Madeleine Morley; Master László Moholy-Nagy Saw Photoshop Coming, 90 Years Ahead of Time (2019), AIGA Eye on Design, László Moholy-Nagy; Typophoto (1925): Graphic Design Theory: Readings From the Field by Helen Armstrong on pages 32-34, Jan Tschichold, “The Principles of the New Typography” 1928: Graphic Design Theory: Readings From the Field by Helen Armstrong on pages 35-38.
- According to these authors, what is their aesthetic approach, and why is it better than the traditional design/typography of the past?
- What role should typography, photography, and other media play in shaping a new kind of design?
- How did technological advances influence aesthetic forms and theories in early 20th Century design?
It’s amazing to see how far the movement of the Avant-Garde has come. To see the lengths and depths the Futurists and Constructivists went to, to ensure that a message that needs to be communicated to an audience should always be clear, simple, and have meaning. As much as it may have been extreme, by reading excerpts from The New Typography by Jan Tschichold where he says “And yet, it is absolutely necessary to omit everything that is not needed” and Typophoto from Laszlo Moholy where he says, “ The typophoto governs the new tempo of the visual literature”, Then graduating into the Bauhaus movement; You can see today, how important it is to create clear concise communication.
Jan Tschichold believed that the best font to be used for communication are san serif fonts. It provides better legibility as it is clear and concise. The layout should be asymmetrical as it provides better hierarchy and the use of photography visually gives a better representation than a drawing. Laszlo believes in the machine and everything that is connected to it, in terms of design. He believed that “the printer’s work is part of the foundation on which the new world will be built”. And “Photography is highly effective when used as typographical material.” Considered “phototext” in place of words.”
 If a new movement of design should develop with the use of typography and photography it should start with those basics taught by Jan Tschicold and Laszlo, due to the emphasis on clarity, however, room for expression should be also embraced. I think creating such a utopian genre of graphic design can be stale and boring on certain occasions. Even if you apply a picture or design it asymmetrically. It’s good to know that there is still typography that celebrates weddings, birthdays, graduations, and handwritten expressions of what looks like personal notes or street flare.
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Excellent work, Joseth. I’ve added some questions/prompts in Hypothesis that came up for me while reading your response. Let me know your thoughts.