http://www.jimloy.com/geometry/pentagon.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/27890/applications6.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modulor
http://www.geocities.com/robinhuiscool/constructingasquare.html
http://www.anselm.edu/homepage/dbanach/pyth4.htm
Friday, September 28, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Le Corbusier- Professional Practice
"Le Corbusier's essay on colour was part of his attempt to return it to architecture after it had been purged by a reaction against 'bourgeois taste' in the '20s (in which he was himself greatly involved). He wanted to find (or at least offer because, for once, he does admit to subjectivity) a system of standard architectural colours which were 'blue, in 3 or 4 values; red or pink; pale or dark green; yellow of ochres or of the earth', and of course white.(4) These, he said, could be found as the colours of buildings in all civilizations and folklore and, indeed, they are very similar to the colours for which Vitruvius gives elaborate recipes.(5) This is not entirely surprising, as Le Corbusier selected his tints from ranges commonly available from colourmen who had been making their pigments in roughly the same way since the times of the ancients. As Arthur Ruegg points out in his introduction to Le Corbusier's essay, the technology of colours changed radically after the Second World War, and 'the relationship with the "natural" pigments once used everywhere was thus lost; a multitude of different color cards took their place'.(6) Perhaps the very wideness of choice is one reason for our contemporary fear of colour.
In the pre-War period, Le Corbusier used colour to emphasize the nature of walls as planes emphasizing, or sometimes subverting,(7) the spatial and formal qualities of space and form. For instance, he believed (with countless others before and since) that colour modifies our appreciation of space: that 'Blue and its green combinations creates space ... distances the wall ... removes its quality of solidity ... Red (and its brown, orange etc ... combinations) fixes the wall, affirms its exact position, its presence'.(8) Further, colours have psychological and even physiological effects: 'to blue are attached subjective sensations, of softness, calm, of waterlandscape, sea or sky. To red are attached sensations of force, of violence. Blue acts on the body as a calmative, red as a stimulant.'(9)
After the War, Le Corbusier altered his approach to colour, retaining his previous architectural palette but adding to it and making colour symbolic and didactic: using it to describe for instance the traces regulateurs of the elevation of the pilgrimage house at Ronchamp.(10) This was a return to an attitude common among the non-whiteists of the early '20s, for instance de Still and the Berlin School in which Bruno Taut believed that it was a social duty of the architect to offer the inhabitants of social housing schemes 'an identification with their relatively modest living environment through the use of colour'.(11)
Colour as enhancer and modifier of space and form, colour as symbol, colour as generator of mood: it is again time to struggle to understand the wonderful complexities of colour. Our perceptions being an extraordinary combination of the Newtonian optics and the physiological and psychological perceptions investigated by Goethe and Le Corbusier, colour is elusive, not subjectable to any kind of rational system in its application. But as Fernand Leger emphasized, 'Man has need of colour for life: it is as necessary as water and fire'.(12) P. D."
12 'L'homme a besoin de couleurs pour vivre, c'est un element aussi necessaire que l'eau et la feu'. Quoted by Le Corbusier up cit, p. 140. My translation. P.D.
From: The Architectural Review | Date: 11/1/1998 | Author: Davey, Peter
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-53449403.html
In the pre-War period, Le Corbusier used colour to emphasize the nature of walls as planes emphasizing, or sometimes subverting,(7) the spatial and formal qualities of space and form. For instance, he believed (with countless others before and since) that colour modifies our appreciation of space: that 'Blue and its green combinations creates space ... distances the wall ... removes its quality of solidity ... Red (and its brown, orange etc ... combinations) fixes the wall, affirms its exact position, its presence'.(8) Further, colours have psychological and even physiological effects: 'to blue are attached subjective sensations, of softness, calm, of waterlandscape, sea or sky. To red are attached sensations of force, of violence. Blue acts on the body as a calmative, red as a stimulant.'(9)
After the War, Le Corbusier altered his approach to colour, retaining his previous architectural palette but adding to it and making colour symbolic and didactic: using it to describe for instance the traces regulateurs of the elevation of the pilgrimage house at Ronchamp.(10) This was a return to an attitude common among the non-whiteists of the early '20s, for instance de Still and the Berlin School in which Bruno Taut believed that it was a social duty of the architect to offer the inhabitants of social housing schemes 'an identification with their relatively modest living environment through the use of colour'.(11)
Colour as enhancer and modifier of space and form, colour as symbol, colour as generator of mood: it is again time to struggle to understand the wonderful complexities of colour. Our perceptions being an extraordinary combination of the Newtonian optics and the physiological and psychological perceptions investigated by Goethe and Le Corbusier, colour is elusive, not subjectable to any kind of rational system in its application. But as Fernand Leger emphasized, 'Man has need of colour for life: it is as necessary as water and fire'.(12) P. D."
12 'L'homme a besoin de couleurs pour vivre, c'est un element aussi necessaire que l'eau et la feu'. Quoted by Le Corbusier up cit, p. 140. My translation. P.D.
From: The Architectural Review | Date: 11/1/1998 | Author: Davey, Peter
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-53449403.html
Monday, September 24, 2007
Friday, September 21, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
P.Diddy/Paul Davis for short
“His work often consists only of words, usually overheard conversations and snatches of dialogue, which he renders in his idiosyncratic handwriting – a sort of dreamlike typography that adds a graphic poetry to these oddball utterances.”
