Typographic Design
Typographic Hierarchy
Critique and Redesign
Original spread
(W Magazine, 2019)
Structure of content
The designers' visual positioning technique employs graphics as the primary eye-catching visual point for viewers, attracting interest while providing contextual indicators to the subject of the article before the main header and standfirst are addressed.
Resources used by designer
Typeface
The main header of this spread is a serif, bold and condensed font, most likely the typeface Dilemma Serif Bold CD with an adjustment to the tracking space between the letters. The main header is also underlined to emphasise its importance (Howard, 2021). The standfirst uses a similar style typeface that is bold, condensed, italicised, and approximately half the font size of the main header. The byline and credits of this spread contain a light and condensed sans serif font that is capitalised and on the same baseline as the standfirst. This creates a form of alignment and balance around the body of this text space. The typeface for the caption on the bottom right of the first page is similar to the byline and credits, where it is a light and condensed sans serif font.
The text on page two of the spread begins with a drop cap on the letter 'H' in 'How' to highlight the start of the body copy. The large and bold sans serif drop cap contrasts against the small and regular serif body copy. The furniture and folio text is aligned to the left and right respectively and rest on the same baseline.
Scale and size
The designer establishes a visual hierarchy through the manipulation of each element's size and scale (Soegaard, 2021). The imagery in this spread is the most significant aspect, which is conveyed through the large sizing of the imagery. Each image in the article is a photo of Thierry Gillier and Cecilia Bönström's Paris apartment, signifying the focus of the article's content. As the importance of the information decreases, the size of the visual elements (i.e. text) decreases. This is shown by the main header and standfirst portrayed in larger size compared to the body copy and caption. This implies to viewers that the smaller text features are not the central focus of the spread, but are supplementary to the images and can be read last. Thus, this supports the designer's use of scale and size to form a visual hierarchy of information that allows the viewers to easily follow and understand.
Space and alignment
The magazine spread uses a 7 column grid, however, the designer has not followed the exact grid layout. The alignment of the text on the first page is left aligned, whereas, on the second page the body copy text is justified with all lines. The furniture is left aligned to the body copy and the folio is right aligned. The designer uses white space to separate elements on the first page. There is quite a large leading space between the main header and standfirst which is executed to emphasise the header text. The main header, standfirst, byline, and credits text uses a smaller tracking space. The caption involves the same leading, tracking, and kerning space. The body copy also uses the same leading, tracking, and kerning space, along with a larger drop cap and paragraph indents. On the first page, the top left image is left aligned, while the image below is partially aligned to the centre of the text. The large image on the second page is left aligned to the caption text.
Colour and contrast
The images featured contain a high level of exposure, saturation, and vibrance, allowing them to stand out in the article and grab the viewer's attention (CorelDraw, 2022). There are prominent tones of blue, green, and brown within the images that complement each other effectively. Hence, the images easily attract the reader's against the plain black body text. Looking at the textual elements, contrast is portrayed through the differing serif and sans serif pairings, line-weight, scale, and positioning. The boldness of the main header and standfirst allows it to contrast effectively against the light caption and regular body copy.
Overall effectiveness and aesthetics
Overall, the effectiveness and aesthetics of the magazine spread are good but can be more effective. The bold serif main header contrasts effectively against the other text but is undermined by the Picasso image to its left. The underline used on the header is also unnecessary and could be more effective if the font size is larger and left aligned to the top of the page. There are also opportunities to play around with the main header's typeface by using a less condensed font. The standfirst should not be italicised and instead, be left aligned with the main header. The byline and credits should be below the standfirst with a larger leading space and possible larger font size. The spread incorporates a good use of hierarchy to organise information on its level of importance, and guide's the viewer through the spread, but this guide could flow better. The caption text, although is left aligned to the large image above, appears to be placed in an awkward section on the first page when viewing the pages alone. Upon reading the caption, the location of this text makes it difficult to understand and find the images it is referring to. Furthermore, the images can be sized and scaled more effectively throughout the spread. Although the large image on the right appears more unique by crossing over the page gutter to the left, it underwhelms all of the other information, including the main header. The body copy can also be aligned more suitably with the image, and possibly left aligned instead of being justified with all lines. Thus, in the redesign of this spread, there will be alterations to typeface, size, scale, and alignment.
