Alphabet Soup//Visual Thinking

Existing Letterforms 

'TP Type' by Diane Zerr 

'Modern Guilt' by Mario Hugo

'Ahoy there' by Ross Crawford and Dvid Soueh, The book of inspiration Vol. II

Here are a few letterforms of the letter 'O' found that have a unique design that could well influence the shape of the final ten letterforms communicating the word 'Extract'. 

Along with inspiration from the letterforms that were found in magazines and books, also  simple, well-known typefaces were founds to form the shape of the final ten letterforms. Fonts such as Gill sans, Arial black and Helvetica are amongst them. Above are examples of these. As they are very simple and bold they will hopefully deliver impact yet still be legible. 

http://typophile.com/node/80006

In terms of finding a typeface that displays the idea of 'Extract', this font above gives the concept of erosion and a destroyed effect. Regarding the ten letterforms communicating the word 'Extract' something like this would reflect the idea well. 

http://www.fonts101.com

Above shows letters made out of words which is a concept that could work similarly to the way of applying an 'Extract' within letterforms. 

Alphabet Soup//Visual Thinking

This brief was set out to produce a series of ten letter forms that interpret a word from the randomizer. The word I was given to stimulate this brief was 'EXTRACT'. To communicate this, we were only allowed to use a black and white colour way and it had to be hand rendered. The idea that we had use traditional ways in communicating our letters was something that I was looking forward to do as I really enjoy hands on tasks. However, at first I found it a struggle with the word I was given. After looking into a few things and exploring the word and the meaning further, I finally began to produce my letter forms. 


Definition of extract: 
1. To draw or pull out, often with great force or effort: extract a wisdom tooth; used tweezers to extract the splinter.
2. To obtain despite resistance: extract a promise.
3. To obtain from a substance by chemical or mechanical action, as by pressure, distillation, or evaporation.
4. To remove for separate consideration or publication; excerpt.
5.

a. To derive or obtain (information, for example) from a source.

b. To deduce (a principle or doctrine); construe (a meaning).

6. Mathematics To determine or calculate (the root of a number).

c. To derive (pleasure or comfort) from an experience.

Something extracted, especially

                  a. A passage from a literary work; an excerpt.

      b. A concentrated preparation of the essential constituents of a food, flavouring, or            

                  other substance; a concentrate: maple extract.

The letter I chose to manipulate was the letter 'O'. I chose this because of the simple shape, therefore when I am experimenting hopefully the letter itself will still be bold and readable. 

After looking into the definition of the word, I wanted to communicate my letter in two different ways. I decided that I could simply 'extract' the letter form itself (or parts of it), or go for a more obvious way by using the describing word.        


EXTRACT is another way of saying...THE ROOT OF. 


EXTRACT is another way of saying...To REMOVE. 


These were two ideas I looked into to try and attack this brief from my perspective. I decided to break the word down. I liked the definitions I came across and found it easier to use these to create my letters, rather than just focusing on the broadness of the word itself. For example, chemistry and mathematical extraction was an area that I wanted to interpret. In contrast to this I also looked into extracts from books and poems. I love English so for me, this idea was an obvious one to communicate visually. 

Research into 'How to....' project

'Yummy mummy survival kit' 

After researching Kim Khakh's portfolio, I came across a chocolate 'survival kit' designed for any occasion. This unique chocolate box is aimed at mothers for times in need. The slogan such as 'In case of emergency, break seal' suggests a sense of urgency and acts almost like a rescue or escape route.

Caroline Henson, Leeds College of Art

The Graphic Designer's Sleep Survival Kit

I came across this very apt design, by a recent student of the college, whilst searching for ideas for our recent 'how to' project. The kit includes a screen printed blanket, pillow and eye mask, as well as a leaflet that fully details why this kit is actually essential, and how to use the products in it. 

This will prove really useful in aiding our project as it has been designed specifically for a Graphic Design student, which is part of our criteria. Although our kits are more specific to students with a demanding work load, the design is something we can really focus on. In addition to this, the wit and humour used is something we are keen on including in order to catch the attention of our audience, and to make them feel comfortable using the product.

After a small tutorial with Amber, our group similarly made the decision to include some form of poster or contents manual explaining what the product actually is, what it's supposed to be used for and also what is meant to go in it. At first we planned on just including the contents on the side of the box, but soon decided that these could become lost or go unnoticed. Something more prominent would therefore be needed in order to back it up.

http://carolinehenson.co.uk/index.php?/project/the-graphic-designers-sleep-survival-kit/

(From Beth's blog).