Paul Davis’ use of brightly coloured felt-tip pens, biros, pencils and found materials makes his work instantly childlike and gives his work a consistent ‘sketchbook’ feel.
Much like David Shrigley’s work, this makes his drawings and lettering very easy for people to relate to and identify with.
Davis’ personal work is littered with nonsensical diagrams that link words like ‘fright’, with ‘certain drugs’, ‘boredom’, ‘nah’, ‘no’, ‘pah’, and ‘tsk’. This particular piece is then entitled ‘Doesn’t bear thinking about diagram’.
It is a satirical comment on biology textbooks, psychology books, surveys et al, and gives Davis the perfect opportunity to display his quick wit and way with words.
He is always conscious of weight of line; he ensures there are a variety of marks to give the eye a chance to decode (or not decode, depending on his intention) the illustration.
His handlettering is dependent on the slight distortions and serendipities that occur when lettering in this style.
His penmanship is almost a half way house between Shrigley and Deuchars: it is more purposeful than Shrigley’s, but still less refined than Deuchars’ letters (albeit intentionally).
His lettering is always considered and controlled, whilst retaining a lively energy.
This is evident in “The Indiscrete Evolution Model”, where composition and use of materials keep the page alive. With a centred black felt tip ‘lineage tree’ diagram littered with quirky pencil lettering, which, due to composition and materials, make the letters appear to move and shake around the page. Whilst this is obviously not possible for a 2D drawing, it is kudos to Davis’ skill that he could trick a reader’s eye into believing the drawing to be moving.
Davis always prefers a good amount of negative space around his lettering, which Heller & Illic argue is a good thing. “Scrawl is most effective when located within a generous helping of negative space.”
Davis’ handlettering can be broken down into two distinct styles, controlled capitals, and refined cursive lowercase, punctuated with random capitals.
Paul Davis’ use of brightly coloured felt-tip pens, biros, pencils and found materials makes his work instantly childlike and gives his work a consistent ‘sketchbook’ feel.
Much like David Shrigley’s work, this makes his drawings and lettering very easy for people to relate to and identify with.
Davis’ personal work is littered with nonsensical diagrams that link words like ‘fright’, with ‘certain drugs’, ‘boredom’, ‘nah’, ‘no’, ‘pah’, and ‘tsk’. This particular piece is then entitled ‘Doesn’t bear thinking about diagram’.
It is a satirical comment on biology textbooks, psychology books, surveys et al, and gives Davis the perfect opportunity to display his quick wit and way with words.
He is always conscious of weight of line; he ensures there are a variety of marks to give the eye a chance to decode (or not decode, depending on his intention) the illustration.
His handlettering is dependent on the slight distortions and serendipities that occur when lettering in this style.
His penmanship is almost a half way house between Shrigley and Deuchars: it is more purposeful than Shrigley’s, but still less refined than Deuchars’ letters (albeit intentionally).
His lettering is always considered and controlled, whilst retaining a lively energy.
This is evident in “The Indiscrete Evolution Model”, where composition and use of materials keep the page alive. With a centred black felt tip ‘lineage tree’ diagram littered with quirky pencil lettering, which, due to composition and materials, make the letters appear to move and shake around the page. Whilst this is obviously not possible for a 2D drawing, it is kudos to Davis’ skill that he could trick a reader’s eye into believing the drawing to be moving.
Davis always prefers a good amount of negative space around his lettering, which Heller & Illic argue is a good thing. “Scrawl is most effective when located within a generous helping of negative space.”
Davis’ handlettering can be broken down into two distinct styles, controlled capitals, and refined cursive lowercase, punctuated with random capitals.
Jonny Hannah
Jonny Hannah’s hand lettering is exquisite, a perfect example of an artist who has a completely unique voice who tends to apply what he finds enjoyable to draw and render to all subjects; he tends not to adapt to the brief, but instead adapts the brief to what he would like to do.
Jonny Hannah’s lettering style is so intrinsically linked to his hobbies, loves, and of course his illustration style that he is a prime example of an illustrator who imprints their graphic signature on everything they do. Companies will hire Jonny because they like his style and execution. It appears that Jonny creates his art primarily for his own fulfilment rather than finding a unique voice for a specific job or company.
A highlight of Hannah’s work is the sheer variety of letterforms he renders, based on a number of reference sources such as 1950s’ posters and his love of Jazz and Northern Soul style graphics. Probably created with a range of materials before being transferred to photostencil for screenprinting. Some of the letterforms are intricately decorated with patterns; some cut out block letters; others are heavily serifed, ornate scrawls. They are always a key part of his work, playing off his illustrations to, in affect, form a tapestry of nostalgic idiosyncratic illustrations.
“In ‘A Catalogue of Disasters’, a book for the Royal College of Art, he pays homage to vintage country fair, using every kind of shadowed letter he can think of.”
The cover for ‘A Catalogue of Disasters’ appears to have been done exclusively with ink, pen and brush, uniting seemingly disparate forms neatly together.
