typography_experimentaltype

letters combined with metal 

Johannes Gutenberg & Oded Ezer

Typography which is supplemented by the addition of new forms and decoration has been around for centuries.

Johannes Gutenberg used this technique in his 42-line bible. He was a German goldsmith and printer who was credited for being the first European to use movable type. Gutenberg was born in 1398 and died febuary 3rd 1468. He was the inventor of the process for mass producing movable type through the use of oil based ink and a wooden printing press. His major work , the Gutenberg Bible, is a collection of Illuminated Manuscripts which are printed letter forms supplemented by the addition of traditional ornamentation.

Modern typography has discarded classical decorations in favor of a more clinical page; the particular ornaments used by Gutenberg in the 1450’s weren’t as multicultural and certainly not as neutral as modern typography which aims to better cater for a larger and more multicultural audience. A modern typographic experimentalist who combines text and forms is Oded Ezer. Oded is an Israeli logo and type designer who explores non-conventional typographic solutions in Hebrew typography. Ezer has won many local and international prizes, including the Gold Prize at the international design competition of the Nagoya Design Center, Japan (2000); Certificate of Excellence at the 4th annual competition of the New York Type Directors Club and Certificate of Excellence at the "Bukva raz", a type design competition, Moscow (2001), Russia (2001), and the Israeli Education Ministry Prize for Design (2003). In 2000, two years after graduating at the Bezalel Academy of Art & Design, Jerusalem, with a Bachelor degree in Visual Communication Design Ezer founded his own independent studio, "Oded Ezer Typography". He teaches typography and graphic design in several academies in and outside Israel, among them at the Bezalel Academy for Art & Design, Jerusalem, at the Shenkar College of Engineering near Tel Aviv, and at the Wizo College of Design, Haifa.v

(Typography) Metal Alphabet

Text supplemented by the addition of metal objects

info_arc (part1)

home

home_Paula

home_Gordon

about_

about_Paula

info_arc (part2)

about_Paula_education

about_Paula_work

about_Gordon

about_Gordon_education

about_Gordon_work

info_arc (part3)

interviews_

interviews_William

type

(Questions what is?) 

1. Can a plant grow into a letter form-with the use of a cage or a wire frame?

 

2. Can foliage or organic material be incorporated into the letter form, while still keeping it legible? How much?

 

3. Can objects be used to complete a printed letter-form? Similar to Illuminated Manuscripts but with letters instead of bodies of text.

 

4. Can type be made more legible with added elements? Maybe elements that represent that letter, like an apple for “A,”

 

5. Can letters be used to create recognizable images

 

6. Can Organic materials be used to make a letter form

 

7. Can letters be used to make a specific letter form

 

8. How can type be portrayed in a new way? Like on trees or signs. 

WIRES

Ornate and complex typographic styles with smooth curves and dramatic ends have always appealed to me. The earliest, mass-published, example of this was the Illuminated manuscripts of Gutenberg’s Bible, in the 1450s. This was also the first use of the print press. The earliest surviving illuminated manuscripts are from 400 to 600 AD. The gothic period was a popular time for the illuminated manuscript and was primarily produced in Ireland, Constantinople and Italy. The majority of surviving manuscripts are from the Middle Ages, the 15th century Renaissance, and a limited number from Late Antiquity. Most illuminated manuscripts were created as codices, which had superseded scrolls. As a form of Rubrication, decorative drop-capitals were handwritten and illustrated in the margins and spaces left by the press. The amount of illustration in these bibles depended on how much the buyer would agree to pay. My taste is similar to the people of that time period. I prefer impressive intricate typography.

Drop Capitals are Initials that create hierarchy within bodies of text. The word comes from Latin, Initialis, meaning standing at the beginning. Initials are used today on stationary and company logos as decoration that is informative and enjoyable to look at.  Illustrative initials were important because they would help prevent forgeries.

The manuscript represents a style of typography reoccurring in the world today.  The word manuscript is derived from a Latin word meaning written by hand. Manuscripts found in books, magazines, and music publishing today are original (not printed) works by the author or composer.