Redesign of spread
Design analysis
The overall redesign of the spread is consistent with the original design's use of white space and emphasis on imagery. However, the main header is now enlarged and aligned to the top left side of the first page with the word 'An' resting above, in the middle of 'Art'. This main header, combined with the now reduced, but still large image on the right serves as the viewer's entry points. The typeface for the header is Didot Regular, and the standfirst is Minion Pro Regular. This font is classic and sophisticated, with contrasting strokes making it easy to read and connect with the general theme of the spread (Bigelow, 2019). The standfirst is also left aligned with the main header. The font size of the standfirst is significantly smaller compared to the main header to attract the viewer to the focal text on the page. The left aligned byline and credits use a simple sans serif type, Neue Haas Unica W1G Light, and sits below the standfirst. The simplified letterforms of this font allow it to appear minimal and modern, which works effectively with the smaller and short text setting on this spread (Bigelow, 2019). The image of Theirry Gillier and Cecilia Bönström has been enlarged and is also aligned to the left of the page. The choice of enlarging this image is to show more appreciation towards the owners of this apartment and to enlighten viewers on the people the article is referring to. The caption, which uses the same font as the byline and credits, is placed on the bottom right side of the first page and is left aligned. The caption is strategically placed to create a sense of balance on the page. As mentioned before, the top image on the second page has been reduced, but still covers over half of the page. This image does not cross over the left page gutter, and therefore, can guide the viewer's eye more effectively around the spread, moving from left to right in a more natural manner (Soegaard, 2021). Pablo Picasso’s Buste de Femme has been removed from the first page and placed on the bottom of the second page, next to the body copy. The new placement of this image improves the spacing, scale and alignment of the spread. The serif typeface used for the body copy is Minion Pro Regular, and the text contains the drop cap from the original spread, however, the font is serif instead of sans serif. The font for the furniture and folio text is also Neue Haas Unica W1G Light, and the furniture is moved to the bottom left side of the spread, while the folio is on the bottom right side. The colour of the text remains black to allow for contrast and focus on the beautiful images displayed. To conclude, the fonts pair effectively against each other with contrasting elements of serif and sans serif type and varying scale and size. The left alignment of the entire spread is successful in guiding the viewer, and the new scale and sizing of the images also flow the audience through the pages.
Style guide
Main header: Didot
Size: 78pt
Leading: 93.6pt
Standfirst: Minion Pro Regular
Size: 12pt
Leading: 10pt
Byline & Credits: Neue Haas Unica W1G Light
Size: 10pt
Leading: 14pt
Caption: Neue Haas Unica W1G Light
Size: 7pt
Leading: 12pt
Body copy: Minion Pro Regular
Size: 8pt
Leading: 9.6pt
Furniture: Neue Haas Unica W1G Light
Size: 7pt
Leading: 8.4pt
Folio: Neue Haas Unica W1G Light
Size: 7pt
Leading: 8.4pt
Redesign Iterations
Below are 4 different iterations of the magazine spread redesign. There were varying typefaces, scaling, sizing, and spacing elements trialed.
Event Program - Conference lineup
The conference booklet design contains a line-up of talented artists in the electronic music industry. The visual aesthetic of the final design is dreamy, colourful and imaginative. The magazine redesign task inspired the exploration of the booklet size, scale, space, and alignment to achieve a clear yet interesting hierarchical content structure. There is an emphasis on the artist's images and the main header 'the line up' with the use of scale, alignment and spacing. The images are placed at the top of the page to draw the viewers and act as an entry point for the booklet, along with the bold main header that is placed on the left side of the page. This is positioned purposely to guide the natural eye movements of the reader through the booklet (Soegaard, 2021). The words used for the title, 'the line up' is also a common term used in the music industry when introducing artist lineups for festivals and concerts. Thus, the audience can notice this correlation and become interested in reading more of the booklet. The gestalt principle of proximity is implemented through the close spacing of each artist and the information related to them, allowing viewers to easily differentiate the artists (Interaction Design Foundation, 2019).
The front cover of the booklet shows the conference's name, Electronic Music Conference, and provides a brief overview of the event. The illustrative elements in the background are also shown inside the booklet to provide consistency. These illustrations are created with bright, vibrant colours that form a gradient blurred shape. This design helps elevate the booklet page and allows it to appear more interesting. The blurs also enclose the important information which guides the viewer to read the text. The gestalt principle of closure and figure and ground can be seen on the cover page through its use of negative space (Interaction Design Foundation, 2019). The white space around the conference title appears to be flowing around or out of the coloured blurs, leading the viewer to flip to the information page.
The typeface used in this booklet is Helvetica Bold and Light, and Neue Haas Unica W1G Light. Helvetica Bold is used for the large titles and artist names, while Light is for the body copy. Neue Haas Unica W1G Light is seen on the conference description on the front cover and is also used for the furniture, URL, and folio placed at the top and bottom of the pages. The decision to use these two typefaces is to keep the aesthetic of the booklet clean, minimal and simple. The focal point of the page is about the artists and their achievements, and a contrasting text would have minimised that attraction.
References
Bigelow, C. (2019). Typeface features and legibility research. Vision Research, 165, 162-172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2019.05.003.
CorelDraw. (2022). Contrast in graphic design: Understanding what it means and how to use it. CorelDraw. https://www.coreldraw.com/en/tips/graphic-design-principles/contrast/
Howard, J. (2021). The correct way to use bold type fonts effectively in design. Lifewire. https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-use-bold-type-effectively-1074100
Interaction Design Foundation. (2019). Gestalt principles. Interaction Design Foundation. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/gestalt-principles
Soegaard, M. (2021). Visual hierarchy: Organizing content to follow natural eye movement patterns. Interaction Design. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/visual-hierarchy-organizing-content-to-follow-natural-eye-movement-patterns
W Magazine. (2019). An Artful Pairing. W Magazine, 1. http://www.bernarddubois.com/press/w-magazine-v1-2019-us/
