Grotesque design for critiquing

Joe Elwell
Joe Elwell Posts: 34
in Type Design Critiques
Hello All,

I've been working on a grotesque-inspired typeface design and am looking for feedback on the overall quality and any errors I may have overlooked. Attached are two specimens for your perusal, in regular and semi-bold. I wanted a bold but didn't draw it heavy enough to be considered bold, I'll probably do that after I get these two nailed down.

I have used grotesque designs like Bureau Grot, FF Bau and National as a reference but want this design to still feel and look original. If thats even possible in this category of type design?

Thanks in advance for any insight and help!

Joe

Note: I'm using the GlyphsApp to develop the design.

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Comments

  • Joe Elwell
    Joe Elwell Posts: 34
  • Jasper de Waard
    Jasper de Waard Posts: 639
    It's not bad overall. The regular looks a little light to me, the tail of Q is too small, as is the bottom part of g. Kmrs are a little narrow. I think its biggest problem is that it lacks defining features, though. I could help you clean everything up, but I think you should try to look for something that could set this apart from other grotesques, first. Try combing features that don't seem typically grotesque, just go a little crazy, and clean up afterwards.
  • Joe Elwell
    Joe Elwell Posts: 34
    Thank you for your input, Jasper. I'll see what ideas I can come up with to make it stand out a little bit. Cheers!
  • Hrant Հրանդ Փափազեան Papazian
    Hrant Հրանդ Փափազեան Papazian Posts: 2,044
    edited June 2016
    To be honest to me this seems useful only as a learning exercise; every big and most medium-size foundries already produce one of these every month... How would you compete? Like Jasper says, try to introduce a new idea... as difficult and risky as that is.

    Recent and related: https://fontstand.com/articles/emigre
  • Joe Elwell
    Joe Elwell Posts: 34
    Thank you for your input, Hrant. It is more of a learning exercise for me. I realize now that I failed to state that in the first post! I've drawn other typefaces when I have the time (working as a graphic designer now) and am trying to develop a good eye for the basics,  continue to improve and possibly release a quality design in the future!? 

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