istd2012 International Society of Typographic Designers
istd2012studentassessment International Society of Typographic Designers
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
Jack Zipes
Dear Tutors and Students We are delighted to have Jack Zipes as our project partner in our 37th year of Student Assessments. Jack has written and translated many books of Fairy Stories and Fables. His constant delight in the investigation and exploration of tales and his work with children and adults in schools and colleges across the globe reflects our own international remit and our desire to maintain education as a constant in ISTD. As ISTD founder Vincent Steer said, our purpose is ‘to bring together in friendship and mutual help, all those with a love of the printed word’. What could be better than to work with Jack Zipes’ tales of transformation to look and the nature of the book and the transforming power of typography. In this introduction I usually address aspects of our process that we have either amended or that we consider worth bringing to your attention. However, the most significant change is that we, very reluctantly, have had to increase the registration fee to £35. Our annual cost increases now make it impossible to avoid the rise, but maintaining the quality and thoroughness of our assessment and its benefits to student requires much effort and cost. One way of participating universities/institutions mitigating the rise in fees would be through Institutional Membership which offers a 20% reduction on the registration fee, along with other benefits to the institution. Another point that is overlooked by many is that our assessment is not specific to undergraduates but is also open to postgraduate students. As the nature of postgraduate study broadens, we are keen to offer those students the opportunity to participate. Finally, as ever, I thank my colleagues on the ISTD Education Team, Board, members and the others from around the world whose entirely volunteer efforts make our annual Assessments possible.
John McMillan Education Director john.mcmillan@istd.org.uk
This document may have been accessed through our website or, as is the case for many institutions, has been mailed directly to those tutors on our Education database. By mailing education @istd.org.uk with your contact details you can receive subsequent project briefs and associated information by email. ©ISTD2011
istd2012education team International Society of Typographic Designers
The Society’s education activities are generated and co-ordinated by the ISTD Education Team. Originally a group of design academics with a geographic coverage of the British Isles, it has expanded to represent our international activities and members in professional practice.
The Student Assessment projects are the result of months of correspondence by email, Skype and meetings, involving all members of the team, other members of ISTD and others who share our common interest and commitment to typographic education.
John McMillan University of Ulster, Northern Ireland ISTD Education Officer Becky Chilcott chil3, Fremantle, Australia ISTD Deputy Chair/Australasia Co-ordinator Ivan Cooper Educational Consultant, England Jeanne Cummins Arts University College at Bournemouth, England David Dabner Letterpress consultant, England Brenda Dermody Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland Ireland Co-ordinator Jonathan Doney Spitfire Press, Taunton, England Robert Harland Loughborough University, England David Herbert Dundee, Scotland Mike Hope Educational Consultant, England Alison Johnson University of Teesside, Middlesbrough, England John Kortbaoui Notre Dame University, Louaize, Lebanon Middle East Co-ordinator Sabina Monza-Goday Eina School of Design and Art, Barcelona Spain/Portugal Co-ordinator Marc Peter on-idle, London, England David Quay Amsterdam, The Netherlands Jack Renwick The Partners, London, England Freda Sack Foundry Types, London, England ISTD Past President Barrie Tullett University of Lincoln, England Tiffany Turkington-Palmer FlowSA, Johannesburg Africa Co-ordinator
istd2012assessmentcriteria International Society of Typographic Designers
The criteria we use for assessment reflect what we require as elements for submission. We see these as an expression of appropriate practice for student designers and part of our support for typographic education. All of these criteria are used in the assessment of each project in both print and screen-based formats. TYPOGRAPHIC INTERPRETATION (50%) • Typographic interpretation, creativity and control must be central to your proposals. • Evidence of creative and innovative thinking is essential. • Each project requires sensitive integration of words and images. However, we discourage the overt use of imagery and suggest a subtle and sensitive approach to the inclusion of any illustrative content. Remember that your solution must be essentially typographic. • The hierarchy of information in both print and screen formats must be clearly expressed through the inclusion and formatting of at least 500 words of text into your submission. • Typographic detailing is essential. Check spelling, punctuation/quote marks widows/orphans, hyphens/dashes, rags, justification/rivers . . . • Legibility, whether in print or on screen, must be considered – and resolved. • Consideration, where appropriate, should be given to the relationship between sound and movement (screen-based submissions). RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (20%) • All submissions must be supported by relevant primary and secondary research material. • Your research and development work should show that a range of ideas have been explored before developing your selected concept. Make sure that you present this material in an order that allows us to follow your thought and design process. • Design development on screen must be described through hard-copy evidence. • The total amount of this material should not exceed the equivalent of one a3 layout pad. • You must cite fully your bibliographic/web sources and, where relevant, credit images.
