Jack Bennett
About Me
Work
Air Louis
The Path to Discovery
Impact Atlas
Herzog Sequence
DIVE
How To Make Taffy
Labor Collages
The Laws of Simplicity
This book is a reimagined layout of John Maeda’s “The Laws of Simplicity.” It’s a 110 page perfect-bound soft cover showcasing type systems in long form print design. The volume is split into three distinct sections requiring their own treatment: the introduction, the body of the text, and an epilogue.
Work began with the stipulation that Demos Next is used as the primary font. A font pairing was requested, with the goal of establishing unity and maintaining a clear hierarchy throughout development. Comparative sheets were made to boil down potential pairings, with elements such as historicity, structure, type function, and contrast up for consideration. URW DIN was determined to be the natural pairing for historical value and slight structural contrast.
The process then shifted to making everything gel, beginning with the body text. Titling followed and work structure continued from the book’s center outward. This workflow allowed for critical decisions to be made on the fly addressing a broadly changing system. The key hang-up arrived when it came time to add imagery to the book. The system had to be adjusted throughout so all text elements worked in harmony with the provided images.
Reflecting on this project, I find this method of iteration informs my entire process on any given work. This piece highlighted the importance of feedback during all phases of design, illustrates how to prevent type design from becoming unexciting for the viewer in a long-form project, and how dramatic design decisions are best left to the final phases of development.