Blood, Sweat, and Tears by Alexandria_Dominick

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Type Explorations Catalog

BLOOD SWEAT TEARS

The Lost Art of Typography

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration I Paragraph Indicator: Indent Text 9.5/11.5 Baskerville

Typographers and graphic designers often choose typefaces for the very same reason they might fancy a person: They just like that person. For more scientifically-minded people, however, there are more specific measurements, components, details and proportions to describe various parts of a letter. While these won’t tell you what makes a typeface good, they will at least give you the right words to use when you discuss the benefits of a particular face over another. You can say “I hate the x-height on Such-a-Gothic” or These descenders just don’t work for me” or “Please, may I see something with a smaller cap height?”; you’ll know what you are talking about. While metal letters could be made to any width and height, digital type has to conform to multiples of the smallest unit: the pixel. Every character has to be a certain number of pixels wide and high. This is not a problem when the letters are made up of 600 pixels per inch, as is the case with modern laser printers—those pixels are not discernible to our eyes, and we are happy to believe that we are looking at smooth curves instead of little squares fitted into tight grids. On screens, however, only 72 pixels make up one inch. We can see each and every one of them if engineers hadn’t already found ways around that. Computer screens, however are not where we read all of our type these days—phones, smartphones, even microwave ovens all have displays. Most screen displays are small and simple, which means black on greenish gray. And the type unmistakably consists of bitmaps: this means that an 8-point letter is actually made up of eight pixels. If we allow six pixels above the baseline, including accents, and two below for descenders, that leaves only three or four pixels for a lowercase character. Despite these restrictions, there are hundreds of bitmap fonts, each unique by a matter of a few pixels, but enough to prove that typographic variety cannot be suppressed by technological constraints. Rhythm and contrast keep coming up when discussing good music and good typographic design. They are concepts that also apply to spoken language, as anyone who has had to sit through a monotonous lecture will attest; the same tone, volume and speed of speech will put even the most interested listener into dreamland. Every now and again the audience needs to be shaken, either by a change in voice or pitch, by a question being posted, or by the speaker talking very quietly and then suddenly shouting. An occasional joke also works, just as the use of a funny typeface can liven up a page.

Ever since people have been writing things down, they have had to consider their audience before actually putting pen to paper: letters would have to look different depending on whether they were to be read by mainly other people (in official documents or inscriptions), just one other person (in a letter), or only the writer (in a notebook or diary). There would be less room for guesswork if letter shapes were more formal as the diversity of the readership expanded. Some of the first messages to be read by a large nu mber of people were rendered not by pens but by chisels. Large inscriptions on monuments in ancient Rome were carefully planned, with letters drawn on the stone with a brush before they were chiseled. Even if white-out had existed in those days, it would have not helped to remove mistakes made in stone. A bit of planning was also more important then, since stonemasons were sometimes more expendable than slabs of marble or granite. Graphic design and typography are complicated ac tivities, but even the simple projects benefit from thinking about the problem, forming a mental picture of the solution, and then carefully planning the steps between. Scientists have not been content with just calling the human face “beautiful” if it meets certain ideals, or “ugly” if it doesn’t. They had to go out and measure proportions of nose to jaw, forehead to chin, and so on to establish why some faces are more appealing than others. Typographers and graphic designers often choose t ypefaces for the very same reason they might fancy a person: They just like that person. For more scientifically-minded people, however, there are more specific measurements, components, details and proportions to describe various parts of a letter. While these won’t tell you what makes a typeface good, they will at least give you the right words to use when you discuss the benefits of a particular face over another. You can say “I hate the x-height on Such-a-Gothic” or These descenders just don’t work for me” or “Please, may I see something with a smaller cap height?” and you’ll know what you are talking about. While metal letters could be made to any width an d height, digital type has to conform to multiples of the smallest unit: the pixel. Every character has to be a certain number of pixels wide and high. This is not a problem when the letters are made up of 600 pixels per inch, as is the case with modern laser printers— those pixels are not discernible to our eyes, and we are happy to believe that we are looking at smooth curves instead of little squares fitted into grids. On screens, however, only 72 pixels make up one i nch. We can see each and every one of them if engineers hadn’t already found ways around that. Computer screens, however are not where we read all of our type these days—phones, smartphones, even microwave ovens all have displays. Most screen displays are small and simple, which means black on greenish gray. And the type unmistakably consists of bitmaps: this means that an 8-point letter is actually made up of eight pixels. If we allow six pixels above the baseline, including accents, and two below for descenders, that leaves only three or four pixels for a lowercase character. Despite these restrictions, there are hundreds of bitmap fonts, each unique by a matter of a few pixels, but enough to prove that typographic variety cannot be suppressed by technological constraints. 3010 Typography II: Alexandria Dominick Exploration 2: Paragraph Indicator - Exdent Text: 9.5/11.5 Fairfield

Some of the first messages to be read by a large number of people were rendered not by pens but by chisels. Large inscriptions on monuments in ancient Rome were carefully planned, with letters drawn on the stone with a brush before they were chiseled. Even if white-out had existed in those days, it would have not helped to remove mistakes made in stone. A bit of planning was also more important then, since stonemasons were sometimes more expendable than slabs of marble or granite. Graphic design and typography are complicated activities, but even the simple projects benefit from thinking about the problem, forming a mental picture of the solution, and then carefully planning the steps between. Scientists have not been content with just calling the human face “beautiful” if it meets certain ideals, or “ugly” if it doesn’t. They had to go out and measure proportions of nose to jaw, forehead to chin, and so on to establish why some faces are more appealing than others. Typographers and graphic designers often choose typefaces for the very same reason they might fancy a person: They just like that person. For more scientifically-minded people, however, there are more specific measurements, components, details and proportions to describe various parts of a letter. While these won’t tell you what makes a typeface good, they will at least give you the right words to use when you discuss the benefits of a particular face over another. You can say “I hate the x-height on Such-a-Gothic” or These descenders just don’t work for me” or “Please, may I see something with a smaller cap height?” and you’ll know what you are talking about.

