Typography Essentials

  

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Bass the Beat Productions

These letterforms are beautiful abstractions, chunky ribbons of color. It is amazing that we can actually read this phrase, given how spare the forms are. The letterforms suggest the vinyl ridges of an album or LP.

  

2 Using counter spaces as form

THE SPACES INSIDE AND AROUND the shape of a letter, called counter spaces, are often overlooked as design elements. Their shapes can be customized using color, pattern, or texture. The “bulk” of the counter spaces adds to the weight of the display and can provide a unique and memorable effect. Creative use of counter spaces may take many forms.

The beauty of counter spaces, sometimes called “negative” spaces, is that they are the jewels that are already tucked into the letters…using them well is like discovering buried treasure. They were there all along, hidden in plain sight.

  

Project

Poster

Design Director

Jeff Wall

Company

SFMOMA

Designers

Amadeo DeSouza, Owen Hoskins, and Jeremy Mende

Client

SFMOMA

An aggressively broad and linear display typeface provides ideal windows (counter spaces) that enclose and encapsulate intriguing glimpses of still film frames. Each group of letters assumes its own chunky shape within a field of gray, suggesting the half-light of the theater.

  

Project

The Brand Union identity

Creative Director

Wally Krantz

Designer

Jaime Burns

Client

The Brand Union

The logo of this multinational branding firm is “built” of counter spaces. They chose this direction because the counter spaces “reflect our position of being master brand builders … in the process of building (not built).”

  

Project

Packaging

Design Director

Rick Davis

Designer

Louis Fishauf

Illustrator

James Marsh

Client

Niagara Vintners, Inc.

The image within the perfectly circular counter space of the zero allows us to enter a fantasy world of rolling hills inhabited by giant bees and tiny vintners.

  

3 Letterform details

SPECIALIZED DETAILING CAN COMMUNICATE apart from the literal message; whether customized or built in as alternate characters within a typeface, even a simple swash or ligature can add an extra level of meaning or make the design more specific to the message. Making something more interesting to look at, however, may interfere with legibility, so there must always be a balance between adding effects and maintaining a comfortable level of reading.

Letterform details have never been easier to alter or create: many typefaces, especially in the OpenType format (which allows for unlimited glyphs), have alternative swash caps and ligatures. They also allow the designer to open the glyph as a vector and alter its outline, making customized letterform details easy to execute. However, this function may invite designers to “tamper” with the original designer’s forms, and if they have not been trained in the rigorous and demanding specifics that good type design requires, the results may be unique but unfortunate to the trained eye.

  

Project

Identity

Creative Director

Matteo Bologna

Art Director, Designer

Andrea Brown

Client

Sant Ambroeus

Mucca’s design for a new Manhattan restaurant based on Milan’s patron saint (and with a history of almost seventy years in Italy) uses quirky custom typography to suggest an era. Odd widths (a lowercase m that is narrower than a lowercase s) and strange gaps (the capital A, combined with letters that tilt inconsistently) produce a charming eccentricity.

  

Project

Identity

Design Director

Paul Sych

Client

Gears Bike Shop

The letterform details of this customized logo suggest the turning of the gear shaft above the type. The simple device of a few curved lines within the letters adds a twisting motion effect.

  

Project

Book cover

Art Director

Robbin Schiff

Designer

Roberto de Vicq

Client

Random House

The superextended swash of the capital N connects the author to the title, but also adds drama to the simple typography. This cover design also uses counter spaces creatively, creating nested numbers in feminine colors with ethnic ornament (this is the story of a young Indian girl’s mathematical gifts).

  

4 Emotional content implied by the text

LETTERFORMS CAN AMPLIFY the emotional weight of the text. The delicate tracery of a flowing italic might best convey a poem about nature. The chest-thumping proclamations of a heavy slab serif might punch up a political pronouncement. The rational intellectualism of an old-style typeface might add credibility to a well-reasoned debate. The proper choice of typeface is therefore essential to the tenor of the message, and it may add to—or, if a poor choice, may detract from—the believability of the text.

Other factors play into emotional content. Rounded shapes and lighter weights might convey a more feminine touch, such as those used on most cosmetic packaging. The opposite is generally true for products appealing to a male demographic: these would typically have more weight, and be more squared off and “muscular” in appearance. The color of the type affects its emotional content, too. We think of warmer or more subdued shades as more feminine; primary colors as appealing to children; deep burgundies, forest greens, and navy blues as more masculine. Yes, these are stereotypes, but stereotypes exist for a reason and can be used very successfully to appeal emotionally to a specific audience.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Kristin Fitzpatrick

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

Six lightbulbs whose glowing filaments spell out the word energy embody the concept literally and figuratively. The colors and the approach used here give us a positive and warm feeling.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Kristin Fitzpatrick

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

Enormity of scale, festive colors, a bouncing beach ball to increase the contrast in scale—this is an example of a word that says “fun” even if you can’t read at all. Drop shadows add dimension, an n that is bouncing above the baseline, a tilted exclamation point—all of these details contribute to the lively effect. Here the counter spaces serve as vessels for introductory text.

  

Project

Website

Creative Director, Designer

Roberto De Vicq

Client

Roberto De Vicq

From the super friendly “hi!” in a charming spring green outlined typeface, to the designer’s flourished logo at the upper left, to the active multicolored labels and dancing type on the package designs at the bottom, we are immediately uplifted to a happier place when we land on this home page.

  

5 Historical connotation

TYPEFACES ARE A PRODUCT OF THEIR ERA. A good design may be well served with a historically appropriate typeface choice when possible. For example, traditional or old-style typefaces imply timeworn wisdom, authenticity, integrity. Another example is the circles, squares, and triangles underlying the design of geometric sans serifs—a response to the revolutionary zeitgeist of the Bauhaus—convey a feeling that is modern and sleek. The historical implications of typographic forms remain part of their essential identity, though they may be used quite effectively in a different era. The suggestion of a time period may be real or perceived. What matters most is how the reader will interpret the appearance of the type, and whether that interpretation will add to the reader’s comprehension of the content.

It is not always possible or even desirable to “match” the historical time span of a typeface to the text—many other factors may be more important. But it is a factor that the designer should at least consider when choosing type.

  

Project

The High Style of Dorothy Draper exhibition

Exhibition Graphic Design

Pure+Applied

Exhibition Design

Pure+Applied and Jennifer Turner

Photographer

Harry Zernike

Client

Museum of the City of New York

The high-style ’30s elegance of influential American interior designer Dorothy Draper is embodied in the faux-brush lettering of the exhibition title. A nice touch of italic on either side of the roman caps also reflects the style of the era.

  

Project

Visual identity

Creative Director

Harry Segal

Art Director

Shamona Stokes

Client

Townline Barbecue

The slab serifs and “corny” script play off one another to give us a sense of the Old West, a time and a place where barbecue is eternal. The display type is deliberately distressed to suggest a low-tech printing process; the two-color approach adds to a down-and-dirty effect.

  

6 Considering the medium

HOW AND WHERE LETTERFORMS APPEAR should be a clue as to a designer’s typographic decisions; the medium may dictate what constitutes a more legible type choice. Consider whether the text appears on a reflective surface (i.e., paper, billboard, environmental signage) or a light-emitting surface (i.e., a computer screen, a video screen, a tablet, or mobile device).

We can break it down further: if the medium is a reflective surface, is it designed to be viewed primarily while being held in the hand, at a typical reading distance, or is it intended to be viewed from a distance, and if so, what distance? Is the intended reader quite young, quite old, or visually impaired? (In these cases, a larger size and a highly legible typeface should be used—perhaps something with a larger x-height and more open counter spaces for increased legibility.) Is the surface glossy or matte or somewhere in between? If glossier, light reflections can interfere with reading, so the typeface might need to be larger or weightier.

If the medium is light emitting, there is typically a kind of “glowing” effect produced as a more pronounced light enters our eyes. This generally means that letterforms need to be sturdier and to have a bit more tracking applied to counteract the effects of the glow for optimum readability. As with reflective surfaces, the distance at which you intend the text to be viewed should be a factor in the type choice, as well as color, contrast with the background, size, and weight.

The medium may also be one in which the type is moving, and it may be moving in myriad ways: zooming in and out, fading in and out, flashing on and off, moving from one place to another, breaking up, reassembling—the options are endless. Here, timing plays a role, as well as all of the other factors mentioned. In any case, the medium must be considered when choosing all of the typographic aspects to best convey content.

Text in relation to the tablet size must be considered when making typographic choices.

  

Project

Brand Identity, Environmental Graphics, Digital Design

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Eddie Opara

Designers

Brankika Harvey and Pedro Mende

Web Designer and Developer

Chan Young Park

Web Developer

Jacob McDonald

Strategist and Writer

Rachel Abrams

Project Managers

Erin Wahed

Carrie Brody

Client

The Queens Museum

Environmental graphic identities must perform in all types of lighting conditions and even in all kinds of weather. Sturdy sans serif letterforms, illuminated from within and without, are a beacon for museum visitors.

  

7 Honoring dignity

ONE OF THE MOST ELOQUENT DEFENDERS of excellence in typography is Robert Bringhurst. In his seminal text The Elements of Typographic Style, Bringhurst frames the notion of honoring the dignity of the text in a twofold manner; briefly, it is this: the text (the content) is paramount, and all else exists to honor it, but letters also have their own life and dignity. Clarifying and ennobling “important” text is an honorable goal, to be sure. And even simple informational texts such as bus schedules and telephone directories deserve to be handled with typographic care and attention.

In a perfect world, all content would be worthy of being honored, but we know too well that a great deal of content is trivial, redundant, badly composed, witless, even despicable. What, then, is our responsibility to the text? How often have we seen film credits that were beautifully done, for films with no artistic merit whatsoever? How often have we seen a well-designed book jacket and been utterly disappointed with its contents? Or enjoyed an elegantly presented menu before discovering that the restaurant’s cuisine was inedible? As designers, we all make moral choices (is this worthy of my talent?) and practical decisions (will I lose my job/client if I turn down this assignment?), but one way to think about honoring the text is akin to the way defendants are treated under U.S. law: everyone is entitled to legal representation and a fair trial, innocent until proven guilty.

  

Project

Homepage

Company

FusionLab

Designer

Alon Koppel

Client

Architectural Digest

The simple geometric sans serif titling, isolated in its own stripe of tone, floats above the image much as the island of the image floats in the water. Its quiet forms act in harmony with the quietness of the sepia-toned image.

  

Project

David Rowland

Desktop and mobile website

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Kristen Ren

Client

Erwin Rowland

This historical tribute to the work of an innovative minimalist artist is typographically restrained and respectful, in keeping with his enduring designs.

  

Project

Charters of Freedom book design

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Bonnie Siegler

Client

National Archives

Documents of American history ask to be treated with dignity. This typographic treatment honors their importance and heritage.

  

8 The handmade solution

IN OUR INCREASINGLY TECHNICAL WORLD, there has been a huge backlash against the machine-made aesthetic. Handmade forms appeal to our humanity, and the enormous popularity of handmade objects reflects the do-it-yourself spirit of our times. Even large corporations are using hand-drawn letterforms (or typefaces that are designed to resemble hand-drawn letterforms, containing a panoply of alternate characters) to warm their chilly images. The MTV logo is an example of the renegade or counterculture aspect of hand-drawn letters, as is the psychedelic lettering that typified the ’60s, or the deliberately rough and exuberant hand lettering of the Moulin Rouge posters.

The handmade solution is a display-only solution, for the irregularity and quirkiness of form and material inhibits the legibility of text passages. But when used judiciously and with restraint, handmade letterforms can infuse the content with emotion.

Irregularity of handmade and hand-drawn typographic forms can be particularly effective in conveying qualities such as playfulness, originality, authenticity, rebellion, and spontaneity, or to signal an organic nature. These forms suggest that they were customized, created for a singular purpose, not intended to be replicated. These “personalized” implied aspects add to the perception of the content as unique, appealing to the reader in a more visceral way than any out-of-the-box typography. Thus the reader may be made to feel that the act of reading is more satisfying and creative, more personally touching.

  

Project

Theater poster

Designer, illustrator

Bülent Erkman

Letterer

Bilge Barhana

Photographer

Fethi Izan

Client

Kum, Pan, Ya Theatre Group

Rough script handwriting creates texture, shape, and “facial” framework for the images in addition to providing information. The hand-drawn lettering adds to the surrealist effect of the silhouetted eyes, lips, and eyebrows.

  

Project

Theater poster

Designer, illustrator

Eric Beloussov

Letterer

Dmitriev Nick

Client

Cultural Centre Dom

Flamelike hand-drawn typographic forms mass together in a red, white, and black palette to create an ominous and threatening look. A unified approach using scratchboard technique for both art and text offers a powerful example of how effective this approach can be; the intricately fitted, custom-shaped text blocks would have been impossible to create using conventional typography.

  

Project

Promotional poster

Designer

Norito Shinmura

Client

Yasei Jidai (“Wild Age”)

Publisher

Kadokawa Shoten Co., Ltd.

From a series of promotional posters, these letterforms are delightfully playful, crafted from a traditional children’s party entertainment of balloon toys. A careful examination reveals that the balloon forms are unique and varied, lending a charm and warmth that is appealing to one’s inner child.

  

9 Being expressive

A STRONG TYPOGRAPHIC PERSONALITY can be a very effective showstopper, as over the top as a designer chooses to make it. Any and all effects can be used to express the spirit and meaning of the text, including hand-drawn lettering, modified typography, and distorted or manipulated letterforms, as long as they are created in service of the content or to amplify the meaning of the text. In this mode of typographic design, there is no limit to a designer’s options (but this freedom can be dangerous in untrained hands!).

