Hello!
Welcome to my toserifornot blog. I am currently studying an MA at the University of Wales Newport (South Wales, UK), and this blog highlights some of my research work to date in my bid to find whether serif type has positive connotation or not for learner groups aspiring to Higher Education in Wales.
Is type emotive? If you were a typeface what face would you be? If you were looking to enter higher education what impression of the learning provider would you have if they presented their face using a serif or sans serif font? Answers not on a postcard but in the blog!
Have a look at this:
Does this make sense to you? Are the type faces used ‘in sync’ with the wording and therefore do the faces satisfy any expectation?
Please leave a comment to share your thoughts.
Use the menu options on the right to view different aspects of my research to date.
February 24, 2010 at 1:02 pm
If I were a font I would be Tw Cen MT italic.
Plain, clean cut, under used but with a twist.
I think that serif typefaces do suggest to me tradition, heritage and old-fashioned establishments, whereas sans serif typefaces tend to appear cleaner and more modern. But that’s not to say a serif typeface can’t appear modern or vice versa.
If I were applying for a modern course (computer science, media studies etc) at an educational establishment, I would probably expect a sans serif typeface, but a more old fashioned course (English literature, physics etc) would probably require a serif typeface, to match the perceived ‘age’ of the subject.
A blog you might like is:
http://ilovetypography.com/
They have lots of articles on typography.
Good luck with your MA!
February 24, 2010 at 3:33 pm
Thanks for your comments Neil. It’s interesting to note your type and course expectations – aligning perception with age and traditional values. Do you think a serif suggests a particular standard (high or low)?