While metal letters could be made to any width and height, digital type has to conform to multiples of the smallest unit: the pixel. Every character has to be a certain number of pixels wide and high. This is not a problem when the letters are made up of 600 pixels per inch, as is the case with modern laser printers—those pixels are not discernible to our eyes, and we are happy to believe that we are looking at smooth curves instead of little squares fitted into tight grids. On screens, however, only 72 pixels make up one inch. We can see each and every one of them if engineers hadn’t already found ways around that. Computer screens, however are not where we read all of our type these days—phones, smartphones, even microwave ovens all have displays. Most screen displays are small and simple, which means black on greenish gray. And the type unmistakably consists of bitmaps: this means that an 8-point letter is actually made up of eight pixels. If we allow six pixels above the baseline, including accents, and two below for descenders, that leaves only three or four pixels for a lowercase character. Despite these restrictions, there are hundreds of bitmap fonts, each unique by a matter of a few pixels, but enough to prove that typographic variety cannot be suppressed by technology. Rhythm and contrast keep coming up when discussing good music and good typographic design. They are concepts that also apply to spoken language, as anyone who has had to sit through a monotonous lecture will attest; the same tone, volume and speed of speech will put even the most interested listener into dreamland. Every now and again the audience needs to be shaken, either by a change in voice or pitch, by a question being posted, or by the speaker talking very quietly and then suddenly shouting. An occasional joke also works, just as the use of a funny typeface can liven up a page.

>The Industrial Revolution g enerated a shift in the social and economic role of typographic communication. Before the nineteenth century, dissemination of information through books and broadsheets was its dominant function. The faster pace and mass-communication needs of an increasingly urban and industrialized society produced a rapid expansion of jobbing printers, advertising, and posters. Larger scale, greater visual impact, and new tactile and expressive characters were demanded, and the book typography that had slowly evolved from handwriting did not fulfill these needs. >It was no longer enough fo r the twenty-six letters of the alphabet to function only as phonetic symbols. The industrial age transformed these signs into abstract visual forms projecting powerful concrete shapes of strong contrast and large size. At the same time, letterpress printers faced increasing competitive pressure from lithographic printers, whose skilled craftsmen rendered plates directly from an artist’s sketch and produced images and letterforms limited only by the artist’s imagination. The letterpress printers turned to the typefounders to expand their design possibilities, and the founders were only too happy to comply. The early decades of the nineteenth century saw an outpouring of new type designs without precedent. >As in many other aspects o f the Industrial Revolution, England played a pivotal role in this development; major design innovations were achieved by London typefounders. It might almost be said that William Caslon was the grandfather of this revolution. His heirs, along with two of his former apprentices, Joseph Jackson (1733–92) and Thomas Cotterell (d. 1785), who had been dismissed for leading a workers’ revolt, became successful type designers and founders in their own right. Apparently, Cotterell began the trend of sand-casting large, bold display letters as early as 1765, when his specimen book included, in the words of one of his amazed contemporaries, a “proscription, or posting letter of great bulk and dimension, as high as the measure of twelve lines of pica!” (about 2 inches). >Other founders designed a nd cast fatter letters, and type grew steadily bolder. This led to the invention of fat faces, a major category of type design innovated by Cotterell’s pupil and successor, Robert Thorne (d. 1820), possibly around 1803. A fat-face typestyle is a roman face whose contrast and weight have been increased by expanding the thickness of the heavy strokes. The stroke width has a ratio of 1:2.5 or even 1:2 to the capital height. The full range of Thorne’s accomplishment as a type designer was documented after his death, when William Thorowgood—who was not a type designer, punch cutter, or printer, but who used lottery winnings to offer the top bid when Thorne’s foundry was auctioned after his death—published the 132-page book of specimens that had been typeset and was ready to go onto the press when Thorne died. >One of Joseph Jackson’s ap prentices, Vincent Figgins, stayed with him and took full charge of his operation during the three years preceding Jackson’s death in 1792. Figgins failed in his efforts to purchase his master’s foundry because William Caslon III offered the highest bid. Undeterred, he established his own type foundry and quickly built a respectable reputation for type design and mathematical, astronomical, and other symbolic material, numbering in the hundreds of sorts. By the turn of the century Figgins had designed and cast a complete range of romans and had begun to produce scholarly and foreign faces. The rapid tilt in typographic design taste toward modern-style romans and new jobbing styles after the turn of the century seriously affected him, but he responded rapidly, and his 1815 printing specimens showed a full range of modern styles and antiques (Egyptians), the second major innovation of nineteenth-century type design. By 1840 Figgins’s antique fonts had become far more refined. >The third major typograph ic innovation of the early 1800s, sans-serif type, made its modest debut in an 1816 specimen book issued by William Caslon. It closely resembled an Egyptian face with the serifs removed, which is probably how Caslon IV designed it. The name Caslon adopted for this style—two lines English Egyptian—tends to support the theory that it had its origins in an Egyptian style. Sans serifs, which became so important to twentiethcentury graphic design, had a tentative beginning. The cumbersome early sans serifs 3010 Typography II were used primarily for subtitles and descriptive material under excessively bold fat faces Alexandria Dominick Exploration 4 and Egyptians. They were little noticed until the early 1830s, when several typefounders Paragraph Indicator: Graphic Elements introduced new sans-serif styles. Text: 9/11 Constantia

The Industrial Revolution generated a shift in the social and economic role of typographic communication. Before the nineteenth century, dissemination of information through books and broadsheets was its dominant function. The faster pace and mass-communication needs of an increasingly urban and industrialized society produced a rapid expansion of jobbing printers, advertising, and posters. Larger scale, greater visual impact, and new tactile and expressive characters were demanded, and the book typography that had slowly evolved from handwriting did not fulfill these needs. It was no longer enough for the twentysix letters of the alphabet to function only as phonetic symbols. The industrial age transformed these signs into abstract visual forms projecting powerful concrete shapes of strong contrast and large size. At the same time, letterpress printers faced increasing competitive pressure from lithographic printers, whose skilled craftsmen rendered plates directly from an artist’s sketch and produced images and letterforms limited only by the artist’s imagination. The letterpress printers turned to the typefounders to expand their design possibilities, and the founders were only too happy to comply. The early decades of the nineteenth century saw an outpouring of new type designs without precedent. As in many other aspects of the Industrial Revolution, England played a pivotal role in this development; major design innovations were achieved by London typefounders. It might almost be said that William Caslon was the grandfather of this revolution. His heirs, along with two of his former apprentices, Joseph Jackson (1733–92) and Thomas Cotterell (d. 1785), who had been dismissed for leading a workers’ revolt, became successful type designers and founders in their own right. Apparently, Cotterell began the trend of sand-casting large, bold display letters as early as 1765, when his specimen book included, in the words of one of his amazed contemporaries, a “proscription, or posting letter of great bulk and dimension, as high as the measure of twelve lines of pica!” (about 5 centimeters, or 2 inches).