Like the handmade solution on the preceding pages, expressive typography is a display-only solution, because text type or body copy must be legible. Legibility is not as great a concern for expressive typography; however, depending on the solution, it most likely cannot be completely illegible, unless it is intended to stand solely as an image.

  

Project

Death from Above 1979

Company

Little Friends of Printmaking

Client

Wisconsin Union Directorate

Drawn in the same creepy-cartoon style as the illustration, the letterforms are squeezed within the mouth and teeth and become the focal point by playing off of the facial expression.

  

Project

Lemon Fresh Kids

Company

Alphabet Arm Design

Designer

Aaron Belyea

Client

Tim McCoy

The type is as “lemon fresh” as the title, with the added touch of the citrusy dingbats in the counter spaces.

  

Project

Cover story

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

The typographic treatment of the headline expresses disruption as the letters themselves are disrupted by coming apart. The effect is heightened by the strategic use of color.

  

10 Staying neutral

SIMPLICITY AND NEUTRALITY allow the text to visually say “no comment.” The maxim “cleanliness is next to godliness” is the theory behind this approach; the classic Swiss school of design typifies it. Neutrality possesses a cool elegance, which may be either classical or modern, depending on whether serif or sans serifs typefaces are used, and, of course, how they are used to contain the content.

Some designers find staying neutral to be a boring and banal exercise. The recently released Helvetica, a documentary film by Gary Hustwit, addresses the controversy over whether neutrality is a desirable characteristic or whether neutrality simply propagates anonymity and blandness. Helvetica is a typeface that exemplifies neutrality; this allows it to be used in many different contexts and to assume the identity of the brand, project, or product. Designers such as Massimo Vignelli believe that in its very neutrality, Helvetica is infinitely malleable and useful, while other designers such as Paula Scher see Helvetica as a representation of the facelessness and soullessness of big corporations and government.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Kristin Fitzpatrick

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

The unfussy typography of the title provides perfect counterpoint to the ornate patterns of these decorative teapots.

  

Project

Brand identity, environmental graphics, website design

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Eddie Opara

Designers

Brankica Harvey, Ken Deegan, Pedro Mendes, Andrew Mbiam, Jacob MacDonald, Ben Leonard, and Taylor Childers

Client

Grace Farms

This quiet lowercase type treatment allows the lush landscape to be the star of the brand identity. The typography takes a back seat to the imagery.

  

Project

Brand identity

Studio

Pentagram

Art Directors

Emily Oberman and Michael Bierut

Designers

Elliott Walker

Deva Pardue

Client

The Minneapolis Institute of Art

Packed and superbold sans serif letters convey a sense of importance and authority. The neutrality of a sans serif allows for a broad interpretation of the collection.

  

11 Considering background contrast

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEEN FOREGROUND and background totality is a key factor in legibility. The highest degree of contrast exists between black and white. Studies have shown that, while black type on a white background is highly legible, the same quantity of white type on a black background is harder to read. In large quantities, especially at text type sizes, there is a kind of “halo” or sparkle effect that impedes legibility and is actually uncomfortable to the eye.

As type color and background color come closer together in hue, saturation, and density, legibility is reduced. At a certain point where there is not enough contrast (and this point is a moving target, because it depends on many other factors, including letter weight, set width, stroke width, slope, and point size), legibility may be significantly impaired. The amount of text is a factor (a few lines might be less of a problem), the length of the lines or “measure” may be a factor, and the light conditions and paper surface may also be factors (see “Theory of Relativity I”).

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Kristin Fitzpatrick

Photographer

Gentl & Hyers

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

The opening spread has the same type style and size under the title, but the tint changes as the type position grows lower in the page. This is a graphic demonstration of the decrease in contrast and how it can affect legibility. In this case, legibility is not an issue because the type size is still sufficiently large (but if the page were viewed from a distance, the difficulty in legibility would be apparent).

  

Project

Feature spread

Art Director

Donald Partyyka

Designer

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

Black body copy on a white background is always highly legible. The byline of bold red sans serif text at a larger size on a white background is also highly legible. The deck, using the same size and weight of red sans serif, this time on a black background, is also quite legible, precisely because of its weight and size. Red text on black, or black on red, can be hard to read depending on its size and weight because they have a similar level of saturation.

  

Project

Tablet app

Studio

TischenFranklin

Design Director

Thomas Alberty

Digital Art Director

Tischen Franklin

Client

New York magazine

This screen-based tablet app uses the classic technique of black text on a white background for high contrast, ensuring legibility. It also employs some strong blue typography to pop out key phrases; this dark blue against a white background adds visual variety, adds entry points for the reader, and is also easy to read.

  

12 Emphasis using weight

STAYING WITHIN THE SAME TYPE FAMILY and simply varying the weight of the family member can signal a shift in hierarchy, even when the point size is unchanged. Changing the weight allows two words to be melded together, yet still retain their own identity without the use of a word space. Changing the weight within a single word can indicate a shift in hierarchy. Or, most commonly, heightening emphasis by using a heavier weight in a list, in a paragraph lead-in, or within the text without changing size is a simple yet effective tool. Depending on the typeface used, the point size may need to be slightly reduced to maintain an even typographic color of a passage of text. (See “Hierarchy using weight”.)

Weight emphasis keeps this piece visually stimulating despite its monotone palette. The justified block of typography indicates hierarchy with size changes in a few places, but also with a shift in weight where size remains the same.

  

Project

Phone app

Studio

TischenFranklin

Design Director

Thomas Alberty

Digital Art Director

Tischen Franklin

Client

New York magazine

This phone app screen makes good use of typographic weight to differentiate content. This principle is demonstrated both in the underlined text and in the emphasis of the headline over the subhead. They are the same size and style; the weight is the factor that creates emphasis.

  

13 Emphasis using contrasting weights

A BROAD FAMILY OF TYPE affords a wider range of options. Levels of hierarchy can be more subtle; this is sometimes necessary depending on content. A variety of weights can enable multiple entry points and offer more opportunities to establish hierarchy (order of importance). Typefaces that are flexible because their families offer many weights are most often sans serif, but modern type designers have developed serif and sans serif type families with an extensive range of weights. New releases of older typefaces often include a greater breadth of weights.

  

Project

Saving My Tomorrow

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Andrew James Capelli

Client

HBO

Two weights of a single typeface at several different sizes allow the design to emphasize key information.

  

Project

Type specimen

Art Director, Designer

Charlie Nix

Client

Terminal Design, Inc.

Regular, medium, bold, and heavy weights are commonly found in recently designed typefaces, such as Alfon by James Montalbano.

  

Project

Type specimen

Company

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

Designer

Jonathan Hoefler

Client

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

Whitney, a sans serif typeface, has six weights of roman with italic counterparts, and a full range of small caps.

  

14 Emphasis using size

BIGGER ISN’T ALWAYS BETTER, but it does get more attention. Size, especially when combined with a more prominent position (i.e., top), is a simple but effective way to emphasize a letterform. Even a modest change in scale can make a big difference. It is best to start small and scale gradually to see the effect the change makes, unless your goal is to shout very loudly (visually speaking) or to use the letterform as a design element that is not intended to function as a piece of text.

The effect of oversized text filling the entire frame of the cover is even stronger when using an extended set width and a slight color overlap. The text is bleeding off the edges and tightly leaded to maximize the text size.

  

Project

Single page

Consulting Design Director

Luke Hayman

Designers

Rami Moghadam and Mark Shaw

Client

Vibe

The combination of the large text V STYLE and the image create one strong, unified graphic.

  

Project

Book cover

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Bonnie Siegler

Client

Artisan Books

Using the full surface of the cover, the headline, subhead, and author’s name are magnified to fill the cover surface vertically and horizontally for maximum impact. The impact is further emphasized by using superbright colors (cyan, magenta, and yellow) on a black background, a nod to the CMYK printing process.

  

15 Emphasis using contrasting sizes

A BROAD RANGE OF SIZES is an easy way to indicate emphasis; however, other factors come into play (see “Theory of Relativity I”). Weight, size, and character width (compressed versus expanded, for example) can affect the level of emphasis as well.

The contrasting sizes of the words of the headline highlight the Why, the key word in the title.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Chloe Weiss

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

The emphasis is on BALANCE with a larger size of caps. The airy composition allows the shape of the artwork to hold court and to maximize the impossible balance of the peacock on the chair.

  

Project

Back, Back, Back

Company

SpotCo

Designer

Gail Anderson

Client

Manhattan Theater Club

The headline treatment of receding sizes of the same word creates a three-dimensional illusion of the ball traveling through space.

  

16 Proper smart quotes

THE INCORRECT SUBSTITUTION for typographers’ marks or “smart” quotes is probably one of the most irritating offenses in the world of digital typography. It seems to proliferate everywhere: the appearance of “dumb” quotes or prime marks in places that otherwise display high (or at least reasonable) standards of design. It is simple enough to correct, so we can only conclude that the neglect of smart quotes stems from a lack of understanding or poor typographic training. Smart quotes (sometimes called “curly quotes,” though they are not always curly) can be selected in the preferences menu of most design-related software. They are the quote marks (and apostrophes) that have been designed by the type designer to accompany the typeface. The only appropriate use of the default glyphs (dumb quotes) is to indicate the measurements of feet and inches.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Photographcer

Keith Dannemiller

Client

Americas Quarterly

The opening quote marks serve as art and, by overlapping the photo, serve to connect it with the text across the spread.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Carla Frank

Junior Deputy Art Director

Jana Meier

Photographer

Robert Maxwell

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

Smart quotes in display sizes are combined with brackets and a question mark to shape a lively ornate frame for the opening spread of an interview with an author.

  

Project

Opener

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

Proper smart quotes have been enlivened by changing color within the glyph.

  

17 The hyphen, the en dash, and the em dash

THESE THREE HORIZONTAL MARKS are often misunderstood and confused. The hyphen connects linked words and phrases and also may be found when a word breaks from one line to the next. An en dash (slightly longer than a hyphen but shorter than an em dash) is used to connect a range of numbers (i.e., 20–30). An em dash, the longest of these horizontal marks, is used to set off a separate thought or grammatical break within the text, and it is often used in tandem with another em dash at the end of the break. This is a generally recognized standard; however, Robert Bringhurst advises a more refined version of these rules: using spaced en dashes rather than em dashes (reserving em dashes to introduce speakers in a narrative dialogue) and using close-set en dashes to connect a range of numbers.

  

Project

Feature spread

Art Director

Arem Duplessis

Art Director, Designer

Gail Bichler

Client

The New York Times Magazine

The em dashes set off a separate thought; they look best with a generous space on either side.

  

Project

Stats spread

Redesign Art Director

Francesca Messina

Co-Designer

Amy Rosenfeld

Client

Businessworld

Number ranges show the proper use of en dashes, and word breaks show the proper use of hyphens. Em dashes are used to indicate a lack of data in the chart.

  

18 High contrast in reverse

REVERSING OUT OR “DROPPING OUT” type may be used to great effect, but it must be done with care at small sizes and with regard for the printing process of the final piece. Very fine serifs or hairline flourishes may “disappear” if over-inked on press, and the smaller the point size, the more likely this is to occur. Use high contrast in reverse sparingly with text type, as it can be difficult to read. Monoline typefaces (those with no variation between thicks and thins) and those which have at least a moderate stroke weight, with little or medium contrast between thicks and thins, work best in reversed-out type.

  

Project

The Mythic City: Photographs of New York by Samuel H. Gottscho, 1925–1940 exhibition

Exhibition Graphic Design

Pure+Applied

Exhibition Design

Pure+Applied and Jennifer Turner

Photographer

Agatha Wasilewska

Client

Museum of the City of New York

On the dark wall, light or white text stands out.

  

Project

Cover

Design Director

Scott Dadich

Photographer

Michael Crichton

Food Stylist

Nancy Midwicki

Client

Wired magazine

On a black background, all white type (and some pale green type), is eminently legible, even at small sizes. There are no fine serifs in this reversed-out typography and the weight and stroke width of the text holds its own.

  

Project

Sportdesign

Designer

Martin Woodtli

Client

Museum für Gestaltung Zürich

High contrast (and a large size) allows the foreground text to be readable despite overlapping a complex background.

  

19 Extreme scaling

IF YOU LOVE TYPE, YOU LOVE TO SEE IT writ large. Extreme scaling (especially when very large elements are used in contrast with normally scaled typographic elements) is a powerful tool in the designer’s arsenal. Almost every typeface assumes a whole new identity when used in gargantuan ways; like the faces on Mount Rushmore, the scale alone is so impressive that we don’t always stop to think about whether it is well-crafted artwork. Its size is enough to seize our attention.

The large number adds visual drama while also serving as an anchor for the black text.

  

Project

“Singuhr” — Sound Art Gallery at Parochial Church

Company

Cyan

Client

Kunst in Parochial E.V.

This poster for a jazz sound installation used large type forms to convey the idea of clear, distinct sound.

  

Project

Cover

Designer

Scott Dadich

Client

Hyperion Books

The book title does double duty as art; additional drama is created by bleeding the type off the edges (the parts of the letterforms that are cut off are not critical to legibility).

  

20 Heavy flourishes

WHEN USED IN MODERATION, such as a single letter or mark, elaborate flourishes create an effect of complexity, luxury, antiquity, or timelessness. Flourishes work best when paired with very simple typographic elements or design to counterbalance their ornate character. In expert hands, heavy fluorishes, such as those shown here, can work well. If inexpertly overused, heavy fluorishes can create spaghetti-like visual confusion.

This logo’s tight flourishes draw the viewer into a hypnotic spiral, visually reinforcing the word Addiction.

