As my adjective is playful, I began to research into children and how they play and why they play, as this is a very interesting prospect to me and I wanted to bring my research and this discussion into my typeface design. First of all the different types of play, suggests that the letter forms can be different and each letter can be individual, as are children.
Solitary Play - This idea suggests that each letterform is stand alone and can be it's own letterform. Which is creating an opposite approach to Univers and making them all individual instead of a united typeface. It also means that each letterform needs to be manipulated and changed in their own different ways which are suitable to their characteristics. This type of play means the child grows more confident, which is also one of the reasons I chose the bold typeface and meant for my typeface to stand out, which is why I have chosen to give it an extremely increased weight and stroke.
Risky Play - This type of play gave me the idea of breaking rules within a typeface and the idea of being curious and experimental with letterforms. Which is why I chose to flip the 'D' and also flip the bowls of the 'D' so therefore it was unbalanced. It shows fun and curiosity and experimenting with how much you can change. It also builds independence which brings us back to the idea of each letterform being manipulated to suit it's form and characteristics, whether it has ascenders, descender, counters, bowls or terminals.
Sensory Play - This allows children to again explore the world and assess risk, which is why I have chosen to break rules within the typeface and create interest. It allows children to get to know themselves, as each letterform knows their own characteristics and is different from the others. It allows them to discover cognitive skills and movement and placement. Another reason why I chose to elongate the ascenders to create a sense of movement.
Parallel Play - Although this contradicts that each letter should be individual, it also fits the rules of a good typeface that the letters need to be able to fit next to each other, in a flowing, readable order. Therefore the letterforms can only be slightly different. it encourage self expression (different letterforms), boosts confidence (heavy weight), eases transition, (increase legibility).
Pretend/Dramatic Play - Transforming objects into symbols, which is why I chose to have bold lettering, which could be difficult to read sometimes, but this means it nurtures imagination and creativity as playing does. It also encourages experimentation, which means that rules can be broken.
Rough and Tumble - Helps to discover boundaries, therefore experimenting with type means that I am experimenting with the boundaries of how many rules can be broken or how creative to do with a type before it becomes unreadable or illegible. Which explains the flipped D and B.
Constructive Play - This is the creative aspect of the typeface, and the creation of something new from something that already exists. This also develops imagination and improves ability to focus. Which is why my typeface still needed to be legible.
Active Play - Is the reasoning behind the lengthened ascenders, to create the sense of movement and kinetic energy amongst children. More importantly to show growth and the amount that children are learning. It also means that they follow rules and stimulate brain development, which is why the typeface needs to still be legible and only have a few rule breakers.
Cooperative Play - When children unite, they come together and play, so the typeface needs to come together as a whole and exist together and the letterforms need to be able to fit together in all different sequences. It also encourages self-expression which I believe what my typeface will do, be expressive, bold and youthful and fun.
In conclusion, within my typeface I will include aspects of all the different types of play and apply these within my typeface. With growing ascenders to represent learning and growth. I will choose a bold weight and increase the stroke width to show increasing confidence and bold expression. It will mean that each letterform will be manipulated individual to show the different types of play and to represent how children become individuals. Also the flipping and reflections of letters, show how children test boundaries and break and find the rules themselves.
No comments:
Post a Comment