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration| 5 Paragraph Indicators| Rules Text| 9/11 Palintino Linotpye

Other founders designed and cast fatter letters, and type grew steadily bolder. This led to the invention of fat faces, a major category of type design innovated by Cotterell’s pupil and successor, Robert Thorne (d. 1820), possibly around 1803. A fat-face typestyle is a roman face whose contrast and weight have been increased by expanding the thickness of the heavy strokes. The stroke width has a ratio of 1:2.5 or even 1:2 to the capital height. The full range of Thorne’s accomplishment as a type designer was documented after his death, when William Thorowgood—who was not a type designer, punch cutter, or printer, but who used lottery winnings to offer the top bid when Thorne’s foundry was auctioned after his death—published the 132-page book of specimens that had been typeset and was ready to go onto the press when Thorne died. One of Joseph Jackson’s apprentices, Vincent Figgins, stayed with him and took full charge of his operation during the three years preceding Jackson’s death in 1792. Figgins failed in his efforts to purchase his master’s foundry because William Caslon III offered the highest bid. Undeterred, he established his own type foundry and quickly built a respectable reputation for type design and mathematical, astronomical, and other symbolic material, numbering in the hundreds of sorts. By the turn of the century Figgins had designed and cast a complete range of romans and had begun to produce scholarly and foreign faces. The rapid tilt in typographic design taste toward modern-style romans and new jobbing styles after the turn of the century seriously affected him, but he responded rapidly, and his 1815 printing specimens showed a full range of modern styles and antiques (Egyptians), the second major innovation of nineteenth-century type design. By 1840 Figgins’s antique fonts had become far more refined.

The third major typographic innovation of the early 1800s, sans-serif type, made its modest debut in an 1816 specimen book issued by William Caslon. It closely resembled an Egyptian face with the serifs removed, which is probably how Caslon IV designed it. The name Caslon adopted for this style—two lines English Egyptian—tends to support the theory that it had its origins in an Egyptian style. Sans serifs, which became so important to twentieth-century graphic design, had a tentative beginning. The cumbersome early sans serifs were used primarily for subtitles and descriptive material under excessively bold fat faces and Egyptians. They were little noticed until the early 1830s, when several typefounders introduced new sans-serif styles.

THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION GENERATED A SHIFT IN THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC ROLE OF TYPOGRAPHIC. Before the nineteenth century, dissemination of information through books and broadsheets was its dominant function. The faster pace and mass-communication needs of an increasingly urban and industrialized society produced a rapid expansion of jobbing printers, advertising, and posters. Larger scale, greater visual impact, and new tactile and expressive characters were demanded, and the book typography that had slowly evolved from handwriting did not fulfill these needs. IT WAS NO LONGER ENOUGH FO R THE TWENTY-SIX LETTERS OF THE ALPHABET TO FUNCTION ONLY AS PHONETIC. The industrial age transformed these signs into abstract visual forms projecting powerful concrete shapes of strong contrast and large size. At the same time, letterpress printers faced increasing competitive pressure from lithographic printers, whose skilled craftsmen rendered plates directly from an artist’s sketch and produced images and letterforms limited only by the artist’s imagination. The letterpress printers turned to the typefounders to expand their design possibilities, and the founders were only too happy to comply. The early decades of the nineteenth century saw an outpouring of new type designs without precedent. AS IN MANY OTHER ASPECTS OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, ENGLAND PLAYED A PIVOTAL ROLE IN THIS development; major design innovations were achieved by London typefounders. It might almost be said that William Caslon was the grandfather of this revolution. His heirs, along with two of his former apprentices, Joseph Jackson (1733–92) and Thomas Cotterell (d. 1785), who had been dismissed for leading a workers’ revolt, became successful type designers and founders in their own right. Apparently, Cotterell began the trend of sand-casting large, bold display letters as early as 1765, when his specimen book included, in the words of one of his amazed contemporaries, a “proscription, or posting letter of great bulk and dimension, as high as the measure of twelve lines of pica!” (about 5 centimeters, or 2 inches). OTHER FOUNDERS DESIGNED A ND CAST FATTER LETTERS, AND TYPE GREW STEADILY BOLDER. THIS LED TO THE invention of fat faces, a major category of type design innovated by Cotterell’s pupil and successor, Robert Thorne (d. 1820), possibly around 1803. A fat-face typestyle is a roman face whose contrast and weight have been increased by expanding the thickness of the heavy strokes. The stroke width has a ratio of 1:2.5 or even 1:2 to the capital height. The full range of Thorne’s accomplishment as a type designer was documented after his death, when William Thorowgood—who was not a type designer, punch cutter, or printer, but who used lottery winnings to offer the top bid when Thorne’s foundry was auctioned after his death—published the 132-page book of specimens that had been typeset and was ready to go onto the press when Thorne died. ONE OF JOSEPH JACKSON’S APR ENTICES, VINCENT FIGGINS, STAYED WITH HIM AND TOOK FULL CHARGE OF HIS operation during the three years preceding Jackson’s death in 1792. Figgins failed in his efforts to purchase his master’s foundry because William Caslon III offered the highest bid. Undeterred, he established his own type foundry and quickly built a respectable reputation for type design and mathematical, astronomical, and other symbolic material, numbering in the hundreds of sorts. By the turn of the century Figgins had designed and cast a complete range of romans and had begun to produce scholarly and foreign faces. The rapid tilt in typographic design taste toward modern-style romans and new jobbing styles after the turn of the century seriously affected him, but he responded rapidly, and his 1815 printing specimens showed a full range of modern styles and antiques (Egyptians), the second major innovation of nineteenth-century type design. By 1840 Figgins’s antique fonts had become far more refined.

3010 Typography II

\\ ALEXANDRIA DOMINICK \\ EXPLORATION.6 \\ PARAGRAPH INDICATORS.Initial Capitals \\ TEXT.9/11 Bembo

