Friday, March 22, 2013
Kyle S Song Upload
Hi everyone, here's the digital form of my spiderweb. I put another youtube link to the song underneath for maximum juxtaposition!
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Type Designer - Manning
Due to my love of almost any Bauhaus style design, I chose to write about a Bauhaus artist, Herbert Bayer. Bayer technically only designed one typeface throughout his career, but he was also a huge influence in the United States on other artists and type designers, as well as on the world of graphic design and typography at large.
With the Bauhaus School of Design in Weimar, Germany marking a new era of art and design, Herbert Bayer, as one of the school's primary directors, drastically influenced and impacted modern standards of design principles through his successful exploration of imaginative artistic forms and practices, of which the interplay of primary and secondary colors, contrast, basic geometric forms, and photography were key.
Herbert Bayer was born in Haag, Austria on the April 5th, 1900. Early on his life, Bayer took to the world of design. He studied at age nineteen in the office of the architect and designer Georg Schmidthammer in the city of Linz. By the age of twenty-one, Bayer was employed as the assistant to the architect Josef Emmanuel Margol in the artists' colony in Darmstadt, Germany (Strasser, 41). This extensive exposure to the field of architecture enabled a thorough and holistic understanding and appreciation for the basic fundamental forms of design, in which color, geometry, and materials all warrant discussion.
By the year 1921, Bayer had started his studies at the Bauhaus School of Design in Weimar, Germany. The Bauhaus was founded by the German architect, Walter Gropius, in 1919, running until its forced close by the Third Reich in 1933. The literal definition of Bauhaus is “house of construction,” but was known commonly as the “School of Building” (Dickerman, 15). This German arts school was established in the Weimar Republic as an interdisciplinary institution of sorts – one that brought a new identity to modern production of arts, crafts, and furniture. As Leah Dickerman writes, “the Bauhaus brought together artists, architects, and designers in a kind of cultural think tank for the times” (Dickerman, 15). This multifunctional school and space employed a “teaching as experience” methodological approach to education, in which the classroom experience doubled as an exploratory and experimental space for art and design. Gropius strategically placed “workshops” at the center of its curriculum in his April 1919 manifesto, allowing for a multi-pedagogical and progressive educational platform (Dickerman, 15).
Bayer's Bauhaus career was launched as a student, where he took a preliminary course run by Johannes Itten, the visual artist known for his methods of color theory and basic principles of geometry. Itten, as he appreciated the “simple,” employed artistic approaches that made use of basic geometric forms such as the circle, square, and triangle, as well as primary colors (Strasser, 23). Undoubtedly, as revealed by Bayer's later works, this interplay of color and form was of great influence to the young artist. Using his former exposure to architecture, Bayer would begin experimenting with how Bauhaus teachings of form, color, and materials related to the constructed environment around them.
In March of 1922, Herbert Bayer entered the wall-painting workshop, where he would remain active through 1925 (Strasser, 43). Although he had succeeded as a student in other regards, it was here that Bayer would make a name for himself. Ironically, this workshop served initially as an expedient for him, as there were not yet workshops offered in his initial interests, printing or typography (Strasser, 23). Fortunately for Bayer, this workshop would open up a promising future of design.
The workshop was originally facilitated by Oskar Schlemmer, but in 1922, Wassily Kandinsky, the famous German-Expressionist painter from Russia, replaced him. Kandinsky, largely concerned with the “various powers possessed by color,” wanted to include a wide-range of theoretical and practical tasks in his workshops (Strasser, 41). Apart from the chemical and physical qualities of color, Kandinsky was also interested in the psychological qualities, in the way color can alter a form, and create a new form our of another (Strasser, 41). Kandinsky developed a questionnaire for his studentsin which red, yellow, and blue were to be assigned to a triangle, a square or a circle – one color per shape (Strasser, 41). What stemmed from this exercise, when applied practically upon stairwell walls, was Bayer's realization of a theory of color, which would inform all his future work, and largely shape his influence.
