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Books > Arts & Architecture > Industrial / commercial art & design > Typography
A generously illustrated examination of the enduring influence of
and many variations on the classical Roman capital letter. The
fiftieth anniversary of Helvetica, the most famous of all sans
serif typefaces, was celebrated with an excitement unusual in the
staid world of typography and culminated in the release of the
first movie ever made starring a typeface. Yet Helvetica's
fifty-year milestone pales in comparison with the two thousandth
anniversary in 2014 of Trajan's Column and its famous
inscription-the preeminent illustration of the classical Roman
capital letter. For, despite the modern ascendance of the sans
serif, serif typefaces, most notably Times Roman, still dominate
printed matter and retain a strong presence in screen-based
communication. The Eternal Letter is a lavishly illustrated
examination of the enduring influence of, and many variations on,
the classical Roman capital letter. The Eternal Letter offers a
series of essays by some of the most highly regarded practitioners
in the fields of typography, lettering, and stone carving. They
discuss the subtleties of the classical Roman capital letter
itself, different iterations of it over the years, and the work of
famous typographers and craftsmen. The essays cover such topics as
efforts to calculate a geometric formulation of the Trajan letters;
the recalculation of their proportions by early typefounders; the
development and astonishing popularity of Adobe Trajan; type and
letter designs by Father Edward M. Catich, Frederic W. Goudy, Eric
Gill, Jan van Krimpen, Hermann Zapf, Matthew Carter, and others;
the influence of Trajan in Russia; and three generations of
lettercarvers at the John Stevens Shop in Newport, Rhode Island.
Essays about modern typefaces-including Matinia, Senatus, and
Penumbra-are contributed by the designers of these typefaces.
Contributors John and Nicholas Benson, Frank E. Blokland, Matthew
Carter, Ewan Clayton, Lance Hidy, Jost Hochuli, Jonathan Hoefler,
Richard Kindersley, Scott-Martin Kosofsky, Gerry Leonidas, Martin
Majoor, Steve Matteson, Gregory MacNaughton, James Mosley, Tom
Perkins, Yves Peters, Ryan L. Roth, Werner Schneider, Paul Shaw,
Julian Waters, Maxim Zhukov
The 1920s in Germany witnessed a revolution in visual
communication, typography, and graphic design that still influences
us today. In 1929, Hungarian avant-garde artist and Bauhaus
professor Laszlo Moholy-Nagy was invited to design a room dedicated
to the future of typography at the Martin-Gropius Bau in Berlin as
part of a larger exhibition called New Typography ("Neue
Typographie"). The exhibition was organised by the Ring of New
Advertising Designers ("ring neue werbegestalter"), a group started
by Kurt Schwitters in 1927 which consisted of 12 avant-garde
designers and artists who explored a common vision of modernity in
advertising and graphic design. In five years, the Ring put on over
20 shows in Germany, and invited guest artists to exhibit with
them. Moholy-Nagy's room in the New Typography show was called
"Where is Typography Headed?". He created 78 freestanding panels
with work by himself, other artists, and contemporary printed
matter, which addressed the current trends and future direction of
typography. The panels are reproduced together in this book for the
first time, along with an Abcdarium of terms and concepts by a
roster of noted typography and design historians.
New in paperback, "The Typography Workbook" provides an at-a-glance
reference book for designers on all aspects of type.
The book is part of Rockport's popular Workbook series of
practical and inspirational workbooks that cover all the
fundamental areas of the graphic design business. This book
presents an abundance of information on type - the cornerstone of
graphic design - succinctly and to the point, so that designers can
get the information they need quickly and easily.
Whereas many other books on type are either very technical or
showcase oriented, this book offers ideas and inspiration through
hundreds of real-life projects showing successful, well-crafted
usage of type. The book also offers a variety of other content,
including choosing fonts, sizes, and colors; incorporating text and
illustrations; avoiding common mistakes in text usage; and teaching
rules by which to live (and work) by.