This can also be said of the cover for ‘Introducing the Unquiet Grave’, where Jonny has screenprinted his letters. This treatment of printing them in the same colour and opacity gives them a unity they would not have otherwise had. The opacity also allows parts of the letters to take on a different quality, mixing with the textures and colours underneath.
Jonny is a master of uniting different styles of hand lettering seamlessly, not only with each other, but also with the images he produces.
“The pure joy of handlettering is evident in Jonny Hannah’s work, which is replete with unusual styles of shadowed letter, both invented and simulated. In his seamless marriage of letter and image, the melange of quirky and discordant visual approaches draws the eye to the message and adds textural patterns to the entire composition.”
Jonny Hannah’s lettering style is so intrinsically linked to his hobbies, loves, and of course his illustration style that he is a prime example of an illustrator who imprints their graphic signature on everything they do. Companies will hire Jonny because they like his style and execution. It appears that Jonny creates his art primarily for his own fulfilment rather than finding a unique voice for a specific job or company.
A highlight of Hannah’s work is the sheer variety of letterforms he renders, based on a number of reference sources such as 1950s’ posters and his love of Jazz and Northern Soul style graphics. Probably created with a range of materials before being transferred to photostencil for screenprinting. Some of the letterforms are intricately decorated with patterns; some cut out block letters; others are heavily serifed, ornate scrawls. They are always a key part of his work, playing off his illustrations to, in affect, form a tapestry of nostalgic idiosyncratic illustrations.
“In ‘A Catalogue of Disasters’, a book for the Royal College of Art, he pays homage to vintage country fair, using every kind of shadowed letter he can think of.”
The cover for ‘A Catalogue of Disasters’ appears to have been done exclusively with ink, pen and brush, uniting seemingly disparate forms neatly together.
This can also be said of the cover for ‘Introducing the Unquiet Grave’, where Jonny has screenprinted his letters. This treatment of printing them in the same colour and opacity gives them a unity they would not have otherwise had. The opacity also allows parts of the letters to take on a different quality, mixing with the textures and colours underneath.
Jonny is a master of uniting different styles of hand lettering seamlessly, not only with each other, but also with the images he produces.
“The pure joy of handlettering is evident in Jonny Hannah’s work, which is replete with unusual styles of shadowed letter, both invented and simulated. In his seamless marriage of letter and image, the melange of quirky and discordant visual approaches draws the eye to the message and adds textural patterns to the entire composition.”
Monday, September 17, 2007
Michael Bierut
Paul Donnelly Research Project Notes
Client Various
Art Director & Letterer Michael Bierut
“Designers often draw upon the artless vernacular for sophisticated design. This is apparent in Michael Bierut’s poster for the Seventh Annual Book Fair to help the homeless, which injects an artless childlike script into an otherwise conventional layout.
The script is not as free flowing as informal handwriting, but Bierut conveys the idea that he probably failed his school penmanship class.”
(p87 Escrito)
As an artist, Bierut seems to enjoy combining simple image with handlettering to convey his message, usually in monochrome to deliver immediacy, or perhaps to make the background as stark as possible in contrast to his handwriting, which, in his poster for the Seventh Annual Book Fair to help the homeless, takes some deciphering to read. Though not illegible, his layout and the angles he has set his lettering on often make the task of immediately reading the copy that much harder.
The skewed italic handwriting Bierut employs for this homeless poster is very clever; without being comical, it is artless and childlike with short descenders and ascenders coupled with a blatant disregard for consistent spacing, (leading, if such a term could be applied to handlettering), work together to suggest the sort of handlettering that is often seen on a cardboard ‘homeless-please help’ sign.
The lettering works on two levels; an immediate empathy towards the subject, as the lettering begs for pity; and it compels you to pay attention to the copy by forcing you to decipher the type.
After having seen this poster, it could be argued that handlettering is the only choice for this subject; conventional type has no place here.
The composition is seemingly messy, but there is most certainly as definite thought- out method to the placement. There are some very intelligent uses of image in this poster; an opened book becomes a roof, housing a single chair, whilst in the top corner another book becomes a house with the addition of a door and window. These illustrations could be considered too artful for the subject matter, however they are perhaps intentionally this way; by having the Illustrations beautifully drawn, the viewer of the poster understands that the product on sale is top quality, despite the desperation of the cause, which is implied by the handlettering.
This makes the style of lettering Bierut has employed all the more integral to the message. The interplay of the lettering and illustrations combine, again on a subliminal level to allow the viewer/prospective client deep insight into exactly the message the designer wants to deliver.
Comparing his poster for the homeless book fair with his poster for a production of Edward Albey’s “The American Dream”, it is easy to confirm that Bierut intentionally made his letterforms childlike and artless, as his letterforms for “The American Dream” are much more refined.
The layout of the lettering again appears to be quite disorganised, with the title being the only really legible item, on first view, and even the title takes some deciphering.
There is no apparent ordering of information and the Bierut’s layout appears less considered than even his homeless poster. The letterforms are, however, beautifully rendered in an elegant script, written close to each other at angles so a pattern is made from the body copy.
By making the lettering so disorganised, yet elegant, it invites the reader to intensely work at making sense of the copy. This leads to an intimate relationship between viewer and poster; time is spent, and what has been read is a challenged accepted and passed. Conversely, setting in this way could deter potential readers from reading at all.