As Strasser writes, “It was Herbert Bayer who made a direct translation of such experiments and research into the relationship of color and form” (Strasser, 41). In the summer of 1923, there was a great Bauhaus Exhibition. In preparation, many of Bayer's peers dedicated themselves to the vestibule and the main stairwell, Bayer took on the task of painting the landing of the side stairwell (Strasser, 41). What would result was the principal performer of the stairwell pieces at the exhibit, which puts into practice Kandinsky's analyses of color and form as large-format wall paintings. This large and abstract configuration of geometric basic forms in primary colors illustrated Kandinsky's ideas of exemplary fashion, but more so set a new standard for the way in which the intersection of form and color can be practically applied – particularly as it guides architecture and gives movement to designed spaces.
Although the work of Bayer would be destroyed by the Thuringian National Socialist government in 1930, remains were found in 1970, later fully reconstructed by Werner Claus in 1975 and 1976 (Strasser, 41). Today this represents one of the most succinct realizations of Kandinsky's teaching on color and form, as well as the start of Bayer's successful and highly influential career. By 1925, Bayer was himself appointed as the director of the newly set-up department of printing and advertising. After the Bauhaus' close, he would continue freelance work in graphics in Germany, after which several migrations around the United States brought continued recognition (Strasser, 41). Today, Bayer is marked as a “master” of form and color.
He went on to design the "Universal," also known as "Bayer PS (Post Script)" in his later career, inspired by the Bauhaus style (as evident by the "Bauhaus" typeface), but employing its own unique style. The interesting thing about Universal as a typeface is that it only has a few capital letters. Bayer was a fan of all lowercase typefaces, and he believed they were the necessary way of the future for the world of design. He practiced this ideology in the implementation of his typographic design.
Universal, by Herbert Bayer
Sources used:
Bergdoll, Barry, and Leah Dickerman. Bauhaus 1919-1933: Workshops for Modernity.
New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2009.
Strasser, Josef. 50 Bauhaus Icons You Should Know. Munich: Prestel, 2009.
Cait Stone: Artists Essay
Alex Trochut is a commercial type designer who creates
beautifully complicated images with type for clients such as: British Airways,
Absolute, and Coca-Cola. Born in Barcelona in 1981 Trochut studies graphic
design s Elisave University before beginning his freelance career in 2007. Trochut seems to take the anti-minimalist
approach in regards to his work creating complex images with color and type. It
is clearly evident when viewing his work that this is an artist that is ever
evolving to new styles while determining his unique attributes.
Though not all of his work used type as a focal point, those
that do are stunningly complex yet simply. I particularly enjoy his work with
musical artists from Vampire Weekend to Wiz Khalifa where he designs the
typeface for the promotional materials. Trochut uses delicate script and for
Vampire Weekend he uses stylized images he has created to form the font.
Another very interesting image he creates was for the Audi Billboard Campaign.
With this image Alex created a script font that resembles a road. This image is
very clean and effective in not only demonstrating the nature of the brand but
creating a stunning image. As a public relations professional I tend to skew
towards commercial rather than studio artists.
Some themes that Trochut that are evident when one looks as
all of his work as a whole is the contrast between modern and old. This is
clearly evident when you compare his work with Wiz or Audi with its clean
lettering with his work with The Decemberists and Vampire Weekend’s bubbly hand
drawn images. I very much enjoy all of his work due to its breath of topics and
styles.
Garcia- Type Designer
For this type designer entry I
decided to take a look at Max Miedinger. Miedinger is a Swiss typeface
designer. He is most famous for creating one my favorite typefaces, Helvetica. This
was originally known as Neus Haas Grotesk. Miedinger trained as an apprentice typesetter in
a book printing office. At the age of
26, he became a Typographer in the advertising studio of the Globus department
store chain. In 1956 he became a freelance Graphic Artist in Zurich. In 1957 he created Neue Haas Grotesk. He was
commissioned by Edouard Hoffman, a director of the Hass Type Foundry to develop
a new serif typeface. Miedinger is also known for designing: Pro Arte,
Horizontal, Swiss 921, Swiss 721, Monospace 821 and Miedinger. Max Miedinger
passed away in 1980.
