Typography by Kathrine Zhang Nan
Introduction
Typography is study type and type faces, the evolution of printed letters. Since man did not begin to write with type, but rather the chisel, brush, and pen, it is the study handwriting that provides us with the basis for creating type designs.
The first thing to keep in mind when thinking about the history and development of typography is that many early printers were not just printers, but typographers as well. The first independent type founder was a French gentleman by the name of Claude Garamond. Although not the inventor of movable type, Garamond was the first to make type available to printers at an affordable price. Garamond based his type on the roman font of Griffon. Before Garamond’s independent practice, men such as Jenson, Griffon, and Claxton played specific roles in the development of type. Jenson perfected the roman type, Claxton conceived a bastard gothic font, and Griffon developed italic.
(Source: http://www.pointlessart.com/education/loyalist/typeTalk/garamond/history)
Several of the fonts we see on our computer’s have evolved from the work of type founders of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. The weakest period the history of type rests in the sixteenth and seventeenth century printing presses. Many presses mixed many sizes and styles of type into single pages, fliers, and playbills. These are 100-150 years witnessed very little in the progression of typography.
It is difficult to cover all the developments and movements’ history of typography in a short space. My separation is evolving typography from the development. The three main developments evolutions have. The design of type began with early cuneiform images carved into stone or painted on cave walls. The tradition expanded into black letter calligraphy in the Middle Ages, then flourished in the industrial age with the development of Roman and then Gothic letterforms.
Now, with the advent of PCs, anyone can create a typeface; there are literally thousands available. But that doesn’t mean they are all good. In the early include Pictograph or Petroglyph, Cover Hieroglyph, Cuneiform, Phoenician, Greek, Roman, Latin and Hebrew. “Transitional” type is so-called because of its intermediate position between old styles and modern. Transitional Type is the tradition expanded includes Middle Ages, Revival of Learning, Gutenberg’s Type (ca. 1450-1480), Movable type and The Bible.
In the Bible there will have more important points to show the typography. Now the typography has a large variety. Like Verdana, Datum, Arial and so on. Have lots of form, like Bold, Italics, Bold and Italics, Sans Serif and so on. In the Modern typography is the most impartment. It’s very useful for Graph Design, Business Design, and Poster Design and so on.
Because along with the time is developing. Typography design also changes greatness. In the Modern society, the typography design is more and more important. Typography design passes along with the time diversifies. No matter in the life, art, music or business, must to be use the design typography to show there’re idea. Especially in the logo design is very useful. It commissary civilization’s developed.
Review of literature
The Egypt of Hieroglyph
From BC, 3500, until A.D. 2 century, they’re immediacy describe the object of letter sign. At first the user are the abbes. Hieroglyph is a rule at the hieron on the wall and on the religion memento. Because this the Greek call it “Book of Books”. Egyptians view their own pictograph is the moon god inventions. China Kingdom for the period beginning with reed pen writing tools featured in the paper writing paper, the Chinese pictograph Sketch of the evolution of a simplified form, known as monk’s body. BC, 7 century, monks and evolution of a body of the cursive scripts written language faster, usually writing for the daily papers, this called secular body. Please see figure1.
(Source: http://toastetime.bokee.com/4902188.html)
The Hieroglyph is the pioneer of the typography. They’re symbolize human’s culture is beginning. It’s the oldest typography in the word.
Gutenberg often called printing inventor. In his contribution is the invention of moveable trick printers, a variety of written materials so that speedy and accurate printing? It has been used from ancient times and rigid printing the same principles and seal rings Zhang Yan. Many centuries ago in ancient Tang Salih, the Chinese people will understand the rigid gun, a note found in the country’s 868 years of printing books.
In ancient Tang Salih, the Westerners also understand rigid printing, rigid printed enable many copies of a book printed. But this method has a big mistake, a new book is printed each require a new wooden boards or printed, and thus the publication of a wide variety of books was not practical.