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 7 Paragraph Indicator | Drop Cap Text | 9/12 Corbel

aking text comfortable for sustained reading requires more involvement by a designer than does the typography of a poster or similar, more immediate media. The complexity of information delivered in a publication assumes more complex hierarchical treatment of navigational elements such as headlines, subheads, and so on; but the core issue is the visual quality of running text, and how it relates to these elements among a publication’s pages. The spacing of letters in words, sentences, and paragraphs is vital to create a uniform gray value for minimal reader distraction. Each typeface has a distinct rhythm of strokes and spaces. This relationship between form and counterform defines the optimal spacing of that particular typeface and, therefore, of the overall spacing between words, lines of type, and among paragraphs and columns of text. Looking at letters set together as a word offers a clue to how they should be spaced in that particular typeface and size. Creating a consistent gray value in text depends on setting the letters so that there is even alternation of solid and void within and between the letters. A series of letters that is set too tightly, so that the counterforms within the letters are optically bigger than those between letters, creates noticeable dark spots in the line: the exterior strokes of the letters bond to each other visually where they come together. At the other extreme, letters that are set too loosely become singular elements, divorced from the line and recognizable as individual forms, making the appraisal of words difficult. Evenly set sequences of letters show a consistent, rhythmic alternation of black and white form and counterform repeating at the same rate from left to right. The primary difficulty in achieving evenly spaced type is that different letters have different densities—some are lighter or darker than others. Added to this phenomenon are the directional thrusts of different strokes and the varied sizes and shapes of the counterforms. Some are open, some closed, and some decidedly uneven in relation to the distribution of strokes in a given letter. To correct for these disparities, digital typefaces are programmed to add and subtract space from between different pairs of letters depending on what the combinations are. These sets of letters, called kerning pairs, provide for most circumstances of letterform combination, but not all. Invariably, a designer must correct unusual spacing that the computer’s software is unable to address. The drawing of a typeface has an impact on the perception of its size. For example, a sentence set in an oldstyle serif and a similar-weight sans serif at the same point size will appear to be in two different sizes. The discrepancy results from the sans serif’s larger x-height: its lowercase letters are larger in relation to the cap height than those of the serif. The difference in set size and apparent size can vary as much as 2 or 3 points depending on the face. A sans serif such as Univers may be perfectly comfortable to read at a size of 9 points, but an oldstyle face such as Garamond Three at that size will appear tiny and difficult to read. Setting the Garamond at 11 or 12 points will make it more legible, as well as make it appear the same size as the Univers. Setting type smaller or larger than the optimal reading size for text also has an impact on spacing. Comfortable and efficient reading of long texts, such as books, newspapers, or journals, is possible when the type size ranges between 10 and 14 points—the texture of the type is a uniform gray and the letterforms are small enough that their details are not perceived as distinct visual elements. Optimal spacing at reading size means that the strokes and counterforms alternate evenly. As type is decreased in size, letterspace must be increased to allow the eye to separate the letters for clarity. At the other extreme, the space between letters must be decreased as the type size increases beyond conventional reading size. The Typography of Publications | Timothy Samara

The Typography of Publications ✳ Timothy Samara Making text comfortable for sustained reading requires more involvement by a designer than does the typography of a poster or similar, more immediate media. The complexity of information delivered in a publication assumes more complex hierarchical treatment of navigational elements such as headlines, subheads, and so on; but the core issue is the visual quality of running text, and how it relates to these elements among a publication’s pages. The spacing of letters in words, sentences, and paragraphs is vital to create a uniform gray value for minimal reader distraction. Each typeface has a distinct rhythm of strokes and spaces. This relationship between form and counterform defines the optimal spacing of that particular typeface and, therefore, of the overall spacing between words, lines of type, and among paragraphs and columns of text. Looking at letters set together as a word offers clues to how they should be spaced in that particular typeface and size. Creating a consistent gray value in text depends on setting the letters so that there is even alternation of solid and void—within and between the letters. Series of letters that are set so tightly that the counterforms within the letters are optically bigger than those between letters, creates noticeable dark spots in the line: the exterior strokes of the letters bond to each other visually where they come together. At the other extreme, letters that are set too loosely become singular elements, divorced from the line and recognizable as individual forms, making appraisal of words difficult. Evenly set sequences of letters show a consistent, rhythmic alternation of black and white—form and counterform repeating at the same rate from left to right. The primary difficulty in achieving evenly spaced type is that different letters have different densities—some are lighter or darker than others. Added to this phenomenon are the directional thrusts of different strokes and the varied sizes and shapes of the counterforms. Some are open, some closed, and some decidedly uneven in relation to the distribution of strokes in a given letter. To correct for these disparities, digital typefaces are programmed to add and subtract space from between different pairs of letters depending on what the combinations are. These sets of letters, called kerning pairs, provide for most circumstances of letterform combination, but not all. Invariably, a designer must correct unusual spacing that the computer’s software is unable to address. The drawing of a typeface has an impact on the perception of its size. For example, a sentence set in an oldstyle serif and a similar-weight sans serif at the same point size will appear to be in two different sizes. The discrepancy results from the sans serif ’s larger x-height: its lowercase letters are larger in relation to the cap height than those of the serif. The difference in set size and apparent size can vary as much as 2 or 3 points depending on the face. A sans serif like Univers may be perfectly comfortable to read at a size of 9 points, but an oldstyle face like Garamond Three at that size will appear tiny and difficult to read. Setting the Garamond at 11 or 12 points will make it more legible, as well as make it appear the same size as the Univers. Setting type smaller or larger than the optimal reading size for text also has an impact on spacing. Comfortable and efficient reading of long texts, such as books, newspapers, or journals, is possible when the type size ranges between 10 and 14 points—the texture of the type is a uniform gray and the letterforms are small enough that their details are not perceived as distinct visual elements. Optimal spacing at reading size means that the strokes and counterforms alternate evenly. As type is decreased in size, letterspace must be increased to allow the eye to separate the letters for clarity. At the other extreme, the space between letters must be decreased as the type size increases beyond conventional reading size. 3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 8 Paragraph Indicator | Flush Right Text | 9.5/11/5 Fairfield 55 Medium

