Reflections of Typography

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REFLECTIONS OF

REFLECTIONS OF

Typography

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When looking at the Gutenberg era of typography in comparison to typography of the twenty-first century, it is inevitable to see the differences between the two eras. However, after closer observation it becomes clear that there are just as many similarities between the two as there are differences. By merely looking at the time difference it goes without saying that one era would be dominated by analog procedures, conducted by hand, and the other would lean close to relying on the digital processes of today’s culture.

But what common thread could these

two very different eras of design share? By analyzing the technology, culture, typographers, and typefaces that became so significant within each of these eras, the revelation of these similarities and comparisons are revealed.

Johann Gensfleisch Gutenberg of Mainz, was born in Germany in 1398. He died from a heart attack on February 3, 1468.

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Technology in itself is a field that is In relation to the world of type, this always growing. The latest techanalogy holds true to an extent. In the nology typically has a record of years of Gutenberg(1450-1800) techkeeping the title as “the latest technology moved at a rather slow rate. nology” for about a year. Then the The greatest achievement of this era following year, the “next big thing” however was the invention of moveis ready to roll out of developers able type. The judgment of history is hands and ‘wow’ the audience just that Johann Gensfleisch Gutenberg of as it did the year before.

Mainz, Germany, first brought together the complex systems and subsystems necessary to print a typographic book around the year 1450 (Meggs, 72).

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The Gutenberg Bible was the first major book printed with movable type in the West. It marked the start of the “Gutenberg Revolution” and the age of the printed book in the West.

It would seem that this theory holds water in lieu of the fact that the Gutenberg Bible is considered the first book printed with moveable type (Drucker, 57). Before this all books were created by hand, one at a time. Movable type was the supreme technology of typography between the

The judgment of history is that Johann Gensfleisch Gutenberg of Mainz, Germany, first brought together the complex systems and subsystems necessary to print a typographic book around the year 1450.

Fifteenth and eighteenth century. With Gutenberg’s system, type was created by punchcut-

very small piece of metal, but

ting cutting- a system based

then hardened, driven into a

on meta lwork tra des. Every

copper blank (known as a strike)

punch was required to be cre-

and filled on all sides ( justifi-

ated seprately for each size. In

cation) to define its character

compa rison to the processes

width and alignment. It was then

of the twentieth and twen-

placed into a mould an d casted

ty-first centuries, this was a considerably slow and tedious process. Movable type not only had to be carved out of a

from an alloy of lead, tin , an d a n t i m ony. Then and only then could the characters be distributed to cases, ready for use.

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Movable type was one of, if not the most, important technological advancement in typographic history.

Technologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries not only developed methods that improved the Gutenberg process but also developed entirely new technologies

These two system in particular

that revolutionized the type industry

introduced the keyboard. As each

forever. From 1900-1985 the ma-

letter was typed, molds (or matri-

chine age turned the type industry

ces) were filled with a molten lead

toward mass production. By the late

alloy that solidified instantly to

nineteenth century machines could

produce type. After printing, the

cast type either as entire lines with

type was melted down and reused

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the Linotype system or individual

for future typesets. Further technol-

characters with the monotype system.

ogies were developed to make the

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printing process even less complex.

In the mid-1960s, phototypesetting replaced hot metal type amongst many typesetters. Phototypesetting was a method that used photographic projection of light through a film negative onto a light sensitive surface.

The characters were then set on a keyboard, stored on tape, and controlled by large computers. No longer was there a need for the tedious process of creating metal punches or storing large cases of type.

Still technology was advancing past these developments towards processes of type-

Technologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries not only developed methods that improved the Gutenberg process but also developed entirely new technologies that revolutionized the type industry forever.

settings that were faster, more flexible and even less cost effective. By the end of the 1980s digital type was the most efficient method of typesetting. Where phototypesetting required for characters to be stored on film and film drums, the digital process allowed for characters to be stored electronically on computer memory.

Like phototypesetting, digital output was always precise in size and did not vary according to a typesetter’s hand and craft like Gutenberg’s metal type. “Because the type is digital, it can be electronically condensed, expanded, slanted, and manipulated”(Baines, 106). In short, the ages of movable type involved a much more tedious and time consuming way of doing things in comparison to type of the twentieth century and twenty-first century.

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Culture is another element that has the potential to unite and/or separate two categories of subject matter. Both the era of movable type(1940-1800) and twentieth and twenty-first centuries as a whole were greatly influenced by their respective cultures. During the Renaissance era enlightenment was the thing everyone was searching for.

