OUGD401 - Editorial Design: A Brief History

OUGD401 - Editorial Design: A Brief History

While the earliest examples of graphic design can be traced all the way back to medieval illuminated manuscripts, one of the most significant events of graphic design was in 1450, when Johannes Gutenberg introduced the moveable type printing press to the world. Cramsie (2010) highlights how although Gutenberg did not invent printing nor moveable type, by employing the use of previously unrelated technologies, he refined printing type as a system and this increase in efficiency proved historic in the development of visual communication - 'With Gutenberg's inaugural pull of the press, newly printed texts cut right across this literacy hierarchy. The quantity and variety of newly printed material soon allowed readers to choose their own reading matter and then interpret it as they wished.'

Over time these technologies were refined and as graphic design developed as a profession, it was only until the late 19th century and the start of the 20th century that the next notable breakthroughs can be seen in editorial design. With the rise of industrialism, the requirement for mass communication was provoked and the most efficient response to this was poster design, as Clifford (2014) writes. Designers, artists, architects and creatives alike started visually pushing the boundaries of the pre-existing social and academic normalities seen in publication design. The arts and crafts movement and art nouveau prompted more expressive art and design movements such as da-daism and futurism while more minimal and geometric movements such as constructivism and de stijl would influence design that would later be known as early modernism.

An example of this is Russian designer El Lissitzky's 'masterpiece of modern typography' - Mayakovsky's 'Dlya Golosa' in 1923 - which responds to these movements by utilizing asymmetry, simple geometric shapes, negative space and a limited colour palette. This seminal publication by the two Russian creatives exemplified the idea that the visual expression of the poetry should appropriately represent but also enhance the reading experience, a sentiment shared by Meggs (2016) - ‘The title spread for each poem is constructed into a dynamic visual composition, with geometric elements having symbolic meaning.’  

Modernist movements, such as De-Stijl and Swiss Design started to flourish and while WWll saw the closure of the Bauhaus and the immigration of many European designers, by the 50’s modernism was bigger than ever, as Clifford (2014) writes - ‘In Europe during the 1950’s, the international typographic style, or Swiss style, advanced the philosophies of the Bauhaus and the De Stijl movement. This rational approach, based on a mathematical grid to structure layouts, was so clean and simple it took modernism to a new minimal level. The style became more common as corporations began adopting it.’

Swiss design saw designers such as Herbert Matter influence editorial design greatly, most notably with a more experimental application of photography. Matter combined photomontage, typography and photography to create dynamic and stylish posters and magazine spreads. Examples of this can be seen in his work for the Swiss Tourist Board. However American designers had adopted modernism with great success too. Bradbury Thompson pushed the boundaries of typography and layout; In his art, design and architecture publication - 'Westvaco Inspirations' - Thompson utilizes typographical letterforms as a key component in layouts, printing bold sans serif letterforms in vibrant 'CMYK' colours. Alexey Brodovitch also had a big impact on editorial design in this period of modernism; Brodovitch was a Russian émigré who moved to New York in 1930 and soon become the art director of Harper’s Bazaar - ‘Before Brodovitch became art director at Harper’s Bazaar, Most American magazines were crowded and fussy. Text and images were usually kept separate, and models were often posed like stiff mannequins. Brodovitch changed all that. He added white space to give the images and text some breathing room. He combined type and pictures seamlessly. And, he ushered in a more elegant, sophisticated and dynamic look in fashion photography’ - Clifford (2014) 

In the 60’s - 70’s, as with any creative trend, when a younger generation of designers came about they responded to the current modernist approach to design by subverting its rules, and the era of postmodernism was ushered in.  ‘Helvetica’ a documentary directed by Gary Hustwit in 2007 examines not only the Helvetica typeface and its use through the 20th century but also gives key insights into the design trends off the 20th century through interviews with some off the biggest designers of certain decades. Massimo Vignelli, a true modernism purist describes postmodernism as a ‘disease’ and states - ‘I don't think that type should be expressive at all. I can write the word 'dog' with any typeface and it doesn't have to look like a dog. But there are people that think that when they write 'dog' it should bark.’. Alternatively, postmodernist designer Paula Scher says - ‘I realised that type had spirit and could convey mood’ and Stephen Sagmeister further backs postmodernism’s corner by stating - ‘I myself got fairly disappointed with modernism in general, its simply became boring’. 

