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Be culturally literate, because if you don’t have any understanding of the world you live in and the culture you live in, you’re not going to express anything to anybody else.
Paula Scher
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Culturally Literate
Historical Influences on Marketing Design
Brianna Corbett
Culturally Literate: Historical Influences on Marketing Design Written and designed by Brianna Corbett as a Major Project for the Master in Publishing program at Oxford Brookes University 2010 Š Brianna Corbett, 2010 The bulk of this title is set in Minion Pro, originally designed by Robert Slimbach, 1990, for Adobe Systems.
Contents
Preface Plagiarism Introduction Semiotics Movements and Designers 24 Arts and Crafts 38 Art Nouveau 56 Art Deco 70 Constructivism 86 Dada 100 De Stijl 114 Bauhaus 128 Swiss (Post-War) 146 The New York School 162 Postmodernism 176 Punk and New Wave Print to Digital Standard Paper Sizes Standard Book Sizes Images Typography File Formats Color Layouts and Grid Systems Marketing Materials 228 Writing Copy 223 Advance Information Sheets 225 Advertorials 226 Backgrounders 228 Book Covers and Blurbs 231 Brochures 233 Catalogues 235 Direct Mail Shots (Print and E-mail) 237 Fact Sheets 238 Flyers and Leaflets 239 Posters, Show Cards, Dump Bins and Point of Sale 241 Press Releases 244 Print Public Service Announcements Copyright Glossary Bibliography
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Contents
3 4 5 7 22 192 196 198 202 204 207 209 213 216 247 250 263
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Preface
Design is a plan for arranging elements in such a way as best to accomplish a particular purpose. Charles Eames
I chose to write Culturally Literate with the idea that design can influence, alter and change the consumer’s mind when looking at book covers, posters and other forms of visual communication in the publishing industry. As a student interested in both marketing and design, my aim was to incorporate these divisions into one book for use as a resource or inspirational guide to other students or beginning marketers. Although many of the image examples used do not relate to publishing specifically, they are part of the social landscape of music, art and events. Writing this book has been an incredible journey through my adult educational background from public relations, design and now publishing. It provided a unique opportunity to review what I had previously learned (and possibly forgotten over time as students do). Of course texts like How to Market Books by Alison Baverstock and Marketing Literature by Claire Squires have proved invaluable in the creation process, but I owe even more to the MA Publishing lecturers at Oxford Brookes University, especially my brilliant supervisor, Sally Hughes, and my undergraduate professors at the University of Oklahoma.
Preface
Brianna Corbett September 2010
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Preface
This book is the culmination of one year of study for a Master’s Degree in Publishing from Oxford Brookes University in Oxford, England.
Left: Nordeutscher Lloyd Bremen line, travel poster, 1920 Right: The New World of Web Design, poster, 2007
Plagiarism
Although this book promotes the idea of using historical design styles as inspiration for contemporary creations and advertising, it in no way supports plagiarism. Milton Glaser, internationally recognized designer and co-founder of Pushpin Studios, responded with this quote for Print Magazine when asked about plagiarism in design:
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Plagiarism
“The process of looking back at the past is very accepted in our business—the difference is when you take something without adding anything to the conversation. ... I think unless you’re modifying it and making it your own, you’re on very tenuous ground. […] It’s a dangerous example for students, if they see that appropriating people’s work is the path to success. Simply reproducing the work of others robs you of your imagination and form-making abilities. You’re not developing the muscularity you need to invent your own ideas. ... But it’s important for students to understand that any idea can be exploited, but not simply reproduced.”
Language is a system of ideas, not words. The language of visual communication translates textual ideas and stories into visual form, providing insight for the consumer based on his or her psychological, social or historical background. Art, signage, photography, typography, drawing, color and electronic resources provide the basis of visual communication and ideas. Although consumers respond subjectively to each, visual communication seeks to create shared meaning, often to shape public opinion or convey a concrete message, but cultural and sensual perception may also shape the thoughts of a consumer as he or she uses neural energy to form an image inside their mind. The product of this type of perception will lead a consumer to form an opinion, to effectively “judge” a book, literally, by its cover. The study of signs is known as semiotics and an understanding of this perceptual and subjective theory can transform a person’s approach to information communication. The purpose of this book is to show how historical perspectives on design are still relevant today in contemporary culture, affecting book sales, advertising campaigns, brand recognition and overall communication between publisher and consumer. It assumes that the reader already has a rudimentary knowledge of desktop publishing and the publishing industry. It is not intended as a teaching tool for how to use specific tools but rather how to apply design theory to practical works. Ideal for the student or beginning marketer, this book aims to inspire new ideas built upon the past.
Twenty-first century contemporary design is considered and a guide to producing strategic marketing materials for the publishing industry is also included. A glossary of relevant publishing, design and marketing terms and a bibliography, which features books on historical design, designers and marketing practices are also included. All marketing tools are written in American Associated Press (AP) style. This ensures that all communication tools are consistent and accurate. AP style follows four rules: the writing is accurate, the writing is clear to anyone with a high school or equivalent education, the writing is as tight as it can be and the writing is inoffensive.
Introduction
Culturally Literate provides an introduction to the idea of semantics, and examines the history of twentieth-century graphic design through major artistic movements, case studies, influential designers, typography and design theory. Some major styles such as Geometric, Futurism, Surrealism, Secessionism and the Wiener Werkstätte are not incorporated into the book. Instead, these major styles are exempt although they may be recognized as influences in other styles such as the influence of the Geometric style on Constructivism or similar approaches between Arts and Crafts and the Wiener Werkstätte.
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Introduction
Never underestimate the value of the visual.
So what is marketing all about? Marketers are service communicators. Our job is to provide the public (customers, bookshops, wholesalers, universities, libraries) with the information they need to make an educated purchasing decision. This may be as quick a decision as it takes a customer browsing in a bookshop four seconds to read the back cover blurb copy before deciding that, yes, he or she would like to read about the trials and tribulations of a 20-something living in New York City. Well, it’s not as easy as all that. Blurb copy is important, but the blurb is on the back. A customer will not pick up the book without seeing the front cover: the visual communication. They may not pick up the book if even The Times or the Guardian or even the Waterstone’s or Barnes and Noble employees do not recommend it. So marketers have to target the customers directly with visuals and creative writing, but before that, the customer must be drawn in through discounts, point-of-sale, seasonal releases, digital applications and more; this all matters in the realm of marketing. How can publishers take this original written product and make it perfect for customers? Even before targeting the browsing customer or student with this information, a marketer has an even more difficult task of pushing a product into the big bookshops, universities, libraries, recommended reading lists and the public media sphere. All this is done so customers can pull the books out and the process can be repeated with old and new products. Of course, this model is changing with the increase of digital e-book sales and mobile applications, but the idea is still the same: communication matters!
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Introduction
Marketing is an incredibly interesting world of challenges and research and risk that can be a whole lot easier if you understand the basics. When you finish this book, you might know a bit more about how humans subconsciously recognize images and assign meaning to them, design styles of the 20th century, influential designers, how to apply design principles to various promotional elements and how to write successful copy for everything from press releases to social media.
Semiotics
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Semiotics
Good design is a lot like clear thinking made visual. Edward Tufte
To understand how visuals convey meaning, it is essential to understand the basics behind semiotics, subconscious visual recall, schema and the unwritten and written rules of graphic design communication. Book covers, advertisements and other marketing materials are seminal starting points for engaging potential consumers. Consumers browsing in bookshops or online will have their first glance at a book and make immediate assumptions based on the visual images and messages they find staring back at them. The effectiveness of a design is based on how well the intended message is communicated, but the subjectivity of the observer will impact his or her perception of the message (including the product, brand or value of the image). This encoding and decoding of visual messages is known as semiotics, loosely labeled the study of signs. The Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure and the American philosopher Charles Sanders Pierce founded the science of semiotics in the late 19th century. According to semiotics, culture and therefore reality, can only be known through the process of signification: the assignation of meaning based on perception. Within a publishing context, this signification can place meaning on anything from audiobooks, book covers, charts, graphs, illustrations, images or even the text of a printed book. Images are encoded in production and decoded by the consumer. Roland Barthes, a French semiotician, defined semiotics as aiming “. . . to take in any system of signs, whatever their substance and limits; images, gestures, musical sounds, objects, and the complex associations of all of these, which form the content of ritual, convention or public entertainment: these constitute, if not languages, at least systems of signification.”
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Semiotics
Charles Sanders Pierce defined a sign as something that stands for something to someone. It creates an equivalent or more developed sign in the person’s mind, referring to preconceived ideas and basic knowledge subjective to each consumer. For Pierce, the sign is Saussure’s signifier; the sign triggers in the observer’s mind another kind of “mental” sign or interpretant (meaning) which can then become another interpretant and so on. It is for these reasons that publishers and artists must acknowledge and manipulate their message visually to ensure accuracy of understanding from the consumer. The art of design and communication is to know what to omit. In design theory, the term “white space” is often used to allow visual cohesiveness and a background for presentation. However, the term can also be applied to messages. Allowing white space to filter into communication keeps the message simple; in other clichéd words, having too much of a good thing can be a problem.
If all images can be translated through the eye into something completely new and abstract, then how is a specific idea effectively conveyed? The answer lies with schema, or mental sets, which are incredibly important for marketing and advertising because these stereotypical or pre-knowledge images overcome ambiguities of perspective, depending on the intended market. The mind visually recalls images or text that have a culturally assigned meaning. For example, in popular culture, the flying saucer or UFO (unidentified flying object) signifies something unknown. The book cover for UFO 517 by Bron Fane (published in 1965) depicts aliens attacking Earth from outer space. The message is clear in the cover illustration: terrifying UFOs approach Earth to destroy humans. In a more subtle design, the schema may be used to suggest something unknown such as in Beyond UFOs by astrophysicist Jeffrey Bennet. Although the design and the message use the image of a UFO (or multiple UFOs), this is actually a book adopted by numerous science courses at undergraduate level. It analyses the search for extraterrestrial life and intelligence and the consequences of finding life outside planet Earth.
Left: Beyond UFOS, cover, Princeton University Press, 2008 Right: UFO 517, cover, John Spencer Press, 1965
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Semiotics
With both cover designs, the schema of the UFO provides a visual recall of alien stories, which delivers a message and alerts the reader as to the possible content of the book. Even if a person does not believe in UFOs, he or she may have a visual recall of a story or photograph when they see a figure in the clouds. These indices require little effort on the part of the viewer, who may not actively interpret the sign, but gently recognizes and absorbs it. This allows the reader to be passive and understand ideas and concepts with little effort and therefore, less confusion within the intended message.
E. H. Gombrich, an Austrian art-historian, created the idea of the “beholder’s share” within semiotics. He claimed there is no “innocent look” because consumers perceive images based on influences from the outside world and bring an image into existence through perceiving and understanding it in their own way. This idea was conceived through viewing line drawings and caricatures. Representation, he believed, is an experiment in reduction because the communicator must cut down the images available to the viewer to present a clear message. In other words, Gombrich is talking about visual and communicative white space. Although Gombrich does not always agree with the “problem of reduction,” he does conclude that all viewers of an image perceive the message differently. This does not mean they perceive it less convincingly. The beholder’s share signifies that one person’s interpretation is just as strong and valid as another’s.
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Semiotics
Gombrich said “All art originates in the human mind, in our reactions to the world rather than in the visible world itself, and it is precisely because all art is “conceptual” that all representations are recognizable by their style.” For example, the design styles featured later in this book represents a different point of view or historical time period that is recognizable by the viewer based on visual clues. Even if one did not live in the Post-WWII period, the boxed and lined style of Swiss Design is forever associated with the 1950s and 60s in the cultural and social mind set.
The City, 1977 Inflation, 1972 Human Ageing, 1972 Sociology of Religion, 1976 Management and Motivation, 1979 Penguin Books
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The cover for Human Ageing provides a prime example of this deeper meaning mixed with visual pun. The candle represents the passing of time. It also represents life and energy. Still more, a candle burning can represent something coming to an end. All of these things are wrapped around the concept of “ageing.” The cover designer makes the statement clear by placing the smaller font word, human, above the bold, intimidating typographic lettering of the word “ageing.” Therefore, the message is that this is a powerful subject and one all humans must cope with before the candle burns out.
Semiotics
This first set of examples displays a significant use of graphic humor to promote the book. In some countries, this type of design may not be viable due to linguistic and cultural barriers. For instance, not all countries will understand the road sign used on the cover of City or the hot-cross bun used on Sociology of Religion. These unique cover designs play on words within the titles to provide the viewer with two effects. First, they accomplish meaning through symbolism. Second, the viewer gains a deeper meaning from simply looking at the cover image without reading the book. The viewer may not have associated a dying candle with Human Ageing before or the growth of a vegetable with the reward of work in Management in Motivation. Of course, the publisher hopes this meaning and understanding will entice the viewer to become a consumer and purchase the book, hence the importance of design and visual language on marketing.
Kinesics and Context, 1973 Encounters, 1972 Experience into Words, 1974 Fundamental Questions of Philosophy, 1973 Penguin Books
There is a series of classic covers designed for Penguin, which use color, line drawings and graphic humor to relay a specific message to the consumer concerning content within the books. The styles shown in the following examples promote a brand image at the same time that they elicit a response from the observer, who can immediately decipher the hidden message in the image. The following Penguin book covers show a varied use of semiotics to convey meaning.
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Semiotics
These above books represent university titles designed for Penguin Education. The symbols are much more concrete for these books than in the previous examples as they use schemas that already exist quite clearly in the mind. The best example of this is Kinesics and Context: Essays on Body-Motion Communication, which features dance step instructions. Obviously for dance, the body is in motion and by placing both a male and a female counterpart, the idea of communication is easily expressed.
Creativity in Industry, 1975 Anxiety and Neurosis, 1976 Penguin Books
Even the simple use of black and white color mixed with the lead of a pencil can create meaning. The white space surrounding this reductionist design and typography places emphasis on where the viewer should look: a scribble on a page. Although both book covers feature scribbles of black pencil lead, they also convey different meanings. One describes neurosis with its sharp, twisting, angular marks while the other is reminiscent of smoke billowing out from a manufacturing plant, in this case, pencils representing creativity.
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Space to Think, Property and Construction Campaign by Hat-Trick Design
Semiotics
The use of a pencil as a sign for creativity is shown in another example based at Oxford Brookes University. A recent campaign to mask development and building projects features the use of a tree to symbolize growth and learning. Each tree shown on the billboards and masking materials is created with multiple images: broccoli, coins, books balanced on top of each other, pie charts, arrows, forks, floor plans, buttons and more. One such billboard features pencils
The Great Escape, 1957 Flames in the Sky, 1958 The Big Show, 1958 Penguin Books
that have scribbled the billowing outline of a tree in bloom, reusing the concept of pencils in creativity. The entire campaign is based on the idea of semiotics and the use of signs to convey overall meaning.
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Semiotics
A more concrete example of visuals creating meaning is shown with these fullcolor covers designed by the prolific designer Abram Games. Ambiguous titles such as The Great Escape, The Big Show, and Flames in Sky could easily be accompanied by equally vague images. However, the schema shown include guns, barbed wire, fighter planes and, most important, the swastika, which immediately dates the time period and subject matter of these books. Seventy percent of the sense receptors in the body exist in the eyes, which are valuable targets for visuals that send messages to the mind. Visual communication is prevalent in many forms. Moving images, such as film, television, and video games are meant to entertain and are introduced to people at an early age. These moving images provide competition for print advertising, marketing, book covers, photographs and other static visual communication. In publishing, effective communication is incredibly important for marketing and sales purposes, as well as the satisfaction of the reader/consumer. Writing visualizes ideas by allowing the reader to view type and manifest the words into thought, speech or mental image. Even if the final product does not have any type at all, the origination of the idea will begin with words and description. The first step in delivering effective communication is to determine what the message actually is. This is achieved through organized and accurate representations of the message through visual perception and cognition.
Dr. Colin Ware, Director of the Data Visualization Research Lab, explains visualization as such:
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Semiotics
“… the human visual system is a pattern seeker of enormous power and subtlety … At higher levels of processing, perception and cognition are closely interrelated, which is the reason why the words “understanding” and “seeing” are synonymous. However, the visual system has its own rules. We can easily see patterns presented in certain ways, but if they are presented in other ways, they become invisible… If we can understand how perception works, our knowledge can be translated into rules for displaying information. Following perception based rules, we can present our data in such a way that the important and informative patterns stand out. If we disobey the rules, our data will be incomprehensible or misleading.”
Dr. Ware provides a visual exercise. Which of the following images is easier to read? Despite an identical amount of visual lettering, it is generally considered easier to perceive the word “data” in the second image. When missing pieces are perceived as foreground pieces, the background is easier to infer. These types of patterns and visual cues allow the viewer to perceive information he or she may otherwise miss. For marketers and designers, it is essential to understand rules of cognition and perception so that the message does not get lost in translation. Here is another example of the way visual perception works in the human brain, this time with a block of text. Read the following sentence only once and then go back and count the number of times you see the letter “F”: FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS. The majority of people who complete this exercise find only three of the prescribed letter, when in reality, there are six. The eye subconsciously views text as it does images, recognizing only specific patterns and attributes.
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Semiotics
An important set of visual properties called “preattentive attributes” appeal to subconscious thought and perception: the length, hue, shape, orientation and size of an object. By manipulating these elements, designers are able to place emphasis on differences and draw the eye’s attention to one particular area. Including brighter or darker colors is, in essence, equal to shouting in a crowd and therefore offers a unique path to visual stimulation. However, a designer may be able to draw attention to an image through the manipulation of color, size, and other properties without creating meaning. Meaning is subjective, but without the corresponding schema, the message will fall flat. Understanding the rules of visual perception is a requirement for effective and understandable communication and poor book cover design lacks this persuasiveness. The hardback cover (left) for Eat the Document lacks any sort of understandable message.What exactly is this book about? The vague monochromatic image and the bold, 70s-throwback typography provides no visual cues to the reader. Now compare the cover to the paperback design:
Eat the Document (Hardback), 2006 Eat the Document (Paperback), 2006 Scribner
Although still lacking in visual cues, the cover is more readerfriendly. There is an element of mystery with the blonde woman facing away from the reader and a disappearing perspective line allows the eye to rove over the image. The pink color provides a visual cue that the market is aimed toward women. It is an improvement on the hardback cover in that it tells a story, but still retains a sense of mystery whereas the hardback is mysterious in a neutral way due to its lack of message. Design, therefore, works best when created with a purposeful meaning. Call it semiotics or visual communication, the basis is still the same. The system of ideas promoted by visual lan-guage is subjective based on past experience, knowledge and stereotypes. Although there is a scientific approach to design which features specified rules of shape, size, layout and more, the overall meaning is derived within the mind based on signs in everyday life.
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Semiotics
Russian linguist Roman Jacobson said, “Every message is made of signs; correspondingly, the science of signs termed semiotic deals with those general principles which underlie the structure of all signs whatever, and with the cha-racter of their utilization within messages, as well as with the specifics of the various sign systems and of the diverse messages using those different kinds of signs.� Semiotics may explain visual communication and provide stimulating clues into how the mind reads and translates signs, but it is ultimately up to the designer or marketer to create a visual that effectively communicates its message.
Color Symbolism and Visual Signs
One of the major elements involved in design is the use of color. The colors incorporated in design and marketing materials may be simple choices deriving from a color mentioned in the title of a product or a color a designer has already chosen. However, if the poster or advertisement needs to attract the right kind of attention, color symbolism is important to note and may take a more educated decision. Colors affect human emotion and mood. Black is used in funerals for a reason, but it is also used more humorously at birthdays where the person has reached middle age. Typically, black represents sadness and evil. Alternatively, white is a symbol of purity and life, which is why it is worn at weddings, at least in the Western world. In Asia, however, white is perceived as the color of sadness. To understand the appropriate use of color when communicating a specific message, it is absolutely necessary to know your target market and the cultural sensibilities surrounding it.
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Semiotics
The following list examines color symbolism from a Western viewpoint.
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Black Positive: night, retreat, erotic, secret, unknown, reliable, modernity, sophistication, formality, mystery, style, elegance Negative: death, sadness, evil, power, forbidden, anonymity, anger, remorse, mourning Blue Positive: trust, faithfulness, tranquility, distance, freshness, depth, philosophy Negative: bruises, depression, longing Brown Positive: trees, reliability, tradition, natural, rustic, soil, mother earth Negative: Nazis, dirt, filth, poverty, rotten, old Green Positive: nature, growth, harmony, life, freshness, sympathy, peace, hope, money, luck, Islam Negative: mould, poison, rot, illness, greed, inexperience Grey Positive: ashes, asphalt, age, trust, reliability, wisdom, respect Negative: colorless, hopelessness, boredom, decay Orange Positive: warmth, fire, sunset, erotic, fun, Buddhism, enthusiasm, playfulness Negative: kitsch, loud, cheap, aggression, arrogance, gaudiness, danger Purple Positive: spirituality, mysticism, wealth, royalty, ceremony, sensuality, creativity Negative: power, arrogance, flamboyance, gaudiness, exaggeration, homosexuality Red Positive: energy, sex, bravado, excitement, speed, blood, fire, passion, love, strength, power Negative: fight, injury, danger, rage, addiction, egoism, power, anger, war, aggression White Positive: innocence, distance, humility, cleanliness, balance, snow, reverence, purity, peace Negative: sterility, emptiness, expressionless, unimaginative Yellow/Gold Positive: light, entertainment, sun, money, flowers, gold, joy, ripe fruit, happiness, optimism, idealism Negative: poison, puss, sulphur, cowardice, illness, hazards, dishonesty Each color derives meaning from cultural and mental assignation. Humans
associate red with danger, but fire hydrants, telephones, stop signs, stop lights are all red. Would another color work better? To understand why red is an international symbol of danger, it is important to examine how the brain works. Without technology, historical humans had to learn what was safe and unsafe. What is naturally red? Sunsets, sunrises, fire, flowers and berries. Many berries are poisonous, fire can kill and destroy and sunsets can lead to darkness and the unknown. Red, in our psyches, indicates danger: a warning. In design, this color is essential because humans know that it means “pay attention!� Other colors such as green do not carry this meaning. Green, however, means nourishment as plants and water are necessarily close to green, so it attracts rather than warns. Western culture is based on visuals. Symbols and signs are prevalent every day on the street and at home and work: advertisements, television programs, photographs, video, graphics, snapshots, public sculpture, paintings, etc. When people view these visual elements, they are interpreting the world subjectively according to visual culture. Consumers take marketplace behavior (products, services, and advertisements) and use it subjectively to find meaning and purpose, but they do not misunderstand messages. Instead, consumers find their own truth based on visual clues contained within the message. Marketing concerns a shaping of experience and is qualitative by nature. To strategically create experience and design something, which is clear and effective, marketers must understand the meaning upon which experience is predicated. There are three basic principles of semiotics that always hold true.
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Semiotics
1. Meaning is always intelligible. 2. Signs consist of many things, but they only derive value from context. 3. There are various levels of meaning in signs, which are conveyed through senders and receivers. The receiver ultimately reads the sign reflexively and without intent. Subjective understanding achieves reality through a transformation of meaning into signification. Semiotics provides a solid means of structuring and clarifying the value or service of a product. Expert semiotician Jean-Marie Floch suggests that there are three values semiotics adds to marketing: intelligibility, pertinence and differentiation.
