New Typographic Forms

Andrew Byrom demonstrates how his inspirations and studies of every day mainly interior objects are reinterpreted into tactile 3D textural typographic forms. These new typographic forms are clearly pushing the boundaries of conceptual typography, his works showing the physicality of letterforms and openness to the interrelatedness of design disciplines.

Byrom sees type potentials in virtually everything, in his design thinking he’s constantly striving to create things that could potentially form a complete alphabet the only possible restrictions are following the basic x-height or baseline typographic rules for readability, often this makes the projects more challenging and exciting, experimenting with different ways of manipulating materials. He seems to have fewer restrictions with regard to his designs from clients when they see his stuff they can see the fresh and unique approach of his typefaces and design content around his typefaces. Rather than text elements being placed over photographs and illustrations to fit on the page, although his portfolio demonstrates a very disciplined graphic approach to design, with traditional print stuff from logos to book covers and menus.

The concepts behind his typefaces are familiar functional objects that are ubiquitous in all our home environments. Things such as chairs, the designer’s favourite source of reference (ref. The Genius of Design), he also makes the typefaces from things like handlebars, Venetian blinds and a towel holder. Interestingly the typefaces though handmade into 3D forms are photographed for publications and or sometimes filmed, though not yet in 3D that could happen very soon:

I always design a full alphabet set, so my work functions in the same manner as most typefaces. Like any type designer, I want my letters to be arranged by others for their own needs. These communications may well be photographs (flattening the work back onto the page), but they might also be arranged in a built environment, attached to a wall, or flying in the sky!

 His personal website has a shop where you can purchase low relief folded aluminium numbers for doors interior or exterior. I really like the idea that these letterforms are being used within the context in which they were originally inspired:

Working in three dimensions so as to force myself to find new forms. My work does not recreate existing typefaces in three dimensions. Instead, I allow the constraints of materials and the limitations of creating physical structures with these materials to help guide me toward new typographic forms.

Undoubtedly they are unique highly crafted pieces, it’s interesting and exciting at seeing how they can be as adaptively used as they are conceptualised and assembled.

Typefaces: Byrom Tss

Letter-box-kite

Numbers

Grab-Me

Venetian Blind

http://www.andrewbyrom.com