22-1310: Beginning Typography

Fall 2007  |  Mon 6:00 – 9:50 pm  |  Wabash room 907  |  Shawn Calvert, instructor

Course Description

Students investigate the basic aspects of letterforms and typography through a variety of projects. Students are exposed to the historical background, technical and aesthetic issues, and communicative abilities of typography as individual forms and as text.

pre-enrollment Criteria

22-1210 Drawing I 22-1220 Fundamentals of 2-D Design 22-1320 Design Lab (pre-/co-requisite)

general Course objectives

n To instill in students an awareness and appreciation of letterforms and typography.

n To expose students to typography, and develop experience in using it as a communicative form.

n To make students familiar with the working practice, skills, and terminology of typography.

n To establish a relationship between typography and design from a historical basis.

n To examine the relationship between legibility, communication, typographic design, page layout and text.

Course goals

n Students should be familiar with the individual styles of typefaces and their historical basis as refelections of their time and culture. (Humanist, Oldstyle, Modern, etc)

n Students should know the basic terms used in describing and working with type. (Pica, points, x-height, etc.)

n Students should understand how the various components of the alphabet work in communication and how that effects type choice. (Uppercase vs. lowercase, lining and oldstyle numbers, punctuation and spacing.)

n Students should understand the basic theory and practice of using type as an expressive tool in visual communication and the appropriateness of particular typefaces for particular texts.

n Students should understand the different weights, widths and forms of typefaces. (Light, bold, italic, oblique, serif, sans serif, etc.)

n Students should understand the different uses, kinds and appropriateness of type and how that relates to their communicative value. (Display vs. text, book types vs. advertising types, etc.)

n Students should understand good typographic practice. (Correct use of spacing, leading, layout, punctuation,etc.)

n Students should understand typographic layout and how it functions as dynamic form and communicative form.

disclaimer This syllabus is subject

to change at any time

during the semester. You

will be notified of any

changes or will be issued

a new syllabus.

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Course DeTails

Text

Hill, Will. The Complete Typographer: A Manual for Designing with Type (2nd ed). Prentice-Hall, �005.

ISBN: 0131344455

Materials

n medium sized sketchbook (dedicated t.o this class)

n pencils, pens, watercolors, markers of choice

n 18 in ruler with inches, pts, & picas (metal or plastic)

n black mounting board (purchase as needed)

n storage media of choice (firewire/USB 2.0 hd, ipod, flashdrive, CD)

Conaway Center statement

Students with disabilities are requested to present their Columbia accommodation letters to their instructor at the beginning of the semester so that accommodations can be arranged in a timely manner by the College, the department or the faculty member, as appropriate. Students with disabilities who do not have accommodation letters should visit the office of Services for Students with Disabilities in room 520 of the Congress building (31�.344.8134/V or 31�.360.0767/TTY). It is incumbent upon the student to know their responsibilities in this regard.

academic integrity

Academic integrity is one of the most cherished principles of the Columbia community. You must adhere to this principle: by understanding the nature of plagiarism and by not plagiarizing materials; by refraining from the use of unauthorized aids on tests and examinations; by turning in assignments which are products of your own efforts and research; and by refusing to give or receive information on tests and examinations to or from other students. If you violate these principles of simple honesty, you risk embarrassment, course failure, and disciplinary action. It is simply not worth it.

For purposes of this policy, violations of academic integrity occur when work is appropriated without proper attribution of credit or when a student gives or receives aid on a test, examination, or other work where there had been no explicit permission given for such action.

aTTenDanCe & aBsenCes

Attendance is mandatory. If you must be absent you are responsible for making up any work and locating any information you missed. The department has a policy of no more than three absences. The fourth absence will result in an automatic failing grade. Remember — 4 absences = F!

Tardiness will also be considered a violation of the absence policy. Attendance will be taken at the start of each class. Being late to class twice (15 minutes or more) will equal an absence. We will go by the school clocks. If in doubt be early. Remember — 2 tardies = 1 absence!

A student’s registration form is a written contract between the student and the College. The student agrees to pay tuition and fees for the privilege of attending classes and using institutional facilities and equipment. Unless a student voluntarily drops/withdraws from a class or is administratively withdrawn, the student may attend class. Class attendance privileges, however, may be suspended when a student’s behavior is disruptive.

