Whenever I see something typed, whether it be online or in an advertisement or on a poster, I’ve noticed that typeface can drastically affect the message content. Typeface inspires different feelings and moods in the viewer. If we see a blackletter typeface, we tend to think of either newspapers or something historical. If we see a script, we might perceive a romantic mood. If the typeface and the message are completely at odds, we would surely notice.
All that being said, I was curious about the origins of typeface as it is so omnipresent in our lives. I thought it was interesting how, throughout history, typeface went from a finite number developed for the printing press to being infinitely available at our finger tips with the advent of the computer. This video is a creative animation of the history of typeface!
Something I will note: when people talk about the history of typeface, it is rarely mentioned that the first moveable type was invented in China. Maybe in the future I can do a blog post about how moveable type developed and advanced in East Asia.
