what is the dynamic between typeface and layout (grid)?

reinassance, dante's inferno

carl linnaeus, systema naturae, 1758

since the aesthetic effect of letterforms depends, in part of layout?

your turn #2

 marija tiurina's egg soldier @ juxtapoz

incunabula, gutenberg, gothic typeface, lower vs capitals,  imagines morti, the big star designers (plantin, manutius, ratdolt,  tory). then we discussed the types of the renaissance: tory and manutius' "new" roman, the bembo, the garamond, the bastarda. (we'll come back to tyndale's bible, maps and vesalius next week).

what's your take?

Erhardt Ratdolt's Euclid's Elements of Geometry

Erhardt Ratdolt's Euclid's Elements of Geometry (1482), a dazzling white-on-black design brackets the text, and incredible fine line diagrams in the wide margin visually define Euclid's terms.This is an interesting page on Ratdolt. Here the borders and initials are used as design elements. Pictor (Bernard Mahler) is supposed to be the designer. But ornamentation aside, Ratdolt is still aware that geometry is the main design here. 

your turn #1

nice class! for my first lecture i tried to present "design" as a more comprehensive way of life. we need to revise our preconceptions and start looking at these "samples" from the past not as archaic, worn-out objects, but instead as wonderful examples of how we design our lives. 

by the way, read the last posts, from "decretals" on, which i didn't cover.

remember, your comment (150 word minimum) can deal with any theme covered in my lecture. you can comment using your google id, but remember to "sign" at the bottom of your comment. if you post anonymously (without an id) you should sign your name as well.

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