vcc.ca
VCDP 1130: Typography
Effective date
January 2023
Department
Visual Comm Design Diploma
School
Trades, Technology and Design
Description
Typography is a core element of graphic visual communication. Students will first explore the historical foundations of letterforms and typographic design and will then learn to recognize and use classic typefaces and techniques, including kerning, tracking, leading, and line length, with particular attention paid to legibility and readability. Students will learn to explain and analyze type anatomy and classification systems and will evaluate contemporary trends and issues of functional versus expressive typography. Through creating typographic style sheets in order to analyze, plan, and implement design strategies based on client needs, students develop skills in working with typographic hierarchy and type pairings in relationship to message and context. Adobe Illustrator and InDesign will be used to explore type design, as well as analogue lettering techniques. Font management and font sourcing practices will be introduced.
Credits
3.0
Year of study
1st Year Post-secondary
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain the historical foundation of the development of letterforms and typographic design
- Apply typesetting techniques using industry-standard tools
- Discuss typographic choices with proper terminology
- Explore the use of typographic voice, matching type to meaning and type pairing
- Use effective typographic hierarchy to make text more readable and aesthetically pleasing
- Create a structured system of character and paragraph styles in industry-standard design software
Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition (PLAR)
1. Interview with department to discuss previous experience
2. A portfolio assessment of previously completed related work OR
3. The demonstration of skills via the successful completion of 1-4 related projects/assignments similar to those completed in the course, chosen at the discretion of the department
2. A portfolio assessment of previously completed related work OR
3. The demonstration of skills via the successful completion of 1-4 related projects/assignments similar to those completed in the course, chosen at the discretion of the department
Hours
Lecture, Online, Seminar, Tutorial: 42
Practicum, Self-Paced, Individual Learning: 12
Total Hours: 54
Practicum, Self-Paced, Individual Learning: 12
Total Hours: 54
Instructional Strategies
A combination of lecture, demonstration, production simulations, problem solving, practical labs and reflective discussion will be used throughout this course.
Grading System
Letter Grade (A-F)
Passing grade
C
Evaluation Plan
|
Type |
Percentage |
Assessment activity |
|
Project |
30 |
Final project |
|
Assignments |
30 |
Assignments |
|
Lab Work |
30 |
May include in-class exercises, assignments, quizzes/tests, and work-in-progress |
|
Participation |
10 |
Participation and professionalism |
Course topics
- History of classic typefaces
- Typesetting techniques using Adobe InDesign and lllustrator
- Typographic terminology, anatomy, and classification systems
- Typographic pairing techniques
- Current trends and issues in typography
- Typographic style sheets
Notes:
- Course contents and descriptions, offerings and schedules are subject to change without notice.
- Students are required to follow all College policies including ones that govern their educational experience at VCC. Policies are available on the VCC website at:
https://www.vcc.ca/about/governance--policies/policies/. - To find out if there are existing transfer agreements for this course, visit the BC Transfer Guide at https://www.bctransferguide.ca.