Graphic Design History

Illuminated Manuscripts
In classical antiquity, the Greeks and Romans designed an illustrated manuscripts, but few have survived.
The Egyptian Book of the Dead was likely an influence on these early publishers.
The vibrant luminosity of gold leaf, as it reflected light from the pages of handwritten books, gave the sensation of the page being literally illuminated; this dazzling effect gave birth to the term illuminated manuscript.
12th Century Illuminated Manuscript
In the few surviving fragments of illustrated scrolls, the layout features numerous illustrations throughout the text. Their frequency creates a cinematic graphic sequence somewhat like a contemporary comic book.
The Classical style The Vatican Vergil, The death of Laocon, early fifth century A.D. Two scenes from the life of Laocon are shown in one illustration.
The Classical style A consistent design approach is used in the Vatican Vergil. The text is lettered in crisp rustic capitals, with one wide column on each page. Illustrations, framed in bright bands of color (usually red), are the same width as the text column.
Celtic Book Design The period from the collapse of Rome until the eighth century was a time of migration and upheaval throughout Europe, as different ethnic tribes fought for territory. Wandering hordes of Germanic Barbarians did not invade the island of Ireland, tucked in the far corner of Europe, and the Celts living there enjoyed relative isolation and peace. In the early fifth century A.D., the legendary St. Patrick and other missionaries began to rapidly convert Celts to Christianity. In a fascinating melding of culture and religion, pagan temples were converted to churches and Celtic ornaments were applied to chalices and bells brought to Ireland by the missionaries.
The Book of Kells 794-806 A.D.
Celtic Book Design The Book of Durrow, the man, symbol of Matthew, A.D. 680.
As flat as a cubist painting and constructed from simple geometric forms, this figure, facing the opening of the Gospel of St. Matthew, wears a checkered pattern of red, yellow and green squares.
Celtic Book Design Ornament was used in three ways:

Ornamental frames or borders were created to enclose full-page illustrations, as we see here.

Opening pages of each gospel and other important passages were singled out for illumination, particularly by the design of ornate initials. A radical design innovation in Celtic manuscripts was leaving a space between words to enable the reader to separate the string of letters into words more quickly.

Full pages of decorative design called carpet pages were bound into the manuscript. This name developed because the densely packed design had the intricate patterning associated with oriental carpets.
Romanesque and Gothic Manuscripts The Romanesque period (c. A.D. 10001150) saw renewed religious fervor and even stronger feudalism. Europeans launched some ten crusades in a vigorous effort to conquer the Holy Lands.
The Church was obviously a major player in the further development of illustrated literature.
Romanesque and Gothic Manuscripts Then in the 1200s the rise of the university created an expanded market for books.
For example, twenty thousand of Pariss hundred thousand residents were students who flocked to the city to attend the university. Literacy was on the rise, and professional lay illuminators emerged to help meet the growing demand for books.
The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265 The Douce Apocalypse, written and illustrated around 1265 A.D., is one of the many masterpieces of Gothic illumination. Each of the hundred illustrated pages has an illustration above two columns of beautifully lettered text. The scribe used a lettering style whose repetition of verticals capped with pointed serifs has been compared to a picket fence. Textura (from the Latin texturum, meaning woven fabric or texture) is the preferred name for this dominant mode of Gothic lettering.
The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265 The Book of Revelation had a surge of unexplained popularity in England and France during the 1200s.
At least ninety-three copies of the Apocalypse survive from this period.
The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265
Late Medieval illuminated manuscripts During the transitional decades, as the medieval era yielded to the European Renaissance, the production of illuminated manuscripts for private use became increasingly important. In the early 1400s the Book of Hours became Europes most popular book. This private devotional volume contained religious texts for each hour of the day, prayers, and calendars listing the days of important saints.
The pinnacle of the European illuminated book was reached in the early fifteenth century, when a passionate lover of books, the French nobleman and brother of King Charles V, Jean, duc de Berry hired the Limbourg Brothers to establish a private scriptorium, a room, as in a monastery, library, or other institution, where manuscripts are stored, read, or copied.
The pinnacle of the European illuminated book was reached in the early fifteenth century, when a passionate lover of books, the French nobleman and brother of King Charles V, Jean, duc de Berry hired the Limbourg Brothers to establish a private scriptorium, a room, as in a monastery, library, or other institution, where manuscripts are stored, read, or copied.
A Graphic Renaissance
Woodblock print of Saint Christopher, 1423. The unknown illustrator depicted the legendary saint, a giant who carried travelers safely across a river, bearing the infant Christ. The inscription below reads: In whatsoever day thou seest the likeness of St. Christopher / in that same day thou wilt at least from death no evil blow incur / 1423.
One of the earliest dated European block prints, this image effectively uses changing contour-line width to show form.
The Origins of European Typography and Design for Printing The invention of typography ranks near the creation of writing as one of the most important advances in civilization. Writing gave humanity a means of storing, retrieving, and documenting knowledge and information that transcended time and place; typographic printing allowed the economical and multiple production of alphabet communication. Knowledge spread rapidly and literacy increased as a result of this remarkable invention.
Movable typography in Europe In the first half of the 15th century, a confluence of artists, designers, engineers, and inventors were working to create a movable-type printing method to meet a growing demand for books. In Avignon, France Procopius Waldfoghel was involved involved in the production of alphabets of steel around 1444, but with no known results.
The Dutchman Laurens Janszoon Coster of Haarlem explored the concept of movable type by cutting out letters or words from his woodblocks for reuse. In his monumental book Dutch Type, Jan Middendorp states that the Dutch
managed to build up the Coster myth

