1. art and entertainment
2. visual art and design
3. design
4. graphic design

course syllabus
catalogue description:
Historical overview of type and letter forms; introduction to professional typography
in print and digital environments; primary focus will be applications to contemporary
communications.
Luisa Hernandez
art 2551:
typography for
visual communications
e: [email protected]
expanded description:
Art 2551 is the single course in typography for visual communications students.
Through lectures, demonstrations, and outside class assignments students will gain
a historical overview of typography and it’s main technological advancements and
pioneers, from Gutenberg’s printing press to Claude Garamond, John Baskerville
and Giambattista Bodoni, all the way to contemporary typographers and digital applications.
This course focuses initially upon the anatomy of letterforms, and the use of words,
sentences, paragraphs and punctuation as purely visual graphic elements to convey a
concept or narrative, employing some of the basic elements and principles of design
such as contrast, scale, texture, color and form. The course evolves to more formal
practices of typography, such as hierarchy, defining grid structure, line length and line
height, letterspacing, multi-page layouts and the relationship between type and image.
Art 2551 includes projects both analogue and digital, and the core software used
throughout the course will be Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign.
method:
Discussions, lectures/demos, process and project work, outside class assignments,
critiques, reading and research, participation.
attendance:
An effective environment in studio courses necessitates student-teacher contact as
well as contact between the students themselves. It is evident that only those students
attending class can benefit from the exchanges that occur in the course of a meeting.
Late arrival or early departure will be considered a 1/2 absence. It will be the policy in
this class to allow a maximum of three absences during the semester without grade
penalty. More than three unexcused absences may constitute grounds for placement
on attendance probation.
Class attendance is the responsibility of the student. The student is expected to attend all
classes. A student who finds it necessary to miss class assumes responsibility for making up examinations, obtaining lecture notes, and otherwise compensating for what
may have been missed. The course instructor will determine the validity of a student’s
reason(s) for absences and will assist those students who have valid reasons.
(See Attendance Regulations in the LSU General Catalog for details)
projects & deadlines:
Each project will be given in the form of a written brief stating assignment and deadline and made available on the course blog (http://art2551.weebly.com/) with relevant
research material. It will be the students responsibility to bring to class all necessary
documents.
Failure to turn in a completed assignment within the set deadline will constitute an
automatic one letter grade reduction on that project, and a subsequent letter grade for
each day the project is late (technical issues such as printer problems will not excuse
ones work from a deadline). Research should be done outside of class (unless class
time is set aside for research activities).
Digital projects should be saved on a jump drive for backup and transportation, for
output/printing, and for final grading. You must be prepared for work and demonstrations by bringing all necessary equipment to class. Projects will not be re-graded.
Luisa Hernandez
art 2551:
typography for
visual communications
Presentations and critiques are very important in a studio course, and participation
will be factored into final grading. Strong presentation skills should be seen as a critical component of your creative work. Critiques are a great way to gain feedback from
you peers’, and useful criticism should be considered during the course projects.
Back up your work!! Technological disasters do occur! You will be shown absolutely
zero sympathy if you fail to complete a project due to not having sufficiently backed
up your work.
some things to consider when working on your projects:
grade breakdwn
A 90 – 100
Excellent work that goes
above and beyond project
requirements. Smart and
well crafted. Meticulous in
detail.
B 80 – 89
Very good work that somewhat goes above and beyond
project requirements. Reasonably well conceived and
acceptable level of craftsmanship.
C 70 – 79
Average work that meets the
requirements of the project
in every respect. Ordinary.
D 60 – 69
Work that does not meet the
requirements of the project.
Poorly crafted, technically
insufficient, careless, little
time invested, or did not
fully follow the assignment.
F 0 – 59
Work irrelevant to the assignment. Weak or plagiarized work.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ability to fulfill the project brief effectively, including meeting the deadline
Quality of research—as and when required
Concept generation
Work process—ability to re-work a concept multiple times
Presentation skills/craft/design skills
Participation in critiques and discussions
Overall professionalism
course blog:
The address for the course blog is http://art2551.weebly.com. The blog will become the
“hub” for the duration of the semester, where I will upload all hand outs (such as this
syllabus), as well as other interesting factoids, links and general typography material I
think/hope you will find exciting! The blog will count towards your participation grade
(there will be mini-assignments), so bookmark the address and be sure to visit the blog
on a weekly basis.
grade breakdown:
Although the portfolio will be of prime importance in determining the final grade, the
following items should also be seen as significant factors throughout the semester and
for the final evaluation:
• research and conceptual/creative thinking: ability to generate ideas, familiarize
yourself with subject and explore possibilities. (20%)
• process: Quality of ideas, creativity, development and execution of individual project within its specified limitations. (30%)
• craft: ability to visualize and execute concepts effectively, appropriate use of skills,
media and technical knowledge. (30%)
• professionalism, presentation & participation: ability to verbalize (on ones own
work and on the work of others in class critiques), sense of responsibility, professionally oriented attitude. (20%)
tutorials/external assistance
For each new project and/or software application there will be tutorials and help
available. I will endevour to help both the class as a whole and indiviuals with technical questions and project tutorials. This class incorporates Lynda.com online training
as a learning resource, allowing the student to explore the software at his/her own
pace. It is expected that the students explore the material themselves inside and outside of class time. Other online tutorials besides Lynda.com, personal investigating
and peer learning are great ways to enhance the creative process.
final portfolio
A final digital portfolio (all work plus selected process work, sketchbooks, etc.) will be
due on the last class day of the semester. Final grades will be determined by an average of all grades plus evaluation of students’ portfolio, participation and commitment,
effort and overall progress during the semester.
