Visual Thinking Typography Workbook

Visual Thinking T Y P O G R A P H Y WO R K B O O K G r a p h i c D es i g n ( BA H o n s ) Leve l 4

Katharine Fletcher

AUB

CV

G ra p h i c Des i g n BA ( H o n s ) LEVEL 4

V ontents T Y P O G R A P H Y WO R K BO O K Ka t h a r i n e F l etc h e r

V i s u a l Th i n k i n g

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Task One: D istincti ve Characters

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Task Two : Postcard

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Task Three : Ver nacular Letter forms

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Task Four : Poster

5 Wor kshops

6 Lectures

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For the Love of Graphics

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V isual Thinking

Task One

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Distinctive Characters:

Typography as a Semiotic Resource Typography can be used as a powerful vehicle to transmit ideas and notions of culture, gender, history, materiality and value. The function of typography is to communicate a message so that it effectively conveys and reinforces meaning. In the early 20th Century Beatrice Warde in The Crystal Goblet ascertained that typography should render itself invisible and be subservient to the content. In the 21st Century digital intervention has allowed greater access to typographic technologies and no longer is typography judged on its ability to remain within these constrained vessels. Typography as a semiotic resource in its own right is capable of transmitting a variety of meanings.

The study of semiotics has been used by academics to analyse and deconstruct Post Struclualist Theories.

If we look at the work of The Semiotic Alliance on http://www.semiotics.co.uk we can see how semiotics are used within the commercial sector to help some of the world’s biggest brands find fame and fortune.

If we go much further back in history to the Middle Ages we see how religious and secular texts use Illuminated Characters to accentuate meaning and establish hierarchical construction. The use of colour to provide particular emphasis and meaning to the texts.

Working in groups of two choose an initial letter from the following set and based on the terminologies and glossaries contained within the brief develop a word that is related to the unit – you can produce it in Caps or lowercase. After careful planning, design and make a three dimensional initial character that communicates its meaning. The model can be made of found objects but must finally be wall mounted.

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Research

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Firstly, my parrtner and I made a mindmap of any words beginning with ‘e.’

eye brow

ex p l os i o n

ear erasor

earth

Eiffel Tower

eye

e

e m pt y

eggs

elegance end envelopes

earn

e nv i r o n m e n t

Idea One E g g s

1 One of our ideas was to create a model of the letter ‘e’ by using eggs. There were different methods we could use such as frying an egg in an ‘e’ shaped mould in a pan, shaping scrambles eggs into the shape on toast, or simply using uncracked eggs to form the letter ‘e.’

We decided that making an uppercase ‘e’ would be the most practical and would look stronger than a lowercase ‘e.’

2 Idea Two E n v i r o n m e n t

For our second idea we were inspired by the word ‘environent’ to create a model of the letter ‘e’ using natural materials such as twigs, flowers and leaves.

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g E EGGS To make the ‘e’ out of eggs we made a mould out of tinfoil then heated the mould in a frying pan. We seperated the yolk and the white of en egg into two bowls. We poured only half of the white into the hot mould so that it wouldn’t spill over. Once this was half cooked we spooned in half the yolk and let it cook, then photographed the final piece in a frying pan and on a plate.

We decided to change our word to elegance because it fitted better with the style of our model.

Elegance We gathered twigs and glued them together with a hot glue gun to make sure our model was sturdy. We glued on red roses, leaves and small flowers, then photographed the final model using light boxes infront of a black background to make it stand out.

Task Two

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Postcard: Produce an A6 postcard with the image on one side and a brief description of the chosen word.

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For this task I needed to find a way in which I could link the look of my model, with the word elegance and with the topic of typography. I wrote out a few different sentences and finally came up with one I was happy with. I then edited three of the best photos on Photoshop by adjusting the levels and sharpening the image. With these photos I made three different postcard layouts on Indesign.

The layout I chose to use was the one on the page opposite because the model really stands out in the photograph.

B e

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word is a combination of letters, just as nature is a combination of life; it is the elegant flow between these things that brings them all together.

A word is a combination of letters, just as nature is the combination of life...it is the elegant flow between these things that brings them all together.

A word is a combination of letters, just as nature is the combination of life...

...It is the elegant flow between these things that brings them all together.

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word is a combination of letters, just as nature is a combination of life; it is the elegant flow between these things that brings them all together.

