Transcript Slide 1

Candidates, Color, and Type
Michael Wojcik & Kristen Flory
Rhetoric & Writing
Michigan State University
Type
Color
Color
Type
Type
Color
Type
Type
Color
Color
Type
Color
Color
Type
Type currently is overlooked in the design process.
I propose that type is a STRONG ELEMENT responsible for delivering its
own:
Message
Purpose
and persuasive
agenda.
Design scholars are constantly discussing type.
How it is
used
How it persuades
How it effects
and affects discourse
How it evolves
Why it is important
Designers rightly see type as a powerful tool responsible for a
piece’s tone, informative intent, and visual appeal.
Type is a visual element. It is not:
superficial
incidental
or supplementary
but is a
deliberate tool that can be customized based on the
context of a piece.
The way type is set on the page, the font selected, and the stylizing
of the type is important to the overall mission of any communication
tool—whether it is in print or on the web.
What is color?
something
obvious...
... but
ironically
opaque
Essential or emergent?
Objective or subjective?
Physics, physiology, or phenomenology?
Do objects have color in the dark?
Why is the sky blue?
shorter wavelengths scatter more
our eyes respond more strongly to blue
we’re bald diurnal apes with no aerial predators
pathos!
memory
emphasis
&
arrangement
ethos!
arrangement
invention
style
delivery
Provocations
Conclusions
Attend to Color & Type!
Digital media enable authors and analysts
Let’s use those tools
Provocations
Which color effects are universal? Which are
specific?
The economics of color – and the color of
economics
Is there a logos of color?
Provocations
Pay attention to design theory!
Designers see type as responsible for tone and
central to arrangement, flow, and visual appeal.
People will trade readability to achieve typographic
effect.
Starring
Arial
Banana Chips
BernhardFashionBT
Bethhand
French Script
Graffiti
Harlow Solid Italic
Birdman
Notepad
Bodoni MT Black
OCR A Extended
Castellar
Constantia
Consolas
Copperplate Gothic
Light
Palace Script MT
Curlz MT
Stencilia-A
Teenage Girl
Blackadder ITC
Dragongirl Meander
Palatino Linotype
Pristina