OUGD505 - Studio Brief 02 - Further Crossword Developments

Based on peer feedback, it was decided to focus and continue further with developing the crossword idea since it was considered as a more creative way to present information. In response to this feedback, I began to experiment more with the crossword imagery which would be used amongst the main type developments. Although it was suggested that perhaps the amount of words could be shortened, it was decided to keep the same word layout as previous since this included the greenhouse gases which are produced from deforestation and was thought that this could link nicely to the chosen clue for the word 'deforestation' which I set as "1 down - the cause of 15 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions".

The first idea was to use my own handwriting to fill in the letters since this gave it a more realistic touch to the design. This was written in red pen to allow the word to stand out amongst the other bold use of block colour and make this one of the main focus points of the design. In this idea, it was decided to keep the word 'deforestation' on its own and leave the other boxes blank so that the audience would have to use the other clues given to them in this design to figure out what the other words may be like they would with a real crossword puzzle.

The next variation continues the use of my own handwriting along with the red pen for similar reasons as the first. In these, it was decided to try filling in all the words since it was thought that perhaps these would not be as obvious as first thought if left blank. In this variation, the black box surrounding the crossword was also manipulated slightly into a more squared shape so that there was not as much black space filling up the page, which brings everything in together a bit more.

Whilst it was thought that using my own handwriting would give the crossword designs a more realistic touch, it was also decided to experiment with the use of digital type which could potentially still look as though it were handwritten. This was done since my own handwriting almost looked a bit bulky in the boxes, whereas a thinner, digital type would allow for more negative space to be present around the letterforms along with more definitive characteristics that would make it easier for the potential audience to read. Variations were again created with using the word 'deforestation' on its own and with the other words, but this time the word 'deforestation' has been circled as if in red pen for this to continue to stand out amongst the rest of the information. For these variations, the typeface Rudiment has been used.

Going back to experimenting with my own handwriting, one variation was produced whereby the word 'deforestation' was written in red whilst the others were in black in order for it to stand out on its own without the need for it to be circled.

In experimenting with digital type, it was considered that perhaps the use of Rudiment was almost too reformed as a typeface and did not represent characteristics of handwritten type as much as other typefaces. Further developments were therefore done using the typeface GoodDog Plain, which has more of a quirky feel to it that could better represent handwritten type.

In the development of these images, each was copied and scanned back into the computer, limiting the use of inks which you can see has created some interesting effects that give the imagery some element of texture that can be associated with that of newsprint - something else which gives the use of imagery a link to the message it is trying to communicate and the original concept it was based on. The limited use of colour also continues ideas based on sustainability, meaning that less ink would be used in the printing process.