Nine typographic assignments

Western Michigan University
Gwen Frostic School of Art
Graphic Design Non BFA in Graphic Design
ART 2450
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Lesson #1 Fall 2011 / week 36 / monday
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My handouts – But I can’t draw.
– Charcoal drawing hints and terms.
– Impression Life Drawing.
– FF All in the family & FF Typeface anatomy.
– Syllabus ART 2450.
– Ten famous Monotype typefaces: Bembo, Garamond, Plantin, Ehrhardt, Baskerville, Bodoni,
Grotesque, Times New Roman, Gill Sans, Univers.
– The Grid Method.
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My technical information Life sketching . . .
How to enlarge manually?
What about charcoal?
Type: anatomy.
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Theory Type: some charistics.
Type: history in a nutshell.
Looking at type . . .
The Roman alphabet.
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Practicum Select one typeface out of ten, select one appearing letter. Enlarge this selected Roman letter
manually on a sheet of 36" x 50" using charcoal instead of a pencil.
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Your assignment #1 Try to trace and read some useful historical information about the different typefaces.
Do write this information in Your Diary, dividing each page in two. (Please: date your notes . . .)
Also trace an object (for instance the page of a book) in which ‘your typeface’ is used (or create
a screenshot [maybe a website?] or snapshot [probably on a building or in the street]).
Try to accompany ‘your treasure’ with objective arguments. Write them down: convince me!
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Suggested reading Jaspert, Berry and Johnson, ‘Encyclopaedia of Typefaces’ [BARGAIN PRICE ONLY $ 12]
Updike, D.B, ‘Printing Types, Volume 1 and 2’ (You may download volume 1 and 2 via
http://www.archive.org/ or you may want to copy mine from usb-stick)
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Note Please take with you some different pencils (B/HB/H), a sharpener, an eraser and a ruler
next time!
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Stephan Saaltink, visiting scholar graphic design.

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designskolen kolding
communication design
graphic design
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assignment 1 (monday morning)
theory
Type: some charistics.
Type: history in a nutshell.
Looking at type . . .
The Roman alphabet.
practicum
Select one typeface out of ten.
Select one appealing letter.
Enlarge this selected Roman letter manually by eye, on a big A0 sheet using
charcoal instead of a pencil.
notes
Try to trace and read some useful historical information about the selected typeface.
Do write this information in your notebook.
Please: date your notes . . .
Start on a fresh page on a new date.
technical information
Life sketching . . .
How to enlarge manually?
What about charcoal?
Type: anatomy
handouts
– But I can’t draw.
– Charcoal drawing hints and terms.
– Impression Life Drawing.
– FF All in the family & FF Typeface anatomy.
– Ten famous Monotype typefaces: Bembo, Garamond, Plantin, Ehrhardt, Baskerville,
Bodoni, Grotesque, Times New Roman, Gill Sans, Univers.
– The Grid Method.
suggested reading
– Jaspert, Berry and Johnson, ‘Encyclopaedia of Typefaces’.
– Updike, D.B, ‘Printing Types, Volume 1 and 2’ (you may download volume 1 and 2 via
http://www.archive.org/).

ART 2450 Graphic Design Non BFA in Graphic Design
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Lesson #4 Fall 2012 / thursday 13.9
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Presentation Your tombstone rubbing.
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Theory Alignment.
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Practicum Continue finishing your banner.
Use tape or kids glue to stick the separate pieces of paper together.
Correct your banner using white gouache, and a pencil if necessary.
Present your banners.
We are going to build a little expo!
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Your assignment #4 Please sketch (design?) your own tombstone.
Lets assume you all are going to be over 100.
Copy At least the next three items:
1 Your full name (= first name + last name).
2 Born in, died in (numbers).
3 The place you would like to die.
Decide about The shape of the stone.
The typeface you are going to use.
The alphabet: capital, roman or italic.
The point size.
Copy: any extra’s?
Typeface Select ONE of the typefaces out of the Monotype Specimen I handed you during the very first
lesson (from Baskerville to Univers).
Sketch Diapositive: all type white, all surroundings grey (pencil) AS IF YOU RUBBED A TOMBSTONE.
Planning Presentation Thursday 20.
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Note Please FROM NOW ON take your basic equipment with you. ALWAYS!