  

Project

Descendants cover

Art Director

Robbin Schiff

Designer

Roberto de Vicq

Client

Random House

This clever use of flourishes representing the “roots” of the letterforms amplifies the book’s theme of the family tree.

  

Project

Feature spread

Art Director

Arem Duplessis

Designer

Nancy Harris Rouemy

Photographer

Daniel Jackson

Client

The New York Times Magazine

The flourishes in the lettering reflect the shapes of the materials used in the dress opposite the headline.

  

21 Thinking like a typesetter

ALL TOO OFTEN, in today’s production-streamlined world, designers are also required to be editors and type-setters. So they must be extra vigilant about rooting out double spaces, especially after periods (these introduce unsightly gaps in the text); the use of spaces instead of tabs; extra tabs; and the incorrect use of the hyphen, en dash, and em dash (the use of the double hyphen as a substitute for the em dash is an all-too-common occurrence). Pesky “invisible” or “hidden” characters like paragraph returns, soft returns, and the like can cause untold misery if not discovered before style sheets are applied.

  

Project

Mobile app

Company

Joe Zeff Design

Client

National Geographic

Under each drop-down menu, apps like this one often contain a great deal of text material that must be free of common errors like those described above. If text is improperly formatted, production time will be affected.

  

Project

Infographic

Creative Director

Robert Priest

Designer

Jana Meier

Illustrator

John Grimwade

Client

Condé Nast Portfolio

This complex infographic containing stock prices, dates, and tightly tailored text blocks requires a great deal of typesetting skill to render the data clearly for the reader’s comprehension. When importing the text, it is imperative that the file be free from unnecessary tabs and spaces. Note the use of old-style numbers with upper- and lowercase text.

  

Project

Book design

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designers

Andrew James Capelli and Kristen Ren

Client

Blue Man Group

Black Dog & Leventhal

These text blocks and sections can be streamlined if style sheets have been properly created and applied.

  

22 Using display versions

TITLING AND DISPLAY VERSIONS of text type have been designed to look good at display sizes (i.e., above 14 or 16 point); specifically, they have been refined in their details, especially in the design and weight of their serifs. Text typefaces, when enlarged to display sizes, will have thicker details; this is because the letterforms need to hold their own in body type sizes. Thus (depending on the typestyle), they may not translate especially well when enlarged beyond their intended size range. Use titling and display versions whenever possible.

This condensed version of Bodoni would be inappropriate if used at text sizes; its tight counter spaces would make it difficult to read. This holds true for the sans serif type: it is too condensed for body copy, but fine for display.

  

Project

Book cover

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Barnes & Noble

The delicate terminal strokes of this headline would disappear at text sizes. The typeface has been tailored for display usage.

  

Project

Book cover

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Barnes & Noble

The finely wrought ligature between the c and the t of this headline would not be visible at text sizes. The typeface has been tailored for display usage.

  

Project

Type specimen

Company

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

Designer

Jonathan Hoefler

Client

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

Hoefler Titling is the accompanying display type for Hoefler Text, an old-style typeface with a very broad range of weights.

  

23 Using numbers

NUMBERS NEED SPECIAL ATTENTION. Numbers (more correctly called numerals or figures) often require extra spacing; this need increases as the point size and the length of the string of numbers grows. As to how much extra spacing, let visual harmony and consistent typographic color with the surrounding letterforms be your guide. You should also understand the difference between lining figures (or titling figures) and old-style figures (or lowercase figures). The former align with the capital letters and are therefore best used when the surrounding text is all uppercase. The latter are of mixed sizes (some with the equivalents of ascenders and descenders), the better to coexist harmoniously with surrounding text type in lowercase or with small caps.

  

Project

Identity program

Company

Mucca Design

Creative Director

Matteo Bologna

Art Director, Designer

Christine Celic Strohl

Client

Butterfield Market

The numbers in these business cards have been kerned in mixed ways (tight and open) in order to form columns; also, different weights and sizes have been mixed to create visual interest.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

George Karabotsos

Art Director, Designer

John Dixon

Illustrator

Julia Hoffman

Client

Men’s Health

Numbers (of deaths) and supporting text cleverly form the shape of a skull; contrasts in scale and color have been used to enliven the page’s design. Note the arrow as navigational aid and the mini table of contents at the top left. This fantastic construction of a skull created from multiple statistics employs numbers in a range of weights and sizes, along with dingbats and typographic “furniture,” to achieve its sepulchral effect.

  

Project

Admission brochure

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

DJ Stout

Designer

Daniella Floeter

Client

Loyola Marymount University Law School

Numbers in a variety of styles, weights, colors, and sizes are used here as graphic elements to compartmentalize and enliven a simple list. Changes of orientation add to the energy of the page.

  

24 Dingbats and pictograms

THE DERISIVE TERM DINGBATS refers to typographic glyphs or symbols that have no relationship to a typeface (unlike analphabetic symbols such as an asterisk or a dagger). Dingbats are often pictograms that represent pointing fingers, scissors, checkmarks, and symbols for objects such as a telephone, plane, church, etc. A font of dingbats functions as a typeface does—they flow with the text as it is moved or edited (which is why dingbats can be more useful than simple vector-based illustrations).

Dingbats form the wings and tail of the militaristic logo.

  

Project

Poster

Art Director

Michael Walsh

Designer

Gail Anderson

Client

School of Visual Arts

An unusual pattern of dingbats creates a mosaic background surrounding the text.

  

Project

Canadian Gala

Company

Hammerpress

Client

Bungalow Creative

Dingbats are used decoratively as a framing device in a monochrome palette and with display typestyles suggesting the Old West.

  

25 Theory of Relativity I

LETTERS EXIST IN RELATION to other letters. Therefore, every design decision is dependent on the specific set of circumstances governing the letter’s context. In other words, it reacts to, and should be considered in relation to, its design environment. This is what makes it so difficult to provide an immutable set of rules about type usage—every set of circumstances is different, if only slightly. Moreover, there are often many successful ways to get it right, but usually even more ways to get it wrong.

This complex spread contains a large amount of content; the text is carefully balanced with the other visual elements to fill the space comfortably, but not too tightly. Multiple levels of information hierarchy have been carefully tailored to keep the text distinct yet harmonious with the whole. Of particular interest are the centered captions sitting on a black bar, which point to elements in the center visual.

  

Project

Package design

Company

Mucca Design

Creative Director

Matteo Bologna

Art Director, Designer

Andrea Brown

Client

Sant Ambroeus

The centered text on these labels has many levels of information; the size, weight, and contrast of the levels of information have been carefully calibrated, and the spaces between the lines have been subtly manipulated to create separation while maintaining a cohesive vertical column of text.

  

Project

Exhibition design, film and motion graphics

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Natasha Jen

Designers

Graphic Designer and Type

Design: Jang Hyun Han, Exhibition

Designer: Melodie Yashar

Client

Storefront for Art and Architecture

This content-packed poster (one component of an exhibition design project) engages the reader with accessible and organized “info-bites.” The energetic presentation uses high contrast bold key words, a few images, and tons of text type contained in outlined “talk bubbles,” some of which are reversed out (white type on a black background). Note the many line spaces within the talk bubbles that break up large swaths of text type. All of the elements are carefully calibrated not to overwhelm the viewer, and to make serious material look almost playful.

Playful novelty faces are often deliberately ugly (but beauty is in the eye of the beholder). Here, the word weirdo is emphasized by a “weird” letterform and mismatched letterforms in the ribbon of text, appropriate for a book on lowbrow art.

Serpentine letterforms with uneven weights and vaguely sinister flourishes are oddly squashed together. They form a medallion, the appearance of which mirrors the artwork on the facing page.

  

27 Typographic abominations

THERE ARE SOME TYPOGRAPHIC FORMS that can be considered abominations: chief among these are any forms that have been manipulated or distorted for no good creative reason. This often happens unintentionally; inexpert users may not know how to constrain proportion using the resizing tools within their software when working with type. Or it may happen intentionally when users are not educated enough about type and try to squash or stretch type to fit into a particular space; this subverts the proportions crafted by the typeface’s creator and always results in ugly, mismatched forms.

  

Project

Baggataway

Company

Alphabet Arm Design

Designer

Aaron Belyea

Client

Rocky Batty

The logo shape is a container, which the text is shaped to fit inside. This modest distortion is deliberate and specific to this situation.

  

Project

Beyond the Red Horizon

Designer

Jakub Stepien

Client

Center for Contemporary Art in Warsaw

Similarly, although more simply, the type is used as art to suggest a sunset using depth, therefore the distortion serves a purpose and is executed skillfully. The small informational text supports the illusion, also receding into the distance.

  

Project

Poster

Company

Studio of ME/AT

Designer

Mike Essl

Client

Cranbrook Academy of Art

The key is the designer’s intention: stretching type to fit into a shape serves the design in this poster.

  

28 Hierarchy using position

LETTERS IN “PRIMARY” LOCATIONS receive visual priority. Upper areas are most prominent—the higher the better. With respect to horizontal positioning, statistics have demonstrated that focus groups have a slight preference for the right-hand side of the visible area over the left-hand side. So assuming all point sizes are equal, a higher-priority position indicates a higher level of importance.

The headline is very low in the page but because of its size, its position in the hierarchy is evident. Its placement also serves as an anchor for the truncated photo, a reason for their tight proximity. Note the prominent typographic “furniture” of vertical lines, which also contain text. This device runs throughout the multipage section and acts as a branding device, as does the small, stacked section logo in the upper left-hand corner of the page. Also note three different levels of emphasis and separation in the headline using color shifts.

  

Project

Covers

Art Director, Designer

Adam Fulrath

Client

Time Out New York

In this series (all on the newsstand simultaneously), the typographic elements are in identical positions and sizes on each; only the content and color differ. Though the headlines are vertically centered (i.e., not positioned at the top), their large size and boldness prioritize them over the mastheads and all other text.

  

29 Hierarchy using size

BIGGER IS BETTER. That is, size is a very important indicator of hierarchy. A major shift in size can trump position, if the point size is big enough. But point size is only one factor; another is weight (see following principle). A cautionary note: when layering type over image, texture, or other type, be very aware of the need to preserve legibility.

The same display type used in the headline is used much smaller in the subhead; the remainder of the text in the opening spread is neatly tucked into the remaining space.

  

Project

Venture Crush website and branding

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Kristen Ren

Client

Lowenstein Sandler

Strong shifts in weight and size give the viewer a clear sense of informational hierarchy. Note how the words VENTURE and CRUSH collapse down when scrolling to remain onscreen yet preserving display space beneath.

  

Project

Book cover

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designers

Andrew James Capelli, Kristen Ren, and Anthony Zukofsky

Client

Black Dog & Leventhal

Dramatic title display, followed by a much smaller subhead and author name, and a still smaller third line, use size effectively to indicate hierarchy. The shift in color from subhead to author name allows for a shift in content while the size, weight and style remain the same.

  

30 Hierarchy using weight

FATTER IS MORE VISIBLE. Letters that have wider stems and stroke widths have a stronger presence on the page. Weightier forms may supersede position and size as a determinant of hierarchy; however, typographic hierarchy is relative, therefore it depends on how weighty versus how big versus how prominently positioned (see “Theory of Relativity II”).

The electronic signage changes second by second but always retains a sense of hierarchy using typographic weight.

  

Project

What’s Out There: Images from Here to the Edge of the Universe

Company

Hopkins/Baumann

Creative Directors

Will Hopkins and Mary K. Baumann

Images

Nasa/JPL/Space Science Institute

Client

Duncan Baird Publishers

The stacked title employs weight as well as width to create a justified block of text; the word OUT is emphasized by its weight, though the letters are much smaller.

  

Project

Avoid One Thing

Company

Alphabet Arm Design

Designer

Aaron Belyea

Client

SideOneDummy Records

The logo and its legend both use a weight shift (and a shift in width) to separate and emphasize. Interestingly, the wider word ONE appears more prominent than the weightier words on either side, though the point size is the same, perhaps partly because it is centered.

  

31 Hierarchy using color

STRONG COLOR CREATES “POP.” While black and white provide the highest level of contrast, a piece of text in a burst of color can become more prominent in the hierarchy of elements that are present (depending on other factors such as size, weight, typestyle, and position).

The modest typography adds just a bit of color for emphasis; this is very effective because of the restrained palette of the spread.

  

Project

Great British Food

Design Director

Joseph Luffman

Designer

Joseph Luffman

Client

British Food Fortnight / The Type Museum

The entire joke rests upon the selective use of color in this poster to “reveal” a hidden message.

  

32 Hierarchy using contrast

HIGHER CONTRAST SEPARATES background from foreground. Separation can also be emphasized using outlines, hard drop shadows, soft drop shadows, and any combination of these effects. Especially when there is a complex background, whether an image or typographic texture, extra care must be taken to create sufficient contrast between the type and what is behind it.

A “faux” sign provides a strong background contrast for the text; an interesting mix of styles uses outlines and drop shadows to stand out.

  

Project

Cover

Company

Hopkins/Baumann

Creative Director

Will Hopkins and Mary K. Baumann

Designer

Wenjun Zhao

Images

Saturn: Nasa/JPL/Space Science Institute

Planets: Medialab, ESA

Client

Kids Discover

Hierarchy is created here using size and weight, but moderated by color. For example, though some of the text in blue is larger, the smaller text, some of which is in shades of gold and yellow, stands out more because its relative contrast against the background is greater.