~The Typography of Publications~ Timothy Samara

Making text comfortable for sustained reading requires more involvement by a designer than does the typography of a poster or similar, more immediate media. The complexity of information delivered in a publication assumes more complex hierarchical treatment of navigational elements such as headlines, subheads, and so on; but the core issue is the visual quality of running text, and how it relates to these elements among a publication’s pages. The spacing of letters in words, sentences, and paragraphs is vital to create a uniform gray value for minimal reader distraction. Each typeface has a distinct rhythm of strokes and spaces. This relationship between form and counterform defines optimal spacing of that particular typeface and, of the overall spacing between words, lines of type, and among paragraphs and columns of text. Looking at letters set together as a word offers a clue to how they should be spaced in that particular typeface and size. Creating a consistent gray value in text depends on setting the letters so that there is even alternation of solid and void—within and between the letters. A series of letters that is set too tightly, so that the counterforms within the letters are optically bigger than those between letters, creates noticeable dark spots in the line: the exterior strokes of the letters bond to each other visually where they come together. At the other extreme, letters that are set too loosely become singular elements, divorced from the line and recognizable as individual forms, making the appraisal of words difficult. Evenly set sequences of letters show a consistent, rhythmic alternation of black and white—form and counterform repeating at the same rate from left to right. The primary difficulty in achieving evenly spaced type is that different letters have different densities—some are lighter or darker than others. Added to this phenomenon are the directional thrusts of different strokes and the varied sizes and shapes of the counterforms. Some are open, some closed, and some decidedly uneven in relation to the distribution of strokes in a given letter. To correct for these disparities, digital typefaces are programmed to add and subtract space from between different pairs of letters depending on what the combinations are. These sets of letters, called kerning pairs, provide for most circumstances of letterform combination, but not all. Invariably, a designer must correct unusual spacing that the computer’s software can’t address. The drawing of a typeface has an impact on the perception of its size. For example, a sentence set in an oldstyle serif and a similar-weight sans serif at the same point size will appear to be in two different sizes. The discrepancy results from the sans serif ’s larger x-height: its lowercase letters are larger in relation to the cap height than those of the serif. The difference in set size and apparent size can vary as much as 2 or 3 points depending on the face. A sans serif such as Univers may be perfectly comfortable to read at a size of 9 points, but an oldstyle face such as Garamond Three at that size will appear tiny and difficult to read. Setting the Garamond at 11 or 12 points will make it more legible, as well as make it appear the same size as the Univers. Setting type smaller or larger than the optimal reading size for text also has an impact on spacing. Comfortable and efficient reading of long texts, such as books, newspapers, or journals, is possible when the type size ranges between 10 and 14 points—the texture of the type is a uniform gray and the letterforms are small enough that their details are not perceived as distinct visual elements. Optimal spacing at reading size means that the strokes and counterforms alternate evenly. As type is decreased in size, letterspace must be increased to allow the eye to separate the letters for clarity. At the other extreme, the space between letters must be decreased as the type size increases beyond conventional reading size.

3010 Typography II ~ Alexandria Dominick ~ Exploration 9 ~ Paragraph Indicator: Centered ~ Text: 9.5/12 Fairfield 45 Light

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 10 Paragraph Indicator_Small Caps Text_9/11 Ebrima

BOOK t ypefaces are the foundation of all typography. That the term book describes an entire genre of type, lettering, and handwriting is no accident. Fifteenth-century European printers first developed type based on formal writing styles used to reproduce manuscripts and books. These early typefaces translated the book hands of scribes into cast metal, creating new forms that did not merely imitate handwriting but also reinterpreted and regularized it. As this new technology replaced labor-intensive hand copying, typography sparked and enabled the almost universal literacy now taken for granted in many parts of the world. Despite the thousands of new and experimental font styles designed over the last two hundred years, serif book typefaces are the most read classes of letterforms, comprising the body type of most books and periodicals and many websites. NAME implies, book typefaces are meant for setting large quantities of text at a single point size. Primary concerns for designers of book type are legibility and readability—the visual distinctions between each character and how well the letters convey their messages over the course of sentences and volumes. Since book type is typically used to set lengthy texts, the readability and visual flow of long passages is as important as the legibility of single words. Legibility studies have shown that the shapes and outlines of words are as important for comprehension as the forms of the letters themselves. Individual capital letters may be more legible than lowercase, but uppercase sentences or paragraphs become more difficult to read without the distinctive up-and-down rhythm of the lowercase alphabet. The lowercase design is the most crucial element of a book typeface. WHILE serif fonts account for the bulk of book typefaces, many sans serif faces also work well as body copy. A well-made sans serif book face is no less legible than a serif font, although some readers have indicated a preference for serif type in long texts. Sans serif book typefaces contain many nuances that facilitate their functionality at small point sizes. Book sans serifs typically have looser letterspacing than their all-purpose siblings, as well as increased tapering where two strokes meet. Some sans serif faces even add calligraphic forms to increase letter differentiation (such as a serifed capital I), more pronounced stroke contrast, and true italics. These distinctions improve the reproduction and legibility of small-scale sans serif type. SMALL sizes are where book letters do most of their work. Typographers typically use book typefaces at sizes between six and twelve points. (This text is set at nine points.) As letters get smaller or more distant, fine details blur and disappear. Hairline serifs dissolve, and small openings close. Subtle modulation becomes lost among letters of uniform stroke weight. This is especially true at minute printing sizes, as viscous ink flows outward and expands into the paper. Most book type avoids extremely delicate detailing, or it harnesses the degradation process purpose-fully. Some fonts incorporate expanded counters and apertures to retain legibility; others possess sharp serifs, meant to round and retreat at small sizes; and some allow the printing process to soften their angular forms. Book faces often employ more generous widths and letterspacing to enhance legibility and readability. READER S comparing book typefaces will notice that they all have a relatively similar range of typographic weight and color. Certain weights of text are easier to read than others—a novel printed entirely in an extra bold or lightweight font would drive away readers by the dozen. If one squints at a page of text, the paragraphs appear as gray blocks. Bolder fonts create a dark gray, while lighter fonts look paler. Some designers and typographers prefer light, airy pages while others favor denser, more solid text. Many early printed books featured dark pages of muscular letterforms that emulated the layout and spacing of handwritten manuscripts. As production techniques improved, it became possible to design type that retained fine detail through repeated inking and printing, allowing for lighter, sharper letters and pages. WHETHE R their book type is delicate or sturdy, most designers adhere to the idea that text typefaces are reserved containers for conveying written language. Design historian Beatrice Warde famously compared good typography to a clear crystal goblet, an unobtrusive vessel that allows one to appreciate and focus on the design’s content. While convincing arguments may be made against this maxim, especially about display lettering, book type’s primary goal is still to effectively serve and present its content.

3010 Typography II >>> Alexandria Dominick >>> Exploration 11 >>> Paragraph Indicator - Weight >>> Text - 9.5/12 Avenir Next

