For this poster design, I had to interpret Gustav Holst’s “The Planets: Mars” using only typography and shape. I mainly picked up on the song’s rise and fall in tempo, as well as the repetition of sounds. I channeled these notions into a wave shape, formed by using the first letters of all the planets. I then had to make decisions about what typefaces would best suit the voice I was going for, as well as the way it should be structured on the page. I believe that the final poster results in dynamism that shifts the viewer’s eye around the poster, and a clear hierarchy of information. I had to produce the poster in a black and white version, as well as a limited 2-color version. I chose these colors after looking at pictures of galaxies and nebulas, and because I felt that the bright green contrasted well against the grey background.
01 / Gustav Holst Poster
The objective for this project was to create a promotional postcard for the AIGA “50 Books, 50 Covers” Design Competition. The postcard was designed with the intention to send to designers who would potentially submit their work to the competition.
For my concept, I wanted to go for a digital or cyber aesthetic, because I liked the contrast as this was a competition for book covers. I used a gridded layout made up of solid-colored triangles, as well as triangles with book spines. I used an abstract typeface to create visual interest for the audience. For the back of the card, I chose to include past competition winners’ work on the back to hopefully inspire new people to submit.
02 / AIGA Postcard
This project was a poster design for the Birmingham Zoo. We randomly selected an animal out of a hat to be the focus of the poster. I selected the Rhinoceros. The objective for this poster design was to promote the zoo, as well as to highlight the animal we chose using texture and stamped letterforms. For my concept, I decided to focus on the most distinguishable feature of the Rhino, its horn. I drew the silhouette of the horn, then traced that again under it, then repeated the process. I then shaded the design over my refrigerator to create an interesting texture. I imported these elements into Photoshop, added color and typography, then finished with the official zoo information at the bottom.
