/ Year two / Project: Magazine Spreads

For my Third project I was asked to design four spreads taking inspiration from one of ten selected words. The word that I chose was “Zero”. I was also given certain limitations such as colour; only two colours and stock were allowed. Typeface was also limited; only three variants of Helvetica were to be used.

This project gave me the opportunity to work within set guidelines, which emulates the design limitations most companies will have in the industry.

When I began working on ideas for this brief I struggled to come up with many motivating and intriguing designs. After further researching the word “Zero” I came across the concept of “Zero Point Energy” which I had only heard of in computer games. I decided to challenge myself and investigate the blurred line between science fact and science fiction. In my layouts I aimed to give the reader an insight into “ZPE” and how science has influenced computer games.

During this project I was able to improve my researching abilities, practice my typography skills and get used to working within set limitations. I also learned not to set an overambitious goal for myself, trying to fully understand Zero point energy and quantum mechanics when I only have limited knowledge on the subject was probably a mistake. The amount of time spent trying to get a reasonable level of understanding meant less time for experimenting with layouts.