The
reason I chose this type designer is because his design for Neus Haas Grotesk,
now known as Helvetica. This typeface is known for its clean neutral and
legible design. It’s now used in corporate logos, advertising, print and public
signs. Companies that use Helvetica for their corporate logo include:
Crate&Barrel, BMW, Jeep, America Airlines, Toyota, and Evian water. Many
famous designers use it as a main choice, such as Massimo Vignelli. There is
even an entire film named after it. I believe that Miedinger’s type design was
crucial in the progression in typeface design, more specifically for modernist design.
Parenti - music final
I went with this as if Umphrey's McGee released this song as a single. Treat this as the cover for that single; if you were to look at it from your iPod or iPhone, or looking at it from far away, you would (hopefully) just see it as the stage lights. Looking at it up close, you are able to see the type.
I don't want to talk about it.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Type Designer Entry - Fernando Pena
Herb Lubalin
Herb Lubalin was an interesting character when it came to graphic design. His typeface Avant Garde is just as interesting as well. Beginning as no more than a a simple logo for the publication having the same name, Avant Garde was made into a typeface with the help of Herb himself and a partner in his design firm by the name of Tom Carnase. For the time it was quite the sight to see with its letter forms and tight-fitting combinations that aided in creating the interesting look that was achieved for the logo of the magazine publications. After its publishing the font became quite popular, so popular in fact that many used it for creative purposes. While it might have been great for them Herb wasn't happy with how Avant Garde was being abused as a typeface, for Herb it wasn't just a typeface but a kind of lifestyle that one had to be engrossed in to fully understand just how certain letters went together in order to get the full effect of the typeface. This abuse went on so long that an art director at the New York Times claimed that in everyone else's hands the typeface was flawed for they didn't truly understand how to use it, it was only within the hands of Herb that the font flourished and sprouted with character.
For me Herb is did something with typography that many strive to do. He was able to create not only a wonderfully designed typeface, but a typeface that had character and style, a typeface that could be recycled in several ways, a typeface that offered new creations at various turns, a typeface that stood out, and a typeface that still speaks the name of its creator Herb Lubalin. Designers continue to struggle with utilizing the font properly today and only one can truly tell a designer whether or not they are utilizing it correctly. The font's purpose is difficult to master and continues to call those with Herb's skill and creativity to the challenge of creating logos or headings with the right tight combinations necessary to show off the modern beauty of the typeface itself. No doubt Herb is one of my favorite type designer's for he left behind something that designers can utilize and that still call them to speak of him because of it.
Type Designer
Adrian Frutiger is a type designer from Switzerland. His
career started at the young age of sixteen, working as a printer’s apprentice. Here
he also learned woodcutting, engraving, and calligraphy. After studying at the
Zurich school of Arts and Crafts, he was recruited by Charles Peignot to create typefaces for a new
phototypesetting process. He was also requested to design a font family with
different weights. It was at this time in his career where he started creating
the typeface, Univers. The descriptions he used for each twenty-one variations was
revolutionary for that time. Frutiger also started the trend of a higher x-height
with the typeface Univers. It was a change that was not seen during that
period. Throughout his career he has worked with many different
forms of creating type including, hot metal, phototype setting, and digital
typesetting. Frutiger is a designer known for influencing digital typography.
Music Poster Final Submission-Veronica Perez
I was having problems turning the tears and water from a weird purple, to blue, so here is my actual final project.
Chapter Review Posts 1-7
Chapter 1
This chapter goes through the different textual designs of
types through the ages beginning in Egypt. It gives four distinct timelines of
text evolution and the different types of styles they are. It also covers the
radical approaches to text design as well as using text as a design it and of
itself. The different forms of text go across a wide range of styles and have
their own personal traits. They fall into two general categories; serif and
sans serif.