The Gutenberg Bible, the first substantial book printed with movable type, is one of the greatest treasures in the Ransom Center’s collections. It was printed at Johann Gutenberg’s shop in Mainz, Germany and completed in 1454 or 1455. The Center’s Bible was acquired in 1978 and is one of only five complete examples in the United States. Born near Turin, Giambattista Bodoni was the fourth son of a master printer.
He was made director of the Royal Printing House of the Duke of Parma. No printer was more acclaimed in his own lifetime than Giambattista Bodoni. He did away with old-style letters and introduced a new clear simple type – the Modern typeface. The roman letter he cut in 1798 is usually what we mean by a Bodoni.
His type was characterized by a severe simplicity. In his influential Manuela Typographic of 1818, he laid down the four principles of type design “from which all beauty would seem to proceed”, which were: regularity, cleanness, good taste, and charm.
His masterpiece was Homer’s Iliad, which was dedicated to Napoleon who made him a Chevalier. He died while at work on his Manuela. Bodoni’s influence was enormous and his design held sway throughout the 19th century. In 1907, Morris Fuller Benton rebuts ATF Bodoni which is still use in today.
(Source: http://www1.cei.gov.cn/serve/index/showdoc.asp?Color=Nine&blockcode=wnworld&filename=200306103017}
As Western culture and thought patterns different direction with their letters the great discrepancy between the East. While the U.S., Britain, Germany, France, the text of some of the letters is different, and the manner of its composition is roughly the same language.
The invention of the alphabet with the prolonged use of the cultural make it today to enjoy the fruits of development, thanks to the people to reflect on and efforts in this regard.
No civilization, and to the continuation of their culture and history, will have their own means of dissemination, and use of language, writing, pictures or other manifestations. “Rosetta stone” 196 years before Christ is the inscriptions of Egypt Mengfeisi City monks were, the King wrote a letter to the then sing praises of someone gratitude letter. This is the 15th dynasty King Pharaoh Ptolemy.
Soon after he boarded the King throne, the monks have outstanding tax abolition, and for opening up new sources of wealth deity of the temple to take special protective measures have brought a series of benefits to the monks, the monks were quickly won the admiration. So monks who wrote this letter of gratitude and written languages in the three characters in this black basalt carved steles.
The earliest books were written on scrolls. From the Second Century A.D. to the present time, however, most books have been produced in the familiar codex format other words, bound at one edge. During the middle Ages, manuscript books were produced by monks who worked with pen and ink in a copying room known as a scriptorium. Even a small book could take months to complete, and a book the size of the Bible could take several years.
In the 1460s, block books incorporating pictures became popular in Europe. An entire illustrated page was engraved on a wood block and printed on only one side of the paper. A similar printing process involving blocks had been developed in the Far East many centuries before Gutenberg’s time. The engraving and printing of block books was a cumbersome process and was unsuitable for books consisting primarily of text.
(Source: http://www.qdsf.qdedu.net/grwzh/jihe/aiji2/home-9.html)
Digital
The earliest computer-based typesetters were a hybrid between the above-mentioned photocomposition machines and later pure digital output. They each had their own command language for communicating with output devices. Although these machines had advantages, they also had problems. None of these early command languages handled graphics well, and they all had their own formats for fonts. However, some of these devices are still in service as of 1995, for use in production environments which require more speed and less flexibility.
In the late 1980s PostScript gradually emerged as the de facto standard for digital typesetting. This was due to a variety of reasons, including its inclusion in the Apple LaserWriter printer and its powerful graphics handling. When combined with the Macintosh and PageMaker, the seeds were all sown for the current dominance of computer-based typesetting.
Most high-end typesetting still involves printing to film, and then making printing plates from the film. However, the increasing use of high-resolution printers makes the use of actual printing presses unnecessary for some jobs. And the next step for press printing is the elimination of film altogether, as is done by a few special systems today, in which the computer can directly create printing plates.