Task Three

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Ver nacular Letterfor ms: A lexicon of U r ban Photography

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This brief begins with a visit to Poole where you will identify, collect and photograph examples of vernacular letterforms in the town. Your images could be literal interpretations of details of road signs, gravestones or shop front signs etc, or slightly more challenging abstract collections of ‘hidden signs’ drawn from architectural forms, found objects and unintentional typographic structures. You will be working in teams of four and planning which letterforms you each photograph in order to create a lexicon of vernacular letterforms.

Remember, you will need a full alphabet.

It is important that you keep accurate notes for each of the pictures: i.e. Photographer, Location, Date, Description before returning to AUB and uploading your pictures to a hard drive.

You will then go through a process of picture editing and retouching in readiness to prepare layouts for the book they will be published in.

Technical specifications: Trimmed size: 300x300mm Four colour Pictures saved as 300dpi cymk Tiffs Binding: French Fold

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“I enjoyed the trip to Poole as it was fun, exciting and good to go out on a trip and take photographs rather than staying in a studio.�

Letters in the L A N D S CA P E p h otos h o ot Katharine Fletcher Mia Jamieson Becky Haskins Nina Labartkava

For the photoshoot, my group mainly explored the key in search of interesting landmarks and objects that would create abstract letterforms for our photographs. We searched high and low for sights up close and far away with a range of colours and textures that would give us a diverse mix of photographs for our book.

We also ventured down small roads and alleys and found some unexpected letterforms that were original as they were hidden away from the key. Overall, when all of our photographs were put together we found we had a variety of high quality photographs that would make a successful book.

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Designing th Letters in the Landscape My group designed the layout for the book together on Indesign and used grids in order to make sure all of the images were perfectly alligned so the book would look neat and tidy. For the bleed we added 10mm at the sides and 6mm at the top and bottom.

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It was important when designing the book that we considered which photos would look good together in terms of shape, texture, colour and contrast. For example grey would go next to red while metal would go next to wood. Some pages were filled with just one photo whilst others were filled with lots of small photos, making the book interesting and diverse. On one page we used a whole double spread to display one photo.

he book

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Making the book We printed one book for the whole of our group and used a Lumbeck Press to fix it together. The type of folding we used was french folding because this would ensure high quality images, as ink from one picture would not damage the picture on the other side.

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To make the book we first folded all of the pages accurately, using a lightbox to line them up, and a bone to make a neat crease. We attached the Lumbeck Press to the table and lined up all our pages so they were neatly together.

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We placed the pages in the Lumbeck Press along with a scrap piece of paper on each side to protect the pages, then we tightened it so they would stay in the right shape.

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We pushed the pages down to one side and dabbed archival pva glue along the edges. Once this had dried a little we added another layer of glue. Afterwards we pushed the pages down to the other side and did the same thing. This method ensured that the pages were not just glued at the edge but also slightly down the gaps between the pages so our book would be strong and sturdy.

We then added one more layer of glue and left the book to dry over night.

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Finally, we added a cover using black card.

Task Four

Poster:

Each person is to produce one portrait A2 poster to promote the book.

Letters in the Landscape

Letters in the Landscape

A L E X ICO N O F U R BA N P HOTOGR A P H Y

A L E X I CO N O F U R BA N P H OTOG R A P H Y

A documentation of the journey of four graphic design students, as they explore Poole in search for letters in the landscape. These vernacular letterforms vary from the more literal interpretations of shop and road signs, to the more abstract collections of ‘hidden signs’ drawn from architectural forms, found objects and unintentional typographic structures.

A documentation of the journey of four graphic design students, as they explore Poole in search for letters in the landscape. These vernacular letterforms vary from the more literal interpretations of shop and road signs, to the more abstract collections of ‘hidden signs’ drawn from architectural forms, found objects and unintentional typographic structures.

“Truly stunning photography that will open your eyes to the letterforms you never knew were there”

“Truly stunning photography that will open your eyes to the letterforms you never knew were there”

Letters in the Landscape A L E X ICO N O F U R BA N P HOTOGR A P H Y A documentation of the journey of four graphic design students, as they explore Poole in search for letters in the landscape. These vernacular letterforms vary from the more literal interpretations of shop and road signs, to the more abstract collections of ‘hidden signs’ drawn from architectural forms, found objects and unintentional typographic structures.

