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PUBLIC TYPOGRAPHY
A N D P U B L I C T Y P O G R A P H Y
W R I T T E N A N D D E S I G N E D B Y C A I T L I N W O R K M A N
A N D P U B L I C T Y P O G R A P H Y
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION | 1
HOW MANY INSTANCES ARE YOU EXPOSED TO NEW INFORMATION DAILY?
We live in an era where information is transient and public
typography is caught in the movement of time. Temporal
type is everywhere from displays and digital signs to
newsstands and magazines. Its existence is limited and
its purpose is to relay information quickly and efficiently.
However, often times the professionalism and craftsmanship
is hurt as a result of its fast paced design.
With new and increasing technologies, we are now given the
ability to manipulate how typography interacts with time.
Whether it is through physical design, the information it holds,
or through digital media, the property of time is becoming more
present as a design concern for typographers. As designer’s
we can take this new factor and use it creatively to manipulate
text in ways to increase its communicative properties other
than through its obvious comprehensive use. According to
Kerry Bodine and Mathild Pignol of the Human Computer
Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, “Text whose
appearance changes over time, is emerging as a new form of
expression due to its ability to add emotional content to text.”
Thus, we analyze the ephemeral properties of its aesthetic and
the purposes behind the design.
The Tangible Collapse: failing print design
INTRODUCTION
“SOMETIMES THE QUALITY OF TEMPORAL EXISTENCE MAKES THIS TYPE MORE VALUABLE TO THE VIEWER.
“
01
One can see the ever-changing aesthetic world
disintegrate from the wear and tear of everyday
life. Posters on street corners blow away as if
they were leaves in the fall. For designers, the
materials we use and functionality of our type
govern the length of time our audiences can
be exposed to our messages. For example, a
tombstone from the 17th century can have years of
weathering and still tell of the person who lived
years ago. However, a sign signifying the art fair
downtown can be torn or washed away in the
overnight storm if not designed
with the utmost concern.
On the other hand, the media it is created with
defines type that is meant to be short-lived. Such
instances as chalk messages on the sidewalk
or dry erase messages on white boards are
created with ease and quickness prioritizing over
aesthetic quality and expressiveness.
FOR DESIGNERS, THE MATERIALS WE USE AND FUNCTIONALITY OF OUR TYPE GOVERN THE LENGTH OF TIME OUR AUDIENCES CAN BE EXPOSED TO OUR MESSAGES.
Downtown Lawrence, is host to
several bars and night clubs, which
hang their signs all along the main
drag, Massachusetts street. Lawrence
is known for supporting its local
businesses and most patrons have no
problem displaying the electic culture
of the city on their storefronts.
THE T
ANGI
BLE C
OLLA
PSE |
7
Many restaurants along Massachusetts street set out chalk
boards to write weekly specials or sales to draw in customers.
The information is temporary so the boards serve the purpose
of being re-used to cater to changing messages.
INFORMATION DEFINES THE QUALITY AND PURPOSE OF THE TYPOGRAPHY.
the instructor will not pick up the looming eraser
before their pencil leaves their paper. Thus, the
information defines the quality and purpose of
the typography. Another example might be the
daily menu of your favorite café, scrawled on a
blackboard outside to entice hungry patrons.
Sometimes the quality of temporal existence
makes this type more valuable to the viewer.
When taking notes in the classroom, students
don’t stop to ponder the sans serif qualities of
their professor’s hand written lecture notes. No.
They quickly jot own what ever sentence was
scribbled on the board in hopes that
THE T
ANGI
BLE C
OLLA
PSE |
9
Still, type itself is defined by its communicative
value. So what of type that remains in existence,
but relays different messages in its alterations?
Moveable type. The words bring you back to the
days of Gutenberg and ink printing. However
today, it can have a variety of meanings.
Messages that shift locations, digital billboards
and marquis, children’s refrigerator magnets, and
daily movie showings on venue displays are all
examples of the
transitory nature of type. Often times, these
locations have constant letterforms that are
changeable on a flat exhibition surface.