Today, although PostScript predominates, there are a variety of competing page description languages, font formats computer hardware platforms and desktop publishing and graphics programs. Digital typesetting is commonplace, and photocomposition is at least dying, if not all but dead. Digital typefaces on computer, whether Postscript or some other format, are generally outline typefaces, which may be scaled to any desired size.
There has been considerable economic fallout from all this in typography. Although some digital type design tools are beyond the price range of the “average” user, many are in the same price range as the mid- to high-end graphics and desktop publishing programs.
This, combined with the introduction of CD-ROM typeface collections, has moved digital type away from being an expensive, specialized tool, towards becoming a commodity. As a result of both this and the brief photocomposition interregnum, the previously established companies have undergone major shakeups, and even some major vendors, such as American Type Founders, have failed to successfully make the digital transition, and gone bankrupt instead.
Although there is a new accessibility of type design tools for hobbyists and professional graphic artists, the decreasing value of individual typefaces has resulted in a decrease in the number of working type designers.
Modern Type:
“Modern” typefaces are distinguishable by their sudden-onset vertical stress and strong contrast. Modern serifs and horizontals are very thin, almost hairlines. Although they are very striking, these typefaces are sometimes criticized as cold or harsh, and may not be quite as readable for very extensive text work, such as books.
Fat Faces
The “Fat Face” types were an offshoot of the moderns, intended for display purposes. The first such types appeared from 1810-1820. They further exaggerated the contrast of modern typefaces, with slab-like vertical lines and extra emphasis of any vertical serifs, which often acquired a wedge shape. Bodoni Ultra, Normande and Elephant are all examples of fat face types which are closely based on early to mid-19th Century originals, and are available in digital form.
Wood Type
Wood type answered some of the needs of display advertising during the industrial revolution. It derives its name from the fact that instead of being made of metal, the type is carved from wood, cut perpendicular to the grain. It is distinguished by strong contrasts, an overall dark color, and a lack of fine lines. It may be unusually compressed or extended.
Many wood types have an “Old West” feel, because they are most strongly associated with America in the 1870-1900 periods. Some of the wood types most widely available today are those in an Adobe pantheon released in 1990, which includes Cottonwood, Ironwood and Juniper.
Hand-written copy is actually not invented in the former has been used only reproduction methods, the tools are copied branches, Yuma obi, Chinese ink, charcoal, etc., to the Middle Ages, the latter studio (Scriptoria) can be written in the monastery of the cultural center, many written by ancient writers religious books, Here is a copy and preserve research purposes.
Wood carving techniques will be illustrated with the sentence in the form of anti-patterns in a piece of wood on a printed version should be printed in addition to some of the carved; leaving the line is to be printed.
In fact, some of the printing ink on the good came on a piece of paper, in the pressure and make the transfer to the paper version, this print called “panels India.” Raising paper printed slip of paper piled together, compiled and bound; the product called “wooden edition books printed books,” or called “board”. The paper will be pressure on the board, will be negative pollution, and requires back together with such books, very limited production, now is more treasures.
In Western Europe, about 20,000 are in the first 20 years of the 15th century had known. Early Development carved into the wood version is vertical law text and illustrations were completed at the same time to print.
To the use of vertical sawn wood carvings version, version sawn wood from the trunk vertical direction four plots, first on the sun drying, and then carefully sand Ping can use. In principle all wood are suitable for this purpose, but there is too much wood or too crude purple veins, the more inappropriate. Wood can be derived from fruit trees, such as: Cherry or apple tree and pear tree more desirable.
About 1800, home to numerous arts and copper engraved home competition. However, when they use vertical sawn materials sculpture and found a block of wood for the trees crossing paths, resulting in some broken lines, the use of horizontal carved France Therefore, first put Wang sawn trunks, and fine grain to the wood-based hardware, such as : Maple, pears and Chinese little leaf box wood all particularly suited to such carving edition.