Book typefaces are the foundation of all typography. That the term book describes an entire genre of type, lettering, and handwriting is no accident. Fifteenth-century European printers first developed type based on formal writing styles used to reproduce manuscripts and books. These early typefaces translated the book hands of scribes into cast metal, creating new forms that did not merely imitate handwriting but also reinterpreted and regularized it. As this new technology replaced labor-intensive hand copying, typography sparked and enabled the almost universal literacy now taken for granted in many parts of the world. Despite the thousands of new and experimental font styles designed over the last two hundred years, serif book typefaces are the most read classes of letterforms, comprising the body type of most books and periodicals and many websites. >>> As the name implies, book typefaces are meant for setting large quantities of text at a single point size. Primary concerns for designers of book type are legibility and readability—the visual distinctions between each character and how well the letters convey their messages over the course of sentences and volumes. Since book type is typically used to set lengthy texts, the readability and visual flow of long passages is as important as the legibility of single words. Legibility studies have shown that the shapes and outlines of words are as important for comprehension as the forms of the letters themselves. Individual capital letters may be more legible than lowercase, but uppercase sentences or paragraphs become more difficult to read without the distinctive up-and-down rhythm of the lowercase alphabet. The lowercase design is the most crucial element of a book typeface. >>> While serif fonts account for the bulk of book typefaces, many sans serif faces also work well as body copy. A well-made sans serif book face is no less legible than a serif font, although some readers have indicated a preference for serif type in long texts. >>> Sans serif book typefaces contain many nuances that facilitate their functionality at small point sizes. Book sans serifs typically have looser letterspacing than their all-purpose siblings, as well as increased tapering where two strokes meet. Some sans serif faces even add calligraphic forms to increase letter differentiation (such as a serifed capital I), more pronounced stroke contrast, and true italics. These distinctions improve the reproduction and legibility of small-scale sans serif type. >>> Small sizes are where book letters do most of their work. Typographers typically use book typefaces at sizes between six and twelve points. (This text is set at nine points.) As letters get smaller or more distant, fine details blur and disappear. Hairline serifs dissolve, and small openings close. Subtle modulation becomes lost among letters of uniform stroke weight. This is especially true at minute printing sizes, as viscous ink flows outward and expands into the paper. Most book type avoids extremely delicate detailing, or it harnesses the degradation process purpose-fully. Some fonts incorporate expanded counters and apertures to retain legibility; others possess sharp serifs, meant to round and retreat at small sizes; and some allow the printing process to soften their angular forms. Book faces often employ more generous widths and letterspacing to enhance legibility and readability >>> A reader comparing book typefaces will notice that they all have a relatively similar range of typographic weight and color. Certain weights of text are easier to read than others—a novel printed entirely in an extra bold or lightweight font would drive away readers by the dozen. If one squints at a page of text, the paragraphs appear as gray blocks. Bolder fonts create a dark gray, while lighter fonts look paler. Some designers and typographers prefer light, airy pages while others favor denser, more solid text. Many early printed books featured dark pages of muscular letterforms that emulated the layout and spacing of handwritten manuscripts. As production techniques improved, it became possible to design type that retained fine detail through repeated inking and printing, allowing for lighter, sharper letters and pages. >>> Whether their book type is delicate or sturdy, most designers adhere to the idea that text typefaces are reserved containers for conveying written language. Design historian Beatrice Warde famously compared good typography to a clear crystal goblet, an unobtrusive vessel that allows one to appreciate and focus on the design’s content. While convincing arguments may be made against this maxim, especially about display lettering, book type’s primary goal is still to effectively serve and present its content.

ook typefaces are the foundation of all typography. That the term book describes an entire B genre of type, lettering, and handwriting is no accident. Fifteenth-century European printers first developed type based on formal writing styles used to reproduce manuscripts and books. These early typefaces translated the book hands of scribes into cast metal, creating new forms that did not merely imitate handwriting but also reinterpreted and regularized it. As this new technology replaced labor-intensive hand copying, typography sparked and enabled the almost universal literacy now taken for granted in many parts of the world. Despite the thousands of new and experimental font styles designed over the last two hundred years, serif book typefaces are the most read classes of letterforms, comprising the body type of most books, periodicals, and many websites. As the name implies, book typefaces are meant for setting large quantities of text at a single point size. Primary concerns for designers of book type are legibility and readability—the visual distinctions between each character and how well the letters convey their messages over the course of sentences and volumes. Since book type is typically used to set lengthy texts, the readability and visual flow of long passages is as important as the legibility of single words. Legibility studies have shown that the shapes and outlines of words are as important for comprehension as the forms of the letters themselves. Individual capital letters may be more legible than lowercase, but uppercase sentences or paragraphs become more difficult to read without the distinctive up-and-down rhythm of the lowercase alphabet. The lowercase design is the most crucial element of a book typeface.

W hile serif fonts account for the bulk of book typefaces, many sans serif faces also work well as body copy. A well-made sans serif book face is no less legible than a serif font, although some readers have indicated a preference for serif type in long texts.

Sans serif book typefaces contain many nuances that facilitate their functionality at small point sizes. Book sans serifs typically have looser letterspacing than their all-purpose siblings, as well as increased tapering where two strokes meet. Some sans serif faces even add calligraphic forms to increase letter differentiation (such as a serifed capital I), more pronounced stroke contrast, and true italics. These distinctions improve the reproduction and legibility of small-scale sans serif type. S mall sizes are where book letters do most of their work. Typographers typically use book typefaces at sizes between six and twelve points. (This text is set at nine points.) As letters get smaller or more distant, fine details blur and disappear. Hairline serifs dissolve, and small openings close. Subtle modulation becomes lost among letters of uniform stroke weight. This is especially true at minute printing sizes, as viscous ink flows outward and expands into the paper. Most book type avoids extremely delicate detailing, or it harnesses the degradation process purpose-fully. Some fonts incorporate expanded counters and apertures to retain legibility; others possess sharp serifs, meant to round and retreat at small sizes; and some allow the printing process to soften their angular forms. Book faces often employ more generous widths and letterspacing to enhance legibility and readability. reader comparing book typefaces will notice that they all have a relatively similar range of typographic weight and A color. Certain weights of text are easier to read than others—a novel printed entirely in an extra bold or lightweight font would drive away readers by the dozen. If one squints at a page of text, the paragraphs appear as gray blocks. Bolder fonts create a dark gray, while lighter fonts look paler. Some designers and typographers prefer light, airy pages while others favor denser, more solid text. Many early printed books featured dark pages of muscular letterforms that emulated the layout and spacing of handwritten manuscripts. As production techniques improved, it became possible to design type that retained fine detail through repeated inking and printing of letters and pages throughout the world.

3010 Typography II: Alexandria Dominick {Exploration 12} Paragraph Indicator {Column Width} Text 9.5/ 11.5 {Bembo}

Whether their book type is delicate or sturdy, most designers adhere to the idea that text typefaces are reserved containers for conveying written language. Design historian Beatrice Warde famously compared good typography to a clear crystal goblet, an unobtrusive vessel that allows one to appreciate and focus on the design’s content. While convincing arguments may be made against this, especially about display lettering, book type’s primary goal is still to effectively serve and present its content.

