Magazine Wordmark
Control is Key.
The GoaL:
Create a wordmark for a fictitious publication.
The Details
Apply typographic principles to develop a concept statement into a wordmark that represents the messaging of the publication. The publication can focus on culture, social justice, sports & lifestyle, contemporary writing, or science & technology. This wordmark will solidify the messaging of the publication and give an immediate impression on the style and tone of the magazine.
Project time: 6 weeks
The Process
Exploration
The Message
The first step was simply to find a word to make into a wordmark. Exploring the concept of a cultural publication, I concluded on Post as an expressionist term to describe postmodernism.
culture ⟶ postmodernism ⟶ post
The next step was to refine my message. What am I saying? The details of the messaging were refined in tandem with the wordmark, which can be seen here.
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The Typeface
Over a hundred options for typeface were viewed to see which stuck out as vessels for meaning. The typeface was never narrowed to a single option until the last moment, as they did not all represent the same concept.
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Following feedback and a clearer focus on messaging, type choices were refined.
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Making Your Mark
Once typeface selection was refined, it was time to start making the connection between word and mark.
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When outliers were found that clearly communicated an intended message, the wordmarks were returned to the computer where their intents could be clarified.
Other designs made it beyond this point, but the concept that post is a conversation became central to its identity and this carried to the final wordmark, so here is that path.
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The final concept reached was that post is a conversation. There is a lack of finality, despite it describing the end of the world, and in this irony there is humor. Hot pink was chosen to reflect the irony of a consumerist publication on postmodernism, as well as to set a more playful tone.
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The Typeface
Over a hundred options for typeface were viewed to see which stuck out as vessels for meaning. The typeface was never narrowed to a single option until the last moment, as they did not all represent the same concept.
Following feedback and a clearer focus on messaging, type choices were refined.
DESIGN
Making Your Mark
Once typeface selection was refined, it was time to start making the connection between word and mark.
When outliers were found that clearly communicated an intended message, the wordmarks were returned to the computer where their intents could be clarified.
Other designs made it beyond this point, but the concept that post is a conversation became central to its identity and this carried to the final wordmark, so here is that path.
CURRENT ITERATION
The final concept reached was that post is a conversation. There is a lack of finality, despite it describing the end of the world, and in this irony there is humor. Hot pink was chosen to reflect the irony of a consumerist publication on postmodernism, as well as to set a more playful tone.
