History of Graphic Arts

Throughout history, technological inventions have shaped the development of

graphic art. In 2500 BC, the Egyptians used graphic symbols to communicate their
thoughts in a written form known as hieroglyphics. The Egyptians wrote and
illustrated narratives on rolls of papyrus to share the stories and art with others.

During the middle Ages, scribes manually copied each individual page of

manuscripts to maintain their sacred teachings. The scribes would leave marked
sections of the page available for artists to insert drawings and decorations. Using
art alongside the carefully lettered text enhanced the religious reading experience.

Johannes Gutenberg invented an improved movable type mechanical device known

as the printing press in 1450, the first outside Asia. His printing press facilitated
the mass-production of text and graphic art and eventually, replaced manual
transcriptions altogether.

Again during the Renaissance years, graphic art in the form of printing played a
major role in the spread of classical learning in Europe. Within these manuscripts,
book designers focused heavily on typeface.

Due to the development of larger fonts during the Industrial

Revolution, posters became a popular form of graphic art used to communicate the
latest information as well as to advertise the latest products and services.

The invention and popularity of film and television changed graphic art through
the additional aspect of motion as advertising agencies attempted to use kinetics to
their advantage.

The next major change in graphic arts came when the personal computer was
invented in the twentieth century. Powerful computer software enables artists to
manipulate images in a much faster and simpler way than the skills of board artists
prior to the 1990s. With quick calculations, computers easily recolor, scale, rotate,
and rearrange images if the programs are known

The scientific investigations into legibility has influenced such things as the design
of street signs. New York City is in the process of changing out all of its street
signs bearing all capital letters for replacement with signs bearing only upper and
lower case letters. They estimate that the increased legibility will facilitate way-
finding and reduce crashes and injuries significantly