In order to avoid breakdown in dry, or bending to keep wood into many short paragraphs, reuse audio together into a checkerboard shape, or in using its platform drilling screw lock together, these pieces of wood sawn laminating of about 2.5 centimeters thick to suit Indian edition height in the use of the former division by carving a sandpaper be sand-ping, division will be full of sand sculpture on the board Pidgin or small wooden turntable, so that in carving, turning smoothly, and do meticulous carving into wood version.
Printing division to the Indian edition of the content, printing sequence, pigments mixed with the deployment, black characters, and paper consumption Mexican sexual factors fully understand, so the print division is not only spaces technical workers, but also spaces artists. Wood purchased printing ink is good, when mutual mix with water seepage resistant paper, the better performance board printing results.
It could defense waged black skin, water availability, paper humidity, the shading color print various levels.
Black wooden version off is to asphalt fume or pigment extracted under water, and gum Arabic as a combination of agents and other substances, such as water-based ink painting of ink.
Ink-back in 2500, BC has invented, because of their sexual colorfast and lasting identity therefore many ancient times until today has still not faded Indian pieces. Printed in 20,000 Chinese mainland continues to be found, has developed into the use of different colors color watermarks, the traditional Chinese painting paper, refined and beautiful.
(Source http://nc.cgan.net/book/books/print/westword/content.htm)
26 Letters
Vision Emblem is the writing is gradually developed a physical language. In Ancient time people have used various other methods to make visual communication, For example: For tree roots fit in Marking, or stones arranged in certain shapes, to express certain things from happening. However, these have not exactly clear what has occurred. Early written communication is the most important stage of learning to painting manner that they see things and express their meaning.
Now the English alphabet has 26 letters similar to each of its interesting story has been spent hundreds of years before they developed individual symbols. “Alphabet” is the word from the first two Greek letters “Alpha” and “Beta” which combines. Capital letters or if “Capitals” has used many centuries only font. Lowercase letters or small by calligrapher in the Middle Ages, writers, and scholars, when they went ancient manuscripts, and books, gradually developed.
Conclusion
Today, human society has entered an era of commercial and industrial development, product competition; beautify life, and humanity daily lives. As feeling is transmission media-a letter which, along with the progress of human civilization into an important subject for people to study.
In the modern urban information system, Visual languages to convey have much more functional relevance. American designer Dan Friedman use “Legibility” and “Readability” as appraise. The printing font is the language is clear and readable fonts; Visual identification is a remarkable display to the characteristics of fonts, but after the necessary processing, the text font in the computer user will pay sufficient attention to the visual, display the fonts is likely to play its advantages to a greater extent, and do not lost simply because of the repeated use of loss due attractive.
Typography design is use in the different field. Many companies prefer to use typography to design their logo. Because use the typography can easy to show the company’s name and it’s also a logo’s commissary. In the placard design, the typography design is also useful. No matter the placard are which styles. Can deliver one of what you want. The typography is combining our life to bring into play its action. Belong the time, the typography design will much more useful and important.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Web page
1. Typography 101
Available from:http://www.pointlessart.com/education/loyalist/typeTalk/garamond/history
[Accessed: 21st July, 2006]
2. Available from: http://toastetime.bokee.com/4902188.html
[Accessed: 24thJuly, 2006]
3. Availablefrom: http://www1.cei.gov.cn/serve/index/showdoc.asp?Color=Nine&blockcode=wnworld&filename=200306103017
[Accessed: 26th July, 2006]
4. Available from: http://www.qdsf.qdedu.net/grwzh/jihe/aiji2/home-9.html
[Accessed: 5th August, 2006]
5. Available from: http://nc.cgan.net/book/books/print/westword/content.htm
[Accessed: 11th August, 2006]
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August 30th, 2006 at 10:43 pm
An interesting paper on the development of Typography. It could be better if more examples are added to give reasons why typography was developed in this manner.
The paper tends to be a little sketchy on certain paragraphs without going deeper into any real specific objectives.
Nonetheless, a good first try!