Again, Bierut makes use of the interplay between image and lettering, matching the ornate swirls of the lettering to the intricate details of the illustrated fork, which pierces through an illustrated silhouette of the USA, dominating the bottom and the centre of the poster.
In perhaps a link to the context of the play, the headline lettering appears more wobbly than the body copy, alluding to the fact that when viewed from afar, America may seem like perfect and beautiful, but when viewed up close, cracks begin to show; things are not as perfect as they seem.
"[It is] an examination of the American Scene, an attack on the substitution of artificial for real values in our society, a condemnation of complacency, cruelty, emasculation, and vacuity; it is a stand against the fiction that everything in this slipping land of ours is peachy-keen." Wikipedia (Edward Albee)
“Stylised penmanship is used to emphasize the impropriety of this poster promoting veteran playwright Edward Albee’s dark and satiric play on American morals and mores.”
(Escrito)
The manner in which the body copy is tangled and jumbled, is conceivably a nod to the ‘Theatre of the Absurd’ style that Albee was writing in, which is "an absorption-in-art of certain existentialist and post-existentialist philosophical concepts having to do, in the main, with man's attempts to make sense for himself out of his senseless position in a world which makes no sense”
Allegory in Edward Albee's The American Dream by Ervin Beck,
Professor of English Goshen College (c)1996
http://www.goshen.edu/facultypubs/DREAM.html
Similar then in composition, greyscale colour scheme, and tough to decipher copy layout, Bierut obviously enjoys making his posters an experience rather than a legible and easily accessible information sheet. He displays a keen sense of which of his l
letterforms and styles will suit a certain subject matter, and uses these various methods of handlettering to create hidden messages and sublevels of meaning.
Though his ordering of information is perhaps intentionally dysfunctional, it still leaves a lot to be desired and ultimately perhaps lets the design down.
Client Various
Art Director & Letterer Michael Bierut
“Designers often draw upon the artless vernacular for sophisticated design. This is apparent in Michael Bierut’s poster for the Seventh Annual Book Fair to help the homeless, which injects an artless childlike script into an otherwise conventional layout.
The script is not as free flowing as informal handwriting, but Bierut conveys the idea that he probably failed his school penmanship class.”
(p87 Escrito)
As an artist, Bierut seems to enjoy combining simple image with handlettering to convey his message, usually in monochrome to deliver immediacy, or perhaps to make the background as stark as possible in contrast to his handwriting, which, in his poster for the Seventh Annual Book Fair to help the homeless, takes some deciphering to read. Though not illegible, his layout and the angles he has set his lettering on often make the task of immediately reading the copy that much harder.
The skewed italic handwriting Bierut employs for this homeless poster is very clever; without being comical, it is artless and childlike with short descenders and ascenders coupled with a blatant disregard for consistent spacing, (leading, if such a term could be applied to handlettering), work together to suggest the sort of handlettering that is often seen on a cardboard ‘homeless-please help’ sign.
The lettering works on two levels; an immediate empathy towards the subject, as the lettering begs for pity; and it compels you to pay attention to the copy by forcing you to decipher the type.
After having seen this poster, it could be argued that handlettering is the only choice for this subject; conventional type has no place here.
The composition is seemingly messy, but there is most certainly as definite thought- out method to the placement. There are some very intelligent uses of image in this poster; an opened book becomes a roof, housing a single chair, whilst in the top corner another book becomes a house with the addition of a door and window. These illustrations could be considered too artful for the subject matter, however they are perhaps intentionally this way; by having the Illustrations beautifully drawn, the viewer of the poster understands that the product on sale is top quality, despite the desperation of the cause, which is implied by the handlettering.
This makes the style of lettering Bierut has employed all the more integral to the message. The interplay of the lettering and illustrations combine, again on a subliminal level to allow the viewer/prospective client deep insight into exactly the message the designer wants to deliver.
Comparing his poster for the homeless book fair with his poster for a production of Edward Albey’s “The American Dream”, it is easy to confirm that Bierut intentionally made his letterforms childlike and artless, as his letterforms for “The American Dream” are much more refined.
The layout of the lettering again appears to be quite disorganised, with the title being the only really legible item, on first view, and even the title takes some deciphering.
There is no apparent ordering of information and the Bierut’s layout appears less considered than even his homeless poster. The letterforms are, however, beautifully rendered in an elegant script, written close to each other at angles so a pattern is made from the body copy.
By making the lettering so disorganised, yet elegant, it invites the reader to intensely work at making sense of the copy. This leads to an intimate relationship between viewer and poster; time is spent, and what has been read is a challenged accepted and passed. Conversely, setting in this way could deter potential readers from reading at all.
Again, Bierut makes use of the interplay between image and lettering, matching the ornate swirls of the lettering to the intricate details of the illustrated fork, which pierces through an illustrated silhouette of the USA, dominating the bottom and the centre of the poster.
In perhaps a link to the context of the play, the headline lettering appears more wobbly than the body copy, alluding to the fact that when viewed from afar, America may seem like perfect and beautiful, but when viewed up close, cracks begin to show; things are not as perfect as they seem.
