I haven't been using my photography as much lately, so I decided to dig deep and find special photos from my trips that would inspire me to play with typography. I have chosen my favorite cities: Berlin, Sevilla and Santiago of Chile. The three cities have distinct personalities, so the choices were done thinking of my experiences, the architecture, and my impressions.
Berlin is a city that while unified now, still carries some divisions and fragments. The architecture styles call me to think of a thick sans serif, contemporary that in my opinion matches the DDR architecture.
I chose two symbols of the DDR for the posters, the Fernsehturm and a Plattenbau, both incredible landmarks that obsess me about the city.
I chose two symbols of the DDR for the posters, the Fernsehturm and a Plattenbau, both incredible landmarks that obsess me about the city.
Santiago of Chile is the city where I grew up in, and these towers (Carlos Antunez towers) are deeply embedded in my childhood memories because my Godfather (who was also my pediatrician) had his practice a few blocks away from them. I also remember getting a beautiful red dress from a store located in the lower levels.
My font choice was originally closer to Garamond, but I started thinking more about the geography of the mountains. I created my own type of Santiago, which played with the geography of the city, but since this was a different type of exercise, I used a different font that has a wide and thin A. I wanted something that would emphasize the angles of the buildings and took space across the screen. It was a beautiful exercise to reconsider what makes me love my city.
My font choice was originally closer to Garamond, but I started thinking more about the geography of the mountains. I created my own type of Santiago, which played with the geography of the city, but since this was a different type of exercise, I used a different font that has a wide and thin A. I wanted something that would emphasize the angles of the buildings and took space across the screen. It was a beautiful exercise to reconsider what makes me love my city.
Sevilla is my newest favorite city. I spent some time living there after the pandemic and it's a city that has many faces and they are all important. There is the beauty of Triana and the Historic center of the city that has a classic vibe, hence the serif fonts, and the more contemporary sans serif inspired by structures like the Setas, La Cartuja and the Expo '92. I am so in love with Sevilla and its visuals, the ceramic tiles, the textures, music, Semana Santa. I could create a whole book about the city. I spent a lot of time drawing and creating lettering, photographing, meeting people and studying the mannerisms. It is definitely a place that makes me feel like home.