STRATEGY (10%) • Each submission must be accompanied by a strategy of 500 –1,000 words, describing the thought process underpinning your design proposals. • It should express what has driven your concept and its design development – not just a retrospective description of the various elements or a ‘log’ of what you did. • While the strategy will be read by assessors you should write it to be understood by a client. SPECIFICATIONS (10%) • Typographic, production and broadcast specifications, must be included in all submissions. This must be reflected in or reflective of – your detailed treatment of text matter. • Using your layouts, create fully annotated typographic specifications and grid(s). • Samples of paper stock and other materials used in print production should be attached. • Refer to the Specifications Guides later in this document. PRESENTATION (10%) • Presentation is important but no substitute for a weak idea. • Ensure that screen-based submissions have been tested for use. Occasionally we cannot open files. These proposals, that otherwise may have succeeded, sadly fail. • All submissions must incorporate a non-returnable DVD/CD with pdf(s) of images that reflect – concept – design development – form and usage – layout/grid system – media/material choices – typographic choice – typographic detailing These should combine development and presentation images of the outcome(s). • When submitting, ensure that you indicate your project choice, by number, and whether screen or print, on a label from the last sheet of this file – fixed firmly to your portfolio. • Finally, check that all of the requirements of your chosen brief are included and clearly identified. Submit work in one robust, clearly labelled, portfolio – no larger than a2.
istd2012entry International Society of Typographic Designers
ENTRY Full-time under- and post-graduate students at universities and colleges – internationally – are eligible. As membership of the Society is awarded to successful entrants, only the work of individual students can be assessed. ISTD does not accept entries that are the collaborative work of two or more students. All entries should be in English unless given prior approval by the Education Officer. ONLINE REGISTRATION Details of how to register and pay are available on our website. Please make sure you read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Registration for all assessments must be carried out by named tutors – not by students – using our website online system. This allows online payment of fees and can issue invoices where required. FEES The Registration fee is £35 per student submission (Institutional Member £28). Submissions that are submitted for assessment and have not been registered and/or have not paid the Registration Fee will not be assessed. REGISTRATION DEADLINES Main/UK 17 February 2012 Ireland 24 February 2012 Middle East 20 April 2012 South Africa 14 September 2012 Australasia 21 September 2012 On Registration, further information, including arrangements for delivery and return, will be sent to you. Please meet the Registration Deadline as this allows us to gauge the number of assessors required.
DEADLINES FOR SUBMISSIONS The Deadline for submission of work to each of our Assessments will be confirmed on the Registration Deadline for that assessment but will generally be around 3 – 4 weeks later. ASSESSMENT Each submission is assessed by a two-person team, usually comprised of a member from education and one from industry. All material is examined, taking around 30 – 40 minutes. The outcome is ratified by a team of Moderators who maintain parity across the assessment teams. If necessary, the entry is passed on to a second stage panel for further appraisal. All entries gaining Merits and Commendations are further assessed. Results and Reports will be published within a month of each of the Assessments. AWARDS A Student Awards ceremony takes place in late Spring in London. All successful students from the Main and Ireland Assessments, and their tutors, are invited to be presented with their ISTD Membership Certificates. Nominated tutors with successful students also receive Tutor Certificates. Individual arrangements are made for our other assessments. IMPORTANT NOTE ISTD makes digital records of all successful student submissions and reserves the right to use this material as it deems appropriate. ISTD will not accept claims for payment in respect of using any such recorded material.