"[It is] an examination of the American Scene, an attack on the substitution of artificial for real values in our society, a condemnation of complacency, cruelty, emasculation, and vacuity; it is a stand against the fiction that everything in this slipping land of ours is peachy-keen." Wikipedia (Edward Albee)
“Stylised penmanship is used to emphasize the impropriety of this poster promoting veteran playwright Edward Albee’s dark and satiric play on American morals and mores.”
(Escrito)
The manner in which the body copy is tangled and jumbled, is conceivably a nod to the ‘Theatre of the Absurd’ style that Albee was writing in, which is "an absorption-in-art of certain existentialist and post-existentialist philosophical concepts having to do, in the main, with man's attempts to make sense for himself out of his senseless position in a world which makes no sense”
Allegory in Edward Albee's The American Dream by Ervin Beck,
Professor of English Goshen College (c)1996
http://www.goshen.edu/facultypubs/DREAM.html
Similar then in composition, greyscale colour scheme, and tough to decipher copy layout, Bierut obviously enjoys making his posters an experience rather than a legible and easily accessible information sheet. He displays a keen sense of which of his l
letterforms and styles will suit a certain subject matter, and uses these various methods of handlettering to create hidden messages and sublevels of meaning.
Though his ordering of information is perhaps intentionally dysfunctional, it still leaves a lot to be desired and ultimately perhaps lets the design down.
DANSE 2000
Paul Donnelly Research Project Notes
Client Galerie Anatome
Illustrator Beata Konarska
The Joy of the lettering for ‘danse 2000’ in this poster is immediate, the implication obvious.
The serendipities, varying pressures and colours of this lettering suggest the potential beauty of human movement making this lettering the perfect voicing for a dance festival.
The lettering is countered by straight sans serif typesetting. It is interesting as to why straight setting has been used; it almost seems a let down that perhaps some alternative hand lettering has not been used. Perhaps this is to give corporate weight to the festival, hinting that the designer (or company) does not want the poster to be read as frivolous.
Making hand (or foot) rendered letterforms work with straight typesetting is always a difficult task. However, for whatever reason there has been a definite decision to choose straight setting for the rest of the type. It is perhaps the logo for the festival.
“The words seem to have been written by foot, and, as this poster entitled “Danse 2000 Montpellier 20e Festival International” shows, it is not a bad job of prehensile movement.” (Escrito)
Client Galerie Anatome
Illustrator Beata Konarska
The Joy of the lettering for ‘danse 2000’ in this poster is immediate, the implication obvious.
The serendipities, varying pressures and colours of this lettering suggest the potential beauty of human movement making this lettering the perfect voicing for a dance festival.
The lettering is countered by straight sans serif typesetting. It is interesting as to why straight setting has been used; it almost seems a let down that perhaps some alternative hand lettering has not been used. Perhaps this is to give corporate weight to the festival, hinting that the designer (or company) does not want the poster to be read as frivolous.
Making hand (or foot) rendered letterforms work with straight typesetting is always a difficult task. However, for whatever reason there has been a definite decision to choose straight setting for the rest of the type. It is perhaps the logo for the festival.
“The words seem to have been written by foot, and, as this poster entitled “Danse 2000 Montpellier 20e Festival International” shows, it is not a bad job of prehensile movement.” (Escrito)
GIRO campaign
Art Director & Letterer Tony Calco
Copywriter Rob Strasberg
Photographer Mark Laita
“Each of the CPB group’s advertisements for the bike-helmet manufacturer Guro contains one simple, unadorned and undramatic handwritten word- ‘passion’, ‘breathe’, ‘beauty’- by a striking conceptual image. Standard type alone could not convey the same intimacy.”
“If these single words were set in a single typeface (or even a grittier form of handlettering), the elegantly simple concept – headline as caption – would not succeed as wittily as it does in these adverts for Giro helmets.”
(Escrito A Mano)
The three posters hinge around one simple theme, with bike helmets beautifully photographed to form a conceptual image such as a butterfly, flames, and a pair of lungs. These images are then offset by a single word – with the butterfly – ‘beauty’; flames with ‘passion’; and with the lungs, ‘breathe’.
The use of script based handlettering here implies that the type is subservient to the image and should not detract from either the image or the idea.
“Scripts imply a lack of substance (or a parenthetical idea).”
The delicate pencil script is reminiscent of a sketchbook idea, jotted or scribbled down. This alludes to the fact that the idea was strong at inception, and needs no adornment or excessively flash/ corporate branding to sell the idea. This ultimately conveys the message that Giro are ultimately confident in their product.
Understated beauty…..
A hand drawn box, framing both image and word runs about 5-6 cm inside from the edge of the poster. The box has been intentionally shakily drawn and ties in neatly with the type. Further details such as copyright, web URLs, and a slogan that links to the theme of each poster –
“For more of this season’s hottest looks, visit…”
“we’re more than just a pretty helmet”
“working towards better vents with every breath”
-are then set in the same handlettering as the headline. Their size and placement in a corner (varying from poster to poster), outside of the hand drawn box frame, reinforce that this slogan and all other details are most definitely playing second fiddle to the single word and the photography. This emphasizes that the focus is on product and idea.