  

Project

Brand identity

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Harry Pearce

Designers

Johannes Grimmond and Alex Brown

Project Manager

Tiffany Fenner

Client

The Old Vic

A single typeface with a single weight and width varies by three characteristics in this series of theater posters (part of a larger identity project): size, color, and outline. These factors determine the hierarchy of information. The type color contrast with the backgrounds are highest for the names of the productions, with “The Old Vic” always in white, against a strongly saturated background.

  

33 Hierarchy using orientation

DEVIATION FROM THE STANDARD BASELINE introduces the impression of motion and imparts dynamism to type. However, there should always be a design rationale for simply tilting a baseline; this technique alone is not a substitute for good design.

There is a feeling of playfulness in the swooping letters on this series of coffee mugs, each which change size as well as orientation, creating a sensation of depth and motion.

  

Project

Book series

Art Director

Lauren Panepinto

Designer

Lauren Panepinto

Client

Orbit Books

The powerful use of bold sans seif stands out, despite the vertical orientation of the titles. Running the titles and authors vertically allows space for a more powerful use of the artwork on this series of book covers.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Amy Rosenfeld

Art Director

Douglas Adams

Illustrator

John Hendrix

Client

This Old House

Bumps and lumps in the remodeling process are the subject of this story, and the typography reflects the chaotic voyage in its off-kilter title treatment.

  

34 Hierarchy using special effects

WITH THE ADVENT of easy-to-use effects palettes in commonly available design software, it was inevitable that the result would be the overuse of special effects in typographic design. However, when properly deployed, these special effects (such as beveling, debossing, glows, feathering, etc.) may be very useful and striking, elevating a simple typographic design into memorable imagery.

The concept of “transforming” for an art exhibition, reflecting political, cultural, and economic transformation in Russia and Poland, finds its visual solution in the realm of special effects; the typo-graphy is bursting forward from the perspective of a deep central point.

  

Project

Cover

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

A layered 3D rendering visually represents high technology. It is clearly the most prominent headline on the cover; the subhead is dimensionalized but much smaller and positioned lower. The letters TECH are deeply dimensionalized and highlighted, each is unique, which suggests that a variety of technologies will be addressed inside.

  

Project

All About the Money

Company

Thirst

Designer

Rick Valicenti

Client

ESPN/Thirst

Bling carried to an extreme and dizzying digitally enhanced degree is the force behind this “diamond-encrusted” headline.

  

35 To kern or not to kern

THE SHAPES OF LETTERS come from a variety of sources (Greek, Roman, Phoenician, Hebrew) and therefore are not inherently designed to fit together. In our digital world, type designers embed kerning pairs in their typefaces, which usually work well at the text type level (subject to adjustments to the hyphenation and justification settings, which can be customized by the designer). When type is used at a size larger than text size (above 14 point), small disparities and deviations in the spaces between the letters become more evident, and it is the designer’s duty to rectify these by adjusting the kerning manually. Certain combinations of letters require more adjustment than others. In every case, the object is to create optically consistent kerning.

Going against the conventional expectation of optical consistency (where extra space would have been added between narrow vertical letters), the Billboard logo has been tightened instead, even touching the rounded shapes and tucking the d under the r. This tight kerning makes for a unique mark and has the added advantage of allowing the long word to be as large as possible, bounded only by the cover’s border.

  

Project

Nectar Wine Bar

Company

Alphabet Arm Design

Designers

Aaron Belyea and Ira F. Cummings

Client

Jai Jai Greenfield and Eric Woods

Very open kerning of this logo suggests the spaciousness of open flowers, supporting the hummingbird illustration.

  

Project

Cover

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

The letters of the headline have been customized to allow super-tight kerning for a powerful and punchy effect.

  

36 Type as image

ONE OF THE JOYS of working with letterforms is their uncanny ability to be shaped into images. For designers who enjoy “playing,” typographic forms in all of their infinite variations are like a gigantic set of Legos, building blocks that allow us to create images that speak to viewers both as visuals and as text.

Likenesses built from characters using a single font are a charming use of type as image.

  

Project

Stacked cover

Art Director

Amy King

Designer

Roberto de Vicq

Client

Bloomsbury

For this book cover title, text and image become one as the customized letterforms are tucked together to form the shape of a brassiere.

  

Project

Restaurant identity

Company

Mucca Design

Creative Director

Matteo Bologna

Designer, Illustrator

Steve Jockisch

Client

Teplitzky’s

Customized letterforms have been stretched and lit (parts of a series of restaurant menus) to make them function as illustrations as well as literal text.

  

37 Three-dimensional type

WHETHER BUILT IN A DIGITAL 3D environment such as Maya, or whether hand-drawn, physically constructed, or implied by drop shadows, three-dimensional type lends extra weight and impact to a typographic design. Depth and bulk help type stand out in three-dimensional spaces such as those in environmental and exhibition graphics, but they can also enhance print and digital projects.

Exhibition signage for concrete in new architecture has depth and shadow; the segmented letterforms represent the forms built to shape poured concrete.

  

Project

The College Issue opener

Art Director

Arem Duplessis

Deputy Art Director

Gail Bichler

Designer

Hilary Greenbaum

Illustrator

Emily Dwyer

Client

The New York Times Magazine

Stacked textbooks form the title; a few extras are scattered about for scale; they also suggest the clutter of a typical dorm room.

  

Project

Single page: The Sixth Annual Year in Ideas

Art Director

Arem Duplessis

Art Director, Designer

Gail Bichler

Client

The New York Times Magazine

Three-dimensional type from A to Z serve as illustrations for this annual round-up of the year’s most innovative ideas, those that have “shaped” our world.

  

38 Repetition

A POWERFUL WEAPON in every designer’s arsenal, repetition works equally well using typographic form. Repetition creates emphasis and mass; it can be used for pattern or texture as well as for impact.

  

Project

Environmental graphics and campaign for Shakespeare in the Park

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Paula Scher

Designers

Tammy Shell, The Public Theater

Kameron Neal

Margalit Cantor (this page)

Dora Godfrey (opposite page)

Collaborator: Kirstin Huber

Client

The Public Theater

The most recent project in a decades-long partnership between Paula Scher and The Public Theater, these graphics make the most of heavy repetition of critical design elements: typography, color, imagery, and supporting graphic elements. They are instantly identifiable both as an annual iteration of the Shakespeare Festival’s identity and as a long-running series.

  

39 Deconstructed type

PIECES OF TYPOGRAPHIC FORMS have a beauty all their own. They can be used as ornament, as navigational devices, as pattern. Something old may attain an entirely new look when its parts are disassembled, reassembled, or partially assembled.

A design festival was branded with a deconstructed pattern of letterforms in vermillion and reversed bold lowercase type.

  

Project

Identity

Company

Pentagram

Designer

Michael Bierut

Client

Saks Fifth Avenue

Splitting apart the long-standing script logo of the legendary department store, varying iterations of black-and-white patterns were applied to every possible surface, including store awnings and window displays.

  

40 Vertical stacking

OFTEN DONE FOR THE SAKE OF CONVENIENCE or because of ignorance, vertical stacking is generally inadvisable. Because different letters have significantly different widths, centered vertical stacking creates ugly shapes with neither vertical nor horizontal alignment. A much better solution is simply to turn the type on its side so that its baseline remains intact (this helps the reader, too). However, as with all rules, this rule, too, can be successfully broken.

This clever headline treatment vertically “skewers” letters colored to look like vegetables ready for the backyard barbecue.

  

Project

Book design and exhibition design for “Revolution of the Eye”

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Abbott Miller

Designers

Jesse Kidwell, Yoon-Young Chai, and Jaeyoon Kim

Client

The Jewish Museum

Taking artistic license to create a tall shape works here because, even though the word Revolution has been broken up, it is the only possible interpretation of the word fragments.

  

41 See the shape

WITH CENTERED ALIGNMENT, or with any ragged edge, “bad rags” can be a problem. Always look for a balanced rag, one that does not inadvertently create a shape. When deliberately creating a shape from type, a skilled designer will fill the shape with type in such a way that its texture is consistent, without gaps or heavy spots. (See “Theory of Relativity II”.)

The sands of the hourglass, shaped by using letters as sand, illustrate a story on aging.

  

Project

Poster

Design Director, Designer

Joseph Luffman

Client

Carluccio’s

A map of Italy for a food purveyor is built from the names of Italian dishes. Because the letters are all caps, they can be tightly stacked; a compressed letterform creates visual bulk; different sizes and orientation are used to vary the texture and create separation without extra spaces, so the shape can be tightly constructed.

  

Project

Poster

Art Director

Gabriel Benderski

Designer

Gabriel Benderski

Client

Gabriela Pallares

The 3-D effect of this poster typographically reflects the subject of the documentary, the British architect Norman Foster.

  

42 Using cases

MAJUSCULES ARE MAJESTIC. Minuscules are modest. Uppercase and lowercase letters (so called because they were kept in separate drawers of the typographer’s “case,” or cabinet) have distinct purposes. Capital letters, as they are also known, speak loudly, while small letters are quieter. Again, everything is relative; very lightweight uppercase letters in a simple sans serif might speak more quietly than a chunky slab serif lowercase. Everything depends on proportion and the mix.

These completely lowercase labels in playful colors are warmly appealing. The lowercase is informal and approachable.

  

Project

Tablet edition

Creative Direction

Joe Zeff Design

Client

Kids Discover

Cases are flipped here, as the enormous bold sans serif headline clearly dominates all other text in caps in the left panel.

  

Project

Cover

Creative Director, Designer

Vanessa Holden

Photographer

Ellen Silverman

Client

Real Simple

Though the magazine’s logo is in caps, the cover employs simple, modestly sized lowercase cover lines; unlike many magazines, it does not wish to “shout” visually. The core of its mission is to calm and reassure the reader.

  

43 The rule of three typefaces

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM HOLDS that most projects require only three typefaces, or, more precisely, three type families. All situations may be handled quite thoroughly with good compatible choices of the following: a good legible serif, a simple sans serif, and a display typeface (usually a serif typeface that has the refinements not usually found in a serif text type). The available variations in weight, slope, and width should be more than adequate to handle the needs of the content. The primary benefit in this approach is the likelihood that, by limiting the typefaces, compatibility and harmony will be maximized.

This complex page of type creates a compatible whole by using a serif appropriate for body copy, a condensed sans serif for contrasting body copy, and a slab serif for display. Each of these serves its own purpose, yet is harmonious with the whole.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Robert Priest

Designer

Jana Meier

Photographer

Matt Hoyle

Client

Condé Nast Portfolio

A finely detailed serif designed for display is used with a serif typeface for body copy, accented with a limited use of sans serif. All of the needs of this content are adequately served by these three choices.

  

44 Mixing many typefaces

TYPOGRAPHIC CACAPHONY CAN BE APPEALING when in the hands of a skilled designer (otherwise, it can be a nightmare of conflicting forms). Mixing many typefaces works best when there are extreme differences in the type choices; this implies intent and control underlying the mishmash. When mixing typefaces within a document, bear in mind that, as always, each choice should serve a specific need and must exist in a harmony and balance with other typefaces. It is never a good idea to use different typefaces for no good reason.

The title, encapsulated within the silhouette of a head in profile, alludes to the content: this book contains portraits of literary figures made entirely from type characters, one font per portrait. A mosaic of dingbats surrounds the silhouette; these, too, are used for portraiture in the book.

  

Project

Acoustic Showcase poster

Designer

Lauren Panepinto

Client

Electric Plant

An irregular collection of pencils serves as text placeholders for an invitation; because each pencil is different in function and style, the typeface used on each pencil is different. The multiplicity of typefaces works because each is confined in its own space and shape.

  

Project

Special section opener

Company

The New York Times

Art Director

Wayne Kamidoi

Illustrator

Lorenzo Petrantoni

A highly organized cacaphony of typography, tiny shapes and images form a tightly crafted whole. This image is deliberately intense. It’s typographic nuances invite and reward deep inspection.

  

45 Mixing type using contrast, weight, or color

BUTTING LIGHTWEIGHT LETTERS up against heavyweight ones, or changing color, while using one size within a single type family allows words to be combined that might otherwise need a letter space. Within a single word, two (or more) ideas can coexist yet also be separate, with distinctly different emphasis. This is a display-only design solution that has been used successfully in many arenas.

If the needs of the content can be served with the use of different members of a broad-based type family, it is almost always better to do so. If the content requires something more for its full expression, then and only then is it desirable to introduce additional faces; as they like to say in government, it is on an “as-needed basis.”

Although a single weight of display type is used for the cover lines, emphasis and levels of hierarchy are achieved through variations in color and size. Despite the light weight of the type, the high contrast with the background ensures legibility.

  

Project

Advertising campaign

Creative Director

Johanna Savad

Art Directors

Michi Turner and Shamona Stokes

Client

The Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions

The two title words can coexist without a word space because they are differentiated by weight. These ads have a great deal of visual energy; a single type family is employed.

  

46 Mixing typefaces using historical compatibility

TYPE DESIGN REFLECTS ITS ERA, so multiple typefaces within a single project should be historically compatible, i.e., designed within a similar time frame, or a revival from that time frame. Another method for choosing typefaces that are historically compatible might be to choose from the designs of a single type designer. As with all type choices, the faces should work with the content; historical considerations are not the only factor.

Dolci Biscotti packaging was designed using various Victorian-era typefaces that were scanned from old type books and redrawn.

  

Project

Package

Art Director

Louise Fili

Designers

Louise Fili and Chad Roberts

Illustrator

Graham Evernden

Client

Late July

The Late July package was inspired by early twentieth-century cracker packaging. Everything was hand lettered, including the net weight copy.

  

Project

Barker & Mills cocktail cherries

Art Director

Lauren Panepinto

Designer

Lauren Panepinto

Photography

Lauren Panepinto

Client

Ryan Barker

A wonderful mix of vintage typefaces, this package design perfectly evokes a golden age of mixology. The crosshatched sans serif type and classic red-and-black-on-ivory palette hearkens back to the era of the general store.

