Studio Brief 2 - Typeface part 5 (a new direction for my research)

My last crit gave me a few ideas to explore, however when it came down to continue developing my typeface I found myself uninspired, stuck and frustrated. I have decided to rethink the direction I want to take my type in, and start afresh with brainstorming.

Grand has many synonyms and associated words.
luxury
wealth
power
lavish
bold


The word grand immediately makes me think of a grand piano. This is associated with luxury.
From this I researched the type found on grand pianos - in particular the logos from the manufacturers. The higher quality pianos the better, as this will mean the logo is more luxurious.

Bosendorfer is one of the oldest luxury piano manufacturers in the world. The blackletter fond lends to the authentic and historical feel of the company, in keeping with the luxury image. Creating a blackletter typeface would be interesting and certainly in keeping with my adjective but I feel that the typeface would have limited use.


Another thing I associate with the word grand is the film the Great Gatsby. The story revolves around a man infamous for throwing lavish and luxurious parties.

The original book cover features both script and serif type. Some of the features of the serif type are accentuated eg. the vertical line of the 'G'. Similarly the serifs on the G are extended into the counter of the glyph. The cross bar on the A is lowered to make the counter space greater.
The kerning of the letters is extremely tight. All these features combined give the letters a more luxurious feel, as the letters are unapologetic and bold. 

The type used for the film adaptation posters focuses on a theme of lavishness. The altered letterforms take up more space than the original characters, and the use of lines in progression make the type look excessive and over the top, contributing well to the feel of luxury and lavishness. The typographer has taken inspiration from the art deco period, and the type used in conjunction with the rest of the poster design makes the film appear grand.


I will continue researching into the art deco style, as I feel my typeface will be heading in a stronger direction than my previous idea. Additionally, I want to look into art nouveau as well.