⌂ ◅ Classes + teaching ◅ Visual Communication Design ◅ Assignments, handouts, and references

Type Flyer

GDES-200 fall 2019 (David Ramos, American University Design)
ramos@american.edu · office hours

Create two different flyers, publicizing a (fictional) design event, for display around campus and around the city. Present information clearly, and pay close attention to hierarchy.

Considerations:

Stages of work

  1. Background: Read the text and think about the flyer content and the subject matter for the event.
  2. Sketching: draw thumbnails for flyers, no larger than 2 in. on their longest dimension. If you prefer, you can sketch on a thumbnail template (PDF).
  3. Download an Illustrator template file (ZIP) and rename the file to contain your first name, last name, and project title (“type flyer”).
  4. Design your first flyer, using a single typeface. Type size (point size) may not change, but you may choose alignment, case, style (roman/italic) and weight.
  5. Design a second flyer. This one may include two different typefaces (one serif, and one sans serif). You may vary type size, alignment, case, style, and weight.
  6. Design further iterations of the two flyers, based on feedback from critiques and your own reflections.
  7. Export the two flyers as a single PDF. Take photos of your thumbnail sketches. Be sure to include your name in the filename. Turn in on Blackboard.

Specifications

Acceptable typefaces

From Adobe Fonts (formerly Typekit). Some of these may or may not be available to you on your account.

Free/open source (download and install; you want the OTF files):

Text

Use all of this text in your flyer. You may rephrase or resequence the the pannelists’ and moderator’s names, and the date and time.

We, the Undersigned
Reconsidering First Things First for 2019
A panel with Rick Poynor and Paola Antonelli
Moderated by Alissa Walker

American University
Abramson Family Recital Hall Katzen Arts Center
4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.

November 14, 2019 at 6:30 p.m.

Rick Poynor, author and design critic, founded Eye magazine and co-founded Design Observer. He helped coordinate the First Things First 2000 mainfesto.

Paola Antonelli serves as Senior Curator of the Department of Architecture & Design at the Museum of Modern Art.

Alissa Walker is the urbanism editor at Curbed and a walker in LA. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Gizmodo, GOOD, and Dwell.

Background