Oh My Victorian

What began with cave walls, the first printing was done for mysterious reasons, evolving to petroglyphs and the hieroglyphs of Ancient Egypt being the first to use Rebus.

The Greeks developed the Phoenician alphabet so that philosophy and science could be written down, using chisels to create the first serif fonts. From this came the Latin Alphabet, the Romans reappropriating what the Greeks developed.

Away from the West, in the East China had calligraphy, symbols meaning words, and their paper and leaf prints reached Europe by the Silk Road. This gave way to the print press in Europe, beginning with Gutenberg and his movable type, inspiring many fonts still used today.

“Graphic Design” used to be called “commercial arts” and prior to the industrial revolution, just “art” which grew during the industrial revolution die to mass production and the need to move goods to the people through advertising. The industrial revolution allowed for goods to be manufactured and produced at a faster rate, requiring effective advertising to make use of a the increased amount of goods. This called for designers, people of a mind to create posters that covered walls, made to catch attention and persuade patronage. The requirement of advertising and design provided for rapid advancements in the technologies of print and design, the reproduction of works becoming easier on a large scale through devices such as print press and lithographs which came later. Much of the early design and reproduced type began with the reproduction of religious scripts. Design elements recurred thought the ages, elements of early typography recurring in Victorian design with typical elements such as type on a curve and cloth banners reminiscent of the Renaissance period. Other elements of Victorian design included ornate borders, busy layouts, lack of white space, symmetrical designs and use of mixed fonts.

Advertisement (USA 1943)

Advertisement (France 1869)

Poster (Holland c.1870)