  

47 Familiarity breeds legibility

LEGIBILITY IS PARAMOUNT in most type-driven projects, so be careful to choose typefaces with design elements that are easy for the reader to grasp immediately. Many typefaces, because of their frequent usage and wide availability, have especially recognizable features and proportions. Readers should be able to “decipher” the letterforms within a split second. As with all things, our comfort level is determined by previous experience.

Clarity in text and display type, combined with spacious margins, make this an easy read.

  

Project

Tablet app

Studio

Joe Zeff Design

Client

The Final Hours of Tomb Raider

This screen of The Fall of Tomb Raider’s tablet app uses a highly legible sans serif typeface to convey clear on-screen instructions for usability and play.

  

Project

Phone app

Studio

Brobel Design

Client

UCLA Anderson

This phone app (there is also a tablet app) for Admit Preview Day at UCLA Anderson has text in bright color-coded bars that are consistent throughout the app, thus easy to navigate. A clean and legible sans serif completes the ease of use.

  

48 Properly weighted small caps and fractions

PROPORTION IS KEY when using small caps and fractions. Shortcuts to their creation provided by design software may seem easy, but any comparison of “fake” small caps or slapped-together fractions with the real thing will immediately reveal the difference. Properly weighted small caps are slightly wider and slightly weightier in addition to being shorter; this allows them to exist harmoniously within the tonal density of the surrounding text. Similarly, properly weighted (and constructed) fractions are also slightly wider and slightly weightier, and the spaces on either side of their slashes are calibrated by the type designer to match the spacing in text type.

Small caps in the gray subhead match the weight of the surrounding lowercase text. Note the use of the em dash, with a comfortable space on either side of it, to set off the final thought. Also note the levels of emphasis created by an italicized name (the subject) and a roman name (the author), as well as the shifts of slope, size, and color in the all-lowercase headline. The shape enclosing the headline is a “devilish” play on the lowercase g of the word green, with its tail and horns (and halo).

  

Project

Type specimen

Company

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

Designer

Jonathan Hoefler

Client

Hoefler & Frere-Jones

This type family from Hoefler Frére-Jones was designed with a broad spectrum of properly weighted small caps and fractions for the specific tabular uses that require them, such as stock quotes.

Old style numbers and groups of capitals can disrupt the consistent typographic color of a body of text. By reducing their point size slightly, consistent color can be restored.

  

49 Using the right type

FINDING THE RIGHT TYPE is just as important as finding the right soul mate. Every project embodies a spirit, and choosing the right type for the project will amplify and clarify its spirit as well as its message. Depending on the design challenge, there may be more than one or even many “right” choices. Understanding what is to be communicated and to whom should help to navigate the vast universe of available typefaces.

Wispy, ornate ribbons of text, smoky and indistinct, strike the right emotional notes for this sexually charged play; they provide a literal counterpart to the illustration and are gesturally linked by the uplifted arm and the downward sloping D.

  

Project

Package

Company

Mucca Design

Creative Director

Matteo Bologna

Art Director

Andrea Brown

Designers

Andrea Brown and Ariana Dilibero

Client

Domaine de Canton

The ribbed container and the bamboo-inflected type details suggest the ethnic origins of this product: Indochina.

  

Project

Cover

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Design Director

Wyatt Mitchell

Art Director

Carl DeTorres

Illustrator

Yoichiro Ono

Client

Wired

The cover art and display type are the right pop-culture approach to depict Manga, the graphic cult of Japanese comics.

  

50 Theory of Relativity II

WORDS EXIST IN RELATION TO OTHER WORDS. Therefore, every decision that is made, whether style, size, weight, width, color, or contrast, must take into consideration all of the other words (and all of the other elements) on the page or screen. Every design decision, no matter how small, has an effect on every other aspect of the design. Changing the scale of one word may necessitate adjusting the scale of another, and not necessarily by the same percentage. The more elements there are, the more complex the equation becomes (but unlike mathematics, where there is only one answer to an equation, designers may find many successful answers to the same problem).

Theoretically, this design violates many rules, especially type overlapping complex images and the ninety-degree type rotation, but because of the delicate balance of elements, it is an elegant piece of design.

  

Project

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation desktop and mobile website

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designer

Kristen Ren

Client

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation

A precise balancing of typographhic elements overlays images of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. The site’s logo acts as an anchor to the pull-down menu at the left of the screen and the horizontal copy extending from it at the top. There is a sense of structural elegance, appropriate for an architect’s site. Each typographic element exists in a clear relationship to the other elements.

  

Project

Thalia Theater media

Designers

Friederike Kuehne, Jana Steffen, Martin Jahnecke, and Bastian Renner (students), Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design Halle

Professor

Anna Berkenbusch

Client

Thalia Theater

The raw energy of this design uses effects that might not work elsewhere to its advantage: the lack of margin and gutter spaces, overlong lines of dense text overlaid on a strong field of color cutting though the lines, and text covering the eyes of the image. It is clear that these choices have been made intentionally, and that they support one another.

The whisper of type on this logo suggests the subtleties of illumination for this lighting company.

  

52 Highly evident typography

HIGH-IMPACT TYPE is like high-impact aerobics: it gets your heart rate pumping, and fast. Type can be aggressive, loud, and even harsh; it screams out for attention. One of the attributes of highly evident typography is its ability to create balance when paired with a strong image; together, they send a powerful message.

Highly geometric and abstract letter shapes cluster and overlap, filling the title page and providing an exuberant counterpoint to the supporting text elements. Their bulky strength balances the powerful monochrome silhouetted figure on the opposite page.

  

Project

Calea Nero d’Avola

Art Director

Louise Fili

Designers

Louise Fili and Jessica Hische

Hand Lettering

Jessica Hische

Client

Polaner Selections

Referencing early twentieth-century Italian poster design, the typography was used to convey a lively mood. Its ornate forms push up to the very edges of the label and are tightly surrounded by a vaguely floral ornamental border.

  

Project

Can’t Jump Rope

Company

Studio of ME/AT

Designer

Mike Essl

Client

Grand Valley State University

Muscular forms heavily outlined and shadowed in black pack even more of a punch than the images.

  

53 Less is more

SIMPLICITY HAS AN UNDENIABLE APPEAL to a time-pressured and overworked reader. A type treatment that promises to be “quick and easy” is just what the doctor ordered. Type that has minimal detail, has highly legible letterforms, and is floating in a good-sized space feels like a breath of fresh air even before we choose to read it.

The exquisitely rendered image is clearly the star of this jacket; the headline quietly allows the fish to take center stage. Even the choice of black for the text is restrained.

  

Project

Life at These Speeds book cover

Art Director

Henry Sene Yee

Designer

Lauren Panepinto

Images

Imagebank, Getty

Client

Picador Books

Floating in the blank space between two images and tracked out to feel airy, the type on this book cover is deceptively simple. It sucks us into its “black hole” while simultaneously reassuring us that we will be safe.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Randall Leers

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

Floating calmly in a sea of bright yellow, the text is low-key lowercase with a twist: a typographical wink at sex.

  

54 More is more

A SMORGASBORD OF CONTENT served up to the reader feels bountiful, and the urge to overstuff ourselves is ever so tempting. A plethora of choices competing for attention may deter timid or tired readers, but its main advantage is that this approach offers many opportunities for the reader to find something of interest. This is the theory behind magazine covers with many layers of cover lines, and newspapers that display as many stories as possible on their front pages.

Photographer

James White

  

Photo Editor

Michael Norseng

Photographer

Jake Chessum

Esquire’s jam-packed cover typography treatment was almost revolutionary when it first appeared; because it is so typographically different from all of the other covers on the newsstand, it defined its own niche and became an instant classic.

  

Project

Covers

Art Director, Designer

Donald Beekman

Illustrator

Donald Beekman

Client

APE

A lively and intense mix of stories fight for attention on these charmingly illustrated magazine covers. While staying within a limited color and typographic palette, these jostling and unconventional cover lines convey a sense of youthful fun, and the idea that a great deal of content is waiting inside for the reader.

  

Project

Blue Man World book design

Studio

Eight and a Half

Art Director

Bonnie Siegler

Designers

Andrew James Capelli and Kristen Ren

Client

Blue Man Group, Black Dog & Leventhal

A mass of words covering the surface of the spread and bleeding off the edges, combined with an electric palette, sweeps over the viewer like a saturated force of nature.

  

55 Letter spacing and word spacing

THE INTERTWINED RELATIONSHIP of the letter and the word dictates that any decision to alter spacing between letters requires a similar adjustment in the spaces between words. In almost all software programs, this proportional relationship is automatically accomplished. There is also a relationship between the width of letters and the word spaces required for the eye to distinguish the end of one word from the beginning of the next; the narrower the letterform, the less space the eye requires.

Columns of type that are set justified will have uneven word spacing in order to accomplish the alignment; good typesetting will minimize that disparity as much as possible. At text-type size settings (up to 12 or 14 points), preset kerning pairs and automatic word spacing will look fine. But at display type sizes, word spacing and letter spacing (kerning) will most likely need additional small but critical manual adjustments to look optically correct.

The condensed letterforms used here don’t require much space between words in order to be legible.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director, Designer

Dirk Barnett

Illustrator

Serial Cut

Client

Blender

Tight overall tracking and minimal word spacing is fairly common (especially in design aimed at young adult readers), so very minimal word spacing is enough to separate words sufficiently for quick comprehension of text type.

  

56 Hyphenation and justification

H&J, AS IT IS ALSO KNOWN, is one of the more complex areas of typesetting, and much greater detail about this topic can be found in technical manuals and online. Suffice it to say that today’s page layout programs contain sophisticated hyphenation and justification controls, which can be adjusted to suit the end user’s preferences. The goal is to have a texture and “color”, or overall tonal weight of type, that is easy to read, invites the reader to read, and is pleasant to behold, without excessive or repetitive hyphenation.

  

57 Tracking guidelines

NOT TOO LOOSE AND NOT TOO TIGHT: tracking should feel “just right” (in the words of Goldilocks as she fell asleep in the baby bear’s bed). Tracking refers to the overall or global adjustment of letter spacing within a word, a line, a paragraph, or a passage of text. As in all things typographic, the goal is consistency in the appearance of the text. Therefore, it is generally best to practice restraint in tracking, so that there appears to be little difference between the text that has been altered (tracked in or tracked out, as the case may be) and the text that surrounds it.

The even and highly legible tonality of the text columns look consistent throughout; this is the gold standard of well-set body copy.

  

Project

Visual identity

Company

Alphabet Arm Design

Art Director

Aaron Belyea

Designer

Ryan Frease

Client

Tennessee Hollow

This logo has tight tracking of its wide letterforms and is slightly curved; its strong horizontality provides a counterpoint to the (vertical) plant above it and the roots below it.

  

58 The “color” of the text type

TYPOGRAPHICALLY, the word color describes the density or tonal weight of the text type as a texture on the page. It is the goal of all good typographic designers to create an even or “smooth” texture. There should be no bits of text that stand out, either because they are too gappy (too loose) or overly dense (too tight). Watch out for irregularities in typographic color that may occur due to many long words within a line, type measures (line lengths) that are too narrow, when overzealous tracking has been applied, or some combination of these situations.

The color of this text is affected by the airier than usual leading and the relatively heavy vertical strokes of the typestyle. Its color is even throughout; especially because it is set rag right, the word spacing is consistent.

  

Project

Tablet app

Studio

Joe Zeff Design

Client

Kids Discover magazine

The “color” of this text is experienced in reverse, white on black. But the same principle applies: this text has an even appearance, with a consistent texture and no obvious gaps.

  

Project

Book design for ‘Alma Thomas’

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Eddie Opara

Designers

Brankica Harvey and Shannon Jager

Client

The Studio Museum in Harlem

The spread demonstrates typographic “color” in both the larger text at left and the two paragraphs on the right.

  

59 Considering typographic mass

WALLS AND BLOCKS OF TYPE can be assembled to great effect: discrete units of type look organized and have heft within their design environment. The text within the blocks may vary in size, weight, width, and even typestyle, as long as the mass looks intentionally assembled.

A list of names is separated by slashes to form a textured block balanced opposite a textured block of op art.

  

Project

Brand Identity and exhibition design for “Ferrari: Under the Skin”

Studio

Pentagram

Art Director

Marina Willer

Designers

Hamlet Auyeung, Stuart Gough, Ian Osborne, Jake Clewis, Marta Gaspar, Sthuthi Ramesh, Leon Hapka, James Falconer, and George Edwards

Collaborator

Paul Zak

Client

The Design Museum

Tightly stacked typographic mass creates high drama for this exhibition at London’s Design Museum celebrating the 70th anniversary of Ferrari.

  

60 Pattern, gradation, and texture

TYPE INVITES INTERVENTION and experimentation. With sophisticated software, patterns, gradations, and textures are all relatively simple to try. Layered type has a fascination all its own, even if it is completely unreadable. It’s reminiscent of everyone talking at once. Because we know there are thoughts, words, and phrases, it seems more meaningful than a pattern of any other kind, even if we can only glean a snippet of meaning here and there. Gradations offer another method to dimensionalize type.

The cover lines form a block of ’60s-style groovy letterforms; behind Shakespeare’s (hipster-modified) head is a wonderful pattern of “psychedelic” text.

  

Project

Illustration

Art Director

Jennifer Daniels

Company

Studio of ME/AT

Designers

Mike Essl and Alexander Tochilovsky

Client

The New York Times

The word is formed as a pattern of computer icons.

