Typographer’s Guide to the Basics Dara Cochran
Typographer’s Guide to the Basics
Table of Contents Project One 1 Anatomy of a Letter
Project Four 9 Typographic Contrast
Project Seven 17 Self-Promotion Piece
Project Two 5 Typographic Palette
Project Five 13 Grid
Project Eight 19 Social Awareness
Project Three 7 Logo Design
Project Six 15 Visual/ Verbal
Project Nine 21 Book Jacket Design
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Project One: Anatomy of a Letter
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Two typefaces are presented: research and write a brief description and background for both. Include some characteristics unique to each. Then using a 14x17 inch square, compose and kern the following letters: RTWhaego. Label the listed callouts for the lines and letters as well as the type of serif.
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Project Two Typographic Palette
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Pick one typeface from each of the 5 types of serifs: old style, transitional, modern, slab, and sans. These five typefaces will form a base palette to be used for any typographic projects; these should vary in style and have multiple fonts withing the typeface to provide flexibility in projects. Alternate typefaces were used in projects when applicable in order to achieve a desired effect.
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Sans-Serif: Avant Garde Gothic Slab: Cantoria MT Std. Modern: Kepler Std. Transitional: Electra LT Std. Old Style: Waters Titling Pro & Garamond *Alternate fonts were substituted when necessary*
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Project Three Logo Design
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Create two dynamic designs that will fit into a 7x7 inch square by arranging two letters form fonts into a cohesive whole; for this exercise the initals of our own names were used . A dynamic composition is formed by precise spatial location of the letterforms.
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Project Four Typographic Contrast
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Select a 10-20 word statement or descriptive copy from a newspaper, advertisement, or article. Design five 7x7 inch layouts that explore the copy’s meaning through the use of typographic contrast. Each sample must illustrate one of the five variations of typographic contrasts: size, weight, structure, form, and no contrast.
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Project Five Grid
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Using an 8x8 inch layout, create a grid with 1/4 inch margins on all sides, four vertical columns, and 1/4 inch gutters. Use this grid to create two different designs with the supplied text in an 8-pt typeface of your choosing.
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Project Six Visual Verbal
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Select a typeface of any kind, Choose 3 words from a given list or select your own. In a 7x7 inch square and using a typeface of your choice, arrange each word to express its meaning.
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Project Seven Self-Promotion Piece
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Design a promotion piece for an actual upcoming event or for your own self-promotion. Use visual hierarchy and typographic contrasts to convey the information. I used a classic child’s toy called a Jacob’s Ladder as the inspiration for this design.
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Project Eight Social Awareness
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Create a 11�x17� poster that educates the public about a social issue and conveys a call of action towards a general audience using typographic heirarchy. The Fukushima Plant disaster in Japan was the choice for this project. The poster on the left was the original, the one on the right was altered following a critique.
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Project Nine Book Jacket Design
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Select a previously completed illustration to create a book jacket design that incorporates the front and back cover, spine, and front and back inside flaps in a unified composition. For this project I chose the book Carrie by author Stephen King.
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This book was produced for an Illustrator’s Typography course at RMCAD in the Fall of 2013 to showcase typographic skill. Bookman Old Style Regular and Bold in 24pt were used for the Headers and Sub-Headers, and 14 pt. Minion Pro was used for the body text. All illustrations are done by the author.
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