April 21, 2024

Advanced Typography - Task 1

22.04.2024 - ? / Week 1 - Week ?

Teo Mei Hui / 0358315

Advanced Typography / Bachelors of Design (Honors) in Creative Media / Taylor's University

Task 1

LECTURES

AdTypo_1_Typographic Systems

All designs are based on a structural system. According to Elam, there are 8 major variations with infinite number of permutations:

1. Axial System - all elements are organized to the left or right of a single axis.

2. Radial System - all elements are extended from a point of focus.

3. Dilatational System - all elements extend from a central point in a circular fashion.

4. Random System - elements appear to have no specific pattern or relationship.

5. Grid System - a system of horizontal and vertical divisions.
6. Transitional System - an informal system of layered banding.
7. Modular System - a series of non-objective elements that are constructed in as standardized units.
8. Bilateral System - all text is arranged symmetrically on a single axis.

Figure 1.1 Typographic systems

AdTypo_2_Typographic Composition

The Rule of Third

A photographic guide to composition. The intersecting lines are used as guides to place points of interest.
Realistically, no one uses it when there are more favorable options.

Figure 1.2 Rule of Thirds

Typographic Systems

Grid System remains popular due to the versatility of system and its modular nature allows an infinite number of adaptions

Figure 1.3 Grid Systems "how to"

Environmental Grid

This system is based on the exploration of an existing structure or numerous structures combined.

Figure 1.4 Environmental Grid

Form and Movement

This system is based on the exploration of an existing grid system.

Figure 1.5 Form and Movement

Figure 1.6 Form and Movement

Ad_Typo_3_Context & Creativity

Handwriting

We study handwriting because the first mechanically produced letterforms were designed to directly imitate handwriting.
It would become the basis for form, spacing and rules mechanical type would try and mimic.

Cuneiform (c. 3000 B.C.E.)

earliest system of actual writing
evolved from pictograms
written from left to right

Hieroglyphics (2613-2160 B.C.E.)

Egyptian writing system fused with art of relief carving
used as ideograms, represent the things they actually depict.
used as determinatives to show that the signs preceding are meant as phonograms and to indicate the general idea of the word.
used as phonograms to represent sounds that "spell out" individual words.

Early Greek (5th c. B.C.E.)

built on Egyptian logo-consonantal system
phonetic alphabet consisting of 22 letters
drawn freehand, and had no serifs
over time the strokes of these letters grew thicker, the aperture lessened, and serifs appeared

Roman Uncials

by the 4th century Roman letters became more rounded
curved form allowed less strokes and can be written faster

English Half Uncials (8th C.)

the uncial evolved into a more slanted and condensed from in England

Carolingian Minuscule

book production increased and language was standardized during Charlemagne's patronage
capitals at the start of a sentence, spaces between words and punctuation
used for all legal and literary works
became the pattern of Humanistic writing in the 15th century

Black Letter (12-15 C. CE)

Gothic was the culminating art expression of the middle century (1200--1500)
characterized by tight spacing and condensed lettering, which reduced the amount of costly materials in book production
evenly spaced verticals dominated the letterform

The Italian Renaissance

the renaissance embrace ancient Greek and Roman culture spurred creativity in Italian art, architecture, literature, and letterform design
the newly rediscovered letterforms were named Antica

Figure 1.7 Writing System and Letterforms through the ages

Movable Type

printing on wood block had already been practiced in China, Korea and Japan
earliest known printed book is the Diamond Sutra (AD 868)
pioneered in China but achieved in Korea (Diamond Sutra)

Figure 1.8 Movable Type

Indus Valley Civilization (IVC) script (3500-2000 B.C.E.)

the oldest writing found in the Indian subcontinent
yet undeciphered, seems to be logo-syllabic in nature

Figure 1.9 Indus Valley Civilization script

Brahmi Script (450-350 B.C.E.)

the earliest writing system developed in India after the Indus script
one of the most influential writing systems, all modern Indian scripts and several hundred scripts found in Southeast and East Asia are derived from Brahmi

