Typography - Task 01
25.09.2023 - 27.10.2023
(Week 1 - Week 5) [Deadline : Week 6]
Edita Chew En Thung / 0357357
Typography / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Edita Chew En Thung / 0357357
Typography / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Task 1 / Exercises (Type Expression & Text Formatting)
Table of Contents
1. LECTURES
2. INSTRUCTIONS
3. PROCESS WORK
i. RESEARCH
ii. IDEATION
iii.
FINAL
4. FEEDBACK
5. REFLECTION
LECTURES
Week 1 | Introduction & Briefing (online)
The first week of class, we were briefed about the tasks of
Typography. We were required to learn how to open an e-portfolio on
blogspot for semester 1.
The following are the common words that we would be hearing often:
1. Typography
2. Typeface
3. Font
4. Lettering
5. Calligraphy
Development/Timeline [Lecture slides]
Early letterform Development : Phoenician and Bohemian
Writing in these ages meant scratching into wet clay with a stick or carving
it onto stone with a chisel. The forms of the uppercase letterforms, for
nearly 2000 years were the only letterforms that seems to have evolved from
these tools and materials that were used. The forms were just simple
combinations of straight lines and circles.
fig 1.0 & 1.1
Early letterform development : Phoenician to Roman
Phoenicians wrote from right to left; The Greeks wrote from
right to left then left to right, this style of writing is called
'boustrophedon' which directly means (how the ox ploughs).
Etruscan (and then Roman) carvers
fig 1.2 & 1.3 Early letterform development : Phoenician to Roman
Hand script from 3rd - 10th century C.E.
The written version of square capitals can be found in Roman monuments, the
letterforms have serifs that were added to the main strokes.
fig 1.4 4th / 5th century : Square Capitals
Rustic capitals allowed for twice as many words on a parchment sheet, it
took lesser time to write as a compressed version of square capitals
although it was easier, it was slightly harder to read because it's
compressed.
fig 1.5 4th century : Roman cursive
The square and rustic capitals were usually reserved for documents of
performance, but cursive writings were used for daily transactions for a
simpler version as it was faster. This was the beginning of lowercase
letterforms.
fig 1.6 4th - 5th century : Uncials
Uncials were the incorporated some aspects of the Roman cursive letterforms
written as A, D, E, H, M & Q. Uncials are just simply small letters and
it was far more readable than rustic capitals.
fig 1.7 C. 500 : Half-uncials
Then there were more cursive writing that took their forms, making a
"half-uncial" appearance of the formal lowercase letterforms, 2000 years
after the creation of the Phoenician alphabet.
fig 1.8 C. 925 : Caloline miniscule
The first unifier of Europe, Charlemagne issued an edict in 789 to
standardise all ecclesiastical texts. The monks had a duty to rewrite the
texts majuscules (uppercase), miniscule, capitalisation and punctuation with
would be the standard for calligraphy for a whole century.
fig 1.9 & 2.0 C. 1300 : Blackletter (Textura) & C.
1455 : 42 line bible, Johann Gutenberg, Mainz
Blackletter to Gutenberg's type
In northern Europe, a vertical letterform gained tremendous popularity,
known as Blackletter or textura. Whereas in the south, "rotunda" gained
significance popularity being more rounded and more opened hand in how it
was written.
Gutenberg has a wide range of skills that included engineering, metal
smithing and chemistry. He gathered them all and marshaled them into pages
to mimic 'Blackletter' from northern Europe.
1450 Blackletter fig 2.1
This was the earliest printing type as it was based on the hand-copying styles
from books in northern Europe.
e.g. Cloister Black, Goudy Text
This style was based on the Italian humanist scholars for book copying
(themselves based on the 9th century Caroline miniscule) and uppercase
letterforms that were found on Roman ruins as the evolve from Italy to
England from their origins for over 200 years.
e.g. Bembo, Caslon, Dante, Garamond, Janson, Jenson, Palatino
The first Italian handwriting were very much
condensed and close together as it gave more space for words needed in
a page. It was originally considered as their own class of style but then was
adapted to complement the roman letterforms. And in the 16th century, text
typefaces were designed to accompany italic forms of letters.