Standards of attendance and punctuality imposed by faculty and/or departments may be measurements of student performance and as such should be reflected in the evaluation of the student. A student cannot be denied the right to continue attending a class because the number of absences or tardies that would result in a failing grade has been exceeded.

eXpeCTaTions

To do well in this course, plan on an average of 6–8 hours of work per week outside of class.

Arrive at class on time, with your materials, your projects prepared, and ready to work. There will be two 15-minute breaks per class. Please note that late attendance, extended breaks and leaving early before the class is over will effect your grade.

You are expected to be an enthusiastic participant in this class. Your contributions to all discussions are crucial to your development and will make it a fuller experience for you and your classmates. Share, listen and do your best possible work.

beginning typography |  3

graDes

Each project will be graded on completion of a phase if designated and upon completion of a project. Failure to show work-in-progess where designated will result in a 10 pt reduction on the final project grade. A project will be evaluated by the following criteria: following instructions, accurately and the ability to translate basic concepts covered in class, appropriateness of solution, uniqueness of solution, ability to meet deadlines, craftsmanship and presentation.

Students will be evaluated on class participation, reading discussions, presentation skills (when applicable) and verbal communication skills during class discussions and critiques.

All grades and comments will be posted through Oasis.

There will be two quizzes. These are indicated on the calendar and any changes will be announced well beforehand. Quizzes cannot be taken at a later date. If absent an “F” will be issued.

grade Breakdown

Six projects — 60% (weighted according to difficulty)

Exercises — 30%

Quizzes — 10%

graDe DesCripTion graDe poinTs

A excellent 96-100 A- 91-95 B+ 88-90 B above average 84-87 B- 80-83 C+ 77-79 C average 73-76 C- 70-72 D below average 60-69 F failure below 60

FX failure for non-attendance P pass I Incomplete (not given) R course repeated W withdrawal

Coursework

Each project will be provided along with a detailed project sheet. Be sure to follow the instructions carefully. Reread the directions prior to handing in your projects. Failure to comply with these instructions will effect your grade.

Thumbnails and Roughs are graded separately and as requested must be provided as part of an assignment. If not provided then a project will not be considered completed and will be graded as such.

We will critique work-in-progress as well as finished projects. You must present your work-inprogress in class, as described on your project sheet or in class, in order to receive full credit for each project. Failure to do so will result in a drop in grade. You are expected to present your work verbally during critiques and are expected to discuss it intelligently.

All projects must be presented as printed materials, work on paper or as requested per assignment, not as work on disks or on screen. Unless printed out they will not be accepted for review, class viewing or grading.

projects vs. exercises

Throughout the course, we will have around 10-13 in-class exercises that will be graded on a credit/no-credit basis. These exercises will submitted to me at the end of class as pdfs only. The exercises are intendended to build specific skills that will be needed for projects, or to reinforce topics and/or typesetting techniques as dictated by class progress.

late work

All work will be due at specific dates as outlined in the course schedule. If your work is due at the beginning of class and you don’t turn it in until the middle or end of class your project will drop 1/2 grade. One week late, your project will drop 1 full grade, two weeks late, your project will drop 2 grades. Assignments will not be accepted after two weeks. Don’t miss class because you haven’t finished your work — class discussion/critiques are a major part of your grade.

Backing up your Files

Losing work due to failed media or overwritten files is not an excuse for late work. Students are expected to have an effective backup strategy for all of their files. It is suggested that this strategy includes dupicate back-ups of all working and final files. Please note that lab computers are completely erased at the end of each day.

If you have any questions or doubts about backing up your work, please do not hesitate to talk to me.

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soFTware Training

Design Lab is required to be taken prior to or at the same time as Beginning Typography.

Please note that while there will be some software tutorials covered in this class, it is not the primary focus. If you lack the basic skill levels for Adobe CS (InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop) tutors can be scheduled through the Graphics Lab on the 9th Floor, 623 South Wabash Street or tutorials CDs can be taken out on loan. Please become familiar with InDesign as soon as possible as this is the primary program you will be using for all your typography studies.

oasis

As Adjunct Faculty I’m off-site most of the time so please be sure to check your Oasis email (or whichever email you provide to me on the first session) on a constant basis. This will be our most consistent communication vehicle. I will be contacting you via email with reminders, changes or any other pertinent information. Please check it at least 24hrs before class or more often. Be sure to check that your email is not overloaded and discard unnecessary mail. It is your responsibility to manage your mailbox so that lines of communication are open and available.

