Semiotics Of Typography In Visual Design

Typography in its most basic form is lettering from the Latin alphabet in which we use in everyday life. We apply the use of the alphabet in any given communitive situation whether we are writing or speaking, type is a form of communication that helps us convey a message. The power of typography often goes unnoticed but in more recent years has grown and developed into its own form of contemporary art and design. By building on and utilizing the basics of type and its origin we have given type a new place where it can be acknowledged and even praised. The foundation of typography is a process of arranging, setting and designing type or font in order to convey the pertinent message of the design and through these fundamental aspects you can achieve the best required visual result as well as conveying the meaning behind the reading material as well as the font and the overall design. Designers have to ensure they convey an appropriate message related to the design at hand and they do this through many avenues however typography being one of the most useful and affective. The reasoning behind why typography is an important tool in a designer’s arsenal is because it provides clear context to the design and therefore eliminates any incorrect or pre-conceived notions about the design and any misconceptions or unclear communications or messages. Typography can be summed up as” the visual component of the written word” and an important aspect of typography is” mood setting.” Mood setting in laymen’s terms is basically how the design makes you feel, for example if you are designing a valentine’s day card, the typography feature could be a whimsical and whispy calligraphy font in order to evoke feelings of love and romance. Besides font designers implement the use of kerning, leading tracking, line lengths, point sizes and typefaces in order to convey the emotion of the design. Designers can communicate important aspects of design through the use of typography things such as the tone of voices, gender, age and emotion. Visual aspects of a font can speak louder than any words and therefore designers stress how important it is to focus attention and detail on the typography facet of the design. With regards to typography in branding it is a powerful tool as it evokes particular emotions with relation to the brand and therefore can encourage customers and build-up new revenues based on the feeling the design gives you. If a brand can accurately convey the tone of voice, age, gender and emotion within their design they can capture the attention of the audience as well as evoke emotional attachment to said brand adding an element of personality and individuality or identity to the brand itself.

Branding is enormously important to a company as it is an opportunity to convey the characteristics and values of the company to the audience and therefore lifting the metaphorical vail allowing the audience a level of clarity and permitting them to judge the values of the brand therefore building anthropological emotions between a brand and its audience hence the term ”define why you do what you do as a brand and more importantly the way you do it.” This ensures a level of trust and respect in the relation to anthropology as these are extremely important human emotions given to a non-human based entity simply created by a great design, for example Coco-Cola is widely known loved and respected brand evoking joyful memories of sharing a cold Coke with family and friends on a blistering hot day which then is related to a positive forms of affirmation between you and the brand as well as your acquaintances creating an immediate ”mood setting.”

What Is Typography?

Typography occurs in your day to day life and is present everywhere you go. It is in books and magazines, on posters and album covers as well as the websites we visit, advertisements and most product packaging. To a graphic designer typography is simply the technique or methodology or outward form of text and the ability of working with such text. Typography boils down to the creative activity and science of creating written words, organising type and is hypercritically principal to the work and identity of a graphic designer. The options relating to the structure, colour, plan and typeface will ultimately conclude the dissimilarity between a flattering design and a substandard design. A huge misconception with regards to typography as the fundamental aspect as most people believe typography is simply font and colour however those are merely two of the many facets associated with typography as a whole.

The name of the text style is referred to as a subgenre of ‘typeface’ with” Arial” and” Helvetica” being examples of frequently used typefaces. Font is another facet of the genre of typeface and this refers to a specific typeface methodology which has fundamental principles in the height and width of lettering. Typefaces have multiple variants concerning size and designers have a way of measuring the height of each letter using the variable x-height therefore when pairing certain fonts, the designer will most likely pair a specific typeface with similar characteristics being mainly the x-height in order to create seamlessness and consistency in the design. When referring to the ”set width” it usually is making mention of the central part of a letter as well as the ”buffering space” that follows said letter. It is of utmost importance when considering all these factors when presenting typography within a design as formatting plays a fundamental role.

For any person working with typography it is vital to know how typography is applied correctly and accordingly. Fonts are generally acquired due to the legibility or readability as well as the ornamental tone they emanate. The phrase ‘legibility’ simply refers to the ease in which a person is able to identify or visualise individual letters or words. A select group of fonts have been used throughout history simply for their legibility and typeface and may be seen as a classic font for example the font” Futura” which is classified as the” grandfather of geometric sans-serif” and was designed by Paul Renner in 1927and is still widely used in todays mainstream climate. There are now numerous terms and phrases that disjoin or link fonts into generalised categories with the main classifications being ”serif”, ”sans-serif”, and ”cursive” and however important these terms are to historical convention have little or no denotation to the laymen’s viewer of the finished design.

In todays climate there are unlimited choices when it comes to fonts however this does not automatically infer a designer has the capability to know what font is best used for a particular design or to evoke a specific emotion, this requires a level of education and knowledge in fundamental rules and principals as well as simply having an aesthetic eye for detail. Typography has played a key role in contemporary design in later years however before the digital age we live in today, typography was seen as an expert aptitude that was limited to certain industries such as the publishing world of magazines and books as well as public services which include traffic signs and display panels. Typography had not been explored as a valid artform or graphic element in in the Western world up until now and thanks to todays digital landscape and the birth of the internet, the artform of typography has erupted into an abundance of visual diverseness. The general awareness towards typography and design has immersed in the last few years with people such as Gary Hustwit acknowledging in this documentary” Helvetica” the visual influence of design on peoples day to day lives with an abundance of visual culture featuring how people are increasingly more aware of certain elements of design and why.

