Alphabetic Kanji
Alphabetic Kanji is a typographic project developed as part of ‘The New Type’ larger series investigating Japanese writing systems. The project was developed while Žarko was at the exchange to Tokyo University of the Arts as part of his studies at the Glasgow School of Art. The ‘Alphabetic Kanji’ project develops a type design system that connects letters and words into abstract shapes, creating an alphabetic-logographic hybrid. The name of the larger series ‘The New Type’ references the seminal Jan Tschichold book on typography.
The typographic sculptures based on the Alphabetic Kanji typeface are visually reminiscent of Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Art Nouveau furniture designs, creating a visual connection between the two universities where Žarko studied towards his master’s degree: Glasgow School of Art and Tokyo University of the Arts.
“Spending time in Japan I was fascinated by the Kanji writing system, adapted from Chinese characters, that communicates meaning through the overall form of the words rather than by decoding a string of graphemes and phonemes like in the Greek, Latin or Cyrillic based alphabets. I wanted to create a similar system that is based on the English written language (as today’s ‘lingua franca’), where each letter in the typeface ‘locks’ into the next, giving each word a unique abstract shape that could possibly create understanding based on its form rather than pronunciation.”
Žarko Dumičić
Am I a Graphic Designer?
An 8,000 word essay that researches the difference between art and design, as well as the importance of practical functionality within the design field. It also contains interviews with the Glasgow School of Art’s Communication Design staff members on the topic of graphic design in the contemporary world. The essay has been transformed into a piece of editorial design in form of a booklet, as well as a piece of information design in form of handmade wooden data sculptures on wheels.
Contacts