  

Project

Double Take

Design Director, Designer

Quentin Walesch

Client

Royal College of Art, London

Layered, reversed, translucent text areas are interleaved with highly legible information.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Art Director

Carl DeTorres

Illustrator

Mario Hugo

Client

Wired

Large and small gradated and highly abstract text blocks appear throughout the magazine and contribute to its visual identity. When so many magazines tend to look alike, this typographic device is one element that separates Wired from its competitors.

  

61 Basic leading principles

A GOOD RULE OF THUMB FOR TEXT TYPE is to add two extra points of leading. This creates a good comfort level for extended reading. However, when the typeface has strong verticals in relation to its horizontals and serifs, it will do better with a bit more leading. Extra leading adds some air between the lines and allows the eye to more easily distinguish the end of one line from the beginning of the next. The best way to determine how much leading you need for a particular passage of text is to set a good chunk of it with slight variations in leading. Even an extra quarter of a point can make a difference.

Whether two or three columns, this format has sufficient leading for good legibility. This text is also highly legible due to its size, stroke width, and weight (strong typographic color).

A comparison of these two columns of text makes it clear at a glance that extra leading, especially when lines are long, makes for a more comfortable reading experience. Tight leading makes it more difficult for the eye to return to the next line from the end of the line above.

  

Project

Editorial spread (shown here as a vertical image)

Design Director

Blake Taylor

Designer

Blake Taylor

Client

Inc.

Each text block is fairly short and self-contained, so a standard leading treatment (two points more than the point size) is fine. Look closely and you will see that in a few instances the leading is more compressed, however, legibility is not a problem since the text blocks are fairly narrow and have a limited number of lines.

  

62 Optimum line lengths

TWENTY PICAS IS A GOOD LENGTH to aim for when designing text type. Another common method for good legibility is to keep your measure between fifty-two and seventy characters per line (spaces and punctuation count as characters). This ensures that there will be enough words (and therefore word spaces) to accommodate justified type comfortably. Again, everything is relative, so optimum line length may vary based on typestyle, leading, tracking, and even the texture and tone of the printed surface.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Design Assistant

Soni Khatri

Client

Esquire

This page (with its abundance of typographic “furniture”) adheres in most places to the legibility guidelines for typographic measure. In two places, it violates those guidelines, but does so successfully: in the left margin, the callout has fewer than twenty characters per line, but the lines have been carefully ragged and tracked. And at the bottom of the page, the number of characters per line far exceeds the maximum number of recommended characters, but, because there are only two lines, legibility is not problematic.

  

63 Increasing leading

SPACE BETWEEN LINES (LEADING) should be increased if the measure (line length) increases beyond the optimum range, or if the letterforms vary even slightly from a highly legible text face (designed to be read in quantity at small sizes). Even Bodoni, with its strong vertical strokes (in comparison to its horizontal strokes), may require a bit more leading to compensate. Increasing leading, even slightly, aids the eye in finding its place when it cycles back from the end of one line to the beginning of the next.

The longish introductory quote is more legible (and more elegantly presented) with extra leading.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Client

Americas Quarterly

This airy text block has extra leading in keeping with the spacious graphic treatment and the other elements on the page.

  

64 Tightly stacked lines

DECREASING LEADING and purposefully allowing ascenders and descenders to touch or even overlap should never be done with extended passages of text, but this can be used as a design device in limited quantities. Tightly stacked lines of capitals may be used to create a typographic mass without the worry of tangled extenders, but again, this is best when used only for a small quantity of text. Tightly stacking lines works against legibility, so care must be taken to employ this technique with restraint. When estimating just how much legibility may be affected, it is best to err on the side of minimally decreased leading.

Tightly stacked and justified main cover lines are the hallmark of this cover aimed at older women; despite letters that touch, the text is eminently legible, partly due to differentiating each line with a distinct color. The touching lines set this text block apart from the other cover lines; this was intentional because the main lines contain the magazine’s mission statement rather than highlighting specific content.

  

Project

Environmental graphics

Company

Pentagram

Art Director

Michael Bierut

Client

Museum of the City of New York

Part of a rebranding of the museum, this staircase was filled with quotes and images about New York City. The quotes are in a variety of weights of Titling Gothic, and they are all caps, and justified. The stacked lines and scale variations create drama and high impact in this vertical space.

  

65 Indicating paragraphs

THE MOST COMMON METHOD of indicating paragraphs is, of course, the indent. What is a matter of some debate is the length of the indent; however, at the very least, a minimum of one pica is needed to distinguish a new paragraph. A longer indent may be desirable depending on the column width. Other options include a line space between paragraphs—or somewhat less than a line space so there is less of a gap between lines and when scanning the text for color (one problem with this is that baselines will not align, and column lengths will vary). Another method is to set the copy so that the first line of every paragraph extends beyond the left-hand margin (also known as outdents). A more unusual method that preserves the flush look of the text block is to use paragraph ornaments to indicate new paragraphs.

The opening text block’s first paragraph, set in a larger point size than the story that follows, begins with an extreme indent (it aligns vertically with the headline). Its second paragraph is indicated with a paragraph symbol in red, so that the text block can remain unbroken.

  

Project

Department page

Studio

Jeff Griffeth Creative

Creative Director

Jeff Griffeth

Designer

Jeff Griffeth

Client

Hallowed Ground American Battlefield Trust

Ornate drop caps initiate text blocks while short paragraph indents indicate subsequent paragraphs.

  

Project

HotHouse exhibition catalog

Company

Studio of ME/AT

Art Director

Lucille Tenazas

Designer

Alexander Tochilovsky

Client

Cranbrook Art Museum

All lines are flush left with no indentations; paragraphs are indicated with line spaces. This works well with text that does not contain many short paragraphs and when there is sufficient space to accommodate line breaks.

  

66 Initial caps and drop caps

INITIAL CAPS MARK THE BEGINNING of a chapter or an article; drop caps may be used throughout the text to mark logical breaks in the text and to provide entry points for the reader. Drop caps may continue the style of the initial cap or be a variation of it. Drop caps and initial caps continue a long tradition that dates back to the earliest illuminated manuscripts (which often had entire scenes depicted within the counter spaces of the letterforms). There are many options for drop caps and initial caps: partial or full indents, partial or full outdents, tops flush with the body copy, baseline alignment with the first line of body copy, baseline alignment with any body copy, and baseline within the depth of the initial cap (these last two are called raised drop or initial caps). Some text does not lend itself well to an initial cap; most common are opening paragraphs beginning with a quote mark or punctuation, or when opening paragraphs are too short to accommodate the height of the cap.

The initial cap is partially contained within the opening paragraph, and the wrap hugs its diagonal leg. Its vertical position matches the capital A in the headline, a nice touch of alignment.

  

Project

Feature spread

Design Director

Carla Frank

Designer

Erika Oliviera

Client

O, The Oprah Magazine

The initial cap sits partially within the text block and links into the photo; the top of its middle crossbar “kisses” the image. It intrudes upon the image, as does the pull quote at the top of the page.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Photo Editor

Ramiro Fernandez

Photographers

Nicolas Villaume and Aurora Seleet

Client

Americas Quarterly

This unusual version of an initial cap sitting on top of and aligning with the text column allows it to be scaled up; as an outline, it is lightweight and does not interfere with the overlapping headline.

  

67 Opening paragraphs

THE APPEARANCE OF THE OPENING paragraph is as important as its content in drawing the reader into the text. There are myriad interesting ways to accentuate an opening paragraph that signals the beginning of a long passage of text. Some of these design directions may involve a different column width, a different point size (or mixing point sizes), leading, changing case, or some combination of the above. Small caps may be used as a transition from the initial drop cap to the body copy within the opening paragraph.

An upside-down pyramid of text combines with the subhead, title, and byline to give an illusion of depth, tying in nicely with the facing photograph’s runway perspective.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Robert Priest

Designer

Jana Meier

Photographer

Chris Jordan

Client

Condé Nast Portfolio

This L-shaped opening paragraph “hugs” the following text; its slightly larger point size and wider leading, together with the bold lead-in and the large initial cap overlapping the text, leave no doubt as to where this story begins. Note the red paragraph indicator dingbat, which allows the text block to appear “solid,” i.e., without a paragraph break that would not have filled out the space.

  

68 Orphans and widows

THESE REMNANTS ARE CARELESS and represent inattention to typographic niceties and detail. A good typographic “color” on the page is interrupted when a word or word fragment is alone on a line at the end of a paragraph or column (known as a widow) or, even worse, at the top of a column or page (known as an orphan). The reason an orphan is even worse than a widow is that it not only creates a gap in typographic color, but it also disrupts the horizontal alignment across the tops of the columns of text.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Dean Markadakis

Designer

Jana Meier

Client

Fast Company

Using a format with wide column measure means that partial line gaps left by widows are even more noticeable, so extra attention must be paid to filling out lines with text. This type-dense page with a wide measure carefully avoids widows and orphans.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Design Assistant

Soni Khatri

Client

Esquire

The typographic color of this page is unbroken by widows or orphans. Note the presence of many rules, both double and single, color bars, elements that break out of the grid, and tiny directional arrows.

  

69 “Rivers” of space

GAPS THAT MOSEY THROUGH A PARAGRAPH of justified type link visually to form “rivers” of unsightly space, thereby ruining the evenness of tone (typographic color) of the text. The most common cause of rivers is a narrow column width combined with longish words. When the type is justified, word spacing increases to create the aligned edges, and when there are not enough words in a line to accommodate this adjustment comfortably, large gaps will occur. This decreases legibility; it is also a typographic eyesore.

  

Project

Inside page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Design Assistant

Soni Khatri

Client

Esquire

Mixing a variety of column widths skillfully, the text blocks on this page all have fine typographic color with no unsightly gaps or rivers.

  

70 Eschew decorative type

SIMPLE, CLEAN, BASIC TYPESTYLING can be beautiful and effective; it is not necessary to embellish information in order for it to be appealing to the reader. Indeed, there is much to be said for leaving the bells and whistles to the display type, or to eliminate it altogether. Serious content is better served with a straightforward approach, and most informational text is best when treated simply. This creates good counterpoint: any accompanying images will be unencumbered by “noisy” typography.

Spare lines, minimalist typography, and plenty of wide-open spaces advance the architectural theme.

  

Project

Visual identity

Company

Remake Design

Design Director, Designer

Michael Dyer

Client

Art in General

Clean sans serif headlines and text are quietly authoritative.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Audrey Weiderstein

Art Director

Donald Partyka

Client

The Arthritis Foundation

A simple, justified text column, a subtle size shift leading into the body copy, and a modest headline treatment are appropriate for this serious medical information.

  

71 Celebrate decorative type

WHY NOT TAKE ADVANTAGE of all of the wild and wacky typefaces out there? Designers love to play, and decorative typography can be just the ticket to create something that is unique and memorable. Even a few splashy flourishes can demonstrate typographic virtuosity—a little “solo” or aria in the midst of sobriety might be just the touch that separates a design from its competition. Or a designer can choose the exuberant approach: pile on the style elements for effect—no limits to the excess!

Spot-varnished black-on-black typographic flourishes form a deep dark woods; in the “forest,” we find a justified and underlined block of tightly packed text, an atmospheric frame for a spooky narrative about Halloween.

  

Project

Doyald Young Has Perfect Curves @80

Designer, llustrator

Marian Bantjes

Client

Marian Bantjes

A paean to fellow flourish-meister Doyald Young, this celebratory composition uses fluorescent inks for the roller-coaster ride of a message.

  

Project

Cover

Company

SpotCo

Art Director

Gail Anderson

Designers

Gail Anderson, Darren Cox, and Bashan Aquart

Client

STEP Inside Design

A collaged panoply of display forms, the cover provides engaging foreplay for a special issue on type.

  

72 Text overlapping images

LEGIBILITY ISSUES come into play when type overlaps images: the image demands our attention. To make the type stand out, type size and style, contrast with the background, and stroke weight all contribute to the important separation between the background and the foreground. Laying a few words of display type over an image can be complex enough, but where some designers go wrong is laying a quantity of text type over an image—this is sure to make reading a difficult task.

These covers demonstrate some good techniques for making sure that type is legible when overlapping complex details and many levels of contrast. The type must have enough weight and be large enough to stand apart from the images, but that is not always sufficient. A combination of outlines and hard and soft drop shadows provide separation and “lift” the text visually forward from the images.

  

73 Text overlapping text

THE KEY TO SUCCESS when text overlaps text is differentiation, whether by scale, background and foreground contrast structure, or size. Again, legibility is paramount, so the designer must make certain that the overlap doesn’t muddle the meaning. Separation can be accomplished using the same tools as just described for text overlapping images, but if all of the text is meant to be read, it is more difficult to maintain legibility than when part of an image may not be visible, however, its effect is still obvious.

Transparent letters representing chromosomes overlap and are bisected by the headline. This is a perfect marriage of meaning and type treatment for a story about hermaphrodites.

  

Project

Poster

Company

Pentagram

Designer

Michael Bierut

Client

Yale University School of Architecture

This poster uses a slicing technique with spaces running through the oversize text; the great disparity in size (the large type is still legible) makes this work. The bold slab serif provides visual punch and structure.

  

Project

Poster

Designer

Joe Marianek

Client

The Public Theater

The densely patterned backdrop of typography provides a strong, yet lively ground for the titling text (a weight slab serif) to be fully legible in reversed-out type.

  

74 The text block effect

WORDS BEG TO BE CLUSTERED TOGETHER to form chunks. One of the many arrows in a designer’s quiver is the text block effect: look at the content and see how it can be packed inside a rectangle or square, aligned on all sides. Sometimes this can be accomplished by keeping the text all one size; other designs require massaging point sizes and varying weights and widths to achieve a solid shape. These efforts work best when the text is a single typestyle or type family.

