Chapter Two
Design Is Research
1
Grids replace intuition
Every layout derives from a mathematical system — column widths, baseline rhythms, and spacing ratios are calculated, not felt.
2
Identity is a system, not a symbol
A transit system endures because every touchpoint — ticket, sign, vehicle mark — follows the same structural logic.
3
Pictograms speak without language
213 symbols designed for a civic event communicated across every culture, every mother tongue, at once.
4
Research precedes every form
Six months of user and context analysis before a single line is drawn — the method is the product.