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graphic design
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assignment 6 (thursday & friday)
Please design your own tombstone.
Lets assume you all are going to be over 100.
copy
At least the next three items:
1 Your full name (= first name + last name).
2 Born in, died in (numbers).
3 The place you would like to die.
decisions
What are the variables you have to decide on?
– The shape of the stone.
– The positioning of the text.
– The alignment.
– The typeface you are going to use.
– The alphabet: capital, roman or italic.
– The point size.
– The leading.
typeface
Select ONE of the typefaces out of the Monotype Specimen i handed you during the
very first lesson (from Baskerville to Univers).
sketch
The sketch should be in pencil, and the scale is 1:1.
But diapositive: all type white, all surroundings grey (pencil) AS IF YOU RUBBED A
TOMBSTONE.

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Lesson #6 Fall 2012 / thursday 20.9
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My presentations Handmade.
Concrete poetry.
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Practicum Finalizing your tombstone sketch.
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Assignment #5 You are going to write and produce three concrete poems.
Be aware: in the end I would like you to design and produce a ‘book’ of all three poems, including a
all typographic cover and a title page. The format is 4.5 x 4.5 inch.
Please be a little imaginative concerning the execution and appearance of this special poetry book.
(For instance: should it be thin, or extremely thick?)
! Again use the same Monotype Specimen (Baskerville to Univers) to select a typeface.
For now I would like to you to start sketching in a structured and detailed way.
Present the sketches of three concrete poems on:
– geography;
– the alphabet;
– human activity.
Use your notebook.
Only use pencil.
Write, sketch, note your first concrete poem in a number of structured variants.
At least court sketches on one page per poem.
Simplify.
Be aware of the reader.
Select the most powerful.
In sketching I’d like you to show:
– the difference between capitals and lower-case;
– the difference between serif and sans-serif;
– the difference between roman, italic and bold.
! Lets start in black and white only, and finish in full color if wanted.
! Finalize your ‘sketch’ digitally in a format of 8.5 x 8.5 inch.
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Please also look at http://www.paradis-des-albatros.fr/?poete=apollinaire
http://engl219spring2011.blogspot.com/2011/05/writing-prompt-6-concrete-and-visual.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuFI2H2fWjs (‘wild life rifle fire’)
Note Please FROM NOW ON take your basic equipment with you. ALWAYS!

Alpha Bravo Charlie Delta Echo Foxtrot Golf Hotel India
Juliet Kilo Lima Mike November Oscar Papa Quebec
Romeo Sierra Tango Uniform Victor Whisky X-Ray Yankee
Zulu Alpha Bravo Charlie Delta Echo Foxtrot Golf Hotel India
Romeo Sierra 
Tango Uniform Victor Whisky X-Ray Yankee

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graphic design
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assignment 3 (thursday & friday)
Produce one three dimensional ‘fantasy’ letter, based on . . .
Use the first letter – a capital – of your first name.
The size of the selected CAPITAL is 1m50cm.
Maybe the letter needs some paint in the end?
present
Anyhow, you have to photograph your finished letter somewhere in the public space
as if its some kind of object or sculpture.
And print the photographs on glossy (Budget) photopaper.

I MAG
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Lesson #22 Fall 2012 / tuesday 27.11
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Introduction In The Netherlands we have quite a number of i-magazines.
‘Linda.’ – a lifestyle magazine – (http://www.lindamagazine.nl) and
‘Maarten’ – a hybrid, mixing history, politics and opinion – (http://
www.maartenonline.nl/) are both quite a success.
Linda de Mol is a show master and German (!) tv host & presentator,
while Maarten van Rossum is a professor in American history &
politics, and a well known ‘side kick’ . . .)
But we have, for instance, also JAN (Just Another Magazine) which, by
the way, is the same as John in English, and JOHAN, after the famous
soccer player and former Barcelona coach: Johan Cruyff.
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Assignment #6 In the remaining weeks after Thanksgiving I would like you to design
& present a cover of your own i-magazine. (Replace Firstname by
your first name).
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Planning
27/29 Whats Firstname about? For whom is it produced?
• List twelve upcoming issues (to be published) . . .
• Whats the keyword of the issue you are now working on?
• Which features will be in?
• Write a comprehensive Magazine proposal (at least one page in your
notebook). Look at JAN in handouts, and answer my questions.

