Design History 101

First Class in Design History Requires the Creation of this blog.

Our first Class was on the beginning of design, and design began because of the Industrial revolution.

But before we get into the heavy stuff here are the notes of Designs History.

• The first Art was found on cave walls. Its simple purposes; to tell of good hunting or to warn of harmful predators or plants in a certain area.
• Native Americans used Pictograph type images that were carved into cave walls or rocks.
• It was used as a kind of language i.e. even before the writing language of ancient Egyptians.
• Rebus: a series of images made to convey a message.
• The greek Alphabet in stone was the start of serifs, the Alphabet was made to convey language better.
• Roman Alphabet latin from Greeks. This started the numeral system and grammar, it became the most widely used Alphabet because the Romans conquered most of the world at the time.
• China 1800 B.C Calligraphy was used where the layout and design was just as important as the message.
• Wood Block printing started in China was picked up and used around the world.
• Gothenburg bible was the first book
• Gothenburg typeface was based on the work of scribes
• Victorian era had the "Hand" that pointed people around a poster.
• Lithography - large posters, draw on slate with greasy pastel then the ink prints on everything but the greasy parts.
• Graphic Design was started in the Industrial Revolution because they had so much stuff they had to move they had to advertise to shift the stock.

Prior to the industrial revolution there was no “Graphic Design” just "Art". The Industrial revolution allowed for goods to be manufactured much faster but this in turn led to a back up of stock that needed to be advertised so as to not be wasted. This called for designers. Designers created posters that covered walls and to catch attention to induce sales. This need of advertising and design meant the advancement of technologies in the areas of print and design. The reproduction of works becoming easier on a large scale through innovations such as the print press and lithographs which came much later. Much of the early type design began with the reproduction of religious scripts. Design elements are repeated though the ages, with typical elements such as type on a curve and cloth banners reminiscent of the Renaissance  or Victorian period. Victorian designers included ornate borders, busy layouts, lack of white space, symmetrical designs and the use of many un-complementing fonts. On the whole I find that the Victorian Style hurts my brain with its too busy-ness. But as it is a key point in design history I'm glad it happened so that we have learned from it.