These were attempted to adapt from the forms of calligraphy but as it's
not as efficient in long text settings, it's far more capable for
short text writings/publishing. These forms consists of formal and
traditional to a more casual and contemporary approach.
e.g. Kuenstler Script, Mistral, Snell Roundhand
This style consists the forms if the 'oldstyle' but a more
refined version. It was achieved by the modern advances in printing
and casting, then the brackets were lightened and simplified for a cleaner
and crisp appearance.
e.g : Baskerville, Bulmer, Century, Time Roman
The 'oldstyle' letterforms were then further rationalised, the serifs were
no longer bracketed and there were a lot of contrast between the
thin and thick lines.
e.g. Bell, Bodoni, Caledonia, Didot,Walbaum
It was originally a bracketed serif but when the strokes were slightly
manipulated here and there, they evolved as their
brackets were then discarded and resulted in a new developed heavy
type of typeface for commercial use such as advertising and printing.
e.g. Clarendon, Memphis, Rockwell, Serifa
1900 Sans Serif fig 2.8
This typeface discarded all the serifs but it was not as popular, not
until the beginning of the 20th century. There are many of it's variations
such as Futura or Gill Sans.
e.g.
Akzidenz Grotesk, Grotesk, Gill Sans, Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, Futura,
Helvetica, Meta, News Gothic, Optima, Syntax, Trade Gothic, Univers
1990 Serif/Sans Serif fig 2.9
Serif and Sans Serif increases the family of typefaces to include both of
them to the alphabets that often stages between the two.
e.g. Rotis, Scala, Stone
Text / tracking : Kerning and Letter-spacing
"Kerning" means automatic adjustments between letters, though, it's often
mistaken as "letter-spacing" which directly means "to add space between the
letters". To add or subtract space from a word or sentence is called
"tracking".
fig 3.0 & 3.1
Flush left / ragged right : The format mirrors the asymmetrical experience of writing as each
line starts at a same place but ends when the last words of the line
ends. The spaces between the words are consistent throughout.
Centered / ragged left & right : It gives the text a
more symmetry point of view, giving them equal on both sides (left &
right). It gives text a form of shape, adding a pictorial quality
material that is non-pictorial by nature. If the text becomes to jagged,
it is important to amend some line breaks before it gets too out of
hand.
Flush right / ragged left : This gives the text an
emphasis on the end instead at the start, it gives a different view and
could be applied to captions.
Justified : Just like 'centered', it gives text a
symmetrical outcome but it expands or reduce spaces between words,
sometimes letters too. It results the lines to have a more open
appearance and produce "rivers" of white space running vertically
through text.
Text | Texture /ˈtɛkstʃə/ ;
Designers tend to follow what they prefer, but it is still important to address the needs of the author's message through these texts and the type of text, font, typeface needed for it.
To understand the history and uniqueness of each typeface, designers
need to understand how each of the typefaces feel as a text.
Different typefaces can convey a different meaning and it is
important to choose the right typeface for each message at hand.
Different "textures" give a different feeling to how someone conceives a
text or message.
fig 3.4
Text | Indicating Paragraphs
fig 3.5 & 3.6
fig 3.7
fig 3.8
fig 3.9
Line space vs Leading
fig 4.0
In traditional typesettings, there are two things to lookout for. Widows
and orphans, must be prevented for those commercial publishing settings
with a big amount of texts, such as magazines, websites, printed
magazines, newspaper and news articles.
Orphan /ˈɔːfn/ :
a short line of type that was left alone at the start of a new column.
Example:
Whereas flush right and ragged left are still somewhat slightly forgiving
towards widows but not orphans.
To fix widows and orphans is to re-break line endings throughout the
paragraph so that the last line would not be that noticeable.
Orphans need slightly more care than widows as it is more noticeable.