Chapter 2
This chapter deconstructs the anatomy of typography. It goes
over the various parts of letterforms as well as explains how each of these
parts contributes to the text as a whole.
It also describes certain discrepancies that can go along with trying to
explain and justify the different parts. It continues on to give examples of
various type faces and some of their history. The chapter ends with the explanation
of how to measure metal type and measuring the spatial intervals.
Chapter 3
It goes over the syntax element of typographic design. How
artist use space along with the text in order to convey a visual message that
aptly described the content. The form of the text and the relationships between
the word and the typeface. Designers use these relationships to form inter letter
relationships with the words across the page, engaging in space. The type on
the page can be defined by the lines, grids, columns, margins, and geometric configurations,
which can include the use of negative and positive space as well as visual arrangement.
Chapter 4
Legibility in typography is important due to the fact that
if the viewer can’t read it, the design or the text isn’t conveying the message
clearly. It goes through how to distinguish letters and use those qualities in
appropriate design structure. Type size, interline spacing, stroke weight and
line length are just a few factors one needs to consider when designing with
type. The type must fit the design and vice versa to have a natural aesthetic
in the over all image. Color is also important as it can change the feel of a
type drastically as opposed to it being only in black and white. The
manipulation of design is also growing more and more popular due to the
evolution in technology and designing by computer.
Chapter 5
The grid can be one of the most helpful tools in laying down
text in space or even creating it. Using a graph we are able to utilize the
space needed to convey the designer’s meassage clearly so that everything on
the page fits. With grids we can create page layouts for books, articles, pamphlets,
etc. And we can keep the text and the
images used in a more structured straightforward way.
Chapter
6
Text
is virtually everywhere. The design is street signs and logos and the
like. The visual concept of the image is
important because it has to say what the text alone cant. Such devices as
stroke weight, position play, visibility, and the use of a picture to replace
text are just a few devices used when designing in order to say a specific
message.
Chapter 7
This chapter talks about the growth of typography from hand
to computer. The machines used to create and make each specific letterform are the linotype, monotype, and Ludlow.
There is also phototypesetting, and keyboard phototypesetters. From these
machines designer started scanning their images of text to then using various
forms of software in order to manipulate the type. These kinds of designs and
techniques are now used widely and offer an ease of the mind in creating a
piece. But at the same time it lacks certain challenges that artists before
them had to endure which was what made their design so interesting and
sometimes ingenious.
Cotton-7 Deadly Sins Exhibition
For my blog
post I will be writing about the 7 Deadly Sins exhibition that was held at the
CDM critique space in late February. At first entering the room it was clear
that were a lot of diverse styles and approaches to the project. Some were very
literal in spelling out which each sin was like the Kill Bill series and other
had to be implied like the Dr. Suess spin off designs of his most famous works.
Not that one design was more creative than the other; it was just different
ways to present the idea of each sin. There was also a series of Gameboy colors
each with Pokémon displayed on the screen, with each Pokémon being a different
sin. The use of type in all these compositions was also very interesting. Some used
the type in a very plain and open fashion because they wanted the forms to be
seen, the viewer could make out each and every letter that made up a form, like
in the Gameboy Pokémon designs. On the complete opposite side of the spectrum
were the designs like the Kill Bill series that hid the letter forms and had
type so tightly placed and overlapped that the type stop being type and started
to look more like a texture, with multiple color fills and intersecting
sections. Another very interesting piece within the show were the giant candy
skulls. Comprised entirely of type they were a happy in between of the
recognizable forms and well-created textures of overlapping text. The skulls
were well composed and highly detailed using the sin within the design to
convey which sin it was as well as changing the skulls facial expression for
each one. Each one was unique and could stand alone on its own, but was even
better when held together in a series centered around sin. My favorite would
have to be the Kill Bill series. Not only because it was a Tarantino film and
he is the man, but because of the way they were made. I could tell the amount
of time and effort that went into each one in order for the series to move
smoothly and work together as a whole.
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