ch 20 lecture and book notes

Graphic/Communication Design

The practice of merging words, images, shapes, and colors to create an aesthetically appealing message that effectively communicates to an audience

Illustrated Manuscript

Hand‑written books (e.g., Diamond Sutra, Book of Kells) that incorporate decorative illustrations and color to enhance comprehension and visual interest.

Movable Clay Type (Pi‑Sheng)

⇢ Early Chinese printing technique (1040s) using reusable clay characters; pre‑dated Gutenberg but limited by the large Chinese character set.

Gutenberg Metal Type

⇢ Mid‑15th‑century invention of durable metal letters that could be rearranged for rapid printing, sparking the mass production of text.

Lithography

⇢ 1796 process (Alois Senefelder) that draws images on limestone with a water‑repellent ink, allowing fine‑detail reproduction of pictures.

Halftone Printing

⇢ 1882 method that breaks a continuous‑tone photograph into varying‑size dots; the eye blends the dots into shades of gray, enabling photographic images in print.

Cold‑Type Printing

⇢ 20th‑century system that creates text without metal type, streamlining the integration of images and text on a single plate.

Art Nouveau

⇢ Late‑19th‑century art movement inspired by Asian motifs, using flowing lines and simplified palettes; well‑suited to the printing technology of its time.

Art Deco

⇢ 1930s design style featuring strong geometric lines and luxurious motifs, frequently employed in advertising for new transportation technologies.

De Stijl

⇢ Dutch movement emphasizing geometric abstraction and a strict modular grid, influencing modern magazine and newspaper layouts.

Bauhaus

⇢ German school (1919‑1933) that championed functional, grid‑based design and integrated typography with visual elements.

Saul Bass

⇢ Mid‑20th‑century designer known for minimalist movie posters, kinetic title sequences, and iconic corporate logos (e.g., AT&T, United Airlines).

Eye‑Tracking Research (Stark & Garcia) ⇢

1991 studies showing readers first notice color and the largest visual element, then headlines, then text—challenging the “top‑left‑to‑bottom‑right” reading myth.

Modular Grid

⇢ Layout framework that divides a page into discrete, repeatable sections, making it easier to organize text and images and to guide the reader’s eye.

Visual Hierarchy

⇢ The intentional ordering of design elements (size, color, placement) to direct viewer attention and improve information retention.

book of kells

one of the best examples of manuscript in western cultures, written around 850 BCE and contains 4 gosepels and has elaborate illustrations that help tell a story.

created between 7 and 9th century

alois senefelder

discovered new methods of reproducing in what became lithography

viscom faculty

designer, illustrator, data visualizer

halftone process

breaking up a continuous-toned photograph into small dots. This was introduced in 1882

daily graphic first to publish photograph in 1880