Advanced Typographic Design | ISTD | Pass

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ADVANCED TYPOGRAPHIC DESIGN

- ISTD: Open || Close -

Awarded With International Society of Typographic Designers (ISTD) Membership

Brief: open || close

This design project reimagines Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" through radical typography, focusing on the first and last chapters to convey a narrative journey. Elements like typesetting, hierarchy, and format aim to evoke mood changes. With a thematic focus on gender inequality and feminism, addressing the novel's 85% female readership, the project involves extensive secondary research. Anticipated outcomes include a conceptually strong reinterpretation, avoiding surface-level replication, alongside the designed artifact and an ISTD typography specification booklet.

Box Lid and Outer Panels and Functionality

Box Lid and Outer Panels Close Up Shots

Box Lid Flat Designs

Context

"Pride and Prejudice," written by Jane Austen in 1813, explores themes of love, marriage, and women's roles in 19th-century England. Austen, facing challenges as a female writer, infused the novel with feminist undertones, portraying strong female characters and challenging societal expectations. While not aligning with modern feminist ideologies, the novel addresses enduring issues such as gender roles and societal expectations that resonate with today's quest for gender equality.

First Layer Panels and Functionality

First Layer Panels Close-Up Shots

First Layer Panels Flat Designs

client, Audience and communication goal

The client, Penguin Random House Book Publishers, known for their Penguin Classics series, is a global publishing leader with a history of controversy. The target audience is women aged 16 to 26, aiming to introduce them to literary classics and promote reading. The communication goal is to spark conversations about how gender stereotypes affect women's perceptions and relationships, using typography and abstract reinventions of the book concept to instill a desire for change and challenge biases.

First Layer Panels and Functionality

First Layer Panels Flat Designs

First Layer Panels Close-Up Shots

Creative Strategy

The creative strategy or strategic approach for the project is to make the audience aware of the dangers of stereotypes and instead focus on the complex identities of women by using Pride and Prejudice as an example. This will be done by looking through the lens of stereotypes in Pride and Prejudice to show that all women possess these preconceived notions and how easy it is to label or apply these stereotypes without actually getting to know the layers of one’s identity. This is done to create awareness about how these stereotypes influence a woman’s daily life, job prospects and relationships with other women and how one is actually so much more capable. In the end, encouraging women to move away from these harmful descriptions and instead take control and create their own identity which is more interesting and complex than just a singular title.

Second Lid Flat Designs

Second Layer Flat Designs

Second Layer Close-Up Shots

Creative Concept

The creative concept is to use the idea of the proof of the pudding is in the eating by utilising first impressions, the original name of Pride and Prejudice, to deconstruct first impressions which are based on stereotypes and instead focussing on exploring and getting to know the layers of one’s identity. The notion that the complexity of one’s true identity, ingredients and flavours, is covered by another's first judgement, icing and frills, creates an ironic stereotype which shows the viewer just how easy it is to stereotype and the power that they hold when forming an identity. This will be done by applying the ironic situation of the easiness of stereotypes to the characters of the book then revealing the true layers of the character’s identity, and then comparing the situation to real-life women and situations.

Third Layer Flat Designs

Third Layer Close-Up Shots

Third Layer Panels and Functionality

Media and Visual Strategy

The chosen media format details the campaign's progression, starting with Penguin Random House releasing a special edition box on International Women's Day as part of the Feminism in Classic Literature Campaign. Inspired by Regency-era cake boxes, The Grand Budapest Hotel's Mendle’s box, and first edition Pride and Prejudice books, the visual direction is hand-illustrated with a focus on conveying a new narrative. The type evolves from mimicking the Regency feel to bold San serifs, symbolizing a shift from past to present. Limited to pink and red hues, the colour palette signifies a journey from a lighter, feminine pastel to a bolder, powerful core. The layout on a square surface emphasizes impactful display fonts, colours, and typesetting techniques. Adobe Caslon Pro and Europa serve as contrasting serifs and san serifs, while decorative display fonts Odin and aaAaleyah add a modern and classic touch. Hand-drawn, satirical Regency-style illustrations are sparingly used to complement the focus on typography.