Designers tend to set type one way or another depending upon several factors, not least of which are tradition and personal preference. Prevailing culture and the need to express play For the better part of the twentieth century, the distinctive forms of important, inevitable roles in any piece of communication. However, typewriter type (notably its single character width and unstressed stroke) when setting a field of type, keep in mind the typographer’s first characterized the immediacy of thought: getting the idea down without job—clear, appropriate presentation of the author’s message. Type dressing it up. Now that computers have replaced typewriters, most that calls attention to itself before the reader can get to the actual word processing programs default to Helvetica or Times Roman (or their words is simply interference, and should be avoided. Quite simply, if derivatives) as the typographic expression of simple typing. E-mail— you see the type before you see the words, change the type. currently the most immediate form of typed communication—appears on As a typographer, you should recognize the difference between typing our screens as an electronically neutered sans serif, any individuality scraped and typesetting. Time and usage may ultimately make Inkjet Sans the off in deference to the requirements of the pixel. expected typeface for letters. For now, however, on paper, typewriter Type size: Text type should be large enough to be read easily at arm’s length —

type is still the best expression of the intimate, informal voice—direct imagine yourself holding a book in your lap. Leading: Text that is set too tightly

address. Imitating the formalities of typesetting in a letter is always encourages vertical eye movement; a reader can easily lose his or her place.

inappropriate because it suggests an undeserved permanence—the end Type that is set too loosely creates striped patterns that distract the reader from

of a discussion, not its continuation. the material at hand. Line length: Appropriate leading for text is as much a function of line length as it is a question of type size and leading.

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 13 Pragraph Indicator: Interlock Text 10/32 Egyptian, New Tai Lei, Fairfield, & Avenir New

Shorter lines require less leading; longer lines, more.

Designers tend to set type one way or another depending upon several factors, not least of which are tradition and personal preference. Prevailing culture and the need to express play important, inevitable roles in any piece of communication. However, when setting a field of type, keep in mind the typographer’s first job— clear, appropriate presentation of the author’s message. Type that calls attention to itself before the reader can get to the actual words is simply interference, and should be avoided. Quite simply, if you see the type before you see the words, change the type.

reading.

3010 Typography II -- Alexandria Dominick -- Exploration 14 -- Pragraph Indicator: Overlap -- Text 9/12 & 10/12 Egyptian & Ebrima

As a typographer, you should recognize the difference between typing and typesetting. Time and usage may ultimately make Inkjet Sans the expected typeface for letters. For now, however, on paper, typewriter type is still the best expression of the intimate, informal voice—direct address. Imitating the formalities of typesetting in a >>>For the better part of the letter is always inappropriate because it suggests an twentieth century, the distinctive undeserved permanence—the end of a discussion, forms of typewriter type (notably not its continuation. >>> The goal in setting text type its single character width and is to allow for easy, prolonged reading. At the same unstressed stroke) characterized the time, a field of type should occupy the page much as immediacy of thought: getting the a photograph does. >>>Type size: Text type should idea down without dressing it up. Now that computers have replaced be large enough to be read easily at arm’s length— typewriters, most word processing imagine yourself holding a book in your lap. Leading: programs default to Helvetica or Text that is set too tightly encourages vertical eye Times Roman (or their derivatives) as movement; a reader can easily lose his or her place. the typographic expression of typing. Type that is set too loosely creates striped patterns E-mail—currently the most immediate that distract In general text settings— form of typed communication— the reader from specifically not including the material at appears on our screens as an captions and head-lines—a hand. Line length: electronically neutered sans serif, any good rule of thumb is to Appropriate individuality scraped off in deference keep line length somewhere leading for text to the requirements of the pixel. between 35 and 65 is as much a characters. In practice, function of line limitations of space or the length as it is dictates of special use may a question of require longer or shorter type size and lengths. In any event, be leading. Shorter lines require less sensitive to that moment when extremely long or leading; longer short line lengths impair easy lines, more.

3010 Typography II ~ Alexandria Dominick ~ Exploration 15 ~ Pragraph Indicator: Direction ~ Text 11/14 Fairfield

Type size: Text type should be large enough to be read easily at arm’s length—imagine yourself holding a book in your lap. Leading: Text that is set too tightly encourages vertical eye movement; a reader can easily lose his or her place. Type that is set too loosely creates striped patterns that distract the reader from the material at hand. Line length: Appropriate leading for text is as much a function of line length as it is a question of type size and leading. Shorter lines require less leading; longer lines, more. ~ In general text settings—specifically not including captions and headlines—a good rule of thumb is to keep line length somewhere between 35 and 65 characters. In practice, limitations of space or the dictates of special use may require longer or shorter lengths. In any event, be sensitive to that moment.

For the better part of the twentieth century, the distinctive forms of typewriter type (notably its single character width and unstressed stroke) characterized the immediacy of thought: getting the idea down without dressing it up. Now that computers have replaced typewriters, most word processing programs default to Helvetica or Times Roman (or their derivatives) as the typographic expression of simple typing. E-mail—currently the most immediate form of typed communication—appears on our screens as an electronically neutered sans serif, any individuality scraped off.

Designers tend to set type one way or another depending upon several factors, not least of which are tradition and personal preference. Prevailing culture and the need to express play important, inevitable roles in any piece of communication. However, when setting a field of type, keep in mind the typographer’s first job—clear, appropriate presentation of the author’s message. Type that calls attention to itself before the reader gets to the actual words is simply interference, and should be avoided. Quite simply, if you see the type way before you see the words, you need to change the type taking away the original concept of a design.

3010 Typography II :: Alexandria Dominick :: Exploration 16 :: Pragraph Indicator: Modular :: Text 9.5/ 11.5 Fairfield 55 Medium