For generations, children’s books provided American readers with
their first impressions of Japan. Seemingly authoritative, and full
of fascinating details about daily life in a distant land, these
publications often presented a mixture of facts, stereotypes, and
complete fabrications.  This volume takes readers on
a journey through nearly 200 years of American children’s books
depicting Japanese culture, starting with the illustrated journal
of a boy who accompanied Commodore Matthew Perry on his historic
voyage in the 1850s. Along the way, it traces the important role
that representations of Japan played in the evolution of
children’s literature, including the early works of Edward
Stratemeyer, who went on to create such iconic characters as Nancy
Drew. It also considers how American children’s books about Japan
have gradually become more realistic with more Japanese-American
authors entering the field, and with texts grappling with such
serious subjects as internment camps and the bombing of Hiroshima
and Nagasaki.  Drawing from the Library of Congress’s
massive collection, Sybille A. Jagusch presents long passages from
many different types of Japanese-themed children’s books and
periodicals—including travelogues, histories, rare picture books,
folktale collections, and boys’ adventure stories—to give
readers a fascinating look at these striking texts. Published by
Rutgers University Press, in association with the Library of
Congress.
Encompassing a wide range of calligraphy in many languages and
hands, or styles, this book presents a visual treasury of works by
100 contemporary scribes, all of whom were either born in New York
or studied or worked in the city. From English and its related
Romance languages to a wide range of Asian and Middle Eastern
alphabets and nonalphabetic characters, the more than 550 examples
of beautiful writing create a rich visual smorgasbord. Traditional
uses of hand-lettered calligraphy are shown, including event
invitations and envelopes, certificates and awards, and quotes and
sayings framed as artwork. The examples also include contemporary
applications and nontraditional forms such as graffiti and
experimental calligraphy that is not formed from readable
characters. All are hand-wrought and human-made, using pointed or
broad-edged pens, whether quill or steel, or a brush or other
simple tool.
In 1948, the noted book designer and Purdue alumnus Bruce Rogers
wrote a book that documented and illustrated his creation of the
Centaur typeface. The book was privately printed by Rogers himself
under the name of his studio, October House. This limited edition
of the book was transferred to the Purdue Libraries at the time of
his death along with his other papers and books. Over the years the
remaining stock has found its home in the Special Collections of
the Libraries. And although known as something of a collector's
item by those who are aware of the few copies in circulation, it is
here available to the general market for the first time. Centaur
Types is a fascinating book for several reasons: in the designer's
own words, we learn of the evolution of the typeface and of his
interest in the art and craft of creating type; it demonstrates
different and comparable typefaces, and gives examples of Centaur
from six to seventy-two point; and lastly, it stands as a fitting
example of fine book-making from one of the master book designers
of his time.
Type is the bridge between writer and reader, between thought and
understanding. Type is the message bearer: an art-form that
impinges upon every literate being and yet for most of its history
it has conformed to the old adage that 'good typography should be
invisible', it should not distract with its own personality. It was
only at the end of the nineteenth century that designers slowly
realised that they could say as much with their lettering as
writers could with their words. Form, of course, carries as much
meaning as content. Now, anyone within reach of a computer and its
limitless database of fonts has the same power. "Type: The Secret
History of Letters" tells its story for the first time, treating
typography as a hidden measure of our history. From the tempestuous
debate about its beginnings in the fifteenth century, to the
invention of our most contemporary lettering, Simon Loxley, with
the skill of a novelist, tells of the people and events behind our
letters. How did Johann Gutenberg, in late 1438, come to think of
printing? Does Baskerville have anything to do with Sherlock
Holmes? Why did the Nazis re-invent Blackletter? What is a Zapf?
"Type" is a guide through the history of our letters and a study of
their power. From fashion through propaganda and the development of
mass literacy, Loxley shows how typography has changed our world.
Ornate, decorative letters (formed with long tails and flourishes) will add panache and style to ads, posters, signs, menus-almost any print project. Fonts include El Greco, Raffia Initials, Cantini Casual, Mardi Gras Regular, Italian Slab Fancy, dozens more.