Luisa Hernandez
art 2551:
typography for
visual communications
required texts
• Thinking with Type, Ellen Lupton: ISBN 978-1-56898-448-3
• Layout Work Book, Kristin Cullen: ISBN 978-1-59253-352-7
recommended text
• The Mac is Not a Typewriter, 2nd Ed. Robin Williams: ISBN 978-0-201-78263-9
• Stop Stealing Sheep & Find Out How Type Works, Erik Spiekermann: ISBN 0-20170339-4
• The Non-Designers Design Book, Robin Williams: ISBN 978-0321193858
• The Elements of Typographic Style, Robert Bringhurst: ISBN 0-88179-206-3
supplies hardware:
This lab will be your main source for producing work for each project. The computers have all the software applications required to complete Art 2551. If students wish
to gain access to the 108 lab “after hours” he/she will need to have their LSU id card
registered in order to use the swipe lock.
1.
Flash Drive for storage – 2gb minimum
2.
Illustration board (letramax 2000 – as needed for presentations)
3.
8.5” x 11” Sketchbook with perferrated edge
4.
Masking Tape
5.
Graph Paper
6. Tracing Paper
7.
Metal ruler (18” or 24” is best)
8. Technical drafting pen 0.25 (fine), 0.5 (medium)
9.
Mechanical pencil with fine leads (0.5mm / 0.7mm)
10. Rubber cement or spray glue
11. X-acto knife and #11 blades
12. Personal headphones for watching tutorials during class (if needed)
.................................................................................
Americans with Disabilities Act
If you have a disabling condition that may substantially limit your ability to participate in
this class, please contact the Office of Disability Services, 112 Johnston Hall, phone 225 5785919, for additional information and assistance.
project breakdown
Luisa Hernandez
art 2551:
typography for
visual communications
e: [email protected]
project 1: anatomy of letterforms / history of typography
• Typographic Abstraction – building blocks font concept – 9x9” grid
• Type terminology – baseline / x-height / ascender & descender
• Type Classification – Serif & Sans / Oldstyle / Transitional / Modern / Slab / Geo.
• Type families – categories / weights
• Type measurements – point / em / pica
...............................................................................................................................................
• Categories of type—Serif (Oldstyle, Transitional, Modern) / Sans / Slab / Script /
Ornament / Geometric
• FontStruct Typeface design—First and last name characters and numbers
• Full alphabet of found typography
project 2: type as image
• Concrete Typography – word combinations – 2 or 3 sets
• Type as a visual element
• Contrast in scale / direction / form / texture / color
...............................................................................................................................................
• Type as image
• Concrete Typography
• Logotypes
• Handmade typography
project 3: typographic hierarchy
• Lecture Series Poster – Type / Color / Geometric Shapes / Line
• Typographic Contrasts – U&lc / Scale / Roman or Italic / Orientation / Form
• Emphasis – Weight
• Letterspacing – Leading & Kerning
• Typographic Texture
...............................................................................................................................................
• Typographic Hierarchy
• Typographic contrasts
• Typographic posters
project 4: the grid
• Re-design two spreads of a magazine of your choice
• Analysis and critique – grids & hierarchy
• InDesign
• Golden Section and Grid ratios
• Typesetting options – paragraph justification: Left / Right / Justified
• Columns / Gutters / Margins
• Masthead / Datum / Folio
• Graphic Markers & Lead-ins – Initial Caps / Indent / Exdent / Line Breaks
• Leading / Kerning / Tracking / Widows & Orphans
..............................................................................................................................................
• The Grid
• Breaking the Grid
• Examples of Letterspacing: Leading / Kerning / Tracking / Rivers
• Justification and letterspacing exercises – point size / leading
project breakdown 2
Luisa Hernandez
art 2551:
typography for
visual communications
project 5: multi page layout
• Content/Research
• 12 pages (6 spreads)
• Flow / Pace & Cadence / Rhythm / Grid
• Header & Footer
• Effective use of type and image together
• Spreads rather than 2 separate pages
• Bleed
• Booklet printing – Package / Export as pdf
..............................................................................................................................................
• Book layout examples
• Research
.................................................................................
CXC >> Communication across the Curriculum
This course is certified as a “Communication-Intensive Course” and meets all of the requirements explained on the CxC Web site: http://cxc.lsu.edu., including the following: Emphases
on formal and informal assignments in written and visual communication, class time spent
on communication, 40% of the final grade based on communication projects, revisions after
faculty feedback on 2 formal projects (one for each emphasis), and a student/faculty ratio of
35:1. Because it meets these requirements, students may count it toward “Distinguished Communicator” certification on LSU transcripts.