OUGD505 - Product, Range & Distribution - Typography Identification, Selection and Setting

In communication of the very British ideas of social class, and the manifesto's concern with the nation's hierarchical system, the typography used in the visual communication of the statement must be quintessentially British and both reinforce and be in support of the concept of equality and a person's potential to break through class barriers and achieve goals through this and enhanced social mobility possibilities.

Serif typefaces are commonly used in portrayal of more luxury outputs, or in providing a more traditional aesthetic - this being the opposite of what the manifesto needs. The manifesto must appear contemporary in its encouragement for society to turn its back on the out-dated notions of the class system, and for this reason, I will explore sans-serif typefaces. This will provide the manifesto will a more accessible aesthetic that reinforces the written words visually.

Considering this I identified the following typefaces:

Having worked as an apprentice on Edward Johnston’s typeface for the London Underground, Eric Gill took inspiration from this in producing Gill Sans. This typeface is described as having 'absolutely legible-to-the-last-degree letters' by Gill himself. It works well for both text and display work and was used by British Rail until 1965, Penguin Books in the 1930’s and is currently used by the BBC.

Another British typeface associated with transportation is that created for the Department of Transport by Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, Transport. This highly legible, sans-serif typeface is used on road signs throughout the UK, and works well for bold and clear headings as well as body text in the irregular circumstances it is used for other means/purposes.

This typeface is a representation of that which would have been used on roadsigns before the creation of transport. Like Transport, it is a highly legible, sans-serif typeface, however, is supplied with greater character as a result of the taller x-height and smaller-width characters. This typeface appears to portray a greater dominance and feeling of urgency. 

This typeface is a less refined alternative to AES Ministry.

For the creation of Bliss, type designer Jeremy Tankard studied 5 typefaces; Gill Sans, Transport, Johnston, Syntax and Frutiger. The forms were chosen for their simplicity, legibility and 'Englishness.' The resulting typeface has charm whilst remaining legible and practical. Additionally, the typeface works well for body text and headers alike. 

Originally designed by Robert Besley in 1845, Clarendon is a bold slab-serif typeface. It was the first typeface to be copyrighted and became hugely successful after it’s release. It was produced for Oxford University’s Clarendon Press and used as a dictionary display face. The most notable use of this typeface is possibly in the Sony logo where an extra-wide variant of Clarendon is set in uppercase, showing the typeface's potential to appear contemporary despite it's age.

Though not sans-serif, the boldness of the typeface and slab serifs may be representative of a mid-point between the upper and lower classes - relevant in communicating the manifesto's call for equality and balance in society without the presence of class. 

As shown above, I explored each of these typefaces while replicating the compositional placement featured on 'In case of emergency...' signs.

From left to right the typefaces are: AES Ministry, Transport Medium, Transport Heavy, Old Road Sign, Clarendon and Gill Sans.

Although less modern in aesthetic, AES Ministry's bold, distinct sense of urgency created via a taller x-height and smaller-width characters appears the most appropriate in its deliverance of the manifesto title. It is highly legible, making for greater appraisal from viewers of the manifesto also. While this typeface is suitable for the manifesto title, it is only available in upper case form, and therefore an alternative typeface will be used for the body.

For the body type, I have decided to use Clarendon. This typeface acts as a visual representative of a mid-point between the upper and lower classes - relevant in communicating the manifesto's call for equality and balance in society without the presence of class. Additionally, the typefaces previous use in dictionaries as a display face further enhance suitability in its use for the manifesto, which is attempting to re-define the social structure of British society to that of a meritocratic, egalitarian alternative.

The body type of the manifesto, the mission statement itself, has been set within the ground between the split title  - this framing the content whilst also giving more impact to the title's instruction to 'break class,' while reiterating the main message of the piece once read in full. 

Set it two columns, the manifesto adheres to Fassett's Theorem of Legible Line Length in which he details that 'line lengths that contain 45 to 65 characters (including letters, numerals, punctuation and spaces) are legible. Line lengths exceeding these limits challenge legibility.' This also further communicates balance and equality.