The Roman Alphabet | 7th century BC

What was the basis of the Roman uppercase alphabet?

 ~A variant of the Greek alphabet

What were the purposes of the formal and informal styles of lettering?

~Formal script was used for important manuscripts and official documents

~Informal script was used for letters and routine types of writing
 

Why is the Roman alphabet the most widely used and what contributions did it make?
~They refined several distinct styles of lettering which were used for different purposes

~Ensured that type was perfectly aligned in rows = greatly contributed to type aesthetics
 

From where did serifs originate?
~The carving of words into stone in Ancient Italy
 

When and where did lowercase, or minuscule, letters develop?
~Rome in the 3rd century.
 

What is a ligature and why were they utilized?
~The connection between letters

~Helped the chisel

Post an example of the Roman alphabet in visual form.

The Greek Alphabet | 800 BC

How did Greeks come in contact with the Phoenicians?
~Phoenicians regularly traveled to Greece and established trade agreements with them
 

How was the Greek adaptation of the alphabet different from its predecessor?
~Several of the constants that representing sounds or distinctions were adapted to represent vowels
 

Why is the Greek alphabet considered to be the world's first true alphabet?
~It has given rise to many other alphabets, including the Latin alphabet
 

Name several similarities and differences between the Greek and modern English alphabets?

Similarities:

~They have vowels and consonants

~Each letter represents a sound

Differences:

~Different amount of letters

~Green alphabet's letters had a name that was longer

Post an example of the Greek alphabet in visual form.

The Phoenician Alphabet | 1050 BC

The Phoenician alphabet is based on what principle?
~One sign represents one spoken sound
 

Describe the shape of the letters and what tool created them?
~Angular and straight

~Stylus
 

What two reasons made the Phoenician alphabet so successful?
~It was simpler system than the contrasted scripts of the time like Cuneiform

~The maritime trading culture of the Phoenician merchants spread the use of the alphabet into parts of North Africa and Europe
 

What long term effects on the social structures of civilizations did the Phoenicians have with the creation of their alphabet?

~First widespread phonetic script- its simplicity allowed it to be used in multiple languages; it also allowed common people to learn how to write

~Simple appearance of the characters- disintegrated class divisions between royalty and the common people

Post an example of the Phoenician alphabet in visual form.

Hieroglyphics and the Egyptians | 3,000 BC

In the sixth century BC, what three civilizations invaded Egypt?
~Persians
~Greeks
~ Romans

Post an example of the inside wall(s) of an Ancient Egyptian temple.

What was discovered on the inside of the temples?
~Carved and painted images on every wall and surface all written in Egyptian hieroglyphics

Scholars believe that Ancient Egyptians were inspired and influenced by which written language?
~Cuneiform

What is the difference between logographic and alphabetic elements?
~Logograms are visual symbols representing ideas or objects; generally stylized and simplified, perfectly recognizable
~Alphabetic [or phonetic] variations came later as the language evolved into demotic; used for document writing

The term Hieroglyphic derived from what two Greek words?
~Hiero - meaning sacred
~Glyphic - meaning engraving or writing

What is a scribe?
~a member of a learned class in ancient Israel through New Testament times studying the Scriptures and serving as copyists, editors, teachers, and jurist, according to Webster Dictionary

Who else was trained to read and write? Why?
~Military leaders
~to be able to communicate while in battle


~Priests
~read and write instructions on the walls and papyrus for rituals which were performed to please the gods and goddesses

 Post an example of hieroglyphics on papyrus.

 

What is papyrus and how was it made?
~a substrate made from reeds native to Egypt

~wet reeds are placed criss-cross over each other, flattened and dried; then rubbed with flat stones until the surface becomes smooth

What is a substrate?
~A substance or layer that underlies something, or on which some process occurs, in particular, according to Google

What were the Books of the Dead?
~A set of scrolls for Pharaohs and other important Egyptians on Papyrus; instructions and spells to help them find their way to the after life; commissioned by the users themselves before death

How did Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics become a forgotten language?
~By the time the Greeks and Romans ruled Egypt, few Egyptians were capable of reading or writing them;


Post an example of the Rosetta Stone.

What is the Rosetta Stone? Where was it discovered?
~A slab with inscriptions on it
~Rosetta, Egypt

What three languages are included on the stone?
~Egyptian hieroglyphics
~Demotic
~ Greek



Why couldn't the text on the Stone be deciphered?
~A chunk of the stone was missing and none of the three texts were complete

Who finally deciphered the text? What was his breakthrough?
~Jean Francois Champollion (in 1822)
~He was able to match up the hieroglyphic symbols with the Greek version of the name Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses with the Greek version of the name

Why does the interpretation of the Rosetta Stone have such significance?
~We know a great deal about the Ancient Egyptians and Egyptian Hieroglyphics

Cuneiform and the Sumerians | 3,000 BC

The Sumerians were one of the earliest types of this kind of civilization? What does that mean?
~Nomadic civilization

~Ones who migrated
 

Why is the region of Sumer considered the Cradle of Civilization?
~Where cuneiform was created [world's first written language]
 

What could the Sumerians practice year round because of the regions climate?
~Agriculture

Post an example of early Cuneiform (Sumerian pictograph).

Why was Cuneiform created?
~To keep track of business transactions

What medium was used to "write" Cuneiform? Explain the process of preparing and writing on this surface?
~Clay tablets

~Wet the clay, form it into flat surfaces, use a wedge shaped stylus made from reeds to make impressions into the clay surface, lay the clay tablets in the sun allowing them to dry
 

What did Cuneiform begin as a series of?
~Pictographs

Post an example of evolved Cuneiform (wedge-shaped).

