︎
Andrea Herstowski
aherstowski@ku.edu

office hours by appointment

Class Syllabus

Resources  

old website: ku-viscom.com

Google Drive

Revivial

Typeface Revival: the art of taking a classic and modernizing it for the digital era. Similar to the remastering of movie classics, where light, color, sound, and lost scenes are digitally restored, classic typefaces are often remastered to make them more relevant today. 

Read: Why are tech companies making custom typefaces?


OBJECTIVESCreate a revival. Based on a historical reference create an original set of letters uppercase or lowercase, numbers (and some punctuation). Glyphs (letters, numbers, symbols...) must be well designed with attention to proportion, optical corrections, consistency, and spacing. You will be responsible for sketching, refining, and putting into glyphs all of the lowercase or all of the uppercase, numbers, and punctuation is optional (. , ' " ? ! @ &).

Understand the rationale, need, pros, and cons behind creating a revival
Expand your drawing skills in Glyphs
Explore how to draw numbers, (maybe: @ ? ! &) to match your revival
Continue to practice the principles of spacing

CALENDAR

Introduction: Feb 13


Watch Paul Barns
Watch Hoefler Co


The Past is the Present with Paul Barnes ( watch)
For over a decade Commercial Type have been designing and releasing contemporary typefaces; from modern classics like Graphik, Druk, Publico, and Guardian to more experimental faces like Orientation and Styrene. Some of them like Lyon and Portrait have been informed and inspired by the past, but not dominated by it. At the same time, they have been searching through the vast archive that is St Bride Library, looking for hidden gems; designs long forgotten and no longer available. Rather than being modern interpretations where the designer leaves an obvious mark, they are careful reconstructions, made not for yesterday, but for today’s users. https://commercialclassics.com

Watch Hoefler Co, Orator: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUJJpAjt0uY

Click on the readings at the top of the page. Read at least 3 articles and include summary/thoughts in presentation.

Look through the links/ source material above. Capture (collect) as you go... finding options for what you want to revive *make sure you can get back to the source. You can create a revival that is very similar to the source with just a few updates or you can use what you found as a jumping-off point for your own forms. Choose 3 options.

Revival specs:
letters need to be well designed with attention to proportion and consistency. You will be responsible for sketching, refining, and putting into glyphs the letters all of the  lowercase or uppercase + numbers (optional: ? ! @ &)

There are a number of pdfs for you to refer to when looking for a revival. You can also use flikr or any resource really to find a set of letters you would like to revive. Pull the image. Make sure you keep track of where you found them.

Monday, February 27 present a pdf

Prepare a pdf presentation to share with the class on Feb 27. Your research on the Revival includes any thoughts, facts, and summary from the readings.

Have at least 3 options to revive and of course, you can have a favorite. Things to include...
Show us an image. Where is it from? Why does it interest you/ why do you want to revive it? What do you like about it? What do you think you would alter or change? 



Monday, Feb 27



Late start, class will start at 4:00
Present Revival Research pdf. 
Put a copy of your Revival Research your folder on the Google Drive.
(ampersand project is also due)
HOMEWORK

Start sketching your revival by hand or directly into Glyphs. Pick any 6 letters to sketch.
TRY a few sketches to get one you like for some of the letters. Choose wisely, eventually you have to figure out HANDGLOVESMURF or HAMBERGERFONS or handglovesmurf or hamburgerfons.

At the end of the Revival Project, you are creating the 26 letters all lowercase or all 26 uppercase, plus numbers. Start with 6 letters, then move to a set then work on the full alphabet. We are breaking it down into sets of glyphs.

Wednesday, March 1

Volunteers to go into Sophomore class and help pick best 3 best ideas for a modular typeface.
Room 307 at 3:20

Type Universe... Work day in the lab.
*I have a meeting so I will be around after 4:30 please come to the lab and work. Use the classtime to get something done and please ask a peer or 2 to look at what you have so far. 

HOMEWORK



Complete a first draft of HANDGLOVESMURF or HAMBERGERFONS or handglovesmurf or hamburgerfons in Glyphs.
(remember you only need to work on one case). 

Print out your letters/words at least 72pts and bring the printout to class.
use https://adhesiontext.com for words (does not work on Chrome use a different browser)

Bring a printout of the reference of your revival.

Monday, March 6

Volunteers to go into Sophomore class and help pick best 2 best ideas for a modular typeface.
Room 307 at 3:20

Type Universe starts at 4:00
Show and Tell.
Lecture on Figures
Refresher: How to create a new glyph.
How to turn on more punctuation.
Tips: Add Extreme, Stem Measure Tool, Speed Punk, Dimensions, Fit Curve, and Global Spacing, Word Space.
Refresher how-to-space-a-typeface

HOMEWORK
Refine and Add Letters
Refreshers
Figures / Numbers
Print out letters so we can crit
Refine your work and draw at least 10 more letters maybe something with all the letters with a diagonal.

Refreshers: Type Mechanics, Tobias Frere-Jones part 1 | part 2
Stroke Opitics: scannerlicker.net / eyeballing-iv-the-stroke-optics

Start creating...Figures/Numbers.
Read: Lining-figures, (more)
Download Each number explained.
Also check out... oh no type | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |  
We will talk about figures next class.



Wednesday, March 8

No class :) 
please work as if you are in class so that after spring break all you have to do is refine a bit, work on spacing and we will talk about kerning AFTER SPRING BREAK

reminders
Add Extreme, Stem Measure Tool, Speed Punk, Dimensions, Fit Curve, and Global Spacing, Word Space.
Stroke Opitics: scannerlicker.net / eyeballing-iv-the-stroke-optics
Drawing tips = Resources


HOMEWORK
Refine all Glyphs.
Refine letters and sketch or work directly in glyphs on the construction of
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 (if you have options create them as a new glyph)
and if you want to try punctuation ! ? @ & * . , " optional: you do not have to do punctuation

SPRING BREAK

Monday, March 20

Class starts at regular time 3:20
Show and tell with Sophs.
I will go over kerning pairs.
Please do 2 one on one Peer Review Crits. Meet one on one with a classmate and look at your letterforms and Glyphs drawings.

4:00 pm I will give a Glyphs tutorial to sohpomores if anyone want to TA.




Lecture: kerning pairs


Refine all Glyphs. Test Spacing.

Wed. March 22

Hand-in as directed for all projects (glyphs, otf, pdf ect)
Due all uppercase or lowercase (or as far as you got), numbers.
Punctuation is optional.

Intro Personality...