Figure 1.10 Brahmi Script

AdTypo_4_Designing Type

1. Xavier Dupré (2007) suggested two reasons for designing a typeface:

typeface carries social responsibility so one must continue to improve its legibility
type design is a form of artistic expression

2. Adrian Frutiger, a renowned twentieth century Swiss graphic designer:

his forte was typeface designing and he is considered responsible for the advancement of typography into digital typography
valued contribution to typography: Univers and Frutiger
purpose of Frutiger font: a clean, legible, and distinctive typeface that can be seen close-up or faraway, extremely functional
considerations/limitations for Frutiger font: letterforms needed to be recognized in poor light condition or fast reading speed
he tested with unfocused letters to see which could still be identified

Figure 1.11 Univers (left), Frutiger (right)

3. Matthew Carter

son of Harry Carter, Royal Designer for Industry, contemporary British type designer and ultimate craftsman
many of his fonts were created to address specific technical challenges, such as Verdana (1996) for Microsoft
purpose: fonts were tuned for extreme legibility at very small sizes on screens due to the rise of the internet and electronic devices
considerations/limitations: Verdana fonts exhibit characteristics derived from pixels rather than traditional tools like the pen, brush, or chisel
commonly confused characters: i, j, l

Figure 1.12 Verdana 'a'

4. Edward Johnston

creator of hugely influential London 'Underground' Typeface: Johnston Sans
he was asked to create a typeface with bold simplicity that was modern yet rooted in tradition
purpose: London's Underground railway ordered a new typeface for its posters and signage from calligrapher Edward Johnston
considerations/limitations: to unite the London Underground Group (all the different companies using the same rails and tunnels), he applied Roman capitals proportion so it is rooted in traditional calligraphy, but still has elegance and simplicity to fit the modern age

Figure 1.13 Earlier version of Johnston Sans

General Process of Type Design

1. Research

we should understand type history, type anatomy and type conventions
determine the type's purpose and what applications it will be used in
examine existing fonts for inspiration, ideas, reference, context, and usage patterns

2. Sketching

sketch using traditional toolset: more confidence with their hands, better control
sketch using digital toolset: quicker, persistent and consistent, but impede natural movement of hand strokes

3. Digitization

leading professional software for font digitization: FontLab and Glyphs App
using Adobe Illustrator to design or craft letterforms first (frowned upon by purists)
attention should also be given to counter form, as readability is dependent on it

4. Testing

important component of design thinking process
process of refining and correcting aspects of the typeface
readability and legibility of typeface becomes an important consideration (unless it's a display type)

5. Deploy

even after deploying, there will still be teething problems that did not come fore during testing phase, the task of revision does not end here

INSTRUCTIONS

TASKS

Exercise 1: Typographic Systems

Explore the 8 typographic systems using using the provided content in Adobe InDesign.

PROCESS

Axial

For the first attempt, I placed the title on the left side of the axis, and split the different texts groups on either sides, while playing with the font styles, I also added graphical elements beside the title. For the second attempt, I split the title into two sides of the axis, changed the position of some of the text groups, and then slanted the entire axis. I like the second one better as there is more balance and dynamism with the slant.

Figure 2.1 Axial system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Radial

For the first attempt, I tried with only one point of focus first, I added graphical elements so that there is less negative space. For the second attempt, I added two point of focus at opposite corners, having the title extend from one end and the texts from the other end, I made sure to utilize graphical elements, colors and sizing up certain words so that it doesn't look too simple. I like the second attempt as there is more balance.

Figure 2.2 Radial system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Dilatational

For this system, I tried to balance how the body texts were placed on opposing sides. It ended up looking like a flower. I adjusted the color and sizing of the fonts so that it does not look bland.

Figure 2.3 Dilatational system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Random

This one was the hardest to grasp because the guideline is that there is no guideline. We had to make it look random but still legible in a way. My first attempt does not look random at all, all I did was play around more with the fonts, it looked too rigid. For the second attempt, I made the individual letters in 'all ripped up' have different fonts, sizes and angles, and then made the font style and color different for each word in 'punk influences on design'. As for the rest, some body texts were repeated many times and some were placed in weird angles. This was a fun system to explore.

