Monogram Project
It all started when I was searching for a challenge after completing my studies, something that would both engage me and further explore the subject of my degree.
I wrote my thesis on aleatoric systems in typography, which essentially involves generating random tasks whose solutions yield surprising results.
The premise behind this project was a simple question: What if we attempted to create a monogram for every person in the world? Most people have a first and last name, so that’s a total of 26x26 combinations. It seemed impossible at first, but I dared to begin. The initial monograms emerged as doodles in my old Moleskine. Blocks A to C were entirely analog. It wasn’t until their completion that I considered turning them into posters or something similar. Thus, I started vectorizing them in Illustrator. I quickly realized that this was the most demanding part, the aspect that felt most like work. Nevertheless, I was so pleased with the outcome that I decided to persist. Over the years, my motivation fluctuated, sometimes intensely inspired by certain letters, while others I simply wanted to get done.
Then came the idea of selling the monograms. I mean, they were already in digital format, so why not create a digital marketplace to offer them to people? I spent months delving into Wordpress and e-commerce systems, building a beautiful site, uploading the content, only to realize: nothing moves without marketing. Without even attempting to go live, I shelved the project and focused on my new passion: Cardano NFTs.
It took me months to realize that this project was perfect for distribution as an NFT. I felt it would be interesting to distribute logos, including licenses and datasets, via blockchain. I found it elegant then, and I still do now. For months, I refined and optimized the data packages until I arrived at a solution that seemed meaningful. It included all monograms in CMYK and RGB, with transparency and custom folder icons. The idea was for it to look good in my project folder and also facilitate neat organization for every buyer.
At that time, minting was quite challenging and only possible through a Cardano coder. Luckily, NFT-Maker (now NMKR) had just opened, and I could mint the initial blocks. The workflow has drastically changed since. From drawing to vectorizing, exporting, creating folder icons, minting, and writing metadata, creating a single monogram suddenly became a lot of work. My motivation hit rock bottom. I established a policy intended to run for several years, thinking I could achieve everything within that timeframe. Meanwhile, I opened a Discord and allowed fans of the project to directly order monograms with their chosen letters. It was so enjoyable that I practically forgot about the blocks and got distracted with various other topics.
Then, I embarked on a journey. For a year, I lived with my wife and children in a small campervan. It was the perfect time to revisit the blocks. I drew on free evenings using my iPad and surprisingly finished in a short period. I thought, “Time to vectorize.” It was the opportune moment to move away from Illustrator and learn Affinity Designer. However, as everyone knows, switching from a primary tool to a new one that isn’t quite as intuitive was challenging. The main work was put on hold and had to wait until I had access to a regular computer again. That brings us to the year 2023. In the past few months, I’ve pushed hard to meet the deadline by New Year’s Eve 2023. I couldn’t bear opening several policies. Moreover, I was fortunate to receive immense help from Steffen, a.k.a. Rabbit, on the technical aspects of Cardano.
And now, here I am. 676 monograms. Each letter combined with every other letter and perfectly packaged.
What have I learned from this?
It’s worth completing personal projects. I’ve always liked the idea of doing something absurd. Something that requires a lot of effort and isn’t easily replicated. I’m not sure if I did it to please someone else or simply to prove something to myself. Maybe the latter. I’m proud to have achieved this personal milestone.
Pursuing personal projects to get rich is a mistake. The hours I invested do not compare to the potential gains (even if the project were sold out). Adding to that, the disappointment that comes when the community doesn’t embrace the project. Luckily, through my brief Wordpress experiment, I knew I had an extremely niche product.
Next time, I need to carefully consider what can be automated because otherwise, work doesn’t scale well. It’s questionable whether I really needed to create all the design files. In the end, it seemed to matter only to me. However, it was essential that I took each monogram seriously.
I love order. I absolutely love it.
I hate selling. I don’t like having to pander or create hype. It feels unnatural to me.
Simple symbols make me immensely happy. Forms are all I need. Colors and decorations are nice, but not the essence of my work.
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