There was a thirst and hunger for classical literature that

fueled the production of incunabula-books printed in the first half of the typographic printing period (Baines, 7). In

the renaissance,

people were beginning to move away from the religious beliefs of those that came before them and find answers in worldly or secular concerns. In todays society, everyone is looking to get results as fast

Blackletter type has been referred to as Gotham Script and even Old English. It is the primary lettering used during the Renaissance.

as possible.

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This commerce driven culture is what generated the want and need for a faster method of printing. Punchcutting and hand setting type had become too laborious and time consuming. The machine age promoted speed and agility. People were moving and connecting with not only each other but the world more and

People were moving and connecting with not only each other but the world more and more as time progressed. It was only necessary that the technologies across the board kept up

more as time progressed. It was only necessary that the technologies across the board kept up. Money and economy was also a common thread between the two eras.

The Macintosh computer was one of the most groundbreaking developments in graphic design and in the world as a whole. The PC fuels todays freelancers and renowned type foundries and design firms.

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Claude Garamond created one of the most memorable typefaces in the history of type. Though his intent was not to create a ‘classical typeface, it still remains true to the classification.

“In the 1980s the boundaries

typographic arena. “Claude

between the activities of de-

Garamond (1490 – 1561) was

sign studios, offices, the print-

the first to turn punchcutting

ing/typesetting trades began

into a commercial enterprise

to blur as a result of simulta-

in its own right to sell punches

neous developments”(Baines,

and strikes to other printers”

109). With personal computers

(Baines, 92). It was the launch

becoming cheaper and innova-

of typesetting as a commodity

tions in digital typesetting such

that formed the system of font

as Adobe PostScript, the “old

point sizes we still use today.

style” type foundries because

Once punchcutting became a

an unnecessary expense and

commercial service, typesetters

load of labor that many did

could no longer create ran-

away with. This, however, is

dom and miscellaneous sizes

not the first time in history that

of type. A system of universal

the line in commercial busi-

standards had to be made.

ness has been drawn in the

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The initial “old style”, or serif typefaces, would draw their traits from established kingdoms of known wealth such as the Greek and roman empires.

Just as time and culture would have technology moving along in the same path of growth and evolution, the same holds true with the typesetters, typographers, and typefaces of said time periods and cultures. During the Renaissance the humanist philosophy of embracing classical literature, the belief in human dignity and worth, and a spirit of individualism took on a sense of sophistication. The initial “old style”, or serif typefaces, would draw their traits from established kingdoms of known wealth such as

Sweynheym and Pannartz (1465), the first type designed in Italy, was clearly and probably inevitably influenced by Roman inscription. Even more so was the roman typeface designed by Nicolas Jenson. The type is clearly related and strictly influenced by the undated forms of Roman writing that were carved into the stones of the ancient Roman monuments.

Now although Claude Garamond did not consider himself an “Old Style” designer, in retrospect, the aspects of his type designs hold true to the classification of such; very elegant, open, round, thick strokes and heavily bracketed serifs are all in his work.

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the Greek and roman empires.

CL r tu E U

The eighteenth century would give birth to the transitional and modern style typefaces. It was a gradual transition but looking back through history we are able to make clear distinctions. Where as the Old Style typography was very bold, heavy, and uniform, the modern style moved toward a variety of thicks and thins within the type. The first true Modern Style typeface is Didone, also known as Didot. It was created by the French designer Francois Didot and is often referred to as a Neoclassical typeface. Its Italian counterpart, Bodoni, was not far from it in design.

Giambattista Bodoni created a

typeface that was based on geometric construction with hairline serifs

that pushed the boundaries of metal casting. Such thin strokes and serifs

within the typeface made it easy for punches to chip and break. Still, Giambattista Bodoni would earn

international success and a lasting respect by the publishing world.

The Transitional Style of typography was exactly what it is called. Making its appearance between the Old

Style and the Modern Style, transi-

tional typefaces such as Baskerville “reflect[ed] a trend more toward greater refinement�(Drucker, 98).

This was an effect of the technological improvements in printing presses, smoother paper, and improved inks. All of this took place before the nineteenth century.

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Jumping foreword to the twentieth century we see that the distinction so heavily stressed on serifs and the use there of is completely irrelevant. San serif type was the “New Black� in typography. Although it was William Caslon who introduced the first sans serif typeface in 1816, it didn’t really take off until the twentieth century with movements like the DeStijl, Bauhaus, and Swiss Style.

These movements, (and others),

believed in achieving a sense of clarity and refinement by eliminating all elements of design that were unnecessary; serifs being one of them. One in particular was the International Typographic Style, also known as the Swiss Style.

