17. S i h i killSpecimen sheets = an exercise, a skill
They present the construction of all
minuscules according to stroke,
proportion, angle, and shapep p , g , p
Technical sophistication is quite apparent
Creating the letterform is only half the
art The other half is taking into art. The other half… is taking into
consideration the skill level one must
develop to achieve such success.
20. Additional facts:
Romain du Roi, a Roman typeface in 1692
designed at the order of French King Louis
h d d h hthe XIV, designed with mathematic
precision, to be used specifically and solely
for royal purposes…
Controlled entirely by the royal printing Controlled entirely by the royal printing
house Imprimerie Royale, it was considered
a criminal offense to use the designs for any
other purpose…
P f l i l f f M d Precursor for neoclassical forms of Modern
design which came some 50 years later
…so design was then considered a skill
rooted in education
Chinoiserie (pronounced Shin‐wahr‐ie) is
the French term for Chinese Art influence
22. Notable figures in type and design:
William Caslon, type designer, & John
Baskerville, writer and designer, in 18th C
England 1734 England, 1734.
Characteristics:
uniform characters, legible and robust
letters do not have elaborate tails or curvesletters do not have elaborate tails or curves
the “Q” may be the only exception to this
the horizontal bar on “e” – not slanted
Note the spacing between the letters and
the spacing before the “?”
Centered? Justified?Centered? Justified?
Orthography (correct spelling!), punctuation
Comfortable reading in sizing, leading and line
length.g
23. Another important individual who
influenced type and design was John
Baskerville, writer and designer, in 18th C
England, 1734. g , 734
Baskerville type characteristics:
round and sturdy , Dutch Old Style
influence
Appeared in French and Italian publishing
Spacing and leading command authority
Fleurons surround and even separate
Baskerville font mocked for what was
considered “illegibility”
After his death, Baskerville’s widow sold the
type and punches to a French dramatist and
publisher, Pierre Beaumarchais
l h d100+ years later they were revived