A Type Specimen for the future

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ISTD 2014

Student assessment 3rd prize

University project

Monotype, a global leader in the typeface design for more than 125 years, has a history spanning every major era of type, with more than 16,00 typefaces, and growing. The brief asked to design a Type Specimen that showcases at least one font family from each section of Monotype’s chosen new and classic releases.

This specimen could utilise media ranging from the printed page to performance or from digital to enviromental - the choice is yours, but remember that language and communication are key to how we engage with the visual and textual world.

Consider how we currently engage with typography on all levels and how you could possibly subvert this interaction -

anything is possible.

After choosing Egyptian Slate Pro and ITC Bodoni, the thinking started by combining Egypt and Greece, due to the same problems both countires share. Some of those problems are:

Police brutality

Widespread corruption

High unemployment

Food price inflation

Low minimum wages

Inspiration from concurrent regional protests

Words are a powerful and an incredible means of communication. Combining streets and words I came up with an action, in order to show that thins are not going well for both countries. A Type Specimen should communicate the situation that exist at the present time.

So my proposition for completing the project was:

To create a Type Specimen for Egyptian Slate Pro and ITC Bodoni Pro. Due to the power of words, use this Type Specimen to raise awareness for a change that can be achieved through knowledge, learning, and education and by changing individually within ourselves, so we can united step up for our beliefs.

To use Egytpian Slate Pro for a street art movement, that includes posters, stencils, graffiti, and stickers, showing three quotes (“GO LEARN”, “WE STAND UNITED”, “THE CHANGE WITHIN YOU”), as well as, creating a zine to distribute in the streets.

To use ITC Bodoni Pro for projections in the public space, as the second part of the movement, using the same quotes.

To target the most heavily traveled areas of downtown Thessaloniki.

To film and edit this entire action.

To include this action in the starting pages of the Type Specimen, as well as the video, to show how this was created.