day five: messages

Typography can have a temporary purpose or a lasting purpose. Some type is used to create things we may see once then throw away & other type is used to create something more lasting, something we are intended to look at more than once. These images show a very temporary message, & yet it conveys a more intimate/personal experience for the person the message was created for.

I find it ironic that as I explored Cedar City for different uses of type, that this temporary message was more interesting to me than type used for, lets say, signage, because it is meant to last for an x amount of time. Signs are meant to be noticed each time you pass by them & should be easily recognizable. But wouldn't you think that something more meaningful should be more lasting...not that it should be seen by all like a sign...but that it should be able to last for a longer space of time?

Gym Flier ( Devo: day 5)

Gone are the days when I can see a home made flier, and not dissect it. It's kinda like when I am watching someone sing at church, and I ask myself "what would Simon say about this performance". Before American Idol, I just could enjoy average singing... Now I can't. I am starting to feel like I am the Simon of typography with my posts. So I think I will mix it up with a couple type signs I like around Cedar, not just the ones I don't like. I don't like being on the negative side always.

As I mentioned in class, I went to golds gym on Thursday night for Zumba (5:00 pm to 6:00 pm everyone should go!) I saw this flier up, and thought I would borrow it for the post. I love the correction on the "Your / you're", and the font handling on the top of the flier.

Devo

Phone Book

Today I found this Cedar City phone book and thought it was interesting how Cedar City chose to portray the city. They chose a script font, and put it with a mask to emphasize the Shakespeare Festival.

Old West font

I found this sign and i just had to take a picture. It went really really well with what i was doing. Its funny it took me forever to try to find which font this was. You'd think that old western type faces were the same but wow was i way wrong. i didn't know that there was more detail to them then i thought. This type face is called Cibola. What separate's this type face from the rest is that the tops and the bottoms of the letters are way waver then they typical western type faces, the second thing i noticed about this type face is that it has a hash mark (i dont know the correct term so we'll call it that) only in the center of the letters. Other type faces had hash marks on the upper part of the letter and on the lower part. And also the letter thins out and thickens in different places through-out the letter. So now that you know that, look at this picture and the other picture and you now will be able to tell the difference.

historic type

Hey guys. So i've kinda been behind on this project but what else is new i dont seem to really be able to stay on top of things due to that fact that i do get distracted. But for this project i decided to go around town and take pictures of type that goes from way back when, starting around the 1900's and on. I found this type face that dates back from 1850 to 1900 so it worked out really good since cedar was founded in 1851. this was a typical font used in the old west a lot. The font is called 57 rodeo, weird name i know but hey it worked for them back then and it was able to distinguish the west from the rest of the states.

Marian

The owner of the junkyard is named Marian. After a short conversation with him I discovered that he is originally from Nebraska,

he has owned the junkyard for 40 years, and he hates when people steal his signs.

Apparently he reconstructs the signs and sells them to buyers all over the U.S.

At first the old man seemed to be a recluse but he had no problem with me taking

pictures on his property.

Day 5: Out of Context

This 1st picture is a close-up of the word Summer in Forever Summer Tanning. Everybody likes to be tan even in Cedar City. The neon tubing for the letters really looks hand written and even a little sloppy. This type is unique for neons because it has one long continuous line rather than breaking for each letter. Neon signs all have a curvy flow to them and the fact that this sign is trying to utilize that aspect makes it more successful. When this word is taken out of context it becomes a little confusing and difficult to interpret, but when looking at the entire sign it looks great.
- Cami

Sign Graveyard

I know its late to start this project but I feel like I have a good idea, and I hope no one has already taken it. There is an old junkyard filled with signs on the western end of town. Whenever a store goes out of business or updates their sign the obsolete usually ends up here. I thought this would be a perfect place to see the history of the businesses here in Cedar City.

Going Green

Ever noticed how much green is used for Cedar City signs? Green and white, green and yellow. What is it about these two (or three) color combinations? I'm finding lots of green around Cedar City. Anyone know where this text can be found in town?

