Defining Terms

I will now define some terms for Typography. These may look like weird words that are incorrect, but I assure you, they are all correct; I have double checked them.

Absolute Measurement- are measurements of fixed values.

Relative Measurement- Relationships between character spacing are linked together with type size in relationships through relative measurement.

Point- the unit of measurement used to measure the type size of a font.

Pica- a unit of measurement equal to 12 points that is commonly used for measuring lines of type.

Em (and em dash)- relative measurement that has no prescribed, absolute size. It is relative to the type being set. Used to define basic functions and is linked to the size of type. Both ems and ens are used in punctuation to provide a measurement for dashes.

En (and en dash)- relative measurement that has no prescribed, absolute size. It is relative to the type being set. Unit of relative measurement equal to half of one em.

Legibility- involves a range of factors, perspectives, and methodologies. A body of knowledge, research, and opinion to which designers refer selectively.

Rag- Occur when highly noticeable shapes form by the line ends of text blocks that distract from simple, uninterrupted reading.

Type Alignments:

flush left- arrangement of type that is informal and its asymmetry may be used as a positive element in the design of a page.

centered- type set of a central axis, with even word spacing and ragged left and right margins.

justified- Uses three values for type setting: minimum, maximum, and optimum values.

Word Spacing (ideal)- centered justification.

Rivers- typically occur in justified text blocks when the separation of the words leaves gaps of white space in several lines.

Indent- provides readers with an easily accessible entry point to a paragraph.

Leading- another example of relative measurement. Most desktop programs assign an automatic percentage value to leading. Used to specify the depth of space between lines.

Kerning- The design of text faces incorporates inbuilt automatic adjustments to the spacing of particular letter pairs that would otherwise create disproportionate spaces.

Tracking- Adjusting the overall space between letters, rather than the space between two characters.

Weight- typefaces include choice of weights, from the single bold variant common to most text faces to intermediate weights.

Scale- increasing in point size of type.

Typographic Variation-

Orphan- The final one or two lines of a paragraph separated from the main paragraph to form a new column.

Widow- a lone word at the end of a paragraph made by justification.

Josef Muller Brockmann

Josef Muler Brockmann was born on May 9th, 1914. He is most well-known for his influence in graphic design and his belief in grids with graphic design.

He studied architecture, design and history of art at both the University and Kunstgewerbeschule in Zurich.

In the 1950s he produced a lot of concert posters where he worked for Tonhalle.

He was one of the founding editors of the New Graphic Design magazine along with R.P. Lohse, C. Vivarelli, and H. Neuburg. He was also the author of the 1961 publications The Graphic Artist and his Design Problems, Grid Systems in Graphic Design where he advocates use of the grid for page structure, and the 1971 publications History of the Poster and A History of Visual Communication.

He had such an influence on graphic design using the grid system that he is still remembered to this day for his advocating and eagerness for the grid layout. His posters show his technique and how with graphics, one must use the grid system to convey quickly and cleanly the information that the viewer needs to see.

Josef Muller Brockmann died in 1996 in Zurich.

Jan Tschichold

Jan Tschichold is most remembered for his type faces:

• Transit (1931)
• Saskia (1931/1932)
• Zeus (1931)
• Sabon (1966/1967) - named after Jacques Sabon.

Jan was born to a signwriter, and later in his life he was trained as a calligrapher. When the Modernist movement came, he advocated only San Serif type. He did not like any other type.

Jan also wrote books. One of his most noted book is called "Die neue Typographie." It was considered to be the "manifesto of modern design." In this book he shows his favoritism towards sans serif types.

Why was Jan Tchichold so important?

"He advocated the use of standardised paper sizes for all printed matter, and made some of the first clear explanations of the effective use of different sizes and weights of type in order to quickly and easily convey information."

Tchichold also made many brochures and manuscripts that conveyed many more effective ways to more quickly and efficiently convey messages and information with typography.

In the 1940's, Tchichold helped Penguin Books redesign over 500 of their books with appropriate rule of typography which was called the Penguin Composition Rules.

What is a Modular Grid?

Before we ask ourselves what a modular grid is, we must understand the word module.

A Module is: a box in the grid that is used to separate and control texts or images of a layout.

The Modular Grid is made up of a few things:

1. Margin-- area between the live space and the outer edge
2. Column--the vertical lines that run up and down the modular grid
3. Module-- the boxes used as live space where text or images are placed
4. Gutter-the spaces between the modules

These parts of the modular grid are all important parts that a graphic designer should use to help lay out their project in an orderly way.

What is Hierarchy in design?

Hierarchy is the method that the designer must choose what his/her viewer should see first, second, and then third. There must be a part of the layout that is more significant than the others so the views knows where to start or what information is the most important aspect of the layout.

There are many ways to achieve a clear hierarchy. Some ways include:

1. Placement on the page
2. Weight of type style
3. The size of an object or text
4. A graphic element

What is Family Type and Type Styles?

A Family type is a specific type that is made of different styles:

Regluar, Bold, Italic -- are specific weights to the family type

Regular, Condensed, extended-- are specific widths to the family type.

Through different weights and width, a family type is made.

What is a Grid?

The definition of a Grid in the Webster's Dictionary Online is:

"1 : grating
2 a (1) : a perforated or ridged metal plate used as a conductor in a storage battery (2) : an electrode consisting of a mesh or a spiral of fine wire in an electron tube (3) : a network of conductors for distribution of electric power; also : a network of radio or television stations b : a network of uniformly spaced horizontal and perpendicular lines (as for locating points on a map); also :something resembling such a network grid> c : gridiron3; broadly : football
3 : the starting positions of cars on a racecourse
4 : a device in a photocomposer on which are located the characters to be exposed as the text is composed"

These definitions can be very useful, but for my particular use the definition "a network of uniformly spaced horizontal and perpendicular lines..." is the best answer for explaining why one needs grids in Typography.

For design and typography, a grid can be defined as such: "A grid breaks space or time into regular units. A grid can be simple of complex, specific or generic, tightly defined or loosely interpreted."

For Typography in particular, "grids are all about control. They establish a system for arranging content within the space of page, screen, or built environment."

Some examples of grids are:

1. city blocks
2. brochures
3. newspapers
4. magazines

Why Do We As Designers Use Grids?

Grid design IS a fundamental skill of any designer.

"For graphic designers, grids are carefully honed intellectual devices, infused with ideology and ambition, and they are inescapable mesh that filters at some level of resolution, nearly every system of writing and reproduction."

August 24th, 2009-- First Day of Typography

I am only three "official" school days into my Sophomore year at the University of Kansas in the Graphic Design program, and I already feel overwhelmed. But when I say overwhelmed, I mean I feel overwhelmed in a good way. I am a little nervous, very excited, and already loaded down with homework, which will seem like a miniscule amount of homework once I go into my Junior and a Senior year.

I have never made a blog before, but I do visit blogs. They are cooking blogs and not design blogs, but they are blogs nonetheless. I guess I must make it a habit of blogging more often. It shouldn't be any harder than Facebook (knock on wood).

Well, now that I have created my blog, I probably should do my homework...

I think I will do it tonight.