Simon Oliver blog

A simple process allows you to use six striking fonts on computers running Windows Vista or OSX (Apple Macs operating system).

These won’t work on older computers; the usual fonts will be displayed. So there is nothing lost.

I used Candara on this website. I didn’t want the type to fight with the bright graphics I’d designed. A font like Constantia or Times would have caused a distraction and upset the heirarchy. Candara has a kind of relaxed quality that fits with the message I am trying to get across.

It looks great big which is why I used image files instead of HTML text on the top navigation. Anyone using a older operating system would still get the same impact, which should help to convince the user of my design capability.

This art movement was about saying something and getting your point across. Its use of geometric forms, cut out imagery and the same colours gave it a simple dynamism and power that was accessible to all people.

There had never been anything like it before and it shows how design can be a hugely effective form of mass communication.

Not really ‘design’, but when I got into Picasso’s and George Braque’s work something clicked. I went from drawing lengthy photographic pictures to something a bit wilder and expressive. It really opened up new doors for me and I haven’t looked back since.