After it evolved over time, what shape did the characters of Cuneiform evolve into?
~Wedge-shapes

Post an example of Akkadian Cuneiform.

After the Akkadians conquered, what happened to the Sumerian culture and written language?
~It was adopted by the Akkadians
 

What is a pictograph?
~an ancient or prehistoric drawing or painting on a rock wall, according to Webster Dictionary
 

Why did the creation of Cuneiform allow the Sumerians to become a sophisticated culture?

~They could communicate with all different languages and cultures

Assignment 14: RESEARCH & iNSPiRATiON

Research: [see the careers tab]


Inspiration:

This piece uses a lot of colors but on a darker background and scale. The colors have a glow-type look to them.

 I like the use of emphasis on this piece. Also, there are attracting colors that also contrast one another. This has a good use of emphasis but I don't want my focal point to be in the middle of the page.

 I like how the words build down towards the bottom of the page and it has a kind of leading line that swerves down towards the bottom end of the design. Good use of neutral colors vs. bright colors.

 I liked these pieces because they are just different. Also, I like the side ways text and slanted design. I want to have a little slant in my design.

I like the shades of blue in this pic.

I like the glow in this and the shades of blue/purple/green.

I like the shades of blue and the slant. It reminds me of a sky.

ViSUAL ORGANiZATiON

Visual Organization

~not directing the audience through a design is misdirecting them

a. Eye movement- the typical eye moves left to right and top to bottom

   -controlling eye movement within a composition is a matter of directing the natural scanning tendency of the viewer's eye

   -the eye tends to gravitate towards areas of complexity first. In pictures of people, the eye is always attracted the face and particularly the eye

  -light areas of composition will attract the eye, especially when adjacent to a dark area

   -diagonal lines or edges will guide eye movement

b. Optical Center- the spot where the human eye tends to enter the page. Optical center is slightly above mathematical (or exact) center and just to the left

   -it takes a compelling element to pull your eyes away from this spot

c. Z Pattern- our visual pattern make a sweep of the page, generally, in the shape of a "Z"

   -effective page design maps a viewer's route through the information. The designer's objective is to lead the viewer's eye to the important elements of information.

FONT GUiDELiNES

   1) don't use more than 2

       make sure fonts complement each other

   2) avoid all CAPS [unless it is necessary, like headlines]

   3) choose the right font

   4) do not over-use fancy or complicated fonts

www.typography.com/email/2010_032010_1043_index.htm

Visual hierarchy

• Visual hierarchy will establish focal points based on their importance to the message that's being communicated
• A crucial part of the design process is to establish an order of elements, a visual structure, to help the viewer absorb the information provided by a design
• ASK YOURSELF:
• What do I want my viewer to look at first?
• Second?
• Third?
• Etc...

Visual Organization:LAY-OUTS

The Grid

    =way of organizing content on a page, using any combination of margins, guide lines, rows and columns

    =instituted by Modernism (clarity in simplifying things)

    =can assist the audience by breaking info into manageable chinks and establishing relationships between text and images

    =consists of a distinct set of alignment-based relationships that act as guides for distributing elements across a format

   =every design is different; therefore every design will require a different grid structure...one that addresses the particular elements within the design

   =a grid is used to help clarify the message being communicated and to unify the elements

Cave Paintings | 35,000 years ago

What are cave paintings?
~Beautiful, detailed, and colorful representations found on the inside of cave walls and ceilings; mostly in Western Europe, Australia, Africa, and China
 
Name several common themes found in cave paintings?
~Large Animals such as bison, horses, and deer
~Tracings of human hands
~Abstract patterns

How were these paintings created (tools, pigments)?
~Paints were made from mixing water, plant juice animal blood, soil, charcoal, hematite--a form of iron oxide.
~Brushes were made by putting together sticks, small stones, leaves, and animal hair.

What is the most famous cave painting site? When was it discovered and by whom?
~Lascaux, France
~Discovered in 1940 by teenage boys who found it accidentally

Post an example of cave painting(s) from this cave.

 
Why did this cave have to be closed? What was done to satisfy public curiosity?
~Because the wall paintings were bring damaged by the carbon dioxide emitted from the tourists
~The French government created the Lascaux II, a man made replica next to the original

Post an example of cave painting(s) from Altamira cave.

In Altamira cave, why do most of the paintings have a red hue?
~Caused by the red clay in the soil that was used to make paint for the paintings
 
Who discovered this site? How old are the paintings confirmed to be?
~Amateur archaeologist Marceline Sanz de Sautuola and his daughter Maria
~Nearly 19,000 years ago
 
What is the oldest known cave painting site? When was it discovered and by whom?
~Chauvet-Point Arc
~1994
~3 speleologists: Eliette Brunell Deschamps Christian Hillaire Jean-Marie Chauvet

Post an example of cave painting(s) from this cave.

What was different about the painting techniques at this site?
~Walls were scraped clear of debris, to make it smoother.
~3D effect was created by etching around the edges
~Sticks and small stones fashioned into paint brushes
 
What is "speleology"?
~the scientific study or exploration of caves, according to Webster Dictionary
 
What three reasons do archeologists and historians believe prehistoric man created cave paintings?
~To tell a story or recount an event that already happened
~Used as an instructional visual aid to help teach about hunting techniques
~Created for magical or religious reasons that if image of a desired even were painted, it might come true