Process book by peiiko

ta et ip nit um tio lor tem atia do Ro consector t dolluptatur, s acipit dollup luptatur, nitis i doluptur ant oluptat. As ac tus. Dio rion ra u q e s . t i l t in im pta es m. do cip ?A earume ratum si to te alignat. As a epe es nectur us. As acipit boreperis exc res et elestin ris verio volu tus aut e ic co la ib io em abo uda et exer sandae pe re ariori atibus, m litaspe lest mpore perch olecum t u odi ut l litatem que n equi volorep a l l i e quo enih ut v m te d ist e es is re um dis spelit etum a tis dis i oriberu s volorum en dae volupta v quos ipsaped nditis reius n istio inctaten n i m a t lup .N ua eo pu sa ni os vent re num res core scid maximp omnist hitatu t dolluptatur, is sit doluptio nienias quatq et fugiat ut vo equas el du lo ele ipi ost eni uo ons as evel um cori digen volorepro do luptus. As ac arumqui deri ut asperov id s sam rem q agni conse n s essit di h i, o m vo or nis a iu ommol at usdant late atur reperum mentur a. Catquas qu et expe tet arum iendi ulparcim o ssimil ea s u a t e p x u l e o t g i o qu lup unt item ut v t fu it ip imus et res s tus sit etur so ped es alis a olliquam fug res rest as ad it voluptatem gnam etur au st pa vendi s ndero is m e v a ie se od olo rem strundi ptas re erunt prest am enite eatia d modiaepudi es in niam nim quo officiatem lupta dolupic conet ips u l o v at vo m av id tem lor del ebis au tatur as anduc arum eniam e , quist alitia le nderum vo uatur anditius fugit volupta ta quidest, nu ut el mol q th ve ita lup sit aut tam nulpa v sit invenis au udiam, volup e velitiam sin s aliandipsum onse si acea rum quam vo ritat. Tempor cumet occ c e e u a p ti q e t, or il am dolorit peratur, tem r t audande bis qui vitatemp citas sitam ni t aces sum h sequ iatiunt. H volor am, sec ste exerit oe odi em r as con les u nt, u ntio m volo um explis mi omnimaio. N les atia sume conseque ve l ipsunt andi it mos iscidu lor aut quid m ventibus a c r ul es ,s vo ihi ris rem ha uptatq uiduci namet, re quaecernat et quat alis n usandae num dicias dit rem im pellicabo et, saerovi i u q c m n orit con at. A uptis dolorib quis deligen nullent odig asperro im ea c itistio inctat em dol numqu e mintium re s r o e m s a l r i a d o i o u s d n q L u r, n ur? atur, qui c dae. Ag lorem et qua et aut plature molupt ipit dolluptatu cus remquia expern r l o o e n l d v o a i v o a i u uc que s ac seq niam o uo qu e. Cum aquae sunt. A em utae est e ndellacepro e cipsum m dolore a s d u t n e a i t n Nu olup t ve exce a con isti u volo mintio. ceatessit, oressun ptaqui am et m quis ilitati isim que nob psumquatur, l r l u u t n a t s p a lu cum f n ntem i maios quaspe verrore uiasperi volu nem. Totaqua derem volor a e e i n l i u u l q q u e m n t s i u l no eaq h en ndia m ip s do atiis se di con ccupite qui to ea aspi taest aciasped isint enderum t ma et dolore i, quis quis du , odita volupt um unt lam, a t n a l t per us dm me p c ea ndis olup pore ere e At face ctati nvelis c am, ve dolore sunt v uunt maione que ex m velibus. Pe it eos ea que ? n r o u l t m o e a v e s c i em oloru nus et r sum q sam hit vidit cium s turis nissimu cus de vero t lautet occate m u s n t i i a n u e m i i q c x a ac rep mu am tem iet es quis sim stius ea dolo is aut aut eum Itate id enis ustio. D rerchic cia volorec ta t is escilli r m a u t u c q e o . e r s d s e o me a ni dolo si estis b idellent mo id quiant lab sequ iatiunt. N fic te vellatiu gnihilla men atus, and ue que iumel a m r on Of ese ella u t na era . Ipsu derum m nam ratur, t andi c simpedi cus. eiumq erae vides r m n s i e u u s d n b i e persp i p i l i t u a a l i q e r i i e s m t a t o h u i l n i s a E q d o a n e u i . n l d m et fuga ist is escilli c Lupta c nonsequatia iandia endige ectibu sandio is et quat alis , iumet apel i . n t o n c e i i r c n co t hi im odi te is illat t eos n lorem dolupt ut eoste etus , anda s d a m i u t r s t i