Music Philosophy

First saw the work of this guy on the Urban Outfitters blog and I immediately had to find more! Designer Mico Tolendo uses music lyrics to create these great typographic posters, each usually having some sort of philosophical message! Makes you definitely think and appreciate song lyrics more when they are set out this way with their meaning emphasized. Here are some of my favourites...

http://www.musicphilosophy.co.uk

The Girl Effect

A simple, striking piece of film using just typography to portray a charity named The Girl Effect. The campaign is encouraging viewers to donate money to various schemes aimed specifically at girls in third world countries to help them create a better life for them, their families and their community.

Shows that you don't always have to show shocking images to produce a thought provoking piece of work. A really nice well designed and usable website goes alongside the campaign designed by Wieden+Kennedy. See it here: http://www.girleffect.org/

x

http://www.wk.com/

Essay Plan

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iQ Font

Have just found this interesting piece of typography back from July 2009 in an archive of Dirty Mouse. Really interesting way of creating typography, which also relates back to Monday's lecture on creating typography within a place- with driving instead of walking! Incredible planning must have gone into this, and some very skillful driving!

Here's the video of how they made it...

iQ font - When driving becomes writing / Full making of from wireless on Vimeo.

http://www.dirtymouse.co.uk/typography/iq-font-when-driving-becomes-writing/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/40243214@N05/3729527332/in/set-72157621047564023/

http://vimeo.com/5233789

Legibility

"What's the use of being legible when nothing inspires you to take notice of it?"

Wolfgang Weingart.

This blog explores the contrary side to my previous blog on neutrality. Wolfgang Weingart was one of the first pioneers of modern typography, breaking away from modernism and the Swiss grid system. He respected the good qualities within Swiss type, yet claimed it to restrict his "playful, inquisitive, experimental temperament". He writes that typography should not be "dry, tightly ordered of rigid", but should maintain "hidden structure and visual order".

However, it was the introduction of the Apple Mac in 1984 that was the catalyst for completely changing, breaking and redefining the rules of typography. Type got a lot more experimental, loose and messy, breaking away from the strict structure of the Swiss grid, and the restrictions of letterpress.

The new forms of typography being produced were brash, conceptual, ornamented and followed no rules or restrictions. David Carson destroyed all rules of legibility in his magazine Ray Gun. Similarly magazines such as Emigre and Fuse by Neville Brody all experimented with post- Apple Mac typography constructing new digital typefaces. Typography was taken to the edge of communication, and explored in ways it never had been before.

I think the introduction of the Apple Mac was undoubtably a massive benefit for the world of typography, and has effectively changed the way we communicate today. I am also in complete agreeance with Weingart's quote. I think the way in which type is designed and set, definitely has a huge impact on how we take notice of it and read it. I think for more bold, and direct messages this is even more important, possibly more than ordinary passages of text. I think it takes something within typography, whether it is an ornamental asset or if it's simply more interesting and striking for us look at, to make us take notice of the text, contrary to the everyday default "invisible" typefaces. I'm not saying that making a typeface illegible is the only way to inspire us to look at it, however I agree that legibility is not the simple, single answer to effective typography.

http://www.jameskurtz.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/weingart-headshot.jpg

http://www.mkgraphic.com/weingartdq.html

Love Letter Typography

Here is an interesting project I saw blogged about on It's Nice That.

A Love Letter For You is a project based in Philadelphia where 50 typographic love letters are painted on the walls facing the Market elevated train line. The murals were painted by 40 local and international artists. I really like the way the personality and tone of the love letters comes through from the choice of typography here. Each mural is quite individual and sends its own personal message. I think they definitely have quite a retro look to them as well, similar to old American billboards from the 50's and 60's. A nice creative project which would definitely brighten up the train ride to work!

www.aloveletterforyou.com

www.muralarts.org

Neutrality

This poster, designed by Craig Ward, perfectly sums up this lecture topic. Following on from my previous blog on Modernism, we have been looking at the issue of neutrality in typography. Modernism is all about form following function. The function of typography is to be read, therefore nothing in the form of the typography should detract from this.

The typographer Beatrice Warde had very strong opinions on this subject. In her essay "The Crystal Goblet" she writes that typography needs to be transparent or invisible, with all of the focus on the message of the writing. She believed that typography should be unnoticed, and must be looked through, not at. She was strictly against frills and unnecessary detail or decoration. She wrote: "There is nothing simple or dull in achieving the transparent page. Vulgar ostentation is twice as easy as discipline." She also wrote that these are things that typographers need to respect and adhere to in their role.

Josef Muller-Brockmann thought that maths was the solution to systematic and rational typography. He believed that grid systems were the answer to ordering typography for three particular reasons:

Economical - problems can be solved in less time and for less money when using the grid.

Rational - simple and complex problems can be solved in a uniform and characteristic style.

Mental attitude - if typography is presented systematically and clearly, it exudes our social responsibility and will contribute to the cultural state of society.

He believed that good design and typography had an extremely high purpose and potentially a huge impact on society. He said "the desire to bring order to the bewildering confusion of appearances reflects a deep human need".

The most famous typeface to portray neutrality, and which is probably the most invisible in our culture is of course Helvetica. This is a typeface that we see everywhere in our day to day lives, and are likely to not even notice anymore.

I think that neutrality is important in typography in certain instances. For example, Helvetica is used a lot on signage, where I think it would be inappropriate to use anything else but a neutral, plain typeface, which does not distract. Similarly with books or certain important and information based texts, I have to agree with Beatrice Warde, in the way that the typeface in which the writing is set should not be noticed as you are reading it, and that the message must be the thing that you are focussing on.

I don't always agree with neutral or invisible typefaces however. Helvetica is used for the brand logo on several companies. I am not sure I agree that this is the most effective typeface for communicating a brand as it is so neutral and something we are so used to seeing. I don't think it could well communicate the personality and traits of a brand, or particularly differentiate it from any other one that uses Helvetica. I also think that there is a time and a place for decorative typography. Typography for me can be functional, or it can be used as an art form and I think that there are different sets of rules for both, depending on their particular purpose or function.

http://gmunch.home.pipeline.com/typo-L/misc/ward.htm

http://www.wordsarepictures.co.uk/