Multicolored headlines stack up, interwoven with mini-illustrations, and are a lively static counterpoint for the “hair-raising” cover image.

  

Project

Social media announcement

Art Director

Vera Naughton

Designer

Vera Naughton

No worries here about type families conflicting—using only one typeface (Helvetica Condensed) in light, regular and bold weights assures visual unification on the project; color and size add variety and hierarchy.

  

Project

Public Architecture

Creative Director, Designer

Jeremy Mende

Client

Public Architecture

Clean, balanced running text and contact information in all one size, style, and weight are headed up by the company name to form a tidy block, with contact info highlighted in red.

  

75 Theory of Relativity III

ALL TYPOGRAPHIC ELEMENTS within the paragraph have a relationship of each to every other, and all to the whole. The reader must see a clear hierarchy and elements must be legible. For a designer, balancing all of the typographic elements is one of the greatest challenges. Even slight adjustments in text characteristics (tracking, size, color, weight, slope, etc.) can clarify content.

A balanced, centered layout with elegantly fine-tuned typographic details, this single page packs information densely yet effortlessly. The small caps lead-in to the body copy is simple, yet it creates a clear entry point and does not compete with the restrained flourishes in the headline. Shifts in weight, case, and color clarify content and hierarchy in the player identification and the copy block below identifying the judges.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Dean Markadakis

Designer

Jana Meier

Photographer

Howard Cao

Client

Fast Company

This spread contains a great deal of information, and its elements all support one another. For example, the serif weight on the initial cap matches the weight of the horizontal bar with dropout type, which introduces the sidebar. The black and yellow of the dotted rule is repeated in the dingbats illustrating the sidebar. The three-column, justified format has good weight and even color, and provides enough entry points to make certain the reader feels invited into the text.

Complex stories need special clarity, not only in the legibility of the text type but also in every text element on the page. Providing mini-headlines, keying caption information using numbers or other identifiers, and highlighting important concepts all provide good service to the reader.

  

Project

Tablet app

Creative Direction

Joe Zeff Design

Client

A History of Ireland in 100 Objects

A single justified column of a roman (book) weight of sans serif with generous margins provides a comfortable on-screen reading experience. Generous leading, margins, and sizes are even more important for legibility of screen-based media (light-emitting devices).

  

77 Legibility taking a back seat

THERE ARE REASONS WHY legibility might not be a designer’s primary concern. When type is treated as an image, it can communicate on a different level. Type can be manipulated or used in such a way that it is difficult or impossible to read and still play a pivotal role in the reader’s understanding of the text.

This artist’s appearance was clearly the inspiration for the opposite text treatment; a youthful audience of music lovers will undoubtedly be more interested in appearances than content (as it takes a great deal of effort to decipher this text).

  

Project

Lateral + Vertical

Design Director

Jeremy Mende

Designers

Amadeo DeSouza, Steven Knodel, and Jeremy Mende

Client

American Institute of Architects, California Council (AIACC)

This poster for a design conference does provide some basic information, but it must be searched out amid the woozy graphics; since the readers are likely an audience of designers, they are probably willing to make the effort.

  

Project

Poster

Company

Henderson Bromstead Art Co.

Client

Triad Health Project

The text is so embedded in the gridded imagery that we can scarcely make it out, but it is repeated at the bottom left. The poster is coveted as memorabilia from the event, but it “pushed the decorative envelope,” says the designer.

  

78 Limiting typefaces

WHEN WE CHOOSE DIFFERENT TYPEFACES to work side by side in the same document, every pairing has the possibility for conflict; do these typefaces, designed by different designers, from different historical classifications, with different characteristics, work together? Is there really a need for each of them, i.e., do they perform essential functions? Is there enough difference between them to justify employing them? These are some of the questions that designers must ask themselves. Too many (unnecessary) choices can result in “type soup.”

This project uses just one condensed display typeface, always in the same weight and always all caps. The choice works well with the very lengthy dinosaur names, allowing the text to have a large x-height and presence on the page.

  

Project

T-shirt

Art Director

Aaron Belyea

Designer

Chris Piascik

Client

Big Honcho Media

One typeface does double duty when filled with a pattern.

  

Project

Book cover

Art Director

Roberto De Vicq

Designer

Roberto De Vicq

Illustrator

Roberto De Vicq

Client

Memoria Visual

No worries here about type families conflicting—using only one typeface, PF Regal, assures visual unification on the project; color and size add variety for a lively and fun effect. An especially charming detail: the use of different colors within single letters.

  

79 One type family

SOME TYPE FAMILIES ARE BROAD and contain within them a hearty bounty of options, useful for a wide variety of typographic needs. And the inherent benefit to sticking with one family is that the type designer has already created a harmonious grouping of proportion and shape. We do not need to guess whether these variations belong together; they are designed to be familial and therefore comfortable with one another.

A text-weight slab serif is used for body copy; weightier versions in the family are employed for display.

  

Project

Battle of Amsterdam 2008

Creative Director, Designer, Illustrator

Donald Beekman

Client

Amsterdam City Council

This lively graphic campaign uses just one family. Note the green-on-green background pattern of letterforms.

  

80 Six necessary typefaces

THE MORE TYPOGRAPHIC CHOICES WE HAVE as designers, the harder it is to practice restraint. But imagine a time when typefaces were made of metal, and they were so laborious to produce and to use that the choices were very limited. It is reminiscent of the early days of broadcast television, when a few networks had a monopoly on our viewing attention. Now, with digital and cable television technology available almost everywhere, with hundreds of choices, we often feel there is nothing of interest to watch. Similarly, a few typefaces may be all we really need in our repertoire.

Some well-known and highly regarded designers have advanced the argument that perhaps as few as six typefaces might be enough for every possible design contingency. Those typefaces would certainly include widely used and highly recognizable classics such as Caslon, Garamond, Baskerville, Helvetica, Futura, and Gill Sans. Depending on the designers and their personal preferences, the six typefaces might vary somewhat (but the notion of six “necessary” typefaces should be considered a viable one).

Bodoni and Gill Sans—two of the typefaces on most short lists—are on this cover.

  

Project

Exhibition design

Design Director

Jill Ayers

Designers

Rachel Einsidler and Christine Giberson

Client

The One Club for Art & Copy

The entire exhibition was done with Futura, one of the six useful typefaces that would make even a minimalist’s cut.

  

81 A need for every typeface

NO MATTER HOW BIZARRE or how extreme its forms, somehow, somewhere, there is a purpose for every typeface under the sun. The tricky part is knowing where and how to use a typeface for the very purpose that suits it. The vast universe of available typefaces can be daunting when searching for just the right style to advance the meaning of the text. Ideally, an appropriately designed typeface will do dual service as an image and to convey information. The best typographic designs advance the message on many levels. Some display faces are so specific that they almost demand a unique use, and to try to force them into doing and saying something that they were not meant to do is practically impossible.

The typeface, custom-designed for this project, intended to capture the feeling of paper unfurling. Haug calls it, “a study of the interaction between light and paper, and the transformation of a 2-D to a 3-D object. The poster originated through a joined effort between Steve Rura and myself. We took turns drawing and redrawing letterforms until we achieved the right balance between the visual consistency of a typeface and the looser, less predictable qualities of curling paper.”

  

Project

Guide for Living 2008

Designer

Jianping He

Client

Publikum Calendar

The typeface for this calendar page emulates stenciled spray-painted graffiti-style forms; the numbers merge seamlessly with the asphalt signage embedded in the imagery. This is perhaps the only perfect use for these letterforms.

  

82 Text typefaces versus display typefaces

TEXT TYPEFACES HAVE BEEN DESIGNED with legibility and beauty as their twin goals. Most text typefaces have stood the test of time and usage as appropriate for lengthy passages of text under a variety of reading conditions and with the expectation of a broad reader demographic. Display typefaces, designed less urgently for legibility (although some are eminently legible), are more about style, so the level of legibility may be very minimal. But their raison d’être is a unique stylistic expression of content.

This body copy is both legible and beautiful, not only due to the letterform details, but also in the way the text has been set. The proportions of the column width, leading, and margin spaces all contribute to the harmony of its presence on the page.

  

Project

Cover

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Design Director, Designer

Wyatt Mitchell

Illustrator

The MarkMakers

Client

Wired

Letterforms that have been chosen to emulate data are a fine display choice for the cover, but they are appropriate only for use at large sizes and with a limited amount of text.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Dean Markadakis

Designer

Jana Meier

Client

Fast Company

This excerpt from a story about a type foundry shows text type is used for the body copy, with a sidebar infographic about the creation of Neutra, a display typeface.

  

83 Organized entry points

READERS ARE BESET BY DISTRACTION, and unless they are highly motivated, they will take the path of least resistance (which might mean ignoring the text completely). Much has been written about the decline in attention spans and the competition for attention from all sides. So the successful typographic designer will offer up an appetizing smorgasbord of options for the reader, offering many places where the text may be entered and consumed in bits and pieces that can be easily digested. This layering and compartmentalization may also signal that there is something for everyone: more perceived value because there is a lot of content constrained in a confined space.

Spectacular in its complexity, this four-page cultural survey section pulls off a tour de force of organized entry points by using a mixture of strong grids, the restraint of two colors, and the simplicity of two type families. Segments include an intro, seventeen infographics, and eight sets of survey quotations, plus all of the attendant credits and other “utility” text. Subtle changes in width, weight, and slope, as well as the use of small but essential chunks of white space, demonstrate a masterful handling of detail and an awareness of how readers enter and absorb the content.

The delicate interplay of hierarchy has an important role: relationships of bold and light, roman and italic, small and large, and caps and lowercase should faithfully represent the relative importance of the content. Typographic hierarchy cues the reader to evaluate the content in relation to the whole. Variety in typographic presentation is the key to directing the reader to pierce the typographic veil. Even modest adjustments in size, weight, width, color, and slope can signal shifts in the content to provide entry points. Overall balance must be maintained simultaneously, making these pages among the most complex to design well.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Designer

Donald Partyka

Designer

Cathy Yun

Client

Americas Quarterly

Eighteen different sizes, styles, weights, and colors of type populate this deceptively simple single page. The overall effect is clean, compartmentalized, and organized, so readers may easily enter the text at many points and choose bite-size info bits. Infographic options include a map, a poll with percentages, sound-bite quotations, and a pie chart.

  

84 Systematizing hierarchy

WHEN A DOCUMENT HAS A REPETITIVE hierarchy, an important function of the design is to make that hierarchy clear to the reader. The trick is to make the system work in all possible iterations within the document. The designer must assess all of the text and identify the worst-case scenarios (usually in terms of length) to make the hierarchy systematically cohesive.

A menu can be a tricky piece of design; many levels of hierarchy must be identified and fit into a fairly compact, yet highly legible form. In addition, the typical low lighting of a restaurant environment may present a challenge to the reader.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Design Assistant

Soni Khatri

Client

Esquire

This formatted monthly magazine page uses a flexible grid to accommodate more than a dozen pieces of text. Every month the vocabulary changes, but the complex repetitive hierarchy is always apparent to the reader through shifts in weight, case, size, and style. Note this example of “the rule of three typefaces”; even using only two colors, there is a wide range of possible typographic effects.

  

85 Using justified type

ALIGNMENT OF THE LEFT AND RIGHT SIDES of the column, known as justified type, imparts a cool, clean, considered look to the text. It is a more formal and even a more authoritative look, so this convention is highly favored for books and newspapers but less so for magazines and other documents, which may use a mix of justified and unjustified type within their pages to indicate different types of content formats. If not well planned and tailored during editing, justified type has the potential to be “gappy” between words, as typesetting software adjusts the word spaces to achieve justification (see Hyphenation and Justification.) If there are too few words in a column, there may not be sufficient opportunities for the software to apportion the spaces in a way that will retain an even typographic color throughout the passage of text.

Using only two colors and an uneven column grid, this layout uses justified type to create a clean edge around the infographic and as a way of balancing special blocks. Note the use of an off-center headline and subhead to create counterpoint, and the centered text above the infographic to set it apart from the body copy.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Robert Priest

Designer

Jana Meier

Client

Condé Nast Portfolio

This second spread creates counterpoint to the formality of justified columns by intentionally misaligning them vertically and slicing through the columns and the gutter with a callout.

  

86 Using flush-left, rag-right type

THE COMMON ALTERNATIVE to justified type is flush-left type: since we read from left to right, it is important, especially for reading long passages of text, that the eye of the reader can return to an easy-to-locate place when beginning every line of text. The added advantage of this unjustified type alignment is that the word spaces are consistent, unlike those of justified type, thereby aiding legibility.

The more informal flush-left format works well for this letters page and with the demographic of the audience. Note the use of blue and black “bullet” shapes echoing the letter shapes of the headline display type; they work as content bearers and as navigational symbols.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Design Assistant

Soni Khatri

Client

Esquire

Another example of the recurring monthly page shown earlier, the flush-left format is more restrained within all of the typographic “furniture” (rules, bars, sidebar tints), so the irregular edges formed by the rags appear contained.

  

87 Using centered, asymmetrical, and flush-right type

THESE LESS-COMMON FORMS of alignment are fine when used with limited quantities of text. The flush-right setting may be a good choice for a caption that sits to the left of a photo, so there can be a neat column of space between image and text, for example. Centered text works well with announcements, as long as there are not too many line turns for the reader to navigate, and as long as the line breaks occur logically. With centered or asymmetrical text, the designer should turn the lines for sense and appearance, with an awareness of the shape of the ragged text. Try to avoid line breaks that create a shape (unless that is the designer’s intention—for example, type that fills a polygon).

