Graphic design student Sophie Lepinoy has created a typeface that incorporates silhouettes of shoes and accessories.
Called Alfashion, the project is inspired by the game Cadavre Exquis, where a group of players add to a drawing one by one without knowing what has come before.
Here's some more information from Sophie Lepinoy:
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Who said typography could not be sexy ?
When the elegance of typography meets the extravagance of fashion, it gives Alfashion.
Alfashion is a stiletto serif typeface inspired by the surrealist game "Exquisite Corpse" (Cadavre Exquis).
The game is played as a group of players, each player adding a piece to a design, one at a time. Each participant ignores what the others are adding to the design.
The combination of unexpected or mismatching shapes creates a new type of design, an hybrid of fashion and typography.
On me and my design: I am a graphic design student at London College of Communication.
I switched from a fashion design BA (at London College of Fashion) to a graphic design BA at LCC over a year ago.
The typeface emerged when tutor/typographer Marcus Leis Allion encouraged me to mix illustration and typography.
I was then also using the surrealist game "cadavre exquis" to uncover the power of systems in design.
The alphabets can only be read when arranged in alphabetical order in a big picture. Once they are being put up independently, some of them become incomprehensible.
I think that it is a really forced integration between two elements. Doesn´t works for me.
Roar. Melike.
Again. My previous posting was not accepted (Afraid of some critics?)
Let it say in a more gentle way. I think the whole thing is too fast and too easy made. Taking some characters and put some body-parts on them with Photoshop can work of course. But this is definitely no good result. The proportions and the scale is wrong (Just compare the “J”, which is actually good to the very deformed “R”) There is no constancy going on. This might be interesting for somebody who wants to make a “funny” Powerpoint-Presentation, but this is far away from beeing serious Typograpy or “Graphic-Design”.
Also. What in this picture is sexy and why do characters have to be sexy? (I can’t see any “sexyness”) Another thing. Why taking bodyparts and combine them with the Alphabet. Isn’t it more interesting using the whole body for making letters? Of course I know a lot of people have done this before. It works – This work(s) not.
Best regards.
mm paris’ alphabet series about ten years ago – about 1000 times better
Neither liked nor understand the S.
Not too keen on this. Looks visually uncomfortable. Not with the sophistication that you would expect from an integration with such feminine objects.
It’s brutal, it’s simple. I like it.
And don’t say that is already made, a very boring advice.
From a first glance, I quite like it. It’s certainly got energy. Something I don’t really understand is the mixture of the serif and sans. Is this the result of it being a bit fashionable to do that at the moment?
i like it. i think some people dont quite get it. the way that the body parts and the letters join together so awkwardly looks great, and the inconsistency and the scale. its original and as maxence said ‘its brutal’.
capstick said the integration between the parts looks forced. i think its fairly obvious that the designer wanted it to have that appearence.
I very much like it: it’s awkward, but elegant and that make it unique. M/M have also played with body parts but in different ways.
Nice idea, but a nightmare for every typographer!
I like it too!
In fact I like it very much!
Anything in the world could be aultered over and over again,but in the end you get something inspiring!One should gase for a little bit more, and that’s what this typeface makes you to do!And I like it very much!
I think art should be a bit hard to understand ,otherwise it’s not art any longer!
I like a lot this unexpected mix , strengh of letters and elegance of feminine body parts. I like also the contrasting black and white colors.
It is strong and delicate.
Zaz.
It is nice indeed! Anyway, great conversation starter.
Liked it!
Could be sparingly used as a drop cap in the perfect context.
This is much cooler, by the same guy:
http://www.yeswecangraphicdesign.com/index.php?/typography/elastic-bands/
I am loving this!! Very creative and SEXY!
What I find interesting is the mixture of two worlds, fashion and classic typography. At the same time, it is breaking the rules of both, which may be unsettling, but is also a fantastic way to be inventive. It is a pretty ‘raw’ design because it is based on the surrealist game of ‘cadavre exquis’, mixing random shapes to unearth unexpected designs.
The other interesting aspect of this is the negative space: the white space should be overpowered by the strong black shapes, but in some letters, the white space is so disrupted and unusual that it is taking over.
This work is also interesting because not always easily readable: the letter is at the edge of becoming an -more or less abstract- shape.
Individually they look great, together in words, not so great at all
the guy does have some nicer stuff on his site though
Lots of harsh comments on what is a BA project. Really catches the eye and is a lovely idea. Could work well as a headline face in a fashion magazine. MM/Paris piece though sharing some thoughts is not the same at all.