Advance Typography - Task 3

 Advance Typography - Task 3 : 


Lee Jong Yun / 0358356 


Advance Typography

╎Task 3 Type Exploration and Application

Table of Contents

1. Instructions
2. Lectures
3. Work
4. Feedback
5. Reflection
6. Further Readings
7. Quick Links

Instructions



LECTURES



Process Work

Objective

To design a modern, geometric typeface inspired by Hangul forms and contemporary Korean typographic design.

The typeface is intended for display use in animation titles, visual branding, or editorial layouts that need a strong visual identity.

Identifying Issues from Task 2 

  • In Task 2, the initial letterform designs lacked consistency in overall structure and styling.

  • The stroke widths were uneven and made the typeface feel unbalanced when viewed as a complete set.

  • Characters varied too much in style, which reduced the feeling of a unified type system.

Design Inspiration





Influenced by the works of Ahn Sang Soo's typography. (Ahn Sang Soo)

Focused on Hangul’s basic shapes, their straight, modular strokes and symmetry.

Referenced modern Korean posters, type experiments, and experimental font compositions.

Design Intent

first sketch of making changes in the type faces

outline of the first idea draft


Emphasize bold, structural simplicity with clean verticals and horizontals.

Create a typeface that reflects a balance of tradition and modernism.

Focus on consistency, spacing, and visual rhythm across the letterforms.

Creative Direction

Tried to make less curves for the strokes, maintained sharp edges and clean corners.

Letters are designed to feel minimal, and modular, echoing early Hangul type construction.

Type weight kept bold and balanced to maximize visibility in digital contexts.


Comparison of lowercase ‘h’ – before and after refinement
In the initial version of the lowercase “h,” the stroke width and height were inconsistent with the rest of the letterforms, making it appear visually disconnected from the type system. In the refined version, I adjusted the overall width and vertical length to align with the proportions used across other characters. This improvement helps maintain uniformity and visual balance, reinforcing the typeface’s cohesive and structured design.



After refining major issues such as inconsistent stroke widths and uneven proportions, I moved on to adjusting the overall size and design of the remaining characters to ensure visual harmony across the entire typeface.

After completing the lowercase characters, I proceeded to design the uppercase set. Since my initial typeface was focused on lowercase forms, this was a new challenge. One of the first issues I encountered was that the uppercase letters felt visually disconnected from the lowercase in terms of structure and tone. To fix this, I began a new round of research, gathering reference images (from Pinterest and google) that showed how uppercase letters can maintain consistency while still feeling distinct. These references helped guide my approach, and I began sketching my first draft of the uppercase letters based on the core elements of my lowercase design. 



(Reference images)




–First Draft of Uppercase



To maintain consistency, I designed the uppercase letters to reflect similar characteristics found in the lowercase forms, particularly in stroke weight and geometric structure. I also wanted to incorporate Hangul-inspired features into the uppercase design. One example is the letter H, which is based on the early form of the Korean character ㅐ, traditionally written with two vertical strokes and a central dot. I adapted this concept to create a stylized and meaningful version of the uppercase H in my typeface.




In addition, I built the overall design language using geometric shapes, primarily squares and circles, to maintain a structured visual identity. I also removed or simplified certain parts using triangular cuts, subtly referencing the circle, square, triangle motif from the Squid Game logo. These elements helped give the typeface a modern, culturally infused personality while keeping it balanced and visually consistent.


 Uppercase Design


Numbers and Punctuation



making process of numbers and punctuations




After completing the uppercase letters, I moved on to designing the numbers and punctuation marks. I applied the same visual principles and design approach that I used in both the uppercase and lowercase characters. The goal was to ensure that the numbers and symbols would feel like they belonged to the same type family, with consistent stroke weight, spacing, and geometric features. I continued using square and circular forms as a base structure and introduced subtle triangular cuts in selected characters, maintaining visual continuity across the full character set. This helped reinforce the identity of the typeface and kept the overall design cohesive and balanced, even in non-alphabetic elements.


Outcome Compiled















Font Lab 

At first, I attempted to use FontForge to generate my typeface, since the demo version of FontLab we used in a previous semester had expired. However, I found that FontForge was quite difficult to navigate. Because of this, I decided to switch back to using FontLab 7 on one of the school's Mac computers, which provided full access to the necessary features. This allowed me to import my Illustrator vector files smoothly, manage spacing and alignment with more control. Using FontLab again gave me more confidence and flexibility in finalizing my typeface.