Intelligibility This concept promotes the idea that common words or images are easier to understand. Therefore, a specific symbol such as the peace sign may be associated with hippies and the “free thought” of the 1960s. It is easily recognizable. Lexemes (words) are collected in dictionaries as condensed versions of meaning. Words may contain multiple definitions depending on context and so a word is a simple starting point for an expanded conversation, visual or written, which may be understood in a variety of ways. Pertinence Forms, colors, volumes, images can all affect a brand or product line. Semiotics provides the means to create a hierarchy of images and descriptions, mastering the message and point of view from content and expression based on importance. Pertinence answers the questions, “What should we keep?” and “what will resonate with the target market?”
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Semiotics
Differentiation A semiotic approach to marketing must consider differences that may arise within image perception through subjectivity and cultural influence. Semiotics helps to understand and explain situations. As Ferdinand de Saussure said “meaning occurs only in and through differences.” Moreover, semiotics performs a transition from difference to an explanation of relationships, which is essential in marketing and communications. Without relationships, juxtaposition cannot exist and products cannot compete.
Historical Design Styles
You have to be interested in culture to design for it. Lorraine Wild
Schema, color theory and visual culture provide only half of the knowledge a marketer should possess when working with design. Schema are built on cultural perceptions, which in turn are often created by humans or as in the color red, wired into the human brain. The heart symbol is one created by humans but understood on a social level as a symbol of love and kindness, despite the fact that it looks nothing like a true human heart.
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Design Styles
Other schema sets have been created over the past century through different design styles and transformations in political and social understanding. It is unlikely that anyone reading this book experienced the Jazz Age of the 1920s where the Art Deco style prevailed. However, the style is often replicated with posters, films, jewelry, artifacts and architecture, which speak visually of the style’s grandness and luxury. Understanding past styles and how they reflect moments in time and social thought is essential to effectively designed creative communication. After all, contemporary design is built on the foundations of the past.
From left to right: Top: The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, Kelmscott Press, 1896; Zodiac, by Alphons Mucha, 1896; The Musician, by Tamara de Lempicka, 1929 Second Row: Russian Constructivism, 1919; ABCD, by Raoul Hausmann, 1923-1924; Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow, and Gray, by Piet Mondrian, 1921 Third Row: Bauhaus Austellung, 50 Jahre, 1968; Poster for the Swiss Tourist Board, by Herbert Matter, 1932; Roar, by Paul Rand Fourth Row: Postmodernism, by Jason Kingsley; God Save the Queen, by Jamie Reid, 1977
Art Deco (1920s)
Constructivism (1920s)
Dada (1915-1923)
De Stijl (1916-1931)
Bauhaus (1919-1933)
Post-War Swiss (1945-1950s)
New York School (1950-1970s)
Postmodernism (1975-1990s)
New Wave/Punk (1975-1990s)
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Arts and Crafts (1850s-1910s) Art Nouveau (1890-1914)
Arts and Crafts
The movement was a response to the industrial revolution and technological progress at the turn of the century. It was based on the idea that machine production is degrading to both workers and consumers. The Arts and Crafts movement was a design and social revolution: good design led to good society. The Medieval Guild System provided the model for this movement, allowing apprentices to learn the handcraft from masters.
Beginning in the 1850s, the Arts and Crafts Movement countered industrialization and made a point of finding alternative imagery to oppose social constructs of the time. Elaborate Victorian aesthetics and the idea that machinery could replace human work drove a wedge between craftsmen and artists. The artists of this movement believed that machines could not impart artistic value and moreover, deprived craftsmen of their labor. Humans in the industrialized movement, therefore, were subsidiary workers next to machines.
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Arts and Crafts
The Arts and Crafts movement was largely based upon the writing of John Ruskin, a social reformer, and was led by his follower, William Morris, a textile designer and artist. For Morris, the key was to revive craftsmanship in its purest form through the use of applied art: everyday items and furniture with a practical use and decorative function. William Morris founded the Kelmscott Press to focus on book design, type quality, page layout and incomparable craftsmanship. Much of the design style for Arts and Crafts is based on gothic-inspired, elaborate forms. Examples from Morris’s work include inspiration from calligraphy, illuminated manuscripts and early Gothic or Roman typefaces. Much of this work is based on incunabula, pieces printed before 1501 in Europe such as illuminated manuscripts. Poster design and marketing were not a priority during the Arts and Crafts movement as more durable artifacts were the focus. The 1890s Art Nouveau movement really brought about a change in the way advertising and marketing were done. This transitional period provided a launching pad for contemporary poster design, although posters have existed for millennia and were advanced during Arts and Crafts.
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Arts and Crafts
The Woman in White, Poster, Frederick, Walker, 1871
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Arts and Crafts The Century Guild Hobby Horse, Journal, London: Kegan Paul, Trench and Co., 1888
Poster design began as a handwritten or painted form and posters were printed as early as the 15th century. Mainly one-color bills, royal placards, official edicts and the like were confined to typographical elements. In the 19th century, posters featuring images advertised books, newspapers, zoos, the circus and other entertainments and services with woodcuts and engravings. Around 1850, in the midst of the Arts and Crafts movement, posters built of multiple woodcuts could extend six and a half to 13 feet on each side, effectively considered to be the first billboard advertisements. During the same period, in France, Jean-Alexis Rouchon developed a way to apply wallpaper impressions to color printing for posters. The very first lithographic (using a stone or metal plate press) poster advertised a book and was produced in 1836. This process allowed text and illustration with mixed colors to be placed on the same piece of printed art. Fred Walker’s 1871 poster advertisement for The Woman in White is considered to be the origin of quality advertising in Great Britain.
Walter Crane, Benjamin Creswick, Clement Heaton, Herbert Horne, Selwyn Image, Eglantyne Louisa Jebb, Edward Burne-Jones, Owen Jones, William Morris, Gustav Stickley, Mary Fraser Tytler, Frank Lloyd Wright
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Influential Designers
Arts and Crafts
The 1890s brought about more change as the cost for producing posters declined and knowledge about printing processes and the need for advertising increased. The Art Nouveau movement would take hold of a new way of thinking at the turn of the century, providing a platform for an explosion in graphic design, printing and marketing goods.
William Morris (1834–1896)
William Morris was born in Essex, England on 24 March 1834 and later attended Exeter College, Oxford. During his time at university, Morris read the works of Carlyle, Kingsley and Ruskin, who influenced his beliefs and provided the inspiration for his dedication to art and society. He left Oxford and sought to combine art, life and his extreme talent, which allowed his career to include architecture, decorative arts, design, drawing, painting and writing. After graduating from Oxford, Morris worked in architectural offices and learned painting from Dante Gabriel Rosetti. During the Arts and Crafts movement, which he promoted in its early stages, he digressed from painting to focus on decorative arts, fine art and craftsmanship. In 1861, he co-founded Morris, Marshall, Faulkner, and Co. (renamed Morris & Co) with a number of Pre-Raphaelite artists. This collaboration yielded a society set up to produce decorative objects and furniture. It was particularly known for its stained glass featuring foliage and intricate patterns.
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Arts and Crafts
Morris was an ardent supporter of the Socialist cause and became an active propagandist, giving lectures and speeches throughout England in the 1880s. His design work reflects his increasing disdain for mechanization and his promotion of traditional craftsmanship and simplicity of design. He believed that art should “by the people, for the people.� Unfortunately, the fact that his work was handmade meant that it came with a price tag well above the means of the average person. In 1890 he founded the Kelmscott Press in Hammersmith where he designed three typefaces: Golden, Chaucer and Troy, which were inspired by 15th century typography. One of his most famous works is the Kelmscott edition of Chaucer, published in 1896, before his death the same year. His textile designs are still in use today and are produced by Morris & Co.
29
Arts and Crafts
Troilus and Criseyde by Geoffrey Chaucer, book, illustrated by Edward Burne-Jones, Kelmscott Press, 1896
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Arts and Crafts
The History of Reynard the Foxe, book, William Morris, Kelmscott Press, 1893
1893
Arts and Crafts
31
1999
The Lamp of Memory, book, designed by David Pearson, Penguin Books, 1999
Each design style in this book features two-page spreads of images, past and present. The idea is to juxtapose an original design by a leading designer such as William Morris (left) with that of a new design of similar characteristics (right).
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, book, illustrated by Edward Burne-Jones, Kelmscott Press, 1896
1896 Arts and Crafts
32
The Kelmscott Chaucer exemplifies beautiful book design and is often considered to be one of the most beautiful books ever created. It’s no wonder Barnes & Noble had Tibor Kalman create a similar Medieval-inspired design for their bookplate and marketing materials.
33
Arts and Crafts
Original Barnes and Noble bookplate, bag, designed by Tibor Kalman, Barnes and Noble, 1970s
1970s
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Arts and Crafts
The Kelmscott Chaucer, book, illustrated by Edward BurneJones, Kelmscott Press, 1896
1896
Arts and Crafts
35
2005
Unpublished cover for I’m OK (now titled Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close), book, designed by Gray318, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2005
The Arts and Crafts style of hand cut designs and elaborate detail is still popular today for its antiquated look, which has the opportunity to be more eye-catching than a purely modernistic look, because the modern look has saturated visual culture.
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Arts and Crafts Top: Kelmscott Chaucer, 1896 (L), The Kelmscott Press and William Morris Master-Craftsman, 1924 (R) Middle: Kelmscott Press, 1891 Bottom: John Milton’s Early Poems, 1896
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Arts and Crafts
Top: Utopia, 2009, (L), Days of Reading, 1999, designed by (R), both designed by David Pearson Middle: The Lady of Shalot, book cover Bottom: William Morris, Atlantic Free Press (L), LoveHate, designed by ILib
Art Nouveau
This movement was the first new decorative style of the twentieth century. It is associated with organic curving decorative elements. Old customs, habits and artistic styles sat alongside new, combining a wide range of contradictory images and ideas. Advertising became art, art and technology were merged and the environment and art were integrated as the style adapted itself to the Industrial age.
With the new century came new design. The Art Nouveau movement focused on an international future, spanning continents and promoting modernity and the merging of industry and design: a departure from arts and crafts, which promoted the human over industry. The style is characterized by organic, floral and plant-inspired motifs. Natural elements were reclaimed alongside industrialization as the movement concerned furniture, artifacts, fabrics and architecture. In graphic design, Nouveau concentrated on books, posters, reviews and typefaces. Advertising and marketing practices expanded tremendously during this period.
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Art Nouveau
The introduction of Art Nouveau occurred with a poster designed by Alphonse Mucha, a Czech artist, in 1895. The poster advertised the play Gismonda by Victorien Sardou, starring Sarah Bernhardt and was released in Paris, where the public fell in love with it and Mucha Style (later termed Art Nouveau) was born. Shops were set up to sell posters to the general public and the French coined this trend “affichomanie� (poster-mania). Posters were now seen as art, allowing the public to embrace industry and trade. Advertising became a major medium in visual communication and the idea of selling a product through designed marketing was accepted. Human figures in Art Nouveau tend to be female, often associated with flowers, arabesques and curves. Animals also appeared, especially in England, Germany and Austria where geometric forms predominated. Regardless of location, line plays an important role in Art Nouveau and the decorative aspect is key. Realism lost ground and was replaced by liberated lines, colors, styles and allusions.
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Art Nouveau
Cyclamen, embroidered silk wall hanging, designed by Hermann Obrist, 1892
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Art Nouveau Gismonda starring Sarah Bernhardt, poster, designed by Alphonse Mucha, 1895
Nouveau designers chose to reject mainstream conventions much like the Impressionists had done before in the 19th century. In their rejection, however, a series of rules and vocabulary grew: text and image no longer had to be separated due to lithographic printing and typographic lettering could return to handwritten forms. Symbolism, Romanticism, Japanese woodcuts, Oriental and Celtic arts and the Arts and Crafts movement all played major influences in the Art Nouveau style. Advertising became omnipresent and architectural design began to consider the role of advertising on buildings and in public. The Paris subway even created specific places for the display of advertising materials. Although Art Nouveau is characterized differently in many parts of the world, there is one underlying characteristic to the style, which is easily recognizable. In the late 1800s, Pan magazine published Hermann Obrist’s wall hanging Cyclamen and described it as “sudden violent curves generated by the crack of a whip.” This whiplash effect is seen in most Art Nouveau images, along with flora and fauna motifs and beautiful Romanticized women. Another review of Obrist’s silk embroideries in London and which reflects the idea of the entire movement said the works were “things to live with ... to hang on our walls, to lay on our floors, to cover our chairs and tables with, things which can never tyrannize and never become indifferent. The power and movement of the lines cannot but stimulate our energies in a thousand ways.”
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Aubrey Beardsley, Jules Chéret, Antoni Gaudi, Gustav Klimt, Alphonse Mucha, Hermann Obrist, Louis Comfort Tiffany, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Margaret MacDonald, Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Art Nouveau
Influential Designers
Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939)
Alphonse Mucha was born in 1860 in Moravia, now the Czech Republic. As a young boy, Mucha was more interested in music than art or even school. He graduated two years late and then sought to become a painter, despite his father’s wishes. He moved to Paris in 1887, lucky to have a sponsor funding his studies at the Academie Julian. After two years, his patron pulled out from the funding and Mucha was left stranded. Instead of returning home, Mucha set up house in an art student dwelling and began to draw for low paying, popular magazines. The Impressionist movement flourished around him and the Symbolist movement was just beginning. He began to teach art and shared a studio with Gauguin for some time, perfecting his new style.
42
Art Nouveau
In 1895, Mucha created the poster for Gismonda, starring Sarah Bernhardt. It was almost life-size and rebelled against the constructs of the day: bright colors and square shapes. The beginning of Art Nouveau was born and it was based on the Arts and Crafts movement in England, seeking to merge art and audience, design and life. The movement became a sensation as furniture, wallpapers, posters and even theatrical stage sets were designed in the style. Bernhardt immediately signed Mucha to a six-year contract to design her posters, stage costumes and scenery. Mucha was a very popular artist, albeit unimpressed by his new fame. He often refuted his connected to Nouveau, simply because he was creating art in his own style to begin with. Strong compositions, undulating curves, natural elements, decoration and natural colors define Mucha’s art. In the late 1890s, Mucha began collaborating with a new printer named Champenois, who promoted his work with the use of postcards . Mucha also began creating panneaux, sets of four large images based on a theme such as time of day, seasons, flowers and so on. Champenois printed these and silk and sold them to collectors. Mucha also published a book aimed at students and new artists, Documents Decoratifs. Instead of having the intended reaction, artists began to mimic the Mucha style and copycat works appeared everywhere. Later, however, after completing a series of murals for the Lord Mayer’s Hall in Prague, he found that critics and fans abandoned him. The year was 1928. Art Deco had already replaced
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Art Nouveau
Dance, color lithography poster from “The Arts” series, designed by Alphonse Mucha, 1898
Nouveau and modern design was taking Mucha’s work and reshaping it for a modern world.
Jules Chéret (1836–1932)
Chéret is commonly known as the inventor of the modern poster and his fans included Monet, Degas and Rodin. He was born in Paris is 1835 to the son of a typographer and became interested in painting during his frequent visits to the Louvre. As an apprentice lithographer at the age of thirteen, Chéret learned how to draft before moving to London to become a master lithographer. The earliest Chéret posters date to 1858, before he moved back to Paris in 1866, where his poster style was forged. However, it was not until twenty years later that his style was fully developed. In the mid-1800s, Chéret worked predominantly with one or two colors. In 1869, he introduced a new system of printing with three stones: black, red and “fond gradué” or graduated background of two colors on one stone. This new invention in lithography helped his unique work stand out, as no other posters looked similar to his at the time.
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Art Nouveau
His posters are characterized by outstanding images and bright colors, which attract attention quickly and easily. Bright ranges of reds, blues, greens, yellows and oranges were combined with more neutral colors and black or blue outlines. These colors caused a sensation in Paris and in the art world at large. Chéret earmarked the frivolity and fun of life with his unique and original creations, inspiring viewers to relax and enjoy the world around them. By the 1880s, he had already designed over 1000 posters for cabarets, dances or consumer products, thereby celebrating the luxuries of life. Chéret invented a leitmotif in the form of a young girl, always appearing in his posters and named a “Chérette.” This formula was quickly imitated by other artists of the time. Movement, lightness and playfulness combined with an almost photographic style outlines a Chéret work. In the sphere of visual communication, his “Chérette” invites you to the theatre, to have a glass of wine or to smoke a cigarette. She represents the young, graceful and lively woman of dreams and became part of the advertising language of idealization and optimism, which is still effective today.
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Art Nouveau
by Jules Chéret, 1893
Folies Berger: La Loïe Fuller, poster, designed
Henri de ToulouseLautrec (1864–1901)
In France, Toulouse-Lautrec was the most prolific of the affichestes (poster artist) during the Art Nouveau period, although his works did not always reflect the typical Art Nouveau style. He was born in 1864 as Chéret’s career began. His life was full of personal suffering and he subsequently lost some of his motor capabilities in early life. His penchant for excessive drinking and nightclubs in his home of Montmarte led to his early death at age 36. Toulouse-Lautrec’s past experience led him to depict life as he saw it: raw, disenchanted and powerful. Instead of creating a central character such as Chéret’s “Chérette”, Toulouse-Lautrec sought to portray equilibrium or else turmoil and asymmetry among the number of subjects. Deformities are often emphasized and humanity is presented bare, with all the vices, struggles and real life emotion one can face, especially concerning alcoholism and addictions. The color choices Toulouse-Lautrec used also noticeably varied from Chéret as he chose understated colors of yellow, gray, green and orange with sharp black outlines and touches of red. Paint splatters are not uncommon. He did all of this to embody the grim realities of life as he saw it through visual cues and understated colors.
46
Art Nouveau
He designed only about 30 posters, most chromolithographs, and his most famous posters are those for the Moulin-Rouge. The poster Divan Japonais for the café of the same name from 1893 presents one of his most sympathetic works as the viewers portrayed smile at the talent of the performer. Although his works number as few as the years of his life, Toulouse-Lautrec is regarded as validating the modern poster movement as an art form and furthering what Chéret began. His works are still widely published and are as popular as ever.
47
Art Nouveau
Divan Japonais, poster, designed by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1893
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Art Nouveau
Chocolate Amataller Barcelona, poster, designed by Alphonse Mucha, 1900
1900
Art Nouveau
49
2000s
Elegance, poster, designed by Sean Aherne, 2000s
The Art Nouveau style is popular with art collectors, decorators and artists for its curved lines and lush images. Many reproductions in this style appear less radical than recreations in other styles because Nouveau is a classic in itself.
Absinthe Robette, poster, designed by Henri Privat-Livemont, 1896
1896 Art Nouveau
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The use of Nouveau to market a particular spirit, absinthe, is displayed here with examples over 100 years apart. The soft elegance and subtlety of the original Art Nouveau print contrasts with the grungy, decaying, and alternative feel of 2009.
51
Art Nouveau
The Absinthe Fairy, poster, designed by Aly Fell, 2009
2009
52
Art Nouveau
Queen of Joy, poster, designed by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1892
1892
Art Nouveau
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2001
Nouveau Salon des cent, Hommage a Toulouse-Lautrec, poster, designed by Max Kisman, 2001
The works of Toulouse-Lautrec contain a sexiness which actually enhance the underlying elements of harsh realities and honest depictions of life. The 2001 artist picked up on this quality to create a representative piece displaying a similar color scheme, typography and hand-drawn elements.
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Art Nouveau Top: The Seasons, 1897, by Alphons Mucha Middle: Femme a la marguerite, 1899, by Alphons Mucha (L), Troupe de Mlle Eleganti, 1895, by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (R) Bottom: Jardin de Paris, 1896 (L), Taverne Olympia, 1896 (R), both by Jules ChĂŠret
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Art Nouveau
Top: Elegance, 2009, by Sean Aherne (L), The Grateful Dead, 1967, by Bob Masse (R) Middle: Remembrance of Things Past, 1985, by Paula Scher and Steven Koppel Bottom: Medusa, 2009, (L), Firefly, 2009 (R), both by Inkie
Art Deco
Deco sought to exempt itself from Constructivism and Functionalism by creating a purely decorative style of modern functionality.Despite that, it draws influence from Constructivism and other styles. The movement engaged with societal transformations including travel, exoticism, variety, luxury and sport. It is largely influenced by Cubism, Geometry, Art Nouveau and Egyptian decoration.
During the time that Art Deco was popular, the style was actually known as “Modernistic” or “Style Moderne.” The term “Art Deco” was not coined until 1968 by critic and historian Bevis Hillier and has more to do with the revival and inspiration of Art Deco in that period as a decorative style. At Deco is an amalgamation of differing styles and influences drawn from the early years of the 20th century. Cubism, Russian Constructivism, Italian Futurism, Abstractism, distortion and simplification all influenced Deco works. High fashion, Egyptology, the Orient, tribal Africa, Russia’s Ballet Russes and the rise of mechanization also had an effect. Art Deco provided a transition to the new age without severing ties to the past.
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Art Deco
The zigzag era of Deco is connected to the Jazz Age and culminated with the 1925 Paris Exposition Des Arts Décoratifs, an exhibition of Deco’s finest designers. Originally, Art Deco was intended for the elite. In Europe, showings like the Paris Exposition catered to the wealthy who could afford to purchase such lavishly designed furniture and decorations. Deco’s first rule is that “form follows function.” It was a designer style that made use of fine materials such as ebony, ivory, bronze, copper and other metallic properties. The logic behind some motifs is seen in historical events. The Ballet Russes provided a Deco inspiration with the use of bold decoration and colorful scenery and costumes by Leon Bakst and Alexandre Benois. Also, the opening of King Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 by Howard Carter helped to popularize Egyptology and this influence is widely recognized in Art Deco design. Mesoamerican influences are also seen in Deco as the Mexican Revolution was widely
57
Art Deco
Mise En Page: The Theory and Practice of Lay-Out, by Alfred Tolmer, 1931
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Art Deco L’Ame Du Jazz, Le Sourire Magazine, 1919
publicized during the period between 1910 and 1920. These events had turned the focus of the world on Mexico and caught the attention of writer such as Aldous Huxley and D.H. Lawrence. Within publishing, Art Deco and graphic design were made popular with the publication of Mise En Page: The Theory and Practice of Lay-Out by Alfred Tolmer in 1931. The Zigzag period’s vocabulary includes chevrons, triangles, ziggurats, spirals, fronds, fountains, the sun, fragmented circles and “pure” brilliant colors which helped prompt the label of Art Deco. The second form of Deco is a symbolism of industry and the machine based on the industrial designs of aerodynamics. Industrial facades such as glass bricks and curved walls characterize this style. Norman Bel-Geddes is considered the father of industrial design and believed that appearance should express function. Art Deco began as elitist but as industrial influence began to sink in, the middle class adopted the style. At the same time that Deco was growing in popularity, Constructivism and its “universal style” viewed Deco as frivolous and commercial. After the Depression in 1929 and leading into WWII, Constructivism began to reign supreme as ornamentation was stripped and replaced with function and clarity. The third and final phase of Art Deco is connected mainly with the United States and the creation of the Public Works Administration after the Great Depression. This era is also linked closely to the fall of Deco and its transition into Constructivism and Post-WWII design. This style is characterized by streamlines and boxed shapes. It was relatively inexpensive to add glass blocks, curved surfaces, Vitrolite panels and neon lights. These materials could easily transition an old-fashioned bar into a modern, exciting public place. Streamlined design has a vibrant sense of movement and energy. In essence, PWA Art Deco was moving forward and away from its past roots and its current economic struggles.