Typography is as or if not more important than the contents in which it is being applied. If correctly used, typography should impart specific moods or emotions allowing the audience an understanding of the message you are re-laying through your design and with the proper font it will set the tone of the desired product. A designer will use a variety of fonts and sizes in order to create a hierarchy therefore when the audience views it they can then determine the most significant aspects just by viewing the design. Typography used all through a design creates a sense of unity as well as a repetition of an exact font conveys consistency and an absence of complication. Font alignment and proportion concur a design as well as translates a contemporary feel which you can find in most posters and logos today. Typography is visually the most recognised aspect of a design by the audience through association. A visual grading ladder is simply a classification of certain components in a graduated succession, starting with the greatest notability to the fewest, in relation to the genre of typography and design. When laying down the foundations of a visual grading ladder or hierarchy, a designer must be mindful when considering the comparative significance of individual elements in the overall theme as well as the inherent characteristics of the audience, the domain where by the transmission shall be viewed and finally the necessaty in which to create a cohesive organisation of the configuration based within the typographic space. When creating a visual grading ladder within a typographic space a designer harmonises which in turn unifies the design through balance, contrast and emphasis. ‘As in music, elements can have a counterpart or a counterpoint relationship. Typographic counterparts are elements with similar qualities that bring harmony to their spatial relationship. Elements have a counterpoint relationship when they have contrasting characteristics, such as size, weight, colour, tone, or texture. Counterpoint relationships bring opposition and dissonance to the design’ (Rob Carter 2015, Pg 102). Typography – The Most Important Tool for a Designer.. Typography is an extremely crucial and fundamental aspect of a design as you can construct an ingenious illustration or graphic work however if the typography facet in the design is substandard it will most likely deter the audience. According to Tschichold ”Perfect typography is certainly the most elusive of all arts. Sculpture in stone alone comes near it in obstinacy”. Excellent typography should convey the appropriate message in the design as well as communicate suitably the terms in which you are expressing through to the audience as they lack the experienced knowledge of a designer. The designer needs to take into consideration the grid, contrast, white space, font, font size and visual hierarchy as this has a huge impact on the overall design and considering all the typographic elements will make a vast and vital difference in both large- and small-scale aspects of the design. Typography allows you to create ambience and show case personality for example you can emanate a sense of romance or tepidness or anger and passion just by using a suitable typeface and arranging it accordingly. This helps form an identity as a designer or consumer and will be specifically associated with said designer or consumer. Communicating information and problem solving are important facets of forming an identity as a designer and should be a fundamental role in the design process. Manipulating the type can communicate your desired aspirations easily and appropriately. Investigating visual facets of typography will elevate you design to new heights and it should then speak volumes in a subtle manner evoking emotional connections and reactions of the reader bringing a possible sense of belonging or nostalgia to name a few. Typography is apart of visual communication that is greatly unappreciated and mostly goes unnoticed however it is a symbolic relationship between visual and verbal and conveys a visual message and communicate a verbal message and by doing this you create a strong foundation in which the other elements of the design simply enhance.

Semiotics in Typography

Breaking down and understanding a message within a specific design assists with the communitive process. Semiotics play a key role in executing an accurate design, basically how the viewer will read and understand what they are looking at. Denotation refers to the functional aspect of typography. The first step is determining what your message will actually say and the definition of the words. Often, this will come from the client, though they will sometimes let you choose the specific words to use. You have to determine what size, spacing, and typeface will be readable to our audience. Once you have considered all these factors you can begin with your design. Denotation determines the practical issues of using typography in graphic design.

Connotation deals with the feelings and expressive aspects of your design. It is when you are talking about the words and the message itself, you think about the cultural context of words and phrases that go beyond their basic vocabulary. A great example would be the word ‘Different’. Some of your audience will have positive associations with the word while others will have negative associations. Using it in the dictionary or denotative sense is not likely to convey that message alone. The physical aspects of your typeface will likewise convey meaning that can work with or against your message. This helps designers select between two equally functional typefaces or design decisions because you want to choose the one that relates to or compliments your message. In many ways, this means you have to know your audience, their cultural association with certain words, images, and styles. Just from seeing words in a design can evoke powerful emotions. These emotions can sometimes persuade someone into buying a product. In some circumstances it can create a bond and move a person to connect with a specific service or brand thus creating consumer trust and this is often the result when applying connotation to a font. Connotation refers to the ideology or sense of emotion a typeface can convey or invoke in the audience. This will vary depending on the chosen font and delivering the most suitable connotation for a given word is vital in supporting the word itself. Connotation is subjective as a word such as ‘lively’ could be portrayed through multiple avenues when dealing with a client, they might tell you that they want a design that exudes a professional look and to a graphic designer that may be a clean, minimal sans serif however the client may want an old school serif type face therefore it is vitally important that you and the client share the same connotations with regards to the overall design before going ahead with any design to ensure you meet the needs and expectations of said client. Designers create, reflect and influence the world around us as graphic design taps into every detailed aspect of the human experience through the use of visual communication which in turn is projected in everyday life and society with anthropology and humanity being a designer’s main focus. It is important for designers to understand the influence and impact they make and have made therefore they are consciously aware of the messages they are communicating to the masses.

Graphic designers are essentially the conductors of the human experience. There is a lot more to design than just meeting a certain demand or requirement as they are solely responsible for conceptualising and elocuting as well as how successful once implemented. The creative skills possessed by graphic designers aid the global production and consumption rate as designers have been given responsibility to make decisions and problem solve based on the human experience therefore the choices they make directly impact society’s construct and the lives within that construct.