During the process of importing my vector letterforms into FontLab, I made additional adjustments to improve visual consistency across the typeface. One specific change involved the letter S. In my original design, the uppercase S featured circular shapes on both ends. However, once placed alongside the other letters, I realized that these curves disrupted the overall flow and structure of the typeface. To solve this, I redesigned the uppercase S using only straight strokes and sharp edges, giving it a cleaner and more aligned appearance with the rest of the characters.

For the lowercase S, I kept the original structure but introduced subtle edge cuttings to reflect the geometric and modular style found throughout the typeface. These small refinements helped strengthen the visual unity between uppercase and lowercase while maintaining some character variation.


work process


completed importing all the font designs


After successfully importing all the finalized letterforms into FontLab, I began working on kerning to improve the spacing between specific character pairs. I followed the kerning reference and guidelines provided by Mr. Vinod on Microsoft Teams, which helped me understand how to visually balance letter spacing and avoid awkward gaps or overlaps. 



Kerning on the lower case letter

Testing different types of letter

Kerning on Uppercase Letter


Exported as Font


Font Presentation











Font Application

I chose to apply my typeface design in the context of exhibitions, galleries, and cultural events because the concept behind my font is deeply rooted in Korean heritage and the aesthetics of traditional Hangeul, particularly inspired by the elegance of Hunminjeongeum. Events like exhibitions or Korea-themed cultural showcases offer the perfect platform to present this kind of design. These spaces are not only visual but also educational and experiential, allowing the audience to appreciate the cultural value behind the type. I believe that my font, with its brushstroke-inspired form and cultural character, is best suited for use in signage, wall texts, promotional materials, and giveaways like tote bags and buttons, especially in settings that aim to express this identity and design.










Final Compilation
























Honor Submission






Evidence of Submission



Feedbacks

Week 9
General Feedback: Received feedback
Specific Feedback:

  • Research and experiment more

  • Make sure all the Width is Consistent.

Week 10
General Feedback: Reviewed early font sketches and direction.
Specific Feedback:

  • Ensure that the width of each letter is consistent to maintain a clean

Week 11
General Feedback: Provided feedback on overall typeface development.
Specific Feedback:

  • Check and adjust the width and forms of letters to maintain uniformity

  • Begin designing and refining the punctuation marks


Week 12
General Feedback: Final stage feedback and review.
Specific Feedback:

  • Finalize the process of moving the font into FontLab 

  • Start preparing for the final presentation and documentation

  • Introduced about Honor Competition Submission



Further Reading




To enhance my understanding of typeform and cultural expression, I revisited this book and focused on chapters related to “Typography and Cultural Identity” as well as “The Power of Display Typography.” The following are key takeaways and reflections that connect directly with my project:



Typography is not only a visual communication tool, but also a carrier of culture and history. Inspired by Korean calligraphy and the Hunminjeongeum script, I realized that type design can evoke deeper emotional and national significance when rooted in identity.



The book discusses how exhibitions, public events, and large-scale posters are effective platforms for expressive typography. It emphasizes the importance of strong visual rhythm and clarity in space-heavy designs. This justified my choice to apply the typeface in an exhibition/gallery setting — where typographic expression can live boldly and authentically.


Layering cultural text (like low-opacity Hangul or traditional scripts) in the background of a design can create a sense of depth, age, and authenticity. I used this idea to develop my poster’s visual style, ensuring the background supports and enhances the main typeform, not competes with it.



Reflection


Throughout this task, I gained a much deeper understanding of how typography is more than just letter design. It is a form of expression, identity, and cultural storytelling. As I explored Korean-inspired forms and traditional calligraphy aesthetics, I began to appreciate how type can carry emotional and historical weight when grounded in culture.

One of my key observations was how balance and rhythm play a huge role in maintaining both visual harmony and uniqueness, especially when dealing with experimental or non-Latin forms. During the sketching and Illustrator development phase, I noticed that some letters looked aesthetically pleasing individually but lost consistency when seen as a full set. This led me to revisit and refine multiple characters to maintain a sense of unity.

I also found that applying the typeface in a mock context, specifically a smartphone screen promoting a gallery or exhibition, made the project feel more real and meaningful. It challenged me to think about how the type would behave in real-world scenarios, including space, scale, and legibility.

Another important finding came from the further reading, where I learned about the typographic design process: gathering, ideating, synthesizing, realizing, and defining. This framework helped me stay organized and guided my workflow, especially during the ideation and synthesis stages. I also found value in metaphorical thinking and interaction matrices, which encouraged me to take risks and silence my self-criticism during the early stages of design.

Overall, this task pushed me to explore typography beyond function. It taught me to consider both form and purpose, and how typography can connect with an audience not just visually, but emotionally and historically as well.









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