Bad font decisions, yes I’m talking to you Papyrus users!

[Thomas J. Johnson]

You guys are ridiculous…

[Grant Beerling]

LOL, could not agree more. Right font right scheme, is just the same as right plant ,right place. I have come to the conclusion that choosing a font is an art in itself. I spent hours thing about the presentation of a project and the font/layout ie composition.

 

Fave fonts (as a lover of the constructivist movement), Gill sans for its simple instructional style a real ‘keep of the grass’ font. Futura, just because. Verdana ok not that abstract but for easy reading on web sites its hard to beat (conclusion of research by one of the Worlds 5 largest banks, who are very much into self interest, so worth taking note)

 

Confession i did use papyrus on a keynote presentation about the History of Roman Gardens, so almost in context (ish), you will be pleased to know the Uni windows pile did not have the font so the projection put some awful default up instead, that will teach me for trying to be clever!. That is always the risk of using unusual fonts unless you turn them into images.

[Grant Beerling]

Explain?

In the UK its Garden Designers and La’s obvious difference of scale. Though in the last year of the degree we work together.

 

 

[Anonymous]

I’m sorry I guess I didn’t make myself clear. I never said you didn’t know anything about fonts. I did say I thought that you were a super smart guy though. I would also bet that you know a lot more about proper use of fonts than I do, because I haven’t put a lot of emphasis on studying proper font usage. I stick with the clean, simple, fonts that the graphic “experts” are currently saying to use or I just go with what feel good.

 

That said, I’m not foolish enough to think that a young person couldn’t teach me something new. As far as I’m concerned you might be on to something. I just would like to know why I should listen to you considering you’ve been on this earth for a limited number of years. I’m assuming you’ve had other interests besides fonts. Help me out here; convince me that you’re the Man when it comes to fonts. I would then have no problem nixing the papyrus. Heck, I never use it anyway. Make me a believer and I will fall in line and comply with what’s ever on your restricted font list. I would hate to carelessly use the wrong font and create a big scandal.    

[Heather Smith]

You do understand we know how to change font? I guess you just need to vent about this…vent away. But don’t expect all of us to feel as strongly as you…and I certainly don’t think it makes anyone ignorant…because they don’t feel the way you do. I actually don’t understand the point of your post. On one hand you want to complain about people who use fonts you don’t like but then you are bothered when we don’t all congratulate you on your font passions.

BTW, I am a Mrs. Smith not a miss smith. And I will give you a break because this conversation is going in circles.

[ALEX P]

Im sorry, I did not want to assume you were married.

 

The point of the post: yes, i am passionate about font, no I am not asking for a pat on the back for being a crazy font guy.  I don’t REALLY care if you use papyrus, because of one of the first post on this thread.  Your “decision” on font doesn’t REALLY effect me in all actuality, but aesthetically it does.  I am all hot and bothered by the awful trend of using papyrus.  There i said it.  I hope it is clear now.  No I am not a font wizard.  I clearly understand now that not a lot of people care about font (to my dismay) the same way I do.  This was a very humbling experience.  I guess I will take my Helvetica Neue bold all upper case, and run! 

[Danny Pritchard]

And much sense was made that day…

[John Galbavy]

How awsome is it that your last name is Priestscape?

[Lily-Love Toppar]

His name is Alex Priest. I think he just added SCAPE for special effects. Classic though!

[John Galbavy]

In that case this forum should be about bad name decisions… lol

[ALEX P]

In a day when everything has the suffix -scape attached to it, it makes perfect sense to add scape to my name.  i mean just pick up LAM, and you will be bombarded by endless -scapes… “trendscape” gag me!

