A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS [ON ART 338]
by MIKE MILLER
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CONTENTS BEGINNING THOUGHTS
4
THOUGHTS ACQUIRED IN CLASS
6
IN READING [PRACTICAL TYPORAPHY] 34 IN READING [ASSORTED ESSAYS] 46 IN CRITIQUE
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54
BEGINNING THOUGHTS
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THIS IS YOUR MIND ON TYPE This book is a look into my thoughts that formulated during Art 338, Type II. Many of the thoughts were given to me or inspired by classmates, lectures, critiques, or readings. The intention of this book is to create a compelling assemblage of the knowledge that I have assimilated during this course, and make it useful for both those who have taken the course and are in need of a refresher, and for those who have not yet taken the course but are looking to learn. Enjoy a look into my mind as I present to you A Semi Organized Collection of Thoughts [on art 338].
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THOUGHTS in c
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ACQUIRED class
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FONT
“Fonts are the things that enable the printing of typefaces. Type foundries produce fonts. Sometimes designers and foundries are one and the same, but creating a typeface and producing a font are two separate functions.” Alan Haley // AIGA
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TYPEFACE “Typefaces are designs like Baskerville, Gill Sans or Papyrus. Type designers create typefaces. Today they use software programs like Fontographer or Font Lab to create the individual letters. A few still draw the letters by hand and then scan them into a type design application.” Alan Haley // AIGA
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NUMBERS TO KNOW
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PICAS 12pts = 1 pica // 6 pica = 1 inch LEADING Should be 120-145% of point size [auto leading’s usually too tight] OPTIMAL LINE LENGTH: 45-90 characters 2-3 lowercase alphabets 8-13 words per line
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PROPER RAGS
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BAD try not to get a dip in the center.
BAD dont have your rags slant one way.
WTF.
GOOD that looks more natural!
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To help with bad rags, just adjust the tracking of whole paragraphs or individual lines.
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-10 TRACKING FINE.
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+10 TRACKING FINE.
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+20 TRACKING
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TOO M NOT F A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 18
MUCH. FINE. A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 19
+50 TRACKING FOR ALL CAPS ? A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 20
YEAH, THATS FINE.
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HYPHENNATION
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HYPHEN | use a hyphen when a word is too long (customize your hyphenation settings to hyphen after 3 words) EN DASH | – use an en dash when dealing with a duration of something. EM DASH | — us an em dash for a break of flow in the sentence (but use a semi-colon if what comes after could stand as own sentence).
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WHAT TYPE OF TYPE
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SELECTING THE RIGHT TYPEFACE When choosing a typeface, a designer must take note of a few things. A properly selected typeface isn’t arbitrary—it is very intentional. While looking for a typeface, a designer first has to look at the content in which the typeface will be displayed. Would Futura condensed extra bold be the best way to display a memo about a serious health crisis? Probably not. A designer should also consider the format that the type will be taking. Is it type that is going to be displayed on screen? Is the text going to be blown up to a giant size at the head of a poster? These are important things to consider when choosing a typeface, and will greatly impact a design. An ideal typeface would have a good regular weight, a weight with noticeable contrast, solid italic letter forms, legible numerals, and narrow enough to fit lots of copy. A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 25
NOTEWORTHY SHORTCUTS
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command + i = spellcheck opt + 8 = • opt + k = ˚ opt + g = © opt + r = ® opt + 2 = ™ opt + ; = … opt + ] = ‘ opt + [ = “ opt + shift + ] = ’ opt + shift + [ = ”
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“ALWAYS USE SMART QUOTES” A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 28
"DON'T USE DUMB QUOTES" & ''DON'T EVER USE PRIME MARKS AS QUOTATIONS''
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THE BEST PLACES TO DOWNLOAD FONTS
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Google Lost type Leauge of Moveable Type Font squirrel FontSpring House industry MyFonts
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REMEMBER THE MINIMU OF FONTS ON YOUR AT ALL TIM WILL MAKE E RUN SO MU A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 32
TO KEEP UM NUMBER INSTALLED COMPUTER MES, IT 100% EVERYTHING UCH FASTER. A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 33
THOUGHTS in rea
[practical ty
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ACQUIRED ading
ypography]
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WHY DOES TYPE MATTER?
