Starting a Yeti Expedition

Hello and welcome to my WR2310 blog! In WR2310, or visual rhetoric, we recently began our fonts unit. So far, we have read several academic articles about the impact that fonts, layout, and graphic design have on the reader's perception of the words on the page. We also watched Gary Hustwit's documentary Helvetica, which detailed the profound impact that one extremely well-designed font can have on culture.

I had no idea how much I interacted with graphic design and font before exploring these sources! And now that I know about these interactions, I cannot read text without considering how the font affects my perception of the content. So being able to be a part of a font design project is both exciting and daunting - there are so many creative liberties to be taken, and with these liberties there is so much at stake. Designing an effective font should prove to be a fun challenge!

On top of these already high stakes, we are designing a font for an actual client, and the winning font will actually get used! Our client is designing an escape room, a fun interactive game where players have to find clues and solve riddles to unlock the door to the room and escape. These rooms generally follow some sort of narrative, and this particular client's room is designed around escaping from a Yeti Expedition gone awry.

So I'm not going to lie, I haven't gone on too many Yeti expeditions in my day. Through Professor DeWinter's instructions, I had some jumping off points for what a Yeti expedition may include.

My google search for "Yeti" yielded a lot of pictures of the popular beach cooler, but narrowing my search lead to a lot of images of this cute white dude:

This dudes just here for a good time!

Source: http://www.syfy.com/syfywire/scientist-claims-hes-got-dna-evidence-proving-what-yeti-really

Look at this fuzzy lil dude!

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/10/27/how-to-hunt-a-yeti-according-to-the-u-s-government/?utm_term=.de37282e9d21

This dude looks so friendly!

 Source: http://www.internetgovernance.org/2016/04/07/alternate-dns-roots-and-the-abominable-snowman-of-sovereignty/yeti/

I also got a lot of pictures of a much more ominous creature:

Scary!

Source: http://parody.wikia.com/wiki/Yeti_(cryptid)

Intimidating!

Source: https://blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/monsters2014/?p=176

And some pictures of a LEGIT ACTUAL YETI:

(Not gonna lie, this looks like a really large snow drift, but Yeti experts say this is the real deal! Hard to argue with that)

Source: http://en.protothema.gr/does-the-creature-of-himalayas-really-exist-pics-vid/

The Yeti is thought to originate from the Himalayas, a mountain range that borders India, Nepal, Pakistan, China, Bhutan, and Afghanistan and is home to the highest peak in the world, Mount Everest.

This image shows a map of the Himalayas, look how freakin huge that mountain range is! The Himalayas are a relatively young mountain range, formed because of the collisions of tectonic plates, crushing India into Tibet. (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayas)

The Himalayas from above, the tallest peak is Everest. (Source: http://everestbasecamptrekguide.com/himalayas-pictures/)

Because people are crazy and like a challenge, summiting Mount Everest has been a huge climbing goal for climbers worldwide. This climb is not for the faint of heart, climbers have to be ready to acclimate to extreme changes in altitude, expose themselves to extreme weather, and physically push their bodies to the limit.
(All of these images are from http://everestbasecamptrekguide.com/himalayas-pictures/)

Here are some people climbing towards the summit. Meanwhile, I can barely climb out of bed in the morning.

These crevasses are crazy deep. One wrong step and you're toast. Actually more like a popsicle.

Hikers camp out on the side of the mountain in these tents, burying them into the side of the mountain. I'm no mountaineer, and those look like they would be cold, uncomfortable, and dangerous.

The wind can reach up to 175 mph. Jinkies!

Good views though! I'll let the experts take the pictures so I can view them from my nice, warm bed.

Believe it or not, people actually LIVE in these mountains! People from the mountainous region of Nepal are known as Sherpas. They're generally regarded as expert hikers and mountain guides, and those looking to summit Everest often turn to them for advice. Even after a huge avalanche killed sixteen of the Sherpa community, Sherpas still return each season to guide climbers.

Carrying supplies for hikers. Imagine walking up the tallest mountain in the world with freaking SO MUCH STUFF ON YOUR BACK?!?!?! Source: https://www.vice.com/sv/article/7bm9n9/sherpa-describe-why-they-returned-to-everest-after-the-deadliest-season-ever

Guides help set up shelter for hikers, as well as cook and clean. Source: https://www.vice.com/sv/article/7bm9n9/sherpa-describe-why-they-returned-to-everest-after-the-deadliest-season-ever

Through my preliminary research, I have learned quite a few things: 

1. Sherpas are badasses.
2. The Himalayas are crazy huge, so there could very well be a Yeti in there somewhere.
3. Yetis could be cute, scary, or snowdrifts.
4. I have my work cut out for me designing this font!

Sources:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/the-himalayas-himalayas-facts/6341/
http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/2104896/good-bad-and-ugly-sides-climbing-mount-everest
http://everestbasecamptrekguide.com/what-is-a-trek-in-nepal/
https://www.vice.com/sv/article/7bm9n9/sherpa-describe-why-they-returned-to-everest-after-the-deadliest-season-ever