Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
The Texture of Language
More than simply a tool for clarifying hierarchy, the vari-
ation of typographic texture—changes in boldness, size, linearity, texture, and
rhythm—is an outgrowth of the way we speak or write . . . and the way we speak or
write is a source for typographic color. Slowly spoken phrases contrast with sharp, ab-
rupt outbursts. Long, contemplative soliloquies provide rest against erratic, fractured
thoughts. These qualities of spoken and written language can be made visual, not just
to provide intriguing eye-candy, but to help an audience feel the author and the emo-
tional import of his or her words. Changing sizes, weight, or posture within lines of
running text, even within individual words, can make a dramatic, evocative statement
without sacrificing clarity. It might even improve readability—the quality of and the
degree to which the type engages its readers and leads them through the experience of
the content. Bolding a sub-head that begins a paragraph accomplishes this—making it
seem louder and, therefore, a point of focus—but in an almost totally neutral, objective
way. It's about giving the reader the chance to find something of interest or heightened
importance. But strategically approaching typographic material in a sensory way, giv-
ing it the visual quality of its sounds and cadence, is a powerful method designers can
employ in creating a more vivid verbal experience.
Text excerpted from
The Medium is the Massage
by Marshal McLuhan
