As graphic designers in a modern, technology driven world, it’s often easy to forget about the roots of our artform. Through an RSS feed I follow (Design Daily News) I was led to this site: TypeCulture. This site has some really great resources for type enthusiasts or those looking to learn more about the history of typography. I highly, HIGHLY recommend viewing the type videos (you can click on them to watch a small version of the video without purchasing). Mark Jamra and Jamie Peloquin have done an excellent job documenting some of the ‘ancient’ processes of typesetting. My favorite is the video in Douglas Coffin’s letter cutting workshop - talk about an art form; simply beautiful! Check out this quote from Coffin’s website:
“Coffin carves predominantly in slate, but also works in limestone, marble, granite and brownstone, designing and cutting beautiful letterforms, decorative motifs and bas reliefs. Coffin brushes out his letterforms calligraphically, fine-tuning his work on paper before transferring the finished design to the face of the stone and settling down to v-cutting the letterforms. Raised lettering is sometimes called for. Carving in slate creates a naturally-occurring residue of dust in the carved letter that enhances readability. Lettering in limestone, granite and marble is usually slightly darkened for clarity. If appropriate, gilding in 23 K gold or palladium draws special attention to the lettering, particularly when carved in slate, which is then oiled or waxed.”
To say that a lot of changes are going on behind the scenes, may be a bit of an understatement. However, I’ve found that the minute I promise a big change, it always ends up taking a lot longer to complete and becomes much less dramatic when that change finally does hit. SO… I’m not going to promise anything or throw out any completion dates at all. Just wait and see what happens to this site in the near future.
I’ve also been on a design rejuvenation kick recently. There are times in your life where, suddenly, everything just seems to take a leap forward and take on new meaning. I had been in a design rut for quite some time, but the dam finally broke and I’m discovering new inspiration which has enabled me to push my boundaries. This is due in part to a fantastic RSS feed list, some really great design books, and a personal decision to reinvent myself as a designer. God has been good!
And just so this post has something substantial to offer, check out Fontsruct.com. This site allows you to design your own fonts online! Pretty neat! I was also introduced (via his blog) to font designer Jos Buivenga. Check out this interview with him if you have time- it was a refreshing read.
My friend Lauryn sent this video to me. This one is definitely dedicated to all of those design/typography geeks out there! I must say, my stomach turned a bit when I realized Comic Sans was the hero, but Wingdings more than made up for it.
I was reminded of some overly-used, ugly fonts today. I was going over some spec sheets of ‘approved’ fonts today for a vendor whom will remain nameless and found one of the fonts that is on my pet peeve list… ug… Come now people, let discuss some basic principles of design. Without further adieu, I give you the top 5 Fonts That Should Not Be.
#2 - Papyrus
Often referred to on the net as ‘the thinking man’s comic sans’, this is one font that has been driven into the ground by overuse (plus, its ugly… so there). This font thrives amongst small churches, video-gamers, and a plethora of other groups. For those of you thinking that this a unique way to distinguish your document/piece from the masses- it’s not. Everyone has adopted this font, everyone. I remember being pretty disappointed to see that one of my favorite (canceled) series, Firefly, had adopted this font for use on the their spaceship in the movie Serenity (although to be fair, they did alter a bit… mostly by bolding the typeface). Apparently the papyrus font is still heavily used 500 hundred years in the future… those poor space people.
#3 - Curlz
I’m not going to even bother justifying why I picked this one… just look at it.
#4 - Copperplate
This is probably the font that I’ll receive the most flack for picking. However, I still stand behind my choice. This is a font that does have its specific applications, but has grown to be included on my pet peeve list due to overuse. Like papyrus, this font is one that many people use to make their documents ‘unique’. The tracking of this font is pretty odd in my opinion (too much space between characters). While that can be adjusted easily in design programs, most users taking advantage of this font are using applications like Word which do not have this ability.
#5 - Brush Script
Unless you’re designing a baseball jersey, stay away from this font. There are so many fantastic cursive/handwriting fonts our there for free download… why in the world would you choose to use this one? If you’re looking for one of the most contrived cursive fonts in the universe, please look no further.
Have a font that I missed? Disagree with my choices? Please leave comments…
As graphic designers in a modern, technology driven world, it’s often easy to forget about the roots of our artform. Through an RSS feed I follow (Design Daily News) I was led to this site: TypeCulture. This site has some really great resources for type enthusiasts or those looking to learn more about the history of typography. I highly, HIGHLY recommend viewing the type videos (you can click on them to watch a small version of the video without purchasing). Mark Jamra and Jamie Peloquin have done an excellent job documenting some of the ‘ancient’ processes of typesetting. My favorite is the video in Douglas Coffin’s letter cutting workshop - talk about an art form; simply beautiful! Check out this quote from Coffin’s website:
