{"id":324,"date":"2008-12-28T21:20:17","date_gmt":"2008-12-29T02:20:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/?p=324"},"modified":"2009-11-06T21:33:38","modified_gmt":"2009-11-07T02:33:38","slug":"moontalking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/2008\/12\/28\/moontalking\/","title":{"rendered":"Moontalking"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_space_oddity_lyrics.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"dpj_moon_space_oddity_lyrics\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-330\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_space_oddity_lyrics.jpg 500w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_space_oddity_lyrics-150x150.jpg 150w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_space_oddity_lyrics-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"small\"><i>Moon<\/i> typeface \/ 2002 (setting of lyrics excerpted from <a class=\"small\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Space-Oddity-David-Bowie\/dp\/B00001OH7M\/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&#038;s=music&#038;qid=1230499174&#038;sr=8-2\" target=\"_blank\">&#8220;Space Oddity&#8221; by David Bowie<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"large\">\nSpacey, technical, open and angular, functional close or far, and emotionally open, <i>Moon<\/i> is a typeface for the future. Or at least for writing about it. Although its geometry makes it modern and compelling in display setting, the strategically placed serif bits (technically, <i>Moon<\/i> would fall into the &#8220;semi-sans&#8221; category) flow together even dense columns of communiqu\u00c3\u00a9. Special touches and extras give this face an alluring <i>Hal<\/i>-like techno-emotional identity complex&#8230;<!--more-->\n<\/p>\n<p>\nWhen it comes to delivering critical messages, capital letters have long stood at the top of the world. Letter for letter, no other case brings more urgent credibility to your message than the cap. The more caps, the more determined. But, in so many faces, cap settings become such a bore in all their rectilinear monotony, like so much parental lecturing. <i>Moon&#8217;s<\/i> caps know what&#8217;s right and are not afraid to tell you what&#8217;s wrong, but the organic distribution of rounded and open forms, interacting with angular legs and serifs, allow enough engagement to discuss the matter:<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_caps.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"dpj_moon_caps\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-337\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_caps.jpg 500w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_caps-150x150.jpg 150w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_caps-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"small\"><i>Moon<\/i> font: capital letters and lining numerals \/ 2002<\/p>\n<p>\nLining numerals allow for proof to be delivered confidently as top-level information, but are open enough to persuade the cautiously skeptical.<br \/>\n<br \/>\nThe lower case continues where the caps leave off, delivering the bulk of most standard communication with a rarified combination of technical precision and airy\u00e2\u20ac\u201ddare I say, &#8220;friendly&#8221;?\u00e2\u20ac\u201dhumanity:<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_lc.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"dpj_moon_lc\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-339\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_lc.jpg 500w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_lc-150x150.jpg 150w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_lc-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"small\"><i>Moon<\/i> font: lower case letters and text numerals \/ 2002, 2008<\/p>\n<p>\nThe lines between computation and digression are further blurred by the choice of classically-inspired text numerals as an option for setting in prose.<br \/>\n<br \/>\nSpeaking of digression&#8230; As typeface communication continues its rise to supremacy over human face communication, the fonts  of today reveal themselves to be increasingly threadbare in their attempt to keep up. While great writers can pull the most powerful emotional strings with an Apollo-era typewriter and a cerebral hand, this is not the mindset of the majority of today&#8217;s typists. The new communicator places a premium on expediency and response, and relies heavily on hopelessly inadequate typographic patches like <a href=\"http:\/\/messenger.msn.com\/Resource\/Emoticons.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">emoticons<\/a> to express their slashed words for them (and, by the way, how many people were really aching for a quicker way to express &#8220;Vampire bat&#8221;?).<br \/>\n<br \/>\nWhat if the typeface, itself, was more expressive? Though, presently, there is only one weight of <i>Moon<\/i> (<i>Roman Moon<\/i>), other weights were always part of the plan for the future (<i>Half Moon, Full Moon<\/i>, etc.), and would be essential tools to express emphasis or restraint. But what if temporal strain, too, could be captured in the extension of a letter-sound? As an additional spacey touch, super extended vowel forms allow for such techno-humanist expression:<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_exvowels_punc.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"dpj_moon_exvowels_punc\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-338\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_exvowels_punc.jpg 500w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_exvowels_punc-150x150.jpg 150w, http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dpj_moon_exvowels_punc-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"small\"><i>Moon<\/i> font: special extended vowels and standard punctuation \/ 2002<\/p>\n<p>\nThis is, of course, one small step for typeface exploration. The possibilities to realize key-borne expression for the mankind of tomorrow are galactic. The centuries-old groundwork of typography is absolutely still relevant, but the needs of type are evolving. Current standards are being necessarily co-opted by a new world order of communicators, a practice quietly being ignored by typographers (guilty, but aware). <i>Moon<\/i> may just be another typeface, but I&#8217;d suggest its future is wide open.<\/p>\n<p><img src='http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/11\/white.gif' width=\"12px\" height=\"24px\"\/><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Moon typeface \/ 2002 (setting of lyrics excerpted from &#8220;Space Oddity&#8221; by David Bowie) Spacey, technical, open and angular, functional close or far, and emotionally open, Moon is a typeface for the future. Or at least for writing about it. Although its geometry makes it modern and compelling in display setting, the strategically placed serif [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-naming-words","category-type-fonts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=324"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":871,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324\/revisions\/871"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.danielpjohnston.com\/graphic-language\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}