Last Day of Artificial Weathering

So ultimately i decided that black and white is the way to go, well, at least for these first five days. This is the last of my artificially weathered type. This particular piece is a dialog between some "intellectuals" The type seems to be saying to me that this is embedded truths or an example through type of the experience that the author has. The book actually really kinda sucks but that's besides the point.

Day 5: Jade Gelskey

Day 5: Candy Cane Shake

Day 5: So for starters this shake sounds really icky. Candy canes, while good holiday treats do not translate to icecream very well for me. That aside, the design of the advertisement is pretty dang good. Almost makes me want to buy this drink....almost haha.

Again like the others the type is very bubbly and bold. They are using a thick font with a thick stroke. Super common I am noticing in all of these signs. Not to much text is used which again is very similar with the others and the feeling and vibe is the same.

I think that this design could use some improvement (placement of everything is quite strange) but it does go along with the theme so I thought it would be good to post up as another example of similar type usage.

day 5

prehistoric:



january 2010:



i know this is not typography. however, i feel that it relates quite closely.
typography is partially about us, as humans, making our mark on the land, categorizing it and mapping it out and making sense of it for those who come after us. there is an essential need to say, "i was here. this is me. i did this." graffiti in our modern day, as well as leaving handprints, are our modern day trails of bread crumbs that leave a trail of our travels. i want to explore this concept more in my finished project.. but for now i will not bore everyone with my active imagination. have a great weekend everyone

Ever wonder why people put So and So was here? I mean come on..get a little more creative. But I asked a friend what she'd like to leave on Cedar City, and she'd like her name all over. So where better than a garbage can. I think I'm going to have to challenge people to get a little more bold in their statements. I thought it was a pretty funny idea regardless though. I want to start really putting these statements up, so I've got a couple ideas for tomorrow's post.

A Kid From Cedar City

Once again I am changing my theme. The whole finding spots in Cedar City for great typography was good idea but I kind of got sick of it. Today it came to me that I am probable the only person in class that grew up in Cedar City. The idea behind my theme is the history of Ceder City, but through the eyes of a person own history in Cedar City. I hope that made sense. I also wanted to make these series into a magazine layout. Each one of these photos will have a small article of my history of Cedar City. I hope this will work. Jay tell me if it doesn't so I can change my theme again.

"There I was..."

So there I was, in the bank drive thru again, when I looked up from my steering wheel and saw a pine tree. And guess what it was doing? Blocking a sign from across the street. You know what was funny, I knew what was over there because I had seen it many time before. But this time I couldn't recall what store was over there until I moved my car. The position of tree branches reminded me of one of the albums that I own by Matt Pond PA, "Last Light." The cover has some interesting typography which I thought relates to my theme.

Today I found the florescent sign above the old movie theatre. Again this sign is old probably from the 50's. Like my last post it is very simple bold lettering. It is florescent so it would stand out in the evening sky. It glows to attract people to see the movie. Movies were a big deal in the 50's. The theater is now closed because the movie theatres have become bigger and better and move out of the downtown area. Again it is a piece of Cedar history.

I like the type with the rounded A and E. The font is big and clear and easy to read. You don't see so much of kind of type in signs today. I think this type still stands out and shows off Main Street Cedar City.

Shannon

day 5 derrick williams

I forgot to post a blog yesterday, i guess i was to busy taking pictures of the school and came across this one and i liked it very much. I decided what to do for the project and i still need to take more pics but i just wanted to show you local text on our campus.

Words

I have been exploring ways to use words to not only say something but also create an image that doesn't conflict with the type. I want to use the words like a window to not only give a message but also a great view of something beautiful.

Courthouse Sign

I couldn't think of a really good way to sketch this one out, so I thought I'd go with a close up photo this time. The image is from the sign in front of the court house. This typographic example has the largest type so far, and the letters are cut deep into the stone sign.

This example is not so much about leaving a personal mark for history, as it is about creating a strong sense of establishment. The type is cut permanently in stone and helps to mirror the sense of integrity that a justice system provides. Type with such permanence helps to echo our desires for the infallibility of justice and law. Although such principles are not infallible, typography like this helps to foster an image of law and order that is incorruptible.

-Dan Gill