istd2012institutionalmembership International Society of Typographic Designers
The ISTD Student Assessment Scheme began in 1975. The Society had been considering requests to accredit courses but the Assessment Scheme was an option that offered benefits to both tutors, students and, ultimately, to industry. Institutional Membership allows us to improve communication between ISTD and tutors and, importantly, maximise the benefits to typographic education through use of our considerable archive of student typographic design. Our hope is that, as this area develops, we may develop the benefits. INSTITUTIONAL MEMBERSHIP offers the following – PROJECT ARCHIVE Each successful student project is photographically archived. This combines images of research, development and presentation elements. Each member institution receives a comprehensive photographic archive of each year’s successful project submissions – a valuable teaching resource that is otherwise restricted to our Education Team. PUBLICATIONS Member institutions receive copies of Typographic the Journal of ISTD; Condensed, the members’ newsletter and all other occasional publications during each year of membership. Our New Member Starter Pack includes a copy of our publication Typographic Writing, edited by David Jury. Institutional members are also entitled to discounted back-issues of publications bought online. REGISTRATION FEES Member institutions receive a 20% discount on student Registration Fees for the Student Assessment.
MEMBERSHIP CERTIFICATE Each member institution receives an annual Membership Certificate that may be displayed publicly. ISTD LOGO The ISTD logo may be used by member institutions for marketing purposes (with conditions for use). INVITATIONS Invitations and, where applicable, discounts to all ISTD events, including exhibition openings, talks, lectures and workshops. STAFF DEVELOPMENT Staff from member institutions qualify for the opportunity to participate in one of our Student Assessments and be mentored by one of the ISTD Education Team. CONSULTATION Staff from Member Institutions have preferential access to the Education Team for consultation on the Student Assessment Scheme and other ISTD Education activities. INSTITUTIONAL PRESENTATIONS Presentations on the work of ISTD and the Annual Student Assessment Scheme by the Education Officer or members of the Education Team can be arranged with member institutions. Further information on applying for Institutional Membership is available from education@istd.org.uk
istd2011project01 istd2012project01 International Society of Typographic International TypographicDesigners Designers
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
Jack Zipes
TALES TO CHANGE THE WORD Once upon a time… a magazine was very much like a book. The only differences being that the magazine had a softer cover and a number of stories rather than a hard cover and one single story. But then – everything changed. Magazines discovered the pregnant white space of the page. Magazines discovered the double page spread. Magazines discovered signature typographic stylings. Magazines discovered images; illustrations, photographs, texts that became pictures, pictures that became texts. Magazines discovered sequential narratives. Magazines discovered how to combine radically different elements; fashion, reportage, fiction, opinion. Magazines discovered how to be unpredictable. Magazines discovered how to be cool. However, the book did have nice covers. Whilst there are some novels, such as The Raw Shark Texts, The House of Leaves, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, The People of Paper or Willie Masters’ Lonesome Wife that push the boundaries and conventions of the form, these are rare things – few and far between – whereas there are hundreds of magazines that experiment, take risks and reinvent themselves over and over again. The Brief We want you to use the text of The Waitress*, a tale by Jack Zipes, to invest the book with the invention and experimentation of the magazine. Consider the current format, nature and pacing of a book; the half-title page, title page, dedications, colophon, chapter headings…. How might this change and develop into something new? Will your ‘novel’ remain as a single narrative, will it include other stories? Are they themed or are they going to be very diverse ‘cannonballs of surprise’? Is it a stand alone issue or one of many? In 1923, El Lissitzky told us that ‘the new book demands the new writer’, and with the advent of
digital print technologies, the iPhone, the iPad and the Kindle, the new book is undeniably here. Lissitzky’s vision of the Electro-Library demands that we reconsider every aspect of page design – from the details that we understood to represent the craft of typography, to the elements of the page itself: the running heads, the folios, the paragraph and chapter. The ‘design of the book-space, set according to the constraints of printing mechanics’ no longer matters to us. This new page is an undiscovered landscape of opportunity and possibility…. If you choose to do so, the surface can now truly transcend space and time – the ‘printed’ surface must be re-invented and the infinity of books embraced. The rules no longer apply. Everything about the page is new again. Everything we ‘know’ about the conventions of book design and typography demands to be re-invented for the new kind of writer, reader and designer. Use print, screen, combined media – the choice is yours – as long as it expresses a solid idea, informs us and shows your typographic skills. Remember that words and language are our collateral and that your submission should be essentially typographic. Target Audience The new reader Requirements • Research and Development • Strategy • Specifications/Grid(s) • Dummy/Prototype(s) • Presentation * The Waitress text is available as a pdf to download from our website Cross-reference this project brief with the ‘Assessment Criteria’ sheet. Submissions will only be accepted in one robust portfolio no larger than a2.