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THE INFAMOUS BUTTERFLY BALLOT. Lets take a look at how bad typography seemed to make everything about the already stressful voting process more stressful. The candidate options are staggered so that the dots don’t line up with the candidates. This creates a world of uncertainty when trying to bubble in who you want to vote for. Aside from that, it seems as though almost everything is in all caps, creating no type hierarchy at all. A simple fix to this would be to have all candidates on one side of the ballot, directly across from their bubble.
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PAGE LAYOUT
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Page layout is just as important as choosing the right typeface. The right typeface with a boring layout can make a reading seem dull. Just think of the audience: They are probably not too into typography, and won’t be that intrigued by the typeface. And while the typeface is still very important, the page layout will determine the readability of the text. You can stagger your layout in order to make it more interesting, too. A layout doesn’t always have to be too columns right next to each other, the layout should engage the reader. Use “keep lines together” and “keep paragraph together” so that the paragraphs aren’t split up across pages.
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DON’T FEAR THE WHITE SPACE.
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THE WHITE SPACE IS YOUR FRIEND.
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FAMILY PLANNING
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TYPE FAMILY A type family needs consistency and common elements throughout all of the different styles of the type family. Lets look at consistency in one of the first extensive type families ever designed: Adrian Frutiger’s Univers:
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aaaaa a a a a a a a a a a aa a a a a a a a a a a a a a aa A SEMI ORGANIZED COLLECTION OF THOUGHTS | 44
ADRIAN FRUTIGER’S UNIVERS in all its extensive glory
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THOUGHTS in rea
[assorted
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ACQUIRED ading
d essays]
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MODULAR GRID ALLOWS FOR MORE FREEDOM AND DYNAMIC LAYOUTS
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BASELINE GRID USES THE TYPE SIZE AND LEADING TO CREATE ORGANIZATION [but requires more math]
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LATIN TYPE VS. THE WORLD
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LATIN TYPE DIDN’T COME FIRST. Movable type has been used in China and Korea as early as the year 1230.
1230! That’s a long time before Latin type was used as movable type for print. Johannes Gutenberg didn’t do it until 1450. But many type books fail to mention this.
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MAYBE GILL SANS ISN’T AS GREAT AS WE THOUGHT
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THE HELVETICA OF ENGLAND Gill Sans was based off of the typeface Johnston in 1928, intended to be an improvement of Johnston. As it turns out, though, some people have problems with Gill Sans. The biggest of those problems being that the letter-forms for the number ‘1’, and the capital ‘I’, and the lowercase ‘l’, all appear to be almost identical.
1I l Those are three entirely different characters. Which one is which? Nobody knows, that’s the problem. Personally, I never really liked Gill Sans anyway.
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THOUGHTS in cri
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ACQUIRED itique
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A DIALOGUE
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION Using the dialogue provided, you will design a diptych that utilizes all of the text and emphasizes the fact there is more than one voice. Please consider all your choices and decisions carefully. Everything matters. Think about and utilize the various typographic families,and typographic hierarchies. You can use color, and images to help support your design, but care must be taken to make sure your typography is flawless. Think about how all of the typographic elements influence our interpretation of the text and how you, as a designer, can influence the viewer’s reading of the text.
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THE
SOUL’S HIGH ADVEN
TURE A CONVERSATION WITH
BILL MOYERS & JOSEPH CAMPBELL
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S
E
problem of the psychiatrist is to disintegrate that dragon, break him up, so that you may expand to a larger field of relationships. The ultimate dragon is within you, it is your ego clamping you down.
M Why are there so many stories of the hero in mythology? C
Because that’s what’s worth writing about. Even in popular novels, the main character is a hero or heroine who has found or done something beyond the normal range of achievement and experience. A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.
M So in all of these cultures, whatever the local costume the hero might be wearing, what is the deed? C
Well, there are two types of deed. One is the physical deed, in which the hero performs a courageous act in battle or saves a life. The other kind is the spiritual deed, in which the hero learns to experience the supernormal range of human spiritual life and then comes back with a message.
M Does your study of mythology lead you to conclude that a single human quest, a standard pattern of human aspiration and thought, constitutes for all mankind something that we have in common, whether we lived a million years ago or will live a thousand years from now? C
There’s a certain type of myth which one might call the vision quest, going in quest of a boon, a vision, which has the same form in every mythology. That is the thing that I
M I like what you say about the old myth of Theseus and Ariadne. Theseus says to Ariadne, “I’ll love you forever if you can show me a way to come out of the labyrinth.” So she gives him a ball of string, which he unwinds as he goes into the labyrinth, and then follows to find the way out. You say, “All he had was the string. That’s all you need.” C
That’s all you need—an Ariadne thread.
