Designed by Shelby Lemon
Designed by Shelby Lemon Dedicated to Marshall Miller
INTO THE CITY Ride the train with Marshall and Shelby and watch as they get their ďŹ rst glimpse of Chicago.
Follow Marshall and Shelby throughout this typography book about Chicago. Spot the characters on the page as they guide you through ďŹ nding typography and their experiences in the Big City!
Oh, the places you’ll go.
Dr. Seuss
The signs leading us to the trains were easily read. The letters were bold and capitalized. Many signs also included arrows pointing the direction of which way to go.
MY TYPE OF
It was a beautiful Saturday morning and Shelby and Marshall were on their way to Chicago. These kids knew that today would be a great day. They were about to go on an adventure. “What type of adventure should we go on Marshall?” Shelby asked, excited to learn about the city. Marshall replied, “Let’s just walk around and see what types of things you can see in downtown.”
exited the 22nd car of South Shore Line train and walked into the city. There were so many different signs, pictures and letters to look at. “Shelby, look at those theatre signs. They’re taller than my house!” Shelby said. “Did you know the Chicago theatre community consists of over 250 professional theatre companies with more than 5 million attendees per year?” Marshall stated.
The theatre signs commonly have bright, bold letters and are very flashy and fun to look at. The extravagant signs are readable from far distances and bring people in to see their shows.
WALKING IN DOWNTOWN Shelby and Marshall walk the streets of Chicago.
Life is like a bicycle, in order to keep your balance you must keep moving. Albert Einstein
Rent A
BI CYCLE
up at the giant signs and ashing lights they came to many intersections they had to cross. They were sure to cross them carefully and noticed there were messages printed on the road: LOOK FOR BIKES. Chicago has bike stations around the city that allow people to rent a bike and get places faster. You can even ride them just for fun!
There were many signs warning people to look for bikes. The huge white block letters were painted on the ground to warn drivers and others crossing the street. Other signs were posted on trafďŹ c lights.
now walking on State Street when Shelby began to giggle. “What’s so funny?” Marshall asked. “Look, they named a building after you!” Shelby said, as she pointed to the Marshall Fields and Company building.
The Marshall Fields and Co. building is the 2nd largest department store in the world with 12 floors. The sign is a historic token from the original store.
We found many green signs put on poles or street lights that helped walkers navigate the city. This sign lead us to the Navy Pier.
on. Both Marshall and Shelby decided they should explore a different part of the city. They had seen the big signs from Chicago theatres, warnings painted on the road in thick letters and even a bronze sign with Marshall’s name on it. Shelby, looking at her feet as she was thinking, saw that in clear capital letters the circular cover to the Chicago sewers. She looked up and saw a bridge approaching and knew they were approaching water. “Let’s go to the Navy Pier!”
street signs and trams to ďŹ nd their way to the historic Navy Pier. It was a long walk from State Street, but they made a game of looking for interesting art and words along the way. They came across local art created by Jun Kaneko. It was art about legends, myths and truths. The sign itself looked like an art piece with the lines, colors and blocky letters.
*These sculptures were the strangest animal combinations we’d ever seen. We wanted to take a picture of it, but not with it...
The artist, Jum Kaneko, made these scultpures for Millenium Park. He used patterns such as stripes and polka dots to make people more aware of how it relates to the surroundings.
THE NAVY PIER Yummy food and attractions on the Navy Pier.
If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun. Katherine Hepburn
Marshall and Shelby could see the giant Ferris wheel near the center of Navy Pier. Everything on the pier was extravagant. The signs marking the attractions were all very similar with serif white capital letters and red banner backgrounds. The doors marking where shops were on the pier had stenciled letters on them. The letters were red on a blue banner. Finding fun things to do on the pier was easy!
*The line for the ferris wheel was extremely long. The Navy ferris wheel is 150 feet tall. *A serif is a slight projection ďŹ nishing off a stroke of a letter.
That’s the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up. Walt Disney
endless as the two walked down the pier. Signs for ice cream, merry-go-rounds, games and the ferris wheel were everywhere. They waved goodbye to the pier and looked out over the sparkling Lake Michigan. Marshall spotted a green sign that said Lakefront Path. His family owns a sailboat on the lake. “Hey Shelby, how about I take you sailing?”
The Ben & Jerry’s sign is easily recognized by its thick serifs and bold white type. This type gives people feelinga of happiness and excitement because it is related so closely to eating yummy ice cream!
My favorite thing is to go where I’ve never been. Diane Arbus
been sailing before and thought it was a splendid idea. “How do we get there?” she asked. “Let’s just follow the signs and the people. This path will take us straight to the harbor.”
on, crossing over bridges and under over passes. Another sign for the river walk showed up and they knew they were on the right path. People rode past them on the bikes they had seen earlier in downtown Chicago. They saw more lettering on the ground that said “Slow Area� in bright yellow paint. Bikers, walkers and runners alike were making their way to and from the harbor. The words printed on the walk way are stretched out and longer than normal. That way people quickly passing over it can still read the message. The taller it is, the easier it is to read.
SAILING ON LAKE MICHIGAN Shelby learns how to sail.
The Nancy O was a beautiful boat. The elegant typeface reflected the beauty of the boat. The letters on the side of the boat are large, so other people can read it easily.
the last bridge, Shelby’s jaw dropped. “Oh my goodness,” she said, “The view is beautiful.” All the boats were shiny and white and had individual names. “The name of our boat is The Nancy O,” Marshall said, “It is named after my grandmother.”
was more fun than she imagined. Shelby learned how to let down the sails, gauge the wind and steer the boat. There were many different meters and levers explaining what to do. Some of the meters even had distinct labels on them just so you wouldn’t forget what each thing meant. Kicking back her feet, Shelby leaned back and saw a number 42 on the highest sail.
There were many things labeled such as the number on the sail and the “shift” levers. It helped Shelby learn to navigate.
THE END OF THEIR ADVENTURE Shelby and Marshall say goodbye to the big city.
You are my sun and stars. Game of Thrones
came down and the city lit up. The view from the boat was spectacular as they pulled back into the harbor and headed to the train station. After buying tickets for the Metra for the train ride home, Marshall and Shelby thought back on their full day in the big city. “That was just my type of adventure,” Marshall said, eyes drooping. “ Shelby nodded and wondered what type of adventure they would go on next.
Memphis Light Futura Book Oblique Futura Medium
Canon Rebel t1i Adobe InDesign CS5.5 Adobe Illustrator CS5.1
A big thank you to Marshall Miller for taking me to Chicago for my 21st birthday adventure. Another big thank you to Grandpa Herb Miller and Mr. Scott and Mrs. Kathleen Miller for coming all the way from Ohio to take me out sailing for the 1st time. What a wonderful treat!
Designer as Author, Patrick Dooley, Fall 2013, The University of Kansas.
Navy Pier Chicago City of Chicago Visit Macy’s Chicago Pinterest