Escheresk

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by Tobias Sommer (shasta)

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I intended to make some sort of an M.C.Escher tribute here. I'm sorry this isn't very complete and far from being perfectly well done, but it somewhat started to make me feel dizzy...;) And even though I'm not very convinced by this, I don't think I'd come up with a way better execution soon.

I hope for Mr Escher that there are better tribute fonts for him out there! He'd definitely deserve it...

It was by the way funk_king's Impossible Alphabet that reminded me of this unfinished thing laying around in my messy unpublished fontstructions box, and made me take it out and finish it. (If you can call 42 characters "finished".)

Also check out Frodo7's Hommage à Escher, geneus1's IsoMatrix 3D, and funk_king's Soma for some other great Escher-esque fontcrafting!

39 Comments

you have created some intriguing geometry here. and yes i started getting vertigo myself and had to look away but can't help from looking :)
Comment by funk_king 29th july 2009
Amazing. Totally Brilliant.
The X is freakin me out!
love it
10/10
Comment by djnippa 30th july 2009
Any chance you could do a comma?
Plus I think 7 could be more like the X & Y. At the mo it looks like a backward F.
Comment by djnippa 30th july 2009
shasta, this is really excellent. I'm sure M.C. Escher would be pleased. :-)
Comment by SquarePeg 30th july 2009
Brilliant work. I especially like the C,G,O and S. And the $ is very good too. They nicely capture the essence of M.C.Eschers' impossible geometry.
It is a strange coincidence, but my next font - soon to be released here - is also inspired by the Dutch master.

Comment by Frodo7 30th july 2009
What a great movement this font has! And what is wrong with the execution? It looks perfect to me! I really like the V/W too. Ten ten ten.
Comment by intaglio 30th july 2009
Ha ha, great! You developed the concept very consistently in each gliph!
Comment by Em42 30th july 2009
Great Escher Tribute!
ps: you were a bit shy with "4"'s width...
Comment by jmarquez 30th july 2009
Thanks, everybody... Wow, looks like you like it better then I do. :)

@djnippa: I've added a comma. Shame I can't really do an impossible comma. I tried, but it would end up way too big. As for the 7, I'll try something new there too...

@frodo: Can't wait to see it... :)

@intaglio: Maybe the execution of this particular concept isn't so bad, but I've tried a lot of different things trying to get a better 3d look, like diagonal perspective, shadow/light only etc, but I always failed as soon as it got to the "impossibleness". (Sounds somewhat logic, doesn't it?) So this particular design is just the only way I could do a complete set, but it looks too flat in my opinion.
I'm also not very happy with the cheap solution on B, K, R and 8... I'll see if I can make something better there.

@jmarquez: Corrected the 4's width... Good eye! :) This was again the old consistency trap, I wanted to keep all the characters on the same width.
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 30th july 2009
Congratulations! FontStruct Staff have deemed your FontStruction worthy of special mention. “Escheresk” is now a Top Pick.
Comment by gferreira_admin 31st july 2009
Superb!!

It could be nice to try out a wireframe variation.
Comment by gferreira_admin 31st july 2009
Congratulations! FontStruct Staff have deemed your FontStruction worthy of special mention. “Escheresk” is now a current Featured FontStruction.
Comment by gferreira_admin 31st july 2009
Twisty 3D! If this is far from being perfectly well done, I'd like to see how you could improve it. The flatness you mention only adds to the illusion of three dimensionality. There is a simultaneous 2D/3D quality that is implied. If you zoom into any character, it has proper 3D attributes. But when you pan to another section of the same character, the dimensionality shifts. Very Escheresque! I'm convinced, and I have a diagonal 3D shaded version.
Comment by geneus1 2nd august 2009
Incredible!!!!

I love MC Escher - In my office I used to have a pen and ink that I did in an Escheryish style, with the legend 'Do Not Adjust Your Brain, There's A Fault In Reality'
Not sure what my clients thought of it (I was a mental health social worker)
Comment by p2pnut 2nd august 2009
Yeah, very unique. Like the $.
Comment by Magic Sam 2nd august 2009
Very nice. I will enjoy looking it over. Thanks for sharing.
Comment by laurelwreath 4th august 2009
Oh! That's nice! That's brilliant! Congratulations! Very hard work!
Comment by bbonas 12th august 2009
Thanks for the kind comments everyone! Glad you like it!
I've just modified B, K, R, 3 and 8... I found the previous solutions too cheap, now they're a bit more wicked on the eye.;)
Might add a lowercase if I find some time next week, and maybe do a lighter version of this.
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 20th august 2009
It looks even easier on the eye now. Looking forward to the l/c.
Comment by p2pnut 20th august 2009
The Escheresk Sample as shown in my FontFeed mini-interview...

Note: this one is with the old version of R.
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 4th september 2009
just wonderful! the sample fromt he fontfeed really helps it shine!
Comment by Sye Robertson (SimonRobertson) 5th september 2009
amazing work dear, you can defenitly come up with greater ones. The geometry, symmetry and balance can be achieved in small caps as well....you can do it.
Comment by maximus-2 22nd september 2009
i installed the font on my mac but it does not look like the sample. my says its the "regular" version and is all black. did i do something wrong?
Comment by elajaguar 29th september 2009
No, you didn't. Font files never contain any colour, they're vector only files and thus black and white. You'll have to do the colouring yourself with the graphic program of your choice... (I used Illustrator's Live Paint tool for the job.)
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 29th september 2009
thanks shasta
Comment by elajaguar 30th september 2009
Just found this

Comment by p2pnut 30th november 2009
Congratulations! FontStruct Staff have deemed your FontStruction worthy of special mention. “Escheresk” is now a current Featured FontStruction.
Comment by gferreira_admin 24th december 2009
excellent..........
dobleces de papel
Comment by art2r 12th january 2010
that's some damn nice work.
Comment by pain219 7th august 2010
the font for a real shirt!.
Comment by urielnegro 7th april 2011
Really a nice headline-font.. i used it for a poster for a goa-party. (NC of course:) Thanks, shasta!
Comment by cam.ill 23rd december 2011
@shasta: I've seen the pictures of Deep Surface. Wonderful application of your font. (Unfortunately, I couldn't visit the exhibition itself.) Congratulations.
Comment by Frodo7 8th february 2012
@cam.ill: Beautifull poster!
Comment by elmoyenique 8th february 2012
Catching up on posting some images of Escheresk in use that people sent me:

Escheresk was used as identity font for the Deep Surface exhibition at contemporary art museum CAM Raleigh in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was used both for advertising material as well as (which I really liked) for floor graphics in the exhibition. Here are a few photos, taken from the CAM website, as well as the identity designed by Denise Gonzalez Crisp.
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 15th april 2013
...and London-based creative collective DOSED uses Escheresk for their logo – with the letter components being colour-coded for the different creative disciplines they work in! They're also using the D as the loading icon when you open the website... How's that for tapping the full potential? :)
Comment by Tobias Sommer (shasta) 15th april 2013
Congrats, master!
Comment by elmoyenique 15th april 2013
That;s really awesome. :D
Comment by Houlaiziaa 15th april 2013
It's great to see this wonderful design in use. Congratulations.
Comment by p2pnut 16th april 2013

cool mind bending font, you make it look easy:)

Comment by Better Handwriting 6th october 2022

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