Vignelli Canon
Overview:
This was the main project for a typography class, where I was given the contents of Massimo Vignelli’s Canon and was required to design a book using only the text and images given.
Timeline:
May-June
Tools:
Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop
Design Process:
I was provided with both the content and images, as well as the dimensions that the book needed to be. With minimal requirements (that I could only use what was given), I only needed to think about designing the cover and the layout of the content.
My inspiration was the signage for New York City’s subway system, but specifically the iconic colors for different lines. After a little research, I settled on a few repeating colors: orange, green, purple and blue. The text is set in Helvetica, to honor Vignelli’s love for the typeface. I also chose Frutiger as the header typeface, as I felt that it provided a pleasant, subtle contrast to Helvetica.
It took me a surprising amount of time to decide on the color palette and how it related to the relevant imagery. It took me even more time to iterate upon the layout of the text and images – I was surprised at how much deliberation was involved in this process.
Looking back the project a year later, I see a few places for improvements. I would edit the placement of the images, and I want to play around with the grid structure of the text blocks. I would also focus on the font for maximum readability.
This was the main project for a typography class, where I was given the contents of Massimo Vignelli’s Canon and was required to design a book using only the text and images given.
Timeline:
May-June
Tools:
Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop
Design Process:
I was provided with both the content and images, as well as the dimensions that the book needed to be. With minimal requirements (that I could only use what was given), I only needed to think about designing the cover and the layout of the content.
My inspiration was the signage for New York City’s subway system, but specifically the iconic colors for different lines. After a little research, I settled on a few repeating colors: orange, green, purple and blue. The text is set in Helvetica, to honor Vignelli’s love for the typeface. I also chose Frutiger as the header typeface, as I felt that it provided a pleasant, subtle contrast to Helvetica.
It took me a surprising amount of time to decide on the color palette and how it related to the relevant imagery. It took me even more time to iterate upon the layout of the text and images – I was surprised at how much deliberation was involved in this process.
Looking back the project a year later, I see a few places for improvements. I would edit the placement of the images, and I want to play around with the grid structure of the text blocks. I would also focus on the font for maximum readability.