M Sometimes we look for great wealth to save us, a great power to save us, or great ideas to save us, when all we need is that piece of string. C
That’s not always easy to find. But it’s nice to have someone who can give you a clue. That’s the teacher’s job, to help you find your Ariadne thread.
M Like all heroes, the Buddha doesn’t show you the truth itself, he shows you the way to truth. C
A HERO
But it’s got to be your way, not his. The Buddha can’t tell you exactly how to get rid of your particular fears, for example. Different teachers may suggest exercises, but they may not be the ones to work for you. All a teacher can do is suggest. He is like a lighthouse that says, “There are rocks over here, steer clear. There is a channel, however, out there”.
IS SOMEONE WHO HAS GIVEN HIS OR HER LIFE TO SOMETHING BIGGER tried to present in the first book I wrote, The Hero With a Thousand Faces. All these different mythologies give us the same essential quest. You leave the world that you’re in and go into a depth or into a distance or up to a height. There you come to what was missing in your consciousness in the world you formerly inhabited. Then comes the problem either of staying with that, and letting the world drop off, or returning with that boon and trying to hold on to it as you move back into your social world again. M How do I slay that dragon in me? What’s the journey each of us has to make, what you call “the soul’s high adventure”? C
My general formula for my students is “Follow your bliss.” Find where it is, and don’t be afraid to follow it.
M Is it my work or my life? C
If the work that you’re doing is the work that you chose to do because you are enjoying it, that’s it. But if you think, “Oh, no! I couldn’t do that!” that’s the dragon locking you in. “No, no, I couldn’t be a writer,” or “No, no, I couldn’t possibly do what So-and-so is doing.”
than oneself . M In all of these journeys of mythology, there’s a place everyone wishes to find. The Buddhists talk of Nirvana, and Jesus talks of peace, of the mansion with many rooms. Is that typical of the hero’s journey—that there’s a place to find? C
The place to find is within yourself. I learned a little about this in athletics. The athlete who is in top form has a quiet place within himself, and it’s around this, somehow, that his action occurs…. There’s a center of quietness within, which has to be known and held. If you lose that center, you are in tension and begin to fall apart.
M When I take that journey and go down there and slay those dragons, do I have to go alone? C
If you have someone who can help you, that’s fine, too. But, ultimately, the last deed has to be done by oneself. Psychologically, the dragon is one’s own binding of oneself to one’s ego. We’re captured in our own dragon cage. The
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NOTES
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GENERAL CRITIQUE NOTES Type weight problems, just use roman. Not enough leading. Hierarchy issues. More strength in the title. Awkward negative spaces. Work with the text. PERSONAL CHANGES Ultimately, I decided to up the contrast on just about everything, especially in the title page. I blew up the size of the illustration, and changed the color scheme. The illustration was unrecognizable (never a good thing), and the title was nowhere near powerful enough.
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ELEMENTS OF STYLE
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION The Elements of Style is a classic grammatical reference book for students and conscientious writers. The focus of the book is on composition, the effective use of plain English, and the principles of composition most commonly violated. The text is full of examples and comparisons, which necessitates the effective use of indents and shifts in typographic style. The text, written in 1918, is quirky, and, at times, a little archaic. Your job is to develop a design that would appeal to high school and college-aged students. We will be breaking up the text into smaller sections, and each student will be assigned a portion of the text to be used in the creation of a small reference booklet. The second phase of the project will require you to work in teams to create a single related series of booklets.
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THE EL EMENTS OF STYLE
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.
(Many of the words and expressions here listed are not so much bad English as bad style, the commonplaces of careless writing. As illustrated under Feature, the proper correction is likely to be not the replacement of one word or set of words by another, but the replacement of vague generality by definite statement.) all right.
Idiomatic in familiar speech as a detached phrase in the sense, Agreed, or Go ahead. In other uses better avoided. Always written as two words. as good or better than.
Expressions of this type should be corrected by rearranging the sentence. My opinion is as good or better than his. My opinion is as good as his, or better (if not better). as to w h e t h e r .
Whether is sufficient; see under Rule 13. bid.
