Reflecting on Halfland Posters

Starting to sketch up concepts for Halfland's posters and other collateral materials.
My dream of creating ambigram lettering of sorts for the logo titles for the project began in earnest yesterday when I came across artist Rowena Murillo's profile photo at random (lower right). She had a school logo on her shirt and that got me thinking about making Halfland's lettering reflect in a mirror.

Wikipedia on a search turned me onto the beautiful rorschach ambigram paintings (a couple bottom center) by John Langdon that I roughed onto her shirt. I found that there were automatic ambigram generators online and that the very best, based on my results was Flip Script. I'm still refining what raw ambigram I'll use, but when I do, I plan to purchase the high res art to use as the basis for the rest I'll do to it from that site. So far, I've used screen grabs of the various free previews, edited their positions and added insect and human artifacts to them letter forms (above).

Here's the thing, ambigrams, a term I hadn't known before yesterday, generally read the same at 180ยบ angles, right side up and upside down. I wanted the lettering to read when reflected in the mirror, yes, but not just that. It really also needs to be somewhat communicative without the use of a mirror, viewing right side up. So my results below are very satisfying for me. They do the trick for me.

I have since gone back to the Flipscript generator and tried all sorts of approaches to trick the code into giving me lettering that will read as "Halfland" when viewed from every direction with a mirror. Somehow I cracked the code and did it. So those results may show up in t-shirts or other items.

But in the meanwhile, I completely enjoyed experimenting with various project imagery to begin to see the world being created coming together at long last...
Some of my favorite 1/2L images are the underwater shots of the Koi of Enlightenment. Here I've paired one of them (liking how my hand is visible with it) with some of the layered painted clouds and cyc sky.
Here's a rather dark and strange collage of the character Tarn and two distinct landscapes representing her two aspects, the moon at night and the healing desert, with a vertical lettering treatment.
Bosq the Snoring Cat dreams a languid dream of Halfland as if submerged in the smeared syrup of sleeping.


PS: If you happen to have a mirror nearby you, try holding it up to the screen, either above or below any of these sketches lettering horizon lines. If you wait a moment your brain should find the language pattern in the lettering and reveal the name of our secret place anyway you reflect on it. 

Comments

  1. Such an amazing idea for Halfland!!! I love the lettering and designs above. Everything is sooo dreamlike. When I first saw the designs you did I said to myself: - a dream coming true... It has also been great to learn about ambigram. I have not heard about it before.

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  2. Your poster reflects (ha!) perfectly what Halfland is all about. – Like Yaz I love the dreamy atmosphere though I'm not totally convinced by the "A" letters. I think I understand why you used it (it fits the landscapy shape of the word perfectly), but at first glance it looks like an "U", so it's a bit distracting.

    What font do you use? Is there any possibility to adapt the letter somehow?

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  3. Hi ya, YAZ!! I'm having the same dream coming true reaction too! Sooooooo exciting believe me! Thank you for sharing that.

    Hi ya, Jessica!!! Thanks, yes, I realize the "A" isn't properly reading when viewed ride side up, but I actually am liking that it doesn't. It looks like another language other than English. Which I think is fitting for Halfland.

    There isn't any written language we'd recognize in Halfland. Except for in the journals of the Mouse and on certain leaves and flowers. So making a title is going to require something very creative indeed.

    Here's what I didn't mention in the post....

    The type you see there isn't the final final choice, just my first pass at it. But I actually like it and may use it. But I won't use it as you see it.

    I plan to print out the lettering in black on white paper rather large and then create actual rorschach ink artwork that will then be brought into the computer and used as the type.

    Plus, I'll attempt to create the final lettering in tied twigs and mud, etc. to use on set as possible organic 3D titling.

    Neat idea, eh?!

    The latest Flip Script generated lettering I made for this reads sideways as well as top and bottom. I call it Halfland Omnitype.

    we'll see what gets used where.

    T-SHIRTS!!!!!!

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