After the twentieth century design was heavily influenced by the use of grids.

Every element of design was made to align and relate to its respective grid system.

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The International Typographic Style was and is one of the most influential graphic movements because “Visually the International Typographic it was built more on the ideas of a style is characterized by its underlying grid specific structure and set of prinstructures, asymmetrical layouts and san serif ciples rather than opinion and type� (Drucker, 251). Objective photography personal expression. and geometric forms were commonly favored elements, yet there was an almost complete absence of decoration and/or illustration.

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Much, if not all, type of personal expression was rejected and replaced with a “more universal and scientific approach” (Meggs, 372). “It took its cue from concepts of efficiency and rational organization and approached all formats, including posters and promotional materials, as forms of informational design” (Drucker, 252).

Now all of these principles did not come together all at once.

Its seems as though one man’s idea(s) and research gave birth

Jump ahead thirty six years and the development of san serif typography reaches a revolutionary breaking point. In 1954 Swiss designer Adrian Frutiger composed a “visually programmed family of twenty-one sans serif fonts named Univers” (Meggs, 376). Frutiger was asked to design the san serif type for the Lumitype; a short lived machine process that composed text by shining light through a negative onto a light sensitive surface. This process

to another man’s idea(s) and

was in fact a great part of Univers’

research until a collective of

success because it eliminated the

like principles and standards

need to invest large amounts

were formed.

of money into the manufacturing of metal punches and matrices.

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Before the development of technology that made the type designer’s

job easier, the development of type variances within a type family was

low and would usually only include two standard weights (regular and

bold), and their accompanying italics. However, with new technology

Frutiger was able to make a typeface of twenty-one variances with six dif-

from a cursive form of handwriting

ferent weights and widths. In times

rather than directly from roman

before that of Univers, many italics

letters, [thus] it had developed some

would commonly look unrelated to

distinct shapes of its own”(Cramise,

their roman counterparts

tio n

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“because the italic had been derived

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243). Despite the traditional

method of composing italics, Frutiger composed his italics from the actual roman letters along their central, horizontal axis, halfway up their x-height. This caused his italics to be a form of sloped roman, or ‘oblique’ roman as he called it.

This required less designing and allowed for italics to be smoother and more even toned when set along side roman lettering. It would not be until the 1961 that the well known typeface Helvetica would be released; a new san serif with an even larger x-height than Univers.

“Helvetica’s well-defined forms and excellent rhythm in addition to its positive and negative shapes made it the most specified typeface internationally during the 1960s and 1970s” (Meggs, 377). However, because Helvetica was composed by various designers in several different countries it acquired numerous weights and italics that caused it to lack the cohesiveness that Univers so greatly achieved. It would not be until the 1980s, when digital typesetting became more prevalent, that the development of a more cohesive versions of Helvetica, such as Linotype’s 1983 Neue Helvetica, would be created.

Still it would be the development of typefaces like these that would propel the International Typographic Style. During this time period, artists such as Jan Tschichold believed that serifs were a thing of the past and that they should never be used at all. Of course that was one theory that eventually changed with time. In fact, in the twenty-first century, the development of the internet and software programing, almost anyone is now able to own their own type foundry online.

Foundries like Emigre, Font Shop, and House Industries changed the way designers and consumers in general use typography on a day to day basis.

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2. Craig, James. Designing with Type: The Essential Guide to Typography. New York:Watson-Guptill Publications, 2006.

Drucker, Johanna and Emily McVarsh. Graphic Design History: A Critical Guide. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, Inc, 2013.

4. Meggs, Phillip and Alston Purvis. Meggs’ History of Graphic Design. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 2012.

Resources

1. Baines, Phil and Haslam, Andrew. Type and Typography. New York: Watson-Guptill Publications, 2005.

http://www.historyofinformation.com/expanded.php?id=330 http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johannes-Gutenberg. png http://www.swinburne.infoxchange.net.au/media/halm316/glossary2005/print.html

Images

http://www.behance.net/gallery/my-new-website-in-swiss-stylesiracusa-IT-2011/2057410 http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/worldhistory/ gutenbergbible.htm http://uppersouthstudio.com/uss/graphic_editions/renaissance/ http://philiprice.net/easter_eggs/garamond.html http://daniel-de-wolff.blogspot.com/2011/11/love-letter-to-adrian-frutiger.html

Designer: Elijah Williamson Project: Typographers Timeline Book Course: Typography 2 Faculty: Francheska Guerrero Typefaces: Perpetua, Avenir Next