Takes the infinitive without to. The past tense is bade. case.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary begins its definition of this word: “instance of a thing’s occurring; usual state of affairs.” In these two senses, the word is usually unnecessary. In many cases, the rooms were poorly ventilate Many of the rooms were poorly ventilated. It has rarely been the case that any mistake has been made. Few mistakes have been made.
6.
elements of style
See Wood, Suggestions to Authors, pp. 68-71, and QuillerCouch, The Art of Writing, pp. 103-106. c e r ta i n ly .
Used indiscriminately by some speakers, much as others use very, to intensify any and every statement. A mannerism of this kind, bad in speech, is even worse in writing. c h a r ac t e r .
Often simply redundant, used from a mere habit of wordiness. Acts of a hostile character Hostile acts claim, vb.
With object-noun, means lay claim to. May be used with a dependent clause if this sense is clearly involved: He claimed that he was the sole surviving heir. (But even here, claimed to be would be better.) Not to be used as a substitute for declare, maintain, or charge. c o m pa r e .
To compare to is to point out or imply resemblances, between objects regarded as essentially of different order; to compare with is mainly to point out differences, between objects regarded as essentially of the same order. Thus life has been compared to a pilgrimage, to a drama, to a battle; Congress may be compared with the British Parliament. Paris has been compared to ancient Athens ;it may be compared with modern London. clever.
This word has been greatly overused; it is best restricted to ingenuity displayed in small matters.
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section four
7.
consider.
Not followed by as when it means, believe to be. I consider him thoroughly competent. Compare, The lecturer considered Cromwell first as soldier and second as administrator, where considered means examined or discussed. d e p e n da b l e .
A needless substitute for reliable, trustworthy. d u e to .
Incorrectly used for through, because of, or owing to, in adverbial phrases: He lost the first game, due to carelessness. In correct use related as predicate or as modifier to a particular noun: This invention is due to Edison; losses due to preventable fires. effect.
As noun, means result; as verb, means to bring about, accomplish (not to be confused with affect, which means to influence). As noun, often loosely used in perfunctory writing about fashions, music, painting, and other arts: an Oriental effect; effects in pale green; very delicate effects; broad effects; subtle effects; a charming effect was produced by. The writer who has a definite meaning to express will not take refuge in such vagueness.
8.
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elements of style
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section four
9.
NOTES
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GENERAL CRITIQUE NOTES A single typeface can go a long way. Give margins more breathing room. Blank pages are okay, let the book breathe. PERSONAL CHANGES The thing that stood out to me the most was allowing the book to breath, and to pace out the book. Trying to cram everything into one space can be stressful for the reader. Printing is also something to remember to allow time for. Printing can (read: will) go wrong, and you have to allow for extra time so that the project can be printed properly.
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TYPE ZINE
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION In this project, you will be creating a digital magazine. The theme of the magazine is: Typography and the Everyday. Students in the class will be responsible for collecting and creating all the assets for the magazine, including: text, illustrations, and photographs. All found images and text (articles, interviews, etc.) must be properly credited.
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Vol.
magazine
01
Spring // 2016
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T I P E M A G A Z I N E / / C U LT U R E / / 2 2
1
JES S I CA H I S C H E I GR E W UP in Pennsylvania, raised by
erally called for, but it all paid off in the end and most of them have since forgiven me for ruining the curve.
I’ve been on my own as a letterer, illustrator, type designer, and relentless procrastiworker since 2009 and have worked for (and continue to work for) a lot of wonderful clients like Wes Anderson and Penguin Books. I’ve shared studios with amazing people including the folks over at Studiomates and of course my beloved Pencil Factory, where I continue to spend time on return trips to Brooklyn. I split my days (not evenly enough) between Brooklyn and San Francisco—the place I now call home and where I’ve set up a collaborative studio and workshop space with my brother from another mother, Erik Marinovich. When I’m not manipulating beziers or working on fun projects, you can find me at the airport en route to a speaking engagement. I love what I do for a living and try as hard as I can to help others find a way to do what they love.
In 2006, I graduated and landed a job as a freelance designer for a little studio in Philadelphia where I helped design fancy books and re-affirmed my passion for illustration and image-making. By winter, unsure if they wanted to take on another full-time employee, my hours were cut and I put together an illustration promo to get freelance work. That promo ended up landing me an illustration rep and a job for one of my heroes; I migrated to Brooklyn to work for her. After two and a half years of very little sleep and a lot of lettering, freelance work began overwhelming my life and my desire to do side projects became too much to bear. I ventured out on my own and embarked on a little project that would end up changing my career and earning me the moniker “That Drop Cap Girl”.