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A.M. Cassandre, Leonetto Cappiello, Jean Carlu, Paul Colin, Le Corbusier, Maurice Dufrene, Jacques-Nathan Garamond, Charles Gesmar, Eileen Gray, Paul Iribe, Tamara de Lempicka, Charles Loupot, Jean A. Mercier, Jacques Emile Ruhlmann
Art Deco
Influential Designers
Cassandre (1901–1968)
Born in the Ukraine in 1901, Jean Adolphe Mouron did not become known as Cassandre until he began designing posters in Paris at the age of 22. He is regarded as one of the 20th century’s greatest poster designers. His posters celebrate luxury transportation and the Art Deco movement’s dedication to modernity. Speeding trains are portrayed in works like Etoile du Nord and Nord Express, which draw on elements of Cubism and Futurism. His posters greatly influenced advertising in the early 20th century. In the words of Cassandre, “Designing a poster means solving a technical and commercial problem… in a language that can be understood by the common man.” Cassandre co-founded the advertising agency Alliance Graphique in 1926 where he pioneered the idea of the serial poster: a group of posters designed to be viewed in rapid succession. His posters for the Dubonnet wine company reflect this idea with Dubo Dubon Dubonnet from 1932. Cassandre also designed typefaces including Bifur, Acier Noir and Piegnot. Capital lettering is exclusively used in his posters, as he believed they were more legible, but the typography is always linked with image as part of the overall design to create a unified look. His designs have become iconic with such lumi-naries as Paul Rand even saying “after all, our epoch can boast of only one A.M. Cassandre.”
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Art Deco
He moved away from traditional influences found in Art Nouveau, such as Chéret’s leading female figure and instead, focused on communicating movement, the Art Deco philosophy and a message directly related to the subject. Cassandre’s first poster, Au Bucheron (1923), won him the main prize at the 1925 International exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial arts. However, the influence of Cubism and modernism on the graphic brought a lot of criticism from the likes of furniture designer Le Corbusier and even Hachard, of Hachard & Cie, who published his posters between 1924 and 1927. Hachard remarked “What you’re doing won’t sell, but it’s marvelous advertising.”
His voice soon found resonance with Deco though, and he began to support the use of the poster; “The poster… tends towards a collective and practical art, endeavoring to eliminate all characteristics of the artist as an individual…; it has to be capable of being reproduced in a series of thousands of copies, like a pen or a car, and intended just like them to render services of a material nature and fulfill a commercial function.”
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Art Deco
Au Bucheron, poster, designed by Cassandre, 1923
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Art Deco
Metropolis, movie poster, Universum Film AG, 1927
1927
Art Deco
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1991
The Rocketeer, movie poster, Buena Vista Pictures, 1991
Two movie posters for two very different films market the same era in these examples. The Deco themes of sun rays feature prominently in both posters. Although the helmeted character may be just coincidence, it is easy to see where the inspiration for “The Rocketeer� comes from.
Nord Express, poster, designed by Cassandre, 1927
1927 Art Deco
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The spirit of transportation, movement and the future feature in both posters displayed here, one for a train line and on for Bentley cars. Again, the Deco sun rays appear, giving an angle of movement and speed. Similar colors display a propensity for blue as a color of optimism and distance.
65
Art Deco
Bentley Modern, poster, designed by Crispin Marshfield, 2009
2009
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Art Deco
Vogue Magazine, 1927
1927
Art Deco
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2009
Information Technology, poster, designed by Tim Fevens, 2009
Art Deco features many themes which continue to be used today. The sharp angles and sun ray elements add a touch of modernity and please the eye with alternating color and shadow. These examples prove that characteristic Deco elements may be used to varied and different conclusions.
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Art Deco Top: The Flying Scotsman, poster, 1928 Middle: Dubo, Dubon, Dubonnet, poster, designed by Cassandre, 1932 Bottom: Normandie, poster, by Cassandre, 1935 (L), Chicago World’s Fair, poster, 1933 (R)
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Art Deco
Top: Art Deco New York, poster, 2008 Middle: Du Vin Rouge, poster, by Steve Forney, 2009 Bottom: Habanas, poster, by Steve Forney, 2009 (L), Le Voyage de Paris, poster, by David Brier, 2009 (R)
Constructivism
The Russian avant-garde created the Constructivist style during the revolution. It focused on modernity and progress. Layouts within Constructivism are geometric, simplified, experimental, unemotional and attempt to create “universal style.” It promotes an admiration for machines and technology, functionality and work.
Created around 1919, Constructivism evolved in Russia and embraced industrial machinery and techniques. Utility, function, clarity and communication were the issues of the day and designers of this style eschewed the notion of “art for art’s sake.” Functionality was increasingly important with the rise of industrialization. The visual language began to work around the idea of structure and transparency, leading to a simplified form of communication. Ornament and decoration became obsolete and form followed function absolutely. This type of simplified post-war design was popular worldwide, with examples like Constructivism in Russia and the Bauhaus in Germany.
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Constructivism
One reason Constructivism reappears in contemporary design is the simplification. Concise and concentrated messages increase effective communication, according to need, impact and legibility. Typography and the newly incor-porated use of photography reinvigorated design as a means of visual communi-cation or message transmission. Photomontages became incredibly popular and marked a decisive shift from the ornate illustrations of the Nouveau and Deco styles. In marketing, there is an acronym called “KISS” which stands for “Keep it simple, stupid.” The Russian Constructivists and other post-WWI designers pioneered this principle in their visual language. One reason simplified communication was so important during this time was that sociopolitical ideals mixed with art in a belief in the utopian framework of socialism. They also avoided any religious or philosophical subordination in exchange for utilitarian art. In 1918, Vladimir Mayakovsky declared “We have no need of a mausoleum for art in which to worship dead works, but of living factories of the human spirit:
71
Constructivism
Dlia golosa (For the Voice), book cover, designed by El Lissitzky, 1923
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Constructivism Pro Eto (About This), book cover, designed by Alexander Rodchenko, 1923
in the streets, in the trams, in the factories, in the workshops and the workers’ homes.” More propaganda than art, the Constructivist design aimed to achieve justice for the people through the creation of a peoples’ art. In the face of sharp economic downturn and a split in ideals among designers who wanted functionality and those who still believed in spiritual art, designers began to explore numerous outlets. These outlets included theatrical scenic design, industrial design, architecture, fashion, painting, cinema and photography. In the media, graphics are typography focused on posters (books, films, shops), publishing (including children’s books), periodicals and visual poetry. It was not unusual at this time for a print run of a poster to reach 20,000. Constructivist typography and design shook the print world at the time. Already, Cubism, Futurism and Dadaism had done this, but Constructivism pushed it one step further. The designs of Alexander Rodchenko and El Lissitzky frequently featured stark black and red combinations, creating impact and con-trast.Eventually the style spread to Paris, London and even the USA. Germany was the most sympathetic country, housing the Bauhaus and understanding the desire to break from old design styles, which were said to have culminated in WWI. Originally meant as a peoples’ art and furthered by collaborations with international designers of Bauhaus and de Stijl, Constructivism eventually became Socialist Realism as Lenin died and Stalin took control of Russia. Functionality became pure propaganda on posters and all forms of visual communication.
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Josef Albers, Naum Gabo, Gustav Kutsis, El Lissitzky, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Antoine Pevsner, Lyubov Popova, Hans Richter, Alexander Rodchenko, Varvara Stepanova, Vladimir Tatlin, Alexander Vesnin
Constructivism
Influential Designers
(1891–1956)
Alexander Rodchenko
Rodchenko was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1891 and began drawing in 1915. By 1921, he was a member of a group that sought to incorporate art into normal life: the Productivists. During this time, he began to design posters, book covers and film advertisements. The period following the revolution in 1917 was an exciting time for designers like Rodchenko and Lyubov Popova, whom he collaborated with until her death in 1924. Their artwork was no longer confined to galleries and exhibitions. They designed for the people and for the idea of a new life for Russia through. Biscuit packages, book covers, posters, buildings and other forms of advertisement became their playground.
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Constructivism
He was especially impressed by the German Dadaists and employed the use of photography into his own work. The first was an illustrated version of Vladimir Mayakovsky’s poem About This from 1923. Between 1923 and 1928, Rodchenko worked extensively with Mayakovsky on the design and layout of Novy LEF and LEF, two publications produced by Constructivist artists. They called themselves “Mayakovsky-Rodchenko: Advertising Constructors” and created more than 150 advertisements and package designs. Rodchenko handled graphics while Mayakovsky did the advertising. He was completely dedicated to the Socialist regime and the advancement of technology. Rodchenko’s photographs appeared as covers on the Constructivist journals and were incredibly striking due to their lack of decoration, attention to movement and space and the diagonal composition of the subjects. Rodchenko began his career as an abstract painter and continued this tendency towards the abstract in his graphic design and photography practice. His color scheme also tends to add a striking element with the consistent use of black and red. He even created a completely unsentimental remembrance of Popova following her death with the stark use of black and red. Rodchenko believed so much in the future of photography and mechanization that he painted a triptych of three boards covered in a single pigment each in 1921. They were titled Pure Red Color, Pure Yellow Color, and Pure Blue Color. “I reduced painting to its logical conclusion and exhibited three canvases: red, blue and yellow,” he said. “I affirmed: this is the end of painting.”
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Constructivism
Pure Red Colour, Pure Yellow Colour, Pure Blue Colour, by Alexander Rodchenko,1921
El Lissitzky (1890–1941)
El Lissitzky was born in Russia in 1890. He left for Germany in 1909 to study architectural engineering and art. With the outbreak of World War I, Lissitzky returned to Russia where he began to study Hebrew letters and researched his Jewish past. He began his foray into illustrating children’s picture books at this time, which led to a career in book design. The 1917 book Sihas hulin: Eyne fun di geshikhten (An Everyday Conversation) used his new knowledge of Hebrew letters mixed with the Art Nouveau style. He began to experiment with typography after the publication of this book and soon, his style began to emerge more distinctly towards Constructivism. In his second book, based on a Passover song, Had gadya (One Goat), El Lissitzky merged typography with image by matching colors of the characters with the words referring to them. This use of visual clue based on color links back to semiotics and the subconscious recognition of signs. In one example from the Had gadya, the hand of God is seen slaying the angel of death, who wears the tsar’s crown. The symbol would be obvious to readers of the time, as this represents the Jews victory over the Bolsheviks in the Russian Revolution. The hand of God is often visually represented in El Lissitzky’s works. His 1925 photomontage titled The Constructor is a self-portrait featuring this symbol.
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Constructivism
One of his inventions, The Prouns (an abbreviation for the Russian “Project for the affirmation of the new”), presented a series of his art in a multidirectional way through the use of perspective and shadows. In 1925, he published The Isms of Art with Jean Arp. In it, the authors write “Constructivism proves that limits between […] an art object and technological invention cannot be determined.” Lissitzky believed that art could foster change. He called this “goal-oriented creation.” His book designs began as an attempt to promote Jewish culture in Russia, where anti-Semitism laws had just been repealed. In 1921, he began work as the Russian cultural ambassador to Weimar Germany where his work would influence the Bauhaus and De Stijl movements, as well as Constructivism. He worked tirelessly until his death, creating works with meaning. His last piece was a poster promoting the fight against Nazi Germany.
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Constructivism
Had Gadya (One Goat), book, designed by El Lissitzky, 1919
Beat the Whites With the Red Wedge, poster, designed by El Lissitzky, 1920
1920 Constructivism
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The Constructivist style is often repeated and copied almost in exactly the same form. Due to the simplified shapes and iconic images created during the period, it is a target for numerous reproductions and homages to its leading designers, as seen in these examples by and for El Lissitzky.
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Constructivism
El Poster, poster, designed by Seany Mac, 2006
2006
Top: Lily Brik, photographed by Alexander Rodchenko Bottom: Books!, poster, designed by Rodchenko, 1924
1924 Constructivism
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One of the most iconic images of the Constructivist period is that of Lila Brik in a poster promoting literacy and reading. It is often imitated to sell everything from music CDs (right) to vodka and is frequently adapted for campaign posters promoting women’s rights among others.
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Constructivism
Clockwise from top: Say Yes, album cover, The Afternoons, 2008; Word of Mouth, album cover, Mike and the Mechanics,1991; Franz Ferdinand, self-titled album cover, 2005
2008, 1991, 2005
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Constructivism
Battleship Potempkin, movie poster, designed by Alexander Rodchenko, 1925
1925
Constructivism
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2009
Tobacco, poster, designed by Joel Nilsen, 2009
One of the main problems with using historical styles as inspiration is that historical images are used instead. Although not explicit copies, many new interpretations of older styles use the same image to promote a different idea which may be linked to the original. In this case, smoking is death (battle).
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Constructivism Top: For the Voice, by El Lissitzky and Mayakovsky, 1923 Middle: Proun (L) ; The Constructor, 1932 (R), both designed by El Lissitzky Bottom: Everyone Vote!, Gustav Klutsis, 1930 (L), Layout from USSR Under Construction, by Rodchenko and Stepanova, 1931 (R)
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Constructivism
Top: Macacada, by Marcelo Moreno, 2009 Middle: Moskovskaya Vodka, poster, by Paulo Gabriel, 2009 Bottom: M&M Propoganda, poster, 2000s (L), Work.com, poster, by Mauro Toledo, 2009 (R)
Dada
Dada was a reaction to what was seen as the horrors and senselessness of mechanized killing during World War I. It was based on nonsense and nihilism: the idea that nothing made sense. The style (or lack of style) is characterized by strange layouts and random jumbled images and texts.
In the middle of WWI, Dada emerged as an avant-garde leader revolting against society and the tragedy of war. Dada represented the uselessness of war and unnecessary death. Tristan Tzara, one of the movement’s leaders, proclaimed “Dada means nothing.” There existed no theory, no rules, no specific emotions, no academic standards or institutions. Instead, contradiction, revolution, derision, humor and self-mockery took precedence. Absurd and unpredictable, Dada simply existed in the public sphere as a strange and nonsensical form of visual catharticism.
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Dada
Concentrated on anti-war politics, the purpose (if one existed) was to ridicule the mainstream’s importance of modern world. Dada was anarchistic and antibourgeois; rejecting what was considered “good” art of the time. This style later influenced underground movements such as Punk, Surrealism and Pop Art due to its awareness and rejection or ridicule of media, politics, culture and art. Similarly to Constructivism, Dada embraced the use of photography. Launched in Zurich by refugee artists, the original Dadaists included Hugo Ball, Emmy Hennings, Richard Huelsenbeck, Jean Arp, Tristan Tzara and Marcel Janco. These poets and artists sought to break all boundaries and combine printing and graphic design with unusual writing and poetry. Fragmented words, seemingly meaningless paragraphs, and original connections among words, letters, syllables and signs created a completely abstract approach to communication. Collages were popular for presenting these fragmented pieces and were used within regular publishing confines of leaflets, pamphlets, handbills and texts. The Dadaists also began using paper and glue to portray aspects of life, rather than life itself. Dada struggled against systems and used any form
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Dada
An Anna Blume, Dichtungen (To Anna Flower), book cover, written and designed by Kurt Schwitters, 1919
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Dada ABCD, poster poem, designed by Raoul Hausmann, 1924
of media available including scraps of paper, cloth, fragments of printed text and photographs. Objects included plastic wrappers, transport tickets, theatre tickets, maps and other discarded mementos. This new system of juxtaposition created a unique semiotic base of rules through which political and social ideas could be expressed. Fewer posters existed for the Dada era than in other styles. Unusual textual examples from some Dada writing and artistic works include: “This summer, elephants will be wearing moustaches and you.” “Make way for the Dada that kills.” “Helen telephones better.” “The wind favorable to blue feathers.” As Marc Lowenthal said in his introduction to Francis Picabia’s I Am a Beautiful Monster: Poetry, Prose, And Provocation, “Dada is the groundwork to abstract art and sound poetry, a starting point for performance art, a prelude to Postmodernism, an influence on Pop Art, a celebration of anti-art to be later embraced for anarcho-political uses in the 1960s and the movement that lay the foundation for Surrealism.”
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Jean Arp, Hugo Ball, Andre Breton, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, George Grosz, Johnf Heartfield, Emmy Hennings, Hannah Höch, Richard Huelsenbeck, Marcel Janco, Francis Picabia, Hans Richter, Kurt Schwitters, Sophie Täuber, Tristan Tzara
Dada
Influential Designers
Tristan Tzara (1896–1963) Dada
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Tristan Tzara was born Samuel Rosenstock in Romania in 1896 and is known as the founder of Dada. He is also associated with Surrealism, the more constructive counterpart to the Dadaist’s nihilistic viewpoint. A poet and artist, Tzara wrote two manifestos for the style of Dada. He describes Dada thus: “…I say unto you: there is no beginning and we do not tremble, we are not sentimental. We are a furious Wind, tearing the dirty linen of clouds and prayers, preparing the great spectacle of disaster, fire, decomposition. We will put an end to mourning and replace tears by sirens screeching from one continent to another. Pavilions of intense joy and widowers with the sadness of poison. Dada is the signboard of abstraction; advertising and business are also elements of poetry.” “Science disgusts me as soon as it becomes a speculative system, loses its character of utility-that is so useless but is at least individual. I detest greasy objectivity, and harmony, the science that finds everything in order. Carry on, my children, humanity . . . Science says we are the servants of nature: everything is in order, make love and bash your brains in. Carry on, my children, humanity, kind bourgeois and journalist virgins . . . I am against systems, the most acceptable system is on principle to have none. To complete oneself, to perfect oneself in one’s own littleness, to fill the vessel with one’s individuality, to have the courage to fight for and against thought, the mystery of bread, the sudden burst of an infernal propeller into economic lilies.... Every product of disgust capable of becoming a negation of the family is Dada; a protest with the fists of its whole being engaged in destructive action: Dada; knowledge of all the means rejected up until now by the shamefaced sex of comfortable compromise and good manners: Dada; abolition of logic, which is the dance of those impotent to create: Dada; of every social hierarchy and equation set up for the sake of values by our valets: Dada; every object, all objects, sentiments, obscurities, apparitions and the precise clash of parallel lines are weapons for the fight: Dada; abolition of memory: Dada; abolition of archaeology: Dada; abolition of prophets: Dada; abolition of the future: Dada; absolute and unquestionable faith in every god that is the immediate product of spontaneity: Dada; elegant and unprejudiced leap from a harmony to the other sphere; trajectory of a word tossed like a screeching phonograph record; to respect all individuals in their folly of the
moment: whether it be serious, fearful, timid, ardent, vigorous, determined, enthusiastic; to divest one’s church of every useless cumbersome accessory; to spit out disagreeable or amorous ideas like a luminous waterfall, or coddle them -with the extreme satisfaction that it doesn’t matter in the least-with the same intensity in the thicket of one’s soul-pure of insects for blood well-born, and gilded with bodies of archangels. Freedom: Dada Dada Dada, a roaring of tense colors, and interlacing of opposites and of all contradictions, grotesques, inconsistencies: LIFE.”
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Dada
Gáz szív, book cover, designed by Tristan Tzara, 1921
By 1916, Dada had replaced Futurism as the leader in modernist design and lifestyle. The Italian-born Futurism’s militaristic and fascist stance was rejected by Tzara and many of the Dadaists and the general public followed. Dada’s contrast, implausible imagery and nonsense endings intrigued the public and helped spread the nihilistic movement across Europe and through the USA, with Tzara even granting permission, proclaiming “Dada belongs to everybody.”
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Dada
Theatre Michel, poster, designed by Raoul Hausmann, 1923
1923
Dada
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1983
Dada Once and for All, Ex Libris 10, book cover, 1983
The elements of Dada follow a “no-rules� policy where type may swirl, alternate and change itself explicitly for no reason. This 1983 Dada-inspired book cover aims to recreate the feeling of the iconic poster from1923 and succeeds despite the differing messages and the chaos of the original.
Tristan Tzara and Ren Crevelman, poster, designed by Tristan Tzara, 1928
1928 Dada
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Photocollages are popular in a number of design styles, including Bauhaus and Constructivism. In the Dada style, however, photocollages take on a new meaning of confusion and disorder, allowing the viewer to create his or her own subjective interpretation amongst the varying elements.
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Dada
Neo Dada Maximalism, flyer, designed by Matthew Gar Bailey, 2008
2008
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Dada
The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even (The Large Glass), designed by Marcel Duchamp, 1915–1923
1915–1923
Dada
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2008
Da Ne Zaboravis, album cover, Tristan Tzara (band), 2008
Dada’s lack of specific rules allow the works to be heavy with imagery or covered with drawings and photographs. Contrastingly, Dada works often feature simple lines created from typography or raw materials. The message is not always clear, even if the title is (left).
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Dada Top: Dada Siegt, 1920 (L); The Art Critic, 1919 (R), both by Raoul Hausmann Middle: Fountain, by Marcel Duchamp ,1917 Bottom: Hera, 1929 (L); Portrait of CĂŠzanne, 1920 (R), both by Francis Picabia
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Dada
Top: Metamorphosis, 1980s, by Paula Scher and Steven Koppel Middle: Perception, (L); Roadtrip (R), both by Anthony Coffey, 2002 Bottom: Periscope (Hart Crane), by Jasper Johns, 1963 (L); Dada, by Fritz Sauer, 1996 (R)
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De Stijl
De Stijl promoted the idea of a Utopian ideal of spiritual harmony and order and grew from the Swiss neutrality during World War I. It is characterized by pure abstraction through form and primary colors or the use of black and white. Simplified visual compositions based on vertical and horizontal axis reflect the simplified nature of De Stijl’s style.
De Stijl grew out of the Dutch inactivity during WWI. The Netherlands was affected by other styles like Dada, Futurism and Cubism and designers there sought to learn more about Bauhaus and Constructivism. De Stijl (The Style) was formed in 1916 under painter Theo Van Doesburg’s direction. In 1917, the journal De Stijl was launched and it continued to be published until 1928. This journal was meant to spread the De Stijl theories of simplicity and a utopian art form, which ultimately influenced Bauhaus and the Swiss Post-War Style. Besides Von Doesburg, the painters George Vantongerloo and Piet Mondrian, along with architects Jacobus Johannes P. Oud and Gerrit Rietveld made up the original supporters of the movement. Piet Mondrian wrote that art “…should find its expression in the abstraction of form and color, that is to say, in the straight line and the clearly defined primary color.” Based on simplicity and abstraction, De Stijl took on the form of rectangles and geometric shapes colored only with primary colors and black and white. The artists in the De Stijl movement sought to create a perfect art form, where a utopian sense became universal in an aesthetic language. The De Stijl movement aimed to create a collective form of art that could transcend culture, geography and politics. They sought to create this new utopian art form of simplicity, harmony, pure abstraction and universality through the use of linear elements, primary colors and a reduction of form to its simplest shape. Mondrian believed that de Stijl ignored “the particulars of appearance” in favor of clear geometric principles and pure undecorated thought. De Stijl hoped for other artists to adopt their work and create new pieces, which rejected decoration such as that seen in Art Nouveau. Proponents of the
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The front cover of the first issue of De Stijl Magazine, 1917
102 De Stijl Composition, by Georges Vantongerloo, 1917–1918
movement hoped to simplify art to a logical and functional style appropriate for modern life without all the distraction of decoration. In the 1920s, De Stijl began to alter as Doesburg accepted the idea of diagonal lines and the influences of Constructivism and geometric abstract art. Pioneers like Mondrian rejected these newfound elements as they implicitly changed the face of the movement’s simplicity and structure. As members began to turn away from the new face of De Stijl, the movement began to fade and it ultimately died with the death of its creator, Doesburg, in 1931. Members such as Mondrian and Gerrit Rietveld continued to produce works sharing De Stijl elements, but the organization and collaboration no longer existed.
