Week 6 lecture: Page space & Grid in Design
On this post I want to focus on two people that were mentioned in Andy and Karenâs lecture in week 6. I did a bit of further research on Jan Tschichold and Josef Muller-Brockmann as they drew my attention the most.
1.
Jan Tschichold was one of the most significant typography designers in the 20th century. Andy mentioned his book âNew Typographyâ and I explored further on what the book is about. In his book, Tschichold finds the mathematical proportions that would form a certain type of layout that is ideal to his eyes.
When it comes to typography, Tschicold states that clarity should come first rather than beauty. He also says that the message should be delivered as short and efficiently as possible. What was interesting was his introduction of the asymmetry. He says asymmetrical type should be used instead of the former symmetrical type to show clarity of the text instead. He advises against the use of ornamentation as it can hinder the true understanding of the text. Â
On last weekâs lecture I did a research on Claude Garamond. Apparently Jan Tschichold was influenced by Claude Garamond and created a typeface Sabon in 1967 based on the Garamond font. His typeface is referred to as a revival of the typeface Garamond.
2.
Josef Muller-Brockmann was a Swiss graphic designer who has his background on both graphic design and architecture. Although Muller-Brockmann was influenced by Tschicholdâs works, Muller-Brockmann stated in his book that âthe grid system is an aid not a guaranteeâ. Andy says that this is softening Tschicholdâs position about the grid system.
Muller Brockmann says the typographic grid is dividing up the page space evenly into horizontal and vertical units and some consistent spacing between them. This is allocating the elements to a grid. He described his own style very well and I thought I would quote what he said. âIn my poster, advertising, brochure and exhibition creations, subjectivity is removed in favour of a geometric grid that determines the arrangement of words and images. The grid is an organisational system that makes the message easier to read, this allows you to get an effective result at a minimum cost.â
Morris B, 2019, âJosef Muller Brockmann grid based layout and web designââ, Ben Morris, blog post, 13 March, viewed 1 June 2020, <https://www.ben-morris.com/josef-muller-brockmann-grid-based-layout-and-web-design/>
Read N, 2009, âGraphic design theory : the new typographyâ, Noahred, blog post, 8 November, viewed 31 May 2020, <https://noahread.net/blog/graphic-design-theory-the-new-typography>
Purcell K, n.d., âJoseph Muller Brockmannâ, Design is history, blog post, viewed 1 June 2020, <http://www.designishistory.com/1940/joseph-mueller-brockmann/>
âJoseph Muller Brockmann âswiss styleââ, Grapheine, blog post, 12 March 2013, viewed 1 June 2020, <https://www.grapheine.com/en/history-of-graphic-design/graphic-designer-muller-brockmann-swiss-style>