There has been a lot of development in lettering and Letter Art’s evolution throughout the years. From the early days, when the letters were merely used as reminders and warnings. To tell others what the weather is like, to today, where they are seen as a significant piece of art, they are not just used to convey messages anymore but also are being used as a form of expression.
In the past, the lettering was mainly used for communication. The writing of a letter or letterhead was costly and was therefore reserved for people who had a high social status. But as technology developed, these people also started to see that there were other ways of communicating that were much cheaper and more effective.
Lettering is one of the oldest forms of art, and its evolution can be traced back to prehistoric times. It is believed that troglodytes first created art by using sticks to make impressions on stone or wood. Eventually, the use of words and letters to convey messages became popular among people living in the city-states and villages of the ancient world.
Throughout the ages, lettering has evolved over the centuries. And it is now a popular form of art in the modern-day. As technology has developed, the lettering is also evolved over the years.
Here are some of the changes made along the way:
1. The Alphabet
At first, letters were made of only one type of material. Letters were made of a combination of metal or stone, which was then joined together by wooden pegs to form the alphabet’s shape. This was used to write the alphabet. Later on, letters were made of different materials, and the alphabet was made up of a mixture of different shapes and colors of stone, wood, and even metals.
2. Lettering Style
In the early times, the lettering was used to convey specific messages. The most common forms of lettering are;
3. Font
In the past, the lettering was written in Roman letters only. This was done as it was the earliest form of a script. The letters used during the medieval times were very hard and could not be read easily. Fonts and scripts came later on.
- Lettering Styles: Modern-day lettering still follows the same rules as the previous letters in the past. The following are the most common styles used today;
- Capitalization: As mentioned earlier, lettering in the past was very simple. However, lettering is now much more complicated than it used to be. For example, most of the old-fashioned lettering used capital letters only. However, lettering now uses the ‘p’ forms of the letter ‘D’, which is now used for the upper and lower case letter.
- The Number of Letters: Lettering can either have single or multiple letters in the same message. Today lettering uses letters to represent words rather than the alphabet. For instance, a name that is used in two or more different words can have different lettering in the same letter.
- Line Breaking: Lettering now is done in either horizontal or vertical lines. This type of lettering is known as ‘line breaking.’
- ‘R’ Vs. ‘U’: The ‘R’U’ forms of the letter ‘R’ is used to separate the words in a sentence. The ‘R’ can be used to separate two similar words that sound alike. The ‘U’ is used for the singular and the plural forms of the same name.
o Capitalization: Lettering now has different styles depending on the gender of the word used. The genders of the wordplay a big part in the form of the lettering used.
Also read: History of Ancient Greek Music
