Quotes & Sayings About Typography Design

Designers provide ways into - and out of - the flood of words by breaking up text into pieces and offering shortcuts and alternate routes through masses of information. ( ... ) Although many books define the purpose of typography as enhancing the readability of the written word, one of design's most humane functions is, in actuality, to help readers avoid reading. — Ellen Lupton

Typography has one plain duty before it and that is to convey information in writing. No argument or consideration can absolve typography from this duty. — Emil Ruder

I discovered that I never really used Helvetica but I like to look at it. I like the VW beetle, too, although I've never driven one. — Stefan Sagmeister

Typography needs to be audible. Typography needs to be felt. Typography needs to be experienced. — Helmut Schmid

The Ardent Hymn that Unites Peoples. — Pablo Neruda

In a badly designed book, the letters mill and stand like starving horses in a field. In a book designed by rote, they sit like stale bread and mutton on the page. In a well-made book, where designer, compositor and printer have all done their jobs, no matter how many thousands of lines and pages, the letters are alive. They dance in their seats. Sometimes they rise and dance in the margins and aisles. — Robert Bringhurst

Anyone who uses Helvetica knows nothing about typefaces. — Wolfgang Weingart

For me, typography is a triangular relationship between design idea, typographic elements, and printing technique. — Wolfgang Weingart

Every page should explode, either because of its staggering absurdity, the enthusiasm of its principles, or its typography. — Tristan Tzara

Someday I'll design a typeface without a K in it, and then let's see the bastards misspell my name. — Frederic Goudy

In the eighties, I was fortunate to be one of the young art directors that Jerry Roach, creative director at JWT New York, took under his wing. He taught me how to use typography more visually, to push against design norms and not to rely on preconceived notions of what something should look like. I learned that nuance is everything and to agonize over the details. I have Jerry to thank for driving plenty of people crazy over the years! — John Butler

By the year 2000 every secretary will have a favorite typeface. — Roger Black

Perfect typography is certainly the most elusive of all arts. Sculpture in stone alone comes near it in obstinacy. — Jan Tschichold

Its focus wasn't on the written word but how the word was written. — Neville Brody

It is freely admitted that this "testing" is far from ideal and could even be described as anecdotal. — Eric Gill

A plain circular bullet is widely disdained for its banality. — Carolina DeBartolo

They should make new ways to better design buildings and books. The computer was the end of Swiss typography! — Emil Ruder

Typography is two-dimensional architecture, based on experience and imagination, and guided by rules and readability. — Hermann Zapf

What a graphic designer tries to do is make sure the typography is emotionally consistent with the brand. — Michael Ian Kaye

Typomania is curable but not fatal. Unfortunately. — Erik Spiekermann

The contributions that one makes in typography, design, and art in general cannot be, and must not be measured on how much money is involved. That would lead to total chaos. The word itself (contribution) is to give to a common purpose. — Ed Benguiat

I don't think that success is the premise to what is good or bad. — Ed Benguiat

I have little interest in illustration, which lacks a kind of transcendental quality. It is too literal. I find typography more straightforward, conceptual, and appealing, with its strict geometric vocabulary. There is a bridge between typographic design and fine art, especially since typography possesses a complex subtlety. The idea, the method, and the honesty in expression are central to a designer who works with type. — Timothy Samara

One of my colleagues is convinced that having a wide range of types to choose from is a complete waste of time. He swears by two typefaces: Gill (1928) and Frutiger (1975), which he uses for road signs (among other things). ( ... ) [U]ntil 1975, the year in which Adrian Frutiger's eponymous typeface came onto the market, my colleague could only have made half of his selection. It seems to me that this proves the case for continuing to design new typefaces. — Gerard Unger

Simplicity, wit, and good typography. — Michael Bierut

Perfect typography is more a science than an art. — Jan Tschichold

What makes Helvetica more beautiful is the word "Helvetica" as a logotype in its typeface. It just makes the rest of the alphabets effective. — Shawn Lukas

Typography exists to honor content. — Robert Bringhurst

I was a generalist in college. You take a lot of courses to feel out what you're interested in. I really felt web design was too limited for me to interested in it - [instead] I was really into typography. — Jessica Hische

All the old fellows stole our best ideas. — Frederic Goudy

The first thing one learns about typography & type design is that these rules are made to be broken. — Jeffery Keedy

Typography is the craft of endowing human language with a durable visual form. — Robert Bringhurst

Typefaces are to the written word what different dialects are to different languages. — Steven Heller

Readers usually ignore the typographic interface, gliding comfortably along literacy's habitual groove. Sometimes, however, the interface should be allowed to fail. By making itself evident, typography can illuminate the construction and identity of a page, screen, place, or product. — Ellen Lupton

You can say, "I love you," in Helvetica. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be really fancy. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it's really intensive and passionate, you know, and it might work. — Massimo Vignelli

Malevich, Lissitsky, Kandinsky, Tatlin, Pevsner, Rodchenko ... all believed in the social role of art ... Their works were like hinged doors, connecting activity with activity. Art with engineering; music with painting; poetry with design; fine art with propaganda; photographs with typography; diagrams with action; the studio with the street ... — John Berger

When typography is on point, words become images. — Shawn Lukas

All typefaces are historical. — Jonathan Hoefler