istd2012project02 International Society of Typographic Designers
PUTTING ON A FRESH FACE Our society was founded in July 1928 as the British Typographers’ Guild. Seven like-minded typographers met to create a society aiming ‘to place a bona fide typographer in every printing office and advertising agency that is worthy of the name’ and ‘to raise the standard of British typography both by precept and by practice’ In the early 1950s the name was changed to the Society of Typographic Designers, STD. Nearly 50 years later, to recognise growing influence in other countries and at the behest of then President Colin Banks, STD became ISTD, the International Society of Typographic Designers. From that time, when the de facto medium of communication – and the typographer – was print, we continue to transform our practice to address existing and emerging media. The Brief ISTD is setting a challenge to students aspiring to be members – refresh the visual identity of the society. This could incorporate the adoption of a new logo but such a fundamental change of identity would demand a strong supporting strategy articulating the benefits as well as the visual material to illustrate that. Alternatively, there is wide scope for revision using the existing logo – the choice is yours. While we are not actively seeking to change our identity this is a good opportunity to influence us. You may wish to consider how your proposals will apply to some of the range of print matter that we publish – the ISTD journal ‘Typographic’, the members’ newsletter ‘Condensed’, catalogues and promotional material.
The web also offers huge opportunities for creating connections amongst ISTD’s international membership. Pushing beyond the everyday and expected, and considering the web in all its forms, evaluate the creative opportunities that the web can offer as part of your rebrand. How might social media – Twitter, Facebook and other services, for example – be used creatively as part of a wider ISTD web strategy? What other opportunities exist through the creative use and combination of web technologies – maybe an ISTD app? Use print, screen, combined media – the choice is yours – as long as it expresses a solid idea, informs us and shows your typographic skills. Remember that words and language are our collateral and that your submission should be essentially typographic. Target Market ISTD members, professional and student designers and educators. Requirements • Research and Development • Strategy • Specifications/Grid(s) • Dummy/Prototype(s) • Presentation Cross-reference this project brief with the Assessment Criteria sheet. Submissions will only be accepted in one robust portfolio no larger than a2.
istd2012project03 International Society of Typographic Designers
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY I recently discovered that I share a birthdate with BBC broadcasting its first televised news bulletin; the Salvation Army being founded in London’s East End; Spam being introduced and, not least, the birth of ‘Dolly the Sheep’. Subsequently, to find that I share a birthday with PT Barnum, Robbie Robertson, Paul Smith, Huey Lewis and Royce da 5’9” inspired the widest range of emotion and aspiration. Access to data is so effective that we are now better equipped than ever to create information that expresses histories in the personal as well as the international forum. The Brief We want you to consider how best to interpret the project theme. Is it what happened through the centuries on a specific day in the month/year or could it be the story of one particular day in time? The ‘Big Bang’; Battle of Hastings; the first pulls of Gutenberg’s 42-line bible’; Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show; assassination of JFK; Liverpool’s European Cup win in 2005 or the atrocity of 9/11 – you are spoilt for choice. However fascinating the topic and the information that you select, your challenge is to create a delivery platform that demands the reader’s
attention. It needs to address the norms of information architecture while actively working to evoke an emotional response from the reader or viewer. Use print, screen, combined media – the choice is yours – as long as it expresses a solid idea, informs us and shows your typographic skills. Remember that words and language are our collateral and that your submission should be essentially typographic. Target Market Define your market, and how you will target it, in your Strategy. Requirements • Research and Development • Strategy • Specifications/Grid(s) • Dummy/Prototype(s) • Presentation Cross-reference this project brief with the ‘Assessment Criteria’ sheet. Submissions will only be accepted in one robust portfolio no larger than a2.