Typography 2 & Visual Systems
ART 3600 / Fall 2012
Presendential Election Campaign 2012
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Lesson #1 First week / first lesson / wednesday 10.4
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You are very lucky. We are going to start a collaborative project, which will be published on the website
of HP/De Tijd, which is a quite famous Dutch monthly. The magazine is somewhere in between
Newsweek and The New Yorker: http://www.hpdetijd.nl/
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Assignment #1 Design and produce two Presidential Campaign Posters 2012.
First poster In favor of either Obama/Biden, or Romney/Ryan. (Please select the team you would like to work for.
But WE are stimulating a more or less equally representation of both teams . . .)
Copy The basic copy is simple. [Heading] ‘Vote Obama (or Romney)’ [Byline] Obama/Biden (or Romney/
Ryan) Presidential Campaign 2012.
Second poster The opposite, giving the team which is on the first poster, maximum support.
– IF you started in favor of Obama/Biden the basic message on the second poster should be something
like ‘Do not vote Romney/Ryan, because . . .’ (Please be snappy. Please be witty. But please also be
accurate, and effective.)
– IF you started in favor of Romney/Ryan the basic message on the second poster should be something
like ‘Do not vote Obama/Biden, because . . .’ (Please be snappy. Please be witty. But please also be
accurate, and effective.)
Copy The heading is up to you. The byline should be repetitive, depending on which team is on the first
poster. Either ‘Obama/Biden, or Romney/Ryan Presidential Campaign 2012’.
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Format Portrait. 24 x 36 inch.
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Final presentation by the end of September. Beside your final 1:1 in full color. We would like to see a photograph of both
posters mounted on a wall somewhere alongside a main road to check and report the visibility of your
design.
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Final document Be aware a highres (quality) .pdf should be ready as well. The subscription should be:
Yourlastname_vote.pdf
Yourlastname_dont.pdf
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Extra Please write down all your productive hours in a small note book.
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Suggestions Simplify. Be sure you are communicating only ONE message a time.
• Since both posters are related, there must be a set of ‘rules’ which you are applying to build

consistency. Which ones? Or to put it differently: How can you rationalize design decisions?
(Because thats what Visual Systems is all about.)
• You are free to select the typeface you wanna use . . .
But – i m sorry – when you are selecting, most of the time you are picking UGLY & ILLEGIBLE
typefaces. Why don't you stick to the AA category?
• Or why don't you research legibility & readability a little before you stick to one typeface?
• Also: have you ever researched (tested) how big a minimum point size should be if you want to read a
text from lets say approx 50 feet?
• Maybe trace some literature (or examples) concerning the history of Presidential Elections (& Poster
Design?) . . . Question: when was ‘branding’ introduced? Any strong examples?
• According to most experts a true poster should have two layers.
– The first should be legible from a very long distance. To be viewed in a brief split of a second.
– The second, is to be read, from nearby.
Please research this concept a little. Is it true? Is it confusing? Is it helping? Can you use it? Et cetera.
• Be aware: you do NOT have to use the computer as your main designers tool. You are free to draw,
to paint, to scribble using charcoal, collect garbage to create a ready made typeface, whatever.
As long as you bring the message across. Effectively of course.
• If you are going to use a mac, do NOT use InDesign (a poster is not a magazine nor a book),
use Illustrator instead. But yes, please start using styles. They will improve consistency, which is a key
concept in Visual Systems.
• Also, because FC prints are expensive, you can quite easily PROOF your posters 1:1 in Illustrator in
B & W using the ‘Tiling option’ and mount the parts, which will cost you nothing . . .
• Be imaginative! Think about how you could create your own dedicated image(s), because just googling
and copying pictures is not enough . . .
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Practicum There will be a lot of time to work during class time, since Typography 2 & Visual Systems are joining.
USE STUDIO HOURS EFFECTIVELY.
The deadline is as is. The magazine needs to be produced and printed . . .
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Handouts Obama/Biden and Romney/Ryan in the press.
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Buy You better start reading a real newspaper. Buy and read either The New York Times, or The Wallstreet
Journal on Saturday during the project. Will cost you 10 bucks max.
NO, not the Kalamazoo Gazette or the Detroit News. Once again, like stated either NYT or WSJ. On
Saturday!
Look at http://www.mijksenaar.com/ and http://www.mijksenaar.com/shop/
You will need to by ‘Visual Function’.
I will order 20 copies of this very comprehensive book. (You’ll have to pay me.)