Max Bill, Jean Gorin, Robert van Hoff, Vilmos HuszĂĄr, Piet Mondrian, J.J.P. Oud, Gerrit Rietveld, M.H.J. Schoenmaekers, Theo Van Doesburg, Bart van der Leck, George Vantongerloo, Jan Wils
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Influential Designers
Piet Mondrian (1872–1944)
Born in the Netherlands in 1872, Pieter Cornelis “Piet” Mondriaan simplified his name to Mondrian in 1912. He began his artistic career as an Impressionist or naturalistic painter, choosing to paint landscapes with windmills, rivers and fields. These representational paintings are influenced by Fauvism and Pointillism and show a wide variety of colors and images. One of the first paintings to really exhibit a transition to Mondrian’s landmark style within the De Stijl movement is Mill in Sunlight (1908). It portrays a windmill in a field, but emphasizes the use of primary colors: red, yellow and blue. Mondrian’s most famous pieces are termed Neo-Plasticism, which he created. They are a nonrepresentational, abstract series of grids combined with the three primary colors and a white background. The influence Cubism had on his life was a lesson in simplification. Mondrian attended the 1911 Moderne Kunstkring exhibition in Amsterdam and attempted to simplify his work to a more abstract nature of triangles and rectangles. During WWI, he met Theo Van Doesburg and they launched the journal De Stijl. In this journal, he coined the term Neo-Plasticism and sought to express his artistic theory in writing. In a letter to fellow painter H.P. Bremmer in 1914, Mondrian describes his work thus:
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“I construct lines and color combinations on a flat surface, in order to express general beauty with the utmost awareness. Nature (or, that which I see) inspires me, puts me, as with any painter, in an emotional state so that an urge comes about to make something, but I want to come as close as possible to the truth and abstract everything from that, until I reach the foundation (still just an external foundation!) of things… I believe it is possible that, through horizontal and vertical lines constructed with awareness, but not with calculation, led by high intuition, and brought to harmony and rhythm, these basic forms of beauty, supplemented if necessary by other direct lines or curves, can become a work of art, as strong as it is true.”
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Mill in Sunlight, by Piet Mondrian, 1908
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Composition II in Red, Blue, and Yellow, by Piet Mondrian,1930
1930
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2000
De Stijl, album cover, The White Stripes, 2000
De Stijl is one of the easiest styles to recreate or draw inspiration from as it is so simple, featuring straight lines, often along a horizontal or vertical axis, and raw, pure colors. The White Stripes chose to mimic the works of Mondrian with their album cover for De Stijl which is simple, yet eye-ecatching.
Color Planes in Oval, by Piet Mondrian, 1914
1914 108 De Stijl
Mondrian’s early work is less defined by perfect squares as in his later pieces. The color bleeds into new boxes and forms interesting patterns and emotions. This is replicated by the 2010 piece which almost seems to create the image of hearts in a row.
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Forgiven, poster, designed by Jon Allison, 2010
2010
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Stained Glass Composition IV, by Van Doesburg, 1918
1918
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2007
Leyden, In the Style of De Stijl, designed by Jos Agasi, 2007
Van Doesburg’s work features more angled lines and interesting uses of color. In this stained glass piece, he used the vertical and horizontal lines. Note the typical red, yellow and blue and where the color is deliberately placed. In the 2007 map, color is used to signify street blocks, while lines signify streets.
112 De Stijl Top: Dada Siegt, 1920 (L); The Art Critic, 1919 (R), both by Raoul Hausmann Middle: Fountain, by Marcel Duchamp ,1917 Bottom: Hera, 1929 (L); Portrait of CĂŠzanne, 1920 (R), both by Francis Picabia
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Top: Pick a Hand Any Hand, by Inaiah Lujan, 2008 Middle: In de stijl of De Stijl, 2009 (L); Series De Stijl N. 1, by Artecopia (R) Bottom: Wilco, poster, 2010 (L); De Stijl, by Pierre-Arnaud Gillet, 2003 (R)
Bauhaus
The Bauhaus School was founded in 1919 in Weimar, Germany and closed by the Nazis in 1933. The School promoted the idea of creating a “total” work of art, in which all arts, including architecture, would eventually be brought together. It had a profound influence on later developments in art, architecture, graphic design, industrial and interior design and typography.
Greatly influenced by Arts and Crafts, De Stijl, Constructivism and Abstraction, the Bauhaus School brought together many professors and designers from different styles and marked a decided shift away from the emotionality of Expressionism. The Bauhaus consisted of the combination between the German School of Visual Art and the technical school, both of the Weimar Republic. When it was created, the press hailed the Bauhaus as a “cathedral of socialism” in which collective artistic practices could be exacted. This collection of artistic practices aimed for a complete compatibility between all aspects of art: painting, architecture, sculpture, pottery, photography, etc.
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More a collection place for artistic styles than a style itself, the Bauhaus is nonetheless important for its work in promoting the modern style, which had begun with Arts and Crafts. Radical experimentation was embraced following WWI. However, the school’s founder, Walter Gropius, claimed that it was apolitical and therefore not associated with any regime or social agenda. Unfortunately, the Nazi regime did not agree and pressured the Bauhaus leadership to close its own school in 1933. Also known as the “International Style,” the Bauhaus sought to harmonize form and function, following in the footsteps of William Morris’s philosophy. The Bauhaus philosophy, therefore, promoted a lack of ornamentation, radically simple forms, functionality and rationality. One major breaking point from the Arts and Crafts philosophy is that individuality could co-exist with machinery and mass production. This mass production of goods, both artistic and functional, was essential to Germany during the period after WWI, when the German economy struggled to survive among stiff competition. The utopian aims of the
115 Bauhaus
Bauhaus, postcard, designed by Herbert Bayer, 1923
116 Bauhaus Bauhaus, post card, designed by Wassily Kandinsky, 1923
Bauhaus existed to create a higher standard of life for the people all over the world through the design and production of buildings, products and art works. The first major example of the co-existence between individual design and mass production was Peter Behrens’s work for AEG, a German electrical company. Behrens designed consumer products, the company’s graphics, corporate brand identity and even the turbine factory owned by AEG. The three main teachers at the Bauhaus were Herbert Bayer, László MoholyNagy and Joost Schmidt. They embraced diversity in design and criticized the use of the term “style” to describe the work of the school. With such an array of design approaches including misshapen lettering, use of typewriter for textile motifs, phototypography, collages, distortions and superimpositions, the Bauhaus is most notable for its fundamental course, which taught experimentation with the use of simple components. The ideas promoted by the Bauhaus of modernist design and combined functionality were the subject throughout Germany of public exhibitions, films, campaigns and even public debates.
Influential Designers
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Anni Albers, Herbert Bayer, Marcel Breuer, Walter Gropius, Johannes Itten, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Hermann Muthesius, Hans Meyer, László Moholy-Nagy, Paul Renner, Oskar Schlemmer, Joost Schmidt, Mies Van der Rohe, Wilhelm Wagenfeld
László Moholy-Nagy (1895–1946)
Recognized as being the first teacher at the Bauhaus to embark on the avant-garde, Moholy-Nagy was greatly influenced by Constructivism and use of photography – both elements introduced to him by El Lissitzky on his travels to Germany. In 1915 Moholy-Nagy enlisted as an officer in the Austro-Hungarian army. While there, he produced hundreds of sketches that record his military career before he was wounded. This time in his life created a sense of social idealism as he sought to live above what he experienced in the war. At the age of 23, he began his career as an artist painting many Expressionist works. Moholy-Nagy was greatly influenced by Rembrandt and van Gogh, finding that lines and halftones could carry expression well. He began to experiment with colored strips of paper and to dabble in Dadaist works at this time, preferring to continue his artistic education in search of his idealist principles.
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Moholy-Nagy became a foundation course instructor at the Bauhaus in 1923, which incidentally marks the end of the school’s Expressionist phase. Instead, the school began to focus on design and industrial integration. Photography became more widely used and Moholy-Nagy’s term “the New Vision” expresses his belief that photographs could create a new way of seeing the world that the human eye cannot. He also used photogram, the process of exposing light sensitive paper with objects laid over top. His work with poster design is carefully considered in his text, The New Typography. In it, he says, “To be instantaneously effective, the poster must take every element into account […] the two new possibilities for the poster are, 1. photography, which henceforth affords us the most striking and extensive narrative resources, 2. a marked contrast with that typography that marshals an incalculable range of possible variations by an astonishing combination of letterings.” Typography must retain clarity and legibility, even when used in an interesting way such as in a typophoto, where the photograph becomes the type. Much of the Bauhaus’s characteristic style began with Moholy-Nagy: sans serif characters, asymmetry, geometric elements and a play between light, depth, transparency and substance.
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The Olly and Dolly Sisters, designed by L谩szl贸 Moholy-Nagy, 1925
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Bauhaus, poster, designed by Joost Schmidt, 1923
1923
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2009
Bauhaus Nude, print, by sharkaholic, 2009
These comparable images seem to follow the exact same form at first glance, but the second image from 2009 actually uses the original structure in a unique way. One way to use historical styles is to look at an original work and recreate it wholly into something new and unusual, such as this nude woman.
Composition #19, designed by László Moholy-Nagy, 1921
1921 122 Bauhaus
The Bauhaus style featured angular lines and shapes, which was meant to further the idea of a “Cathedral of Socialism,” bringing together art across all areas, including architecture. Looking at some of the Bauhaus’s works, it is easy to see how shapes could be applied to other various areas of design.
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Bauhaus, poster, designed by Al Garcia,1999
1999
124 Bauhaus
Új művészek könyve, designed by Lajos Kassák and László Moholy-Nagy, 1922
1922
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2007
Bauhaus Inspired Poster, Museum of Modern Art, 2007
Lines and curves work together to create interesting movement on the page and provide a path for the eye to follow. This merging of line and circle with red and tan colors dates the Bauhaus style in 2007, allowing viewers to understand and interpret the message, while visualizing the product at the same time.
126 Bauhaus Top: Advertising for Bauhaus produced chessboard, by Joost Schmidt, 1923 Middle: Das Bauhaus in Dessau, by Joost Schmidt, 192526 (L); Photogram Number 1 - the Mirror, by L谩szl贸 Moholy-Nagy, 1922-23 (R) Bottom: Composition A.XX, by L谩szl贸 Moholy-Nagy, 1924
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Top: AG Ideas, by Matthew D. Jones, 2006 (L); Bauhaus, poster, designed by Jade Tang, 2009 (R) Middle: Bauhaus, by Nathan Hills, 2007 Bottom: Citizen Cope Band Poster, 2007 (L); Bauhaus Band Poster, by Rich Black, 2008 (R)
Post-War Swiss
Swiss graphic design and the “Swiss style” are crucial elements in the history of modernism as the Swiss style promoted a radical simplicity called basic design. Grid layouts and sans-serif typefaces such as Helvetica have become classic emblems of Swiss design. Designers chose photographs over illustrations, an element that continues to be a major influence on contemporary graphic language.
Just like the Bauhaus, Swiss design prior to WWII strained against conformity and paid homage to a number of influences. Characteristics of Swiss design include simplification, conciseness, informative tone over sensational and the idea of “basic design.” One iconic example of early Swiss design is Herbert Matter’s 1932 series of posters for the Swiss tourist board, which featured photomontages of close-up elements transitioning into landscapes, placing the viewer in the originating perspective and forging photography with the world of modernity. The text was bold, close to the viewer and at an angle.
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At the end of the 1930s, the creative audacity of the avant-garde was being challenged by governments in Germany and the Soviet Union, while the Italian government allowed propaganda and modernist-inspired professional design to coexist. Like the Bauhaus, the Swiss school slowly declined during the interwar period. However, the Swiss did not stop experimenting and pursuing social ideals. Free from the demands of war, the Swiss improved their graphic and visual communication skills through posters, books, magazines and other publications, which furthered local knowledge of design. The Swiss designers used typography and graphic design to create visual puns and to express new ideas. Geometry, mathematical logic, grids and series elements all shaped the design style, creating an extension of the forms, which came before it: De Stijl, Bauhaus, Constructivism. The style became recognizable based on a number of characteristic elements: Sans serif typefaces, suppression
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Poster for the Swiss Tourist Board, designed by Herbert Matter, 1932
130 Post-War Swiss Poster for the Swiss Tourist Board, designed by Herbert Matter, 1932
of non-linear space, use of photography, flat color, the central role of typography as a visual element and the use of grids to clearly organize space. These elements were considered to create a utopian look, which was called the International Typographic Style, similar to the international aims of the Bauhaus, to further its consistent use around the world. The lack of visual stimuli, neutral approach to design and oppression of historical tradition and cultural reference enabled this to become a worldwide style. The idea for Swiss design is that clear type leads to clear communication and less distraction from competing visuals. One major success for the Swiss Typographic Style was the creation of the typeface Helvetica, designed by Max Miedinger and used extensively throughout the world in public spaces.
Influential Designers Theo Ballmer, Otto Baumberger, Max Bill, Karl Gestner, Armin Hoffman, Ernst Keller, Herbert Matter, Max Miedinger, Josef M端ller-Brockman, Emil Ruder, Niklus Stoecklin, Emil Strub, Jan Tschichold
131 Post-War Swiss
In the 1960s, the Swiss style experienced the majority of its success as the Swiss government began to accept the style for use in the public sphere. Agencies and industries sought the clear, organized design style for their products and buildings, effectively encouraging the world to accept it as well.
Helvetica, the movie (2007)
Released in 2007 for the 50th birthday of the typeface the movie is named after, Helvetica is a feature-length independent documentary looking at typography, graphic design and visual communication within the United States, England, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France and Belgium. Humans encounter thousands of words each day. Design and advertising are prevalent in Western culture and the film inspires a second look at how type affects psychology and communication. Major urban spaces are dominated by the Helvetica typeface and it is considered to be the most perfect typeface by numerous designers. This award is given to the typeface based on its legibility, lack of decoration, functionality and simplicity. Other designers rebel against its inherent conformity, claiming it is overused and ineffective.
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Helvetica, the typeface, was developed in 1957 by Max Miedinger with Ed端ard Hoffmann for the Haas Type Foundry in Switzerland. During the 1950s, san serif type became increasingly popular for its simplicity and line formation so Hoffmann commissioned Miedinger to create a new sans-serif type. It was originally known as Neue Haas Grotesk, but was later changed to Helvetica, the Latin name for Switzerland. The Helvetica name itself fits the type perfectly as it encompasses all the characteristics of great Swiss design. The typeface became popular with advertisers and is now used on everything from corporate logos, transportation signs, fine art and other forms of cultural and visual communication. Its standard inclusion on personal computers has also furthered its worldwide appeal. Many famous and notable designers are interviewed in the film including Neville Brody, David Carson, Matthew Carter, Jonathan Hoefler, Alfred Hoffmann, Lars M端ller, Rick Poynor, Leslie Savan, Paula Scher, Erik Spiekermann and Hermann Zapf. Famous logos featuring Helvetica include American Airlines, BMW, Jeep, JCPenney, Lufthansa, Microsoft, Panasonic, Motorola, and Kawasaki.
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Helvetica Best Friend, designed by Roberto Blake, 2009
Jan Tschichold (1902–1974)
Born in 1902 in Leipzig, Germany, Tschichold is most known as a typographer, but also acted as a book designer, teacher and writer. He was trained as a calligrapher since his father was a provincial sign maker and this background in calligraphy sets him apart from other noted typographers of his time who were trained in architecture or fine arts. In 1933, after taking up a teaching position in Munich, Tschichold and Paul Renner were both suspected of being communists, or at least “sympathetic Bolshevists.” Tschichold and his wife were arrested but managed to escape to Switzerland. Already an advocate of Modernist design from his visits to the Weimar Bauhaus exhibition in 1923, Tschichold wrote his most famous book, Die neue Typographie, published in 1928. Immediately following Tschichold’s venture to the exhibition, his poster for the Warsaw publisher Philobiblon showcased a definite angle towards Constructivism and modernity.
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Die neue Typographie outlines the theory of modern design. Sans-serif typefaces must dominate, along with non-centered design. Standardized paper sizes were championed and Tschichold even outlines rules for the most effective use of different sized paper and line weights. Tschichold spent the years between 1947 and 1949 working for Penguin Books, where he redesigned 500 paperbacks and created a standardized set of typographic rules for the company. With the redesign, Penguin’s books gained a unified and coherent look. This period is also characterized by Tschichold’s movement away from Die neue Typographie and towards a more classical arrangement with centered design and serifs. Later, he would condemn his book and Modernist design in general. The well-known vertical grid on the cover of Penguin titles was designed by Tschichold and featured a specific place for marketing material: the blurb. Although not at the center of the post-war Swiss design movement, Tschichold reflected Swiss design principles in his work and provided a transition from avantgarde to Swiss typography. He wrote “the purpose of any piece of typo-graphy is communication […] The communication must appear in the briefest, simplest, most urgent form […] The elemental letterform is the sans serif in all variations:
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Philobiblon, poster, designed by Jan Tschichold, 1924
light, medium, bold, condensed, expanded.� He goes on to recommend the use of grids, rules and hierarchy as a means of organization and clarity.
Abram Games (1914–1996)
Abram Games is known for his poster design work for companies like Shell, The Royal Shakespeare Company, London Zoo, The Times and Guinness. His designs are unique and use a combination of image and text with his own concept known as “maximum meaning using minimum means.” The unpublished 1935 poster Air Mail displays this quality. The use of the letters “A” and “M” within the confines of an envelope and the extension of the blue air mail sticker as the “I” shows wit and creativity. To add some contrast and visual stimulation, Games added a shadow in the background, but instead of providing a typical drop shadow, he shapes it to resemble a bird. Games is known for this sort of visual puzzle, which draws the viewer in and requires interpretation, much in the same way Surrealist painters like Salvador Dalí did. Games described his work this way: “A poster with a measure of intrigue engages the mind of the spectator and he looks again. You have to take him along with you so he follows your line of thought. The best way I can describe what happens is to say that as the designer you wind the spring, and it is released in the mind of the viewer.”
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He began work in 1942 at the British War Office where he created public information and propaganda posters. His poster Use Spades, Not Ships was created for the “Dig for Victory” campaign during WWII. It encouraged soldiers to cultivate land so the British would be as self-sufficient as possible. Games worked with the idea that viewers would be looking at his work from different perspectives. He always drew his ideas out small, before creating them for real. “I never work large because…. posters seen from a distance are small,” he said. “If ideas do not work when they are an inch high, they are never going to work.” In his warning posters for the War Office such as This Child Found a Blind and Talk May Kill, Games reverts to color theory to show warnings through the use of red and a combination of black and yellow. He understood the role of the subconscious in understanding visual communication and exploited it. “I wanted to create posters with forceful compact design, memorable and direct,
137 Post-War Swiss
Air Mail, poster, designed by Abram Games, 1935
with a minimum of lettering and text....” he said. “The message must be given quickly and vividly so that interest is subconsciously retained.”
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Use Spades - Not Ships, designed by Abram Games, 1942
1942
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2008
Obama Progress, designed by Scot Hansen, 2008
Although not as excplicit in the 2008 presidential campaign poster, the idea of splitting an image to convey one shared meaning is indicative of an abram Games design. Maximum meaning using minimum means is used in both examples to convey local farming potential and progress through seasons.
One of a series of concert posters for the Tonhalle Gesellschaft Zürich, designed by Joseph Müller-Brockman, 1955
1955 140 Post-War Swiss
The Swiss design takes a cue from De Stijl in its use of straight lines and angles. The use of Helvetica and other simple typefaces allows these posters to stand out and have a visual impact despite the posters’ relative neutrality and lack of distinctive imagery.
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Helvetica Blue, designed by Robert Blake, 2009
2009
142 Post-War Swiss
Die Frau ohne Namen. Zweiter Teil, cinema poster designed by Jan Tschichold, 1927
1927
143 Post-War Swiss
2008
Swiss Graphics Parody, poster, designed by matthew, 2008
Jan Tschichold promoted the extensive use of the Golden Ratio for layout in his book, The Form of the Book, 1991. This layout mechanism is useful for dividing up the page in a mathematical way which is pleasing to the eye. It is used in many Swiss designs and is found on these two posters as well.
144 Post-War Swiss Top: Norm, by Ernst Mumenthaler and Theo H. Ballmer (L); Sch端zt das Kind!, by Josef M端ller-Brockmann (R) Middle: Postcard, by Jan Tschichold, 1930 Bottom: Talk May Kill, 1942 (L); This Child Found a Blind, 1943 (R), both by Abram Games
145 Post-War Swiss
Top: American Airlines Advertisement, 2005 (L); NYC, poster, 2009 (R) Middle: Jan Tschichold, Master Typographer His life, work and legacy, 2008 Bottom: Brockmann, by matthew, 2008 (L); Translating War into Peace, by Armando Milani, 2005 (R)
The New York School 146 The New York School
The NY style infused humor with advertising, effectively appealing to mass markets. It created a shift in public perception of advertising and interaction with graphic design. Iconic logos including Shell, IBM and UPS follow this style. The New York School elevated products to the forefront of consumers’ minds and targeted new affluent middle class consumers.
Influenced greatly by other modernist movements and designers such as De Stijl and El Lissitzky, the New York School of design drew inspiration from functionality and need. Typography and letterforms became increasingly meaningful as designers such as Herb Lubalin experimented with form. He chose to infuse meaning into the type itself and created a new form of innovative advertising and editorial content. The world of advertising was an expanding business during the 1950s when Madison Avenue in New York became synonymous with the creativity, design and communication involved in selling not only products, but ideas. Although graphic designers were active on both coasts of the US, New York stood out for the sheer amount of work and experimentation, which grew there. New York designers created half of the advertising made within the entire US during the 1950s and 60s. On the west coast, the psychedelic, pop and hippie movements were creating their own graphic identities. Both coasts sought to provide a new way to communicate which did not stand above the viewer or consumer, but walked with them and related. The New York School sits between the edges of modernism and postmodernism, providing a transitory period for designers throughout the world. The agency of Doyle Dane Bernbach led the way in the new form of copyright, filling it with cynicism and irony. This “anti-advertising” fueled the industry and proved popular with consumers who felt a sort of camaraderie with the advertiser. These anti-establishment agencies allowed the consumer to identify and joke with the advertiser on a new level where false intimacy existed. This type of advertising helped spawn the American consumerism of the 1960s. Other notable agencies include Young & Rubicam and Sudler & Hennessey.
147 The New York School
Volkswagen, “Think Small,� advertising campaign, designed by Doyle Dane Bernbach, 1959
148 The New York School Poster for Avant-Garde’s antiwar poster competition, designed by Herb Lubalin, 1967
These agencies took over the role of great communicator to the mass consumer population and designed everything from advertisements, magazines, corporate identity and other forms of visual communication. Designers during this period sought to preserve quality while maintaining a strong sense of expression and independence. At the same time, they sought to provide unique designs and modern graphics that could be assimilated into society and everyday life. However, a shift began during this period when advertisers and designers sought a different purpose. Advertising agencies began to feel the weight of consumerism as they sought to simply sell products, while graphic designers hoped to bring good design into people’s lives as an integral part of their world, regardless of functionality.
Influential Designers Saul Bass, Seymour Chwast, Charles and Ray Eames, Milton Glaser, Armin Hofmann, Raymond Loewy, George Lois, Herb Lubalin, Push Pin Studios, Paul Rand, Reynold Ruffins, Edward Sorel
149 The New York School
A clear distinction between graphic design and advertising design began to formulate at the end of this period and major designers such as Paul Rand even rejected the advertising route, wishing for more creative freedom. This split simply helped to fuel the nonconformist nature of American graphic design, which continued to alter as politically charged events and the visual impact of television changed the way society viewed the world.