The shape of the fruit in the illustration is reprised in the shape of the type. Note the headline’s stylistic reference to early fruit box labels.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director, Designer

Steven Hoffman

Client

Sports Illustrated, The Baseball Book

This complex mix of lists is well crafted using a combination of centered, flush-left, flush-right, and justified type. Note its subtle use of rules and typographic hierarchy (weight, slope, case, size) to clarify the text.

  

Project

Holiday card

Company

We Made This

Design Director, Designer

Alistair Hall

Client

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Transport, Environment and Leisure Services

This asymmetrical arrangement works in two ways: first, when the fold is closed, the title reads The Snow and the Frost; second, the line breaks amplify the cadence of the poetry.

  

88 The multicolumn text grid

GRID SYSTEMS FORMATTED TO CONTAIN TEXT and images can take many forms and be multifunctional. They should be flexible enough to accommodate all possible situations in the case of a complex document or project. Grids are invaluable in organizing text and other visual elements and in creating a comfortable environment for the reader. Depending on the size of the vessel (page or screen) and the size, leading, and weight of the text, multicolumn grids may contain as many as twelve columns (as in the well-known grid used by Willi Fleckhaus for the German magazine Twen) or as few as two columns. The width of the column may vary, but principles of legibility (optimum line length and character count) should be observed.

The end of one story in a three-column format and the introduction of a second story on the same spread are neatly separated by the use of a new column grid for the second story (as well as a tint box, with the clear beginning indicated with a large initial cap, large weighty title, and red cap leading into the body copy).

  

Project

Spread

Studio

Jeff Griffeth Creative

Creative Director

Jeff Griffeth

Photographer

Vath Sok

Client

Hallowed Ground American Battlefield Trust

The two sidebars depart from the standard three-column page grid to accommodate related but distinct content. Note that the second column of the tinted sidebar aligns with the column above to preserve visual organization.

  

89 The uneven text grid

AN INTERESTING TREND that goes against conventional practice is the use of uneven-width columns on the same page or within the same story. This is a step beyond the opening paragraph treatment, and it can be seen in a number of mainstream high-circulation magazines that are breaking out of the usual formats with some hits of “subversive” typography.

Adding a bit of extra interest to the page, this short piece of text exists in two distinct column widths. Note the extra-wide white space to the right of the narrower column and the super narrow column under the broken, overlapped, and stacked headline “Jargon Watch” at right (that headline is as much a piece of art as a headline; it adds a wonderful color blast topping off the column, which has no other room for art).

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Design Director

Wyatt Mitchell

Designer

Margaret Swart

Photo Editor

Zana Woods

Photo Assistant

Sarah Filippi

Photography

Jeff Mermelstein

Client

Wired

This one-pager creates some extra visual interest by using a text block (in a larger point size but with a tighter leading to match the leading of the rest of the story) that is wider and wraps around the remainder of the text, plus an outsized initial cap floating in white space, aligned with the top of the text block.

  

90 Typographic “furniture”

THE TERM FURNITURE IN TYPOGRAPHY refers to all of those bits and pieces that support and separate the text elements: rules, boxes, dotted and dashed lines, ornaments, and the like. These may represent signature elements for a recurring publication or project, or they may help form an important structure for the content. They can be decorative or functional, or both. Column rules and scotch rules in particular seem to go in and out of fashion—they are generally considered more traditional; however, they may also be used in an untraditional way.

Thick horizontal bars and strong column rules position the text in space and create a muscular structure for the story. At bottom right, “scotch rules” frame the pullquote. Interestingly, the page design pictured within the page also exhibits the use of thick horizontal rules as typographic furniture.

  

Project

Editorial spread

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Designer

Kathy Yun

Client

Americas Quarterly magazine

Typographic furniture is used here to create the illusion of tradition, as in the style of an old dictionary. The discreet use of ornament, the modern caps, traditional typefaces, the en dashes on either side of the letters of the alphabet, the column rules, and the boxes framing the pages all contribute to the effect.

  

91 Decks, callouts, and pull quotes

THESE FUNCTION AS ENTRY POINTS to the text for the reader who is still undecided about whether to commit to a complete article or passage of text. They can be playful or dramatic: this is a chance for the designer to take some liberties and create some typographic focal points that leap out of the background textual tonality of the content. Callouts and pull quotes may be lifted out of their context within the text and repositioned to maximize the page design, or they may be left in place and highlighted; either way, the quotes should be carefully chosen to represent the best of the body copy.

Stacked repetitive large words are certainly a way to draw the reader in; on the opposite page, the pull quote is made more interesting by shifts in typographic case, slope, and color (as well as the use of an illustration). Note the use of text overlapping an initial cap to indicate a break in the story.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Robert Priest

Designer

Jana Meier

Photographer

Matt Hoyle

Client

Condé Nast Portfolio

The treatment of the deck of this opener is quiet and surreptitious, as befits the imagery and the headline treatment.

  

92 The “birth and death” of the text

JUST AS WE ARE BORN AND WE DIE, so the text begins and ends. Mark these seminal events well; regard the text as a discrete entity and plan its unfolding as you would a lifetime. The birth and death of the text should be related to one another visually. Some of us lead boisterous, flamboyant lives; others, lives of quiet simplicity. As always, evaluate the nature of the content and make your typographic decisions accordingly.

The elegant text treatment elevates the content of this book and is consistent from beginning to end.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Donald Partyka

Illustrator

Chris Lyons

Client

Americas Quarterly

This related family of stories has repeating elements that link them together as a package. The type treatment is fitting for the serious content, which aims at influencing political policy makers.

  

93 Chaos versus order

OPPOSITES ATTRACT AND CAN COEXIST. Sometimes we crave structure; other times, we want nothing more than to break free from that very structure. As long as the designer’s intention is clear, either approach may work well—or, in some cases, both can work together, playing off one another. Type, whether it’s individual letters or passages of text, has the plasticity to accommodate chaos as well as the inherent structure that allows it to be well organized.

An infographic of methods, mentors, places, and graphic movements that influenced the artist is a masterful blend of organic organization. Its items are contained within a free-flowing and rococo framework that is orderly, yet wild.

  

Project

Feature spread

Art Director

Arem Duplessis

Art Director, Designer

Gail Bichler

Client

The New York Times Magazine

Here we can see order on one side, disorder on the other, achieved solely through the creative use of type as illustration as well as information.

  

94 Commentary, marginalia, and alternate languages

AS EARLY AS THE HEBREW TALMUD, commentary on the main text—indeed, layers of commentary not unlike the text threads that are everywhere online—needed to be accommodated on the page. The Talmud, a marvel of typographic structure and hierarchy, employed many ingenious techniques for incorporating commentary, which ran around the central text. More common is the practice of allowing an extra-wide margin outside of the primary text area (hence the term marginalia). In order to set the text apart even further and to respond to the narrower measure, marginalia is usually set in a smaller point size with correspondingly proportional leading; sometimes its color or slope are also different from the main text.

An elegant treatment of marginalia is used here to provide some info-bits about the species.

  

Project

Blow-Up: Photography, Cinema and the Brain

Company

Pure+Applied

Client

Distributed Art Publishers (D.A.P)

Offsets in body copy relieve the density of the text of this scholarly work and provide a framework for the narrow text blocks used for footnotes (typically relegated to the bottom of the page).

  

Project

Karsonwilker’s 12 Days in Serbia

Creative Director

George Mill, aka Stanislav Sharp

Client

Publikum Calendar Project

This unusual exposition of a dual-language text uses alternating lines of language in opposing colors. The reader slides an acetate insert to cover one of the two languages, so that only alternating lines are visible at any one time.

  

95 Tables and charts

INFOGRAPHICS (also known as data visualizations or information architecture) should be typographically related to the body copy with which they coexist. There are a number of excellent texts and online courses specializing in designing tabular material. This type of design work is a specialty all its own. However well-designed tables and charts—and all infographics—may be, the typography must be carefully crafted with an eye toward proportional relationships and a stylistic compatibility with the surrounding text. Clarity and legibility are paramount when conveying this detailed information.

This complex infographic combines a number of tables and charts in a very straightforward and legible manner, using simple typestyles and plenty of space to lay out the charts, tables, and diagrams.

  

Project

Single page

Design Director

David Curcurito

Art Director

Darhil Crook

Associate Art Director

Erin Jang

Client

Esquire

To analyze the characteristics of the subjects of a story, this infographic, set at a vertiginous tilt, slices and dices using a composite of profiles. It is stylistically in keeping with the entire issue’s package of profiles.

  

Project

Feature spread

Creative Director

Dean Markadakis

Designer

Jana Meier

Photographer

Jonathan Worth

Client

Fast Company

Lists of statistics (which can otherwise be visually boring) have been enlivened here by the use of simple graphics, changing the scale, color, orientation, and expression of numbers and text.

  

96 Navigational devices

PAGE NUMBERS, FOLIOS, and other navigational devices are mission critical for designers; time-challenged readers have little patience for finding their own way. Though small and shunted off to remote areas like page bottoms and corners, these bits of text provide the important service of navigation. Whether located in a prominent spot or a lowly one, readers depend on their guidance.

Other navigational devices include any directional signals that assist the reader: arrows, dotted lines, section heads, and any and all typographic or related glyphic elements that serve this purpose. Designers of mobile and tablet apps must integrate UI/UX design elements including taps, swipes, pinches, and other ever-evolving gestural navigation markers, indicating them on-screen.

Viewers have many options to navigate this screen; they may slide horizontally to change the timeframe of the image, they may slide up from the bottom for a caption, and an arrow at the bottom right directs them to the following screen.

  

Project

Tablet app

Studio

Joe Zeff Design

Client

Joe Zeff Design

Each image links to a descriptor of the object, as we are directed by the info line at the top of the screen. We can also “swipe down for more.” An additional navigation button (top right) will tell where each object is located.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Design Director

Wyatt Mitchell

Designer

Margaret Swart

Illustrator

L-Dopa

Client

Wired

The illustration incorporates screens keyed to the list at right; numbered indicators help readers navigate to the screen matching the text.

  

97 Margins and gutters

THE SPACES WITHIN AND BETWEEN areas of text are places where the eye can rest; they also help define the tenor of the content. Books have a more leisurely pace and the margins and gutters reflect that pacing; magazines and newspapers are “busier” and more urgent in their appearance, so the space around the text is lessened.

Gutters and the space they require depend on the width of the project and the binding (as well as the weight and flexibility of the stock). A saddle-stitched project will fall open to the page more easily and therefore need less space across the gutter; a perfect-bound project, stiffer in the middle, will need more gutter space so that the text does not get “swallowed up” in the middle.

This classical horizontal book format lies fairly flat when open, so the gutter has sufficient space to accommodate readability. Spaces between columns and overall page margins are generous but not wasteful.

  

Project

Editorial spread

Creative Director

Blake Taylor

Art Director and Designer

Sarah Garcea

Client

Inc.

The four-column grid is used with three different typographic weights, styles, color, and leading. Because the text is set rag right, the columns have plenty of space between them. Note the “hanging” length of the numbered text blocks, a more casual approach than the first two columns, which are bottom aligned.

This magazine is perfect-bound, so it requires a generous gutter to separate the pages.

  

98 Framing the text

LOOKING AT THE TEXT as a unit, how much space should be allowed around the edges of the page, and between two pages? Classical proportions such as the golden section rectangle are often used in book design, and magazines and newspapers have conventions all their own (generally there is not as much space devoted to framing the text in these). In web design, space is even at a greater premium, with margins that are almost nonexistent.

This novel turning ribbon of paper forms a frame within a frame and provides multiple surfaces for text; it works neatly with the photography opposite with its unfolding spaces.

  

Project

Editorial spread

Design Director

Roger Black

Client

Type magazine

Circumscribed by a panoply of vertical, horizontal, and scotch rules, the text blocks seem tidier and more organized as they float within generous margins.

  

99 Floating in space

THINK OF THE TYPOGRAPHY as a person, who needs a certain amount of personal space to feel “comfortable.” How much space should be left so that there is a feeling of enough separation? This may depend as much on the circumstances as on the type of person (or content).

This handsome page of body copy with its massive initial cap, with the image on the opposite page of the spread, feels balanced on the page.

  

Project

Feature spread

Company

FB Design

Creative Director

Florian Bachleda

Photographer

Ian Spanier

Client

Private Air

Enfolded by typographically aero-dynamic brackets, the centered text of the opener floats in harmony opposite the centered close-up of the plane’s curved hull.

  

Project

Birds of the World

Art Director

Charlie Nix

Designers

Charlie Nix, Whitney Grant, and May Jampathom

Client

University of California Press

Classical page proportions with an extra bit of space added to accommodate marginalia make for a handsome and comfortable format, with plenty of breathing room for the eye.

  

100 Theory of Relativity IV

LAST BUT NOT LEAST, once again and always, it is the typographic relationships that exist on the page, screen, or document that are the ultimate arbiters of the success of the designer. Clarity of intent, clear separation of elements, typographic harmony, beauty, and legibility must reign together to form a satisfactory whole.

A clear sense of hierarchy, harmonious type choices, excellent legibility, and elegantly tailored type fit together with an arresting image and a strong main cover line to create a memorable and stylish design.

  

Project

Single page

Creative Director

Scott Dadich

Design Director

Wyatt Mitchell

Designer

Margaret Swart

Photographer

Todd Tankersley

Client

Wired

Playful and dramatic, this modern page with multiple text blocks manages to keep all the plates spinning in the air; the text is accessible and inviting, and the information feels organized and structured.

  

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