i e magn o a g t u d s u i q c f a a i u t o i l , r q a d e m e a u d m t e u d q , et up m .I ipsa atur scimus aut vol verciae ta tusam nciant t aut pl resedi psum nuscil e et ium aut que verspe volup um sequia ne it, ipid qui si et i pro ecat sae ips nob n porro aperspelique moles tecae s n e quibu i volupta tusc i aut dolupta o u i a t s e m r e e e qu estis re s sum uciis t ven em r da sint ui apicia ia quid er sper Harunt hita cum quam ior rovidit au ntiati nem. Ip volo t s r p u o i l u l o o m m a i or s, id veru as m emq e nim n est alitate mp ci cum quam imustium, su sequam , ut ma prati tem quamet, s, sae provid uassi te pr s e e u s fi r q f e o erna as q uibu quam ia se m ea Officia at. Lest, qui tam, te tatureped qu t que cuptam upta tectemp aquia natat q sequi assequ rem cum v p u r l e o a s e d Har ndia o il catur ate cus luptus volum volut dolupta olore, vollau elibus. am rerr sincim sequu ci apictum re ecturestrum q v u q o m t m e d a u s t s r i i n o l s o mol tet e te co ut re m ul libus d ut r uptas iti sq vollis a l minusaecto escilli cturio r, optur, ex ea onest restis a b incturitas a quis nullab i e to erch ias m i i n u e s n a q u i v t m s a s t t a u e a s que i i c d g ol ni um faceati ium fu , anda t eturem t, omm atis siminve n quo consedi cu em dol d stion n en derias atus t accabo. Ut e qui ullenit au uidit, oditatem ut officit, odi i e u p p q olore se m idiam us rempor as ta te aq v n e e u v u s a o t i t e o p n i u d r a I s e n a u . s i m u q e c u m at as s rr em mque c git, ant quis in uidis dererru audantur? Lo n rem volorem renditem et l a culpariatem si autatiis es u r e v a r pt pi si po isq fu tem saeror i omnimpo r od quos dolu debis es dolu nsed maio et pud an ue simoluptu s et ut e a a u r q p d t i o s i e , q s qu tio. bis c icien i deli mquae reped et lam a sintur aliqu que no uptas sum an quam h ratet ditiisqu m o d d i u i n r t p e a o i u t l l o vo po lau e. facc dero sci p illuptat s aut ut omni di officate mo ue molorum ibus totamen uu t omnim s mil iusaecta h e n m e a r u t i q u m e in en tq ci tq tel ne plib s eum s d quun s et lan duci us exces d orep ta , ut aut em rate ne odiste vol ndent aut il i ae pudit, san et quiam ex m am inctore esti optatium ipis porionse tem. Nem sa e us im vol reic uria epra c it esequ pos iduciiscia os dolupta tib s. Derum en t, olupt ate prae vidit e iusanim olo vendus. Fac i c r a officiis p u , l b m a u a i m i t t m t l s u c a e n e p s r t i e u e v a o s a i r orp st, q um uos ut e bo und mqu ta id seque p i cturio molor aquatem. Et q spitium quibu alite et expla m fugi mus eumet as atio qui de id n a o s n p i m l m s ere as a scil tatu m fu o be cte e bori s eni st iberr ebiscil expla ro nist is e us discia dele lectur alitatur plameni hilla stiore nistrup is sed magni e a r d o r n r a s, te se rro et ad ic tia spe cium n lit illor m volo apiene r asi au um res erferiat atq uia s as ex luptatios ipic mi, simi, niat rum quid etu igenda eperes quati offictu illaut molor a ita eum quis s ibea dolu ha vo iur . Ih por erum as d ero cti aute nt. Lor aped eque comniam mos de si qu catat que et p lorum velibus orit, occupta s equam, sim igenihici il o ab ru et ae ns ae sunt ha ae. Net restio uptassit, quo is plabore nd scilli cturio m eliquas volor ped undi beri cus ipis ullab rae vides t l i e d a r m o I m re t ea m, ni v ped ulparch i s, anda nist is iorepe litiae. orum. Berate volorion rate equatia dolo a que er u dellac r t s e c as a vit, qui mol int. s pere s atu atia t i cturio uditatat. Nam lorro earume doluptatur as dolless e hilis ne reroratem re psumen deria rovid ma vit l l i c s e po vo que e rfe iis a ist is m. I . Ilis reribus scium a niminve tiati ne , suscill itatur atus, anda n o nsequi. Cat cuscimusdam quunt quunt u n n a e n m a s face nsed . Nem ediori s eum cum qu ent acea cus sumen deria am ut a pratem is porio t liquam uptatiu

