Liberty, equality, fraternity through my graphic design lens
This project from my studies at the University of Portsmouth takes the motto of the French Republic, 'Liberty, equality, fraternity', as its subject. I wanted to trace the phrase back to its first appearance before working with it visually, and the outcome was a typeface and a textile print.
2023Process
The historical research led me to a scan of the original text (Robespierre, 1790) on Google Books, where I could read the phrase in the context of its first use.
What surprised me was that Robespierre had already suggested where the words should go: on the chest.
At the time I was looking closely at Keith Haring, and while working out how to set the phrase I came across a calendar he designed for 1989/1990.
I drew a typeface that merges the letterforms of the 1790 printing with Haring's style, and used it as the basis for the text.
The final piece is a textile print of the phrase set in that typeface.
Gallery