Isaac Ruiz investigates "suburban infrastructures and western culture of America” using design and typography

Date
15 June 2017

Isaac Ruiz’s interest in graphic design developed from being “computer savvy at a very young age,” he tells It’s Nice That. “I think my design interests started when I would play Tycoon games on my PC.”

While growing up, Isaac “started to get more into film and literature and found a way to translate those passions through type and image when I was 17, and learning the ropes of Adobe programs while in high school”. Now, Isaac is studying an undergraduate at Art Centre College of Design “with an emphasis on graphic design”.

His projects have developed from his decision to become a designer passionate about “storytelling through design and typography”. A recent publication design from Isaac Do Humans Dream Of Perfect Lawns is an example of both his design ability and ever-growing interest in the medium. “For this particular project it was very personal, it gave me the opportunity to design something I was always interested in, which was basically the environment I grew up in most of my life.”

The publication is “an exploration of the suburban infrastructures and western culture of America,” referencing architects and artists such as Ed Ruscha and Stephen Shore. “Suddenly, suburbia itself has become more than just an accommodation and a canvas into which television and popular culture, authors, and artists alike have created which is now a part of the American mid-west conscious.” The colour palette of the book is dark, by printing text and images often on black or dark green. Isaac’s use of bold typography throughout Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns allows the book to tell a story, academically and narratively, but still with a strong design emphasis.

On designing the book Isaac says: “The process was really just me discovering more about where this concept came from and then suddenly I found myself researching science fiction, Ed Ruscha, and television (all of which I adore), and they all somehow connected and so that began my design narrative.” The content of the book takes the reader on a journey “weaving through fact and fiction” by “blurring the lines and showing how American suburbs became this sort of “fill in” canvas for artists…in the 1950s all the way through to today”.

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Above

Isaac Ruiz: Do Humans Dream of Perfect Lawns

Share Article

Further Info

About the Author

Lucy Bourton

Lucy (she/her) is the senior editor at Insights, a research-driven department with It's Nice That. Get in contact with her for potential Insights collaborations or to discuss Insights' fortnightly column, POV. Lucy has been a part of the team at It's Nice That since 2016, first joining as a staff writer after graduating from Chelsea College of Art with a degree in Graphic Design Communication.

lb@itsnicethat.com

It's Nice That Newsletters

Fancy a bit of It's Nice That in your inbox? Sign up to our newsletters and we'll keep you in the loop with everything good going on in the creative world.