Research for Project 2

For this assignment, we were asked to look at the works of Robert Leroy Ripley, Edward Johnston, and Massimo Vigneli. Three designers that each made significant contributions to the field.

Ripley, aspiring to be a professional athlete found art and iconography in general after a freak accident sidelined his athletic career after only a mere game. Turning to cartooning at the San Franscisco Chronicle his created a column titled "Champs and Chumps," which in turn never took off. His next effort "Ripley's Believe It or Not," proved to be of a different kind of animal entirely.Often the text can be seen in shades of yellow and orange the color that stood out the most would be the shade of red used, clearly resembling the appearance of blood. This shade partnered with the attractions themselves popularized Ripley into the superstar that he is today, even after death.

Edward Johnston contribution while less dramatic was beneficial nonetheless, creating a simple typeface for subway routes and maps. Having been commissioned by a man named Pick, Johnston even went as far as to name the font Johnston Sans, after himself. This font is widely seen through the underground subways in Great Britain and throughout the northern states of the continental United States.

Vigneli, was the other central figure in the revamp of the subway map, making it easier to understand routes and schedules. Both Johnston and Vigneli helped in making the overall subway map more than just a map, in a sense, the average subway map can be seen as work of art unto itself.