CELEBRITY PORTRAIT
TYPE: Typographic Illustration
CLIENT: Student Project
DATE: February 2021
THE PROJECT: Recreate an existing photograph of a famous person (musician, actor, celebrity. etc...) with subject-related text using a single font that reflects the subject's personality or image. My project is a tribute to Robert Smith of the English gothic rock band, the Cure.
THE FONT
“Social Gothic” was released in 2007 by the Canada Type foundry and was designed by Patrick Griffin. This sans serif display font has been used in branding and advertisements.
The geometric shapes and consistent stroke widths throughout are reminiscent of the first popular san serifs of the early 1900's. And, the wooden shapes and use of lowercase components are much like the humanist fonts of the Renaissance. Yet, the combination of these influences yields a uniquely modern result.
ROBERT JAMES SMITH (born April 21, 1959)
An English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, Smith co-founded the alternative rock band The Cure in 1978. His pale complexion, smeared red lipstick, black eye-liner, unkempt wiry black hair, and all-black clothes were highly influential on the goth subculture that rose to prominence in the 1980s.
Smith also played lead guitar for Siouxsie and the Banshees from 1982 to 1984 and was a member of the short-lived band the Glove in 1983. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Cure in 2019, and Rolling Stone magazine ranked him as the 157th greatest singer of all time in 2023.
PORTRAIT OF ROBERT SMITH
ALBUM COVER CONCEPT
Copyright 2024, Hugh Kirkland Alford