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western michigan university
gwen frostic school of art
art 3510 / typography / spring 2013
assignment #3: the book concrete
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introduction
In Holland BN stands for ‘Bekende Nederlander’. I guess the literal translation should
be ‘Known Dutchman’. But be aware, most BN’s are real Dutch celebrities who fill
our tabloids and glossies. Except of course Beatrix who is Best Known. The queen is
quite exceptional since the people only know her first name. Her majesty prefers her
Royal Palace instead.
Bruce Naftel (BN) is retiring.
He was a professor at the Frostic School of Art for over thirty years.
Bruce is design.
It is a pity you will not enjoy his classes.
Still he deserves a little of your dedicated attention.
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assignment #3
You are asked to design the cover and two pages of Bruce’s farewell present.
Its a special handmade ALL TYPOGRAPHIC book.
The working title is:
BN. Exploring twenty one different meanings of Bruce Naftel’s initials.
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specifications
• Page size: 11 x 11.
• Paper: vellum.
• Binding: Chinese, double folded.
• Order (attention): you will print (as if a) double spread. But – because of the
binding – your pages are produced one AFTER the other.
• Footers: on the final printed pages two generic footers will be displayed, including

the tittle (left) and your full name (right).
• ART 3710: to produce a unique book, and as a sort of homage to his famous
course ‘The Book Concrete’ you are asked to apply ONE manual augmentation on
each page.
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kick off
To stimulate creative thinking try to answer: ‘B stands for? N stands for?
Research Concrete, or Visual Poetry. (Emmett Williams edited an overview.)
questioning
Ask Tricia and Leon all about Bruce during next class.
?
handouts
Wiki – Bekende Nederlander.
Google – BN er.
Wiki – Emmett Williams.
Wiki – Hanjorg Mayer.
dropbox
My presentation ‘Concrete poetry’.
My presentation ‘Handmade’.
My presentation ‘You can do better’.
Catalog ‘Hansjorg Mayer’.

prologue
bruce naftel is retiring.
bruce was a professor in graphic design at the frostic school of art
for over thirty years.
don’t you all agree: is n’t that a real long time . . ?
(applause!)
i first met bruce two years ago via skype.
we never minded the gap of approximately 4000 miles . . .
soon i discovered bruce really seems to know the netherlands.
yes, he is well informed . . .
no, not only about gardening.
it’s quite exceptional – bruce actually met some dutch leading
designers, and he visited some studios in amsterdam, den hague
and rotterdam.
bruce was amongst the first to collect their work, to personalize
cultural exchange.
at wmu professor naftel taught every design course you can
imagine.
most recently a crafty one as well. during ‘the book concrete’,
students were challenged to show some sensitivity.
some time ago i started wondering if the graphic design program
should not surprise bruce with a farewell present?
of course the dedicated gift should be handmade . . .
but what would be an interesting proposal?
early one morning, out of the blue, during showering, i realized
b n not only represents bruce naftel’s initials.
the mystic letter combination is also the commonly used
autonomous abbreviation of a typical dutch concept.
check me.
google: ‘bekende nederlanders’.
look for images.
jez, is n’t that a strange coincidence . . ?
i guess the literal translation is ‘known dutchman’.
but be aware, most bn’s are popular dutch celebrities who
appear over and over on television and fill our tabloids & glossies
all the time . . .
except of course beatrix who is best known.
the queen is beyond, and can’t be classified.
besides the people only know her first name.
her majesty seems to prefer her royal palace instead.
by the way she resigned, and will be retired by the end of this
month as well.
anyhow to replace bruce naftel’s initials by any applicable
substitute was an exciting typographical assignment.
the final studies are stacked, stiched, and protected by a beautiful
handmade box.
the book is unique.
we only produced one.
bn is yours.
bruce!
almost forgot to mention.
i mediated: the queen approved!
you are now a ‘bekende nederlander’ as well.
awesome.
congratulations!

Nine typographic assignments

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Nine typographic assignments