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Design in Typography.
Trade Vignettes.

Until recent years, very little care was given to the production of vignettes and ornaments for advertising purposes. Any one turning back the pages of the specimen-books—English, American, or Continental—to the earlier designs, cannot fail to note the crude and coarse attempts which were all that could be had a few years ago. Advertising has now developed into an art, and it is not unusual for the leading English advertisers to pay for compositions specially produced by artists of the Royal Academy. If it be objected that this has a tendency to debase and vulgarize art (which is a debatable matter)—it certainly has the advantage of elevating the general standard of taste. If the graphic arts are to be used in the service of trade and commerce, there is no reason why the best work procurable should not be had by those who can afford to pay for it. So far as ordinary printers are concerned, the largest and most profitable part of their work consists of advertisements in some shape or form; and as all classes of material—ornamental types, rules, and borders—have improved in recent years, and the machinery and appliances of the press-room have made equally important advances, the old and ugly style of advertisement cuts may be considered as entirely out of date.

Advertising vignettes are of various classes. In many cases they represent a manufactured product, such as may be seen in illustrated price-lists. Sometimes a tool or implement is represented, typical of a particular industry, as a plough for agriculture, an anvil for a blacksmith, or pestle and mortar for a chemist. Sometimes the vignette is a sketch of a workman engaged in one of the operations of the trade. To these may be added those more or less emblematic in their character—groups representing tools or finished manufactures; coats of arms in which these objects according to the rules of heraldry —a favorite style with our German friends. In this latter branch there is room for art and imagination of the higher class; and as examples we may mention the beautiful shields of the typographic and lithographic industries—the latter with its punning memorial of Senefelder, the inventor—a monogram sene on a field (Ger. field) or; and its admirable motto, Saxa loguuntur— « The stones speak. »

As in all other branches of the art, systematic arrangement has been introdvced in recent years into this department, where not long since all was chaos. For this, we are chiefly indebted to the Americans, the English houses—beyond one or two small series for news work—having made no attempt at systematic production of these ornaments. More than twenty years ago, Figgins brought out a neat uniform series, in 4- and 6-line minion, specially suited for newspaper advertisements. These are some of the 4-line pieces:—

It is worthy of note that the latest English series of animal subjects (Caslon) are from original drawings by Harrison Weir.

One of the earliest systematic series was that of the Cupids, brought out by the Johnson Foundry. There were thirty subjects in the set, and as they cost $1.25 each, the series was rather expensive. They were well drawn and engraved; and some of them were imitated —rather poorly—by Figgins. They are now out of fashion. Another old series, shewn both by Johnson and Bruce, consisted of nine:y blocks, of uniform size, at half-a-dollar, each representing a different trade—perhaps the most inartistic series ever devised. On a tint background was represented the appliances of the trade—not grouped, but muddled. The parallel lines of tint forming the background had somewhat the appearance of water, and the designs might be taken for tangles of wreckage in the ocean depths. The printers' emblem (5064) represents a composing-stick lying under the press, and a lye-brush and rollers flying through the air as if an explosion had taken place. No. 5031 (hosier), with a large pair of white drawers standing erect in the centre, and No. 5052 (tailor), are as ludicrously inelegant as anything ever devised. Bruce no longer shews the series; but in the latest book of the Johnson Foundry, two of the blocks appear, at the reduced price of 40 cents. No « live » printer in these days would think of using them.

Last year, the Johnson Foundry brought out twelve really original and artistic outline cuts, at 90 cents each. So far as we know, this series has not been continued.

In Bruce's book Rf 1869 appears a well drawn and engraved but very old-fashioned series of thirty-six blocks, 11 x 7 ems pica, one of which we shew. These have disappeared from the specimen-book of 1882, but two admirable new series have taken their place. One is a set 12 x 8 pica, 128 subjects, at $1, and the other 140 subjects, 8 x 6, at 50c. There is necessarily a considerable variety of treatment in so many different subjects, but in every instance the drawing is good, the grouping well arranged, and the engraving of the best. So far, these two are for all ordinary purposes the best series produced, and printers appreciate them accordingly. An example of the smaller series is shewn on the next page.

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The Germans prefer an emblematic or heraldic treatment, and the leading houses have produced several good series of this kind, which, however, have not found much favor with English printers. The latest of these is the exceedingly small series by Schelter & Giesecke, some of which were shewn in our supplement last June. In the German style, too, is the « Artistic » series of 32 designs by the Manhattan Foundry, New York, one of which (Florist) we shew.

No special instructions are required for the use of these ornaments. The general rules which govern composition and display apply equally well to trade and commercial work as to any other kind. And in this department, as in all others, the resources at the disposal of the skilled compositor are continually increasing.