istd2012project04 International Society of Typographic Designers
4’ 33” Four Minutes and Thirty-Three Seconds was written by the American composer John Cage and first performed by a young pianist called David Tudor on August 29, 1952. The event took place at Woodstock, New York, for an audience supporting the Benefit Artists Welfare Fund – an audience that supported contemporary art. ‘Tudor placed the hand-written score, which was in conventional notation with blank measures, on the piano and sat motionless as he used a stopwatch to measure the time of each movement. The score indicated three silent movements, each of a different length, but when added together totalled four minutes and thirty-three seconds. Tudor signaled its commencement by lowering the keyboard lid of the piano. The sound of the wind in the trees entered the first movement. After thirty seconds of no action, he raised the lid to signal the end of the first movement. It was then lowered for the second movement, during which raindrops pattered on the roof. The score was in several pages, so he turned the pages as time passed, yet playing nothing at all. The keyboard lid was raised and lowered again for the final movement, during which the audience whispered and muttered.’ Members of that original audience are apparently still angry today. The piece is not an extended moment of silence or an absence of noise as silence does not exist. As Cage himself said, ‘Try as we can to make silence, we cannot.’ The piece is created by the ambient noise of the audience – the environmental, unintentional sounds.
The Brief We want you to create your own performance of 4’ 33” – in a time and location of your choice – and produce a typographic representation of the event. The location could of course be on, say, a train or bike rather than at a fixed point.
Your research might include avant-garde music scores, labanotation, onomatopoeia, meditation, Silent Music or the iChing… The format, size, scale, rendering, method, etc. are totally up to you, but the piece must be designed and packaged to appeal to an audience familiar with and responsive to Cage’s work or to introduce others to it. You may need to repeat your performance several times in order to gain enough aural and visual information to work with and you should listen, draw, record and photograph the event to begin your research. Remember that digital recording devices will not necessarily hear what you hear, so you must make sure that you gain as much information as possible from as many different devices as possible. So, when considering this project, above all else, remember: ‘One simply should listen and open one’s ears’ Use print, screen, combined media – the choice is yours – as long as it expresses a solid idea, informs us and shows your typographic skills. Remember that words and language are our collateral and that your submission, while possibly incorporating sound, should be essentially typographic. Target Market An audience familiar with and responsive to Cage’s work or a new one. Requirements • Research and Development • Strategy • Specifications/Grid(s) • Dummy/Prototype(s) • Presentation Cross-reference this project brief with the ‘Assessment Criteria’ sheet. Submissions will only be accepted in one robust portfolio no larger than a2.
istd2012project05 International Society of Typographic Designers
TWEET TWEET Facebook went live in 2004. In one fell swoop Mark Zuckerberg and Dustin Moskovitz changed the face of communication. Since then social networking informs how individuals, groups, organisations and even nations interact with each other. Sites like Facebook and Twitter number their members in the millions and mirror every aspect of society, from celebrities and politicians to the ‘man in the street’ – you and me. All of the complexity of human communication and behaviour is now ‘writ large’ in a global forum. The Brief We want you to explore the world of ‘social networking’. Create a network of participants. How do you populate the piece? Is it a series of like-minded people or is the forum diverse and open-ended? Friendly or conflicting? Living or dead? Humorous or hellish? Establishment or anti-establishment? You decide! We are not suggesting that you create a ‘live’ network, but you may wish to explore the unique lexicon of language employed in social networking – retweet, trending, hashtags, etc.
