Visual communication and typography

“It is a rarer gift to lay words out properly than to write them.” Nicolas Barker, 1942– Book Collector, Typographer, Author

Prepared by Danielle Oser, APR

Right Here, Right Now

Dictionary Definition “A complete set of type of one size and face.”

Includes Three Characteristics typeface (shape of letters) style (attributes) size (height)

Must be legible and readable! Legibility = How easily a reader can decipher the letters

on the page. Readability = The document’s overall appearance.

Original typeface “textur” Never included a printer’s mark – used Johnannes Fust instead

Developed European movable type – 1439 ish Sued repeatedly for being unable to pay back creditors and having a “hot temper” *No portraits of him were made during his lifetime – these are guesses

Greece, printed symbols, 3800 years old

Invention of paper, 1900 years old Although the Egyptians use papyrus, paper made from wood pulp was invented by the Chinese

Chinese, 1100 years ago Chinese Pi Sheng invented movable type with characters made from clay in the 11th century

Korean, 600 years ago First known book printed with movable metal type

1410

1450 Christian devotional book popular in the Middle Ages Most common type of surviving medieval illuminated manuscript

“The Hours of Catherine of Cleves,” 1440

1456 4 years to produce 140 bibles on paper, 40 on vellum or leather 11 by 16 inches 50 pounds

Personal, Historical, Technical, Ethical, Cultural, Critical

The wrong choices make words hard to read and distract from their message Most typography choices are seldomly noticed

Typographical artist Tauba Auerbach

http://taubaauerbach.com/

Artists seldom want their work to have a neutral reaction

https://www.google.com/search?q=barbara+kruger&client=fire fox-a&hs=Jv7&rls=org.mozilla :en-US:off icial&channel=sb&tbm=isch&imgil=b5tUxOkIWcqKnM%253A%253Bhttps%253A%252F%252Fencrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com%252Fimages%253Fq%253Dtbn%253AANd9GcTV6irY9Zp8FfcymN8TaSx3Aww4EFeD7d-fPiQ1FRWfS4EQSQ2v%253B360%253B258%253B74DEu4oxSELoSM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.eng. f ju.edu.tw%25252FLi terary_Cri ticism%25252Ffeminism%25252Fkruger%25252Fkruger.htm&source=iu&usg=__-doG-XSBCc2nVSuc-gVbi4ZLo04%3D&sa=X&ei=9FUOU_WTAurr2wWj_YC4DQ&ved=0CKgBEP4dMA4&biw=1280&bih=894#imgdii=_

World of Awe

http://yhchang.com/

Cave Drawings, 32,000 Years Ago Writing has its beginnings in cave drawings

Cave Of Forgotten Dreams, Werner Herzog, 2011

5000 years ago Sumerians were the first people to develop an organized system of writing

“Wedge-Shaped” Writing

Cuneiform story, 4000 years ago Believed to be the basis for the Noah story

“Holy Writing”

Hieroglyphics, 2300 Years Ago Two forms of hieroglyphics: hieratic and demotic

1000 years ago

Today about 1,000

3500 years ago First civilization to develop the alphabet

Introduces upper and lowercase letters

Developed the English 26-letter alphabet

1st American Newspaper with regular circulation

Helped to spread the printing industry in the 19th century

Invented the rotary printing press

http://www.linotype.com/

http://typophile.com/node/92270

Typeface Families

Serif = easy to read blocks of text

Blue Mtn

Sans serif = clean look

Blue Mtn

Novelty = special feeling

Blue Mtn Symbol = non-alphanumeric

Βλυε Μτν

Sometimes called Gothic Highly ornate and decorative

Went through tree separate forms

High-quality, High-class

Novelty Appear during the Industrial Revolution for advertising

Teagan White

Western feel Least used today

Originally called “block type” by its creator William Caslon IV No “feet” on the letter Used for “screens”

Kerning: Space between individual letters Leading: Space between lines of type

Size: Measured in Points Kerning: Space between letters Leading: Space between lines of type

Readable vs. Garbage Typefaces

Dark Ages of Typographical Design

Typography became and integral part of design

http://wilcoworld.net/#!/home/

Changing the book publishing industry with Print-On-Demand and Portable Readers

Printed And Online Zines

Columns Gutter

Interactive Typography

Tauba Auerbach