Why should a hobby artist care about the colour theory? Well, any knowledge that contributes to your toolbox is helpful and expands your possibilities.
In this article, I explain the difference between the colours on your screen and those of paint. I talk about Johannes Itten’s colour theory and give some tips about resources.
A colour theory for hobby artists is in my view just as important as for professional artists. Hopefully, it will increase your enthusiasm for your hobby.
Why can you read these lines? It is because you recognise the combination of the letters in the words used. The fact that you are able to read these letters and words at all is because a professional typographer designed them.
He or she not only designed the letters but also decided how much space is required between the letters and the words. Horizontally between each letter and word, but also vertically, between the lines.
Not being aware of typographical rules makes it very difficult to use the right font for a website.
The guidelines for typography in web design are not that different from the guidelines for text in any use. Whether on a screen or on paper, on a truck or on the facade of an office, always ask yourself: “Can people read this in an easy and clear way?”
Almost half of all websites worldwide are made with WordPress, including this website. While WordPress simplifies a lot of typographic decisions, it is still important to have a basic understanding of how typography works.
The following tips apply to both using HTML and CSS, as well as WordPress or any other CMS (Content Management System) website.
Years ago I was watching the elections in the States and I noticed that red and blue had a symbolic value for the political parties.
So they have in the Netherlands, but the funny thing is it has an opposite meaning. The US Democrats are blue and the Conservatives red. The Dutch right wing is blue and the left one loves red.
As I am interested in every aspect of colour, I decided to look more closely into the symbolic values of red and blue in general, not just in politics.
Typeface designers and graphic designers know that if they work mathematically and exact, everybody will think they are bad designers. They have to use tricks to make sure that designs are well-balanced.
In What are the Benefits of Negative Space for Designers and Artists? I explained the trick of negative space. In this article, I will explain how designers use optical illusions.
Some techniques require adjustments that might not be optical illusions in the usual sense but are nonetheless necessary. I will give an example of that as well.
Ligature has a lot of meanings. The word is used in music, medicine, and language. This article is about the meaning of ligature in typography.
If computers had been invented before the printing technique, I wonder if there would have existed ligatures the way they do now. I am so glad that my education in my youth included hand-setting loose lead letters.
This literally gave me a feeling of the typographic origin of corpses, leading and kerning, as well as ligatures.
Often people assume that the meaning of symbols is easier to comprehend than written text. Most of the time, this assumption is wrong.
In the same way that any foreign language must be learned, the idiom of symbols must also be learned. Some symbols or characters are immediately obvious, others require a table with an explanation.
However, we pick up a lot of knowledge about symbols just by looking around in the town where we walk or using public transport. And when everybody knows the meaning of a certain symbol, it communicates a lot quicker than written language. Especially when many languages are used in one place, for example at an airport.
There are good signs and there are bad signs. To know the qualities of good signs we just have to look around and experience the signage that surrounds us.
Don’t you agree that a lot of signs are confusing? Our environment is so full of messages, promotions, and both visual and auditory noise, that it’s hard to focus on the signs that we need at a specific moment.
Still, some signs are marvellous. In a way, it’s a pity that the better the design is, the less we notice the signs because they do their job instantly and without complicating things.
Nowadays it is fashionable for fashion brands to put their monogram on bags and clothes. Why are monograms used that way?
A monogram is a powerful sign, made of 2 or a few letters, that is compact and recognizable.
Monogram-like signs were used as early as ancient times. They could have a religious meaning or serve to identify the author or sender.
In the Middle Ages, royals and prelates used their monograms, consisting of letters of their first and last names. In the centuries that followed, artists signed their work with a monogram.