A grid breaks space or time into regular units. A grid can be simple or complex, specific or generic, tightly defined or loosely interpreted. Typographic grids are all about control. They establish a system for arranging content within the space of a page, screen, or the built environment. Designed in response to the internal pressures of content (text, image, data) and the outer edge or frame (page, screen, window), an effective grid is not a rigid formula but a flexible and resilient structure, a skeleton that moves in concert with the muscular mass of information. :: Grids belong to the technological framework of typography, from the concrete modularity of letterpress to the rulers, guides, and coordinate systems employed in graphics applications. Although software generates illusions of smooth curves and continuous tones, every digital image or mark is constructed—ultimately—from a grid of neatly bounded blocks. The ubiquitous language of the gui (graphical user interface) creates a gridded space in which windows overlay windows in a haphazard way. :: In addition to their place in the background of design production, grids have become explicit theoretical tools. Avant-garde designers in the 1910s and 1920s exposed the mechanical grid of letterpress, bringing it to the polemical surface of the page. In Switzerland after World War II, graphic designers built a total design methodology around the typographic grid, hoping to construct with it a new and rational social order. :: The grid has evolved across centuries of typographic development. For graphic designers, grids are carefully honed intellectual devices, infused with ideology and ambition, and they are the inescapable mesh that filters, at some level of resolution, nearly every system of writing and reproduction. :: Alphabetic writing, like most writing systems, is organized into columns and rows of characters. Whereas handwriting flows into connected lines, the mechanics of metal type impose a stricter order. Each letter occupies its own block, and the letters congregate in orderly rectangles. :: Until the twentieth century, grids served as frames for fields of text. The margins of a classical book page create a pristine barrier around a flush, solid block of text. A page dominated by a solitary field of type remains today’s most common book format, although that perfect rectangle is now broken with indents and line breaks, and the margins are peppered with page numbers and running heads (text indicating the book or chapter title). :: In addition to the classical norm of the single-column page, various alternative layouts existed during the first centuries of printing, from the twocolumn grid of Gutenberg’s Bible to more elaborate layouts derived from the medieval scribal tradition, where passages of scripture are surrounded by scholarly commentary. Polyglot (multilingual) books display a text in several languages simultaneously, demanding complex divisions of the surface. ::Such formats permit multiple streams of text to coexist while defending the sovereignty of the page-as-frame. The philosopher Jacques Derrida has described the frame in Western art as a form that seems to be separate from the work, yet is necessary for marking its difference from everyday life.

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 17 Paragraph Indicator: Ambiguous (Wrap) Text: 10.5/ 12.5 Bulmer

RIDS break space or time into regular units. A grid can be simple or complex, specific G or generic, tightly defined or loosely interpreted. Typographic grids are all about control. They establish a system for arranging content within the space of a page, screen, or the built environment. Designed in response to the internal pressures of content and the outer edge or frame, an effective grid is not a rigid formula. It is a flexible and resilient structure, a skeleton that moves in concert with the muscular mass of information. GRIDS belong to the technological framework of typography, from the concrete modularity of letterpress to the rulers, guides, and coordinate systems employed in graphics applications. Although software generates illusions of smooth curves and continuous tones, every digital image or mark is constructed—ultimately—from a grid of neatly bounded blocks. The ubiquitous language of the gui (graphical user interface) creates a gridded space in which windows overlay windows in a haphazard way. ADDITIONALLY to their place in the background of design production, grids have become explicit theoretical tools. Avant-garde designers in the 1910s and 1920s exposed the mechanical grid of letterpress, bringing it to te polemical surface of the page. In Switzerland after World War II, graphic designers built a total design methodology around the typographic grid, aiming to construct a new rational social order within the design world. GRIDS have evolved across centuries of typographic development. For graphic designers, grids are carefully honed intellectual devices, infused with ideology and ambition, and they are the inescapable mesh that filters, some level of resolution, nearly every system of writing. ALPHABETIC writing, like most writing systems, is organized into columns and rows of characters. Whereas handwriting flows into connected lines, the mechanics of metal type impose a stricter order. Each letter occupies its own block, and the letters congregate in orderly rectangles. Stored in gridded cases, the characters become an archive of elements, a matrix of existing forms from which each page is composed. UNTIL the twentieth century, grids served as frames for fields of text. The margins of a classical book page create a pristine barrier around a flush, solid block of text. A page dominated by a solitary field of type remains today’s most common book format, although that perfect rectangle is now broken with indents and line breaks, and the margins are peppered with page numbers and running heads along the design. ADDITIONALLY to the classical norm of the single-column page, various alternative layouts existed during the first centuries of printing, from the two-column grid of Gutenberg’s Bible to more elaborate layouts derived from the medieval scribal tradition, where passages of scripture are surrounded by scholarly commentary. Polyglot (multilingual) books display a text in several languages simultaneously, and unequivically demanding complex divisions of the surface. THESE formats permit multiple streams of text to coexist while defending the sovereignty of the page-as-frame. The philosopher Jacques Derrida has described the frame in Western art as a form that seems to be separate from the work, yet is necessary for marking its difference from everyday life. A frame or pedestal elevates the work, removing it from the realm of the ordinary.

3010 Typography II Alexandria Dominick Exploration 18 Paragraph Indicator: Ambiguous (Frame) Text: 9.5/ 11.5 Baskerville Pro

GRIDS break the designted compositional space of a normal design into regular units. A grid can be simple or it can also be complex, specific or generic, tightly defined and or loosely interpreted. All typographic grids are all about control. They establish a system for arranging content within the space of a page, screen, or the built environment. Designed in response to the internal pressures of content and the outer edge or frame, an effective grid is not a rigid formula. It is a flexible and resilient structure, a skeleton that moves in concert with the muscular mass of information.¶ GRIDS belong to the technological framework of typography, from the concrete modularity of letterpress to the rulers, guides, and coordinate systems employed in graphics applications. Although software generates illusions of smooth curves and continuous tones, every digital image or mark is constructed—ultimately—from a grid of neatly bounded blocks. The ubiquitous language of the gui, or a graphical user interface, creates a gridded space where windows overlay haphazardly. ¶ ADDITIONALLY to their place in the background of design production, grids have become explicit theoretical tools. Avant-garde designers in the 1910s and 1920s exposed the mechanical grid of letterpress, bringing it to te polemical surface of the page. In Switzerland after World War II, graphic designers built a total design methodology around the typographic grid, aiming to construct a new rational social order within the design world. ¶ GRIDS have evolved across centuries of typographic development. For graphic designers, grids are carefully honed intellectual devices, infused with ideology and ambition, and they are the inescapable mesh that filters, some level of resolution, nearly every system of writing. ¶ ALPHABETIC writing, like most writing systems, is organized into columns and rows of characters. Whereas handwriting flows into connected lines, the mechanics of metal type impose a stricter order. Each letter occupies its own block, and the letters congregate in orderly rectangles. Stored in gridded cases, the characters become an archive of elements, a matrix of existing forms from which each page is composed. ¶ UNTIL the twentieth century, grids served as frames for fields of text. The margins of a classical book page create a pristine barrier around a flush, solid block of text. A page dominated by a solitary field of type remains today’s most common book format, although that perfect rectangle is now broken with indents and line breaks, and the margins are peppered with page numbers and running heads. ¶ ADDITIONALLY to the classical norm of the single-column page, various alternative layouts existed during the first centuries of printing, from the two-column grid of Gutenberg’s Bible to more elaborate layouts derived from the medieval scribal tradition, where passages of scripture are surrounded by scholarly commentary. ¶ THESE formats permit multiple streams of text to coexist defending the sovereignty of the page-as-frame. The philosopher Jacques Derrida has described the frame in Western art as a form that seems to be separate from the work, yet is necessary for marking its difference from regular life.