Typography Design- Diddy Didot
2019 | Experimental Design & Workshop
This typography project was created within the Penguin book awards competition 2019 which asked for a book cover design for Wonder by R. J. Palacio. The book is about the journey of a young boy who stands out from the crowd in his new school due to his unique facial features. And how he makes new friends whilst tackling bullies and his insecurities.
My initial thought was to design or find a handwritten typeface for the title. This wasn’t as easy as I hoped. During a visit to my mums school I decided to do some primary research with 9-11 year olds which was the books main target audience. The research included finding out what design of book covers kids are most attracted to (lots and lots of glitter). Also during the visit, I decided to do a little experiment by introducing the kids to typography. I asked each student in the class to replicate the given letter with either pencils or pens. The printed out letters were in Didot the famous french classic. Each individual had a unique style, some chose freehand and others thought to use rulers. When all brought back together, it created the most characteristic alphabet.
This is when Diddy Didot was born.
It was perfect for the book cover, a typeface created by a team of children. To emphasise the point that uniqueness is so important and that we shouldn't judge at first impression, as there is so much more to people and things, you just have to look a little deeper to understand and accept. Just like the schoolboy's journey in the novel 'Wonder'.