s m r o f Letter and

y h p a r Typog

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pe lition

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this manual was designed by:

Patricia Low

Summer Session I 2015 Professor Gale Okumura

Project 1: Minimal Letterforms p.4 Project 2: Type Hierarchy Studies p.6 Project 3: Book Design p.10

PROJECT : MINIMAL LETTERFORMS Objectives:

The goal of this assignment was to create a design with a unified composition while exploring distinct characteristics of a chosen typeface. Such compositions and distinct characteristics include symmetry, balance, juxtaposition, and form. We started by tracing unique aspects of each letterform. During this tracing process we were not allowed to trace an entire letter, the idea was to provide clues so the specific typeface would still be visible to the viewer. We were allowed to choose one of the six typefaces: Bodoni, Centuar, Friz Quadrata, Garamond, Helvetica and Memphis. Originally I had chosen Garamond but decided go with Centaur since this type contains more unique characteristics. Since our project was mounted on a bristol board, the final was digitally produced through Adobe Illustrator and printed with 11â&#x20AC;? x 14â&#x20AC;? dimensions.

Typeface: Centaur ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ Sketches:

W M

Final Product: For my final print out, I decided to go with a black background since this emphasizes more negative space and movement of continuous flow throughout the entire piece.

PROJECT : TYPE HIERARCHYSTUDIES Objectives: We were given event information to create three sets of layouts with constraints to explore compositional alternatives containing organization and visual principles: Symmetry / Asymmetry, Geometric / Organic, Rhythmic / Static, Grouping / Isolation, Contrast, Texture, Proximity and Grid structures.

Typeface: Univers 45 & 66 ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Mock-Ups: In set 1A we were allowed to use one weight only with 15 point size for Univers 45. In set 1B we were allowed to use two weights with an additional 15 point size for Univers 66

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With the constraint of using one weight, I wanted to make a visual hierarchy by placing the title, headline and subline like a diagonal zig-zag. I then arranged the text so that the title and dates were on the left while names with the time and place would be on the right. By splitting the information this design contains symmetry, continuity and flow.

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Since we had the option to utilize two weights, I wanted to create a design with a circular motion. I started by shifting around the title, headline and subline to get a visual idea of my placement. After I arranged the text in the same manner, I made the titles bold and the dates, time and location on the same line to create a visual hierarchy around a circle. By doing so, I have created an organic and symmetric design.

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With the option to use two weight sizes plus a nine point size, I played around with the 15 and nine point to see what visual hierarchy can create a diagonal movement. With the title and titles of each event I placed them into an angle. Whereas the information, I placed them next to the titles to continue the diagonal movement that is visually shown.

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PROJECT : TYPE HIERARCHYSTUDIES Final Set 2A & 2B:

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With two additional options allowing us to use Univers 46 and 66, I also wanted to create a diagonal hierarchy as shown on the set 2A. Instead of placing every text in a vertical motion, only the the headline is vertical. The rests of the texts are slanted horizontally to act as volume signals from a speaker.

A lecture series exploring the relationship between form and content.

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Similar to 2A we were allowed to add rules of any kind on this set. Inspired by a grid layout, I divided each event in a section so a continuous movement and visual hierarchy would exist from one corner to the next, as from point A to B.

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With no constraints, first, I determined what size, style, and organization would create a visual hierarchy. I wanted every text in this set to flow continuously. As I was placing each text, the letters in the title were identical in terms of width so I placed a slanted vertical line bleeding off the page. Originally this piece had no dividing point but the division has allowed a asymmetric rhythm. The remaining texts were slanted horizontally to balance the set.

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PROJECT : BOOK DESIGN

Objectives: For our final project, we had to recreate a Paul Rand book containing texts and images from his article: Design and the Play Instinct. Only black, grey, white and one spot color was allowed through this book.

First we started by developing a grid system that will be utilized throughout the book. We then proceeded by using Adobe InDesign then printing out each page and binded them together.

Typeface: Kabel ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ Final Book: CONTENTS

02 Introduction

yI Pl a n sti

07 Crossword Puzzle 08 The Tangram

“

I demand of art, says Le Corbusier, the role of the challenger…of play and interplay, play being the very manifestation of the spirit.

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09 Hokusai’s Drawing 10 Chinese Characters 11

”

The Modulor

12 The Grid System 13

Masons’ Marks & Tatami (floor mats)

14 Albers & Cubist Collages 15

Matisse & Picasso

16 Mu Ch’i & The Photogram 17

Paul Rand

Piet Zwart & Japanese Craftsman

D implicit in game-playing are equally implicit in successful problem-solving:

epending on the nature of the problem, some or all of the psychological and intellectual factors

he absence in art of a well formulated and systematized body of literature makes the problem of teaching a perplexing one. The subject is further complicated by the elusive and personal nature of art. Granted that a student’s ultimate success will depend largely on his natural talents, the problem still remains:

motivation skill observation competition interest timing analysis challenge curiosity perception concentration stimulus judgment goal ion ion abstraction at is t promise rov ina patience imp d or co

how best to arouse his curiosity, hold his attention, and engage his creative faculties.

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Unfortunately, in some of our schools little attempt is made to guide the student’s thinking in a logical progression from basic design to applied design. We are all familiar with the so-called practical problems formulated by a teacher in an attempt to duplicate the conditions of industry—the atmosphere of the advertising agency, for example. Such problems are frequently stated in the broadest terms with emphasis, if any, on style and technique in advertising, rather than on interpreting advertising in terms of visual design principles.

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“

The pupils,” says Alfred North Whitehead, “have got to be made to feel they are studying something, and are not merely executing intellectual minuets.

”

It is an equally effective means for exploring the use of unorthodox materials and for learning to work within specific limitations. To insure that theoretical study does not end in a vacuum, practical applications of the basic principles gleaned from this exercise should be undertaken at the proper time (they may involve typography, photography, page layout, displays, symbols, etc.). The student learns to conceptualize, to associate, to make analogies; to see a sphere, for example, transformed into an orange, or a button into a letter, or a group of letters into a broad picture.

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“Limited means,” says Braque, “beget new forms, invite creation, make the style. Progress in art does not lie in extending its limits, but in knowing them better.”