[Les Ballard]

I have empathy with the views expressed but, being ignorant of font matters, wonder why no decent font seems to have been been designed since the war (1940).  Every mall has signs in a font suitable for the credits on a fred astaire movie.  I use arial or take a lead from others but, of course, if you need to transmit anything digitally, you need clarity and a true type font (i think).  I can download and use Celtic and similarly exotic fonts for documents and personal use (though in USA Celtic = Irish to too great an extent) and, of course, original druids excepted, Celts couldn’t write except maybe in Ogham or Crossing the River script, or cup marks, or Latin once the Romans became as Christian as we were (the UK Chaldean or Celtic Christianity was not for Rome).  We have to be grateful that early Pagan/Christian monks preserved oral tales, like those in the Mabinogion, as stories of early saints.  Like our road signs now celebrating a landmark anniversary, we can use lower case only and omit apostophes, etc. but, in the end, folk have to feel comfy with what we do.  Even a ! can be criticised and English spellings grate on American minds and vice versa.  So, we will carry on until someone comes up with something genuinely good and gives it away for nothing.  This is about as likely as me being chosen to arrange the next world, powered hang gliding championships, to be held in Gondwanaland with free houses for spectators.  Luv n Lite, Les          

[Douglas M. Rooney]

Alex,

I really must congratulate you. Not everyone could generate nearly 100 posts on a topic like fonts, but you have…..Bravo.

First let me state I do not now, nor have I ever used Papyrus. I actually had to look it up to see what it looked like, because I had no idea. Not the type of font I am likely to use since it has a “visual onomatopoeia” kind of aspect about it. I like Century Gothic myself.  Something about those circles I guess.

That being said, I fear you have confused what is important, with what is IMPRESSIVE. Having just graduated, you are still suffering the cognitive distortion that is a product of you  being  in academia. In school you are working to impress your professors and peers. You are immersed in a soup of design, graphics and presentation. The end all, be all product of all of your efforts is the presentation drawings(or perhaps maybe even a model). Never again will it be like that.

In the REAL world, you will be presenting to clients or even planning departments. They will have have no appreciation of your graphics, nor your fonts. They will likely never actually READ anything on your drawings, though they might look at the pictures. They will never connect with any life changing aesthetic in your drawings, but they will be looking at how to reduce costs, lower maintenance, and speed up schedule. You will quickly realize that the “graphic design” of you presentation drawings is a fleeting thing that will occur momentarily, then you will move on to making your project reality.

How many people walk though Central Park, but lament that Olmsted use of Arial in his drawings? Does anyone really admire the genius of the Thomas Church’s Donnell Gardens Pool, but abhor his use of  Lucinda Sans? Is the experience of the Highline made sublime by the James Corner’s use of Helvetica in his drawings?? In the end…. work speaks for itself…..and no one has any idea what the font was??? What everyone has been trying to communicate to you Alex is that your drawings ARE NOT your work, your finished product is your work.

You should realize that despite your chutzpah that you are some unique, avant garde individualist, you are simply the same trendy conformist, that any other 23 year old is likely to be. Another recent graduate I know is obsessed with helvetica as well. Why? because it is currently very trendy. Like most 50+ year old “things”, this font has gone from popular to out of style to trendy again. Thank you Gary Hustwit…..Trendy, conformity is primarily an adolescent pursuit….those of us who are old enough, have no need to be “cool”.

Your belief that a font can make or break a design is exaggerated.

[Anonymous]

“…you are simply the same trendy conformist, that any other 23 year old is likely to be.” No matter how special we’ve been led to believe we are, life teaches us that no one’s really all that special.

 

Douglas I think you’re all over it. Excellent post! I enjoyed it with my coffee.

[ALEX P]

Douglas- I mildly agree with you, but arial was “invented” post helvetica, ie post olmstead. It is more than being trendy for me. I just like the look of the letters, i mean have you seen the lower case a.. now thats something to write home about.  ps. i never mentioned that i was avant garde.. just a lover of good font.  I dont really care that people wont comment on some great font such as helvetica, or century gothic ( i do like this one as well) i still care, because contrary to some people on here, It does not take any longer.  yes i just graduated, but that does not seem like an excuse for me not to have this “I dont care about graphics” mentality.  Im not dumb.  I got a horrible grade in a studio, because i cared about graphics, and not the GIS material.  I get it.  Graphics dont matter.  In regards to being trendy.. lets talk about LEED, or Sustainablity or “Going Green”  sounds uber trendy to me…

[Author]

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