The proverb ‘Live and let live’ first appeared in ‘The Ancient Law Merchant’, a set of principles governing trade throughout medieval Europe, encouraging traders to concern themselves with only matters of their own, not of others.
The topmost ‘live’ paints a picture of a refined and idealised utopia, although one cold and distant- devoid of life. Meanwhile, the bottom-most type looks to our messy and unfiltered, yet raw and authentic primeval past. Between these worlds exists the current us, visualised by my interpretation of the phrase, ‘Live and let live’. Situated between past and future, it balances these two points in time to find itself in a state of nowness, or harmony, between times, lifestyles, or manifestations of previous and projected selves.
These two pieces of type, due to their inherent stylistic differences, engage in constant battle, much as we do with ourselves and with others. However, occupying the same canvas, they work in tandem to create something more than the sum of their parts, reflecting the human experience.
Both pieces of type were built on artefacts from their respective times and styles, with the initial ‘live’ drawing influence from commonly known pop-culture futures, including Star Trek and Neon Genesis Evangelion. The secondary ‘live’ evolved from shattered mud, traced over to find loose shapes, which were roughened and later digitised.