Milton Glaser (1929– )
Born in New York in 1929, Milton Glaser eventually became one of the most famous of the American graphic designers. He co-founded Pushpin Graphic Design Studio in New York in 1955 along with Seymour Chwast, Edward Sorel, and Reynold Ruffin. Pushpin was a leading design studio heavily influenced by 19th century Victorian art, Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau and Art Deco. The studio became recognizable for its nonconformist approach to humorous, expressive and lavish designs for book covers, poster, record covers, illustrations and promotional advertisements. Glaser is most famous for a poster he did at Pushpin for Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits album. The psychedelic art movement on the West coast affected Glaser’s style and provided the inspiration for the multi-colored and dramatic hair on the poster. Glaser designed the geometric typeface “Babyteeth” which contrasts with the soft, curving hair and both provide a visual clue to the depth and color of Dylan’s music.
150 The New York School
His other famous works are logos. Glaser’s I Love NY logo is often cited as the most imitated logo in history. It was commissioned by the state of New York in 1976 and Glaser created it with his studio, Milton Glaser, Inc. which he formed in 1974. In 1968, he founded the New York Magazine with Clay Felker to promote art and culture to the city. Other works include the design of the international AIDS symbol for the World Health Organization in 1987 and the logo for Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Angels in America and its sequel, Perestroika. Glaser created his own studio in 1974 called Milton Glaser, Inc. He is the subject of a 2009 documentary film titled To Inform & Delight: The World of Milton Glaser and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama. According to Glaser, “You have to be amazingly consistent and persistent. You have to work like hell. You cannot become an excellent practitioner without constantly working hard all your life.”
151 The New York School
Bob Dylan Poster, designed by Milton Glaser, 1967
Paul Rand (1914–1996) 152 The New York School
Paul Rand was born in Brooklyn, New York and spent his youth attending prestigious design schools like the Pratt Institute, the Parsons School of Design and Art Students League. These schools were almost boring to him, so he turned to magazines such as Gebrauchsgraphik to learn about the works of Cassandre and Moholy-Nagy. Although he is associated with The New York School and some Postmodernism, Rand helped shape the world of Swiss design too. At the age of 23, he began working as art director at Esquire and Apparel Arts, where his combination of modern typography and nineteenth-century engravings earned him a notable reputation. His first major advertising job was a series of cover designs for a culture magazine called Direction. He claimed that by completing this work for free, he could open himself to more honest creativity. The covers for Direction often featured handwritten text and impressive imagery. In 1954, Rand’s design career altered again as he found himself designing corporate logos, the work he is most associated with now. Rand’s work on the logos for IBM, ABC and UPS are internationally recognized. His work on Direction magazine, advertising and corporate identity garnered international acclaim while he was still very young. The graphic designer Louis Danziger said of Rand: “He almost single-handedly convinced business that design was an effective tool. [. . .] Anyone designing in the 1950s and 1960s owed much to Rand, who largely made it possible for us to work. He more than anyone else made the profession reputable. We went from being commercial artists to being graphic designers largely on his merits.” Rand’s influence drew from modernist philosophy and he sought to draw connections between designers of differing styles and the application of those connections to graphic design. In his book, A Designer’s Art, Rand says, “From Impressionism to Pop Art, the commonplace and even the comic strip have become ingredients for the artist’ caldron. What Cézanne did with apples, Picasso with guitars, Leger with machines, Schwitters with rubbish, and Duchamp with urinals makes it clear that revelation does not depend upon grandiose concepts. The problem of the artist is to defamiliarize the ordinary.”
153 The New York School
Direction Magazine, cover, designed by Paul Rand, 1940
154 The New York School
Anatomy of a Murder, movie poster, designed by Saul Bass, 1959
1959
155 The New York School
2009
Precious, movie poster, designed by Ignitious Print, 2009
Saul Bass’s style is well known from his cinema posters in the 1950s and ‘60s. The style is usually quirky, with an element of seriousness. In the poster for the film Precious, the style is reimagined and creates a foreboding atmosphere with the added element of the hand reaching into broken lines of the body.
I Love NY and I Love NY Concept Sketch, designed by Milton Glaser, 1977
1977 156 The New York School
The simple concept sketch above failed to imply or predict the impact this simple visual sign would have on the world in its thousands of recreations and reimaginings for everything from bread tags to pie. This is truly one of the best examples of design infiltrating the mass consumer culture.
157 The New York School
NY Imitations by Andrew Keir and I Love Apple Pie by Adam de la Mare
2010
158 The New York School
No Way Out, movie poster, designed by Paul Rand, 1987
1987
159 The New York School
2002
Catch Me If You Can, movie poster, 2002
The New York School’s style of design aims to connect with the public on a mass-market level. Interesting visuals, bright colors, humor and subjective interpretation are all part of the style, as shown in these two film posters. The audience must decide what the film is about based on the intriguing design.
160 The New York School Top: Stafford Robes, by Paul Rand, 1942 (L); Love, by Peter Max, 1968 (R) Middle: VW Advertisement, by Doyle Dane Bernbach, 1959 Bottom: The Lovin’ Spoonful, by Milton Glaser, 1967 (L); Silence=Death, by Peter Max, 1987 (R)
161 The New York School
Top: Milton Glaser v. Magma Taishi, by Craig McCracken, 2010 (L); Luttropp-Glaser, by Chriss Yoo, 2009(R) Middle: , Defenestration, by Catharine Graff, 2010 Bottom: I Love NY More than Ever, by Milton Glaser, 2001 (L); Bob Dylan, Vanity Fair, 2008 (R)
Postmodernism
Postmodernism glorified the cheapness of consumer culture through the use of humor, wit, patterns and bright colors. It experimented with unconventional materials, historic forms, kitsch motifs, and gaudy colors. Use of industrial materials such as printed glass, celluloid, neon tubes, and zinc-plated sheet-metals were popular and still are to a lesser extent.
Postmodernism refuses to be defined. It can be applied to art, literature, architecture, graphic design and so on and is a playful and less serious approach to communication than that of modernism, which promoted objectivity. At its core, Postmodernism exploits subjective or interpretive meaning, allowing the viewers to decide for themselves what is meant to be. Major designs in this style include works for album covers, magazines and print advertising and use historical references, ornamentation, symbolism, kitsch, wit, irony and diversity.
162 Postmodernism
The philosopher Richard Tarnas describes Postmodernism as unable to “… ulti-mately justify itself any more than can the various metaphysical overviews against which the Postmodern mind has defined itself.” English designer Neville Brody is renowned worldwide for his work with typography. While working as the art director of Fetish magazine in the 1980s, Brody experimented with the combination of visual and architectural elements in design. These experiments later became innovative new precedents when he designed The Face magazine and are widely copied and mimicked today. Brody devised minimal, non-decorative typography for the layout of the magazines he worked with, but later, his typeface design became much more personal and eccentric, allowing personality into the mix. Randall Rothenberg, president and CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, said “Most great design, the sort that helps define or even fashion an era, derives from a particular vision. For this reason, most great design firms tend to die with their founders or evolve into corporate entities more skilled at making money than actually reshaping the visual world.” There are a couple of notable design studios, which refuse to give in to conformity.
163 Postmodernism
The Face Magazine, designed by Neville Brody, 1985
164 Postmodernism The Face Magazine, designed by Neville Brody, 1984
Gert Dumbar and the work of his studio, Studio Dumbar, works without limitations or rules, going so far as to have a division called “Free Spirit.” They have reinvigorated public life similar to how Swiss typography did in the 1950s. Through the use of unconventional and surprising forms, Dumbar was able to influence the visual identity of Holland’s street life, corporate logos, signage and even the color of police cars. This no rules approach to unconventional design is meant to alter perceptions and force people to interpret meaning. The Postmodern approach welcomes this, understanding that semiotics does play a major role in how humans understand life. Rather than catering simply to an objective world view where classic lines and clear communication is king, Postmodernism strives to loosen ties of uniformity and allow people to be individuals and free-thinkers again.
Influential Designers Neville Brody, Gert Dumbar, Nina Fischer, Tobias Frere-Jones, Alessi Michael Graves, Kolja Gruber, Jonathan Hoefler, Sheila Levrant de Bretteville, Barbara Kruger, Javier Mariscal, Pentagram, Rich Poynor, Paula Scher, Ettore Sottsass
165 Postmodernism
Pentagram Design achieves even more. Formed in London in 1972, the studio now works on a global scale. Five influential designers came together to form the original company: Alan Fletcher, Theo Crosby, Colin Forbes, Kenneth Grange and Mervyn Kurlansky. The group operates as a horizontal structure, sharing equally in the work and rewards, in order to encourage and promote each other’ creativity and practice. As the company has altered and designers are replaced, unique collaborations and trendsetting ideas continue to evolve, especially in the face of digital design. Pentagram believes that design is intellectual and visceral, addressing the human psyche and the soul in all its subjectivity.
Paula Scher (1948– )
Paula Scher is known for her work with a number of major companies including CBS Records and Atlantic Records. She has been a member of the New York office of Pentagram since 1991 and prior to that, co-founded her own company, Koppel & Scher. Her work can be found in the NY Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in the United States. She is also a featured interviewee in the documentary film, Helvetica. Scher’s work appeals to consumers with an emotional impact, drawing on historical design styles, artistic practices, pop icons, literature, music and film. She has developed brand identities, promotional materials, packaging design, publication designs and environmental graphics for clients including Citibank, Tiffany’, Coca-Cola, Bloomberg, the Museum of Modern Art, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The New York City Ballet, the United States Holocaust Memorial, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Public Theatre, where she won a Beacon Award for her design strategy.
166 Postmodernism
Scher understands that typography, language and visual design creates another layer of meaning in her works. Therefore, her style is completely unpredictable and eclectic. As a strong-willed woman in a male-dominated industry, Scher is uncompromising. Her Postmodern viewpoint causes her to refuse the watering down of her work by global corporations. In her eyes, will one shade of color bring down a corporation? Is one font truly better than another? Instead, she understands that all design is subjective and good work can only exist if someone is willing to fight for it against conformity and fear. She described her role in the film Helvetica: “I’m one of the anti-Helvetica people. Helvetica, you know what it is? It’s a very clean typeface. The intention of it was that it would create order and everything would always be orderly … when I went to college in the ‘60s it was the language of corporations, corporations that supported the Vietnam War. So I viewed it as the typeface of the Vietnam War, the establishment typeface. So I naturally rebelled against it. I still won’t use it if I don’t have to. It’ a perfectly beautiful type font but I have that association with it.”
167 Postmodernism
Bring in ’Da Noise, Bring in ’Da Funk, The Public Theatre, designed by Paula Scher, 2008
168 Postmodernism
Nike Advertisement, designed by Neville Brody, 1988
1988
169 Postmodernism
2009
Neville Brody Tribute Invitation, designed by Elle Hamilton, 2009
These similar style of chaotic typography in these posters is only perceived as this type is place specifically by the designer to deliver maximum impact. The use of intriguing type layouts helps to draw readers in as they scan for important words and recognize that type and image play together.
The Velvet Underground & Nico, album cover, designed by Andy Warhol, 1967
1967 170 Postmodernism
As with the New York School, Postmodernism aims for humor and connection to the consumer market. The Andy Warhol cover features a banana which peels away to reveal a more salacious banana beneath and the poster at right rings true as the posh pigeons in London do actually do what the poster implies.
171 Postmodernism
FUEL, poster for the London Design Festival, designed by Damon Murray and Stephen Sorrell, 2009
2009
172 Postmodernism
Freedom Space, poster for The Design Museum, designed by Neville Brody, 2009
2009
173 Postmodernism
2009
Piece designed by Craig Ward for The Economist, 2009
In these two examples, the meaning lies within the image itself. Freedom Space suggest that humans are not free from the very organizations that are supposed to protect freedom. The second example promotes the idea of world food through the combination of type, countries and the shape of a plate.
174 Postmodernism Top: The Diva is Dismissed, by Paula Scher, 2008 (L); Knives, by Andy Warhol, 1981 (R) Middle: Untitled, by Barbara Kruger, 1980s (L); Scarborough Fair Coffee, by Lighthouse Ventures, 2007 (R) Bottom: Fucking A, by Paula Scher, 2003
175 Postmodernism
Top: Hero, by Barbara Kruger, 1987 Middle: New French Painting, cover (L), interior (R), by Neville Brody, 1983 Bottom: Kruger Paradoy, by Katerbop, (L); Pro-Choice Public Education Project, by Barbara Kruger (R)
New Wave and Punk
Both styles promoted a return of personal expression and a distinct break from modernism. They were motivated by interest in socio-political reform and the punk rock movement. Mixing of diverse type weights and size, overprinting, cluttered pages, deliberate mistakes, unpredictable references, blurred photographs and the embracing of messiness in design characterize these styles.
In response to the meticulous approach of Swiss design, New Wave sought to further expression and new visual experimentation by rebelling completely against the constructs of previous eras. It is closely related to Postmodernism, but has less effect on corporate identity or public space. Instead, Punk and New Wave focus on underground ideologies and a complete independence from the mainstream.
176 New Wave and Punk
A risky approach to design saw the transition of simple shapes like circles and squares into more playful, surprising and emotional presentations. Wolfgang Weinart, who created the first ripples in New Wave design, wrote that “convincing graphic ideas emerge from an individual temperament rather than from a school of thought.” The basic rule of New Wave is that it should come from pure creativity and feeling for the space, the visual and the message. Often, New Wave can be distinguished due to its strong sense of independence from the mainstream. Grids are unimportant and legibility is only as relevant as the message. What was lost in type legibility could become clear in visual communication. This was aided by the advancement of digital design programs, which allowed many more effects to be placed within the work. The Punk movement thrived on New Wave design and underground groups and those who eschewed professional corporate identities celebrated the new style. Dan Friedman, a noted New Wave designer, left Pentagram because “what [he] realized in the 1970s, when [he] was doing major corporate identity projects, is that design had become a preoccupation with what things look like rather than with what they mean…Modernism forfeited its claim to a moral authority when designers sold it away as corporate style.”
177 New Wave and Punk
Do Not Be Satisfied, designed by David Carson, undated
178 New Wave and Punk Blondie, poster, designed by peacefuljourney, undated
The Punk graphic style is similar to New Wave, but often characterized as separate. It shares a common thread with Dada as both styles sought to portray meaninglessness through anarchic design and chaotic approach. Neville Brody is most associated with this movement, which favored amateur production, collages, high contrast colors, cut out lettering and hand written texts.
Influential Designers Barney Bubbles, David Carson, Malcolm Garrett, April Greiman, Tibor Kalman, Siegfried Odermatt, Jamie Reid, Stefan Sagmeister, Peter Saville, Rosmarie Tissi, Wolfgang Weingart
179 New Wave and Punk
The most well known form of Punk design was made popular with the band the Sex Pistols, whose image was created by Jamie Reid. The album cover for God Save the Queen was awarded the “best record cover ever produced” on March13, 2001 in London for the book 100 Best Record Covers Of All Time. One editor and judge, Andrew Harrison said “The Sex Pistols is the best crystallization of all the excitement rock and roll gives you. It was also probably the first and perhaps the last time something was put on the front cover which collectively shocked a nation.”
David Carson (1952– ) 180 New Wave and Punk
A natural rule breaker, David Carson experimented with typography and the rules of design through the use of desktop publishing programs like QuarkXpress and Pagemaker. His use of overlapping and distorted fonts mixed with photographic images made him one of the most influential designers in the late 1980s and early 90s with his work in numerous skateboarding and surfing magazines. The surf magazine Beach Culture was an active playground for Carson and his team of illustrators including Geof Kern, Marshall Arisman, and Milton Glaser. The first issue in 1990 shocked the public, although the readership was really a mainstream niche audience of surfers. The magazine was confusing, edgy, illegible and sometimes undecipherable. His work resembles a Dada-esque style of chaos and nonconformity. In Beach Culture he changed the order of the pages at random, but kept the original page numbers on each page, creating a jumping inconsistent mix of text and image. Carson’ response for doing this was a simple, “I happened to like it there.” Carson continued this experimentation for other clients including Raygun Magazine, MCI, Ray-Ban, and Jaguar. Based in Zurich, Switzerland, Carson is completely self-taught in design. Carson understands the need to consider the audience while maintaining individuality in design: “I appreciate anyone who is trying something different and speaking in their own unique voice. Design work needs to be personal and subjective to be of interest and value. Anyone can buy the same software and do a reasonable newsletter or business card. But no one can pull from your unique background – upbringing, parents, life experiences and all that. That’ where the really interesting work comes from; also it’ the most rewarding and fun work to do. […] The answer to any design problem is always within the project itself: who’s the audience; what’s the message; what has the client done recently; where will the work be seen or read. All these considerations should send you in some direction.” Carson’s work is still decidedly individual and constantly evolving, though it has been mimicked throughout the years. His mix of capitals and lowercase letters, blurred text and images, overlaid and angled boxes push the limits of graphic design and shatter the objective Modernist grid.
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Beach Culture, magazine, designed by David Carson, 1990s
Tibor Kalman (1949–1999)
Born in Budapest in 1949, Kalman was educated as a journalist and his move to become a designer was serendipitous. After moving to New York City, he began work as a clerk in Barnes & Noble, sometimes helping to arrange window displays. One day the designer called in sick and Kalman did the work himself, eventually becoming Director of Design. In 1979, he began his own design agency, M&Co and later he worked as creative director of Interview beginning in 1990, and as editor-in-chief of Colors. Kalman’s work pushed the boundaries of design, but retained a stance of responsibility and social idealism. He was one of the 33 original signers of the First Things First 2000 manifesto, which is an update on the 1964 version written by British designer, Ken Garland. The Humanist manifesto argues against valuefree design and attempts to persuade designers to consider the work they are creating in terms of political and social elements.
182 New Wave and Punk
His work on Colors took a stance on social problems such as racism and AIDS. In one issue, the magazine published a mock obituary of then-President Ronald Reagan as an AIDS victim with lesions on his face. His provocative designs created a dialogue between consumers, causing some to burn his work and others to rejoice in it. Throughout his career, Kalman continued to provide engaging pieces of graphic design, which challenged the formula of promoting sexual, violent and multicultural images to sell a product and promote conformity. Kalman was a master of public relations and knew how to pique the public interest, actively campaigning through the use of design for social change. When he created a new design for a client, he carefully considered how the design could benefit the client and culture. When asked about his clients, Tibor remarked “We’re not here to give them what’s safe and expedient. We’re not here to help eradicate everything of visual interest from the face of the earth. We’re here to make them think about design that’s dangerous and unpredictable. We’re here to inject art into commerce.”
183 New Wave and Punk
Colors Magazine: Number 7, designed by Tibor Kaman, 1994
Your Body is a Battleground, poster, designed by Barbara Kruger, 1989
1989 184 New Wave and Punk
New Wave seeks to push against the system in a bold and uncompromising way. The Kruger poster is simple in its elements, yet it is extremely effective. The Rise Now poster is shocking through its use of the cherry metaphor. This shock factor is prevalent in New Wave design as a means to attract attention.
185 New Wave and Punk
Rise Now, poster, designed by Design Rebels, 2007
2007
Salmonella Sisters Punk Poster, 1989
1989 186 New Wave and Punk
The punk movement of design resembles Dada in its quest to show the meaninglessness of life and chaos as a viable form of living. In the poster above, layout is not considered and the typography expresses this notion. The book cover, however, is structured to appeal more to modern-day consumers.
187 New Wave and Punk
Instant Litter: Concert Posters from Seattle Punk Culture, designed by Art Chantry, book, 1998
1998
188 New Wave and Punk
God Save the Queen, album cover, The Sex Pistols, designed by Jamie Reid, 1977
1977
189 New Wave and Punk
1994
Punk in Drublic, album cover, NOFX, 1994
Both of these album covers for punk bands promote the idea of rebellion against social constructs. The Queen of England’s image is distorted by type and the girls on the NOFX album are objects of a little boy’s fantasy. The images do more talking than the text in these cases.
190 New Wave and Punk Top: Poster for AIGIA, by Stefan Sagmeister, 1999 (L); Interview Magazine, by Tibor Kalman, 1991 (R) Middle: Rules are Good, by Tibor Kalman, 1983 Bottom: Sid Vicious, 1977 (L); Art Forum Magazine, by Tibor Kalman, 1987 (R)
191 New Wave and Punk
Top: Lou Reed, by Stefan Sagmeister, 1999 (L); Raygun Magazine, by David Carson, 1996 (R) Middle: Deconstructivist Typography, by Cornell Windlin Bottom: Trek, by David Carson, 2003 (L); Punk Rock, by Roseanne Jones, 2009 (R)
Print to Digital
Design trends online change more often than the wind, and slightly less often than my socks. Suleiman Leadbitter
William Morris might be appalled at the digital aspects of twenty-first century graphic design. Far from the line drawings and handwork woodcuts Morris would have created, designers today tend to opt for pixels and computer software. However, this trend towards digital design also embraces varying styles and makes the same visual elements easier to create as classic and modern forms combine. Humans place an inherent emotional value on books as objects. We share them, display them, recommend them. Books are applauded for the enjoyment they provide and even burned for the knowledge they hold. Books carry the weight of cultural records and civilization’s progress and regression.
192 Print to Digital
What place can e-readers and smartphones hold in this atmosphere? Does technology detract from the sense of attachment we feel to books or is it the words and ideas that really attract us? Is the sense of personal ownership stronger with a print book than an e-book? As a platform for shared knowledge and the possibility for technology to incorporate movies, sounds and interactive features within e-readers, the future looks bright for e-books despite the lack of collectability and complete ownership. E-readers will not provide future bibliophiles with rare books to collect or covet, but they may help children read more and learn to engage with the text in a new way or allow students to experience learning on a new interactive level.
It is estimated that for half of all published book titles only 250 copies are sold per year. Some books sell just a few copies. In 2007, only 70,000 titles sold seven copies or more through one major wholesaler. No matter how many incredible cover designs and posters and AI sheets are sent out, there is no doubt that an enormous amount of work goes into writing, creating, producing, and selling these books. Publishers are trying to stay afloat in a world caught between print and digital, unsure of what the consumers want and finding it difficult to protect their copyright. Of course publishers want to provide as much information to consumers as possible, hence the amount of print books published. Penguin itself came into being in the 1920s when Allen Lane could not find a suitable book to read on a train platform. His idea to create affordable paperbacks for the mass of consumers revolutionized the publishing industry. Will e-books do the same? After all, the physical object is not the only element of value found in print. Words, ideas, stories and other content is what must be delivered to the reader, whether in print or digital. The design of a book’s size, weight, paper, ink and so on cannot be replicated with an e-book, but the design still exists. The typography, layout, embedded links, and even the jacket cover play a role. So the question again depends on what consumers want and it seems split. Some will only read a print book, others an e-book or mobile download. This is one of the most important steps in the publishing process: choosing the format to deliver content. Publishers are no longer publishers; publishers must be information service providers.
Definite content, on the other hand, includes charts, graphs, and images. Poetry and choose-your-own-ending books also fall under the definite content umbrella. Author Mark Z. Danielewski has written and created books which are impossible to digitize due to the definite content, which requires readers to constantly manoeuvre the books in interesting ways. His first novel, The House of Leaves, requires the reader to turn the book sideways, upside down, backwards and forwards as the characters in the story transcend into multiple dimensions and zones of experience. His novel, Only Revolutions, requires readers to switch between two stories which begin at opposite ends of the book.
