TYPOGRAPHY
ISTD
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
DESIGNER: BRITTANY MACPHAIL
COPYWRITER: SARA BELL
‘Gatsby’, in South Africa, is a slang word for a cheap loaf stuffed with random greasy ingredients. The term ‘Gatsby’ in an international context refers to the novel and film written by F. Scott Fitzgerald: ‘The Great Gatsby’.
The Food for Thought ISTD brief required us to showcase the culture and story behind food and place emphasis on what it represents. The final had to identify the preparation, essence, symbolism and how and where it is eaten. Including meanings, cultural indicators and facts was essential. Our solution had to appeal to type designers, typographers, graphic designers, educators, students, librarians, tourists visiting Cape Town and South African citizens; people who are intrigued by culture and food and share a common interest in historical events.
The Gatsby Smash is a companion novel to the original Great Gatsby Novel. The Gatsby Smash joins two different worlds, timezones, cultures and people. We created a solution which communicated our message of celebrating differences together as one. We focused on crafting a new narrative which combines the two different worlds. Through placing the protagonist out of his original context, we managed to showcase how the Gatsby sandwich was invented and contrast the extravagance and sophistication of the 1920’s upper class culture with the 1970’s South African lower working class culture. This allowed us to showcase the culture and story behind our chosen food (the Gatsby sandwich) and what it represents. The final typographic execution included the preparation, essence, symbolism and how and where the sandwich is eaten.
