Abstract
Typically, when evaluating iconic typefaces, we investigate the degree to which they communicate well-established connotative narratives. Helvetica, for example, is an icon of simplicity and clarity and so, is applied across various designs to exude similar tones. Bodoni, a showpiece of Neoclassicism, detailing and adornment facilitated by technological advancement during the 18th century Industrial Revolution, often appears in designs suited to premium brands. Iconic typefaces such as these are tied to their symbolism; it appears that their symbolic ‘myths’ have ‘always been so.’ As I demonstrate however, there are examples of iconic typefaces whose myths are in fact entirely fabricated, illusionary; 'borrowed' from the origins of other media, to the extent that they appear more real than their true historical origin. They are, I argue, examples of Baudrillard’s simulacra. While it is possible to argue that typographic simulacra are deceptive imposters, in this paper, I argue that they may in fact also offer designers a way to look at and apply iconic type that breaks with clichéd connotations attached to it. Simulacra can offer an absence of narrative; a clearing out of sorts, whereby designers generate new connotations – breathing new life into stayed typefaces.
Keywords
Rhetoric of typography, Typographic simulacra, Type as myth, Baudrillard, Barthes
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/nordes.2023.28
Citation
Rath, K.(2023) The illusive type: Hunting typographic simulacra, in Holmlid, S., Rodrigues, V., Westin, C., Krogh, P. G., Mäkelä, M., Svanaes, D., Wikberg-Nilsson, Å (eds.), Nordes 2023: This Space Intentionally Left Blank, 12-14 June, Linköping University, Norrköping, Sweden. https://doi.org/10.21606/nordes.2023.28
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
researchpapers
Figure 2 - Microsoft Bob.jpg (230 kB)
Figure 3 - Comic Sans appications.jpg (1248 kB)
Figure 4 - Cooper Black 1920s ads.jpg (1189 kB)
Figure 5 - Cooper Black Protest Art.jpg (448 kB)
Figure 6 - Cooper Black Vinyl Covers.jpg (1135 kB)
Figure 7 - Cooper Black 2010 uses.jpg (2170 kB)
Figure 8 - Playbill hollywood wanted posters.jpg (709 kB)
Figure 9 - Victorian posters.jpg (786 kB)
Figure 10 - Actual wanted posters.jpg (872 kB)
Figure 11 - Chop Suey examples.jpg (1586 kB)
Included in
The illusive type: Hunting typographic simulacra
Typically, when evaluating iconic typefaces, we investigate the degree to which they communicate well-established connotative narratives. Helvetica, for example, is an icon of simplicity and clarity and so, is applied across various designs to exude similar tones. Bodoni, a showpiece of Neoclassicism, detailing and adornment facilitated by technological advancement during the 18th century Industrial Revolution, often appears in designs suited to premium brands. Iconic typefaces such as these are tied to their symbolism; it appears that their symbolic ‘myths’ have ‘always been so.’ As I demonstrate however, there are examples of iconic typefaces whose myths are in fact entirely fabricated, illusionary; 'borrowed' from the origins of other media, to the extent that they appear more real than their true historical origin. They are, I argue, examples of Baudrillard’s simulacra. While it is possible to argue that typographic simulacra are deceptive imposters, in this paper, I argue that they may in fact also offer designers a way to look at and apply iconic type that breaks with clichéd connotations attached to it. Simulacra can offer an absence of narrative; a clearing out of sorts, whereby designers generate new connotations – breathing new life into stayed typefaces.