The Art, Science, and Craftsmanship of Typography
Type
Event
Date
Mar 16, 2026 — Mar 20, 2026
Location
Institute of Informatics, LMU
Munich,
Abstract
Typography (putting mostly textual content into shape) is an art because we
are ultimately trying to create beautiful documents. Typography is also a
craftsmanship because for a large part, beauty is in the eye of the reader,
so experimentation is of paramount importance. Finally, typography is a
science because most of the concrete problems that we need to solve are both
chaotic in nature, and of exponential complexity. In this talk, I will
travel through the history of typography (past, present, and future),
raising the audience’s awareness of its inner art, science, and
craftsmanship. I will also try to emphasize on the importance of
conscientious typography. In a world obsessed with communication, the beauty
of a document is not a purely esthetic matter. Because beautiful texts are
more pleasant to read, they are also easier to understand.