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There are two types of content: formless and definite. Formless content exists on the idea that the content can be reflowed into new formats easily. This type of content comprises mainly trade novels and books. Some publishers argue that the first books that will be lost in the transition or rather, combination, of print and digital will be the books with formless content: holiday, supermarket, and airport paperbacks.
Where formless content fails, definite content succeeds by embracing the page definitions and limitations of a book. The technological advancement of e-readers, most notably the Amazon Kindle and Apple iPad, excels at displaying formless content, while mobile devices such as the iPhone give long texts legibility in a small space. The services provided to readers through e-readers and digital content platforms are increasing as well. Bookmarking, highlighting, back-lit screens, searching and notes increase the quality of reading, while the meaning of content remains intact.
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So publishers can either stop printing formless content and only focus on definite content or they can provide some combination of the two across both platforms. The Apple iPad provides a background for this combination more than the Kindle or Barnes and Noble Nook or even the iPhone, which only display text. The iPad heralds a new era of Digital Publishing (2.0) which combines the intimacy of a print book with incredible readability and versatile layouts and graphics. However, it still doesn’t provide the warm feeling of holding a rare book or owning something which can be shared easily. It still has the same problems of distribution and marketing and price that other e-readers experience. But that is all changing as more and more people begin burying devices and downloading applications for their phones. The technology has advanced to a degree that new formats will be seen on the digital landscape. Print books require a two-page spread, although sometimes oversized to include fold-outs. Does this mean that digital devices are also required to follow this formula? The design of new digital formats is changing and there are limitless possibilities for layout and how readers interact with content. These interactions are not confined to e-readers and mobile devices, but may be extended to the Internet. Web presence is a crucial marketing tool for publishers as they rely on websites to alert new job openings, author news, forthcoming publications and company business. Recently publishers have also embraced social media sites as a viable form of marketing and consumer relations. Digital design platforms such as Freeway, Dreamweaver and GoLive provide the means for anyone to become a graphic web designer in the same way that Adobe Photoshop and InDesign do for images and layouts. These software programs often provide a “what you see is what you get” (WYSIWIG) base which allows novice designers or marketers to create interesting designs. David Carson freely admits to having no formal design training although he pioneered radical design layouts and use of typography through his magazine work. Now he designs for Microsoft and Giorgio Armani. It’s not unusual for students or anyone with a creative slant to play around in the digital world and call themselves a designer. In fact, this low-key approach to design is actually
beneficial to those with a rudimentary knowledge of design software and communication who may be accepted as designers without the formal training. Understanding the foundations of design, its transition through time and its applications to modern visual communication allows more inspiration and freedom to experiment and students and marketers should use this to their advantage when marketing books in the digital age. The digital implications on publishing are difficult to predict, but the advancement of technology will enable readers and publishers to engage on entirely new levels. Within the business, editors will have an increased role in content creation and production teams will be required to examine all possible formats. Archived material must be kept up-to-date as the same content may be needed across new platforms and marketers must implement effective plans which include the Internet and smartphones. Consumers must be reached through the channels they willingly access for marketing and distribution.
The iPad
195 Print to Digital
Although the future is unclear for digital and print design, it is important to include the digital aspect in any publishing timeline. Just as and Mucha’s Gismonda poster shocked the world with its curving lines and Dada revolutionized social thought post-WWI, digital design heralds a new era for publishers and consumers alike.
Standard Paper Sizes
The International Standard (ISO) paper sizes A and B are most widely used throughout the world. The USA and Canada are exceptions to this, using the Letter, Legal and Executive system of paper. In the USA and Europe excluding the UK, the dimension is also given as width to height. In the UK, it is height to width. For ISO, the format ratio is 1:1.41 or 1√2. This results in two sheets having the same ratio when placed next to each other sideways and simplifies enlarging or shrinking of documents.
196 Standard Paper Sizes
In the UK, AO paper is based on a size that initially covers one square meter and measures 841 x 1189 mm (33 1/8 in x 46 ¾ in). When cut in half, it produces an A1 sheet (841 mm x 594 mm or 33 1/8 x 23 3/8 in). The A1 can then be cut in half to produce A2 (420mm x 594 mm or 16 ½ in x 23 3/8 in) and the process continues. A4 is the standard letter-size sheet and measures 210 mm x 297 mm (8 ¼ in x 11 ¾ in). There are two other UK standard print sizes: B and C formats. A BO sheet is 1000 x 1414 mm (39 3/8 x 55 5/8 in). This is cut in half to produce B1 (1000 x 707 mm or 39 3/8 x 27 7/8 in.) and so on. A CO sheet is 917 x 1297 mm (36 1/8 x 51 in) and is cut in half to provide a C1 sheet (917 x 648 mm or 36 1/8 x 25 ½ in). The UK weight measurement is gsm – grams per square meter. The USA uses a much more complicated system of paper sizes comprised of text (book) papers, cover stocks and bond, writing and ledger papers. Sizes are measured in inches and weight is determined not by gsm but by the pounds one ream (500 sheets) weighs. The standard US letter size is 8.5 x 11 inches.
Printers typically print on a size large page than what the final document will be. This allows room for crop marks, printer’s marks and registration marks.
197 Standard Paper Sizes
AO Paper Sizes
When planning to order or use paper, it is important to consider the environment. The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) logo ensures certification, which proves that the paper comes from an environmentally sustainable-forested area.
Standard Book Sizes
Images and text are printed on full sheets of paper at the printer’s before the paper is folded in sections. This folding always leaves an even number of sheets, which means that page count or extent (including blank pages) of a book is always divisible by 4, 8, 16 and so on. The edges are then cut off the sections and the book will be ready to bind. The final size of the trimmed book is typically ¼ inch smaller than the hardback binding. For paperbacks, the final size of the trimmed pages equals that of the cover. The trim is 1/8 inch off the head and tail (top and bottom) of a book block of pages.
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The following sizes represent traditional British book sizes. To illustrate how the books are created, three major formats are considered. Examine the chart for more information. Folio (abbreviated 2° or Fo) Folio is a book size made up of one of more full sheets of paper where four pages were printed. The paper is then folded to produce two leaves, so each leaf of a folio represents one half of the original sheet. Extra folio sheets may be inserted and gathered prior to binding. The Gutenberg Bible is a folio. This format is approximately 15 inches tall by 12 inches wide or 38.2 x 30.5 centimeters.
Quarto (abbreviated 4째 or 4to) The quarto size consists of one or more sheets of paper on which 8 pages of text are printed. The paper is then folded to produce four leaves, so each leaf represents one fourth of the original sheet. The format is approximately 12 inches tall by 9.5 inches wide or 30.5 x 24.15 centimeters. Octavo (abbreviated 8째 or 8vo) An Octavo book is made up of 16 pages printed on one full sheet of paper. The paper is then folded three times to produce eight leaves with each leaf representing one eighth of the original sheet. The format is approximately nine inches tall by six inches wide or 22.8 x 15.25 centimeters. Other book formats include Twelvemo, Sixteenmo, Eighteenmo, Twentyfourmo, Thirty-twomo and Sixty-fourmo. The number in the name refers to the amount of leaves gained from the folding. The number of pages is always double this number. For example, the Eighteenmo size (abbreviated 18째 or 18mo) has 18 leaves and 36 pages.
Verso Page
The left hand page of a book will always contain even numbers and is known as the verso.
Recto Page
The right hand page of a book will always contain odd numbers and is known as the recto.
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16
13
4
8
9
12
5
2
15
14
3
7
10
11
6
200 Standard Book Sizes
Side B
Side A
1
Take a piece of paper and fold it in half (side-to-side). Then fold it top-tobottom and side-to-side again. Keeping the fold on the left, begin numbering each page as if it were a book, numbers one through sixteen. Now open the folded paper. The result should be the same as what is printed above and this reflects how a book may be created out of one sheet of paper and then trimmed to complete a 16-page section. For longer page extents, multiple sections are then bound together to create the final product.
Imperial
(approximate inches)
Metric (approximate millimeters)
Imperial folio
15 ½ x 22
390 x 550
Royal folio
12 ½ x 20
320 x 500
Imperial quarto
11 x 15
280 x 300
Crown folio
10 x 15
250 x 300
Royal quarto
10 x 12 ½
250 x 320
Medium quarto
9 ½ x 12
240 x 300
Demy quarto
8 ¾ x 11 ¼
220 x 290
Foolscap folio
8 ½ x 13 ½
210 x 340
Imperial octavo
7 ½ x11
190 x 280
Crown quarto
7 ½ x 10
190 x 250
Foolscap quarto
6¾x8½
170 x 210
Royal octavo
6 ¼ x 10
150 x 250
Medium octavo
6x9½
150 x 240
Demy octavo
5 5/8 x 8 ¾
143 x 222
Large crown octavo
5¼x8
129 x 198
Crown octavo
5x7½
127 x 190
Foolscap octavo
4¼x6¾
108 x 171.5
“A” format
4 ¼ x 6 7/8
111 x 175
“B” format
5 ¼ x 7 7/8
130 x 198
“C” format
5¼x8½
135 x 216 201 Standard Book Sizes
Name
Images
An image in design is considered a two-dimensional visualization of an object or idea and can be created through photography or illustration. Photography Analogue – photographed using a non-digital camera that uses film or slides. Digital – digital cameras create digital files, which are more easily shared and edited on computers.
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Illustration Analogue – drawing, painting, etching, carving, collages, sketching, etc. Illustrations may combine with photographs and created elements. Digital – Use of image-creating software yields endless amounts of digital tools to create an illustration. Raster Digital photos, scanned and other computer-generated illustrations are rasteror pixel-based. Pixel-based images function like mosaics, and use many different colored squares to comprise the image. Small mosaic pieces are considered high resolution, while bigger squares are low resolution (and take up less disc space). Image resolution is extremely important for the look of your work. Ideally, you should use a high-resolution image of no less than 300 dpi (dots per inch) in actual size. When you have a small picture that you want to increase in size, your initial image must be at least five times 300 dpi (1500dpi).
A megapixel equals 1 million pixels. Digital cameras are created and sold with specific capacities for capturing megapixels. A camera that is capable of capturing 3 Megapixels can therefore detect 2048x1536 pixels. This results in an image of 300 dpi or about 17x13 cm.
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Vector Based on mathematical equations. Relative distances between points and equations describe curves or angles in an x/y graph and are used to create shapes and determine colors. Vector based images do not rely on pixels, so the file sizes and image quality will always remain the same. These are easily edited images and it is always possible to bitmap or raster the image for use.
Typography
Typography has one plain duty before it, and that is to convey information in writing. No argument or consideration can absolve typography from this duty. A printed work which cannot be read becomes a product without a purpose.
Emil Ruder
Typefaces (fonts) are a collection of letters, numerals, punctuation marks and symbols. There are varying groups of typefaces, which may be important to know for the look of your work. For example, using an Old Style typeface for a headline or text on a poster may help present the look of the work in the style of Art of Crafts. A Realist type may suggest Swiss style and Geometric may even work for an Art Deco layout. Web pages and blogs tend to display Verdana and Georgia because of the clarity and legibility they provide. Old Style Appeared in the 15th century. They feature a diagonal stress (serif), subtle thick and thin line differences and excellent readability. Garamond, Bembo, Goudy Old Style, Palatine
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Transitional Also called Baroque. These typefaces appeared in the mid-18th century. Differences between thick and thin lines are more obvious and serifs are more constructed than scripted. Times, Baskerville Modern Modern serif types appeared in late 1700s and feature extreme thick and thin line contrast. They appear upright and have long, fine serifs. Moderns are less readable than other serif fonts. Bodoni, Century Schoolbook
205 Typography
Typographic Elements and Spacing and Kerning from the book How to look good in print: colors, typography and images by Stefanie Steiger, 2009
Slab Serif Also known as Egyptian. Created around 1800, slab serifs are thicker along with the vertical lines, giving a heavy slab feeling. Serifs are joined at an angle and there is less variation between thick and thin. Clarendon, Rockwell and Courier Realist Sans serif appeared just before 1900. It is straight in appearance with less line width variation and lacks any real character. Therefore, they are the most used typefaces. Akzidenz Grotesk, Helvetica, Arial, Univers Humanist Sans serif typefaces appeared in the 1920s. They are calligraphic in nature with more readability and variation in line widths than other sans serif fonts. Gill Sans, Frutiger, Optima Geometric Popular in the 1970s and based on geometric shapes, the letter o is a perfect circle in these fonts. They are modern but less useful for body text. Futura, Avant Garde, Century Gothic Script Script fonts range from formal to a casual handwritten look. Zapfino, Ribbon, Mistral
206 Typography
Blackletter This is a script used from 1150 to 1500. It features a fractured look with calligraphic, narrow letters formed by sharp, straight lines. Scwabacher, Fraktur, Lucida Blackletter Points and sizes Measurement of typefaces is done with points or millimeters. A point is the smallest measure defined as 1/72 of an inch (25.4 mm) or approximately .0139 inches or .3528 mm. Twelve points make up one pica and six picas make up one inch. Specifically, points measure font sizes, leading and line widths, while other measurements are done in millimeters. The rule for writing points and picas is this: “p� means point, with the number following being a pica. So, 1p2 equals 1 point and 2 picas (14 points total). The point refers to the caps height of the font. The size of a typeface including ascenders and descenders is actually much bigger.
JPEG Joint photographic experts group *.jpg or *.jpeg These files are generally based on a lossy compression (discards information visible to the human eye and dulls the image when repeatedly saved). JPEG supports 24-bits per color (RGB) and produces small file sizes. These can be compressed in a range of qualities. It is not recommended to save an image as a jpeg if it will be edited in the future. EPS Encapsulated postscript *.eps or *.epsf These are Adobe PostScript documents that describe a raster picture, vector drawing or text. They can be placed within any other PostScript document. Programs which can not interpret EPS files on screen will show an empty box, while the file will be printed correctly with the image or text.
207 File Formats
File Formats
TIFF Tagged image file format *.tif or *.tiff This saves image information with up to 48-bits per color (RGB) and in a variety of color spaces (CMYK, RGB, Duo-tone with special colors). This is a photograph file standard in printing, but is not supported by web browsers. Saving as a tiff file allows you to include transparent backgrounds behind images.
GIF Graphics interchange format *.gif This file is suitable for web design and should not be used for press. File compression, transparency, interlacing and storing multiple images within one file allow for some animation. The gif format can only contain 256 color in RGB, making it unrefined for print. BMP Bitmap or DIB file format *.bmp Everything that can be done with BMP can be done with TIFF and EPS. BMP, however, only contains 24-bit color in RGB, so this is not suitable for print. PDF Portable document format *.pdf This is a file format which does not rely on application software, hardware or operating system. It is extremely versatile and can contain text, fonts, images and 2-D vector graphics. These are used to hand over an entire document, regardless of page numbers, with a variety of settings on resolution, color, crop marks, etc. There are two types of file compression: lossless and lossy. Lossless includes some .tif and LZW compression. It reduces file size without losing quality. Lossy compresses files more than lossless, but results in less quality over time if the image is re-edited multiple times.
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Resolutions must match what the printer requires. High resolution is great for versatility but it creates a much larger file size so many designers do mock-ups with low resolution images before incorporating high res images. 300 dpi or more: magazines, high-quality brochures, business cards, photos, glossy material 100 to 200 dpi: newsprint, tabloids, media that consumes a lot of ink 72 dpi : web and screen design such as e-mails, pop-up boxes, etc.
Digital images operate with 8-bit images in general with three colors (RGB). This means that 8-bit and 24-bit are the same (3 x 8 = 24). 16-bit images can handle 65,536 levels compared to the 256 of an 8-bit image. So, where 8-bit is actually 24-bit, 16-bi is actually 48-bit based on three colors (3 x 16 = 48). 48-bit images are capable of millions of color combinations and are easier to edit accurately than when using a low bit image. Of course, file sizes are much bigger the more bits are uses and they require more time to edit. Color Systems Pantone The Pantone Matching System (PMS) allows for accurate color matching through the use of specially mixed spot colors. The Pantone system contains thousands of colors including metallics, fluorescents, skin tones, white and pastels. This is a global system which proves extremely useful, especially when collaborating with other designers or using a printer in a different location. All you have to do is acquire the Pantone color book, select the color you want and then enter the CMYK values into your desktop publishing software like Photoshop. The final print color will then match that in the Pantone book as much as possible.
209 Color
Color
A bit is the smallest unit of digital information. The more bits included in a pixel, the more colors are able to display. Eight bits equals one byte, so a byte can represent 256 different colors.
Hexachrome Hexa equals six and chroma refers to saturation/color. This method was also created by Pantone to produce vibrant colors of purple, green, orange and flesh tones. It is a six-color reproduction method that adds orange and green to standard CMYK process colors. You must obtain a patent from Pantone to use this system. Hexachrome reproduce approximately 90% of all PMS colors. CMYK This is the standard four-color process used in printing and is comprised of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. The K is used instead of B to differentiate black from blue. Black is also know as the “key” color, hence the “K.” CMYK can reproduce 50% of PMS colors. RGB The three primary colors of red, green and blue create white light together. This is the method of color projection used on television, projector and Internet screens and is often used in designer’s work because RGB files are smaller in size than CMYK. These colors are then converted to CMYK for print/production unless the designer is designing for web or digital use, in which case the color scheme should remain RGB. Lab Lab describes all the colors visible to the human eye and is represented by three parameters: lightness of the color, its position between magenta and green and its position between yellow and blue. L=0 is black. L=100 is white. Between magenta and green, the negative values are magenta while positive are blue. Within yellow and blue, the negative values are blue and positive are yellow.
210 Color
Black and white This is the cheapest method of printing because only one color (black) is used. If you have a choice to print in CMYK any black and white images, it is recommended as it adds depth by mixing the colours to create shadows. Color Scheme This is the palette of colors used to create a certain mood for the project. How does a specific color make you feel? There are an infinite number of colors and color schemes are made up of all seven primary colors (ROYGBIV) plus varying shades of black and white. Colors can express specific ideas or moods or recreate a specific time period.
Hexachrome
CMYK
RGB
The primary colors of yellow, magenta and cyan mix to create other colors, called secondary colors. If a secondary color is mixed with a primary color, then a tertiary color is created. Adding white, black or gray then turns these color combinations into tints, shades of tones, depending on the additive.
211 Color
The Color Wheel
It is easier to choose a background color first as this will influence the impact of the main and accent colors. Contrasting shades create visual focus and call for attention. Colors in the same hue with varying amounts of black or white create harmony. Pastels look relaxed and well-balanced and may be used with dull colors (fresh look) or dark colors (more impact). Dark colors and dull ones look elegant, if somber. Vibrant colors look bright and powerful but when combined with pastels, the scheme may look gaudy. Vivid colors combined dark colors, however, can work very well. Examples of Text and Color Use Black on Yellow is good for signs and distance reading Black on white is best choice for long text read up close. Negative text (white on black) is easier on the eye for on-screen presentations or projections. Red text on white feels overused and people tend to ignore it. The more colorful text is, the less serious it is taken. The lower the contrast between text and background, the less legible it becomes.
212 Color
Regardless of which color is used, legibility is key to presenting a viable idea or message. Do not let design get in the way of communication! It is important to remember that most printers will require your work to be provided in CMYK format. You may have to convert your work from RGB. Either way, your computer monitor will only display your work using RGB because this system is light-based. It is important to request a proof copy of the printed product to test the printing yourself because what appears in print may not be exactly what is seen on the computer screen.
Fibonacci Sequence Leonardo Fibonacci discovered this sequence of numbers in the 12th century. It is the mathematical relationship behind phi (used in the Golden Ratio). Starting with 0 and 1, each new number in the series is the sum of the two before it: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144… The ratio of each successive pair of numbers approximates phi. Column widths and picture sizes are often created based on this principle. Golden Ratio Also called the golden section or divine proportion. Commonly expressed as the mathematical constant “φ” – phi. The golden ratio can be derived when a line segment or rectangle is divided where A is to be as B is to C (when A=1.618… x B and B=1.618… x C) Jan Tschichold recognized the importance of proper layouts and grids: “There was a time when deviations from the truly beautiful page proportions 2:3, 1:√3 and the Golden Ratio were rare. Many books produced between 1550 and 1770 show these proportions exactly, to within half a millimeter.”
213 Page Layouts and Grid Systems
Page Layouts and Grid Systems
Design is the application of intent - the opposite of happenstance, and an antidote to accident. Robert L. Peters
Rule of Thirds Simplified version of the Golden Ratio. The objective is to prevent focal points from cutting the page into halves by placing objects or images near the potential dividing lines for columns. Rule of Odds Odd numbers are more interesting than even. Three objects are best. An even number can produce symmetry which is mundane and static.
214 Page Layouts and Grid Systems
Grids A grid is a set of guidelines to place images or text within. It is usually invisible to the audience, but is flexible for the designer. The eye craves order and grids provide it, even though they may not appear to the visual consumer. Templates, however, are different than grids. They provide a less flexible layout approach and are useful if you have less modification of background elements. Templates are useful for documents such as Advanced Information Sheets when multiple sheets for books within the same series must be created. Templates can help establish publisher or product brand.
215
The Golden Ratio applied to a Swiss Air poster designed by Manfred Bingler, image created by Adams Morioka, Inc, 2010
Marketing Materials
Don’t design for everyone. It’s impossible. All you end up doing is designing something that makes everyone unhappy. Leisa Reichelt
Every target market must be reached through the use of tactical marketing: events, websites, book covers, dump bins, etc. These strategies require written and visual communication, covered in this section.
216 Marketing Materials
There are three categories of tactics: highly personal and interactive, segmented and moderately interactive and mass-produced mass media. Highly personal and interactive The basis for this type of tactic is the power of personal and interactive communication. Opinion leaders and peers have personal influence on target markets, especially in a given community that they belong to. This type is marketspecific, creative and personalized as it engenders interactivity to build strong relationships, opinions and cooperation while providing personal commitment and stimulus for action. Facebook marketing for books such as Suzanne Collin’s The Hunger Games where the main character, Katniss Everdeen, maintains her own profile or Scholastic’s “We Are Writers” which promotes reading and writing among children are both examples of interactive and personal marketing. Segmented and moderately interactive This category is not as personal but provides highly targeted messages to much larger target markets. Newsletters and self-created magazines are just two channels that reach a certain market on a larger scale than interactive personal communication. The segmented interactive tactic sometimes even establishes a channel specifically designed for a market, such as a web blog. Typically, this category is more interactive than mass media channels, because the target audience is an interest group and may be more responsive in publication surveys
and feedback. Internet ads and pop-ups can also be included in this category, although the fundamental basis of a relationship is trust and sometimes these tactics can simply be annoying. Newsletters from publishers such as Penguin and Dorling Kindersley provide prizes and competitions to readers, engaging in a moderately interactive approach. More recently, Web sites have become the first organizational point of contact for all publics because they are easy to find and most information is located there. Web sites should be mapped out and carefully planned to communicate with target markets the frequently asked questions (FAQ), organizational history, program information, self-interests, needs and contact. Mass-produced mass media It is important to note that when using mass media channels, you cannot control the placement of the story, but you can use communication tools to build relationships with the media and trust with the consumers. The difference between controlled and uncontrolled media is simple. Controlled media is directly handled by the company or organization, while uncontrolled media passes through a gatekeeper. Most paid advertising is controlled media, while public relations tools are predominantly uncontrolled. Marketing is fairly controlled, but publicity is not. Controlled media includes advanced information, blurbs, fliers, advertisements, PSAs and brochures. Uncontrolled media generally goes through an approval process before publication and includes press releases, free PSAs and interviews. The main example of mass marketing is the book cover, which is displayed, critiqued, admired, awarded and even ignored by the public. It is controlled in its production, but whatever effect it has competing in bookshops and online is entirely up to its visual and textual content.