over several centuries. Eventually the Haarlem printer was believed to be Gutenbergs only serious competitor. Coster and his workshop were pictured by famous artists and praised by Italian historians; his ingenuity became a source of pride and confidence for the Dutch in general and for the Haarlem printing business in particular.
However, history has the final word, and history declares Johann Gensfleisch zum Gutenberg of Mainz, Germany, the first to bring together the complex systems and subsystems necessary to print a typographic book around the year 1450.
What skills might someone need to do this? Gutenberg apprenticed as a goldsmith, developing the metalworking and engraving skills. In 1428 he was exiled from Mainz for his leadership role in a power struggle between the landed noblemen and the burghers of the trade guilds who sought a greater political voice. He relocated to Strasbourg, and became a successful gem cutter and metalworker.
In 1438 Gutenberg formed a partnership with Strasbourg citizens Andreas Dritzehen and Andreas Hellmann. Apparently, their partnership was built around Gutenberg teaching them a secret process for making mirrors (which was complicated, given that the molted lead that provided the reflective surface often cracked the glass).
When the Aachen pilgrimage fair (for which they were making the mirrors) was postponed, they entered another 5 year contract to learn another secret process. One of the men, Dritzehen, died in 1438 and his brothers sued for admission to the partnership, or for a refund. Why does this matter?
It matters because as all this was drawn out in court, it served to record Gutenbergs process and materials as he developed his movable type printing process.
Block printing vs. Typographic printing Typographic printing did not evolve directly from block printing because the wood was too fragile. However, block printing remained popular among the Chinese because alignment between characters was not critical and sorting over five thousand basic characters was untenable. However, the need for exact alignment and the modest alphabet system of about two dozen letters made the printing of text material from independent, movable, and reusable type highly desirable in the West.
Book of Trades Jost Amman, 1568
The Gutenberg Bible In 1450, Gutenberg partnered with Johann Fust, a wealthy local merchant, to continue his expensive research in typographic printing. His first major effort was the monumental Gutenberg Bible. At 1,282 pages and 11.75 x 15, this book was heroic to say the least. The Gutenberg Bible
For Next Classtime Monday Jan 28th
READ Chapter 8: An Epoch of Typographic Genius

Graphic Design History

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Graphic Design History

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Illuminated Manuscripts

12th Century Illuminated Manuscript

The Book of Kells 794-806 A.D.

Celtic Book Design Ornament was used in three ways:

Celtic Book Design Ornament was used in three ways:

Celtic Book Design Ornament was used in three ways:

The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265

The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265

The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265

The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265

The Douce Apocalypse, A.D. 1265

managed to build up the Coster myth

Book of Trades Jost Amman, 1568

For Next Classtime Monday Jan 28th

READ Chapter 8: An Epoch of Typographic Genius

You might also like