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Canadian government criticized by designers over free font usage
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Jan 13, 2016, 01:18 PM
 
The Canadian government has received criticism from graphic designers, for its selection of font to celebrate the country's 150th anniversary of Confederation. The government's decision to use a free font has drawn the ire of the Graphic Designers of Canada, among other complainants, for not going through a standard process of creating a font and paying a lot of money for the finished product, instead of attempting to save money.

Last year, The Star reports the Canada 150 federal secretariat started the search for a font to use alongside an existing logo for 2017, one that would be usable for all of the Aboriginal languages in the country. After discovering the free Mesmerize font, created by Canadian Raymond Larabie and his company Typodermic Fonts, Larabie then spent one month adapting the font for use by the government at no cost to the taxpayer.

The selection of the free font follows after another design-related decision that received complaints: a logo design contest that offered a prize of $5,000, and received 300 student entries. By contrast, the logo for the 125th anniversary earned its designers more than $100,000.

A selection of characters from the Canada 150 typeface
A selection of characters from the Canada 150 typeface


The choice of organizers using a free font after a relatively cheap logo design contest has prompted concern by a number of parties. Adrian Jean, president of the Graphic Designers of Canada, said "It was just so consistent with the thinking that started the logo contest that it makes me shake my head. It's an embarrassing situation that the current government has to deal with, an embarrassing legacy the previous government left us."

The organization had previously asked the government to work with design professionals to create a "meaningful identity" for the celebration, and though it has yet to happen, Jean suggests it's not too late to do. Design from a professional process is said by Jean to always "have more effective elements, a better refinement, and just generally be a better end result than something that is sourced for free," adding "It breaks my patriotic heart, it really does. I love this country, and I hate what's being done with respect to its birthday."

Commenters on a typographical discussion board argued "that's the attitude that makes for so much lousy public sector design: that design's just a bit of decoration, like putting up crepe paper at that birthday party." Another suggests "when we agree to work for free for a client that clearly has a pot of money to spend, we help reinforce that."

The font designer, Larabie, compared the complaints about the government decisions to a "patisserie complaining about a bake sale down the street," and "The rest of the world is getting on with the way the economy works now for designers. You can't just throw a couple hundred grand at a problem and that's the solution for every problem." Larabie's font has been provided as a "personal and professional contribution" to the project rather than a contract, and he intends to make it open source once the celebrations are over.

A spokesperson for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat advised to the report that departments were permitted to get free goods and services, such as a font, but each was responsible for "identifying and assessing risks." The Department of Canadian Heritage claimed it was "conscious of project costs," prompting the search for cost-effective design assets.
     
Ham Sandwich
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Jan 13, 2016, 01:21 PM
 
Would this be better for "Tech news" instead of "Mac news"?
     
sidewaysdesign
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Jan 13, 2016, 02:05 PM
 
The entire sesquicentennial project (don't get to use that word very often) was assembled, prosaically, under a shoestring budget, in keeping with the previous Conservative government's aversion to inspiration.

But the die is cast for this event, so this new fuss over the typeface seems more like sour grapes than anything else. Besides, the glory days of six-figure logos are over.

It should be said, however, that the chosen 150th logo and the "Mesmerize" typeface each have a tenuous connection to their respective counterparts from the 1967 event, so they're not entirely bad choices. (Though the colouration of the points on the maple leaf, including the prominent placement of dark blue – the colour of the Conservative party – are worth a chuckle.)
     
nitram_again
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Jan 13, 2016, 03:13 PM
 
Just use Helvetica and be done with it.
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ElectroTech
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Jan 13, 2016, 03:32 PM
 
As a Canadian, I applaud the government for using a free font. We taxpayers aren't an endless wallet for the government to squander money from.
     
Inkling
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Jan 13, 2016, 03:59 PM
 
Graphic designers should take note. Those pricey contracts aren't yours by right. You've got to earn them by adding enough value over less expensive and open-source alternatives. Mesmerize is an attractive font, particularly for headlines, as you can see here: http://typodermicfonts.com/mesmerize/
Author of Untangling Tolkien and Chesterton on War and Peace
     
DiabloConQueso
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Jan 13, 2016, 06:21 PM
 
So when governments spend a lot of money on stuff like this, they're being wasteful.

But when governments don't spend a lot of money on stuff like this, they're stingy and hurting their citizens' businesses.

Seems to me like people need to make up their damn minds.
     
Flying Meat
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Jan 13, 2016, 06:49 PM
 
I don't know, DiabloConQueso. That might be asking too much. There's an awful lot of people in "people".
     
Steve Wilkinson
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Jan 13, 2016, 07:55 PM
 
This reminds me of a popular design podcast I listened to, where in the same episode, they criticized people for going to Fiverr for their designs, yet recommended designers go to a similar outlet to find coders to turn their designs into websites.

I'm all for people being paid appropriately for their work. I also recognize the importance and value of good design and branding (if, indeed, it is good design and branding). But, I think Inkling is right, that the days of hocus-pocus, we charge what we like because there's no way around us (in many professions) are kind of over.
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jmurgen
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Jan 13, 2016, 11:35 PM
 
Why is this story in MacNN? What's the Mac angle?? Yes designers use Apple computers, but some I imagine use PC's. Could we at least try to keep this website focused on Tech topics; the fact the Canadian Government is trying to save tax payer money is good news and as a tax payer I wish there were more stories like this, but not here.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jan 14, 2016, 12:00 AM
 
Originally Posted by jmurgen View Post
Why is this story in MacNN? What's the Mac angle?? Yes designers use Apple computers, but some I imagine use PC's. Could we at least try to keep this website focused on Tech topics; the fact the Canadian Government is trying to save tax payer money is good news and as a tax payer I wish there were more stories like this, but not here.
A very large percentage of our readers are designers, and a very large percentage of all designers are on OS X. I would imagine that a good percentage of PC users also use hard drives, yet this and the 10TB helium-filled drive articles are our two most read articles on the day.

This story is on MacNN because I said it should be on MacNN. It is a good, tech-related, general interest story that belongs here, that addresses issues of the day, relevant to our readership.
     
noibs
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Jan 14, 2016, 12:33 AM
 
Hey, graphics designers, welcome to the reality of the rest of the world.
     
revco
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Jan 14, 2016, 02:55 AM
 
>>Hey, graphics designers, welcome to the reality of the rest of the world.

Well, except the Defence industry. And maybe privatized prisons.
     
revco
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Jan 14, 2016, 02:57 AM
 
Okay, what's the trick to get paragraph breaks in comments?
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jan 14, 2016, 07:28 AM
 
Originally Posted by revco View Post
Okay, what's the trick to get paragraph breaks in comments?
Honestly, I'm not sure. I respond to comments in the forums directly.
     
coffeetime
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Jan 14, 2016, 09:19 AM
 
Double return to get break between paragraphs.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Jan 14, 2016, 11:02 AM
 
Note that immediately after you post a comment below the article, your comment may appear as one, long paragraph (even if you've included paragraph breaks) -- simply reload the page and the formatting of the comment should correctly appear.
     
pottymouth
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Jan 14, 2016, 04:33 PM
 
As a designer, I realized a long time ago that nobody gives a shit any more. Free and cheap now trump ( :urrrp: ) aesthetics and quality.
( Last edited by pottymouth; Jan 19, 2016 at 02:16 PM. )
     
   
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