Licence to Print Money 1.1

Physical currency takes the form of coins and notes because they are easy to carry around and are convenient. Notes have been the same shape and size for many years, across a lot of different currencies, however each one has different visual content. I aim to explore what the subject and content is and why it is appropriate. 

GBP
Pound sterling

The first sterling notes were printed by The Bank of England in 1694. 

Since then, the composition of the note has changed to increase security and also reflect the culture that the currency is used in. The subject on the Great British Pound is Monarchy, currently Queen Elizabeth because she is a symbol of Britain.

On the reverse of the note is Charles Darwin, a historical character that has been chosen because of his research and exploration on the HMS Beagle - Shown as an illustration on the note.

Below is a list of all banknotes withdrawn from circulation since 1988 that shows what characters have been on the banknote:

Conclusive evidence that the GBP uses monarchy and influential people as the face of the banknote.

Design Features:

Denomination Numeral - There is a large number 10 and £ symbol in the top left corner on the front of the note to assist easy recognition of its value.

Recognition symbol - For the partially sighted, the £10 note has a densely coloured orange diamond on the front:

Unique Numbering - A unique number is printed horizontally and vertically on the front of the £10 note. The horizontal number is in the top left corner and consists of multi-coloured letters and numbers, increasing in height from left to right. The vertical number runs down the right side and has letters and numbers that are the same height and colour.

Historical character - Charles Darwin (1809-1882).
As a young man Darwin was employed as the naturalist on board the ship HMS Beagle an illustration of which is depicted on the back of the note. Also pictured is an illustration of Darwin 's own magnifying lens and the flora and fauna that he may have come across on his travels.

Security Features:

I didn't know that the majority of these security elements existed on the bank note and I am going to transfer some visual techniques into some potential concepts. As a response to these findings, I can use the visual security techniques as inspiration for visual concepts, for example:

• Microlettering - includes type but also allows opportunity to be expressive and playful with the design - Potential to explore typesetting and concrete poetry. 

• The metallic thread can be replaced with foiling if I decide to transfer these textures into my design. 

• If it is appropriate, I would like to emboss the stock to produce a similar result to adding a hologram and will make my currency tactile. 

Using images of influential people is a useful technique for making the currency recognisable around the world because people make associations to where that 'character' is from. I have noticed a lot of sources use the lexis 'character' to describe the person on the face of the banknote which I can take literally to create my own.

Other examples of currency from around the world:

Swiss Franc

The new Swiss banknote was released in 2005 and was open as a competition. Krebs Manuel won the competition, however due to public resistance it was rejected and Pfrunder Manuela's compositions were chosen

However, her designs were only drafts and they were changed considerably for security reasons and weren't revealed till very close to the final release:

The banknote is predominantly pink so that it is easily and quickly interpreted by the owner as a 20 without them needing to read it. There is a lack of imagery in comparison to text as only the key, relevant information is printed to avoid making the note too busy. Again, the character takes up the majority of the composition, especially because it is rotated to take up a lot of the available space. 

Nepalese Rupee

In 2007 (and 2012), Nepal began to issue currency in which the traditional leader’s portrait was replaced by Mount Everest. This is a mirror of the political change from Kingdom to Republic, which happened in 2008.

Previous:

Current:

Shows how much money can be influenced by politics. The textured visuals make the note tactile and also add security, especially the image of Mount Everest because of the red tone and opacity. 

Security

Noticed security is an important factor to consider when producing the design for a currency. Currency needs to be unique so that it is hard for criminals to replicate it and cause fraud. However, I am designing a currency for an exhibition so I can be more conceptual with my outcome as it doesn't have to work in real life. 


Catherine Eagleton and Jonathan Williams - MONEY (A HISTORY)
2007

The publication was filled with detailed information on the history of money, specifically its form and function of money from Pre 500 BC to 2000. Looking at the form and function allows me to explore the techniques that were used to create money and see how it evolved. This will help me explore deeper concepts and visual elements.

Below is a coin tree from the early twentieth century. The Chinese used this to cast brass coins in the flowered shape moulds. Once cooled the brass coins could be snapped off and filed down to remove any trace of the gullies. 

