Week 10: Type & Page
Lecture
Reflecting on this week’s lecture it was interesting to see how typography has developed over time. Kristopher Seoulling shed light on the early stages of type being handwritten on manuscripts. These manuscripts were religious texts written by monks.
Much later on from this, the inventor Johannes Gutenberg invented the idea of moveable type.
Coming from a case, each character was organised with considerable thought. With Upper case letters being at the top and lower case at the bottom.
Each character would be inserted into what is known as a Galley. A container for a row of type.
Not only was this method quicker than the hand, but it also became a cheaper option for reproduction. This would become the foundation of the typewriter.
Photo typography introduced light into typography. This development gave typography scale. It was also a much cheaper option compared to letterpress as Phototype involved two components light and the disc containing the type.
The era of phototypesetting lasted only 50 years but dramatically changed the history of printing before it disappeared. A method of setting type, phototypesetting used a photographic process to generate type on photographic film or paper. Fonts existed as strips, segments, disks, and more. (Romano, F. 2019)
What I found useful in this lecture was Kris noting the style of type and how a different style could have a different connotation or meaning. The art form of Dadaism was also a topic mentioned that interested me. I believe this form would help express a piece more clearly. As well as the style of type, I wanted to consider this art form in my final outcome also.
How can typographic conventions and design inform and imbue the meaning of a given text?
Although typography can inform a clear statement. The way that this is manipulated can definitely enhance its meaning by a form of expression. In this section, I have selected three designers, whose work reflects this.
The first piece created by Barcelona based designer, Alex Trochut combines typography and illustration together. In this example, Alex has utilised a calligraphic script style type as the laces for the shoe.
In another example, Sabeena Karnik uses paper material to hand form type.
Workshop Challenge:
Final outcome
References:
Romano, F. (2019) History of Phototypesetting, History of phototypesetting. Available at: https://museumofprinting.org/news-and-events/history-of-phototypesetting/ (Accessed: April 13, 2023).
Images:
Karnik, S. (2014) Sabeena Karnik, 25 inspiring typography portfolios on Behance. Creative Bloq. Available at: https://www.creativebloq.com/typography/typographers-follow-behance-11121295 (Accessed: April 13, 2023).
Trochut, A. (2014) Sabeena Karnik, 25 inspiring typography portfolios on Behance. Creative Bloq. Available at: https://www.creativebloq.com/typography/typographers-follow-behance-11121295 (Accessed: April 13, 2023).
Soelling, K. (2023) “Typography,” Week 10: Lecture. Typography, 27 April. Available at: https://flex.falmouth.ac.uk/courses/1165/pages/week-10-lecture?module_item_id=63447 (Accessed: April 13, 2023).
