In the 1960s and 70s, the Swedish Moderna Museet produced a series of posters that helped define the visual identity of modern art in Scandinavia. One of the most memorable designs, created in 1962 by John Melin and Anders Österlin, took a bold approach: it used the museum’s own “M” as both symbol and structure.
By placing the letter “M” inside a grid, cropped and rotated in different squares, the designers made typography itself become the artwork — a clever visual experiment that reflected both the museum’s collection and the aesthetics of modern art at the time.
In this tutorial, we’ll walk step-by-step through recreating this poster using Adobe Illustrator. It’s a great exercise for sharpening your typography, learning Illustrator shortcuts, and exploring how grids can guide creative design.
Step 1: Set up the Poster
Start with a blank artboard in Illustrator. Place a copy of the original Moderna Museet poster on the bottom layer (optional, as a guide). Create a new layer on top where you’ll do your design work.
Download the PDF shown in the video tutorial
Step 2: Add the “M”
- Use the Text Tool (T) to type a capital “M.”
- Switch to the Selection Tool (V) and hold Shift while scaling up to keep proportions.
- Select the font Akzidenz Grotesk Next Bold Condensed (available in Adobe Fonts).
- Choose a visible fill color and resize the “M” to fit comfortably inside one square of your grid.
Pro tip: If you plan to share the file later, convert your text to outlines (Type > Create Outlines) to avoid font compatibility issues.
Step 3: Build the Grid
- Draw a square using the Rectangle Tool (M).
- Use the Line Tool to divide it into equal sections, holding Shift to keep lines straight.
- Duplicate lines quickly by holding Alt/Option + drag.
- Select all lines, then use Pathfinder > Divide to create individual grid cells.
At this point, you should have nine equal rectangles, each ready to hold its own version of the “M.” Make a copy of this grid to use later. I suggest locking and turning off the visibility of the layer.
Step 4: Place the “M” in Each Square
This is where the poster’s magic happens:
- Select a rectangle and one “M.”
- Apply Object > Clipping Mask > Make to fit the letter inside the square.
- Duplicate the “M” and repeat for each cell.
- Rotate some letters (R tool) to create variation.
Notice how simply shifting and cropping the same letter produces a sense of play, rhythm, and abstraction, just as Melin and Österlin intended.
Step 5: Add the Bottom Banner
Use the Text Tool again to recreate the museum name. Pay close attention to kerning (the spacing between letters.) Small adjustments make a huge difference in professional typography, especially in logos and headlines on poster designs.
Step 6: Final Touches
Turn on your black grid outline (saved from earlier), and hide the reference layer. You should now see your completed Copycat of the Moderna Museet poster.
Why This Exercise Matters
- It sharpens your Adobe Illustrator skills, from clipping masks to kerning.
- It demonstrates how grids can inspire creativity, not just structure it.
- It shows how typography can become art, not just text.
Whether you’re a design student or a creative looking for new ideas, this project is a great reminder that modernism was about experimentation and rethinking the basics of design.
Tutorial Video
Illustrator Skills you will work on
- Using a clipping mask
- Creating a manual grid (using lines and alignment)
- Using the Rotate Tool, Pathfinder and Alignment Tools
