The brief for this project was to create a three paneled typographic installation using a quote from a famous designer. First, we were expected to research the quote and understand its original context as well as the work ethics and outlook of the designer who said it. Then, we were to recontextualize the quote (interpret it in a different context than it was originally intended), and create a paneled installation using predominantly typography to be displayed (hypothetically) in an artistically reflective gallery space.
I chose a quote by Paula Scher, who is considered one of the finest women graphic designers world over. The quote goes, "It's through mistakes that you can actually grow. You have to get bad in order to get good." The initial context in which it was said relates closely to Paula's work ethic and attitude to life. Through watching her TED talks and reading her interviews, I learnt that she considers failure a more enlightening learning experience than continuous successes. To tow the line is easy, because to do that, we typically follow in others footsteps and stay within the confines that others have set for us. But in trying something new and failing at it, we are broadening our horizons and have a greater chance of experimenting with new ideas than we did following the rules. The said quote branches off from this line of thought.
To recontextualize, I decided to treat the quote in two ways: The first in the context of a writer, and the second in context of solving a jigsaw puzzle piece.
This was the first iteration I made, which was designed to bring out spelling errors. I wanted to make the three frames 3 dimensional and suspended from a wall. The text would be joined to the frames by a rod that would run through the centre of each frame, to make the whole installation look interactive and grab the attention of viewers. However, I realised that the whole idea of frames with the mistakes did not do justice to the recontextualization of the quote, and at first glance, the meaning of the quote wasn't evident. I decided to go with a more organic approach and tried to make the idea of spelling errors relevant to a writer.
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This is the final mockup of the installation about spelling errors. In this, I made the idea of making mistakes while writing more obvious through the handwritten text and the splashes of ink and torn paper. Generally we see spelling mistakes in notebooks or where people have written things by hand and not so much when typed on a computer. I tore sheets of paper that I had lying around and used a brush and ink to write out the quote. I added lots of scratches and blots to bring out the nature of the mistakes, and also the mentality of the writer in action. The crumpled waste sheets alongside the papers also highlight the idea of mistakes and the fact that success can only be achieved through multiple tries and failures. I planned to exhibit this on a desk that would be scratched and dirty, in order to further obviate the recontextualization of the quote.
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This was the second idea that I thought of, which was bringing the quote into the context of a jigsaw puzzle. I decided to have my three panels resemble a jigsaw puzzle, with certain parts of the quote missing because of lost jigsaw pieces. Instead of fitting the correct jigsaw part into the corresponding slot, I put a mismatched piece along with the remaining letters that completed the word. By doing this, I tried to bring out the mistakes we sometimes make when solving jigsaw puzzles, where we find a piece and try to fit it into a gap, only to realize that it is the wrong piece. I decided to show the fact that the pieces are a misfit by making the mismatched pieces in coloured glass, so that the gap could be seen from behind it, and the viewer could then come to the realisation I was hoping to make. I used Helvetica Neue Condensed Bold for this installation, to also bring out irony in Paula's quote (as Helvetica is often considered the safe choice when one is too lazy to find something else, and is also said to be overused and overrated by certain critics and typographers. I tried to correlate this aspect of Helvetica with the Paula's idea of treading a path taken by everyone, and following the rules).
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This is the mockup of the same installation in a gallery space.
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