Illustrative Typography: Chapter 1 Reflection

Geoffrey Tory's Woodblock Initial 'G', 1505

While looking at the detailed timeline in Chapter 1, one of the trends that struck me most was the ebb and resurrection in the use of illustrative type. This trend seems to run on cycle, most notably seen with its early conceptions in works like the 1505 woodblock initial by Geoffroy Tory. Inspired dually by Renaissance design and Roman letterforms, I believe it shows how aesthetic value first came to overcome legibility and how lettering entered the world of the artist and not just the scribe.

The Kelmscott Chaucer, 1896

In the coming centuries, focus would shift away from illustrative typography in favor of the miracle known as the printing press. However at the dawn of the 19^th century, interest in the creative potential of type reenters the design arena with creations such as the first fat face, sans serif, and outline types via wood-type posters and broadsides. Right before the turn of the century, William Morris’ Kelmscott Press revives decorative style typefaces for the modern world.

Poster for Showboat
by Bud Rodecker, 2010

Michael Kisman's
typeface poster, 2003

Inspired by scientific and technological advances, the 20th century ushers in a more minimalistic take on typography. Sans serifs, geometric/graphic elements, and grid type planning all take hold, lingering to near the end of the century. How ever slowly, artistic and illustrative elements begin to work their way back into the fold—maybe not in the elaborate styling envisioned by Tory or Morris, but in a new and modernized manner. Max Kisman’s typeface poster (2003) or the Thirst poster by Bud Rodecker (2010) are ways illustrative typeface and the legacy of typography as a central art element are being kept alive today.