Fall 2018
Architecture starts and ends as graphic design. Within the relationship between graphic design and architecture is another way of thinking about the intersection of the flat and the deep. In typography, it is possible to examine the visual rhetoric employed to convey design concepts. Typography is fundamentally the procedure of arranging type, but it can also be the particular art of traversing meaning with form. The aim of these exercises is to develop a general typographic fluency, consider the visual tone of how messages are conveyed, and explore ways to appropriately control and manipulate that tone through typography and print.
The final project (titled “Runic Sagas”) started with a conceptual exploration of a single color —in this case, yellow—and looked to determine a design strategy based off the aspects of that color. Here, the conceptual premise gleaned from yellow was one looking at the color’s capacity as both an instrument of clarity (through acts such as highlighting) and obfuscation (yellow being the one of most difficult colors to read on a page). The content for the project was gathered from tales of Icelandic sagas, finding inspiration in the yellow hues and tones of the Icelandic landscape.
These projects consider the relationship between the images and text on a given page, but also the relationship between the pages. While typography and layout were essential, other techniques were considered — such as the selection and editing of content, the use of informational hierarchy, the sequencing of narrative, the material qualities of bookmaking, and so on.