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ithout specific formal limitations and without the challenge of play, both teacher and student cannot help but be bored. The product may take the form of a superficial (but sometimes “professional looking”) literal translation of the problem, or of a meaningless abstract pattern or shape, which, incidentally, may be justified with enthusiasm but often with specious reasoning. Similarly, there are badly stated problems in basic design that stress pure aesthetics and free expression without any restraints or practical goals. Such a problem may be posed in this fashion: arrange a group of geometric shapes in any manner you see fit, using any number of colors, to make a pleasing pattern. The results of such vagaries are sometimes pretty, but mostly meaningless or monotonous. The student has the illusion of creating great art in an atmosphere of freedom, when in fact he is handicapped by the absence of certain disciplines which would evoke ideas, make playing with those ideas possible, work absorbing, and results interesting.

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“The best Renaissance teachers, instead of beating their pupils, spurred them on by a number of appeals to the playprinciple. They made games out of the chore of learning difficult subjects— Montaigne’s father, for instance, started him in Greek by writing the letters and the easiest words on playing cards and inventing a game to play with them.”

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Two powerful instincts exist in all human beings which can be used in teaching, says Gilbert Highet: one is the love of play.

anticipation excitement enjoyment discovery reward fulfillment

ithout the basic rules or disciplines, however, there is no motivation, test of skill, or ultimate reward—in short, no game. The rules are the means to the end, the conditions the player must understand thoroughly and work with in order to participate. For the student, the limits of a well-stated problem operate in much the same way.

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Through trial and error, I have found that the solution to this enigma rests, to a large extent, on two factors: the kind of problem chosen for study, and the way in which it is posed. I believe that if, in the statement of a problem, undue emphasis is placed on freedom and self-expression, the result is apt to be an indifferent student and a meaningless solution. Conversely, a problem with defined limits, with an implied or stated discipline (system of rules) that in turn is conducive to the instinct of play, will most likely yield an interested student and, very often, a meaningful and novel solution.

discretion discrimination economy restraint exploitation

If possible, teaching should alternate between theoretical and practical problems, and between problems with tightly stated “rules” imposed by the teacher and problems with rules implied by the problem itself. But this can happen only after the student has been taught basic disciplines and their application. He then is able to invent his own system for “playing the game.”

“A mind so disciplined should be both more abstract and more concrete. It has been trained in the comprehension of abstract thought and in the analysis of facts.” There are many ways in which the play-principle serves as a base for serious problem-solving, some of which are discussed here. These examples indicate, I believe, the nature of certain disciplines and may suggest the kind of problems which will be useful to the student as well as to the teacher of design.

The Tangram

Crossword Puzzle

The Tangram is an ingenious little Chinese toy in which a square is divided into this configuration. It consists of seven pieces, called tans: five triangles, one square, and one rhombus. The rules are quite simple: rearrange to make any kind of figure or pattern.

The crossword puzzle is a variation on the acrostic, a word game that has been around since Roman times. There have been many reasons given for the popularity of the game. One is that it fulfills the human urge to solve the unknown, another that it is orderly, a third that it represents, according to the puzzle editor of the New York Times,“a mental stimulation…and exercise in spelling and vocabulary building.” But the play in such a game is limited to finding the exact word to fit a specific number of squares in a vertical and horizontal pattern. It allows for little imagination and no invention or aesthetic judgment, qualities to be found in abundance, for example, in the simple children’s game, the Tangram.

Here [above] is one possibility. Many design problems can be posed with this game in mind, the main principle to be learned being that of economy of means—making the most of the least. Further, the game helps to sharpen the powers of observation through the discovery of resemblances between geometric and natural forms. It helps the student to abstract: to see a triangle, for example, as a face, a tree, an eye, a nose, depending on the context in which the pieces are arranged. Such observation is essential in the study of visual symbols.