T I P E M A G A Z I N E / / C U LT U R E / / 4 8
two non-creatives that decided it would be OK to let their little girl pursue a seemingly impractical career. I ended up attending a wonderful art school thanks to an amazing high school teacher and an admissions counselor that took a chance on my under-developed portfolio. Though I fell in love with every artistic discipline Freshman and Sophomore year, I declared as a Graphic Design major when I found myself procrastiworking on painting projects to work on posters and identities. I annoyed the heck out of my fellow classmates, doing way more work than assignments gen-
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) Typeface: Futura (Extra Bold), created in 1927 by Paul Renner
TIPE MAGAZINE // RESOURCES // 58
Stanley Kubrick is well-documented as a fan and frequent user of Futura, though to what true extent has been up for debate. He uses the typeface in promotional materials (including either posters or trailers, but not necessarily both) for six out of thirteen of his major motion pictures, most notably in posters for 2001: A Space Odyssey and Eyes Wide Shut. He’s not alone in his love for the clean, modernist lettering; Wes An-
derson has used Futura in every one of his films, and it marks some of the bestknown brands in the world, including IKEA, Crayola, Louis Vuitton, Volkswagen, and Absolut Vodka. In a bit of life imitating art, Futura is given the honor of gracing Apollo 11’s dedication plaque to man’s first steps on the moon in 1969, just a little over a year after Kubrick released
Go-To Typefaces of Designers EDDI E OPARA
PART NER, PENTAGRAM
EDW I N VAN GELDER
AS S OC I AT E ART DI REC TOR, KNOPF
FOUNDER, M AI NS T UDI O
CR EATIVE DIR ECTOR , B IG ACTIVE
CHER MAYEFF & GEISMAR & HAVIV
Blender
Albertus
Theinhardt
Venus SB Medium Extended
Palatino
W HEN DI D YOU FI RS T ENC OUNT ER T HE ALBERT US T YPEFAC E?
W HY ARE YOU PART I C ULARLY AT TACHED TO T HEI NHARDT AS A T YPEFAC E?
WHY AR E YOU PARTICULAR LY ATTACHED TO THEINHAR DT AS A TYP EFACE?
On the street signs in the City of London. I didn’t know what the exmetalworker Mr Berthold Wolpe font was until I got to design school. And I was so fascinated by it because of the way it’s cut. It’s based on metal engraving techniques, the effect being that it has is these acute angles, almost 45 degree angles in each letter. It’s also insanely hard to use. I’ve tried to use it and I’ve not been able to. Why is it my favorite font, then? I think that your favorite is always what you can’t have..
It’s based on Grotesk, a classic serif font, but it’s an updated, contemporary, and very flexible new take on the classic. I like its overall look and feel—stern yet friendly. It feels very now, very modern. There’s also something architectural about it, it’s got a graphic quality to it, so you can use it to create geometry in a design. It’s not illustrative, not an image itself but it fits really well into grids and systems—which obviously suits the way I work.
The typeface, Venus SB, was nice and simple. It’s got that Art Deco touch to it, in the R and the E.
What is the thinking behind Palatino? Palatino is actually quite a generic font. When we presented the identity, the people from the press were shocked that we would come in with a font that was available on people’s computers, for this, the most prestigious publisher in the world—how could that be? It’s looking to the future, but it’s anchored in tradition.
CHI P KI DD
W HAT DO YOU LI KE ABOUT BLENDER? I’ve been using it a lot over the past few years (and yes, I bought the license to it before doing so) because it has a classic sans-serif presence that feels fresh, due to almost undetectable quirks in the characters that have curved edges.
M AT M A I T L A N D
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SAG I H AV I V
NOTES
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GENERAL CRITIQUE NOTES Its got to be cohesive. Find a system to tie everything together. Difficult to read when constantly changing column width. Large images are a good thing, but don’t rely on them. Make table of contents look like an actual magazine. PERSONAL CHANGES I really wanted to work on getting a clear and cohesive system that tied everything together, and I think I achieved that fairly well. Once I was able to create a more cohesive system, almost a series of visual motifs, I was able to have more freedom for designing within the bounds of those motifs.
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DESIGNED BY MIKE MILLER BRANDON GROTESQUE ARCHER
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