Adhesive Binding. Adhesive-bound books
are held together not by sewing but by
a special glue. Adhesive binding is com¬
monly used for soft-cover books, but is
equally useful for larger handwritten
books, because the sheets can be ar¬
ranged with the fold towards the out¬
side, as described above. The pages open
more freely in this style, but the book
should be assembled by a bookbinder,
and it will not be as durable as a conven¬
tionally bound book.

Covers for One or Two Signatures. A board
cover is easily fashioned. You must
crease the board parallel to the grain di¬
rection in the middle of the board and
sew or glue the signature into it. If you
are gluing the signature, you must score
two more lines parallel to the middle
fold of the board, one on each side, at a
distance of У% inch (5 millimeters) from
the fold, so the book will open easily
(Figure 408). Paper can be folded
around the board cover and held in place
by means of flaps that reach almost back
to the fold (Figure 409). If you use this
method, which is known as English
binding, it is not necessary to attach the
first and last pages to the cover—just
put them under the flaps. The wrapper
can reach as far back as the inner edge
of the cover and can be made of printed,
marbled, or otherwise decorated paper.
It carries the title either in written form
or on a label.

When you score board for a booklet
of two signatures, you must take the
width of the spine into account (Figure
410). Apply adhesive to the cover, insert
the signatures, and weight the book be¬
tween two wooden boards until the glue
is dry. Depending on the size and thick¬
ness of the block, you may need to at¬
tach the endpapers to the cover with
adhesive, or you may just tuck them
under the paper wrapper, as described

190

above. Usually the latter is sufficient.

Should you desire a traditional hard¬
cover binding, consult a hand bookbinder.
It remains your responsibility to make
suggestions for the design and to choose
the materials.

We have covered only a limited
amount of information about paper, cov¬
ers, and techniques of binding. The
graphic artist who wishes to know more
can consult Franz Zeier's Books, Boxes,
and Portfolios (New York: Design Press,
1990) and other sources.

Lettering in Applied Graphic Art

Logotypes

A logotype is an expression of the essen¬
tial substance of a particular company,
institution, or organization, of an idea, a
special occasion, or a product. Logos are
visual signs, and their form comes from
the object they depict or from related as¬
sociations. Geometric or natural forms
can inspire logotype designs — for exam¬
ple, the environment could be sym¬
bolized by a stylized leaf. Other sources
are scientific symbols, heraldic forms, or
visual representations of the word in
question. The locality of a subject might
be important enough to be pictured.
Purely naturalistic forms, however, are
rarely effective.

A logo can also be developed from a
company's initials or the name of the
product. Logos that are made up of let¬
ters, monograms, and lettering of any
kind demand the same treatment as pic¬
torial symbols. There must be contrast
and tension. Interior space and spaces
between shapes carry as much weight as
the shapes themselves, and all the
graphic elements have to form a unit. A
logo should be more than a conglomera¬
tion of unrelated elements that are held

Figure 405

Figure 406

Figure 407

Figure 408

crease to facilitate opening

Figure 409

W ^ creases for
Vdouble fold Figure 410

Figure 411

together by a border. The examples in
Chapter 5 illustrate this principle.

It is, of course, possible to combine
letters and pictorial elements in a single
logo. Certain letters provoke associa¬
tions such as a feeling of lightness or
weight. Use these associations as well as
any other emotional messages the forms
may carry.

The following principles apply for all
logos, pictorial or based on letters:

A logo must be easily recognizable; it
has to be simple and memorable.

The purpose of the logo should influ¬
ence its form.

Most graphic forms of advertisement
are based on or include the logo of the
subject; the logo usually appears on let¬
terheads, brochures, labels, packaging,
and delivery vans. It may be necessary to
render it in varied materials, such as
cardboard, plaster, glass, metal, fabric,
or even neon. The technical require¬
ments and restrictions of work in any of
these materials must be taken into con¬
sideration from the earliest stages of de¬
sign, since it is obvious that printing,
embossing, punching, casting, or weav¬
ing require distinctly different approaches.
Variations may be necessary if the same
logo is to be executed in techniques as
different as engraving in steel or model¬
ing in plaster. It is rare, however, that
one design has to fit such diverse require¬
ments; more commonly it is enough to
satisfy the following requirements.

All details should still be visible if the
logo is reduced to Уъ inch (5 millime¬
ters). Unlimited enlargement should be
possible, though a variation of stroke
thickness might be necessary for very
large versions.

The logo has to be reproducible in
black and white and positive or negative,
and it is useful if a representation in sev¬
eral colors is programmed into the design,
but it is rarely feasible to concentrate on

color exclusively. It has to stand on its
own as well as fit into a frame. Consider
the possibility of relief or freestanding
sculpture.

Logos are protected by law. A new
design must be original and may not
create associations with already existing
ones. The simpler the design, the harder
to avoid this problem.

Logos are subject to fashion. The
taste of the public changes in the field of
graphic art almost as quickly as when it
comes to hem lengths. Since the logo is
an essential element of all graphic design
pertaining to a product, it should be
changed only if absolutely necessary,
and then only gradually, especially if old
and established products are concerned.

Some logos are developed from the
name of a product or a company. The
letterforms should be chosen in relation
to the particular product or company;
the letters must form a word that stands
on its own as a composition, and the
word must stand out among other text
elements. Again, the design must be easy
to remember.

To ensure that the word can be read
easily, the letterforms must never be
modified beyond their basic characteris¬
tics. Figures 412 and 413 show examples
of design that sacrificed legibility to the
visual image in a misguided attempt to
be original. Unfortunately, many similar
examples could be cited.

Logos may be executed with pen or
brush as well as with type, but the field
of application is more limited, because
calligraphic forms cannot be transferred
so easily to other media.

To get started designing a logo, make
a number of preliminary sketches. If one
of these looks promising, play with it in
a small format of about 2 inches (5 to 6
centimeters) in black and white. Figure
414 is an example. The topic for this
particular exercise was to inscribe a cap-

191