217 Marketing Materials
Electronic and print media both disseminate information which allow broad coverage to multiple groups. Mass distribution of messages usually gains more visibility and acknowledgement, which provides the organization with credibility, immediacy and strong impact.
Writing Copy
Design is in everything we make, but it’s also between those things. It’s a mix of craft, science, storytelling, propaganda, and philosophy. Erik Adigard
Effective copywriting can sell a product if it is aimed at a specific market and delivers a promise the customer desires.
218 Writing Copy
Emil Ruder was only one designer who created a manual of design based on Typography, the vehicle for copy writing. Others include Jan Tschichold and El Lissitzky. Ruder addresses legibility and interpretation of copy and type: “A line of more than 60 characters is hard to read; too little space between lines destroys the pattern they make, too much exaggerates it… With an enormous range of typefaces available, thin or thick, large or small, [modern typography] is a question of selecting the right one, composing the copy with these faces and interpreting it… Unlike the Renaissance, when the unprinted blank was merely a background for what was printed thereon, contemporary typographers have long recognized the empty space of the unprinted surface to be an element of design… And in the twentieth century in particular, artists have again become alive to the significance and power of rhythm in design.” However, despite these conventions and the choices available concerning typeface and visual communication, there is only one rule, which should matter right now: rules count for nothing. All of the historical design styles introduced in the first half of this book demonstrate the changing face of design and the development and evolution of dynamic communication through the consistent breaking of rules. Writing copy is no different. Advertisements and marketing tools are meant to appeal to emotions and needs, rather than the pure intellect. This means that sentences do not always have to be perfectly grammatical, punctuation is not always in place. You have to write for the audience. Is this a press release going to a major news outlet? If so, then use correct punctuation
and follow style guidelines. Is this a poster meant to appeal to undergraduate students in a bookshop? They will only glance at the poster, so attract attention. Make it memorable. Do not get caught up with rules. A great way to start writing is to create an outline of all the information needed for the particular tool you want to use: press release, fact sheet, brochure, poster and so on. Copy outlines provide the specific details of the communication piece to make sure it fits the overall objective for the target market(s) and that all the important information is included. The copy outline begins by identifying the target market, then stating the desired action and identifying the public’s self-interest as part of the appeal. The primary and secondary messages should be specific enough that another person can use the copy outline and edit and produce the communication tool without much other information.
Target markets (audience): Secondary markets (audiences) if any: Action desired from market(s): Issue: Primary messages (2 to 5 short statements/selling points to be conveyed): Secondary messages (bulleted supporting data, facts, cases, testimonials, etc): 1. Primary Message: a. Secondary Message: 2. Primary Message: a. Secondary: 3. Primary Message: a. Secondary: Influentials (third-party opinion leaders who may influence the target market): How they will be used to influence target markets (testimonials, examples, etc): Backgrounder/brief history of the title/event: Photos/graphics (if any) and how used: Method and timing of distribution (Internet, mail, fax, etc.): Follow-up (if any): Timeline/deadline:
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Example Copy Outline to be used for marketing materials
Dates, times of events, contact information and statistics should be included when needed. Ironically, the most frequently omitted detail in the communication tool (the call to action) is the information that provides a way for the public to do what you have asked them to do. This call could be a phone number, Web site, e-mail address or further instructions. Photographs and images should be included and described in specific detail how they will inform, persuade or motivate the public to action. Of course, this is a time consuming process and one that many marketers do not have time for. Still, it is important to remember the elements which make up good communication and to refer to them. Think of the copy outline as a checklist and make sure the intended audience can recognize the key points. Some acronyms which may prove useful in writing copy have been around for years as techniques for remembering communication ideas and theory. AIDCA Attract the reader’s attention with a headline, photograph, color, layout, message, slogan and so on. Interest the reader once you have their attention. Develop the text so it is as interesting as the headline or the attractive feature of the work. Explain the features and benefits of the product and use subheadings so readers may skim the text easily. Desire should be created through communication. Convince the reader that they need the product you are marketing. Has it received great reviews, will it make their life easier, are stocks limited?
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Conviction deals with proof. Show the reader that what you say is true through the use of reviews, quotes, testimonials, background information, sales and company guarantees. Action should be explicit. This is the call to action you want every reader to do. Give them options: a telephone number, a fax machine, a web site, an event, freepost, full refund if not satisfied. What is the publication date? Where will the product be sold? USP Unique Selling Points are essential marketing material for every new product. Begun in the 1950s by the elevated and competitive position of advertisers,
USP provide a product identity. What makes this product different from its competitors? Today, many products simply replicate their competitors and offer a lower price value for the money. Instead of appealing because a product is different, it now appeals because it offers a slight edge over the competition, whether financially or emotionally. This does not discount the idea of a USP though. Every product has some differentiating factor, which can be used to sell it, whether it be the author, a trusted brand or simply a lower price. FAB Features and Benefits fill the interest and desire contents of AIDCA. It may be obvious what a product can do and what it provides, but what are the benefits of owning such a product? What is the feature of an alarm clock? It wakes you up. What is the benefit? You are not late for work or class. You can manage your time effectively. The feature is a factual statement about a product. The benefit answers the question “what’s in it for me?” Ask yourself “so what?” So what about the feature? What are the features of a cookbook? It is four-color, coated paper and has a spiral binding. So what? It will lay flat while you cook and the colors help to differentiate sections of the book to make navigation easier. The coated paper will be easier to clean from food mess in the kitchen.
Remember that copywriting is a form of design in itself. Readers of an advertisement will look at the headline first and then the bottom of the page to see the advertiser. The design of the page must lead the eye to the correct spots, catching the reader’s attention and holding it. The following marketing materials are prevalent in the publishing world and should maintain clear communication with the intended audience, whether consumer, wholesaler, sales rep, distributor or media. KISS This one was mentioned earlier and simply means: Keep it simple, stupid. Clear communication is key.
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So what? The recipes are easy to prepare making your preparation time easier and providing a delicious meal for your family or guests.
222 Writing Copy KISS, designed by Bradon Schaefer, 2009
These sheets are designed to sell. However, the editorial department tends to draft them, while marketing simply proofs. In smaller companies, the marketing team may do all of the AI creation, printing and mailing. The language of the AI should be simple enough for someone with no previous knowledge of the subject to understand. It should be clear and concise, listing selling points and describing the content, possibly with the help of bullet points.
223 Advance Information Sheet
Advance Information Sheet
The Advance Information (AI) sheet alerts sales representatives, booksellers wholesalers and anyone else interested in forthcoming titles or publications. It is also sometimes called an Advance Title Information (ATI) sheet. The AI should be completed four to six months in advance of publication and printed on one A4 sheet of paper, using both sides if necessary. Sometimes AIs are even completed nine months to a year in advance so that the information may be uploaded to a distributor’s site and marketing may be planned. This is especially important for seasonal publications such as calendars, diaries and school textbooks.
The AI should contain:
224 Advance Information Sheet
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
The publisher’s logo Title and subtitle Author, editor, illustrator Publication date Recommended retail price (RRP) ISBN Page Extent Number and type of illustrations Format and Binding Language What rights are allowed Intended readership The publisher’s contact information A list of the table of contents Selling points Planned marketing and promotion A short blurb Brief author biography including previous titles Reviews and recommendations Cover image Book Industry Communication’s (BIC) code, in the UK
They feature information about a new product or service and are written in the style of a press release. A disclaimer may be included in the ad, but often it is left out, enhancing the “authenticity� of the piece. Usually, advertorials can be spotted because they are not designed to blend in to the publication where they are placed. The font may be different or the paper color or even the writing style. Some publications may print the story for free rather than as an advertorial if it is pitched correctly. Press releases, feature stories and book reviews carry more weight than advertorials and do not cost the publisher any advertising money. However, there is no guarantee that mailing a review copy of a new publication or a press release will result in any coverage, so some publishers choose to pay for the advertorial anyway.
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Advertorial
Advertorials are advertisements, which mask as editorial pieces in newspapers and magazines. They are often misunderstood and can be tricky to create without losing the trust of your buyers. Readers generally give more credit to editorial content than to paid-for advertising where companies aim to sell or persuade. Advertorials are written as objective opinions and may actually convince unsuspecting readers that the newspaper, journalist or reviewer supports and recommends the publisher’s product.
Backgrounder
Backgrounders provide facts on people, places or products. These three to four page narrative or bullet-pointed documents act as a strong basis for press releases, speeches, interviews and other marketing materials, but they are not the place to sell an organization’s philosophy or mission. They simply present the facts about how the organization was founded, who created it, what the organization does and so on. It is essentially the “About Us” web tab in print form. Often, backgrounders are masked as feature stories, biographies, fact sheets and information sheets. They are invaluable resources for media and journalists who may want to write stories, use press releases or cover events. Backgrounders should succinctly state what has come before, what the current facts are and what can be done.
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Well-researched, clearly written backgrounders can become a source for planning and have other uses as well: • Educating various audiences • Entertaining various audiences • Giving information for features, newsletters, flyers, brochures, speeches, press releases, media kits, proposals and more • Giving information to media for stories • Giving information to organizational leaders, marketing staff and other representatives • Helping with strategic planning
There are three key types of the backgrounder: biographies, basic fact statements and fact sheets and features. • Biographies are backgrounders about people. Any format can be used for a biography: fact sheet, chronological data sheet, narrative story or long feature. • Biographies can be sent to media or placed on an organizational Web site to allow the public and the media to easily access the information. • Fact sheets provide basic information in preparation of interviews or speeches and should be narrowed down to the key information and messages. • Feature backgrounders are the most in-depth and lengthy because they go beyond the who, what, when and where of a story. This particular type of backgrounder also allows the writer to give the organization or people a multidimensional profile. Backgrounders should begin with the most important and relevant information leading the story. Technical, scientific and statistical data should be explained in terms that the public can understand. Information graphics like charts and graphs require five elements to gain attention, make the information clear, visually depict the information, give attribution and indicate authority. The five elements are: headline, body (visual and data), explanation, source and credit. Bar graphs, line and pie charts, diagrams, maps, photographs and illustrations are the most used information graphics within backgrounders.
• • • • • •
Ensure proper historical background is included Confirm the challenge and give facts of its nature Focus on solutions and be brief Anticipate questions and give answers Do not blame anyone or speculate Write for many audiences
Remember that backgrounders should be treated as “living documents.” When new information is available, it should be added to the previously released information.
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One of the most important attributes to any backgrounder is honesty. Positive and negative elements must be addressed equally and presented as openly as possible. When writing about the negatives of an organization, there are basic rules to remember:
Book Covers and Blurbs
The design of a cover will begin with the cover brief which includes the contents of the book and the intended market. Design briefs usually contain the market for the book (demographics), the contents, sample text and illustrations and specifications from marketing such as whether to use a single or double column or the style of the running heads. A similar title may also be included as an example or launching point.
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Those are the facts, at least. For a cover to really sell a product, it must be engaging and unique. The point of a cover to create a brand that revolves around the story (series), the author, the publisher or a theme. Although publishers are not know for being brands unto themselves, a Dorling Kindersley book or a Penguin classic can be spotted from a mile away. It is important to note that when dealing with images, cultural perceptions and guidelines should be understood. Will one image work in the United States but not the United Kingdom? Will it work in the US but not in Australia? Cultural values must be understood and assessed. That is all part of knowing the market. The covers at the top of the next page are aimed to a specific market consisting of eighteen to thirty-year-old women. There is absolutely no originality in these covers, however. Which one says something unique about itself? Each one is written by a different author. Where is the brand value? Now compare these titles to the following rows containing imaginative covers. Which ones would you pick up?
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Publishers, left to right: Top: Bantam Press; Simon & Schuster; Harper; Bantam Press Second Row: Old Street Publishing; Black Swan; Hodder & Stoughton; Penguin Third Row: Jonathan Cape Ltd.; Allen Lane; Penguin; Headline Review Bottom: Hamish Hamilton; Riverhead
The blurb and cover design work together to draw in a potential consumer. Blurb copy can be extremely effective in selling a product and often features advanced reviews and puff quotes from prominent names. The cover will also feature the ISBN and bar code. Editors and designers usually work together to write the blurb copy, which often forms the basis for a buyer’s decision, meaning that marketers should have their opinions heard too. Customers in bookshops generally see an interesting cover, pick up the book, look for an average of four seconds at the blurb and then make a decision. They either set the book back down and wander off or they flick through the contents, deciding whether to buy it or not. Blurb copy usually explains in an interesting way why the book is worthwhile, why it is unique, what it is about, who it is for, the author’s aim and credentials, quotes, reviews and bibliographic details; but it does not have to. Some of the most moving blurbs contain very little information about the book itself. The best ones tend to engage with and speak directly to the reader. Blurb copy ensures trust and helps to create a brand for the publisher or author. Blurbs should be kept short (100-250 words, set the tone, be enigmatic with a hint at action and outcome, provide reasons why the book is different from competitors, and use action verbs instead of adverbs and superfluous adjectives. To avoid a boring blurb, do not use words such as iconic, modern, quality, classic, reassuring and effective as these are constantly overused on blurb copy. The following is an example blurb taken from The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak: You Are Going To Die.
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1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier. Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her streets when the bombs begin to fall. Some Important Information This Novel is Narrated By Death it’s a small story, about: a girl, an accordianist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. Another Thing You Should Know Death Will Visit The Book Thief Three Times
In many ways, brochures resemble backgrounders because they communicate a publisher’s goals, history and vision. They usually have a long shelf-life because they speak to issues larger than the topics of the day or they represent a growing organization. In this sense, brochures are more a public relations tool than a marketing one. Book covers provide the perfect backdrop for using historical design styles. They could be used for redesigned covers or Some benefits of brochures include: • Listing programs or services offered. • Inviting readers to interact with the publisher. • Offering advice, instructions or hints that can help communicate a publisher’s mission. Since public relations focuses on a broad view, these documents should not include time-sensitive messages like those found in marketing. They can help
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Brochures
Aside from printing and paper costs, brochures are one of the easiest and most effective communication strategies for reaching target markets because they are a controlled media. The publisher can fully control what the message is through writing and design. Consumers are familiar with brochures, which are easy to distribute. Brochures are also portable and small, while the design allows readers to easily locate information repeatedly.
marketing by including removable and separate messages that can be enclosed and exchanged as needed. While most brochures do sustain long lives, they can also be used to advertise events with the inclusion of a schedule of activities, recognition for key sponsors and a purpose statement. The most cost-effective way to reach target audiences using brochures is to include a “tear away” or an additional card within the brochure. Designing effective brochures means being able to see each panel as a page. There are different types of folds for brochures, but the most common is the trifold, which provides six panels. Generally, information contained on one panel should not cross into a new panel unless there is some logical reason for doing so. Since readers see the brochures panel by panel, the design should reflect that and consider how the document will be read. Which panel will be the front? How will it open? How will it be distributed? How will the distribution method affect the front panel design? If the brochure is to be mailed, room must be left for appropriate postal information. If the brochure is to be left in a public setting, the front panel should be eye-catching and bold. It is important to remember not to cram too much information into one panel and to create unity among all six panels. Some strategies for unifying panels include: • Descriptive subheads with identical font and size. • Shaded areas or borders used to create special sections of information stand out. • Running headers or footers with special placement of page numbers, organization name or taglines.
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There are four other important guidelines to consider when creating a brochure: • Include a call to action that allows readers to follow through on their interest by making contact easily. • Do not overcrowd the brochure, but be interesting. • Design the brochure to match distribution. • Test-drive the brochure by having a friend or coworker proofread the materials before printing.
The creation schedule of catalogues depends greatly on the publishing cycle of the company. Some general houses produce two catalogues per year (autumn/ winter and spring/summer). Mass-market publishers may even produce a new catalogue each month. Generally, most publishers produce one main catalogue per year, which contains every new publication, author and bibliographical information for the list. In the educational, academic and reference sector, catalogue creation coincides with marketing of specific subjects. Academic catalogues must go one step further to provide information on the qualifications and academic level of the new titles for students. Author affiliations and contents are also vital. The catalogue is a marketing tool in itself but it is also the vehicle for another marketing tool: the inspection copy. Provide forms or a website contact for interested buyers to request inspection copies of new titles. Inspection copies greatly increase the chance of a new academic or education book being included on a reading list because the lecturer or librarian will be able to see the book first-hand.
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Catalogues
One of the most important marketing tools a publisher has is the catalogue. These may be mailed, placed on the website, taken to book fairs and handed out to bookshops and sales reps. Catalogues effectively organize entire lists of books and publications in an easy to read format and are an expected form of marketing in the industry. They also serve as points of reference for many bookshops, schools and libraries long after creation. The designer or marketer will need to remember the catalogue’s readership and provide the appropriate tone of voice and information.
Postcard inserts provide an optional way for people to request inspection copies or more information. They also can facilitate the collection and building of databases, but providing an online form will also help with this. If the catalogue is ready for print and some vital piece of information is missing, the postcard provides an easy fix. It is also important to monitor the response of the catalogue material by keeping track of the recorded sales before the catalogue mailing and after. The actual design of a catalogue should be organized by subject, series or list and include covers and illustrations. The visual stimulus provided by a group of similarly designed covers in a series is more eye-catching than featuring one cover in a prominent location. Neatly arranged thumbnail images of covers, photographs, illustrations and drawings also provide a nice visual stamp on the catalogue. Just be sure that the reduced images are still legible. Running heads, color-coding, a table of contents and an index all help to organize the cata-logue and provide expedited access to the information. The key titles should be pushed to the consumer through the catalogue and deserve prime space in the layout. Important titles often garner a double page spread in the beginning of the catalogue, leaving the middle bulk of the catalogue to those titles in the mid-list. Backlist titles may be included in the back of the catalogue.
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The cover of the catalogue is also important and should feature images of new products and key titles. Some educational publishers even produce catalogue covers which then go on to be school posters, advertising the publisher’s works in the schools themselves. A letter from an editor or a key person within the publishing house can also draw attention on the first page of the catalogue and acts as an introduction to the material and the brand.
Over time, direct mail marketing has increased exponentially to the point that many consumers treat direct mail as “junk mail” and it ends up in the trash can or it is called “spam” and is swiftly removed from a consumer’s inbox. However, there is hope. Direct marketing can be measured by response and in 2004, the UK’s Royal Mail reported an 12.1% response rate for business to consumer direct mail marketing. Direct mail has advantages including the measured response rate, aid with maintaining databases, the ease of dissemination and the cost-effectiveness of it. Careful preparation is essential to avoid a failing campaign and the lost cost. This marketing works best for a high price and specialist books. General interest titles tend not to have as much of an interesting angle to warrant the extra cost of direct mail. However, publications with strong mailing lists and a specific customer base work well because the market is clear and understandable. A successful use of direct mail allows the publisher to act as close as a sales representative to the consumer.
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Direct Mail
Direct marketing encompasses all selling and promotions done from publisher to consumer. Telemarketing, radio and television advertisements, e-mail and post all comprise direct marketing and share one goal: to spread information about a product. Direct mail tends to be sent to a select group of customers based on demographics, location or “opt-in” procedures from a website or other form of sign-up. It includes post and e-mail.
Direct mail generally includes some kind of enclosed document such as a letter, brochure, flyer, or order form in a pre-paid envelope. If the envelope is personalized to the name and title of the receiver, the response rate is likely to increase. The mailing list is essential for success and it could be one built by the publisher (easier with e-mails) or one purchased from a list broker. In order to separate direct mail from junk mail, various approaches may be taken. Consider offering prizes, freebies, or discounts to maximise response. Start with clear objectives and measure the response. Follow up if the response is less than desired, but make sure the marketing budget can handle this. The design and layout of print and e-mail direct marketing is important right down to the packaging and feel of the paper. Colorful and exciting designs should catch the consumer’s eye and hold their interest, while order-forms and the “call to action� should be highlighted. In more recent years, mobile SMS marketing and social media have become more viable and cost-effective ways to reach consumers. The base for direct mail is to absolutely know the market as best as possible, otherwise time and money will be wasted.
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More information can be found out by visiting the Direct Marketing Association online.
One of the most important design elements to remember whenever you are creating a document for publication is to use white space efficiently. Clutter does not add to legibility and legibility is what you need to get the message across. White space is that portion of the paper that has nothing on it. The purpose of white space is to lead the eye, organize copy and create a look that is easy to read and understand. Headlines also help to distinguish portions of the document for easier readability. They break up the copy and make scanning a document for pertinent information more simple. Headline examples might include: Purpose, New Products or Get Involved. 237 Fact Sheets
Fact Sheets
Although backgrounders have already been discussed, the similarity between backgrounders and fact sheets must be acknowledged. The creation of organizational or biographical fact sheets is made easier with the use of an already existing backgrounder. Main facts are pulled from the backgrounder and presented in a clear, concise fashion that can be handed out at events or mailed to the market group. Fact sheets are great for presenting information about an issue that the organization deals with, but a call to action should be included.
Flyers and Leaflets
These documents are relatively easy to write and create because they incorporate the same style as a poster would. They are generally smaller versions of the poster and can be sent to media as an advertisement for publication or handed out to people passing by on the street. Flyers and advertisements usually focus on one specific event or offer and use an image to draw the reader’s eye in to the new title details and ordering information. Flyers tend to be single sheets while leaflets have one or more folds.
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Leaflets and flyers are extremely versatile and provide marketing potential in many areas. They can be included with press releases, folded and stuck into journals or magazines, turned into mail shots, inserted into parcels and so on.
In the press release section, the “5 Ws and H� were mentioned. The who, what, when, where, why and how should all be included on the poster along with a visual. Semiotics play a key role in poster design and this type of marketing is an ideal location for playing with design history. Bright colors tend to catch the eye and designing the most important information to be the most visible is a good idea. Eight main words on a poster is considered a lot, as the visual should be the eye-catching element. Posters generally advertise events or new products and can be printed in a variety of sizes and shapes. A popular location for poster placement is on the underground or subways of major cities. They are also featured in bookshops, along with point of sale, dump bins and showcards to draw customers’ attention to new titles at a place where the title can be easily purchased. Sometimes these marketing tools are not displayed in bookshops. Instead, they simply alert the bookstore that the publisher is heavily publicizing the new title, which promotes confidence in the book and its anticipated sales. Dump bins provide a place for multiple copies of a key title to be displayed near the till or cashier. They encourage booksellers to order a larger quantity of stock. Avoid redesigning the book cover here as the books will be placed just below the headline. Instead, create something eye-catching and new which will draw the
239 Posters, Show Cards, Dump Bins, Point-of-Sale
Posters, Show Cards, Dump Bins and Point of Sale
Posters are simple and effective communication tools. There is a serious chance for clutter from other posters and advertisements depending on where the poster is distributed. Just like with other tools such as the press release and brochure, posters should be distributed where the target market will see them.
customer to the dump bin to begin with. Many bookshops refuse to take dump bins from publishers now due to the large amounts they receive and the fact that the bins disrupt the designed floor space of the store. Supermarkets, which are key players in publishing industry sales, do still take dump bins but often require that they be designed to a specific size.
240 Posters, Show Cards, Dump Bins, Point-of-Sale
Other point of sale tools include giveaways such as balloons, bookmarks, badges, books and even small magazines.