The manner in which Tony Calco has executed his lettering, suggests a classy and considered, minimalist feel, allowing the product to speak for itself. This then suggests the message that Giro are saying, “we’re deeply passionate about helmets, and whilst we could have spent more time on type and advertising, we’d rather perfect our product”, regardless of how carefully considered and well executed this campaign has been.
If used correctly, the use of cursive script often acts as an easy bridge between client and company, as the client/ viewer of the poster recognise the lettering as very familiar to their own. This helps suggest the idea that the people at the company are just like them; and for prospective clients this is key – it enforces the fact that, just like them, Giro are fanatical about bikes.
[Contrast with conservative campaign –poorly executed and condescending? Handlettering drawn on computer…false in the first place, much like any given political party!]
Reason for inclusion
Due to the quality of the idea and the exceptional execution of the photography, here is an example of design, where the designer could have used straight Helvetica for simplicity. However, by choosing handlettering, and specifically this refined script, Calco has created many more levels of meaning and interpretation for the design, which are deciphered and understood by the viewer of the poster on a subliminal level, overall making the design much stronger as a result.
It is therefore a fantastic example of when handlettering is appropriate.
Copywriter Rob Strasberg
Photographer Mark Laita
“Each of the CPB group’s advertisements for the bike-helmet manufacturer Guro contains one simple, unadorned and undramatic handwritten word- ‘passion’, ‘breathe’, ‘beauty’- by a striking conceptual image. Standard type alone could not convey the same intimacy.”
“If these single words were set in a single typeface (or even a grittier form of handlettering), the elegantly simple concept – headline as caption – would not succeed as wittily as it does in these adverts for Giro helmets.”
(Escrito A Mano)
The three posters hinge around one simple theme, with bike helmets beautifully photographed to form a conceptual image such as a butterfly, flames, and a pair of lungs. These images are then offset by a single word – with the butterfly – ‘beauty’; flames with ‘passion’; and with the lungs, ‘breathe’.
The use of script based handlettering here implies that the type is subservient to the image and should not detract from either the image or the idea.
“Scripts imply a lack of substance (or a parenthetical idea).”
The delicate pencil script is reminiscent of a sketchbook idea, jotted or scribbled down. This alludes to the fact that the idea was strong at inception, and needs no adornment or excessively flash/ corporate branding to sell the idea. This ultimately conveys the message that Giro are ultimately confident in their product.
Understated beauty…..
A hand drawn box, framing both image and word runs about 5-6 cm inside from the edge of the poster. The box has been intentionally shakily drawn and ties in neatly with the type. Further details such as copyright, web URLs, and a slogan that links to the theme of each poster –
“For more of this season’s hottest looks, visit…”
“we’re more than just a pretty helmet”
“working towards better vents with every breath”
-are then set in the same handlettering as the headline. Their size and placement in a corner (varying from poster to poster), outside of the hand drawn box frame, reinforce that this slogan and all other details are most definitely playing second fiddle to the single word and the photography. This emphasizes that the focus is on product and idea.
The manner in which Tony Calco has executed his lettering, suggests a classy and considered, minimalist feel, allowing the product to speak for itself. This then suggests the message that Giro are saying, “we’re deeply passionate about helmets, and whilst we could have spent more time on type and advertising, we’d rather perfect our product”, regardless of how carefully considered and well executed this campaign has been.
If used correctly, the use of cursive script often acts as an easy bridge between client and company, as the client/ viewer of the poster recognise the lettering as very familiar to their own. This helps suggest the idea that the people at the company are just like them; and for prospective clients this is key – it enforces the fact that, just like them, Giro are fanatical about bikes.
[Contrast with conservative campaign –poorly executed and condescending? Handlettering drawn on computer…false in the first place, much like any given political party!]
Reason for inclusion
Due to the quality of the idea and the exceptional execution of the photography, here is an example of design, where the designer could have used straight Helvetica for simplicity. However, by choosing handlettering, and specifically this refined script, Calco has created many more levels of meaning and interpretation for the design, which are deciphered and understood by the viewer of the poster on a subliminal level, overall making the design much stronger as a result.
It is therefore a fantastic example of when handlettering is appropriate.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
More Thierry Henri de Toulouse Lautrec
La Revue Blanche
The Godfather of handwritten lettering for graphics, Toulouse Lautrec plied his trade in a time when there was very little way of alternatives. Though hot metal press could have been used, a great deal of his poster art contains his handlettering that was often written “directly with grease crayon on the litho to avoid using type in favour of totally integrated artistic composition.” (Escrito a Mano)
The artists at the time (including Henri de Toulouse Lau Trec, Jules Cheret and Alphonse Mucha) saw applying lettering in this way as the perfect relationship between image and type, a seamless integration of the two.
Henri’s lettering itself is beautifully precise. In a poster entitled ‘La Revue Blanche’, Henri shows good awareness of placement, sizing and ordering of information. Though spacing between letters is not technically perfect, the letterforms themselves are exquisitely rendered whilst retaining all of their immediacy and energy.
The letterforms are serifed, and are perhaps simulations of an actual typeface.