Figure 2.4 Random system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Grid

For the grid system, I started by creating guidelines to make the grids. Then I played around with the placements of the title and texts. The first attempt ended up looking a little like axial, with almost all of the text aligned to the middle line. During the second attempt I tried not to make the same mistakes by trying to spread them out more.

Figure 2.5 Grid System process, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Figure 2.6 Grid system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Transitional
The first attempt i went with straight lines but slanted some of them, but it looked kind of boring. For the second attempt I tried to make the curves similar so that it does not look messy. I also created like an intersection between the title and some texts. The second one is definitely better as there is more movement and dynamism.

Figure 2.7 Transitional system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Modular

For the modular system I started by creating guidelines. I then tried to fit the title and texts into 'blocks' and then played around with the layout. The first and second attempt are just different positioning using the same 'blocks'.

Figure 2.8 Modular system process, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Figure 2.9 Modular system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Bilateral

For the bilateral system, I made all the titles and texts center-aligned, then placed them along the center axis. I changed the color and font styles for certain texts as well as added line elements to make it more interesting.

Figure 2.10 Bilateral system attempt, week 1 (22/04/2024)

Compilation

Figure 2.11 Compilation of 8 typographic systems, week 2 (29/04/2024)

FINAL

Figure 2.12 Axial system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.13 Radial system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.14 Dilatational system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.15 Random system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.16 Grid system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.17 Transitional system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.18 Modular system final JPEG, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.19 Bilateral system final JPEG, week 2 (29/02/2024)

Figure 2.20 Typographic systems final PDF, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Figure 2.21 Typographic systems final PDF - with grids, week 2 (29/04/2024)

Exercise 2: Type & Play

Part One: Finding Type

Select an image of a man-made object, structure, or something from nature. Then, analyze, dissect, and identify potential letterforms in the image. Explore and digitize the letterforms, but ensure the core features of its origins are maintained.

1. Chosen Picture

I took some time on the internet to find an interesting picture where I can extracted letterforms from. I hesitated between butterfly wings, jellyfish and spider lily flowers. In the end I went with the flowers as i could easily identify potential letters.

Figure 3.1 Chosen picture - spider lily flower, week 3 (04/05/2024)

2. Letterform Extraction

I traced out the letters that I can identify from the petals of the flower, which are A,L,E,R,S. Using the pen tool, I made sure to keep the details of the curved petals.

Figure 3.2 Traced letters - A,L,E,R,S, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Figure 3.3 Extracted letterforms - A,L,E,R,S, week 3 (04/05/2024)

3. Sketches
I sketched out how I imagined the final letterforms would look like. The top sketch is based on sans serif typeface and the bottom sketch is based on serif typeface.

Figure 3.4 Font sketches, week 3 (04/05/2024)

4. Reference

I decided to use Gill Sans as my reference font, as I wanted to go with the sans serif sketch.

Figure 3.5 Reference font - Gill Sans, week 3 (04/05/2024)

5. Digitization

First, I used direct selection to move the anchor points so that the extractions would resemble actual letters more.

Figure 3.6 Adjusting extraction into letters, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Then, I traced my sketch so that the stems can be straightened.

Figure 3.7 Straightening the stems, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Moving on, I made sure to align the cap height and baseline of all the letters.

Figure 3.8 Aligning cap height and baseline, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Then i made minor adjustments to some parts of the letters so that there is more consistency throughout the letters. Such as refining the curvy edges, especially in 'A' while making it more symmetrical. I also adjusted all the letters while referring to the reference type that I chose.

Figure 3.9 Final refinement to ensure consistency, week 3 (04/05/2024)

FINAL

Figure 3.10 Process compilation, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Figure 3.11 Initial extraction vs. final refinement, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Figure 3.12 Final letterform, week 3 (04/05/2024)

Figure 3.13 Exercise 2 - Final Finding Type (PDF), week 3 (04/05/2024)

Part Two: Movie Poster

Create a movie poster in the dimension of 1024×1024px, using the typeface we designed in part one.