We envisage that you will use your research to inform a typographic ‘tour-de-force’. Think laterally and surprise us with your ingenuity. Use print, screen, combined media – the choice is yours – as long as it expresses a solid idea, informs us and shows your typographic skills. Remember that words and language are our collateral and that your submission should be essentially typographic. Target Market Define your market, and how you will target it, in your Strategy. Requirements • Research and Development • Strategy • Specifications/Grid(s) • Dummy/Prototype(s) • Presentation Cross-reference this project brief with the ‘Assessment Criteria’ sheet. Submissions will only be accepted in one robust portfolio no larger than a2.
istd2012type|layoutspecifications1 International Society of Typographic Designers
Demonstrate your use of all typo/graphic elements in your layouts by detailing their use through annotated specifications. The diagrams below and on the following page give guidelines for possible methods of annotation. Grids should detail all measurements of your document/screen grid – horizontal and vertical grid spacing (margins and gutters). The sample below shows the use of the baseline grid. This is not mandatory. Column/text block measures should be included. Typo/graphic Specifications should detail your use of type/glyphs and other graphic elements. The main focus is your typographic treatment of texts – particularly the hierarchy of
Running Headline 6 pt Foundry Sans Normal colour: 100% black Head margin 15mm Folio 6 pt Foundry Sans Demi colour: 50% black
Rule 4pt x 3 column colour: 50% black
Heading 1 36 pt Times Italic 3 column measure colour: 100% black Paragraph 3-line drop cap Foundry Sans Demi colour: 100% black Body Text 9/12pt Foundry Sans Normal (3pt leading/12pt body) Ranged Left 57mm measure 3mm paragraph indents colour: 100% black
Heading 2 9/12pt Foundry Sans Demi (3pt leading/12pt body) colour: 100% black
information. Consider, for instance, your detailing for headlines; sub-heads; body text; cross-heads; standfirsts; call-outs; captions; headers; footers; folios; bullets; rules; fleurons and any other typographic devices that may be used. In all instances give the size, body/leading, weight and colour. Media differentials will determine the appropriate information for your specifications. The list above relates to print-based matter. Your specifications for screen-based/broadcast type should include the appropriate information and terminology for that medium. Type and lettering used as illustrative matter need not be specified.
Gutter 4mm
Caption 8/10 pt Foundry Sans Italic (2pt leading/10pt body) colour: 100% black
istd2012type|layoutspecifications2 International Society of Typographic Designers
Annotation This illustration offers an alternative method of annotation to that on sheet #1 – in this case for specification of a screen-based submission. Either method is acceptable – clarity of information is the main criterion.
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1 <img src=’’…guardian_logo.gif’’ /> 2 <h1> font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 24px; line height: 1.2em; font-weight: normal; colour: #005689;
4 <h3> font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line height: 1.2em; font-weight: bold; colour: #005689;
6 <p> font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line height: 1.2em; font-weight: normal; colour: #333;
3 <h2> font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; line height: 1.2em; font-weight: normal; colour: #005689;
5 <h3> font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 24px; line height: 1.2em; font-weight: normal; colour: #005689;
7 <p> font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line height: 1.3em; font-weight: normal; colour: #005689;
istd2012printspecifications International Society of Typographic Designers
Click in the area you wish to enter information. On completion, print out, attach samples and include in your submission.
This interactive form allows you to detail the processes and materials that would be required to commercially produce your proposals. For each item state – • finished dimensions • printing process(es) (litho/screen/ letterpress/gravure . . .)
REGISTRATION NUMBER
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• material/stock/papers, their manufacturer/ range/weight (materials should be identified and samples fixed to this sheet) • colour (process colour/spot colour and/or specials) • binding/finishing (case/perfect/saddle- stitched/laminating/embossing/etc.)
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