This drawing is reproduced from the first volume of Hokusai’s Rapid Lessons in Abbreviated Drawing (Riakougwa Hayashinan, 1812). In the book Hokusai shows how he uses geometric shapes as a guide in drawing certain birds. This exercise may be compared to the Tangram in that both use geometric means. The Tangram, however, uses geometry as an end in itself—to indicate or symbolize natural forms—whereas Hokusai uses it as a clue or guide to illustrate them In the artist’s own words, his system “concerns the manner of making designs with the aid of a ruler or compass, and those who work in this manner will understand the proportion of things.”

Hokusai’s Drawing 06

The Modulor Chinese Characters

The Modulor is a system based on a mathematical key. Taking account of the human scale, it is a method of achieving harmony and order in a given work.

This character for the word tan (sunrise) is designed within an imaginary grid. Geometry functions here in a manner similar to the previous illustration, namely as a guide to filling the space correctly, but not to produce a geometric pattern. The Chinese character is always written in an imaginary square. The ninefold square, invented by an anonymous writer of the T’ang dynasty, has been employed as the most useful, because it prevents rigid symmetry and helps to achieve balanced asymmetry.7 At the same time it makes the writer aware of negative and positive spaces. Each part of the character touches one of the nine squares, thus achieving harmony between the two elements and the whole.

The Grid System

In his book, The Modulor, Le Corbusier describes his invention as “a measuring tool [the proportions] based on the human body [6-foot man] and on mathematics [the golden section]. A man-with-armupraised provides, at the determining points of his occupation of space—foot, solar plexus, head, tips of fingers of the upraised arm—three intervals which give rise to a series of golden sections, called the Fibonacci series.”9 [1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, etc.] The Modulor is a discipline which offers endless variations and opportunities for play. Le Corbusier’s awareness of these potentialities is evident from the numerous references to the game and play in his book, such as “All this work on proportioning and measures is the outcome of a passion, disinterested and detached, an exercise, a game.” Further, he goes on to say, “for if you want to play modulor…” In comparison to most so-called systems of proportion, the Modulor is perhaps the least confining. The variations, as will be seen from this illustration, are practically inexhaustible (and this example utilizes only a very limited number of possibilities). This drawing is one of a limitless number of so-called Panel Exercises, played for pleasure or for some real application in order to discover a most satisfactory or beautiful configuration. If, however, the system should present difficulties which happen to run counter to one’s intuitive judgment, Le Corbusier himself provides the answer: “I still reserve the right at any time to doubt the solutions furnished by the Modulor, keeping intact my freedom which must depend solely on my feelings rather than on my reason.’’

Within this rather simple discipline the calligrapher is able to play with space, filling it as he feels would be most appropriate. The composition of Chinese characters, says Chiang Yee, “is not governed by inviolable laws…however, there are general principles which cannot be ignored with impunity.”

Albers

Much of the painting of Josef Albers is based on this geometric pattern. The pattern is not used, however, in the same manner as the masons’ lattice. Here it is the painting itself. It represents a strict, immutable arrangement (theme) in which the artist, by juxtaposing colors (variations) plays the fascinating game of deceiving the eye. The squares as we see them here appear to recede into the picture plane. However, by skillful manipulation of colors, the painting flattens out and is thus seen as a two dimensional picture.

It is inconceivable to consider Matisse’s compositions with cut paper without; in some way, linking them to the play element—the joy of working with simple colors and the fun of “cutting paper dolls.” But the greatest satisfaction, perhaps, is derived from creating a work of art with ordinary scissors and some colored paper— with so simple means, such satisfying ends.

Like the architect’s plan, the grid system employed by the graphic designer provides for an orderly and harmonious distribution of miscellaneous graphic material. It is a system of proportions based on a module, the standard of which is derived from the material itself. It is a discipline imposed by the designer. Unlike the Modulor, it is not a fixed system based on a specific concept of proportion, but one which must be custom-made for each problem. Creating the grid calls for the ability to classify and organize miscellaneous material, with sufficient foresight to allow for flexibility in handling content which may, for one reason or another, be altered. The grid must define the areas of operation and provide for different techniques, pictures, text, space between text and pictures, columns of text, page numbers, picture captions, headings and other miscellaneous items. Here is a simple grid system for a booklet. Devising such a grid involves two creative acts: developing the pattern that is suitable for the given material and arranging this material within the pattern. In a sense, the creative ability required for the former is no less than that for the latter, because the making of the grid necessitates analyzing simultaneously all the elements involved. But once it is evolved, the designer is free to play to his heart’s content: with pictures, type, paper, ink, color, and with texture, scale, size and contrast.