Designers such as Milton Glaser, who founded the New York Magazine in 1968, spearheaded this new expressive and rule breaking approach which provoked editorial design unlike anything that had been seen before. Clifford (2014) effectively sums up Glaser’s approach - ‘Glaser had nothing against modernism; he just felt it has run its course for innovation and expression. Instead he embraced historical styles, ornaments and complexity’. As handmade and printing approaches were substituted for new technologies like rub-down type and photomechanical transfer, design became more free and experimental, a notion reflected in the conceptual approach to editorial design also. George Lois who worked in advertising at the time, was hired by Esquire magazine in 1962 to design covers as compelling as the content of the magazines. His bold controversial covers depicted subjects including the Vietnam War, one of which simply showed a quote from a US soldier - ‘Oh my God - we hit a little girl’ - in large type. By employing the use of his advertising savvy, Lois emphasised the importance of controversy and shock tactics as a way of selling magazines.

In the mid 1980’s, digital software become more advanced than ever and practical handicraft processes were substituted for graphics programs from companies like Apple and Adobe. This opened up an enormous range of possibilities for design and editorial design in relation to layout, typefaces and layering images. A lot of graphic designers experimented thoroughly with this new technology but the most noteworthy of them was David Carson. Directing publications such as 'Raygun' and 'Surfer', Carson created his signature 'grunge' design style; using typography and imagery in random and unpredictable layouts, bordering on abstraction, he created dynamic and incredibly expressive magazines and publications. While the illegibility and chaos of this style was questioned at first, it soon became incredibly sought after and admired, making Carson one of the biggest designers in the world, as he touches upon in his interview with Layers Magazine (2007) - 'It was a bit funny, maybe, that at Ray Gun some of the writers complained early that their articles were hard to read. But then by the 30th issue, the same writers would complain if they thought their articles were too easy to read!'

A number of authors have considered the transition of editorial design between printed and digital media. Foges, (1999), Randle, (2001) and Franchi & Rocca, (2016) have all commented upon the fact that editorial design is becoming increasingly more digital, however that doesn't make the production of printed media obsolete. For example; Foges imparts his opinion on this digital transition by saying - 'While it is true that the web is a unique medium, presenting problems that cannot be tackled in the same way as either print magazines or television, it is also demonstrably true that many of the lessons learnt in design for print, can, and should, make the transition to the digital interface'. Foges presents an insightful view on the topic here where he acknowledges the benefits of digital based media and fully accepts its increasing importance, however also states that everything up until that point in editorial design shouldn't be disregarded, more so applied to this new format. This is an important principle, because although the information is being presented on a screen and not paper, the same rules of design still apply.

Bibliography

Cramsie, P (2010). The Story of Graphic Design. London: The British Library. p70-77.

Meggs, Philip B.. (2016). Graphic Design. Available: https://www.britannica.com/art/graphic-design. Last accessed 4th December 2017

Tafoya, R. (2012). Graphic Design History: Psychedelic 60's. Available: https://visualartsdepartment.wordpress.com/psychedelic-60s/. Last accessed 5th December 2017.

Westgate, A. (2007). An Interview with David Carson. Available: https://layersmagazine.com/an-interview-with-david-carson.html. Last accessed 5th December 2017.

Randle, Q. (2001). A Historical Overview of the Effects of New Mass Media Introductions on Magazine Publishing in the 20th Century. First Monday. 6

Foges, C (1999). Magazine Design. Sussex: Rotovision.

Franchi, F & Rocca, C (2016). Intelligent Lifestyle Magazine: smart editorial design, ideas and journalism. Berlin: Gestalten.

HUSTWIT, G., SIEGEL, S., & GEISSBUHLER, L. (2007). Helvetica: a documentary film. [Place of publication not identified], Plexifilm.

Clifford, J (2014). Graphic Icons: Visionaries Who Shaped Modern Graphic Design. United States: Peachpit Press.