Simple can be harder than complex

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The brief in two words; Massimo Vignelli

What every creative person dreams of, a brief that is both succinct and enlightening. When the client articulated the historical back-story and the expectations of the future-story for the 2016 version of the Italian Film Festival, it was apparent as Steve Jobs said, “Simple can be harder than complex". Massimo Vignelli was master of the minimal aesthetic and implemented a narrow range of typefaces that he considered to be perfect in their genre, including Bodoni, Helvetica, Garamond No. 3 and Century Expanded. He wrote that, "In the new computer age, the proliferation of typefaces and type manipulations represents a new level of visual pollution threatening our culture. Out of thousands of typefaces, all we need are a few basic ones, and trash the rest."

Fig. 1 (above)

And in the beginning there was Bodoni.

Exploring the point at which the removal of the 'I' and
the tightening of the overall kerning and the individual character kerning,
rendered the text illegible. Then working back in the opposite direction, opening
up the kerning, yet still maintaining a connection between the letter forms.

Fig. 2 (above)

Fin.

Lead designer; Tim Blower, String Theory.
Client; Paolo Rotondo and Renee Mark.
Print production manager; Lee Shaw, Production Partners.
Printing; Alliance Printing.
Poster installation; Phantom Billstickers.