OUGD601 - Practical - Type Research and Considerations

Digital type:

Vignelli is famous among designers for sticking to a handful of typefaces and disregarding new type which was produced later on, arguing in his Vignelli Canon that "the computer allowed anybody to design new typefaces and that became one of the biggest visual pollutions of all times". He believed that there are only six basic typefaces we should use for design and "trash the rest". These typefaces include:

- Garamond,
- Bodoni,
- Century Expanded,
- Futura,
- Times New Roman, and
- Helvetica.

The aim of publishing this book was to better inform young designers of typographic principles in the hope of improving their design skills, as he believed that "creativity needs the support of knowledge to be able to perform at it's best".

https://fontsinuse.com/uses/14164/massimo-vignelli-s-a-few-basic-typefaces

One idea based on Vignelli's beliefs on digital design is to use Helvetica as the main typeface, keeping the type rigid and not expressive. This could be paired with the use of a serif font from his list of six basic typefaces for the smaller bits of information within the poster, which could then also help present a hierarchy of information through the use of type rather than layout presented in initial idea sketches.

Or, select words of importance could be highlighted through the use of a different typeface?

Handmade type:

LETRASET: One idea for mimicking handmade, traditional methods of type is to reflect the style of letraset, which transfers type onto a chosen material. In the poster designs, to show clearly that the type is meant to reflect letraset, the type could be crumbled and deconstructed slightly. This would also present slight imperfections, which are sometimes present in handmade methods of design, something from research which was found to be liked about the process because it reflect how we are as human beings in that we all have our imperfections. This aesthetic could therefore potentially resonate with the viewer and create some form of personal experience between the viewer and the work.

LETTERPRESS: Another idea for this process was to look at the style of letterpressed type. Ex-Pentagram partner Michael Bierut suggests that "to understand how type got to be that way and use it well in that tradition, or to flout convention and release type from the form to develop it in new ways, the start point is an understanding of the process and history of letterpress", meaning that computer programs are based on this traditional method of setting type, using terms such as 'baseline' and 'leading'. It is also believed that the tactility of traditional printing methods is something which people are attracted to - relates to experience - the physical involvement with the process produces work with distinctive experiential qualities of weight, texture and smell.

The New Handmade Graphics: Beyond Digital Design, Anne Odling-Smee.

Could the use of this aesthetic then create an experience in itself if used within one of the poster designs? The type would also be more expressive than the other poster, creating part of the contrast wanted between the two posters, which also goes against Vignelli's belief that type should not be expressive.