I will also be posting up-to-date project handouts, presentation pdfs, and the syllabus/calendar with any updates on Oasis. If you misplace your project handouts you will find them on Oasis for the duration of the project.

ConTaCTing Me

The best way to contact me is through email; however, I only check my personal email after 6pm on weekdays. If it is an emergency, please call my cell.

reCoMMenDeD reaDing

Baseline (magazine)

Bierut, Micheal, et al. Looking Closer (series). Allsworth Press.

Bringhurst, Robert. The Elements of Typographic Style. Hartley and Marks Publishers, 2004.

Cheng, Karen. Designing Type. Yale University Press, 2006.

Communication Arts (magazine)

Dot Dot Dot (magazine)

Elam, Kimberly. Grid Systems. Princeton Architectural Press, 2004.

Eye (magazine)

Felici, James. The Complete Manual of Typography. Adobe Press, 2002.

French, Nigel. InDesign Type: Professional Typography with Adobe InDesign CS2. Adobe Press, 2006.

Friedl, Fredrich. Typography. Black Dog and Leventhal Publishers, 1998.

Hochuli, Jost and Robin Kinross. Designing Books: Practice and Theory. Hyphen, 2004.

Lupton, Ellen. Thinking with Type. Princeton Architectural Press, 2004.

Müller-Brockmann, Josef. Grid Systems in Graphic Design. Arthur Niggli, 1996.

Print (magazine)

Samara, Timothy. Making and Breaking the Grid. Rockport, 2002.

Shaughnessy, Adrian. How to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul. Princeton Architectural Press, 2006.

University of Chicago Press Staff. The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed. University of Chicago Press, 2003.

Various. Type Director Club Annuals. Watson-Guptill Publications.

Weingart, Wolfgang. My Way to Typography. Lars Müller, 2000.

White, Alex. Thinking in Type. Allsworth Press, 2004.

Wotzkow, Helm. Art of Hand-Lettering: Its Mastery and Practice. Dover, 1980.

beginning typography |  5

Course sCheDule

9/10 Introductions

Exercise InDesign/Suitcase/PDF intro

for next week

Project 1 type prototype

Project 2 photo/drawing of found type

Reading Hill ch 1, entire chapter

9/17 Historical Overview/Letter

Exercise drawing letterforms

Project 1 type prototype due

for next week

Project 2 roughs of phrase in found type

Reading Hill ch 2, pgs 22–35

Hill ch 3, pgs 61–83

9/�4 Letter/Measurements

Exersise selecting the right typeface

for next week

Project 2 phrase in found type final

Reading Hill ch 3, pgs 84–159

10/01 Word

Project 2 phrase in found type due

Exercise letterspacing, outlining fonts in Illustrator

for next week

Project 3 masthead roughs

Reading Hill ch 2, pgs 36–41

Hill ch 3, pgs 160–183

10/08 Paragraph

Quiz 1

Exercise typesetting rules

for next week

Project 3 masthead revisions

Reading handouts

10/15 Numbers and Tables

Exercise table of contents/page heirarchy

for next week

Project 3 masthead final

Reading Hill ch 2, pgs 42–49

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10/�� Intro to Grids/Page

Exercise style sheets pt 1

Project 3 masthead due

for next week

Project 4 magazine spread roughs

Reading handout

10/�9 Page

Exercise style sheets pt 2

for next week

Project 4 magazine spread final

Reading Hill ch 2, pgs 50–59

11/05 Type as Image/Poster

Project 4 magazine spread due

Exercise type as image

for next week

Project 5 type specimen poster roughs

Reading handout

11/1� Poster

Quiz 2

Exercise type & image

for next week

Project 5 type specimen poster final

Reading handout

11/19 Book

Project 5 type specimen poster dueExercise structure of the book, setting up project 6

for next week

Project 6 book roughs

11/�6 Book

Project 6 in-class lab

for next week

Project 6 book revisions

1�/03 Book

Project 6 in-class lab

for next week

Project 6 final

1�/10 Final Presentations