OUGD601 / COP3 / Reading / Erik Spiekermann - 'Hello, I am Erik' Video

From Gestalten Video:

'Hello, I am Erik—The German Letterman'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjc40JaQgCA\

        there's two differences between what we do here and what we've done on screen

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if i have you know a letter like this and letter like this
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and I want to make it into a poster I have stuff in between
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the spaces and they have to be filled so you also have to touch the space
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and and everything you touch and put in the machine afterwards you have to clean
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it up
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and put it back again put it back on the shelf or in the rack or whatever so that's the
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first experience 

you don't just hit the button, delete there's no delete, there is no return

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you have to touch everything you have to think about you have to plan a little

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more

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a and whatever you do is fairly permanent so that's the practical thing

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which is kinda unusual way before you start work you have to think about ideas

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that you can do with your material but than the other way around you material

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influences you 

you can't just have any idea

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you basically have a rough idea and you start working and then the material

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shaped your idea

there's a certain size in the machine can do there's always the time

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constraint you know

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suddenly it's dark out and you need to go home amd you can't carry on at home because you

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don't have the stuff at home

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well

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I look at my draw and I know what have

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what paper have i got what machine have i got what inks have i what type have i got? 

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it's kinda easy in a way 

wears on the computer oh my god I got Photoshop

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I can do images that didn't exist before I can make photographs that 

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look like paintings like to make paintings that look like photographs

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I can make type that looks like images make images look like type

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here I can't. it's a modular system

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I have the same letters I can make different words but they always the same

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letters

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so the constraints a totally different and after thirty years on screen most people find this interesting.

Another thing which

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which is part of the reason why it's come back into fashion a little bit

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but you can see that it's been printed when I learnt

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as a as a print and typesetter the type would have to kiss the paper

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so there will be a slight impression but only so slight so you get a little furry outline

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it would be a little soft which is what makes

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letterpress so nice to the eye Wheras now what we see on the screen is

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incredibly hard