Product Description

Typography - that is, typography the reader can comprehend and understand - is based on certain fundamental principles. As long as letters, words, and sentences are used to transmit information, these same principles will remain valid - even in electronic media. Part one of this publication discusses the typographic elements; the microaesthetic qualities of letters, numbers, and punctuation marks, lines, and geometric elements and their diverse applications. Part two analyses the design aspects of space, structure, sequence, contrast, form and counterform, and illustrates their function with examples from teaching and praxis. Part three demonstrates how typographic elements contribute to design on the microaesthetic level. Part four, based on a series of architectural posters, analyzes the interrelationship between purpose, macrostructure, and microaesthetics. This publication provides artistic and technical instruction for typographic designers, architects, and professionals in allied creative fields. It facilitates a more critical appreciation not only of the mediated foreground, but also of the unscripted background and of the various relationships between them.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #209927 in Books
• Published on: 2000-04-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 171 pages

Customer Reviews

Of Sober Aesthetics
A pleasant surprise.

The approaches to design that are explored in this book can only be expected from someone intimate with the Swiss school of design thought. Willi Kunz teaches designers to be deliberate and purposeful, which will keep anybody in good stead come economic boom or bust. He is thorough in explaining visually, fundamental theories not only for typography, but for graphic design in general.

On my shelf, this book sits beside Josef Muller-Brockmann's "Grid System in Graphic Design", Armin Hofmann's "Graphic Design Manual" and Robert Bringhurst's "Elements of Typographic Style".

A definite keeper.

Excellent book on typography
As a computer professional I found Typography: Macro- and Microaesthetics a compelling introduction to typography and layout. So many of the ideas in this book are helpful to understanding how reports and other printed communications should be developed. I really appreciate the author's care for typographic details and the concise, unpretentious language in explaining how typography works. The book clearly details the basic principles of typographic communication. The generous page size allows the comments and examples to be easily understood.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in typography, desktop publishing, or graphic design.

mondern design method in a nutshell.
an excellent intro to design in the modern tradition. very basic, straightforward, and complete with samples of the author's and work of his students.