In producing design which looked digital through handmade means, the screen-printing process was used in the production of this first poster. In order to help with the alignment of the two colours, a proof print was initially pulled through the screen onto a sheet of transparent plastic, allowing a form of discipline into the process, something considered as relating more to digital styles.
The design itself took inspiration from Bauhaus and Swiss design aesthetics, movements which typically favoured digital design styles, associated with structure, discipline, simplicity, rationality and functionality. The use of strong lines of block colour came from these styles, which also helped to structure the print itself and highlight the use of an underlying grid system. The use of colour was also inspired by the Bauhaus aesthetic, using this to play on their ideas of rationality to highlight words I deemed of importance which aimed to draw viewers' attentions towards the message of the design. This use of colour to highlight certain words was also done in an attempt to not let the words get lost amongst the rest of the design due to the minimalistic colour schemes. In addition, the use of strong lines in the design helped in the production process to limit imperfections and so help make the design look as if produced digitally, as intended.
The structure and placement of the words was specific and considered as to not repeat words, which helped to link the full quote together in a more concise way. The way in which the blocks and words have been structured together also further highlights the use of a grid and discipline in the design, as well as allowing for more negative space to be present amongst the design, an element which digital design typically favours for visual impact.
'Against digital' design:
In producing design which looked handmade through digital means, existing typefaces were manipulated through the use of computer programs to better represent certain handmade styles and processes. For instance, to reflect the traditional font styles found in letterpress printing, one typeface was manipulated to include serifs, something which modern typefaces generally don't feature. The typeface, Helvetica, was also broken down into sections and 'stitched' back together in order to reflect the aesthetics of old, crumbled letraset type. Another typeface mimics the style of inverted lead blocks also used in the letterpress processes, which allows the type to be stamped onto the material. The styles of these fonts were not only manipulated to represent these various handmade processes, however were also thought about carefully in representing the words of the quote themselves, for instance, through showing the 'clumsy' nature of letraset. This use of multiple type styles was inspired by research into print styles, which seem to be more expressive in a similar way.
Extra elements of texture and misprinted type were also added to the design in order to present small imperfections and tactility into the design, which many handmade processes and styles show, such as the addition of a paint smudge onto one of the typefaces, reflecting a problem associated with screen-printing whereby sometimes the ink can smudge on the back of the screen which then transfers onto the material.
In this design, the quote was also separated into sections, something which aimed to make the viewer focus on one part of the quote at a time to fully engage with the message of the poster. The design of these separations were inspired by the tools used in traditional design processes, such as lead blocks used for kerning and tracking in letterpress. However, these have been put into a consistent style that matches the imperfect nature of the handmade as well as the header and footer elements of the design.
Consistent elements:
Both posters use an underlying column grid, produced to a size of A2, since it was found this type of grid worked better in effectively presenting typographic information, which was used to ensure a element of consistency in the structure of both posters that ties them together. Likewise, a consistent colour palette has been used between the two designs, a scheme found to be present in both digital (elements of the Bauhaus and Swiss design) and handmade (minimalistic, primary colours) production.
Another consistent element found between the two posters is the use of a header and footer, containing the tagline 'experience things differently' which viewers can then look at and realise there is something different in the way the designs have been produced that they need to figure out before the message/aim of the posters can be revealed to them. This also adds some structure to both designs where all important information is properly contained in the centre of the poster, this centre placement being something which Massimo Vignelli stated as the most important, since this is where information is most likely to gain attention.
In the way these posters have been produced, both take on a multi-disciplinary approach, something which was found to be more prominent in the design industry now that designers use to avoid problems associated with the experience of using one exclusive method of production. The aesthetic contrast produced in these designs, aims to get people to 'experience things differently' and produce a universal appreciation of the design's aesthetics.
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