Typographers take extra cautions to make sure that no column of text
starts with the last line of the preceding paragraph.
fig 4.1
Examples of emphasis of text, to highlight a certain text in a
column.
fig 4.2
fig 4.3
Basic | Describing letterforms [lecture slides]
Baseline : The imaginary line, the visual base of letterforms.
Median : The imaginary line defining the x-heigh of the letterforms.
X-height : The height in any typeface of the lowercase 'x' .
fig 4.4
Stroke : Any line that defines the basic letterform.
fig 4.5
Apex / Vertex : The point created by joining two diagonal stems (apex above
& vertex below)
fig 4.6
Arm : Short strokes off the stem if the letterform, either
horizontal (E, F, L) or upwards (K, Y)
fig 4.7
Ascender : The portion of the stem of a lowercase letterform that
projects above the median.
fig 4.8
Barb : The half-serif finish on some curved stroke.
fig 4.9
fig 5.0
Bowl : Rounded form describing counter, it can be opened or closed.
fig 5.1
Bracket : Transition between serif and stem.
fig 5.2
Cross Bar : The horizontal stroke in a letterform that joins two
stems together.
fig 5.3
Cross Stroke : The horizontal stroke in a letterform that joins
two stems together.
fig 5.4
Crotch : The interior space where two strokes meet.
fig 5.5
Descender : The portion of the stem of a lowercase letterform that
projects below the baseline.
fig 5.6
Ear : The stroke extending out from the main stem or body of
the letterform.
fig 5.7
Em/en : Referring to the width of an uppercase M, and em is the distance
equal to the size of the typeface.
fig 5.8
Finial : The rounded non-serif terminal to a stroke.
fig 5.9
Leg : Short stroke off the stem of the letterform, either at the
bottom of the stroke (L) or downwards (K, R)
fig 6.0
Ligature : The character formed by the combination of two or more
letterforms.
fig 6.1
Link : The stroke that connects the bowl and the loop of a lowercase
G
Loop : In some typefaces, the bowl created in the descender of the
lowercase G.
fig 6.2 & 6.3
Serif : The right-angled or oblique foot at the end of the stroke.
fig 6.4
Shoulder : The curved stroke that is not part of a bowl.
fig 6.5
Spine : The curved stem of S.
fig 6.6
Spur : The extension that articulates the junction of the curved and
rectilinear stroke.
fig 6.7
fig 6.8
Stress : The orientation of a letterform that can be indicated by the thin
stroke in the round forms.
fig 6.9
Swash : The flourish that extends the stroke of the letterform.
fig 7.0
Tail : The curved diagonal stroke at the finish of certain letterforms.
fig 7.1
Terminal : It is a self-contained finish of a stroke without a serif, terminals
can be flat, flared, acute, grave, concave, convex or rounded as a
ball or teardrop.
fig 7.2
Letters | Understanding letterforms [lecture slides]
💡This lecture teaches us to embrace uniqueness and there are basic
principles applied from Design into typography to give life into the
letterforms we want to express in context.
fig 7.3
Week 2 | Development - understanding
In the teachings of this module, it aims to provide us the knowledge of
paying attention to the small details, composition and purpose of each
design/composition. We are to learn to acknowledge our own faults and
embrace the process and make progress.
fig 7.4
Letters & Contrast
fig 7.5
Typography in Different Medium
fig 7.6 & 7.7
fig 7.8
CLASS SUMMARY
Week 1 :
Our lecturer briefed everything we need to know regarding this module.
Week 2 :
Our lecturer stretched on how we must make our own judgements and rely on
our designer mindset and creative thinking.
Week 3 :
Our lecturer advised us to keep on brainstorming and finalising on our work
more, to develop more sophisticated designs.
Week 4 :
We were then briefed about the tasks text formatting. We were to watch the
videos provided by the lecturer in order to proceed with the task.
INSTRUCTIONS
Module Information Booklet [MIB] Typography
Week 1
We were given 4 words to compose and express through composing the letters in away that shows the meaning of the words. Then sketch out the ideas from those 4 words and compose them with a
set of 10 typefaces. Software: Adobe Illustrator and Adobe
Photoshop.