Process

I chose the picture of a woman holding a red spider lily flower, as i thought it had a more cinematic feel to it. I adjusted the original image so that the colors are darker. I made my typeface gold to go with the picture. However, this poster was rejected because the woman was taking too much attention away from the spider lily flower.

Figure 3.14 Movie poster 1st attempt, week 4 (13/05/2024)

I tried out two different pictures as background. The first one, I made my typeface gradient, following the colors of the flower in the picture. For the second one, I used red and turquoise, as it is a contrasting color. It looks nice but the readability was a little low. So I went with the first option as it was safer.

Figure 3.15 Movie poster 2nd attempt, week 4 (13/05/2024)

Final

Figure 3.16 Final movie poster, week 4 (13/05/2024)

Figure 3.17 Final movie poster (PDF), week 4 (13/05/2024)

FEEDBACK

Week 2

Specific Feedback:
E-portfolio: compile all images into one so that post doesn't get too lengthy, also make sure embedded items are viewable to other people.

Typographic systems: Axial system - left layout is more interesting as there is a slant. Radial system - which one I prefer (right layout because more balanced). Dilatational - pay attention to the kerning. Random system - it's almost there. Grid system - it's okay, no other choices. Transitional system - which one I prefer (right because more movement and dynamism). Modular system - it's okay, no other choices. Bilateral system - it's okay, no other choices.

General feedback:
Always keep up with the tasks, so you don't have too much work piled up near submission. Update further reading.

Week 3

Specific feedback:
My typeface is good, the process is correct, just need to make sure baseline and cap height are aligned, and some minor edits and I'm good to go.

General feedback:
Make sure font has consistent weight for all letters. Complete all the exercise and lecture notes.

Week 4

Specific feedback:

Poster: Too much focus is taken away by the face, it should focus on the type, advised to to crop out the face and leave only the lips to chin area. Credits are too big, causes too much disturbance. Change the picture, the extractions are from flowers, not human.

General feedback:

Ensure you never have rivers in paragraphs. Try to look for opportunities of interplay or integration between font and poster. It's okay to make mistakes or wrong decisions, marks don't matter much as long as you learn something. Try to be confident in your own decisions and judgements.

REFLECTIONS

Experience
In exercise one, I was able to explore the 8 typographic systems, which are axial, radial, dilatational, random, grid, transitional, modular, bilateral. The systems provided us guidelines on how the to organize the texts, it was fun but challenging as I had to squeeze my brain to think of many layouts. In exercise two, I extracted letterforms from a picture of spider lily flowers, then I continuously refined the extraction and created a consistent typeface that still shows the core features of the flowers. After completing the typeface, I created a movie poster to showcase the typeface. I had to change the background image several times to ensure legibility. I also played around with the colors and effects so that the fonts integrates with the background image.

Observations
Each typographic systems have a unique way of organizing text, which influences visual hierarchy and readability. Some are more structured and rigid, such as axial and bilateral, which offers more clarity, while some are more playful, such as radial and random, which allows more freedom and creativity. Extracting the letterforms requires the utmost patience, as it is an iterative process of refining a crude form into a legible font. While making a movie poster, it is important that all the texts and elements interplays together so that there is visual harmony.

Findings
I realized that each typographic system has different strength and purpose, some offer more clarity while some displays creativity. Through extracting letterforms from a picture, I realized that art can be found everywhere, as long as you discover it and refine it in your own ways. While creating movie posters, I learned making sure the typography and visual elements complement each other is crucial in order to create good design.

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Teo Mei Hui (0358315)

Advanced Typography - Task 1

CONTENTS

LECTURES

INSTRUCTIONS

TASKS

Exercise 1: Typographic Systems

PROCESS

FINAL

Exercise 2: Type & Play

FINAL

FEEDBACK

REFLECTIONS

FURTHER READING

Typographic Principles by Jason Tselentis

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