presentation of clasification of typefaces

typetalk: workshop on typography at Artlab, Chennai choosing type (classification) Tarun Deep Girdher Associate Sr. Faculty, Graphic Design Head, Printing Labs National Institute of Design Ahmedabad

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Day 2 . 25 sep 2007

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

Š tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

today, let us look at the differences in typefaces and how they are classified in broad groups

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

Š tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

Š tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

cap line

baseline

descender

ascender

x-height

cap height

counter form

ascender

counter form

terminal

loop

counter form

descender

stroke

cross bar

serif

basic first, the a few basicterminology terms

hpfxh

old style ~

hamburgerfonts

oe

1600s stress of rounded forms at an angle bracketed serifs based on humanist writing style and roman inscriptions contrast between thick and thin strokes is not much letterpress • friendly • warm • classical

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

transistional ~

hamburgerfonts

oe

mid 1600s - late 1700s stress of rounded forms upright serifs more rationalised contrast between thick and thin strokes is pronounced • formal • organised • clear

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

modern ~

hamburgerfonts

oe

1800s stress of rounded forms upright/vertical hairline serifs contrast between thick and thin strokes is extreme offset lithography • formal • geometric • clinical

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

egyptian ~

hamburgerfonts

ne

early 1900s vertical stress uniform thickness slab serifs display fonts post-industrial revolution • authoritative • bold • geometric

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

grotesque ~

hamburgerfonts

ogr

late 19th century strokes are mostly uniform thickness sans serif - condensed comparatively larger x-height no-nonsense display fonts • formal • display

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

geometric ~

hamburgerfonts

oag

early 20th century sans serif based on geometric proportions strokes are uniform thickness comparatively larger x-height • industrial • display • structure

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

humanistic ~

hamburgerfonts

oag

mid 20th century based on humanistic handwriting proportions strokes are variable thickness vertical stress comparatively larger x-height • warm • display • friendly

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

glyphic ~

hamburgerfonts

oarb

flares at the end of terminals chiselled and drawn rather than humanist angular stress comparatively larger x-height • quirky • display

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

script ~

imitation of cursive hand writing

hamburgerfonts

oarb

influence of a quill pen or brush strokes / calligraphy continuous and joined letters • formal • traditional • wedding

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz A BC DE F G H I J KLM N OP Q R S T U V W X Y Z 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

decorative ~

hamburgerfonts

oarb

ability to attract at the cost of legibility and readability designed exclusively for specific purposes - logos, masthead, display boards defies conventional classification inspired from a spectrum of typeforms

• quirky • display • specific purpose

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuv wxyz ABCDEFGHIJKL MNOPQ RSTUV WXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com

contemporary ~

hamburgerfonts

gahb

recent trend mutation / hybrid versions created on computer defies conventional classification specific purpose often unreadable • trendy • different

type talk : august 2007 : artlab chennai

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ RSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

© tarun deep girdher . tarundg@gmail.com