"Typologia" presents more or less graphically Frederic Goudy's work
in type design and describes his own methods of type production.
His remarks on type legibility and fine printing, as presented in
the body of the book, present the conclusions of a craftsman
intensely interested in every phase of typography.
The book itself, which Goudy was asked by the University of
California Press to write, plan, and supervise, has been set in a
type designed by Goudy and and first employed for the exclusive use
of the University-University of California Old Style.
The Art of Type and Typography is an introduction to the art and
rules of typography. Incorporating the industry
standard-InDesign-for typesetting from the outset, this book serves
as a guide for beginning students to learn to set type properly
through tutorials, activities, and examples of student work.
Encompassing the history of typography from ancient times to
widespread modern use, The Art of Type and Typography provides
context and fosters creativity while developing key concepts,
including: The history of type; Terminology; Classification;
Measurement; Spacing; Alignment; Legibility; Hierarchy; Layout and
Grids; Page Elements; InDesign tools and style sheets. Writing
clearly and to the point, Mary Jo Krysinski brings over 30 years of
design experience to this essential guide. With a glossary, sample
class activities, additional online resources and a beautiful clean
design, this book is the perfect introduction for a beginning
typography student, and a handy reference for those needing a
refresher.
A history of the influence of communication technologies on Western
architectural theory. The discipline of architecture depends on the
transmission in space and time of accumulated experiences,
concepts, rules, and models. From the invention of the alphabet to
the development of ASCII code for electronic communication, the
process of recording and transmitting this body of knowledge has
reflected the dominant information technologies of each period. In
this book Mario Carpo discusses the communications media used by
Western architects, from classical antiquity to modern classicism,
showing how each medium related to specific forms of architectural
thinking. Carpo highlights the significance of the invention of
movable type and mechanically reproduced images. He argues that
Renaissance architectural theory, particularly the system of the
five architectural orders, was consciously developed in response to
the formats and potential of the new printed media. Carpo contrasts
architecture in the age of printing with what preceded it:
Vitruvian theory and the manuscript format, oral transmission in
the Middle Ages, and the fifteenth-century transition from script
to print. He also suggests that the basic principles of
"typographic" architecture thrived in the Western world as long as
print remained our main information technology. The shift from
printed to digital representations, he points out, will again alter
the course of architecture.
Nja Mahdaoui is a visual artist who considers himself "an explorer
of signs" and has been described as a "choreographer of letters".
His work inspired by Arabic calligraphy is remarkably innovative as
the aesthetic dimension of letters brings forth a strong sense of
the poetic. These works arrest us with their astounding ryhthm and
rich abstract composition, actually devoid of any textual meaning.
Famous for his meticulous use of ink on parchment, Mahdaoui
stresses the visual impact of his works, which he refers to as
"calligrams" or "graphemes". Born in 1937 in Tunis, Nja Mahdaoui
lives and works in Tunisia. In 1967, he graduated from the Ecole du
Louvre (Department of Oriental Antiquities). He pursued his
academic training in Paris, at the Cite internationale des arts, on
a scholarship from the Tunisian Government. His works have been
widely shown around the world in GCC, Asia, America, Africa and
Europe.
Transforming Type examines kinetic or moving type in a range of
fields including film credits, television idents, interactive
poetry and motion graphics. As the screen increasingly imitates the
properties of real-life environments, typographic sequences are
able to present letters that are active and reactive. These
environments invite new discussions about the difference between
motion and change, global and local transformation, and the
relationship between word and image. In this illuminating study,
Barbara Brownie explores the ways in which letterforms transform on
screen, and the consequences of such transformations. Drawing on
examples including Kyle Cooper's title sequence design, kinetic
poetry and MPC's idents for the UK's Channel 4, she differentiates
motion from other kinds of kineticism, with particular emphasis on
the transformation of letterforms into other forms and objects,
through construction, parallax and metamorphosis. She proposes that
each of these kinetic behaviours requires us to revisit existing
assumptions about the nature of alphabetic forms and the spaces in
which they are found.
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