Tatami (floor mats) The grid, then, is the discipline which frees him from the time-consuming burden of making certain decisions (dimensions, proportions) without which fruitful and creative work is extremely difficult. He can move directly to those aspects of the problem in which individual expression, novel ideas, and freedom of choice are essential. The grid system has as many detractors as it has adherents. Its detractors generally misunderstand its use or its potential— and that it is merely a tool. It has been condemned as stifling, rigid and cold. But this confuses the product with the process. The grid does not automatically insure an exciting product. The designer must still exercise all the experience at his command, discretion, timing, and a sense of drama and sequence. In brief, the intelligent designer will recognize that the grid can help him achieve harmony and order, but also that it may be abandoned when and if necessary. To function successfully, the grid system, like all workable systems, must be interpreted as freely as necessary. It is the very freedom which adds richness nd a note of surprise to what might otherwise be potentially lifeless.

Mu Ch’i This monochrome, Persimmons, by Mu Ch’i, a thirteenth century Zen priest and painter, is a splendid example of a painting in which the artist plays with contrasts (the male and female principle in Chinese and Japanese painting): rough and smooth, empty and full, one and many, line and mass, black and white, tint and shade, up and down. It is a study in the metamorphosis of a fruit, as well as of a painting. (The artist, incidentally, never used any color but black.)

Matisse

The many variations based on this and similar designs attest to the fascination the artist finds from the interplay of a great variety of color schemes and an extremely limited geometric format.

The reader may find a parallel, at least in spirit, between this painting and the preceding one by Picasso. Both employ a single color, and exploit this limitation to achieve as much variety as possible, and both undoubtedly were painted very rapidly, a condition often conducive to utmost simplification and improvisation.

Cubist One cannot underestimate the importance of restraint and playfulness in almost any phase of Picasso’s work. Here, for example, one sees a restrained use of the brush and one flat color. The drawing of the child’s face, the ornament and the lettering are all one. Lettering is not used as a complement to the drawing, but as an integral part of the drawing. It serves as both a garland and a verbal image—a visual pun. What emerges is a kind of game itself, revealing the ingenuity and playfulness of the artist, his ability to deal with problems in the simplest, most direct, and meaningful manner.

Picasso

Similarly, the early Cubist collages, in which cut paper played an important part, are products of strict rules, limited materials: newspaper mounted on a surface, with the addition of a few charcoal or pencil lines, usually in black and white and sometimes with tan or brown or similarly muted colors. These elements were juggled until they satisfied the artist’s eye. The playfulness and humor in the production of some of these compositions in no way detracts from the end result of a serious work of art.

We find other variations of the geometric plan in Japanese architecture, modern painting, and in Byzantine masons’ marks, such as the seal [at right]. This seal “employs a mathematical key as its design basis. The thick lines represent the mark, the thin lines represent the ground lattice which allows an infinite number of combinations.’’12 The geometric scheme is the discipline in which the designer works. Designs stemming from such a scheme are limited only by his imagination.

The Tatami, a straw mat approximately 3 by 6 feet and 2 inches thick, is the module or standard from which the plan of the house grows. Edward S. Morse, in his book, Japanese Homes, describes the mat system as follows: “The architect invariably plans his rooms to accommodate a certain number of mats; and since these mats have a definite size, any indication on the plan of the number of mats a room is to contain gives at once its dimensions also. The mats are laid in the following numbers: two, three, four-and-one-half, six, eight, ten, twelve, fourteen, sixteen, and so on.’’13 This illustration shows the “plan” of a four-and-one-half mat room. Once the outer dimensions of the house are determined, the mats, together with the Japanese system of sliding doors, give complete flexibility in the arrangement and number of rooms. A perfect example of form and function, of discipline and play.