Picked this from the book because it has potential to inspire patterns on currency. This is typical on a lot of banknotes as it makes them visually stimulating but also adds security because it's hard to replicate. 

If a currency is going to be established, it needs to be efficient and portable. In 1975, Papua New Guinea created a coin that had a hole in it so rural people could carry their coins using string:

This is a useful solution as it minimises the risk of loosing coins and is appropriate for the area where it will be used. I need to consider how the currency will be used and stored for the convenience of the owner.  

Mexican dollar adapted to perform the traditional role of silver as a wedding gift. The red letter on the coin stands for 'double happiness'. 

Make money more personal so that people see it as a gift/token. This would make people appreciate and respect money and could also lead to a predominantly visual outcome.  

Paying With Plastic 

Using plastic is an older payment method than I thought - 1918

Found Catherine Eagleton and Jonathan Williams' book really useful for researching deeper into the history of money. Looking into coinage has given me more knowledge about practicality and visual inspiration.

Koos Jansen  - 'The Concept Of Money And The Money Illusion'

I was intrigued by the title of the article and found some interesting facts and opinions which can help influence my concepts.

• 'What we use as money is a social contract to be used in trade and to store value, always based on trust.'

• Supreme Court in 1848 ruled: 'Money, when paid into a bank, ceases altogether to be the money of the principal; it is then the money of the banker, who is bound to an equivalent by paying a similar sum to that deposited with him when he is asked for it.'

The term 'money is no object' can be taken literally in these circumstances.

• 'The lion share of their money only exists in their minds. This is what I call the money illusion, in which most of us on this planet are submerged.'

Could play on the concept of illusions which will provide a lot of opportunity to look into optical illusions for my analogue outcome. 

Jansen's article has made me look at the concept of money from a different angle particularly because of his views on banking making money into an illusion. This has inspired a broad range of concepts that I feel have scope to take forward and be appropriate for an exhibition piece.

Katy Siegel and Paul Mattick - MONEY (Art Works)
Thames & Hudson 
2004

The publication argues why artists today are so interested in money and deal with it in there art. There are a lot of quotes from famous artists and examples of work that are relevant for the subject:

• 'Making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art' - Andy Warhol

• Argues that some famous artists don't produce the work themselves so all of the money shouldn't be named under that one artist.

• Dave Muller makes art about art - Specifically its social connections of mutual friendship and interest that make up the art world.

Muller has converted art into the earliest form of currency; bargaining. Looking at the money in art is an interesting topic because its value is often way more than its production costs or time spent making it. It has its own specific economy.

French Playing Card Money

In 1685, the French government was late in sending the payroll to its military outpost in present-day Canada. The soldiers were supposed to be paid in silver coins known as livres (pronounced “leaves”). With buyers unable to buy, and sellers unable to sell, the local economy experienced what we would nowadays call a recession. 

The intendant of the camp, Jacques De Muelles, devised a brilliantly simple solution to the problem: He paid the soldiers with paper IOU’s. One problem was that suitable paper was hard to find on the Canadian frontier, so he procured sets of playing cards and cut them in quarters. On each quarter he might write “IOU 1 livre”. He then announced that these IOU’s would be redeemable in silver livres as soon as the payroll ship arrived. 

The details of this episode are lost to history, but it appears that the paper livres greatly stimulated business. It is easy to see why. Paper money is far more convenient than coins, barter, or credit. When it was introduced into an economy that relied mostly on barter, the improvement in the efficiency of trade, and of borrowing and lending, would have been enormous.

On the back of the card states: '... For the sum of 50 pounds ...'

Using cards as currency is an interesting concept because they feature characters such as the Jack, Queen and King, similar to the characters that feature on modern currency. The layout of cards is also very consistent as the numerical value is always in the corners with the suit. This will make my currency transferable over other numerical values £5, £10, £15, £20, etc. 

 If I was to take this concept further I could research into playing cards and symbols that feature in a set and create my own currency. 

