Type 2 Journal Entry

It was interesting to read Rethinking Modernism, Revising Functionalism and to think about what design styles today's world is leaning towards and trying to imitate or take suggestions from. It seems with today's modernism designers are getting away from the straight forward, organized, almost boring layouts. They are going for a more expressive way of showing their work and an organized chaos look to things. Expression is a big aspect of today's generation.
Overcoming Modernism: I found it interesting that the article mentioned the pressure young designers of today have on being able to communicate. Schools seem to be integrating the importance of being able to speak in front of people and sell a product. I have noticed when attending our Hallmark lectures that the designers that have come all seem to be very good public speakers.
After reading the interview with Steven Heller is was surprised at how much he really cared about what his audience thought and that he took the time to read and reply to the letters he received. He is very opinionated and feels very strongly about certain topics but he respects others views as well.

Type 2 Journal Entry

Writing is very important for designers. Many design students lack confidence in their writing skills and don't feel they are very good writers. Strong writing skills can strengthen a student's thinking skills. It is important for a designer to take a body of text and create an image to accompany it or emphasize the meaning of the text. Writing and designing share many of the same characteristics and aspects such as: brainstorming, researching, organizing, drafts, revising, and the final project. Writing and language create an identity for a product, something that people can associate with, look for, and become familiar with.


Links:
The Role of Writing
Better Writing Through Design
Brand New

Type 2 Journal Entry

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Typeface brought up some interesting points. When you think about it typefaces are often associated with a certain topic. Comic sans for example reminds people of comic books and cartoons, hence the name "comic sans". When we first pick a type we may being doing just that, picking it for no reason, but if you go back and think about it there is most likely a reason you chose that particular font. Maybe it resembles the person that is saying the quote, or the name relates to the topic, or the style fits the genre of book.

I found the posters in the Stephen Doyle: A Few Words article very unique. The poster with the saw worked well because of the word that was used. It is a clever resolution to create the interaction between an image and type. The bottom poster with the books bolted together is something you don't normally see and is an interesting play on words.

Type 2 Journal Entry

In Stefan Sagmeister's video he spent the majority of the time talking about other people's designs and how he felt about them or what they did for them. I liked when he talked about the designs that made him happy. From far away they would probably look like any other design found in subways but when looked at up close they are new and funny.

I also watched Theo Jenson and J.J. Abrams video. Theo Jenson's work was pretty fascinating especially the way his pieces moved. J.J. Abrams talked a lot about what inspires him. Mystery seemed to be the key inspiration for his projects.

How Good is Good?
Its interesting how many feelings designs evoke and what all a design can do. Designs can bring up someone's spirits, back up a cause, make places safer, inform people, and raise money.

Type 2: 10 Commandments of Type and How to Break Them

10 Commandments:
I. Thou shalt not apply more than three typefaces in a document.
II. Thou shalt lay headlines large and at the top of a page.
III. Thou shalt employ no other type size than 8pt to 10pt for body copy.
IV. Remember that a typeface that is not legible is not truly a typeface.
V. Honour thy kerning, so that white space becomes visually equalized between characters.
VI. Thou shalt lay stress discreetly upon elements within text.
VII. Thou shalt not use only capitals when setting vast body copy.
VIII. Thou shalt always align letters and words on a baseline.
IV. Thou shalt use flush-left, ragged-right alignment.
X. Thou shalt not make lines too short or too long.

How to break them:
1. Break the letters imposed by the use of only three typefaces.
2. Let thine eyes be seduced by the hierarchy of type.
3. Do not forsake smaller or bigger sizes.
4. Be seduced into trying new and expressive typefaces.
5. Treat kerning and tracking with total irreverence.
6. Entice the reader to sample the delights of your text.
7. Do not forgo the liberal use of capitals within your text.
8. The Lord designed letterforms to stand side by side, but there is no harm in their being lured away from one another.
9. Yield to the temptation to align text in unusual ways.
10. Lure the reader down unfamiliar paths.

Type 2 Journal Entry

As I was watching the second part of the Jakob Trollback videos during one of the montages of there work I was thinking, "this is moving really fast." After the video he spoke about one of their montages and how it moved so fast the audience wasn't going to be able to see or understand anything about it. He was right though when he said that when you're trying to get your name out there and sell your work you want to show the agency everything you can do which may mean putting it to fast paced music.
All of the videos moved well with the music it was set to. The music really created a mood with the images being shown with it.