Masons’ Marks

Piet Zwart The de Stijl movement, founded in 1917, had a profound influence on painting, architecture, and typography. Piet Zwart, the designer responsible for this advertisement for the Dutch firm Nederlansche Kabelfabriek, was associated with this group. The disciplines which de Stijl encouraged are evident in this Zwart design: functional use of material and meaningful form, and the restrained use of color (black and/or primary colors). From a few simple typographic elements and an ingenious play on the letter O, a humorous, yet significant design was evolved. A picture is created by typographic means: a few type characters and type rules are so manipulated as to make a useful product, an advertisement. Many examples of this artist’s work reveal this same playful approach and are worthy of serious study.

The Photogram

Japanese Craftsman

The idea of the photogram or cameraless photography goes back as far as the 19th century with Fox Talbot’s photogenic drawings. In our time the pioneers of photography without use of a camera were Christian Schad, Man Ray, Moholy Nagy, and Kurt Schwitters. Among the first to apply this technique in advertising was the constructivist El Lissitzky. Later, Picasso experimented with the photogram. In advertising, the photogram has yet to be fully exploited.

The earth colors of Africa, the ice of the polar regions, the bamboo of Japan, are among the many challenging materials with which artists and artisans create their idols, their utensils, and their houses— all natural limitations which provide their own built-in disciplines which, in turn, contribute to the creative solution.

Although the effectiveness of the photogram depends chiefly on straightforward mechanical methods (light on sensitized paper), it offers the designer ample opportunity for aesthetic, manual control. In a sense, it is not a picture of the object but the object itself; and, as in stroboscopic photography, it makes picturization of continuous movement possible as in this photogram of an abacus, by the author. Although some of its effects may be approximated with pen, brush, or scissors, the quality inherent in the subtle light modulations can be achieved, perhaps, only by means of the photogram.

Similarly, this ability to do much with little—to find a bull’s head in a bicycle seat and handle bars—is another aspect of Picasso’s wizardry, his humor, his childlike spontaneity, his skill as a punster and ability to improvise and invent with limited, often surprising means.

Collages

The kind of grid employed by Japanese architects in their traditional houses combines the virtues of determining the size of various rooms in the house, floors, walls, furniture, etc., and creating the style and appearance of the house.

Some years ago in Kyoto I was fortunate enough to witness a young Japanese craftsman make the chasen you see here. It is a whisk used in the tea ceremony and is cut from a single piece of bamboo with a simple tool resembling a penknife. Both the material and manufacturing process (about one-half hour) are the quintessence of discipline, simplicity and restraint. The invention of such an article could not possibly have been achieved by anyone lacking the ability to improvise and the patience to play with a specific material: to see the myriad possibilities and discover the ideal form.

References 1. Le Corbusier, The Modulor, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1954, p. 220. 2. Gilbert Highet, The Art of Teaching, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1950, p. 194 3. Cahier de Georges Braque, Maeght Editeur, Paris, 1947, p. 33. 4. Alfred North Whitehead, The Aims of Education, Mentor, New York, 1949, p. 21. 5. Ibid., p. 24. 6. The New York Times Magazine, December 15, 1963. 7. Chiang Yee, Chinese Calligraphy, Methuen & Co., Ltd., London, 1938, p. 167. 8. Ibid., p. 166. 9. Le Corbusier, The Modulor, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1954, p. 55. 10. Ibid., p. 80, 101. 11. Ibid., p. 63. 12. Matila Chyka, The Geometry of Art and Life, Sheed & Ward, New York, 1946, p. 120. 13. Edward S. Morse, Japanese Homes, Ticknor & Co., Boston, 1885, p. 122.

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