The Granada on Massachusetts street uses a movable
type margui to display monthly performances. The large
translucent type is moved above a light board, which
projects light through the letters at night. The display is
an iconic image of downtown Lawrence.
THE TANGIBLE COLLAPSE | 10
MOVEABLE TYPE
SO WHAT OF TYPE THAT REMAINS IN EXISTENCE, BUT RELAYS DIFFERENT MESSAGES IN ITS ALTERATIONS?
“THE DIGITAL WORLD IS CONDUCIVE TO THE CONCEPTS EMPLOYED BY KINETIC TYPOGRAPHY.
“
02
Presently, there is a rapid increase in digital media leading to new and
innovative ideas in rapid communication. Typographic design in these
instances is optimized for quick easy viewing. This amplified activity
directly affects the market for interface designers and human factors
analysts. Everything from email
and text messaging to ichat and
Facebook is being revised with the
idea of readability and ease of use.
EVERYTHING FROM EMAIL AND TEXT MESSAGING TO ICHAT AND FACEBOOK IS BEING REVISED WITH THE IDEA OF READABILITY AND EASE OF USE.
TYPO
GRAP
HY IN
DIG
ITAL M
EDIA
| 20
The digital world is conducive to the concepts employed
by kinetic typography. Motion graphics and the animated
experience uses time as a basis for establishing rhythm
and expression within the information being presented.
Motionographers deliver information
through time in a similar manner to
graphic designers who manipulate how and what viewers
read through hierarchy of a composition.
MOTION GRAPHICS AND THE ANIMATED EXPERIENCE USE TIME AS A BASIS FOR ESTABLISHING RHYTHM AND EXPRESSION WITHIN THE INFORMATION BEING PRESENTED.
TYPOGRAPHY IN DIGITAL MEDIA | 21
Of course, the introduction of new media for designers gives cause for new
technical standards and tools of use. Digital designers, and those involved
in web development often use what are called, “web-safe” fonts. These are
typefaces that are used over a wide range of computer systems and used
by designers to increase the likelihood that their content will be displayed
in their chosen font. In order to ensure that all web users had a basic set of
fonts, Microsoft started Core fonts for the Web initiative. The released fonts
include Arial, Georgia, Times New Roman, and Verdana under a software
license agreement, which made them freely distributable. Their high
penetration rate has made them a staple for web designers.
TYPOGRAPHY ON THE WEB
In 2009, Swedish furniture store, IKEA caused global design uproar with their
modifications to the existing type treatment. Switching from a customized version of
Futura, IKEA chose to go with the more functional typeface, Verdana. This backlash was
provoked not only because of how it changed IKEA brand, but because Verdana was
designed as a web-based font to be readable at small sizes on a computer screen and was
not suitable for print production. TYPO
GRAP
HY IN
DIG
ITAL M
EDIA
| 24
DIGITAL DESIGNERS, AND THOSE INVOLVED IN WEB DEVELOPMENT OFTEN USE WHAT ARE CALLED, “WEB-SAFE” FONTS.
“DESIGNERS ARE WORKING TO PRODUCE MORE EFFECTIVE TYPOGRAPHY IN MORE EXPRESSIVE WAYS.
“
03
Even though public typography is becoming less static, the platforms on
which they are being created determine the quality of their design. Take
for example, magazines, periodicals, and newspapers. They are produced
annually and the labor and design that goes into them are fairly extensive.
Typography manipulation and placement is tedious and worked to
enhance the reader’s experience. Eventually though, all this information
and print design ends up in the garbage; usually within a week to month.
The entertainment value from these writings is what makes them valuable
ANNUAL TYPOGRAPHY
and thus designed with more care and effort. Production designers
are aware that the typography will be viewed on a wide scale and
need to fulfill the purpose of legibility. In other instances including
e-chatting and text messaging, the type may have a short life.
However, designers are working to produce more effective ways of
using typography in a more expressive way.
Flyers that hang around Lawrence are casually
taped up and don’t last long. They become mock
graffiti as they adorn sides of buildings and other
public areas. These posters were tacked onto the
temporary wall of a construction site.