“Truly stunning photography that will open your eyes to the letterforms you never knew were there”

I designed three variations of a poster to advertise our book. For the first one I edited the photo in Photoshop by making it black and white and sharpening the image, then I adjusted the levels to give it a higher contrast. I made the text white to stand out against the photograph. For the other two posters I edited the photo similarly by sharpening it and adjusting the levels. I also adjusted to colour balance slightly by increasing the levels of blue. In the second poster I made the text at the top black to match the black ‘L’ in the photograph and in the third I kept the text white, which I think was more successful as the text was easier to read and matched the text at the bottom of the poster. My favourite design was the first one as I think the image looks more urban in black and white and the white text really stands out against it.

Letters in the Landscape A L E X ICO N O F U R BA N P HOTOGR A P H Y A documentation of the journey of four graphic design students, as they explore Poole in search for letters in the landscape. These vernacular letterforms vary from the more literal interpretations of shop and road signs, to the more abstract collections of ‘hidden signs’ drawn from architectural forms, found objects and unintentional typographic structures.

“Truly stunning photography that will open your eyes to the letterforms you never knew were there”

Worksh Chromophlia In this workshop we learnt about the use of colour and how our perception of colour can change when put into the context of other colours. I found this interesting and useful because in graphic design the use of colour is important when sending out a message or a mood.

Also, how colour and typography work together is important. Text should be legible, and colour has a large role to play in this. We also learnt about the saturation and value of colours as well as the origin of paints and how they are made.

and then fill the shapes made with different white tints using acrylic paint. This task involved a lot of control because if too much colour was used when mixing paints, the paint would be a pastel colour rather than off-white. I also had to add one colour that would stand out from the rest without looking too odd, so I used a more saturated peach to compliment the pink-white and keep with the calm mood of the painting.

During the workshop we each had a task. My task was to draw out letters on different scales overlapping eachother

E xplosi ve D raw ing In this workshop we covered the room with large roles of paper, then the class was allowed to paint on a large scale while listening to the story Wuthering heights. The aim was to paint something related to the story, so I painted lots of things related to scenery, e.g. trees and rivers and as the story went on the paintings became a lot darker. I found this workshop interesting because it taught me that sometimes working on a large scale gives the best effect when trying to be expressive and free with drawing/painting. It linked to graphics because it was about illustration and working in team as the whole class was working on one big painting. Sometimes we would add to each other’s work. The workshop also linked to typography because I painted words as well, and I had to think about what style of lettering would best fit the theme of the story.

hops The Collector For this workshop we were asked to go to Poole and collect images and drawings.

I decided to go to the key and do some sketches of mainly letterforms as this linked to the work we were doing in graphics. I drew letters from signs as well as abstract letterforms. I found it interesting how some of the letterforms I took photos of during our first trip to Poole looked different when drawn. Some of the abstract letterforms needed certain shading and enhancement to make them clearly look like letters.

Lecture D ig ital P ractice and Theor y : Digital Practice and Theory: This lecture was about the history, development and pervasiveness of digital culture today. We were influenced to look at the digital world in terms of its materiality, as something physical, rather than something virtual, and to think about how this idea of a ‘virtual world’ is affecting our culture.

This was interesting to learn about because in graphic design, methods of creating and communicating are constantly changing, and a lot of what used to be done by hand is now done using technology.

Oooh Aah Mmmm :

N otions of taste, aesthetic j udgement and consumer culture In this lecture we learnt about our relationship with objects, how we give them a value using our aesthetic judgements, and how all of this can affect consumer culture. I found it interesting that there was such a variety of different styles of objects that would appeal to different people, from novelty household items to a real fur scarf with the head and claws still attached. It was strange that the value of this object has decreased dramatically over time, along with our changing culture; people have different opinions now, compared to the past, on using animals for clothing.

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The Power of Persuasion :

P ropaganda - Meanings, Methods and Messages

This lecture was about how propaganda has been formed and used and how it has changed over time, from the war all the way to modern day advertising and political campaigns. I found it interesting that much of the modern day advertising actually uses similar techniques to war propaganda. This lecture was useful as the essay I was working on is about Barbara Kruger, an artist/ designer who’s work was propaganda, so this lecture gave me a more detailed insight into what propaganda actually is, and the techniques used to create it.

For the of

Graph

W h a t I b ro u g h t : I have been collecting vintage looking postcards for a long time and here are some of my favorites. I like them because it shows that design can still be interesting and quirky even though it was made years ago, unlike technology or appliances. In my opinion, some of the best graphic design around is what we would now call vintage.

hics Exhibition

Our class made up an exhibition called ‘For the Love of Graphics.’ It turned out to be really successful as there was such a variety of items people had brought and it was interesting to see the different types of graphic design people like to collect.

S C C Visual Thinking

Throughout learning the topic, Visual Thinking, I feel I have extended my

knowledge of how to use typography, in terms of size, font, contrast and spacing. I feel much more confident that I know when and where to use which

fonts and why, for example when putting in bulk text (e.g. this paragraph) serif

fonts are useful because they are easier to read for a long period of time. I will

also always remember that for texts like these, usually a point size no larger than 12 is required, because it keeps the work looking neat and organised.

Contrast

Contrast is important as it can enhance each seperate piece of text, for example a title with a large point size and a subheading with a small point size would compliment eachother. Similarly, pairing an elaborate font with a simple font would enhance each text. However it is important to know when and how to use contrast, as sometimes it may not look aesthtically pleasing, for example pairing two very different but elaborate fonts may have a bad effect because it might seem as though they are competing for attention. I now feel more confident in knowing when and how to use contrast in typography.

S Tracking A B C D E F G

Kerning A B C D E F G

Leading A B C D E F G

H I J K L M N O X height

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Tracking is useful when you want to make text more legible, for example in a bulk text, if the point size is small, you may increase the space between all of the letters, making it easier to read. Tracking can also be used as a design technique as it can create contrast between different pieces of text.

Kerning is useful for when the spacing between two particular letters looks odd compared to the spaces between the rest of the letters. This is due to the nature of the shape of the letters, in some fonts more than others. Adjusting the spacing between just these two letters can make the word look more natural.

Leading is useful when you want to make a bulk text easier to read, by increasing the spacing between lines.

Spacing

I feel I have learnt a lot about how to use the space on a page efficiently. I understand how important it is that a layout is clear and organised for it to look good. Now when designing layouts I make sure that text boxes, pictures and shapes are lined up with eachother precisely. I also understand that sometimes leaving space empty is necessary in order to keep the page from looking cluttlered.

CAPITAL LETTERS Capital letters be used to emphasise a word or create contrast between one piece of text and another.

B Bibliography

1)

Letter S (2013). [online image] Available from: http://www.booooooom.com/2013/06/27/

letters-made-of-household-objects-by-photographer-bela-borsodi/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 2)

Letter N (2013). [online image] Available from: http://www.booooooom.com/2013/06/27/

letters-made-of-household-objects-by-photographer-bela-borsodi/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 3)

Letter L (2013). [online image] Available from: http://www.booooooom.com/2013/06/27/

letters-made-of-household-objects-by-photographer-bela-borsodi/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 4)

BLACK (2012). [online image] Available from: http://www.cgmotionbox.com/2012/07/

using-boole-objects-mograph-to-animate-custom-letters-in-cinema-4d/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 5)

Letter A (n.d.). [online image] Available from: http://www.e-flowersuk.co.uk/product.

tribute-letters-funeral-flowers.htm [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 6)

Letters with food (2012). [online image] Available from: http://kristenbaumlier.

com/2012/08/24/new-local-food-truck-food-alphabet-is-in-the-works/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 7)

Letter C (n.d.). [online image] Available from: http://en.paperblog.com/food-meets-art-118-

flavourful-letters-for-ballentines-whisky-476663/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 8)

Letter R (n.d.) [online image] Available from: http://fineartamerica.com/contests/objects-

that-look-like-letters.html [Accessed 22nd February 2014] 9)

Metal Letters ‘R’ (2011). [online image] Available from: http://knockoffdecor.com/aged-

metal-nursery-letters/ [Accessed 22nd February 2014]

10) Fried Egg Sweets (n.d.). [online image] Available from: http://www.gonedigging.co.uk/food-

drink-and-hampers/personalised-retro-sweets/my-fantastic-fried-eggs-jar/ [Accessed 23rd February 2014] 10)

Your Body is a Battleground (2012). [online image] Available from: http://imageobjecttext.

com/2012/03/22/selling-a-message/ [Accessed 24th February 2014] 11)

Giraffe Toilet Brush (n.d.). [online image] Available from: http://www.squidoo.com/cool-

toilet-brushes [Accessed 24th February 2014]