Week 2
We are to update our e-portfolio and feedback for week
2. We were then tasked with writing our lecture summaries
to document in our e-portfolio. We are tasked with digitalising
our sketches of typefaces of the 4 chosen words in Adobe
Illustrator.
Week 3
We were then tasked to update our feedback for week 3 in Google feedback
sheet and updating our e-portfolio. We were then tasked with writing our
lecture summaries and to document in our e-portfolio, and upload final
work for task 01 while completing the videos task 1: Exercise 2 - Text
Formatting video tutorials before attempting the task. Make an animated
GIF about 1 chosen word from the 4 I have chosen and import them into
Photoshop once done with the frames in Adobe Illustrator.
Week 4
Exercise 2 was then briefed and we were to watch the video on how to
complete our exercise about text formatting. then, update on the
google feedback sheet as well as completing our e-portfolio even
further.
Week 5
We were to update our feedback at google sheets provided by the
lecturer and complete task 1 of the e-portfolio. Then, watch the
videos regarding task 2. Create an e-portfolio for task 2 and write a
lecture summary, and update our progress for "Task 2 : Editorial
Layout" same goes to the reflection, further reading for week 5.
PROCESS WORK
Week 2 | Development
We were to finish our sketches for task 1 from the 4 words chosen. I
chose the words FOLD, IMPACT, DRUNK & POWER.
FOLD /fəʊld/ to bend
something or to cover/wrap something up.
fig 7.9
Date created: 11/10/2023
Research/exploration
Futura consists of both classism and modernity which intrigued me
as it is the most basic need for a san-serif font. It was designed
in 1927 by a German typeface designer named Paul Renner. He
constructed the font with simple geometric shapes that were inspired
by the arts and crafts movement in Germany. He wanted the font to
have a modern look, a modern feel. Consisting very consistent
weights and shapes, unlike the past "grotesques".
by
idsgn.org
fig 8.0
There are many typefaces of the font "Futura". Futura is a popular geometric sans-serif typeface and its history
dates back to the early 20th century.
Futura is still used to this day. It is still widely used in branding,
advertising, and design, particularly in contexts that require a clean
and contemporary appearance due to its timeless design
and its ability to convey a sense of modernity and
sophistication.
fig 8.1
It remains one of the most iconic and influential typefaces in the
history of typography to this day.
2. #FOLD
[incorporating Hangul/Korean words into the text]
Then I started to do some exploring on the word "FOLD" because I
remembered my sketch for the first "FOLD" was composed in a way similar
to how Korean is written, in Hangul. In Korean, "중" means to fold, or
to centre.
This is when I tried to incorporate the hangul : "중" into FOLD (Failure)
Date created: 11/10/2023
fig 8.2
The fusion between these 2 types of words from different languages were
then discarded as a fleeting idea as I dug in more into the meaning of
"FOLD".
fig 8.3 & 8.4 & 8.5 Digitalised sketches
Date created: 11/10/2023
Final Task 01 : Exercise 1
.jpg)
JPG FINAL (300 ppi)
PDF FINAL (300 ppi)
Date created: 11/10/2023
Week 3 | Animated GIF
The chosen word from the final 4 words was : DRUNK
💡Thought process : I wanted to create a hallucination effect for the word I chose,
"DRUNK", so by creating the fading-like colours to the word repeatedly
dragging behind it and bring it to life.
17/10/2023
fig 8.6
Process animation: 33 frames
fig 8.7
FINAL ANIMATED GIF:
fig 8.8 Animated GIF for exercise
Date created : 20/10/2023
Process work for Text Formatting
Minor exercise text formatting : (kerning & tracking)
In this exercise, we learnt what is meant by kerning and tracking the
text.
Kerning /ˈkəːnɪŋ/
It is the spacing between individual letter or characters that can be
adjusted to the way we please.
Tracking /ˈtrakɪŋ/
It is the spacing between the glyphs applied to the whole text.
PROCESS:
fig 8.9 & 9.0
Minor exercise final outcome :
Date created : 22/10/2023
fig 9.1In this exercise, we would slowly understand to achieve and learn the principles of typography.
