Lost...
| Information | ||||||
| Project | Lost... | Client | Unversity Project | Year | 2013 | |
| Discipline | Typography, Print | Credits | Photo Credit: Rachel Bell | |||
| Project | Lost... | ||
| Client | Unversity Project | ||
| Year | 2013 | ||
| Discipline | Typography, Print | ||
| Credits | Photo Credit: Rachel Bell | ||
LOST… is a series of ‘lost’ posters depicting the intangibles that people lose. They are inspired by idioms and sayings, such as losing one’s temper, dignity or mind. Lost explores delight through humour and wit. The text in the poster (bad grammar and spelling inclusive) came from listings posted on classified advertisement sites like Gumtree and Craigslist. Some are humourous, some strange and some downright disturbing.
Finding such delight in these virtual classified listings, I physically reproduced them in the form of posters. These were then installed in various public contexts and I documented people’s reactions to the intervention through photography. Perhaps I can help some people find humour by highlighting what others have lost.
Lost Posters
The types of lost and found posters I have stumbled across in my neighbourhood and online are obviously not ‘designed’. Having lost 2 dogs in the past on 2 different occasions, I know the feeling well. Design is the last thing you’d think of, you want to get these posters out as soon as possible even if they are rather ugly. I was rather drawn to the handwritten ones as they have a sense of urgency.
Gumtree and Craigslist
I initially proposed create a series of my own lost and found posters till I discovered people were already posting up lost notices for intangible things on Gumtree and Craigslist. Some were humourous and strange while others were downright disturbing. They were far more creative and humorous copy than what I could have come up with. Instead of making posters for the sake of it I could “help” these Gumtree and Craigslist posters with their loss. It also helps bring to light the weird things people post up online and how it translates in printed form.
Venacular Type
The contents of the Gumtree and Craigslist listings were gold, so much so that I wanted to highlight it and bring the text to life. I looked at vernacular handwritten type as a means to express the feelings that would have been conveyed by the original poster. Photo credit: Timothy Goodman
