Thinking With
Type
Letter: From Past to Futura
Ellen Lupton author of
“Thinking with Type” spent years looking for the perfect edition to address the
use and issues of design and Typeface. After much labor and multiple editions, a yet new edition was finally
released which as the author put it, “has more of…fonts, more exercises, more
examples…” Her approach was to write a book true to the art and speak in a more
comprehensible manner, while working side by side the media of visual design,
which range from intimate books to personal computers. Her writing has a less condescending tone and
flows in a manner which allows the reader to move quickly while understanding
the points more clearly. This being
said, the book is broken up into three sections, which include sections on LETTER,
TEXT, and GRID. The key is to add
insight while giving the reader creative ideas to implement the exercises added
to the new edition.
As Lupton explains, “This
is not a book about fonts. It is a book
about how to use them.” To gain a full
understanding, she starts with a history of Typeface starting with Gutenberg’s
invention of the press. This changed the
world of writing in the west. Letter
continued to evolve as new thinkers such as the Humanists expanded the rules
and use of the printable type. There
were many who contributed to the art; Geofroy Troy argued that letters should
mimic the human body, while William Caslon and George Bickham continued to
expand the use of letter through the 18th century. Techniques to enhance use ranged from larger
text, thick to thin, and italic capitals. The evolution took a major turn when industrialization caused
Typographers to think outside the book and bring type to the public sphere. As multiple Types were used in advertisements,
this continued to expand with even more experimental Typeface. This experimentation has continued until this
present day, the digital era; pioneers such as Paul Renner’s Futura has
continued to influence Typographers.