• What to Do and to Not Do in typography
• Learning the role of typography in visual communication.
Ideation / sketches:
Date created : 23/10/2023
fig 9.2
I wanted to have as minimal graphical elements in my layout, to make
it easier for the readers and audience to read / make it readable.
trial & error:
fig 9.3
Date created : 24/10/2023
I tried to come up with an idea incorporating the "H" in
Helvetica into the arrangement of the texts. the first one was
just a trial but not a success as it looks like it's a separate
text column.
Date created : 25/10/2023
fig 9.4
FINAL TASK 01: EXERCISE/TEXT FORMATTING 2
PDF without Grid (300 ppi)
PDF with Grid (300 ppi)
.jpg)
JPG with Grids (300 ppi)
JPG without Grid (300 ppi)
Date created : 27/10/2023
Google Drive (all files):
CLICK HERE
HEAD
Font/s:
Helvetica Neue Condensed Bold, Helvetica Light
Type Size/s: (I AM)= 100 pt , [(H)=118 pt (ELVETICA)= 36 pt]
Leading: 22 pt, 22 pt, 30 pt
Paragraph spacing: 1mm
BODY
Font/s: Univers LT Std 55 roman
Type Size/s: 9 pt
Leading: 12 pt
Paragraph spacing: 1mm
Characters per-line: 42~50
Alignment: Bottom
Margins: 29.5 mm top, 32 mm left + 32 mm right + 29.5 mm
bottom
Columns: 2
Gutter: 4.233 mm
FEEDBACK
Week 1:
General feedback - Less distortion and compose better composition to convey the words better.
General feedback - Less distortion and compose better composition to convey the words better.
Week 2:
General feedback -
General feedback -
creatively and effectively convey meaning towards the 4 words we chose.
Specific feedback - Less graphics more align.
Week 3:
General feedback - The simpler the design and it must be effective for the audience to understand our design.
Specific feedback - Same size font for IMPACT &DRUNK, more align. For FOLD, take off the Korean words and express more.
General feedback - The simpler the design and it must be effective for the audience to understand our design.
Specific feedback - Same size font for IMPACT &DRUNK, more align. For FOLD, take off the Korean words and express more.
Week 4:
General feedback - GIF should convey the meaning of the word instead of focusing on graphical elements.
General feedback - GIF should convey the meaning of the word instead of focusing on graphical elements.
Specific feedback - The GIF could be better improved if it's more continuous and smoother.
Week 5:
General feedback - Do not have different column sizes for the same texts, it will make it look like from different context. minimalism is key.
General feedback - Do not have different column sizes for the same texts, it will make it look like from different context. minimalism is key.
Specific feedback - Make the text and picture balance, it will look more plausible and pleasing to the eye as it makes more sense.
REFLECTION
Experience:
I started slowly got the hang of using Adobe creative cloud even
though I got the access rather late. I tried to fumble around with
the software as quick as I can and started with my tasks.
What I've learnt:
We are taught to compose and express text using textual information
and I got a better understanding of formatting them to effectively
and efficiently deliver the intended message through communicating
these ideas and incorporating them into text.
I've learnt that not everything has to be anything graphical or
contain any graphical elements to be a "DESIGN", it could be as
simple as using a text with the correct font and typeface. "Be as
minimalistic as you can be, at times it's just as useful as an
incredibly complicated well-thought design." I would never know if I
don't try.
Composition plays a big part on the reader's experience, whether it
is readable, pleasing to read, composition and eye-catching
typography is what makes them have the motivation to read.
FURTHER READING
The Vignelli Canon
This book is like an essential manual for us modern and young
designers to understand the fundamentals of a good design and grasp
the basic understanding of what a design should be. This book is from
Italian modernist, Massimo Vignelli, a famous Italian designer.
The book displays many examples to allow us designers learn and take
reference from to further apply in practice. Examples are from some
product designs to graphic designs and Corporate Design.
Vignelli Canon on Design
LINKS TO OTHER TASKS :
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