Creative releases tend to garner more attention from journalists and editors and should indicate the type of story, which could be written. White space on the press release can draw the reader’s eye and even designing the release in an imaginative way could be enough for the media to pick it up. Press releases should include little fluff or wordiness. Instead, the release should be clear and concise. There are nine traditional news values: • • • • • • •
Timeliness – News that is fresh such as election results Prominence – Recognizable names are involved like the mayor Proximity – Local events Novelty – Unusual circumstances like a talking dog Progress – Successes of local students or policies Conflict – Issues of violence to difference of opinion Disaster – Unexpected tragedy such as a school bus crash
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Press Releases
The most important communication tool for presenting information to media and target markets is the press release (sometimes called news release). Press releases may be pitched to newspapers, radio, television, cable, the Internet, and news programs and may raise awareness for new titles, events, interviews or feature stories. Due to the increased use of press releases, the stories are competitive and only the best releases are generally chosen for publication and publicity. Format, angle and content for the writing of each release matter greatly, but it should remain short and pithy. The job of a press release is to make a journalist’s job easier.
• Consequence – Any event that affects large numbers of people like a festival or natural disaster • Human Interest – Emotional stories that connect with human experience such as war veterans or sickness There are also three emerging news values that include community, service and citizenship. There are a variety of ways to disseminate releases to media. One way to pitch the release is to “shotgun” which involves sending it to every news media possible in the hopes that some will pick up the story. The more strategic path is to “target” the release to the media that is likely to consider it. Targeting may take more time, but often yields higher results than “shotgunning.” In order to engage the audience, and the media, the release must present a “what’s-in-it-for-us” angle. Stories that have no effect on the target market’s lives will not resonate with them and therefore, not gain the publisher any attention. The initial page of the news release should follow a general template that displays the publisher and the address. In the upper right hand corner, the contact name and information for the publisher should be provided. The contact is usually someone from marketing or sales, although that is not always the case if someone else in the organization fields questions from the media. After the contact information, the line “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” is presented to let the media know they may use all of the information presented immediately. If there is a reason to hold the information, “HOLD UNTIL [specific date]” is usually included.
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The body of the news release begins with a title that provides a summary of what the release is about and uses a verb. The place line then precedes the first sentence of the body. Place lines are the geographic locale for the organization releasing the information. All releases should be written in the publisher’s style or a related journalistic style like Associated Press (AP Style) when pitching to the media. The most important information is always presented first with a succinct lead. The lead sentence should include the 5 Ws and H: who, what, when, where, why and how. This sentence should be approximately 25 words long. Subsequent paragraphs support the lead with quotes, details and facts. Just like every other marketing tool, the news release must include a “Call to action” in the last sentence to public readers. This call also alerts media on why
this release might be important enough to publish or follow-up with. The call to action is valuable as a measurement tool because it allows the publisher to track who has responded to the release.
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The press release should include all the relevant information for the new title being promoted such as RRP, publication date, availability and author. The author biography should be written in such as way as to entice the media to want an interview. Follow up press releases with phone calls, but make sure to include a name and contact phone number to request review copies and schedule interviews.
Print Public Service Announcement
PSAs are a semi-controlled media, which means that the writer can design and control the content, but not the placement or showing of the ad. In the US, the 1996 Telecommunications Act no longer regulates advertising space or requires stations to place free PSAs within their channels. However, many stations still do place public service programming for free, believing that generosity fosters more loyal audiences.
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In broadcast, PSAs are approximately 30 seconds in length. However, local news programs may be willing to interview or speak with a member of a local organization on an issue or event as well. Newspapers, magazines and other print media treat PSAs differently than broadcast or cable. First Amendment protections inhibit direct governmental intervention, so print media have no tradition of prescribed free service like the Telecommunications Act was for broadcast. Some newspapers may print free PSAs, but typically they offer greatly reduced advertising rates for non-profits and schools. If the print media can be persuaded to co-sponsor an event, they will run the ad for free. The Internet is still growing and developing when it comes to PSAs. There is a lot of advertising clutter online, so the best way to showcase an organization’s PSA may be to post it on the Web site so the public and media can easily find it. PSAs are effective because they reach a broad audience for little money. However, they are published at the media’s discretion, so they may receive an uneven run or small exposure. They also must compete with other advertising
clutter. For these reasons, it is a good idea only to use PSAs as part of an overall campaign to raise awareness, attract people to events or promote a cause. Elements needed for PSAs: • • • • •
Headline Graphic or Photo Copy Call-To-Action Logo
There are three things a good PSA should do:
The three basic types of PSAs are image, issue and event. These differ from marketing ads, which persuade a viewer to buy something. However, many charities and campaign groups such as The Book Trust use PSAs to promote literacy and books, thereby promoting the publication and sale of books. The Body Shop has created PSAs for it’s Stop Trafficking campaign, but in the process, sells products. Public relations ads generally promote a philo-sophy, which leads to an image. Image ads promote virtues of an organization and connect this message to issues concerning the target markets. These ads still require a “call to action” that allows the public to contact the organization for more information. Issues ads are more hard-edged messages with a definite point of view. They advocate a certain position and allow organizations to cast an opinion on an important public issue. If the ad ties to what the organization does or sells, then the organization appears as an expert with credibility. Event ads promote events held for the benefit of the community. Not all events publicized by PSAs are free to the public, but if tickets are sold via these ads, some money should be given to local schools or scholarships. PSAs should include advertising copy, rather than public relations copy. Yes,
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• Capture the viewer’s attention • Hold that attention with a relevant message that is simple and easily understood • Tell the audience what to do once interest is gained and sustained
Great Ideas of Western Man (Series PSA 1950 to 1975), designed by Herbert Beyer
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there is a difference. Ad copy is bold, pithy, symbolic and conclusive. The messages should be trimmed to the bare essentials. The central theme of the ad, the event’s purpose or the issue’s stance should be decided early. A compelling tagline is important to catch the audience’s attention. Strong ads also often use direct address, speaking to the audience as “you.” Graphics and photographs also heighten the PSA. Ad writing style should be brief and use active verbs and nouns that will stick in the audience’s mind.
Copyright law ensures that the author of any creative work owns the right to say who can copy or reproduce it. Authors may license or sell their copyright but any contract will feature an expiry date. If an author is working for an employer or is hired for a specific job, then the copyright tends to lie with the employer who paid for the service. Under the Berne Convention, when an idea is produced in some tangible form, it is automatically considered to have a copyright. Registration is unnecessary but advised if a threat of illegal copying may occur. Public domain includes works available for any sort of reproduction as the copyright has expired due to the owner’s death, plus a period of time. In most of the world, copyright covers the life of the author (or multiple authors) plus 50 or 70 years. In the case of multiple authors, the copyright covers 50 or 70 years (depending on country), after the death of the youngest contributor. In the UK, the law is 50 years. In the USA, copyright exists for a set number of years after the date of publication. Copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years for works published prior to January 1, 1978. Anonymous works are treated differently and can exist for a term of 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation. All works published before 1923 are in the public domain. Work published before 1964 that did not have copyright renewed are also in the public domain.
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Copyright
Every designers’ dirty little secret is that they copy other designers’ work. They see work they like, and they imitate it. Rather cheekily, they call this inspiration. Aaron Russell
248 Copyright
Poster for the Swiss Tourist Board, designed by Herbert Matter, 1932
Most copyright issues will come from photo purchasing. Images from the public domain are free and creating the images, commissioning the work or using commercial royalty free sources such as istockphoto or Getty images provide an easy way of acquiring images.
249 Copyright
Swatch Advertisement, designed by Paula Scher
Glossary
Design is an opportunity to continue telling the story, not just to sum everything up. Tate Linden
“A” format paperback: Mass market paperback of trimmed size 110mm x 178mm (4.33 inches x 7.01 inches). Accordion Fold: Parallel folds in paper, opening like an accordion, each in an opposite direction from the preceding fold. Across the Gutter: printed over the gutter margin in a book. Advance Information Sheet: A single sheet giving a brief advance details of a forthcoming publication. Circulated six to nine months before publication, it is sent to anyone who needs the information (bookshops, distributors, reps, etc). Archival Paper: a paper with long-lasting qualities, usually with good color retention. Attitudes: Collections of beliefs organized around a focal point that predisposes behavior.
250 Glossary
“B” Format Paperback: Mass market paperback with a trimmed size of 130mm x 198mm (5.12 inches x 7.8 inches). Bitmap: Any image made up of pixels is technically a bitmap, regardless of actual format.
Blad: Book design and layout. Originally a section of a book printed early and shown as a sample. Today, blads can consist of marketing information, sample pages, synopses, etc. Bleed: Printing matter running off the cut edge of a page. The bleed allowance beyond the trimmed size is usually 3 mm to ensure a clean cutoff. Blurb: A short sales message for use in leaflets and jackets. Book Block: Book at the binding stage after sewing or perfect binding but before forwarding operations. Book Jacket: Protective wrap-around to a book, usually made of paper. Book Proof: Page proofs paperbound in the form of the finished book. Brand: A product or service with a set of distinct characteristics that make it different from other products on the market. Bulk Between Boards: The total thickness of a book block. “C� Format Paperback: C format paperbacks are typically known as trade paperbacks and measure 135mm x 216mm (5.32 inches x 8.51 inches). Case Board: Board used to make book cases. Usually Dutch grey board or unlined chipboard. Ranges from 1120 gsm up to 1750gsm. Case Bound Book: A book with a hard case. Case Material: The material which covers a cased book.
CMYK: Abbreviation of the four color processing based on Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (K distinguishes from blue). Used for printed materials. Coated Paper: Paper coated with china clay to give a smooth surface for halftone reproduction.
251 Glossary
Cloth Binding: Use of cloth to cover the boards of a cased book.
Collate: To gather. Ensures correct sequences of pages. Color Separation: Separating full color into the four process colors (CMYK) by means of scanning or of filters, resulting in four films used to make printing plates. Color Sequence: The order in which the four colors (CMYK) are printed. Color Swatch: Color sample. Copy: Words that make up the message. Copy Outline: An analytical tool that extends strategic planning to creation of effective tactics. Database Marketing: Building up increasingly complex information about your customers in order to serve their needs more precisely and sell more to them in the future. The long-term aim of direct marketing. Debris: Paper dust or edge dust which ends up on the offset printing blanket, resulting in marks on the printed sheet. Demographic Data: Information used to segment publics according to tangible characteristics such as age, gender and socioeconomic status. Die-cutting: The cutting of paper or card with steel rules on a press to give cut-outs or folds in printed material. Display Type: Large type for headlines (14 points or more). Direct Marketing: Selling of services directly to the end consumer – direct mail, telemarketing, hour-to-house calling.
252 Glossary
Diversity: Appreciating differences in culture, gender, race, background and experience. Dots Per Inch (dpi): Resolution of a printer or scanner is measured in dpi. For the printer, it is the number of dots of toner placed on the paper in both directions, while for a scanner, it is the number of charge-coupled devices per inch. The dots are square pixels and this is the accepted measurement for defining resolution of an image.
Double-Coated: Coated paper which is coated twice for extra smoothness and consistency. Dump Bin: Container to hold display and stock in retail outlets. Usually supplied by the manufacturer to encourage the retailer to take more stock than might otherwise be the case. Most made from cardboard and assembled in the shop. Embargo: A date before which information may not be released. Popular on press releases to ensure that no one paper scoops the rest. Often ignored by the media. Endpaper: Strong paper used for the securing the body of a book to its case. Endpapers may be plain, colored, marbled, etc. and should be specified with the grain direction parallel to the spine. Ethics: Personal and professional value systems and standards that underlie decisions and behavior. Extensible Paper: Tear-resistant paper. Extent: Length of book in pages, including preliminary pages and blank pages. Firm Sale: The orders placed by a bookseller from which the publisher expects no returns. Flyer: A cheaply produced leaflet, normally one page. Focus Group Research: Moderator-led discussions with fewer than 15 participants providing in-depth information on attitudes and behaviors.
Font Size: Given in points (1 point equals .353mm or 1/72 inch. 12 points make up a pica, the basic unit of typographic measurement. The measurement refers to caps height of the font. Format: The size of a book or page. In the UK, this is expressed as height x width. In the US and most of Europe, it is width x height
253 Glossary
Font: The range of characters for one size and style of type.
French Fold: Folds a sheet into four pages, exposing only one side of the sheet and leaving the join at the edges. FSC Paper: Forest Stewardship Council paper. Paper certification which proves that the paper comes from an environmentally sustainable forested area. GIF: Graphics interchange format. An image made up a restricted palette of 256 colors, one of which can be designated as transparent. This makes gifs perfect for websites where they can be used for irregular shapes such as logos which can be floated over colored background. Not suitable for offset printing. Goal : The result or desired outcome that solves a problem, takes advantage of an opportunity or meets a challenge. Grayscale: An image made up of 256 shades of grey pixels which is then printed using black ink. Grams per square meter (gsm): The weight measure by which paper is sold in the UK. Gutter: Binding margin in a book. Halftone: An image that has been converted into a vertical and horizontal grid of dots of different sizes. An illustration that reproduces the continuous tone of a photograph. Hard Copy: A printed page of something as opposed to a copy on a disk or screen. Head Band: Cotton or silk cord attached to the top of the back of a book. Tail band exists on the bottom of the book.
254 Glossary
Headline: The eye-catching message at the top of an advertisement, press release, poster, etc. High Resolution: High density of detail. Often used to describe the number of pixels or dots per unit area in an image. High res means more information in a given amount of visual space.
HTML: Hypertext markup language. Used for website layouts. Imitation Cloth: Reinforced and embossed paper commonly used for binding hard back books instead of cotton cloth. Also, fiberfill. Contrast woven material. Indexed Color: The color mode of GIF images, which can hold a maximum of 256 colors. Insert: Paper or card inserted loose in a book, journal or brochure. Inspection Copy: Copy of a particular title (usually educational) supplied for full examination by a teacher in the hope that a class set will be bought or the title will be recommended for a reading list. Interactivity: The degree to which the tactic provides interaction between the sender of the message and the receiver. Intervening Public: An individual or public used as a message channel to reach and influence a key public. Jacket: Dustcover on a book made of high-quality one-sided coated paper. JPEG: Joint photographic experts group. An image format supporting grayscale, RGB and CMYK color but which uses a lossy compression method. At high quality levels, the loss is almost impossible to detect, which the file size remains much smaller than the same image saved as a tiff. Jpegs should not be included for offset printing. Justification: The arrangement of text on a page or screen so that it is aligned with both left and right margins.
Lamination: Thin plastic film applied with heat and pressure to a printed sheet for protection and/or appearance. Landscape: The orientation of a picture, screen or page such that its width is greater than its height. Most screens are landscape, while books are more often portrait.
255 Glossary
Kerning: The process of adjusting the spacing between a pair of letters to create a better visual fit. Traditionally meant to decrease the amount of space.
Leading: The spacing between lines of type. Ligature: A single typographic character that combines two or more other characters. Limp C Format: A format midway between hard and softbound paperback. The spine is sewn, but encased in card covers rather than boards. Line work: Illustrations such as drawings that consist of line only rather than the tones of a photography. Cheap to produce. List: All the publications a particular publisher has for sale. Lossy: An image compression system that results in a degree of data, and therefore, quality, loss. Low Resolution: Opposite of high resolution. Most graphics are high-res. However, in order to save disk space or shorten screen display times, low res versions are often produced for use in page make-up and mock-ups. Make-up: Making up typeset materials into pages. Mask: Opaque overlay which masks out the unwanted portion of a photograph. Merchandise: Branded goods. In publishing, these could be related to a new title. Merchandising is a key function for sales reps. Mock-up: A layout or rough of artwork. Monograph: A single subject study by an author or group of authors, usually scholarly.
256 Glossary
Monotone: One color illustrated material. Objective: Specific, measurable statements of what needs to be accomplished to reach the goal. Octavo: Abbreviated as 8vo. The eight part of the traditional broadside sheet. Used to describe book sizes.
Offset Litho: A printing method in which the image on a plate is transferred (offset) to an intermediate roller prior to final transfer of the paper. On-Demand Publishing: Printing books one at a time from computer store “on demand�, rather than tying up capital by printing stock. Opacity: The quality of opaqueness in paper or an image. Opacity is measured in percent. 100% means the color is solid. Opinion Leader: A rusted individual to whom one turns for advice because of his/her greater knowledge or experience regarding the issue at hand. Out of Register: One or more colors out of alignment with the others in a piece of printing. Ozalid: Print made by a form of diazo copying process and often used for proofing film. Also known as a blueprint. Used as a last minute check on positioning for more complex jobs. This is the final check unless a printed proof is requested. Page Proof: Proofed page before printing. Used to gain client’s final approval. PDF: A form of PostScript developed by Adobe that enables a printable document to be generated as anything from a low-resolution screen image to a high-resolution file suitable for offset printing.
Perforating: Punching a series of holes in paper as part of a coding process or to facilitate tearing off a part. Permanent Inks: Inks which do not fade
257 Glossary
Perfect Binding: Adhesive binding widely used on paperbacks. Glue is applied to the roughened back edges of sections to hold them to the cover and each other. More expensive than saddle stitching but cheaper than sewing. When designing something that will be perfect bound, it is important to remember that 2cm of space will disappear into the gutter margin of the binding.
Pixel: The building blocks of digital images, pixels are small squares of color. The resolution of an image is determined by how many pixels exist per linear inch. The color range of the pixels is determined by the bit depth of the image. Point of Sale: Eye-catching promotional material to be displayed with the product where purchases are made. Publishers may produce showcards, posters, bookmarks, balloons, single copy holders, dump bins and counter packs for display by the till. Portrait: The orientation of a picture, screen or page such that its height is greater than its width. Most screens are landscape, while books are more often portrait. PostScript: Adobe Systems’s proprietary page description language. Most widely used. Proofreading: Checking typeset proofs for accuracy. Typesetter’s mistakes should be noted in red and the author’s and publisher’s in black or blue. Publication Date: Date before which stock cannot be sold. Not the date of printing. Pulp: The raw suspension of woodfiber, treated either chemically or mechanically in water. Primary Messages: Sound bite statements that encompass what you need the public to do and an appeal to the public’s self-interest to act. Primary Research : Firsthand information gathered specifically for your current purpose.
258 Glossary
Printer’s Marks: Blocks of varying tints used to show ink density. Usually appears on the side of a pre-press document. Psychographic Data: Information used to segment publics according to values, attitudes and lifestyles. Public Relations : An organization’s efforts to establish and maintain mutually beneficial relationships in order to communicate and cooperate with the publics upon whom long-term success depends.
Purposive Sampling : Identifying and surveying opinion leaders to determine attitudes and behaviors. Quad: Paper terminology for a sheet four times the size of a traditional broadside sheet. Ragged: Unjustified text layout. Most text is ragged right (left hand margin aligned). Ragged left and ragged center are also used, but mainly as a design feature. Rasterize: The method by which a bitmap made up of pixels (square with no space between them) is turned into a halftone made up of round dots arranged on a horizontal and vertical grid. Ream: Five hundred sheets of paper. The US weight criteria for selling paper in bulk. Recto: A right hand page with odd numbers. Register: Crop marks which appear on the artwork supplied to the printer. These should match up with the printing plates when printing or else the project will unfocused and out of register. Relationship Building: A return to the roots of human communication and persuasion that focuses on personal trust and mutual cooperation. Release Date: Date at which stock is released from the publisher’s warehouse for delivery to booksellers before the publication date. Remainder: To sell off unsold stock at a discount to remainder bookshops.
Resolution: Measurement of image fineness stated in lines per inch (lpi), dots per inch (dpi) or pixels per inch (ppi). Print resolution with CMYK is typically 300 dpi, while screen resolution with RGB is 72 dpi. Reverse Out: Producing text as white or pale on top of a darker background color, as opposed to the more popular practice or producing dark type on a pale background.
259 Glossary
Repro: Short for reproduction. The conversion of typeset copy and photographs into final film and printing plates.
Review Copies: Copies of a forthcoming title distributed before the publication date to key people in the trade (booksellers and wholesalers) to help promote the title. RGB: A color space comprised of red, green, blue light. Used for onscreen design. Roman: Upright type, as opposed to italic. Rounding and Backing: Shaping a book so the spine is convex. RRP: Recommended retail price. Set by the manufacturer, this is the base for calculating discounts. Saddle Stitching: Binding inset books with wire staples through the middle fold of sheets. Used for 48-64 page books/magazines. Also called wire stitching. Sale or Return: Booksellers and wholesalers take books on sale or return, meaning that if the books have not been sold within a time period (usually 6 to 12 months from ordering) and if the titles are still in print, they may be returned for credit. This is the opposite of firm sale. Sans Serif Type: Category of type with no serifs. (Helvetica, Futura) Self Mailer: Direct mail piece without an envelope or outer wrapping which is also known as an all-in-one. Combines sales message and response device so space for copy is limited. This works best when the recipient already knows of the product being marketed. Section: Books are printed in sections of 16 pages which make up the total extent of a book. A book can be printed in sections of 16 pages, or 32, etc.
260 Glossary
Secondary Messages: Bulleted details that include facts, testimonials, examples, etc. that support a primary message. Secondary Research: Information previously assimilated for other purposes that can be adapted to your needs. Serif Type: Terminal stroke at the end of a line making up a particular typographic character. (Times New Roman, Garamond)
Shrink Wrap: Plastic film wrapping. Slogan or Theme : Short, catchy phrase that integrates primary messages and appeals to the broad interests of many key publics. Slotted Binding: Also called notch or burst binding. It is a form of adhesive bonding. Pages are not cut into individual leaves, as in perfect binding, but they are notched to facilitate the penetration of glue. Spot Color: Color that is usually specified in a document as a particular, often Pantone, color, for text or graphical features. This is in contrast to process color. Spot Varnish: Varnish applied to selected parts of a printed sheet. Often used to enhance the sheen of photographs. Spread: Pair of facing pages. Strategic Communications Planning: An approach to communications planning that focuses actions on the accomplishment of organizational goals. Strategic Management: The process of evaluating all proposed action by focusing on organizational goals, usually defined in short-term contributions to the bottom line. Strategies: Public-specific approaches to achieve objectives. Swatch: Color specimen printed on paper . Tactics: Strategy-specific communication products that carry the message to key publics.
Telemarketing: Using the telephone to sell. Three-Quarter Bound: Method in which the majority of the case of a book is covered in leather or cloth and the remainder in a different material.
261 Glossary
Tag Line: Or strap line. A line of copy that sums up the product or the general philosophy of the company. Often placed on the cover of books. A slogan or summarizing theme that appears at the end of an advertisement.
Trim: Short for trimmed size of a printed piece. It’s the final size. Unbacked: Printed one-sided only. Uncoated Paper: Paper with no coating and therefore not suitable for high-quality work. UV Varnish: Ultraviolet varnish. A high gloss varnish dried by exposure to UV light. Varnish: Thin, transparent coating applied to printed work for gloss or protection. Verso: Left hand page with even number. Watermark: Design impressed into a paper web during manufacture. The watermarked image appears as a faint image. Weight: Measured in gsm. WYSIWYG: Acronym for “what you see is what you get” and pronounced “wizzy wig.” Used to describe page make-up in desktop publishing where what appears on screen is a direct representation of what would be printed. X-Y Coordinates: Horizontal (x) and vertical (y) alignments used by computers for setting pixels in screen displays or outputs.
262 Glossary
Yapp Cover: Binding material edges which overlap the case boards to provide a “fringed” effect. Often used on Bibles.
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Senior men have no monopoly on great ideas. Nor do creative people. Some of the best ideas come from account executives, researchers and others. Encourage this. You need all the ideas you can get. David Ogilvy
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Design creates culture. Culture shapes values. Values determine the future. Robert L Peters