T1: Eighteen Type Compositions

Before I write about my compositions, I wanted to take a moment and write about something important that developed in the process of this assignment. This phenomena might have happened because we're four weeks into the semester and we're more comfortable with each other, but I've noticed that everyone interacted more with each other for this assignment. What I mean by interacted is that we created a dialogue about our work. For instance, if I was wasn't sure about how my composition was communicating  a word I would ask Jessi, Kyndra or Michael about it and they would make suggestions and comment about what was working and what wasn't working. It was really back and forth between all of us, section one and section two, so I thought it was important to acknowledge.

To recap, the title of my book changed to "de-glamour," which is about the relationship between the paparazzi and celebrities and how that relationship has changed throughout time.

1. Swarm
I usually associate a swarm to insects so that's what I was thinking about when I was working on these compositions. The idea also plays off of the historical derivation of the word paparazzi by director Federico Fellini who named the photographer in his film, Paparazzo, after an Italian dialect that describes the annoying noise of a buzzing mosquito.

2. Praise
I had a lot of trouble creating compositions for the word praise and I feel that both compositions are weak in their placement. In relation to my theme, I needed to show one thing being praised by the others, so in both compositions I made one letter larger and bolder than the other letters to represent the thing being praised. For the upper composition, I used italics to show the letters leaning towards the larger letter as if they are bowing or attracted to it and in the bottom composition, the smaller letters are surrounding the letter.

3. Impulsive
When I think about an impulse I see a sudden and spontaneous movement. In relation to my theme, the paparazzi must exhibit this quality to get their picture. I started with the bottom composition, which I tried to show impulse as a sudden pulse in a life line and for the top composition I tried to show impulse by changing the weight, size and direction of the word. I created a triangular shape with the composition so that the viewers eye moves with that shape and reinforces the word.

4. Intrude
I wanted intrude to illustrate how the paparazzi intrude into the lives of celebrities. I had trouble in creating a composition for this word. In both I used the "T" as a wedge and bulldozer, forcing and pushing it's way into the word.

5. Ignore
I wanted ignore to show how celebrities often try to ignore the paparazzi so in both compositions, I divided the word in order to create two separate entities to illustrate the word. In the top composition, both group of letters are facing away from each other and the words are pushed into the opposite corners of the page. In the bottom composition one group of letters is facing away while the others are facing it to create one group ignoring and another being ignored.

6. Secretive
I had a similar approach for secretive, in cutting out the inside of the letters. In context to my theme, I wanted secretive to show how the paparazzi tries to snap a photo while be unnoticed.

7. Disguise
I had trouble with disguise and it might have been because I was trying to make it different from secretive. In context to my theme, I wanted disguise to show how celebrities disguise themselves from the paparazzi. In one composition, I used the words "disguise" to create another letter form and in the other composition, I combined two "E"'s to create a box form.

8. Exaggerate
I wanted exaggerate to describe how the paparazzi usually amplifies or dramatizes everything. In one composition, the letter forms are gradually getting bigger to illustrate the exaggeration and in the other, the first "E" is larger while the smaller letters are flowing out of it as if it is speaking.

9. Destroy
I had similar approaches for destroy, but there are different forces destroying another force. In one composition, the smaller letters are destroying the larger letters and in the other, the larger letter is destroying the smaller ones.