For
the most recent brief we were separated into groups and told to research our
given subject matter. The subject we were given was Printed Text & Reading. In our groups we pooled together ideas
and possible directions we could take our research. Once we had pooled all of
our ideas together we each selected one we wanted to research. My chosen
research subject was Printed Text &
Reading in the environment. I wanted to focus on scale, positioning,
layout, perspective and concept.
For my
primary research I have walked the streets of Leeds looking for and
photographing where printed text is used. As outlined at the start, I want to
focus on location and scale so whilst collecting my primary research these are
areas I have focused on.
The
most common form of Printed Text found around Leeds are these pillars that are
plastered with posters for up and coming events. The pillars stand around 2
meters tall and around 1 meter wide. They have 8 flat faces that enable the
posters to be pasted on. The Printed Text is slightly larger than commonly
seen, as it has to be readable whilst conveying a large amount of information.
Another
common place to find Printed Text on a much larger scale is on shops. This is a
much more commercial type of Printed Text. When this happens it is usually the
shop name and/or logo that is printed in massive letters on the side of the
building. In the case of Jaldi Jaldi and Costa the text is printed onto glass,
meaning other buildings and object are reflected, something I do not think shows
off the brand as well as possible as the reflection detracts from what is
printed.
Another
very common area of Printed Text in the environment is advertising, in this
case, on billboards. The reason I chose to photograph billboards rather than
other advertisements is due to their scale. I find that the larger scale works
have a much greater impact. Adverts on this scale need to be easy to read and
therefore the key information is much larger.
Another
place I found printed text was on the side of the art gallery. As found with my
secondary research and my experience of going to art galleries, it is usual to
have information about the exhibition printed onto the walls. This makes the
information easily accessible and readable. Out of all of the printed text I
found around the city, this was one of the most effective and aesthetically
attractive.
The
final and most effective Printed Text I found around the city was this text on
the side of boards marking out a building site. This is the most effective as
it is simple and clear. This is also and interesting piece of text as it is
only temporary, it is there whilst the building work is being completed.
Although this is not on a massive scale it is larger than would usually be
seen. In comparison to the other Printed Text in Leeds, this has the greatest
impact, followed by the gallery and the advert. When compared to the secondary
research it is not as powerful as it lacks the innovation of concept that
Printed Text such as the Eureka Carpark and the Design Museum Cafe have.
Direction
I want
to move my research away from the poster stand and commercial promotional side
to Printed Text in the environment.
I want
to focus it down on the larger scale work where there is an innovative, more
creative element to the work. I really like the idea of working on walls to a
scale that would not be commonly expected. I do not want to look any further
into advertising, however billboard and scale is something I possibly want to
develop whilst looking at scale.
I
chose the temporary information for the store and the eternal wall printing for
the gallery as the most affective Printed Text in Leeds. When they are compared
to other images and Printed Text, however, found elsewhere, they loose their
impact.
The key
focus areas I want to explore in greater depth and potentially develop work
from are:
- Scale
(Billboard/wall)
- Perspective
- Information
- Unusual/experimental
- Interaction
between printed text and it’s environment
Whilst
looking further into these areas there are also other elements that much be
considered, such as:
- Legibility
- Readability
- Communication
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