Lautrec’s perhaps more famous posters, for the Moulin Rouge also see him offering hand drawn type. The letterforms he draws here are simple, sans serif in appearance, again well ordered and graphically clean, whilst in a poster entitled ‘Divan Japonais’, he is more daring, with more affected letterforms, not overly serifed or ornate, but definitely quirkier than block type. This is to perhaps hint at an oriental feel, strangely skewed and elegant in an unfamiliar fashion. This is then underscored by Lautrec’s beautifully script-esque handwriting.
What these hand drawn letterforms suggest is that Lautrec was not content to settle for existing typefaces. He must have therefore felt frustrated by the lack of expressive type on offer, and felt that his drawn letterforms captured the energy and vibe of the scene at the time, making his posters autographic and of the highest artistic standard.
The Godfather of handwritten lettering for graphics, Toulouse Lautrec plied his trade in a time when there was very little way of alternatives. Though hot metal press could have been used, a great deal of his poster art contains his handlettering that was often written “directly with grease crayon on the litho to avoid using type in favour of totally integrated artistic composition.” (Escrito a Mano)
The artists at the time (including Henri de Toulouse Lau Trec, Jules Cheret and Alphonse Mucha) saw applying lettering in this way as the perfect relationship between image and type, a seamless integration of the two.
Henri’s lettering itself is beautifully precise. In a poster entitled ‘La Revue Blanche’, Henri shows good awareness of placement, sizing and ordering of information. Though spacing between letters is not technically perfect, the letterforms themselves are exquisitely rendered whilst retaining all of their immediacy and energy.
The letterforms are serifed, and are perhaps simulations of an actual typeface.
Lautrec’s perhaps more famous posters, for the Moulin Rouge also see him offering hand drawn type. The letterforms he draws here are simple, sans serif in appearance, again well ordered and graphically clean, whilst in a poster entitled ‘Divan Japonais’, he is more daring, with more affected letterforms, not overly serifed or ornate, but definitely quirkier than block type. This is to perhaps hint at an oriental feel, strangely skewed and elegant in an unfamiliar fashion. This is then underscored by Lautrec’s beautifully script-esque handwriting.
What these hand drawn letterforms suggest is that Lautrec was not content to settle for existing typefaces. He must have therefore felt frustrated by the lack of expressive type on offer, and felt that his drawn letterforms captured the energy and vibe of the scene at the time, making his posters autographic and of the highest artistic standard.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Tom Hautekiet
Tom Hautekiet
-Is a designer based in Antwerp. Well known for his work on the ‘Rock Werchter Festival’.
-Is a prolific designer who designs anything from CD sleeves and posters to bags and sometimes, interior concepts.
His handlettering style is not a fixed, overused tool throughout his work, rather a potent weapon he employs when a particular voice is needed for a project.
It is often countered by his clean, hard edged graphics, making him a key designer to look at; he has a variety of skill sets and is more than capable of using computerised type and image making illustrative methods, but often chooses to bring a different angle to a project by using handlettering.
In his book cover for ‘De Gevefde Vogel’ (The Painted Bird), he integrates what appears to be either letterpress, or carefully hand drawn type, with brush script handlettering. This gives a real focus to the white brush script against the black background with the blood red bird shape behind.
By using this colour scheme and composition we are drawn to assuming that this book is perhaps a murder mystery; with the white brush script looking like both police chalk markings at a crime scene, or a note of confession.
Each of the elements though disparate and varied in media, work together in harmonious composition to produce a striking cover, made human and accessible by the handlettering.
In a poster for client Walpurgis, Hautekiet blends handlettering with other media; straight Gil Sans and (possibly illustrator drawn) texture, and photography. The handlettering reads ‘Waar is thuis en Hoe Komikdaar”, which, loosely translated, is “Where home is, and how I come to be there.”
Here, though the title of the piece, this handlettering seems intentionally difficult to read, as it is scrawled, scratched and blurred.
This, unlike ‘The Painted Bird’, where the lettering is clear and dominant, makes the title more of a background texture. It is certainly a subheading to the Gil Sans set ‘Walpurgis & De Roovers”.
Again though, where the handlettering of ‘The Painted Bird’ alluded to both note of confession and/or police markings, here Hautekiet tailors his letterforms to look like a note of a diary; quickly scrawled and perhaps, not meant to be read.
Hautekiet is, as he should be, setting the correct tone for the posters, and has identified that handlettering in these styles was appropriate for the respective posters, adding another dimension to the artwork.
In contrast to these two posters, where Hautekiet blends mixed media in collage, he allows his hand lettering to stand alone in his poster for “Leonce en Lena”. It is countered only by a photograph of a still/swatted fly in the top right corner of the poster, blended to appear as if the poster is a surface that the fly has landed on. The intention here is humour; spelt out by the haphazard graphite scrawl Hautekiet has used. By setting the lettering in this way, Hautekiet adds an intentionally playful and knowingly sarcastic tone.
Hautekiet’s range of methods for creating type and lettering are vast, and whilst he often will integrate hand rendered letterforms into his work, each piece of work he produced is a progression or departure from the last.
His simulation of block sans serif capital letterforms in a poster for Sam Shepard’s “True West” is definitely a movement away from the intentionally artless scrawl of “Leonce en Lena”.
