Georgiou
Vassilis
December
7–11
Year
2020
The Agitated Image: Type workshop inspired by lettering found on public space / Basic alphabet design
About the workshop
The class is a hybrid of lecture, seminar, and studio work. Students will work in groups of 2-3.
The workshop investigates the poetry of things when restrictions apply. The core thought is how we could “rewrite” public social messages and it plays with the notions of representation and urban poetry & social movements, while tackles the idea of how typography in public space could challenge socio – political issues.
During the workshop students are asked to be inspired from their city’s typography (e.g. the vernacular lettering that someone witness on the signage of shops, cinemas, theatres, architectural landmarks, handwritten slogans etc) and draw a basic alphabet, then rewrite a political and/or social message of their choice, by creating typographic compositions.
Objectives
The aim of the workshop is to introduce students to the protest posters and placards of demonstrations and to examples of artistic interventions for social purposes.
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Urban environment and social movements are treated as a terrain of inspiration, and during the workshop students are challenged to understand the relation between type (text – meaning) and space (size, movement, symbolic language and carrier of messages) as they are asked to make small but powerful typographic interventions.
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Students gain understanding of cultural differences through the observation and research of local typefaces of signage.
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During the workshop they gain basic knowledge of creating their own typeface and they become more familiar with analog DIY techniques through the experimentation on typographic compositions.
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Students develop their research and team working skills.
Course content
Course content will be delivered in the form of:
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class lectures
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class watching/studying and discussions on relevant material to selected topics presented in lectures, and case studies
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class discussions on student-generated content of learning portfolios
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demonstration of hands-on working techniques
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individual counselling
Portfolio / outcomes
Course outcomes will be delivered in the form of:
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A1 Posters (pdf files, CMYK, 300 dpi, 59,4x84,1cm)
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Instagram posts (jpg or gifs 1080x1080 pixels)
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1×1 m space interventions
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A collectively made typeface
Tools / materials / equipment / software
Adobe software, mob camera, printer, any kind of material for DIY experimentation (e.g. pencils, stencils, scissors, papers, glue, ink, sprays, dry transfer lettering, photocopy etc.). Students are encouraged to investigate their personal style.
Workshop description
Schedule
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Monday (briefing – initial research – discussion)
Morning
Ice-breaking: students introduce themselves (presentation 2min max)
Briefing: explaining the topic and the deliverables
Lectures:
— protest poster – typo plakat in demonstrations – vernacular lettering, design by non-designers
— urban typography – public space as terrain of inspiration
Afternoon
Creating a reservoir of ideas: students present their initial research of the typeface of their choice on which they would like to work on (presentations 4min max) – group discussion
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Tuesday (research – first experiments – individual counselling)
Morning
Studio work: first design experiments (analogue only)
Analysis and evaluation of the outcome so far – group discussion
Afternoon
Technical issues and tips
Group discussion
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Wednesday (studio work – development of designs & typeface)
Morning
Studio work: crystallization of ideas, design experiments, finding personal style
Afternoon
Starting working on the digitization of your type – developing the poster designs
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Thursday (final designs)
Morning
Finalization of designs and typeface – individual counselling
Afternoon
Start working on the presentation
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Friday (presentation)*
9:00–12:00 working on the final presentation
(15 min max for the whole group)
* everything should be ready by 12:00 to start uploading files
for presentation.
Reading references
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(article) Steven Heller, (2020). ‘Graphic Emergency Emerges in Poland’. Design Observer.
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(article) Rob Giampietro, ‘The problem with Posters’, Dot Dot Dot 7, 2003
Further reading
Vassilis Georgiou
Vassilis Georgiou is a graphic designer, lives and works in Athens, Greece. He is a visual communication designer and in recent years has been mainly involved in the design of typefaces and books. The main pillars of his research and practice are three: (a) the history and evolution of the morphology of Greek letters, through the tools and ways of writing, but also through the reproduction of texts in multiple copies, (b) the impact that the form of the letters can have on the reader — the text as an image — and (c) the methods of transmitting written information, either through marketing or through art.