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​TYPOGRAPHY

Type is Everywhere

Every typeface you see has been painstakingly designed to have its own personality or voice. Where did all these typefaces come from and why? 

​Typography is the fundamental graphic or visual part of the written word. Letterforms are works of art. They are not only gorgeous they also functional, forming words, sentences, and convey thoughts and meaning allowing us to communicate with one another. Type is part of our history and plays a vital role in our society. 

Type creates a critical first impression about the content. It allows them to enter your message even before they read one word. Type can connect your audience to your message by tapping into their core, emotional feelings. When type is done well it can immediately create a positive impression at a glance.

Read Beatrice Warde's essay from 1030 about type: The Crystal Goblet, or Printing Should Be Invisible. She references that a goblet is clear to allow its contents to be seen, not the goblet itself. Just as typesetting allows the content to be easily understood without becoming the focus. Letterforms should be clear to allow the viewer to see the shapes of the letters with zero effort.
Beatrice Warde-The Crystal Goblet [PDF]
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Evolution & History of Type

Type evolves, it is influenced by technological advances and culture (political, social, academic, artistic, etc):
  • Evolved from one-of-a-kind handwritten scripts (pre-1400) to printed technologies - this changed the nature of written communication so much that the term "typography" was coined to describe it.
  • Current digital typographic innovations continue to push the boundaries of type use in design.
  • Typographic quality is based on reproducibility.
Discover more about the History of Typeface.

Basics of Type

Character
  • Anatomy of Type
    • Apeture
    • Arm
    • Ascender
    • Baseline
    • Bowl
    • Counter
    • Crossbar
    • Descender
    • Diagonal Stroke
    • Ear
    • Finial
    • Hairline
    • Ligature
    • Link
    • Loop
    • Serif
    • Shoulder
    • Small Caps
    • Spine
    • Spur
    • Stem
    • Tail
    • Terminal
    • Uppercase
    • x-Height
  • Size / Typographic Measurements
  • Classification
  • Families
  • Designing Typefaces
  • Fonts
  • Value
Paragraph
  • Kerning
  • Tracking
  • Line Spacing
  • Alignment
  • Vertical Alignment
  • Hierarchy
  • Spacing, Copyfitting
  • Designing with Type
Legibility vs. Readability
Layout
Form and Content
Gestalt
  • Figure-Ground
  • Proximity
  • Closure

​Hierarhy
  • Emphasis
  • Reading Gravity (US - left to right)

Typographic Devices / Page Elements
  • Headlines
  • Subheads
  • Block Quotes
  • Pull Quotes
  • Headers
  • Tables
  • Captions
  • Callouts
  • Folios
  • Lists
  • Footers
  • Spread
Types of Grids
  • Golden Section
  • Manuscript Grid
  • Column Grid
  • Modular Grid
  • Baseline Grid
  • Hierarchical Grid
  • Non-Traditional / Alternative Grids

Grid Elements
  • Margin
  • Column
  • Row
  • Gutter


Discover More
  • Adobe Typographic Terms List [PDF] ​
  • Adobe Typography Primer
  • An Illustrated Glossary of Typographic Terms on Canva Learn

Common Misunderstandings

Writing, Lettering, or Type
Font vs. Typeface

Discover

Artists
  • Christopher Wool
  • Marian Bantjes
  • Paul Rand - Type Talk Interview
  • Stefan Sagmeister, Happiness by Design Ted Talk
Articles
  • 7 Influential Women Type Designers | iFactory
  • Incredible Histories of Your Favorite Fonts | HuffPost​
Books
  • Arabesque: Graphic Design from the Arab World and Persia by Ben Wittner |  Amazon
  • Exploring Typography
  • Lettering & Type
  • The Elements of Typographic Style by Robert Bringhurst | Amazon​
  • Thinking with Type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writer, Editors, & Students by Ellen Lupton available | Amazon
  • Why Fonts Matter
Typography Websites
  • Fonts.com
  • Fonts in Use
  • Lettering & Type
  • Thinking with Type
  • Totally Type
  • typeanatomy.com
  • Typedia

Type Foundaries
  • Adobe Fonts
  • ​Hoelfer&Co
  • P22 Type Foundary
Games
  • Kern Me | Kern Type, a kerning game
  • Visit Mashable's article - 18 Insanely Addictive Font Games ​

Type can be a matter of life or death.

Highway Signage
Prescription Bottles
​Deborah Adler - Clear Rx Medication System
Chris Matusek | Copyright © 2022
  • Home
  • Design Topics
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      • History of Type
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      • Design Topics
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    • Tutorials
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