Whilst retaining the quirk and energy of his other hand lettering, here Hautekiet pays homage to 1930s’ posters. He also shows competent skills for ordering his information. The lettering is again seamlessly blended with the rest of the work; the ‘cut out’ look to the lettering fits with the stencilled nature of the poster as a whole.
This, much like a LauTrec poster, forces the type not only to be part of the image, but to take the focal point of the illustration.
Despite having decided that the promotional material for the company ‘De Roovers’ should usually be set with some form of hand lettering, there is no overt repetition in the style of hand lettering Hautekiet uses. The ‘scratched on’ appearance of the lettering for a poster titled ‘The Woods’ stands against the background photograph with powerful results; it retains all the energy and immediacy a scratch should.
“A scratch is the purest of marks: direct, immediate and unaffected. Skill is unnecessary and artistry is unimportant; it is vernacular’s vernacular”
This scratchy writing perfectly conveys a sense of ‘back to basics’ and raw power that links perfectly to the nature-filled imagery that the title, ‘The Woods’ suggests.
The message that Hautekiet is sending to the viewer via his type raises its own set of questions and codes to decipher. “Whereas pure type requires the right words to telegraph meaning, a scratch (large or small) invariably draws the reader to it to decipher the meaning.”
-Is a designer based in Antwerp. Well known for his work on the ‘Rock Werchter Festival’.
-Is a prolific designer who designs anything from CD sleeves and posters to bags and sometimes, interior concepts.
His handlettering style is not a fixed, overused tool throughout his work, rather a potent weapon he employs when a particular voice is needed for a project.
It is often countered by his clean, hard edged graphics, making him a key designer to look at; he has a variety of skill sets and is more than capable of using computerised type and image making illustrative methods, but often chooses to bring a different angle to a project by using handlettering.
In his book cover for ‘De Gevefde Vogel’ (The Painted Bird), he integrates what appears to be either letterpress, or carefully hand drawn type, with brush script handlettering. This gives a real focus to the white brush script against the black background with the blood red bird shape behind.
By using this colour scheme and composition we are drawn to assuming that this book is perhaps a murder mystery; with the white brush script looking like both police chalk markings at a crime scene, or a note of confession.
Each of the elements though disparate and varied in media, work together in harmonious composition to produce a striking cover, made human and accessible by the handlettering.
In a poster for client Walpurgis, Hautekiet blends handlettering with other media; straight Gil Sans and (possibly illustrator drawn) texture, and photography. The handlettering reads ‘Waar is thuis en Hoe Komikdaar”, which, loosely translated, is “Where home is, and how I come to be there.”
Here, though the title of the piece, this handlettering seems intentionally difficult to read, as it is scrawled, scratched and blurred.
This, unlike ‘The Painted Bird’, where the lettering is clear and dominant, makes the title more of a background texture. It is certainly a subheading to the Gil Sans set ‘Walpurgis & De Roovers”.
Again though, where the handlettering of ‘The Painted Bird’ alluded to both note of confession and/or police markings, here Hautekiet tailors his letterforms to look like a note of a diary; quickly scrawled and perhaps, not meant to be read.
Hautekiet is, as he should be, setting the correct tone for the posters, and has identified that handlettering in these styles was appropriate for the respective posters, adding another dimension to the artwork.
In contrast to these two posters, where Hautekiet blends mixed media in collage, he allows his hand lettering to stand alone in his poster for “Leonce en Lena”. It is countered only by a photograph of a still/swatted fly in the top right corner of the poster, blended to appear as if the poster is a surface that the fly has landed on. The intention here is humour; spelt out by the haphazard graphite scrawl Hautekiet has used. By setting the lettering in this way, Hautekiet adds an intentionally playful and knowingly sarcastic tone.
Hautekiet’s range of methods for creating type and lettering are vast, and whilst he often will integrate hand rendered letterforms into his work, each piece of work he produced is a progression or departure from the last.
His simulation of block sans serif capital letterforms in a poster for Sam Shepard’s “True West” is definitely a movement away from the intentionally artless scrawl of “Leonce en Lena”.
Whilst retaining the quirk and energy of his other hand lettering, here Hautekiet pays homage to 1930s’ posters. He also shows competent skills for ordering his information. The lettering is again seamlessly blended with the rest of the work; the ‘cut out’ look to the lettering fits with the stencilled nature of the poster as a whole.
This, much like a LauTrec poster, forces the type not only to be part of the image, but to take the focal point of the illustration.
Despite having decided that the promotional material for the company ‘De Roovers’ should usually be set with some form of hand lettering, there is no overt repetition in the style of hand lettering Hautekiet uses. The ‘scratched on’ appearance of the lettering for a poster titled ‘The Woods’ stands against the background photograph with powerful results; it retains all the energy and immediacy a scratch should.
“A scratch is the purest of marks: direct, immediate and unaffected. Skill is unnecessary and artistry is unimportant; it is vernacular’s vernacular”
This scratchy writing perfectly conveys a sense of ‘back to basics’ and raw power that links perfectly to the nature-filled imagery that the title, ‘The Woods’ suggests.
The message that Hautekiet is sending to the viewer via his type raises its own set of questions and codes to decipher. “Whereas pure type requires the right words to telegraph meaning, a scratch (large or small) invariably draws the reader to it to decipher the meaning.”
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