Design Principles Publication 2.0

Edited my typesetting layout so that all of the text will be visible when the publication is bound:

Pulled all of the text to the opposite side to the bind. I didn't need to edit all of the pages because the type was still visible. I added a colon to the end of the statement that explains what's going on on the next page so the audience is aware of what the statement is for. This makes the reading experience flow from page to page. 

Printed on cartridge paper so that the GSM and texture of the stock is consistent throughout the publication. The size of type is small but legible which is appropriate for the small publication.

OUTCOME:

Manually sorted the pagination making sure I considered stock colours so that each visual example of the principle is contrasting or complimentary to impact the reader. I used blank, coloured stock on the left page and white stock on the right to suggest a change of subject.

Front Cover

Book covers are similar to album artwork because there are limitless outcomes and consider the same components. The use of type on the cover is primarily used to introduce the name of the book/band, author and album title. However, type isn't mandatory and some publications and album sleeves wait for the publication to be opened before stating the title. I visited Crash Records and Waterstones so I could study front covers and how they influence the audience.

Yak

I am familiar with Yak's music and album art because it is an expressive style that works with their style of music. There's no type on their record covers so if you don't know the band you wouldn't know what the cover was for until the vinyl is removed from the sleeve. This is effective for people who know the band because they're able to recognise the visual style without the need for type. 

Want to make my cover visual because it will set the tone for the rest of the publication so I have avoided using typography to introduce the publication. This isn't typical for a book cover, however I think it will intrigue the audience to pick it up and flick through the publication.

The red stock contrasts well against the white stock and using the visuals for Closure sets the tone for the rest of the publication. I kept the cut area to the right because the binding stitch is going to be visible and therefor I want an even spacing between the seam and the visual. The cover is ambiguous because I want to intrigue the audience and open the publication to find out what's inside which is an example of how a publication can instruct an audience.

Design Principles Publication 1.9

Mock Up

Creating a mock up was useful for sorting out the pagination because I don't have InDesign to do it for me. I had to consider the pages that had shapes cut out of them as I won't be able to print on them:

I wrote down details about stock so that I could plan ahead and reduce the risk of making a mistake during the assembly process to come. 

This was a really useful problem solving solution and I have realised creating hand made publications is mainly based on planning and problem solving because I don't have Adobe software to do it for me. 

I am going to have a cover page made out of my laser cut prints so in order to make some progress I have decided to start getting the typographical elements sorted.

Stock Choices and Colours

Using a primary colour scheme because it is friendly and allows me to easily create contrasting and harmonious colour schemes. I don't want to confuse the audience with too much texture because I want them to understand each principle which is why I have chosen a consistent weighted stock so that the texture of the paper is the same throughout the whole book. 

Refer to 'Studio Brief 2 Publication 1.3' for research on layout and grid systems.

I aim to keep the typesetting as simple as I can because I want to information to be clear and legible. The publication is going to be predominantly visual because I think that will stimulate the audience more and help them learn the principles. 


Introduction Page Experimentation

I noticed a lot of publications have an introduction and acknowledge the publisher on the front page so I want to use this to introduce my publication and add some context to Gestalt Principles. 

I printed out a 6x6 grid system so that I could put it inside my mock up and see how far the pages will open. I chose this grid size because I knew the page size would be smaller than I am used to. I then marked the line on the grid to remind me that I need to leave a maximum that space for binding purposes. I'm glad I did this to avoid losing some content inside the bind and forcing the publication open. 

Kept using Times because it's very recognisable and formal so my publication will be read in a serious tone. Set the type so that each 'block' of text is read from right to left, instead of left to right. This was due to the fact I had more room on the right hand side. The viewer will see 'Gestalt Principles...' first and then read down. 

I decreased the size of the text and condensed the layout because I didn't have much information and I want to focus the audiences eye on the centre of the page.

I decreased the size of the text and condensed the layout because I didn't have much information and I want to focus the audiences eye on the centre of the page. The small type was inspired by Archive 15 because it's still legible but leaves more white space.

Inspired by Archive 15:

Archive 15 placed information on at the top of the page which was consistent and convenient to read because it was at the top of the page and the imagery the followed. This put the pages into context before seeing the visuals. There is also no hierarchy of information because it is all on the same level. I created a sense of hierarchy by making the title of the publication bold. 

