art 118 // LETTER TRACE

blevit@pdx.edu | levit200.wordpress.com

st e p 1 You will be given 2 print-outs of various sans-serif and serif typefaces. Trace all 8 letters on the given sheets of tracing paper. You do not need to fill them in, if you dont want to. Pay close attention to the details of each face and how they differ. On a separate piece of paper, create a list for each character describing its characteristics. Write legibly. Use these questions as a jumping off point. How do the serifs differ from typeface to typeface? What differentiates the bowls? How do the thicks and thins of stroke from letter to letter, and even within a single letter, vary? How do x-heights differ? How does the shape of the bowl relate to the shape of the loop? Other observations? st e p 2 Choose one of the full alphabets from the PDF (on the blog) to trace. Trace the full sheet carefully, with pen or pencil.

h e lv e t i c a l i g h t

b rya n t r e g u l a r

sca l a r eg u l a r

clarendon roman

h e lv e t i c a l i g h t

b rya n t r e g u l a r

sca l a r eg u l a r

clarendon roman

abcdefghijk lmnopqrstu vwxyz

ABCDEFGH IJKLMNOPQ RSTVWXYZ

abcdefghijk lmnopqrstu vwxyz

ABCDEFGHI JKLMNOPQR STUVWXYZ

abcdefghij klmnopqrst uvwxyz

ABCDEFGHI JKLMNOPQR STUVWXYZ