Blog 2 - Neville Brody

 DREAMER IN THE REAL WORLD - Morrissey

By the end of the of the late 1980's Neville Brody was known as the best British Graphic Designer of his Generation. [Wozencroft p. 5]  He was a designer who pioneered new styles, broke the rules, and developed & experimented with typography in new and innovative ways. [Wozencroft p. 5-7]  About working for the magazine The Face, Brody said, "I had never in my wildest dreams intended to work on a magazine... Suddenly, with The Face, I was confronted with traditional typographic and layout problems...  working around them became a challenge for me." [Wozencroft p. 15-17]  

Dreamer in the Real World  was published initially in The Face, No. 61, May 1985.  Several things attracted me to this piece.  First of all, I am a Smiths fan so when I saw the picture of Morrissey, I wanted to take a look at the graphic style that was used on his spread.  Second, I enjoy large close-up photographs, especially the treatment of this one - cutting off half of Morrissey's face, showing his penetrating eye - the intensity of his gaze.  Third, I like the choice of black & white for the layout. In my opinion, it is perfect for Morrissey.  Many say his music is depressing.  He is a complainer.  But I think he speaks for many that struggle with social and identity issues.  However, I should mention that many of the spreads in The Face are in black & white. Third, I find the typeface so engaging; it has a big personality - kind of supernatural and mystical . The tall thin letters, sharp turns, and interesting angles.  This typeface was developed by Brody just for this issue of The Face. It creates a dynamic look on the page and demands the use of negative space.   Fourth, the layout breaks the rules - the picture bleeds over the fold and into the center of the spread.  The large picture is balanced by the super-sized title, DREAMER, the subtitle, IN THE REAL WORLD, and the large black circle containing the word the.  The other textboxes are nicely placed to create balance as well.

Source: Wozencroft, Jon, The Graphic Language of Neville Brody, Universe Publishing, New York, New York, 2001