Using My Punk Apartment to Teach You Typography
If there’s one word you could use to describe the lovingly shared space my partner Andrew and I have, it would be maximalist. The apartment is filled to the brim with things we love. Practically every wall is covered with posters, our vinyl collections take up significant room, and we take joy in covering surfaces in stickers. While this may be overwhelming to some, we’re quite used to it.
As I’ve progressed in my design journey, there’s something in particular that has demanded more and more attention - the vast amount of type permeating our home! I thought it would be fun to zero in on specific examples around our everyday environment and use them to go over the basics of typography. Yes, graphic design can be punk rock.
So what is typography anyway? Well, in class I learned that it’s the style or appearance of text. Basically, the aesthetic vibes of letters and numbers.
What about the difference between a typeface and a font?
A typeface is a design of characters that have uniform, shared visual characteristics. A font is a set of these characters in a certain size and style. For example, the typeface used on the first line of this poster is called Friz Quadrata, and the font is in the bold style.
Let’s see if we can find some other common kinds of fonts around, shall we?
Fonts that have decorative lines attached to the main parts of their letters, called serifs, are referred to as - you guessed it - Serif fonts. Specific types of serifs are tapers, tails, or feet depending on their placement. They’re classic, like the Ramones, and are common in printed stuff like magazines.
Fonts that don’t have those decorative lines are called Sans Serif. It literally means “without serif” in French. They’re more clean and modern, like Green Day, appearing a lot on computer screens. In fact, this very blog post you’re reading is in a Sans Serif font. Trippy.
Display fonts are meant to stand out more, and there’s various subgenres here.
Script fonts are curvy and remind me of calligraphy.
Blackletter fonts give off medieval energy.
All-caps fonts are, uh…in all caps. This subject might be more self-explanatory than I thought.
Alright, now we’re gonna get into syntax. I know that sounds technical and intimidating, but I promise it’s not. In typography, syntax means using elements like lettering, words, line and space to form a cohesive whole that gets across a clear message to the person looking at it. Parts of syntax are tracking, kerning, leading, and hierarchy.
Tracking is the overall adjustment of space between letters. Kerning is the adjustment of space between specific characters. It can vary within a single word, because each letter fits together differently.
The tracking and kerning on the first line of text versus the second line is definitely different; on the first line, the characters look much closer together than the second.
Leading is the adjustment of space between lines of text. Hierarchy is an organizational system that emphasizes some information over others. It helps the reader scan over text, telling them what is most important, where to start and finish, as well as which words to read first, second, third, et cetera.
On this flyer, the word ‘Subhumans’ is placed at the top and appears at the largest size, guiding our eyes to that spot first. As we travel downward, the text generally gets smaller, except for the name of the venue, which is emphasized.
I hope this post was informative, made typography seem a little more cool, and helped you look at the world differently. Text is everywhere, and sends us different messages all the time. I want to encourage you to analyze this more, think about what’s being marketed to you, and reflect on what kinds of vibes you like. If you were a font, what kind would you be?
Catch you on the flip side,
Brisia