EVENTUALLY… ALL THIS INFORMATION AND PRINT DESIGN ENDS UP IN THE GARBAGE; USUALLY WITHIN A WEEK TO MONTH. THE ENTERTAINMENT VALUE FROM THESE WRITINGS IS WHAT MAKES THEM VALUABLE AND THUS DESIGNED WITH MORE CARE AND EFFORT.
Major cities such as Kansas City, Missouri, have many
different annual newspapers and periodicals available in
newsstands or along street corners. As the publications
change, the landscape of the city changes as well. The
Revolving cycle of new information is continued their prouction.
More importantly, because the information must reach a wide
audience, the typography is designed in a clear structured
fashion that is legible and targets the broadest audience.
K.I.M. COMMUNICATION
COMM
UNICATIVE PLATFORMS | 34
At Carnegie Mellon University, designers are
working on a new instant messenger called KIM
that integrates kinetic typography with instant
messaging. Kinetic Typography as a conveyer
of information, works well due to its ability to
relay emotions, personality, and tone. Currently,
Instant messaging has attempted such through
the use of emoticons and IM shorthand language,
which are based off humanistic gestures and
expressions. This new software uses the same
premise of instant messaging, but incorporates a
composition window that displays the animated
conversation for both viewers.
Back to basics, one must look at the foundation of time-based typography. The
informational poster. Whether it details the date for a concert or the location for
a public event. The poster was and has been the common medium used for the
distribution of information for hundreds of years. Though the typography has
conformed to the techniques of computer output. The poster serves as a way to
display information openly to the public as it pertains to current
events. Their occasion dependent information is what causes them to be so quickly
produced and discarded. Which leads to poorer
design and typographic attention. Though the
simple poster on the bar window still exists,
it has evolved into formats such as displays,
advertisements, and billboards, all of which are
still transitory in nature.
THE INFORMATIONAL POSTER
COMM
UNICATIVE PLATFORMS | 38
THE INFORMATIONAL POSTER
Though temporary type is quickly discarded and sometimes
neglected. There has been an uprising of smarter design
for time based typography and it’s functionality in
communication. Furthermore, history has shown us that type
designs that are short lived are sometimes venerated for their
contributions in history and art. When Henri de Toulouse-
Latrec was designing posters for the Moulin Rouge, he never
imagined them to be hanging in an art gallery one day. He
was designing to attract people to the club. In a similar sense,
the temporary typography of today could also be valued for
its temporal purpose as documentation of history. In any
case, public typography is expanding due to new pathways
of displaying and communicating information.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
CREDITS
CREDITS
1) Baines. “Naming Places and Defining Spaces.” (1960): 96-103. Print.
2) Bodine, Kerry, and Mathilde Pignol. “Kinetic Typography-Based Instant
Messaging.” CHI ‘03 (2003): 914-15. Print.
3) Ford, Shannon, Jodi Forlizzi, and Suguru Ishizaki. “Kinetic Typography:
Issues in Time-Based Presentation of Text.” CHI ‘97 (1997): 269-70. Print.
4) Myers, Chris. “The Value of the Narrative in the Education of the
Typographer.” 126-33. Print.
5) Tosh, Paul. “The Un-Cultured Word: Vernacular Typography and Image.”
(2007): 38-41. Print.
6) Abend, Lisa. “The Font War: IKEA Fans Fume over
Verdana.”(2009), TIME (<http://www.time.com/time/business/
article/0%2C8599%2C1919127%2C00.html>
7) Web Typography <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web-safe_fonts>
This book was designed as a student project for Patrick Dooley’s
Typography 03 class, Fall 2010. Photos were taken using a Nikon D40X
and edited in Adobe Photoshop. Layout was designed using Indesign and
typefaces used include Archer and Univers. Locations of photos include
Lawrence, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri.
New technologies are beginning to manipulate how
typography interacts with time. Through physical
design, the information it holds, and through digital
media, the property of time is becoming more present
on a public stage. Designers can use this factor to
creatively expand the communicative value of text.