Type @ Cooper
In the summer of 2021 I was accepted into the Condensed Type@Cooper Program at Cooper Union where I recieved the opportunity to broaden my knowledge on typography and create my own personal typeface.
Duration:
Summer of 2021
Sketching
Before creating anything on the computer, it’s important to be able to understand the root of type and how it derived from being written by hand.
The hand done/ sketching process is practiced in multiple different mediums and styles. This included brush lettering, sketching with pens and pencils, calligraphy ink nibs, etc.
Digitizing
Once the sketching process was completed with base letters I was content with, I moved on to the digitizing portion.
The digitizing process consists of constantly going back and forth between creating new letters and editing old ones. And of course thinking about things like spacing and testing it out in text format
Final Typeface; “Gardenia”
Gardenia is a soft yet resilient textface that provides its readers with a sense of calmness and serenity. It gets its name from the Gardenia flower, which is known for symbolizing purity and gentleness. Just as the Gardenia flower is native to warm climates, it only makes sense that the Gardenia typeface would greet its user and readers with a friendly and tranquil hello.
With its relatively low contrast, it reads best at smaller sizes (around 7 - 11 pts). It comes in a regular and bold weight, with an extended Latin character set. Its rounded serifs emanate ease and groundedness, gearing its use towards spreading knowledge about natural elements found on this planet.
