Project Brief

For this assignment, I had to create a functional and aesthetic design for a newsletter on a subject of my choosing, keeping in mind the newsletter’s subject and audience.

Design Process

Taskmaster is a British panel show that has 5 comedians participate in a series of absurd tasks. The show's tone is nonsensical. It has been on for 10 seasons, thus developing different themes and motifs. For my newsletter, I wanted to pay homage to the show. The target audience for the newsletter are fans of the show.

Since I was making this newsletter for my typography class, the main focus is the type, spacing and layout design. I paired a typewriter typeface (the most distinct type on the show) with other whimsical typefaces (like Blackcurrant, Barteldes and Eckmannpsych) sourced from adobe fonts. The newsletter was laid out as an envelope (in keeping with the show's envelopes) which you open once to reveal the newsletter and then fully open to show the map.

The newsletter has a blurb explaining the show and its history. It then introduces some contestants of the past series and contains inside jokes, superlatives and fun facts. It is designed as a weekly newsletter featuring new information and score updates as the show progresses. The back of the newsletter opens into a TM poster to be hung up once the 'news' is read.

Reflection

This might be one of the most fun projects I worked on as a sophomore. Over 4 weeks, I had to create an initial proposal, template, two drafts and get them printed. Surprisingly, what I found most challenging was designing the back poster. I was unsure if it should be realistic or abstract (I have included some of my initial attempts.)

Overall, I am pleased with the project (and was probably too invested in it.) My biggest concern with the newsletter is that the text is sometimes a little overwhelmed. In hindsight, I should have toned it down a bit. In the end, I think this newsletter is tonally consistent with the rest of the franchise which I am proud of.

Reference