used Illustrator to create my design. I do not have much experience working in Illustrator, as for the work I do I primarily use Photoshop. However, instead of falling back on what I know, I wanted to try to challenge myself.

For my font, I wanted something that was fun and felt handwritten. I also didn’t want it to feel too thin and paltry, but big and bold. In Graphic Design Solutions, a script font follows this format as it aims to recreate the feeling of a pen or brush. The font I used for the text was Calgary Script OT. Given I wanted the text to feel as if it had been brushed, I didn’t want the spacing to be uneven. In Thinking With Type, kerning is how the spacing is between two letters. For my font, if the spacing was too much it would take away from the cursive feel. I also selected colors that in my mind represent growth and spring. With a deep green for my text, light blue for the background, and yellow and orange for my flower.

After finalizing my font and colors, I went about creating my flower. Even though this process was tricky, I’m proud of what I was able to create. It also helped me to fully understand how important and powerful Illustrator is compared to Photoshop. This design also gave me a deeper appreciation for typography as a medium. Even though it can seem so simple, typography is very complex and a lot of design rests on its shoulders. Hopefully, this design will welcome the start of spring soon, and not lead to more weeks of winter.

Works Cited:

Landa, R. (2019). Chapter 3: Typography. In Graphic design solutions (6th ed., pp. 35-64). Boston, MA: Cengage.

Lupton, E. (2009). Text. http://thinkingwithtype.com/text/.