COP 1 Lecture 4 - The History of Type - Production and Distribution - Part 1

Today's lecture was based around the idea that language is an agreement between people that one thing will stand for another. This means that language is negotiable - and type is what language looks like, a visualisation of language.

We started by looking at how typography is the art and technique of printing work, the composition of printed material from movable type and the arrangement and appearance of printed matter. Type is important because the written word endures, whereas the spoken word disappears.

In 7,000 BC the first ever example of type was recorded, and this was driven by trade - it was used almost as a receipt as an acknowledgement of commerce.

We also looked at things such as the Ancient Hebrew Alphabet and Sino Tibetan, which were crucial parts of the development of language. We talked about the Occidental and the Oriental hemispheres, the Western and Eastern hemispheres. Cuneiform came from the Western hemisphere and was the basis of the occidental alphabet.

The Rosetta Stone from 196 BC was the first recording of language as a common thing - there are three different languages recorded for the same thing - Egyptian, Demotic and Greek. This demonstrated an agreement amongst cultures that one thing stood for another.

We also looked at how words that are completely jumbled up can still be read and interpreted - this is because our brain reads words as a whole rather than single letters, so as long as the first and last letters are in the right place, we are able to interpret the word correctly. This shows that we can bend, break and change letters and they still make sense.

There is a range of different processes by which type is produced, from chiselling out of stone using tools used to make marks into materials, to brush based ink on papyrus paper. Different techniques make type appear in different ways, but this is always still legible and intelligible.

In 1450 Johannes Gutenberg began creating the first printing press, which meant 10 pages could be produced at the same time whilst looking the exact same. This revolutionized type and made it more accessible - which in turn lead to the Elementary Education Act in 1870 by William Foster, who made it compulsory for children aged 5-12 to learn to read in schools.

After the first World War, there became a need for mass production to help revive and rebuild society. This led to the Bauhaus movement, started in 1919 by Walter Gropius. This meant drawing arts and crafts together with industrialism and mass manufacture took place over handmade crafts.
There was new ways that type could be produced, and this is when typography was really first born.

To summarise this lecture, we talked about how type is a communication method, and we are able to navigate our lives using words.

COP 1 - Triangulation and Referencing Task

Today we have had another group session with Simon, this time focused around referencing and triangulation.

We were given a sheet with a grid on to fill in to help us with citing our sources and recording any information we are using. This including noting down the author and year of publish, the main key points and any additional comments to add for each section.

I personally found this grid really useful as it helped me get my head around referencing more and broke it down into manageable chunks. So far I have reference On Brand by Wally Olins as I have been reading this book and noted down lots of different view points that Olins has on consumer culture.

My next move is to read more texts and reference these in similar ways so that I am able to compare and contrast a variety of opinions within my essay.

COP1 Lecture 3 - A 20,000 Year Non-Linear History of the Image

 This lecture was based around looking at how image and visual communication has evolved over time.

We began by looking at the cave drawings in Lascaux Caves in France. These drawings are the earliest example of image making and they are done in a very spiritual, primal way.
There is an element of magic and mysticism, making the images very spectral and powerful.
This kind of image from 20,000 BC can be linked in with modern day work, such as Cy Twombly's Lepanto, 2001. Again, he has created these images in a very powerful emotive and spiritual way, and this connects to the cave drawings in an energetic way.
We also looked at how Richard Long's 1989 Red Earth Circle proves a point of similarities between modern and aboriginal art, there is a continuity.

We looked at how Rothko's paintings from 1971 are based around looking into the abyss as they suck light in, with no reflection. This again represents a spiritual experience, similar to ones we experience in places such as old churches like Papal Alter & Frescoes, 1230. In both senses we gather to worship infront of an altar or culture. The behaviour in galleries is very similar to the behaviour in churches.
This is demonstrated with pieces such as the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, Paris. People visit the gallery to almost worship the painting, which shows the power of image making. It has glamour and importance.

But why is this art meaningful? Just because people are queueing up to see it? Or because it is behind bullet proof glass?

Creating byproducts of capitalism, such as Mona Lisa mugs, bags and plates does something to the authority of art and greats an aura of greatness and power. Or does it degrade art? In the digital age of photography and film, people are now able to take art, steal it, recycle and reuse it.

We then looked at how the socialist realism painting style was a way of creating art everyone understands, the art of the every man, in response to the Western, kooky, fun art that Russia claimed nobody understood.

We also looked at famous and powerful images, for example Alberto Korda's image of Che Guevara
that became one of the most popular photographs in history. This is similar to Shepard Fairey's Obama 'HOPE' poster, and Nick Ut's Nepalm photograph from 1972.

Overall, the main message from this lecture was that imagery has the power to move us. Image making has a persuasive power that can effect us emotionally and that helps change, adapt and shape the world around us.

COP1 - Research Task

Today we had a short talk from Simon who showed us a few different ways we can approach the research for the first CoP essay. He talked us through using Google Books and Google Scholar, as well as showing us a few websites such as JStor.

We were then told to use the library or internet to begin some research. Using the list of books recommended, I took out four texts from the library:

- Media, Gender & Identity - D Gauntlett

- On Brand - Wally Olins

- A Theory of Shopping - D Miller

- Consumer Culture -

I picked these books based on the fact I would like to do my essay based on the social quotes, looking at capitalism, consumer culture and the world of branding.

I have begun reading On Brand and taking notes to help push the content of my essay forward and develop it further.

I found this two hour research session really useful as it gave me time to really focus on what I would like to include within my writing.

COP1 Lecture 2 - Visual Literacy

This lecture was based around the idea of visual literacy and how we can use this to share message and meaning.

Visual literacy is creating a message or meaning using imagery or type. These messages communicate to an audience and create a level of understanding. It based around the idea that pictures can be read - for example pictograms or symbols.  A section of the lecture was based around toilet signage and how we can determine which toilet is the correct one for our gender by simply interpreting a very basic drawing. The reason we are able to interpret our correct bathroom is due to our highly developed level of visual literacy and language.

We then looked at how a simple cross can mean different things, depending on its context. Along with a divide and subtraction symbol, this cross clearly means multiply. Similarly, extended the lower bit of the cross instantly makes it resemble a religious cross, symbolising Christianity or the church.
Make the cross red, we instantly recognise it as the charity The Red Cross. Make it green, we immediately think of first aid. These simple adaptations change the meaning of the same symbol completely and immediately carry different connotations.

We also looked at how being visually literate requires an awareness of visual syntax and visual semantics. The visual syntax of the image refers to the pictorial structure and visual organisation of elements. These elements include colour, font, weight, layout, composition, etc. We looked at examples of pictures of fried breakfasts to demonstrate this. People were less tempted by the worser pictures of the breakfasts, whereas a picture of a plate containing all the same components was more attractive simply due to the composition of the image.

Visual semantics refers to the way an image fits into a cultural process of communication. These elements include cultural references, religious beliefs, political ideas, individual experience etc.

Semiotics is the study of signs and sign processes. We looked at the Apple logo to demonstrate this. The symbol (logo) is that it represents an actual apple. The sign (identity) is that it is a sign for Apple products. The signifier (brand) means that it signifies quality, innovation, creativity and lifestyle.

I personally found this lecture very interesting and useful as I learnt lots more about the technical terms involved within visual literacy, and this will certainly aid my studies in the future.