Research - The History of Graphic Design

The History of Graphic Design

GRAPHIC DESIGN Beginnings: 15,000 – 3,600 BC

Graphic design can be traced all the way back to 15,000 BC, when the first known visual communications came about. These are pictographs and symbols which can be found in the Lascaux caves in southern France. The Blau Monument is the first known artefact to use both words and pictures on it.

Although these early examples are far from what we consider graphic design today; they helped create the idea of placing images on surfaces which ultimately led to us creating drawings, posters banners and more.

PAPER AND PRINTING: 105 AD – 1530 AD

Paper was invented in 105 AD by an Asian man, this led to the idea of printing. After nearly 100 years in 1045 AD, type which could be moved around was invented. This made it possible for characters to be placed individually for print. This made it possible to print faster and made printing more flexible and efficient.

A paper mill arrived in Fabrino, Italy in 1276, which officially brought printing to Europe.

In 1450, two hundred years after the first paper mill arrived in Europe, the system for printing type in books was perfected. The first illustrations in a printed book followed shortly after, in 1460. Seventy years of printing went by before Claude Garamond opened the very first type foundry — in 1530 — which created and sold fonts to printers.

THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: 1760 – 1800

The Industrial Revolution began in the 1760s and created a new age for graphic design. Innovative technologies began appearing at an alarming rate this included lithography, this was a printing technique that helped reduce costs. The Industrial Revolution also welcomed the printing press in 1800. This was a machine which doubled the size of paper which could be printed on and reduced labor by 90%.

GROWTH OF GRAPHIC DESIGN: 1900S

Since the time of the Industrial Revolution, graphic design had been making its way into business practices. In 1901, Frank Lloyd Wright released the book “The Art and Craft of the Machine,” which included basic principles which are still used in modern design. With the growth of the advertising industry and colour printing, businesses began creating logos to help brand their companies. With a custom logo design, a company’s brand became more than just a name, it became memorable piece of art, with colour, shape, and composition all working towards making an impression on the target audience.

Graphic design became widely used in advertising and other industries, marking impressive designs on everything from t shirts to posters, record covers, and more. When computer technology was invented throughout the 1900’s, graphic designers began to use digital tools such as Adobe Illustrator and photoshop, as well as many others to create their images. These digital tools revolutionized graphic design.

GRAPHIC DESIGN TODAY

Today, graphic design refers to designing visuals for magazines, books, advertisements, and digital posters. This is an intensive branch of design which involves the art form of communicating ideas through visuals and typography. Graphic designers still use drawings and paintings in some cases, but most graphic design today is completed using digital software. These modern graphic design skills can be applied to custom logo design, book cover design, magazine layouts, billboard advertisements, clothing design, online banner ads, and much more.

Graphic design has been around for quite some time, but as we view it today in the world of business, it’s only been alive for the last hundred years or so. For the past 100 years, graphic design has permeated the space of business and consumerism, capturing our attentions, sparking our interests, and blending into our surroundings. It’s all around us and it shows up in everyone’s daily life. At this point in time we don’t know where graphic design will take us in the future.