VIVIENNE TRAN
INFORMATION
Vivienne is currently an undergraduate design student at USC. Her work is often inspired by the so-called mundane, everyday life and passing presences of people around her. She experiments with a multitude of mediums and likes to explore the different forms her works may take. She currently works as the Art & Design Director at the Daily Trojan.
LINKS
Modular Type Film Code
Modular Type project done in DES 332A course at USC for the fall 2024 semester. For my modular typeface concept, I focused on shapes that can be seen on developed negative film rolls when scanned. Often, I like to experiment with scanning negatives and I had come across some pictures of them in my camera roll. Observing closer, I noticed the barcode-like marks lining the bottom and top of the negatives had an interesting rhythm to them and thought they resembled typography. Therefore, I decided to go forward with this modular typeface design out of the other ideas I experimented with.
Essentially, I took a detail from an analog form of documentation and created a contemporary modular typeface. My modular typeface very much resembles the edge markings of film strips and some letters are taken directly from the visible markings, yet it also has pixel and block-inspired elements that could be considered as modern. Depending on the color palette of the type and its background, it could serve as a subtle typeface, or could also give impact. Since it does take something considered “old” and creates a new form of it, I think it would work best in graphic posters or animations that deal with similar subjects. However, being a contemporary typeface, it could be used in many different environments and situations.
Part B: Application
To best use this typeface, I created a riso animation out of my original inspiration. Instead of the barcode-like pattern, I replaced it with my typeface, narrating the thoughts of someone who is stuck in their memories or past. Instead of focusing on the present, they keep falling back in nostalgia and feel trapped with no way out. This relates to not being able to move on or holding too tightly to memories as a coping mechanism.
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