The binding technique has influenced where a lot of my information can be placed so I have decided to use what's best appropriate and set the body of type at the bottom right corner. This completely reduces the risk of losing any content in the bind and will influence the reader to turn the page. The grid system was really useful for keeping my text in line and allowed me to be accurate and consistent. This style was influenced by my publication research early in the project (Design Principles Publication 1.0), specifically ASTREA by Laura Pol because the blocks of text were set to lead the readers eye around the page. 

I am going to print on the back of this page so that my first principle is on the right hand side of the double page spread. This is going to be consistent throughout out all principle explanations.

Figure/Ground

To avoid losing text in the bind, I need to swap the binding allowance from the left hand side to the right hand side as the bind will swap when the page is turned. 

I have already produced a concept for this page:

However I want to further enhance it using the 6x6 grid system and smaller type so that my pages are all consistent which will make it look professional. 

Kept the bold size 12pt title and 8pt copy:

Pulled all of the text to the left hand side to leave a lot of white space between the visual example of the principle. 

Moved the content a bit further to the left but it's imbalanced and inappropriate. 

Altered syntax of the type so that I could position the text explaining the principle on the right, therefor it's closer to the subject it's talking about. As you can see the text on the right is right on the limit of available space, however I think placing the type here makes the page top heavy which is where it's comfortable to read.

This will be on the right hand side of the double page spread:

Made from layers created by the circle, then aligned with the white square and then a blue background. I chose this colour scheme because it is analogous and the navy square contrasts well with the white circle. 

This creates a problem that may force me to change the colour scheme. I will need to print type on the reverse of the navy stock which will make reading the text very hard. To overcome this problem, I brainstormed a number of options:

Want to avoid using the laser cutter because I need to start putting my publication together.

Decided the best option is to use some of my spare laser cuts and create a composition out of them using the pages and cut outs. I didn't want to introduce the audience to the principles without an explanation so used one of my simple compositions:

Chose this because I realised it creates really nice shapes when layered off centre:

Chose a contrasting colour scheme that makes it look like the boxes are 3D. I now have a white back page that can be used to print on. This can add some visual stimulation and shows how the Gestalt principles can be manipulated to create simple yet striking results. 

Mind mapping was a really useful problem solving technique because I was able to quickly write down any possible solution to create a flow of ideas and then use the most appropriate solution. 

Similarity 

Placed the explanation and summary of the principle to the left of the page so that it is naturally read first by the audience. Text supporting the visuals on the right so that people would read it second and associate this text with the example. 

Closure

I centred the type so that the audiences eye has time to process the title and then focus on the centre of the page. The white space around the information is the ground and the figure acts as the focal point. 

Each page has a different layout which is inconsistent but it could help stimulate the audiences brain so that they remember the principle better. This relates to theories into memory and learning. Once I print out my information sheets and put them inside my publication I will be able to tell if they are appropriate or need developing more.

Proximity 

Proximity is going to consist of two examples:

1- Without proximity:

2- With proximity:

Which means I am going to need two pages. For the first page I am going to summarise what the principle means and then show the example without proximity. After this example, I will explain the composition when proximity is perceived. 

First:

Similar typesetting concept as before by placing relevant information on the left and right of the page. 

I then simply set the type in the centre without a title so that the subject from the previous information page is continued to avoid confusion and repetition:

Continuation

Decided that I will print a simple explanation and example of continuation because my laser cut example may not be clear enough. Once the audience reads the content, my composition will make more sense. Again I have placed the type relating to the laser cut on the right hand side so that the content is associated together.  

It is important to consider the size of the text throughout the publication. I want the text size to be consistent and transferable because it is for an educational purpose and I want the information to be as clear as possible.

PRINT OUTS

Printed out my information pages to see if the typesetting is correct in correspondence to the binding method allowance. 

Noticed as the book progresses and more pages are turned makes the pages harder to turn because of the thickness of the stock. As a results, some of the type is hard to read because of the bind: 

To overcome this I am going to set my type to the left and also change the binding allowance.